Category Archives: Commentary

Opinion or analysis concerning whatever’s on my mind.

Signage

Posted on May 11, 2018 by JMN

Been Rode: Ain’t –> <– Done Poppy: Seed –> <– Cock For: Given –> <– Bidden Away: This –> <– That Do: Nothings –> <– Gooders (Copyright 2018 James Mansfield Nichols. All rights reserved.)

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The Carper

Posted on May 9, 2018 by JMN

“Less than one in three Americans support U.S. pullout from Iran deal” (Reuters headline). “FEWER than one in three…” would be better. “Less” qualifies something you don’t normally count: “less sewage.” “Few” qualifies something you CAN count: “fewer turds.” (Copyright … Continue reading →

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Listening to…

Posted on May 8, 2018 by JMN

Kizzy Crawford and Gwilym Simcock, “Birdsong” (album). The songs are in English and Welsh. (Copyright 2018 James Mansfield Nichols. All rights reserved.)

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To a Friend — Coding

Posted on May 6, 2018 by JMN

Terrific article. I like the analogy to cooking. It’s been used before. One of the practice problems posed in an old book of mine was to write pseudo-code on how to boil an egg. It helps grasp the notion of … Continue reading →

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Minor Pentatonic Scale (1) [7-6-2012]

Posted on May 2, 2018 by JMN

(a) I’ve adapted the above “box pattern” graphics from “Fretboard Knowledge for the Contemporary Guitarist,” Vivian Clement (Alfred Publishing Co., 2003), p. 11. I’ve put note names where the book’s originals have black dots. I do so fully realizing that … Continue reading →

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Listening to…

Posted on April 25, 2018 by JMN

Patricia Barber. I hear a lot of her music on my streaming sources. This amazing artist is prolific, and sings unfailingly fresh-sounding covers of standards, like the one I just heard: “Bye-Bye Blackbird.” Her vocals and arrangements and accompaniment are … Continue reading →

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To a Friend

Posted on April 23, 2018 by JMN

8-12-2012 “I need to return to it at a quieter time.” Lets have this understanding, though. Never give anything I send or link you to more than a moment of your time unless you really want to. And if you … Continue reading →

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Why Learn the Fretboard? (6-23-2012)

Posted on April 22, 2018 by JMN

I learned touch typing in high school and have used it intensively all my life. My dream is to enable my fingers to find the notes they need on the fretboard as automatically and unconsciously as they find the letters … Continue reading →

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Adventures in Toponymy

Posted on April 21, 2018 by JMN

King Mswati III of Swaziland proclaims that his country shall henceforth be called eSwatini. It means “land of the Swati” in the siSwati language that predominates in the southern African kingdom. The king has reigned for 32 years over one … Continue reading →

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“Lurchingly?

Posted on April 20, 2018 by JMN

I’ve read and admired Peter Schjedahl’s writings about art in the New Yorker for years. His recent article is entitled “The Lurchingly Uneven Portraits of Paul Cezanne” (New Yorker, April 9, 2018). The piece is unhelpful to me as an … Continue reading →

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