“In Calif., a stranger is a friend until he proves otherwise; in NY, a stranger is an enemy until he proves otherwise. One uses up a lot of energy in NY by that hypothesis.” –Susan Sontag, April 6, 1967 Notebooks and journals excerpted in the New York Times Magazine 10 September 2006
Author Archives: David Yamane
What’s Gangsta?
”I wasn’t afraid to be sensual and romantic. But I wanted to still hit you hard and make your body move. I just think that being honest is the most gangsta thing you could ever do.” –Sean “Puffy”/”P-Diddy”/”Diddy” Combs A New Sound For Old What’s-His-Name By SIA MICHEL New York Times September 10, 2006
Who’s Slappy?
“I’m a slappy, as Coach would say,” [Notre Dame quarterback Brady] Quinn said, borrowing a phrase from [Charlie] Weis’s New Jersey vernacular. “I’m just a college student trying to make it through Notre Dame, playing football. It’s weird that people see that as a celebrity. To me, it’s mind-boggling.” “A Student First, Then a Standout”ContinueContinue reading “Who’s Slappy?”
I’m Back!
I guess I took the summer off. I didn’t mean to, but teaching summer school wiped out 8 weeks, then I had 4 weeks to do 12 weeks worth of other work. A couple of brief points by way of getting back into things: 1. I (heart) Montreal. Spent a week up there with myContinueContinue reading “I’m Back!”
College Students and Whatever
“Senator Hillary Clinton is being criticized because she recently called today’s college kids lazy and uninformed. A spokesperson for college kids said, ‘Whatever, lady from TV.” –Conan O’Brien
To the Class of 2006
On the occasion of graduation, an excerpt from Alan Lightman’s novel, Reunion (in which the narrator attends his 30th college graduation reunion): “Young people explode with their discovery of the world and the newness of life. They sleep and sleep in their tiny cocoons, and suddenly one day, perhaps in one moment, as in theContinueContinue reading “To the Class of 2006”
On Writing
“Writing is manual labor of the mind: a job, like laying pipe.” — John Gregory Dunne (From the April 23, 2006 NYTBR review of Erica Jong’s “Seducing the Demon: Writing for My Life,” by Ron Powers)
5 Reasons I Like “Laguna Beach”
(In honor of D-Nice on his graduation) By “Laguna Beach,” I mean the MTV “reality” series, not the town itself. 1. The show is very easy to watch! There is only about 10 minutes of content per half hour show, none of which is at all significant. 2. The show is not only heavily edited,ContinueContinue reading “5 Reasons I Like “Laguna Beach””
Shopping for Faith in the American Spiritual Marketplace
Much has been made in recent years about the phenomenon of American religion as a “spiritual marketplace” in which individuals are consumers out “shopping for faith” that suits their religious or spiritual tastes. But how do we reconcile this image of a large and diverse marketplace of producers and consumers with the considerable conventionality weContinueContinue reading “Shopping for Faith in the American Spiritual Marketplace”
My Students Respect Me Enough to Tell the Truth
Recent interaction with a student of mine: Student: Did you try T’s tennis racket? Me: Yes. It didn’t feel quite right, though. It’s very heavy and at the same time very head light. Student: Well, Wilson is coming out with a new line of women’s rackets, aren’t they? Me: Thanks alot.