“Allen Ginsberg, after reading William Blake poems accompanying himself on a harmonium, led a packed auditorium in meditation, urging members of the crowd to let thoughts float away into the clouds if they intruded on their calm mindfulness. After a few silent minutes, a shout from the balcony pierced the silence: “I can’t believe you’re getting paid for this!” Without missing a beat, Ginsberg said, “Just let that thought float off into the clouds.”

Poetry from My Past, Miłosz on Hopper, The Same River Twice, Two Trees, Happy Birthday Duke.

“Footloose in the fiction aisle, you peruse and ponder, resolving to find a new author rather than continue your descent down the New York Times “Best Novels of the past 200 years” list.”

Blurbs, Martha Graham Dance Company, Orbital, Buster Keaton, Roberta Flack.

“These days, the book you want is just a few keystrokes away. But what about the book you didn’t know you wanted? Here, search engine efficiency gives way to fruitful meandering through old and new, current and long out of print.”

Winter shoreline, Downtown Books, Saturday Night, Fallen Leaves, Christone “Kingfish” Ingram.

“I was in the midst of a wooded path at dusk, moving through space, the guitar clear and chime-y in my ears. No musicians or boxy speakers in front of me. It was as if the music was beamed directly into my brain—blood-borne and mystical.”

Remembering the Walkman, Spotify’s Quest, 32 Sounds, The Work of Art, W.S. Merwin.

“While one of them was on display at Art Basel in Miami, it was untaped, peeled and eaten by a Georgian performance artist, who told the press, ‘I am a hungry artist, and I am hungry for new interactions.’”

Art Goes Bananas, The Perfect Couple, The Royal Shakespeare Company’s Pericles, Leonardo on PBS, Schubert’s Die Nacht.