Portland's art calender is filled with poetry readings. From Port Veritas to Rhythmic Cypher, Portlandites can get their poetry fix a few nights a week. But what about us prose guys? Those of us who write and read in lines that wrap around the far edge of the page? You're right, we have Word Portland. … Continue reading Literary Death Match Throws Down in Portland
Fiction
The Breaking Bad Finale: 7 Reasons Why It Worked
There's no good way to end a highly acclaimed television series. The viewer's expectations are insurmountable, and most likely contradictory. We want the characters to live forever and get what they want, but if a writer does this, we'll complain that the end was cliche and boring. It's the great human contradiction: we want to … Continue reading The Breaking Bad Finale: 7 Reasons Why It Worked
A Philistine Considers the Question: What Makes Something Art?
When I visit art museums, I have to work hard not to be a cynical dick. I mean, real hard. My recent visit to The Museum of Modern Art in NYC was a test of my dickery. If you've been to MoMA, then you've seen some of the garbled junk that passes as capital 'A' … Continue reading A Philistine Considers the Question: What Makes Something Art?
Two Truths and a Whole Mess of Lies: Is there any Salvation for Mad Men’s Don Draper?
Sunday's finale of Mad Men's penultimate season showed anti-hero Don Draper commit two of the most evocative acts in the show's history. He told the truth. Twice. Well, that's evocative for him anyway. He's the ultimate liar. Here are some facts on his dubious nature. Fact One: His name is Dick Whitman, and he's gone … Continue reading Two Truths and a Whole Mess of Lies: Is there any Salvation for Mad Men’s Don Draper?
Nutella’s Assault on Writers and Husbands
There's a Nutella commercial on tv right now that grinds my effing gears. Click on the link to watch this domestic drivel, and then I'll tell you why this commercial makes pure anger run through my veins. Enraged? I wasn't the first time I watched it, but then the commercial kept playing, and, instead of … Continue reading Nutella’s Assault on Writers and Husbands
Concert Review: The Moth Main Stage Event at the State Theater (6.6.13)
The Moth is a storytelling godsend. For those who haven't listened to The Moth Radio Hour on NPR (Sunday nights at 7 on MPBN), here's how The Moth works: a storyteller takes the stage without any notes and tells a true story for ten minutes or less. Other than that, there aren't any rules. Their … Continue reading Concert Review: The Moth Main Stage Event at the State Theater (6.6.13)
Summer Reading Selections For The Beach
Summer in Maine is a cold IPA on the back deck of In'finiti. It's dreamy drives home from Crescent Beach. It's blue sky views from the top of Bradbury State Park that make you feel infinite. Most importantly for this nerd, Summer is reading beach-appropriate books. You know, it's tossing aside the dense copy of … Continue reading Summer Reading Selections For The Beach
Movie Review: Baz Luhrmann’s The Great Gatsby
My literary romance with The Great Gatsby dates back a decade when I was studying literature as an undergraduate. F. Scott Fitzgerald's lyrical prose wooed me. And his control of language and syntax continues to knock my socks off with each reading. His articulation of the seductive qualities of the American Experience is unmatched. The … Continue reading Movie Review: Baz Luhrmann’s The Great Gatsby
The Anxiety of Smartphones
I avoided the smartphone for as long as I could. As my friends worked their way from iPhones 1 to 5, I held on to my dumb-phone. I didn't take a high road hipster stance about purity or blah, blah, blah. I just saw the smartphoners crouched in coffee shops engaging with their phones instead … Continue reading The Anxiety of Smartphones
Mad Men Helps Us Grieve
There's no way Matthew Weiner and the other producers of Mad Men could have planned it. Two weeks after our country endures the Boston Marathon Bombing and the ensuing manhunt, AMC airs "The Flood," an episode in which the mid-century modern clad characters in the show grapple with the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. The … Continue reading Mad Men Helps Us Grieve
DAVE PATTERSON 