A Random Assortment

~ Patti Smith on singing at Bob Dylan's Noble Prize Ceremony

~ The Secret Auden--an oldie but a goodie. (Is that the saying?)

~ For Ilana (and because it's great): Early Modern Typography

~ The Last Bookbinder on the Lower East Side. (It's wonderful to learn about people who have found their purpose and are flourishing.)

~ What a great film; must re-watch: His Girl Friday.

~ Do we live in a utopia? (A bit of hope from The Economist) This part was interesting:

Unsurprisingly, these aspects of Utopian life have appealed to supporters of communism. (Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels themselves were dismissive, scoffing that “castles in the air” were not particularly useful for stoking revolutions.) 

~ Some great vintage bookplates.

~ Compellingly told: The problem with traffic camera tickets.

~ The Japanese Art of Grieving a Miscarriage--we clearly need some rituals, right?

~ The Pope on motherhood:

In our society, mothers are “the strongest antidote to our individualistic and egotistic tendencies, to our lack of openness and our indifference,” Pope Francis said.

~ "Electronic Baby Toys Associated with Decrease in Quality and Quantity of Language in Infants." (Like so many studies, this result is intuitive, isn't it? A friend told me she bought some pen that reads books to her kids. In addition to sounding expensive, this just sounds bad! There's nothing like cuddling and talking about children's books!)

~ "Why I Married Myself." This doesn't sound exactly like marriage--some of these women are also interested in having a partner who is not themselves. It sounds a little bit like plain old self-esteem and self-care, but why in the world do we have to call it marriage? It seems like a necessary thing for every person. It actually seems like just a coming of age ceremony.

~ Cornel West critiquing Barak Obama.

~ Marcus Aurelius' Morning Motivation

~ Alan Jacobs, wonderful, as always--and more personal than usual.