Newtopia Magazine
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NewLiteratureLab: In Search of God
The whistle of the train lingered long enough to disturb the calm in the city. After being away for so many years, I felt like a stranger returning to my hometown. It was an early morning in January. I wrapped a scarf around my neck, headed out of the station and walked towards my home. … Continue reading
Kitchen Witch: Reviving the Still Room Tradition
One evening while riding the bus through the dampened streets of Santa Monica I was leafing through an old copy of Herb Quarterly Magazine and came across an article on “still-room” books. In the old days, before the advent of professional doctors and hospitals, women were the sole gatekeepers of their family’s health. If a … Continue reading
7 Keys to Rembrandt’s Secret
Rembrandt is unquestionably one of the most famous and beloved artists of all time. His work has been scrutinized for centuries with fascinating books on just about every aspect of his career including such titles as: Rembrandt’s Nose, Rembrandt’s Eyes, Rembrandt’s Reading, Rembrandt and the Female Nude, Rembrandt’s Jews, and The Rembrandt House just to … Continue reading
A Poet’s Progress: Will the Ox Lie Down with the Snake? Beijing, Day Three / Several Flash Forwards
Belly, Folk Dancer, Along the Yangtze River, China Introduction My column over the last two months was given over to special, timely columns, and this one returns us to my third day in Beijing. I have grown close to Xi—our 26-year-old traditional landscape painter and Buddhist tour guide from Chengdu—on our walks after dinner. This … Continue reading
The Sacred Songs of Orpheus IV: Ares to Death
From the God of War through the Furies to Death himself, the final cycle of hymns, stands in stark contrast to the erotic splendors of Series III. The Muses, Hygeia, Hestia, Hephaestos, some of the most powerful forces are encountered now, perhaps in the exhaustion of nightlong celebration of the gods. I add here several … Continue reading
Letter From the Editor: Paying Attention to Things That Really Matter
My Blue Femme Painting for J. I received notice this week that a painter friend of mine had passed away. I was one of the few, sworn to secrecy, who knew it was coming. I met J. when we both lived in the California desert and were respectively embarking on our painting careers. We were … Continue reading
ARCHIVES: The Politics of Diversity
(This piece, part one of a serial, first appeared in the September 2002 issue of Newtopia Magazine. It was originally written in the Spring of 1993 shortly after the World Trade Center was bombed for the first time.) 1993 was my first post-collegiate, post-partum year, but I spent most of it trying to grasp the … Continue reading
ARCHIVES: War of the Words
(This article was first published in the July 2002 issue of Newtopia.) UNDERSTANDING THE LANGUAGE OF NEO-MACCARTHYISM IN AMERICA “We’ve been here before. From the Alien and Sedition Acts to Lincoln’s suspension of habeas corpus and his imprisonment of anti-war editors, from the suppression of speech during World War I and the Palmer Raids to … Continue reading
ARCHIVES: A Vision of Newtopia 1,2 and 3
(This article originally appeared in the July 2002 issue Newtopia) 1. One Nation Under Jesus The Associated Press, June 27, 2002 – President Bush today called a federal appeals court ruling that challenged the constitutionality of the Pledge of Allegiance “out of step with the traditions and history of America” and promised to appoint judges … Continue reading
A Poet’s Progress: Arriving in Beijing
Moat, Forbidden City, Beijing Day One: Arriving in Beijing When the sun stands at mid-day it begins to set; when the moon is full it begins to wane…. How much truer this is for men…. —Commentary on the 55th Hexagram of the Book of Changes The more cold gets into the river the slower it … Continue reading
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