THE SIGNAL from David Katznelson
“Our own age is not one which can afford to call its ancestors savage.” ― Poul Anderson
Our turkey is lost in a Fed Ex abyss. It was supposed to arrive yesterday afternoon, but it never came. It is our second Fed Ex package that is in some sort of overnight-night-after-night limbo, the other now being a week late and still “on the truck” coming “this afternoon.” UPS and USPS continue to run a pretty great schedule, getting our packages to us up here on the mountain timely, as promised (our UPS guy couldn’t be more energetic with good vibes abound). But Fed Ex is slipping. And in this case we are talkin’ turkey…a need-to-be-refrigerated item…a Frank Reese turkey at that, one of the oldest strains of turkey in America, raised in one of the most humane conditions possible
Reese was profiled in the incredible, albeit hard to watch documentary EATING ANIMALS which came out a few years back (not for young children). The film changed our eating habits: we now only bring meat into our house that is humanely raised, and we eat less of it. As life-long carnivores, the idea of supporting sustainable, mostly local, responsible farmers and getting superior, non-medicated, food is a big win. The kids are absorbing our newly educated ideologies as well, as we talk very openly about the differences between a Tyson product and a heritage bird.
You have never tasted a turkey like a Frank Reese turkey…but that is if our turkey comes, comes before Thanksgiving!
Booker Prize 2020: Douglas Stuart's novel Shuggie Bain wins
ARTS Documentary Tracks Charters ‘Searching for Secret Heroes’ of Blues Music
This documentary fell under my radar…and the trailer makes it look absolutely incredible especially when you think that Sam Charters has a huge stockpile of never-before-seen audio and video recordings of the greatest known and unknown American musicians. Just being able to taste a sampling of his recordings is an incredible treat, and to get to hear from the man himself…who died in 2015…hear about his back stories and thoughts about his work…is just exciting.
Joel-Peter Witkin reflects on controversial photography career
This in-depth article from a local New Mexican rag presents a unique look at a photographer whose body of work is as gorgeous as it is shocking. I got a chance to meet Witkin at a gallery opening in Los Angeles in the 90s, and all I remember was his intense eyes staring at me as we shook hands, eyes that have seen things that most humans shy away from. Eyes that have used cadavers to recreate scenes from classic paintings. Liberty Stalnaker does a great job checking-in with the photographer during this phase of his life…
The letter Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry sent to support Paul McCartney smoking weed
File this under: I did not see this story coming. All hail Lee “Scratch” Perry, the most wonderfully insane musician of our era.
The Gift Outright
By Robert Frost
The land was ours before we were the land’s.
She was our land more than a hundred years
Before we were her people. She was ours
In Massachusetts, in Virginia,
But we were England’s, still colonials,
Possessing what we still were unpossessed by,
Possessed by what we now no more possessed.
Something we were withholding made us weak
Until we found out that it was ourselves
We were withholding from our land of living,
And forthwith found salvation in surrender.
Such as we were we gave ourselves outright
(The deed of gift was many deeds of war)
To the land vaguely realizing westward,
But still unstoried, artless, unenhanced,
Such as she was, such as she would become.
