I haven’t been writing, and I’m not sure why. It certainly isn’t because I’ve been too busy. Had a mildly entertaining and somewhat productive 3-day weekend (I took Patriot’s Day off): we saw “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind,” I made up a newish pasta dish, we hung a curtain rod and curtains in the office, I did some cleaning up and laundry, we took a long walk that included a stop at the B-Side Lounge for a gimlet and snack, and I set up the grill Kevin & Tomoko gave us when they moved — my first grilldown in probably a decade.
I also read The Minotaur Takes a Cigarette Break (not to be confused with Susan Orlean’s The Bullfighter Checks Her Makeup), an enjoyable novel by Steven Sherrill that describes what the Minotaur’s life would be like in the present day. (In case you’re wondering, he’d be a line cook at Grub’s Rib, an immortal who likes to fix cars and lives in a boat-shaped trailer in the Piedmont region of North Carolina.) The Minotaur (”M” to his coworkers and neighbors) is simultaneously resigned to his otherness with a wisdom borne from having seen thousands of years of changes, and craving some new connection. His self-consciousness about his lack of locution skills as well as his appearance will be familiar to anyone who’s ever self-identified as “shy.” The novel’s tone and themes remind me of Katharine Dunn’s superb Geek Love, without so much gothic creepiness, but Sherrill’s poetic ease and deft touches of humor and irony are his alone.
Finally: let this be a warning to those who might consider creating a Tron costume.
Re that Tron link: I’m scarred for life. Thanks. W/all that, and no one thought to tell him please wear some more substantial underwear please?!?