Books - SB Hopper

This interview is not over

I wouldn't say I'm particularly interested in vampires. I like vampire stories, but in the same way that I like any good story. And Anne Rice's Interview with the Vampire was a good story, about Vampires. I vaguely remember the film and reading the sequels. I was more interested in

Read Watch Listen

The Irish were born for leaving...

...otherwise the world would have no pubs. It's a line in the trailer for Belfast, and I might have misquoted it. The movie looks fantastic, and I can't wait to see it. Black and white, incredible actors, and fantastic music. At least two of the actors were in The Fall

On the Road

Et Tu, Sacramento?

I'm behind schedule and tired. And still here. I must be due for a site renewal soon. If the site goes down, it just means I've missed an email. I was about to write that I've been driving through California's Inland Empire on the way to Oregon. That's partly correct,

Blog

Keep it up, Washington

When facing down a pandemic caused by a frightening virus, humility is key, especially when you're a blogger without any trace of scientific or medical background. But we're all allowed to discuss the pandemic, right? I think things are looking up in Washington. According to Bloomberg, Washington has administered enough

Blog

The intersection of Thomas and Treasure Island

(Note: I started this post a day or a week ago.) I had grand plans for a grand post. But now it's late, the day has passed. Thinking vs. doing. Scale back one's objectives, but don't fall to the level of bullet points. Never bullet points. My walks haven't increased,

Read Watch Listen

A dog and a slog

I finished two books this week, which I'm marking as an accomplishment. I'm not the reader I once was. A Dog's Purpose, by W. Bruce Cameron, and The Rebel, by Albert Camus. I understood all of one and very little of the other. A tail of two books.I'm trying

Blog

I need glasses to find my glasses

On most days my desk looks like a bowl of cable spaghetti. The cables are all black. USB this, lightning bolt that. My reading glasses are black. Black chameleons. I set them down and they become one with the cables. Shopping list - white or Ferrari red glasses. I'm taking

Late Night Musings

To Resonate

Weather apps are not to be trusted, not entirely. I skipped dinner. Late night my stomach was telling me, pleading with me - that slice from Little Maria's this afternoon just isn't going to cut it. I told myself that it would be best to avoid a late night snack.

Andrew J Bacevich

Spring Cleaning

Have you read Marie Kondo’s “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing”? I have, at least some of it. The idea appeals. If something in your home isn’t giving you joy, get rid of it. It’s

Books

On the Streets: Clinton on (the other) Capitol Hill

Hillary Clinton received an enthusiastic, warm welcome (and good weather) on 12 December 2017 at Seattle’s Elliott Bay Book Company. Clinton was in town to promote her book What Happened, a look back at the 2016 election. I walked over to Elliott Bay Book Company towards the end

Arts

Andrew McCarthy: Just Fly Away

On Thursday 6 April 2017, Andrew McCarthy – actor, author, director – visited Seattle’s Elliott Bay Book Company to read from and discuss his debut novel, ‘Just Fly Away’. The story is about Lucy, a fifteen-year-old girl who decides to explore some family secrets after learning

Books

Finding Common Ground in America

On 2 March 2017, authors Joel Berg and Matt Taibbi, both experts on American politics, took the stage at Town Hall Seattle to discuss their most recent books. They then sat down for a joint Q&A session. The event, Finding Common Ground in America, was fantastic to watch.

Authors

Short Takes: Countdown to Pearl Harbor

December 7th gets me everytime, much like the anniversaries of the JFK assassination, the lunar landing, and 9/11. It seems impossible to not reflect on how Pearl Harbor happened and what the country was experiencing. On the most recent anniversary of Pearl Harbor, I found myself thinking about how