I’ve long held a rather unfashionable view about dear Glinda the Good Witch, and it’s high time I set it down in ink – or pixels, as the modern fashion demands. To me, she isn’t merely a fluttering pink confection of benevolence; she’s the most insidious sort of villain, the one who smiles whilst sharpening … Continue reading Glinda’s Bubble: A Study in Benevolent Bastardry
Tag: existentialism
Wankerism: A Field Guide to the Modern Fool
This afternoon I found myself once again wandering the countryside in the company of a dangerously attractive lady – the sort of woman who improves both the scenery and one’s vocabulary. There’s something about walking that encourages philosophical invention. The Greeks had the Peripatetics; we have the footpath and a thermos. And so it was … Continue reading Wankerism: A Field Guide to the Modern Fool
Strings Attached: A Jackdaw’s Lament and Other Human Follies
Buy Me a Coffee As I sit here in my lounge, nursing a cup of tea that’s gone rather tepid – much like the jackdaw’s ill-fated bid for freedom in Aesop’s timeless fable – I can’t help but chuckle at the sheer absurdity of it all. You see, I’ve always had a soft spot for … Continue reading Strings Attached: A Jackdaw’s Lament and Other Human Follies
A Very English Form of Possession – de la Mare’s, Seaton’s Aunt
I’ve always thought that the most frightening people don’t slam doors, rattle chains, or float about moaning like an amateur operatic chorus. They make the tea properly. They keep the house tidy. They speak softly. And they watch you. That’s why Seaton’s Aunt by Walter de la Mare unsettles me far more than any amount … Continue reading A Very English Form of Possession – de la Mare’s, Seaton’s Aunt
Not Bad: A Epitaph for Daisy Miller
In the end, they decided she was innocent — and that was all she was ever allowed to be. I’ve always felt that Daisy Miller is less a story about impropriety than about cowardice. Not Daisy’s — heaven forbid — but ours. Ours as readers, as observers, as members of those polite little tribunals that … Continue reading Not Bad: A Epitaph for Daisy Miller