Author Archives: baileyalexander

Italians often thrive under chaos but they don’t like this war in Ukraine. You can see it in their cartoons of Zelensky. Pepe Escobar, in his latest doom piece warns “They haven’t even starting ratcheting up the pain dial”… and Pepe does report what the players are saying and Russia is saying this: “We doContinue reading “Draghi’s out, then in; maestros of misdirection”

Not trying to be cute, I have seen Italians recite Dante by the age of 9, even earlier. It makes sense as Dante did create modern Italian, as much as it makes sense these people continue to communicate within their own labyrinth of dialects. Which makes me wonder why I don’t run into many ‘intellectuals‘.Continue reading “Why play the intellectual when you recite Dante by 9”

Some are attracted to opposites when they choose a partner, or in my case, to someone fundamentally different. It’s not a bad idea. It can be a clever, albeit painful way to expand one’s consciousness. Of course few write about this better than Henry James does in “Portrait of a Lady” . In the bookContinue reading “A brain wider than the sky”

Weather’s getting hot, people are walkin and shoppin in bikinis. Young Italian girls and boys are adorable. German couples with their kids inspire tourist appreciation bc they’re so well behaved/opposite of the engish in amsterdam. Protocol’s floating away on the lake, it’s like Paris in August. It’s gettin messy and that’s just fine.

and butterflies too..

Gore Vidal’s 4 favorite words. I doubt he’d be surprised – almost happy he doesn’t have to see it, after all he saw us and chronicled us at our best. And he did suggest America was moving back to the Stone Age many decades ago. So No. Not such a great birthday for America butContinue reading ““I told you so””

When I posted this mini portrait by my mother on facebook a friend said, “Is that Joan Didion?” Don’t think Didion was the inspiration but this is how readers often feel when reading Didion. She writes in minor keys. She writes about death and pathological grief and she is concise. She finds the right keyContinue reading “The music in Joan Didion’s writing”