Category Archives: arts

a question of aspect

Posted on Tuesday, 2022 October 25 by Anton

The refrain of P. F. Sloan’s song “Let Me Be” (recorded by the Turtles) concludes, I am what I am and that’s all I ever can be. Defiance or fatalism?

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toon trek

Posted on Tuesday, 2022 September 27 by Anton

A few years ago I decided, having got behind and lost the thread of my favorite webcomics, to start them over; and then developed a more quixotic ambition: to sample as many webcomics as I can find and, more daunting, … Continue reading →

Posted in cartoons | 4 Comments

more bent frets

Posted on Monday, 2022 July 18 by Anton

Some simplified meantone guitars (here showing only the first octave): pentatonic (GDAEB); seven naturals; three flats and two sharps; six flats and six sharps.

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31 frets

Posted on Sunday, 2022 May 22 by Anton

Here is the neck of a guitar that I’d like to have made someday, if I should ever develop the dexterity to make it worthwhile. The blue stripes show where standard frets would be, for comparison. The tuning is my … Continue reading →

Posted in mathematics, music+verse | 2 Comments

escapism within escapism

Posted on Saturday, 2021 August 14 by Anton

I recently read the Long Earth saga by Terry Pratchett and Stephen Baxter. The story begins in the near future when an eccentric engineer anonymously publishes plans for a “stepper box” which takes the user to a parallel world, adjacent … Continue reading →

Posted in prose | Leave a comment

Billy Budd

Posted on Monday, 2021 March 08 by Anton

Last night I watched Peter Ustinov’s adaptation (1962) of Herman Melville’s story Billy Budd. In 1797, a young merchant seaman is drafted onto a warship, where his sweet nature is admired by all except Claggart, the cruel master-at-arms, who resents … Continue reading →

Posted in cinema | Leave a comment

a wave in the air

Posted on Wednesday, 2020 December 16 by Anton

“Radar Love” (1973) is the biggest hit of the Dutch band Golden Earring. Some folks strongly prefer a cover (1989) by White Lion. I don’t; is there a reason for that, other than my notorious conservatism? White Lion’s version fills … Continue reading →

Posted in music+verse | 1 Comment