June 25, 2009
Posted at 11:28 AM in Housekeeping
It has been busy around here: a podcast about Google Book Search to record, two AAUP conferences to cover (profs and presses--the American Association of University Professors and the Association of American University Presses), two feature stories and a Hot Type column to wrap up, and a guest-blogging stint for Bookslut (this week--come visit). I've also got a couple of extra-curricular writing projects in different stages of development, plus the family, cats, house, and garden to tend to. The usual delightful madness. If somebody would go ahead and invent self-folding laundry, it would really help me out.
If you follow such matters, you can find my AAUP coverage here (profs) and here (presses) and my latest Hot Type here. (Subscription required--sorry.) More on features and extracurriculars when the time is ripe.
June 9, 2009
Posted at 2:47 PM in Word Choice/Choice Words
It occurred to me the other day that it's become refreshing to hear someone drop a good old-fashioned cliche. Put the cart before the horse. Make a mountain out of a molehill, please. Let the wheels come off the wagon. (Just don't throw me under the bus.) Why? I think it has to do with the virtualization--ugly word, sorry--of everything. Spend too much time pondering abstractions like "knowledge production" and "the dissemination of research" and you begin to long for something concrete to hang onto. Phrases that used to feel worn smooth, like rubbed-out pennies, have texture again, if you bother to stop and think about them. Most of us in big-city America don't see carts or horses very often, and when we do they're a surprise. I like being reminded, even tangentially, that such things exist, and that somewhere, if the sun's shining, I could make hay. In a field. A real field. Where things grow.
What are the digital era's most obnoxious--or lovely--cliches? Got any favorites, old or new? I'd love to hear them.
June 3, 2009
Posted at 10:56 AM in Net Life
1. You're hungry.
2. You're sleepy.
3. You have figured out what you're having for dinner.
4. You haven't figured out what you're having for dinner.
5. You've read an article that every third person online has already read/blogged about/tweeted.
6. Your email/ISP/Web site/smartphone is giving you trouble.
7. It is raining where you are.
8. It has stopped raining where you are.
9. You're getting a lot done!
10. You really could be getting more done.
If you can point me toward a conversation, an article, a book or an idea I'm not likely to see otherwise, though, I will follow you to the ends of the Internet. A good old-fashioned laugh is always welcome, too.
June 1, 2009
Posted at 9:30 AM in Publish or Perish
When word got out in early May that Louisiana State University might slash its press's subsidy as a result of the state's budget contraction, Michael V. Martin, chancellor of the Baton Rouge campus, issued a brief written statement. For those who admire the press, it was not very reassuring:
"We hope the governor and our legislature will provide sufficient funding to maintain support of LSU Press, as it is a very valuable asset to this university, the people of the state, and many beyond," Mr. Martin said. "We face, however, extraordinary economic conditions, and we must protect the academic core of LSU first and foremost."
Anyone who cares about university presses should pay close attention to Mr. Martin's choice of words. His statement makes it plain that being a "valuable asset" no longer guarantees a press a secure place in the "academic core" of its parent institution. These days, that can be a fatal degree of separation.
