Contemplating the beginnings of the Persian empire, I’m intrigued by Cassandane and Atossa, who seem to be respectively the wife and daughter of Cyrus II. Were they the means by which these first Persian emperors were identified as Achaemenid?, an i.d. of some pride that is still to describe those kings. It appears to be a family line that …
My webmaster tells me that he’s fixed a snafu that prohibited your comments from posting. We should be good to go now. My apologies for the inconvenience. I always love to hear what you think! Meanwhile, be well.
Ah, the power of the written word. Did you know that this phrase comes from the Bible? This phrase, which we use to tell that something’s sure to happen, comes from Daniel, one of the latest books of the Hebrew Bible or Old Testament. Today’s RefDesk.com quote of the day puts a new spin on it. Here’s …
Merrily writing blogs, I had no idea they weren’t posting (20 not published since April til now). Turns out the server for my blog had changed, though everything looked the same to me. Anyway, things should be set/fixed now. Thanks for reading! I’ve missed your comments and apologize for not seeming to be around pitching light …
I attended a great session at the 2010 VA Fest of the Book on the business of reviewing books. C-Span’s Book TV recorded it. I just recently watched it again, after receiving some very nice comments about the question I asked (Is it appropriate to thank a reviewer? – some said “yes,” others “absolutely not”). I was …
If most people don’t get the biblical references, why do the creators of popular tv, movies, music and lit still use them so much? Pondering this question over iced tea with a novelist, Ph.D.-candidate friend, we decided: it’s tough to say. Here are a couple of ideas that we bounced around: 1) Audiences do recognize the biblical …
Living as a nomad, it was bound to happen: I left my computer behind. Bouncing between cities (two) and offices (four) as I’ve done the past semester, I rely on THE LIST — things to do before leaving the house (empty the kitchen compost, e.g.) and things to bring (er, that’d be the computer, e.g.). The list works great… if …
Heading south to Petersburg (VA)’s Life through Lit Fest. It’s a book lovin’ day to spend in the park. Live music, free books, author chats, and yes funnel cakes. Come if you can (noon-7pm in Poplar Lawn Park)! It’d be fun to see you there~
Summer came flying into Virginia this year. Just last week, I was scraping frost off the windshield, and today they predict highs near 90, even in Charlottesville. So last evening, as we in the Commonwealth rotated away from the sun, I gave some serious thought to hanging out in the hammock or maybe paddling up …
Brief Meditation on House and Home, Private and Public Read More »
Wonderful to see so many people at the Charlottesville Barnes and Noble last Wed eve! As moderator David Bearinger noted, Winn Collier’s Holy Curiosity and my Bible Babel are very different projects, though both concern the Bible. The Virginia Festival of the Book (a Virginia Foundation for the Humanities event) has included panels on religion and spirituality in the past but not …
