One must fight the pressing of the bummer button.
One must resist the ennui of the slowly-impending midwestern blizzard everyone keeps shrieking about on weather.com and in various emails to me.
One must make oneself read the Baudelaire translation of Poe one bought during a long walk across the entirety of the left bank in Paris, for 1.50 euros, quite a steal. So far it’s mostly about how whist is a better game than chess. I did not remember this being a big aspect of Poe’s tales–did Baudelaire add the whole thing? Wouldn’t put it past that guy. Did I tell you I found all these articles trying to prove that Baudelaire didn’t really mean it when he called Gautier “POET IMPECCABLE” in the dedication of Fleurs du Mal? Isn’t that hilarious? My favorite kind of scholarship (sort of true).
One must do one’s exercises. Richard (whose cat recently caught on fire) is apparently devoting himself to this exercise regiment from around the turn of the century, when men had teeny chicken legs and chests like massive barrels, all of it capped by oddly twisting mustachios and a stern expression. We are waiting for Richard to start looking like Sean Connery in his heroic period.
One must maintain appropriate perspective. There are so many people in the world, all of them unique and insane. There are bound to be overlaps both discomfiting and rewarding.
One must walk the snoopy.
One must battle sloth and malaise.
Two Great Words: “sloth” and “malaise.” Maybe I will name my children that. They will be twins and will found a great city.
One must have twins.
We realized the other night that we are the “Pizza Generation.” How is it that pizza never seemed funny before 1980? Is it all the fault of Raphael, Donatello, Leonardo, and of course Michelangelo? (The turtles, not the Renaissance artists. I believe the turtles’ names are just an amazing coincidence. (Although I have read that the historical Raphael was indeed “rude but cool.” (Isn’t it funny that Donatello “does machines,” rather than Leonardo, when the historical Leonardo is the only one of those guys who actually DID “do machines”? I am shocked that the creators of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles did not do better research (p.s. I was joking about this being a coincidence (the names)))))
My generation finds pizza amazing, hilarious, and wonderful, in all circumstances, from the literal (eating it) to the figurative (TMNT, jokes about pizza, the “pizza tacos” sign on the Venice boardwalk, etc.). One time we were walking down the street holding a pizza and a window on the 2nd floor flew open and someone yelled “PIZZA, WHOO!!!” and then shut the window. For a long time Adam was using the word “pizza” as an adjective.
THE PIZZA GENERATION. It’s true! Ask your grandparents–they don’t give a shit about pizza, and they don’t think pizza is funny.
When Chunk’s parents bring him a pizza at the end of Goonies.
TRIVIA:
The creator of Two and a Half Men wrote the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles theme song!!!!!!!!!!
TRIVIA!!!!!!!!!