Cyberflanerie: PEN San Miguel, Rachel Laudan, Russia, Stephen Woodman, Textured Chocolates, Barbara Hero

My January 13, 2015 talk for PEN San Miguel in Bellas Artes, San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, about my new book, Metaphysical Odyssey into the Mexican Revolution, is now a podcast. >>Listen in here.<<

MORE HISTORY

Food historian Rachel Laudan Takes on Tiny Bubbles

Russia Before the Revolution (in Color)


MORE MEXICO

Stephen Woodman's Mexican Labyrinth: Temazcal Adventure

TEENAGERS & THE YOUNG AT HEART

A Teenager's take on social media
(My reaction: eew. Yes, I have FB, twitter, this blog, a website, a youtube channel and podcast, all in service of and/or as platform for my writing which is, entirely intentionally, public. But the idea of living my personal life so intensely mediated by "social media" just curls my toes. Yeah, I'm old. The thing is, not every innovation is better or for the wise. In my generation, for example, television watching vacuumed up hours, weeks, months, years.... I mean, I don't think that on my death bed I will I celebrate having watched reruns of "Batman"... And cigarette smoking was the fashion, until it wasn't. I remember pet rocks, too. A lot of stupid crap. Well, but most people do what most people do.)

The Hands of Georgia O'Keeffe


TED TALK DU JOUR

Ruth Chang's TED Talk on Hard Choices
(Note to college applicants: this is a must see.)

NEAT BUT KINDA MYSTERIOUS STUFF

Textured Chocolates

Submarine Sandwich

Barbara Hero's Pythagorean Lambdoma Harmonic Keyboard

>>Your COMMENTS are always welcome.

Marfa Mondays #10: A Visit to Swan House

Listen in to the podcast here of my lecture for PEN San Miguel on January 29, 2013 in San Miguel de Allende's Teatro Angela Peralta, about literary travel writing in the digital age and-- starting at about 15:00--  "A Visit to Swan House," my article in the current issue of Cenizo Journal, about adobe visionary Simone Swan's mysteriously beautiful teaching house near Presidio, on the US-Mexico border in Far West Texas.

"A Visit to Swan House" is #10 in the 24 podcast series.


#9 Mary Baxter, Painting the Big Bend

#8 A Spell at Chinati Hotsprings

#7 The Marfa Lights: We Have Seen the Lights

#6 Marfa's Moonlight Gemstones

#5 Cynthia McAlister, the Buzz on the Bees

#4 Avram Dumitrescu, An Artist in Alpine

#3 Mary Bones on the Lost Art Colony

#2 Charles Angell in the Big Bend

#1 Introduction and welcome

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***UPDATE Jan 2014: "A Visit to Swan House" is now available on-line.

World Waiting for a Dream, Reading for PEN San Miguel January 29

Pinto Canyon Rd, looking towards Mexico

I'm reading for PEN San Miguel in San Miguel de Allende this Tuesday January 29th @ 6pm, from work in progress, World Waiting for a Dream... Lots of good reasons for that title, but I'm really bamboozled about the subtitle.

1. Travels in the Big Bend?
2. Travels Far West Texas?
3. Travels in the Big Bend of Far West Texas?
4. Journey in the Big Bend of Borderlands Far West Texas?

ayy, blimey

Maybe right now... #4

Who's the guy in the photo? That's Charlie Angell, Big Bend expert and expedition guide. Don't go snerging around the Rio Grande without him. Listen in to my podcast interview with him here.

>Read more, and listen in anytime to the podcasts-- so far 9 out of 24-- at Marfa Mondays.
Including interviews with rock hound Paul Graybeal, desert pollinator expert Cynthia McAlister, artists Avram Dumitrescu and Mary Baxter, and more.

>More about the event here.

I will probably talk a bit about Cabeza de Vaca, the ghost lights, and glorious Swan House. Hope to see you there!

World Waiting for a Dream: Travels in Far West Texas

The work-in-progress, begun back in January of this year, finally has a title: World Waiting for a Dream: Travels in Far West Texas. Of course, it opens with the arrival of Cabeza de Vaca in La Junta, a dreamlike sequence if there ever was one. I'll be reading from the manuscript and talking about travel writing on January 29, 2013 for PEN San Miguel de Allende. Stay tuned for details.

Meanwhile, listen in any time to the ongoing Marfa Mondays podcasts which, so far, include interviews with art expert and museum curator Mary Bones, artist Avram Dumitrescu, Big Bend wilderness expert Charles Angell, Chihuahuan Desert bee expert Cynthia McAlister, Rock hound Paul Graybeal of Moonlight Gemstones, and Yours Truly recounting some super weird experiences with the Marfa Lights. And... I've got several more podcasts in line to upload this month and next. There will be a total of 24 podcasts through the end of 2013 at which point I expect I'll have a complete draft of the book. Which may look nothing like the podcasts. A ver qué tal.

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