Lucid, Inescapable Rhythms

Been the kind of month what'll make a head spin. Mostly good times, but boy have they been whirring by!

Here's a rundown of just this past weekend:

Friday and Saturday I was at the Seattle U Workshop on Plato's Sophist that I mentioned recently. Long days, big ideas, and some great opportunities to sit and talk with some great scholars who I've been reading for years.

My talk seemed to go well, and I hope to keep up with these new contacts and get even more feedback so that I'll be able to get the thing published eventually. In the meantime, I've posted my handout for your reading pleasure. Still hungry for more? The Phil. Dept. actually posted a handful of the papers on their website. I'd just ask that you not quote or cite mine, since it's just a draft at this point. But if you do read it, I'd love to hear what you think!

Big thanks to Emily and Franklin for keeping an eye on each other while I was pursuing elusive truths all day!

Then on Sunday, we attended a wonderful baby shower in the afternoon and met up with some friends for dinner at Queen Sheba that evening. [UPDATE April 15, 2014: here's a new link to the official Queen Sheba website.] Aside from the surprise of a couple of spicy bites, I think it's safe to say that Franklin now likes Ethiopian food. And can you blame him? Yum!

Yesterday, we took that awesome little guy in for his nine-month appointment. Can't believe he's gotten so old so quickly! And of course everything looked good.

So, today I'm trying to catch my breath.

Actually had time to catch up on some music too. Absolutely love the new Mynabirds video:

So, as for the song itself, I'm not a huge fan of Sartre, but it is definitely charming that the refrain comes from an unsourced quote of his.

And I didn't notice it until I watched the video this morning, but I'm pretty sure that line about seeing a blackbird a thousand ways must be a reference to this great Wallace Stevens poem.

For what it's worth, I like VIII best of all:

I know noble accents
And lucid, inescapable rhythms;
But I know, too,
That the blackbird is involved
In what I know.

:)

That poem—and that stanza—now always makes me think of the time that Emily took me to see the contemporary classical ensemble eighth blackbird at the Lied Center at the University of Kansas. Seems like a lifetime ago, but I don't expect to ever forget the striking impression they made on me. Of course, we had to buy their CD on the way out!

In this spirit of creative association, let's close with a recent video of theirs:

Happy Thanksgiving, reader!