With 2017 drawing to a close and 2018 about to begin, I decided to take a look back at 2016 and spotlight the best (or most significant) blog post of each month.
John Hurt, a Reminisence – Sir John Hurt died, aged 77, of pancreatic cancer. I can’t say that what I wrote was profound, as it wasn’t. It was hard to take. January
Frank Delaney, A Reminiscence – The Irish writer and broadcaster Frank Delaney died, aged 74, of a stroke at his home in Connecticut. I was introduced to Delaney through an interview with Scott Simon on NPR’s Weekend Edition (I wrote about their radio friendship here), and I read several of his books and listened to his podcast on James Joyce’s Ulysses, Re:Joyce. I was as gutted by Delaney’s passing as I was by Hurt’s. February
The Fourth Doctor and the Curator: What’s the Connection? – Who is The Curator, seen in Doctor Who‘s fiftieth-anniversary special? A radical theory, inspired by Lance Parkin and Lars Pearson’s chronology of the apocrphyal Doctor Who, UnHistory. March
The Sights and Sounds of Wrigley Field – In April I attended Diamond’s Retailer Summit and (for a day) the C2E2 convention. While there, I also visited Wrigley Field for the first time in my life. April
Reflections on Ten Years – I celebrated my tenth anniversary with Diamond Comic Distributors in mid-May, and I took a few moments to reflect on that milestone. May
Things I’ve Been Reading: James Bond: Service – A review of Kieron Gillen’s James Bond comic book. June
(Mostly) Spontaneous Baseball Road-Tripping – A friend’s birthday party in Virginia led to a road trip into the Shenandoah Valley to see a baseball game in New Market. It was a lovely weekend. July
A Distant Family Tragedy – I discovered the strange and tragic circumstances of the death of my great-great-grandmother, Susan Gardner — in July 1902 she was struck and killed by her “demented” sister, Laura, in a fit of rage or insanity. August
Adventures in Off-Brand LEGO: Olaf’s Biplane – LiteBrix made some LEGO-compatible building sets for The Peanuts Movie. I built, and later modified with real LEGO, the Olaf’s Biplane set. September
A Vacation Day in the District – I took a vacation day, went to Washington, DC, explored Congressional Cemetery some more, had a nice lunch at a Mexican restaurant on Pennsylvania Avenue SE, and went to a meaningless Nationals game, as I’d been unable to acquire tickets for the Nats/Cubs NLDS. October
Life In Yoe – I didn’t expect to find a picture of the town where I live splashed across Facebook, thanks to a Boston Globe article on racial tensions in York County. As I’ve said, I may live north of the Mason-Dixon Line, but, culturally, this is the most southern place I’ve ever lived. November
A Christmas Song I Love – “O Holy Night.” Sadly, though beautiful and moving, the song is bereft dragons. December