Category Archives: Culture

What I’m Reading: Gabrielle Hamilton’s “Blood, Bones, and Butter”

I decided to “read” (i.e., listen to) Gabrielle Hamilton’s Blood, Bones, and Butter: The Inadvertent Education of a Reluctant Chef solely based on the blurb written by Anthony Bourdain: “Magnificent. Simply the best memoir by a chef ever. Ever.” As the author of what many consider the best memoir ever — Kitchen Confidential — IContinueContinue reading “What I’m Reading: Gabrielle Hamilton’s “Blood, Bones, and Butter””

What I’m Reading: Grant Achatz’s “Life, On the Line”

I had heard of but did not know anything specific about Grant Achatz and his Chicago restaurant Alinea prior “reading” (i.e., listening to) Life, On the Line: A Chef’s Story of Chasing Greatness, Facing Death, and Redefining the Way We Eat. The book is cleverly and accurately titled, as it tells the story of Achatz’sContinueContinue reading “What I’m Reading: Grant Achatz’s “Life, On the Line””

Men: Choose Your Car Wisely

From the Chronicle of Higher Education’s “No Kidding” Column (5/22/09): IS THAT A BENTLEY IN YOUR POCKET? Men who drive luxury cars are found to be more attractive than those who drive subcompacts, says a study published online in March in the British Journal of Psychology. Study participants were shown pictures of a model ofContinueContinue reading “Men: Choose Your Car Wisely”

Why are my students so DOUR?

Dour. If I had to use one word to describe my students, that would be it. Maybe I’ve already blogged about this. I can’t remember. But it bears repeating. On more than one occasion, I have looked out at a room full of students and yelled, “Why are you so DOUR? You have EVERYTHING!” IContinueContinue reading “Why are my students so DOUR?”

Sarah Palin’s Kids’ Ridiculous Names

I really am closed-minded when it comes to kids names. I like names that connect kids to historic traditions, rather than ones that signify the child’s uniqueness in the world. So, obviously, Sarah Palin’s kids’ ridiculous names are another reason I won’t be voting for McCain-Palin in November. Track, Trig, Bristol, Willow, and Piper. UsingContinueContinue reading “Sarah Palin’s Kids’ Ridiculous Names”

Frump and Circumstance

At the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association meeting in Toronto in August 1997, I was riding the escalator down into the atrium of the conference hotel with my fellow sociology graduate students Josh Rossol and Black Hawk Hancock. Black Hawk noticed alot of people milling around, so he turned to Josh and meContinueContinue reading “Frump and Circumstance”

What White People DON’T Like

I blogged earlier about the ever-more famous “What White People Like” blog. The popularity of the blog (and the impending book based on the same idea) has created considerable discussion/debate. Is the site a critique of Whiteness or a veiled celebration of it? Among the more entertaining (to me) and pointed comments is from theContinueContinue reading “What White People DON’T Like”

Stuff White People Like

I came across this site recently: Stuff White People Like. It is HILARIOUS. Just as an example, here is an excerpt from #91 San Francisco (close to my heart being from the Bay Area): Much in the way that white people in Brooklyn feel a strong and unfounded connection with The Notorious BIG, white peopleContinueContinue reading “Stuff White People Like”

Facebook, R.I.P.

A.J. Jacobs, in Esquire magazine, has once again published his year end obituaries. Among the sad deaths he notes for 2007: The Street Cred of Facebook, at 4 The street cred of Facebook, a popular social-networking site, died Wednesday in St. Louis. It was four years old. Born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 2004, Facebook gainedContinueContinue reading “Facebook, R.I.P.”