It’s almost mid September, and for every self-respecting, semi-literate Germanophilic Baltimoron — like myself — that can only mean one thing: It’s time to celebrate not one but two holidays: Der Tag and Oktoberfest. The latter, of course, is a wildly popular, mammoth festival held in Germany to promote Bavarian culture and its greatest contributions… Continue reading How to Host Your Own ‘Mencktoberfest’
Tag: books
Let Others Say It for You, Say It Best
Flummoxed. Faltering. Discombobulated. Inarticulate. Dumbfounded. Dumbstruck. Nonplussed. Tongue-tied. Tight-lipped. Laconic. Hushed. Speechless. In other words, dear reader, Scribbleskiff is at a loss for words this week. I’ve been so busy again, getting caught up in the rigmarole of regular life, managing (and being managed by) the important things, that I’ve been unable to get carried… Continue reading Let Others Say It for You, Say It Best
Of Poems and Promises, Meatloaf, Memories, and the Pleasures of Failure
No one likes to fail. And yet everyone does, every once in awhile. Falling flat on your face is part of being human, though rarely is it anything but terribly embarrassing and painful. I have enough self-respect (well, enough left these days) to know that not trying — a nonattempt, so to speak — is… Continue reading Of Poems and Promises, Meatloaf, Memories, and the Pleasures of Failure
Poetry Picks to Suit Your Better Nature
In December, a young man’s fancy doesn’t normally turn to thoughts of nature, or to the arousing (and consolatory) effects of it. Not in the usual, “greeny flower” ways, that’s for sure. That’s a spring thing. No, common thoughts of nature this time of year usually involve strategies to avoid it. Sure, snowstorms in a… Continue reading Poetry Picks to Suit Your Better Nature
Fathers and Daughters, by the Book
Recently, I overheard my girls singing the words to “Daughters” by John Mayer. This pleased me, but perhaps not for the reason you’d think. Although I like it when my kids sing, I generally don’t like them singing songs like that written by a guy like this. Nonetheless, I am a big fan of any art… Continue reading Fathers and Daughters, by the Book
A Triple Trifecta of Trivial Treats
Scribbleskiff is sitting in dry-dock for a spell. We’re taking some time away from the business of busyness to rest and clear out the scuppers, so to speak, to restock our supplies, chart new courses, and ready ourselves for the next adventure. For instance, we’re keeping our weather eye trained on the approaching, unusually large waves… Continue reading A Triple Trifecta of Trivial Treats
In January, We Say Hello & Goodbye
January is named for Janus, the Roman god of gates and doors, beginnings and endings. Often depicted with two heads — or, more unnervingly, with one head and two faces — Janus had the ability to look forward and backward at the same time. Which seems a fitting namesake for a month that straddles the… Continue reading In January, We Say Hello & Goodbye
Bottle #4: When a Beer’s Like a Great Book
This week, Scribblskiff is like CNN, except sudsier. In other words, we’re all beer, all the time. Why? Well, as mentioned previously here, we are celebrating “Baltimore Beer Week” and decided that a single post’s worth of palaver wouldn’t do justice to the scale of this second-annual event. As a result, we’ve been offering one brief… Continue reading Bottle #4: When a Beer’s Like a Great Book
‘It Happens Despite Me’: Learning the Lessons of Nearly Meeting Lucille Clifton
All too often, as I’ve come to discover, it takes the death of a writer before I finally take a serious interest in his or her books. Such was the case a few times in the past year or so. After hearing about the death of someone whose work I either knew in passing, such… Continue reading ‘It Happens Despite Me’: Learning the Lessons of Nearly Meeting Lucille Clifton
Finding the 'Wit' in Twitter
Hardly leading-edge technologists, we at Scribbleskiff are no Luddites, either. We try to keep pace with newfangledness as best we can, though our vantage point is often the middle, rather than the front or the back, of the pack. We’ve been faithful bloggers for almost two years now, for instance, though this still makes us… Continue reading Finding the 'Wit' in Twitter