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With Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. being remembered tomorrow in a special way across the nation, I went back to a prose poem written after a family visit to Washington, D.C., in the early summer of 2004, another presidential election year. We were months away from seeing Barack Obama make news with a…
Read More »James Whistler “Nocturne, Blue and Silver: Battersea Reach” – Whistler’s emphasis on sensation and atmosphere over detailed description has been compared by some to the philosophy underpinning Gardner’s whole museum. “I see the entire museum as a correlative to these shadowy tone poems,’’ wrote the poet and critic Wayne Koestenbaum…
Read More »My brother Richard often stops by my home to drop off an interesting item he has found along the way in his travels, often a photocopy of a news article or a brochure that is not to be missed. Yesterday, he unfolded a large piece of paper that turned out…
Read More »We called those round things records when I was growing up. For Christmas, I was the lucky recipient of a TEAC CD Recorder with Turntable/Cassette Player. A nice machine. I thought it would be fun to make my own discs of select LPs and cassette tapes that have been mothballed…
Read More »Whether its being propelled by citizens who want change or the media that wants controversy, a discussion of whether Lowell should switch to a strong mayor form of government broke out this week. I wrote a blog post, In Defense of Plan E last Saturday, then discussed it on City…
Read More »Jim Peters contributes the following essay: My now New Hampshire brother, Tom and I , have been traversing the city and surrounding countryside as we pick up leaves as part of my landscaping business. It is a very interesting exercise because Tom remembers the location of every tree that was…
Read More »A picture of Armand P. Mercier who passed away today. Armand is in the front right of this photo wearing a blue sports jacket and a great smile. Joining him in the photo are the members of the Lowell City Council elected in November 1999 on Inauguration Day in January…
Read More »[youtube]NXr5BQ6Ywv8[/youtube] The MRT has released a new trailer for its latest production, “The Voice of the Turtle” which runs from January 5 through January 29. Here’s what the MRT writes about the play: The Voice of the Turtle by John Van Druten runs through January 29 at Merrimack Repertory Theatre.…
Read More »Dick’s post about changes in journalism applies in many respects to what has been happening in the publishing sector (books and magazine and e-pubs) since the 1960s, when the mimeograph machine made it easier to mass-produce written material. Remember those school test papers in faint purple ink? Editors, writers, and…
Read More »This morning at 10 I’ll be speaking at the Chelmsford Public Library at 25 Boston Road about the coming of the American Civil War. The talk is free and open to the public so please join us if you’re able. More information is available on the library website.
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