quickbites

vs naipaul, valetudinarian

VS Naipaul: The Long Arrival, by Robert McCrum. Good long two part piece on the man widely considered to be both the greatest writer in the English language and a total jerk; it makes me feel even guiltier than usual for not having gotten around to reading any of his work yet. Really though I am posting this mainly to say that you kind of really have to love a country in which a writer can just use the word “valetudinarian” in a newspaper and not have their editor change it or make them explain it, just letting it sit in context. Vive la reine!

my perfect computer

“The recent launch of the MacBook Air has made me think a lot about my perfect computer, which the Air is not. (…) It has a special mode so you can safely use it on an airplane during takeoff or landing, and you don’t have to take it out of your bag when you go through security because the people at the FAA love it so much. If you have writer’s block, it comforts you.” I love all geegaw.com posts but this is my favorite one in a really long time.

conan o’brien’s writers strike diary

Conan’s Strike Diary: “DAY 12 Tragedy! A power surge fries my DVR, destroying my meager larder of scripted shows. With little to sustain me, I am forced to subsist entirely on Reality Television. I gorge myself on marathons of The Real Housewives of Orange County and Flavor of Love, then collapse in a wretched heap. If this is living, I welcome death.”