the contextual life

Nov 21

“Any fool can write a novel but it takes real genius to sell it.”—J. G. Ballard

“Any fool can write a novel but it takes real genius to sell it.”—J. G. Ballard

“His look scuttled over her like the feet of running insects. She shivered. ‘This is our night to dream dreams and see visions, baby. You and me together.’” The Girls in 3-B / Valerie Taylor

“His look scuttled over her like the feet of running insects. She shivered. ‘This is our night to dream dreams and see visions, baby. You and me together.’”

The Girls in 3-B / Valerie Taylor

Nov 18

“They arranged their faces into the expression of bored tolerance worn by fashion models, and got to their feet” The Girls in 3-B / Valerie Taylor

“They arranged their faces into the expression of bored tolerance worn by fashion models, and got to their feet”

The Girls in 3-B / Valerie Taylor

In true Sontag style …  picadorbookroom: Aphorisms are rogue ideas. Aphorism is aristocratic thinking:  this is all the aristocrat is willing to tell you: he thinks you should get it fast, without spelling out all the details.  Aphoristic thinking constructs thinking as an obstacle race:  the reader is expected to get it fast, and move on.  An aphorism is not an argument; it is too well-bred for that.  To write aphorisms is to assume a mask—a mask of scorn, of superiority. From As Consciousness is Harnessed to Flesh: Journals and Notebooks, 1964-1980, by Susan Sontag. Farrar, Straus & Giroux, page 512. This quotation is from 1980.

In true Sontag style … 

picadorbookroom:

Aphorisms are rogue ideas. Aphorism is aristocratic thinking:  this is all the aristocrat is willing to tell you: he thinks you should get it fast, without spelling out all the details.  Aphoristic thinking constructs thinking as an obstacle race:  the reader is expected to get it fast, and move on.  An aphorism is not an argument; it is too well-bred for that.  To write aphorisms is to assume a mask—a mask of scorn, of superiority.

From As Consciousness is Harnessed to Flesh: Journals and Notebooks, 1964-1980, by Susan Sontag. Farrar, Straus & Giroux, page 512. This quotation is from 1980.

Nov 17

Robot tea infuser [via]

Robot tea infuser

[via]

Nov 16

[video]

Exploring Greenwich Avenue in the West Village [more]

Exploring Greenwich Avenue in the West Village

[more]

Nov 15

LEGO Model Of New York City, Based On Google Maps’ Satellite Imagery [via]

LEGO Model Of New York City, Based On Google Maps’ Satellite Imagery

[via]

Nov 13

The Map and the Territory / Michel Houellebecq

The Map and the Territory / Michel Houellebecq

[video]

Nov 11

Crash Course in Western Top Westerns of All Time (film) Western Fiction: an overview (books) List of TV Westerns (tv)  Famous Western Actors (film) Western Authors (books)  Popular Cowboy Movies (film)  Top Ten Western Novels (books)  Ten Best Western Movie Soundtracks (music) Twenty Movie Cowgirls (film) 

Crash Course in Western

“People, they want real advice as much as they want real responsibility: not at all. The only thing to do is smile and pat them on the back. Listen to them, encourage them. People don’t want to be understood anyway, they want to be excused. Or forgiven. For their own transgressions or incompetence. In fact, most of the time when people ask for understanding, they’re really begging you not to see the obvious. Not to understand. To misunderstand. To keep believing the lies they’re telling themselves. That’s what I think.” — I Wish There Was Something That I Could Quit / Aaron Cometbus

[video]

Nov 10

Writing a review of Cometbus and remembering my old zine from college, The Growing Upheaval.

Writing a review of Cometbus and remembering my old zine from college, The Growing Upheaval.

Nov 08

35 Headboard Ideas To Improve Your Bedroom Design [via]

35 Headboard Ideas To Improve Your Bedroom Design

[via]