To draw no envy

For some years after watching the movie "Anonymous", I thought very little about it. It was a crank theory, but fun. After reading about the recent debates around DaVinci's painting attributions and Van Gogh's sketchbook, I dove back in. I was driven in part by the modern conspiracy theories and how they trap people in …

At Eternity’s Gate

When I was a school-kid I remember a whole unit involving Van-Gogh. We saw some of his work in a museum, and we each had to produce our own version of Starry-Night. I've often thought back on this as a special kind of childhood lesson that put a fine point on things: that this was …

Arthur / Aladdin / Anniversary / Analysis

Today is the 40th anniversary of the release of "Arthur", July 17th of 1981. It's basically an unknown film today, but it did ok, it made 100 million dollars for Warner Bros, and it was nominated for 4 oscars, winning 2. One Oscar was for this dumb song that'll be in my head all day: …

Breaking NEWS! Covid jab grows bigger boobs, bigger dicks

I just got off the phone with a huge billionaire investor. This guy is the elite of the elite. I think he might actually be Q. He swore me to secrecy, but didn't invest, so I figure there's no harm in giving this one away. Turns out Pfizer was originally working on a new sex-enhancement …

Earth is a Nature Preserve

Known sci-fi plot list: ContemporaryAliens are among us (Alien Nation)Aliens are among us -secretly (MiB)Aliens have been watching TV (GalaxyQuest, Explorers, Futurama, The Abyss)Super Scientist saves everyoneSuper Scientist goes crazy, must be stoppedSuper Scientist has ennui and seeks adventure and family grounding (Rick and Morty)Parallel world (Man in the high castle)Parallel world: non-human earth cultureNazis …

Oped/Letter

Date: Thu, 8 Apr 2021 10:24:59 -0400Subject: We should stop giving 2 doses of the vaccineFrom: Erik SaxTo: letters@washpost.com, oped@latimes.com, oped@seattletimes.com, ctc-comment@tribpub.com, columns@denverpost.com, oped@miamiherald.com, opinion@startribune.com, edit.features@wsj.com, opinion@nytimes.com When they tested this new (Pfizer/Biontech) vaccine, they looked at a crosssection of people. Some of that group got a vaccine, some got a placebo,and some got nothing. …

So your friend wrote a book

Your dumb friend wrote a dumb book. Even worse, they're self publishing. Oh no. It's ok. I'm here to help. Scroll down to the bottom for the TL;DR (too long; didn't read) It doesn't matter if it's good or not. It's a betrayal. There's now a whole bunch of unspoken feelings to feel. Do they …

Simple gifts

My mother in law died of Alzheimer's this year. Before all that started I think it would have been fair to say she was a difficult giftee. I can't think of a single gift I got her, not that I've been the best gift giver either. I'm sure I got her something vague, like chocolate …

The Tower: Fear (part 1)

This is the first entry in this series, the prologue explaining this project can be found here. Sitting in a cafe, paying attention to your own world, it’s hard to see all the things that make people different. As Suzanne looked around at other people she wondered who else was on a date, who was …

The Tower: Secrets (Prologue)

When I was a little kid I saw someone who could bend their thumb all the way backward, “double jointed” and it seemed like an amazing trick. I realized I could slowly stretch the tendon in my thumb by repeatedly working on it, and it wasn’t very long before I could do this parlor trick …