Monthly Archives: May 2021

To China and Back

Posted on May 18, 2021 by JMN

In 1922, Lin Shu translated the first part of “Don Quixote” into classical Chinese. It was published as “The Story of the Enchanted Knight.” Lin Shu knew no Spanish, nor any other western language. A friend who had read two … Continue reading →

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Police Haiku

Posted on May 16, 2021 by JMN

Behold and lo. What?Fire. Ready. Aim. Oh my god.Turn on body cam. Versión castellana: ¿Qué es esto? ¡Coño!Balazos. Hostia.Ponte las gafas. (c) 2021 JMN — EthicalDative. All rights reserved

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Ni pintado.

Posted on May 16, 2021 by JMN

La Ribera. Ni pintado. La luz cae y se levanta una ligera brisa. Solo se escucha el sonido de la corriente y el alboroto de las ranas. This goes out to those tadpoles in your pond, Alba. “Luz, brisa, sonido, … Continue reading →

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Vuelta a ellas.

Posted on May 16, 2021 by JMN

Arbusto en flor. Vuelta a ellas. Las flores o árboles siempre son una buena opción cuando no tienes oportunidad de fotografíar otras cosas. Besides being a lovely photo by Carmac, this caption merits your attention for the Spanish conversations we’re … Continue reading →

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What It Means

Posted on May 15, 2021 by JMN

The so-called ‘ethical dative’ or ‘dative of interest’, where the use of an indirect object pronoun expresses the involvement of the subject in the action of the verb, intensifies such feelings as sadness, happiness and mockery. Ten cuidado, y no … Continue reading →

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The Rock Pile

Posted on May 14, 2021 by JMN

Dwight Garner’s review of a new biography of Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings* evokes a foible-wracked genius: It’s a pleasure to meet this cursing, hard-drinking, brilliant, self-destructive, car-wrecking, fun-loving, chain-smoking, alligator-hunting, moonshine-making, food-obsessed woman again on the page. The passage that hits … Continue reading →

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Neruda LXXXII

Posted on May 12, 2021 by JMN

[LXXXII]Amor mío, al cerrar esta puerta nocturnaMy love, on closing this nocturnal doorte pido, amor, un viaje por oscuro recinto:I ask, love, for a voyage through dark environs:cierra tus sueños, entra con tu cielo en mis ojos,shut your dreams, come … Continue reading →

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‘A Beautiful, Pathetic Object’

Posted on May 10, 2021 by JMN

It’s a pleasure to meet William T. Wiley, who moved and shook in a West Coast “funk art” scene while steering clear of wealth and fame. It’s no surprise that agreement on what exactly defined the funk art movement was … Continue reading →

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Resistance Is Futile…

Posted on May 9, 2021 by JMN

… when it comes to quoting Matthew McConaughey. “I’ve found that a good plan is to first recognize the problem, then stabilize the situation, organize the response, then respond.” “Knowin’ the truth, seein’ the truth and tellin’ the truth are … Continue reading →

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Messing With Space

Posted on May 6, 2021 by JMN

Like a pig rooting for truffles I harvest luscious phrases from Roberta Smith’s art critiques. After “he jumped on the Color Field painting bandwagon,” Jules Olitski (1922 – 2007) created works that “mess with space and scale in a visceral, … Continue reading →

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