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Chipping away at my desk, listening to some James McMurtry. I’m struck by the literary quality of his songs. Like father, like son I suppose.
Beautifully broken in a time of absolute disruption.
Ruby is getting over her kennel cough - she’s ready to get back in the game!
Not since Trent Dilfer led the Ravens to victory in Super Bowl XXXV…
The game was a bust, but the halftime show was epic. It felt groundbreaking, both culturally and technically. It was a show in a stadium, but it was no stadium show - it felt as though it was produced exclusively for those watching at home.
Who would have ever thought a show preaching that love is stronger than hate would be controversial? That celebrating Puerto Rico and Latino culture would be political? Despite critics best efforts to “other” him, Bad Bunny’s performance was both unifying and life-affirming.
I didn’t know much about Bad Bunny before Sunday night - but now I know he is a brilliant artist who understood his global audience and the moment.
Our town’s small but mighty Academy Art Museum is definitely punching above its weight:
In celebration of the 100th birthday of groundbreaking American artist Robert Rauschenberg (1925–2008), the Academy Art Museum presents Rauschenberg 100: New Connections… Centered on the monumental, one-hundred-foot-long color photograph Chinese Summerhall (1982)—rarely exhibited because of its scale and fragility—the show offers an extraordinary look at Rauschenberg’s first journey to China and his creative partnership with master printmaker and Eastern Shore resident Donald Saff.
A new documentary short tells the story of the world’s longest photo.
For the past five years, a group of Baltimore’s best musicians rooted in the Bluegrass, Irish & Old Time traditions cross the Chesapeake Bay to share their talent and songs at Easton’s Avalon Theater. I look forward to their Across the Harbor show each year, and last night’s was another lovely installment.
Backroads winter travel.
I exhale every time I cross the Chesapeake Bay Bridge, returning to the Eastern Shore of Maryland. (It’s rare to see this much ice on the bay, though.)
Remnants of the storm. Still sticking around.
Gotta say, winter is getting a little old. Seems as thought we’ve got at least ten more days of Arctic air.
Every yard a skating rink.
Though treacherously icy, there are some beautiful remnants from the weekend’s storm.
We’ve got a good twelve weeks or so before spring really takes hold. Time to hunker down - physically and mentally.
But still, Ruby is shocked to learn an early forecast has up to ten more inches of snow on the way next weekend.
I understand what drives people to move to Florida.
Months ago, my wife and I planned a weekend trip to New York to visit friends. We made dinner reservations, bought theater tickets, and arranged breakfast and drinks (but not drinking breakfasts) with friends.
But we all know what happens to the best laid plans. The massive snow and ice storm sweeping across the country required us to adjust our plans.
It was too cold to wander through Brooklyn as we like to do - but fortunately we were able to get last minute tickets to the Monet in Venice exhibit at the Brooklyn Museum. See it if you can, but it’s only around for a few more weeks.
Fortunately, our theater tickets were for Friday night and Saturday afternoon. Our choice of shows covered a wide range. Friday night we saw All Out, a comedy show featuring Sarah Silverman. Saturday we saw Carrie Coon in Bug, a conspiracy-laced thriller written by her husband Tracy Letts.
When the Saturday matinee ended, we beat it back to Moynihan Train Hall and headed south. We arrived home about thirty minutes before the snow started to fall. We woke up to a few inches of snow and ice - and have watched it continue to fall throughout the day.
It may not have been the trip we planned, but it turned out well considering the weather, and we felt fortunate to wake up to snow instead of spending the day traveling through it.
The scale of the protest yesterday in Minneapolis was seriously impressive.
New York City showed its support with its own protest and march in support of fellow citizens in Minnesota. Democracy - and engaged activism - is not dead yet!
Wandered in to Mr. Boddington’s Studio in Brooklyn and found inspiration. I’m feeling the strong pull of analog in an AI-driven world.
Forecasters and weather nerds are excitedly tuned in to the impending “weather event” due to sweep across southern US into the mid-Atlantic. Meanwhile, Dani and are packing for a long-planned weekend in New York.
If this storm is as predicted, getting to New York will be no problem. Getting home… now that’s another matter.
It’s going to be an interesting few days.
Coming in for a landing.
On this Martin Luther King Day in the U.S., the moral arc of the universe may be long, and it may bend toward justice, but it sure takes its time and gives you plenty of reason for doubt. Just got to keep keep the faith.
As John Lennon said, “Everything will be OK in the end. If it’s not OK, it’s not the end.”
Looking for a Second Chance?
Yesterday I slipped across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge to have brunch in Baltimore’s fun and funky Hampden neighborhood. On the way out of town, I stopped in to explore Baltimore’s Second Chance store - a warehouse covering three city blocks filled with deconstructed building materials, donated furniture, statuary and masonry - just an incredible collection of the discarded looking for, well, a second chance.
Fans of The Wire will recognize this statue of Cecil Calvert, the second Lord Baltimore and first proprietor of Maryland. It was created for the show and would look great in your garden.
Other oddities and treasures are scattered through the enormous warehouse space. It may not be on a list of Baltimore tourist spots, but it’s definitely a place to explore, a place where every piece of inventory comes with its own backstory.
Gotta hand it to my wife - she’s prepared for winter.
