Flying with García Márquez

I always remember Gabriel García Márquez when I fly. I’m usually very nervous and pessimistic before I board, so I find it helpful to think of a charming short story from Strange Pilgrims, a collection of stories. Since his passing I’ve read some essays about how the English translations are lacking. In a perfect world we would read everything in its original language and use a time machine to fully understand the historical context during which said text was written. Therefore, I don’t mind the English translations. I think Edith Grossman’s version of this passage from “Sleeping Beauty and the Airplane” is great and takes the edge off my upcoming flight. 

Le Corbusier and Saint Ex

Cool thing I read today: Antoine de Saint-Exupery, beloved author of The Little Prince (1943) piloted Le Corbusier over Argentina and Paraguay in 1929. This experience led Corb to ponder the law of the meander.

Two of the greatest creative minds of the twentieth-century, flying over expanses of South America fills me with wonder. I’m also bummed there are no photos of this event for “Awesome People Hanging Out Together,” because obviously this pair would kill it.

Books I Won’t Read

Okay, maybe I will read them. But I’ll probably spend as much time looking, holding, and admiring these little books instead of analyzing their content. Right now, I’m loving the Short Stack series recently featured on Buzzfeed.

Mr. Dunne Comes to Texas

With two lockdowns in less than two years, I think UT is need of some better news. If you’re not spooked by setting foot on campus I recommend checking out “An Extraordinary Life: The Dominick Dunne Papers” at the Briscoe Center. Spending yesterday afternoon among Dunne’s papers was definitely one of the neatest things I’ve done while in Austin.