Christy DeSmith Of course, this will be a personal list. If you have a hankering to mention a particularly tasteful or -less gift of your own, please comment below. WORST 1. Body Fat Scale (from one fat ass to another?) On Christmas evening, after I’d had my fill of sugar cookies, at the most … Read more
I saw the ad recently when, after a long, tiring workday, I was passing the evening as I often do: Snuggled up to the boyfriend on the sofa, flipping through an issue of Vanity Fair, and only vaguely paying attention to the television. But then a singsong remake of “We’re Not Gonna Take It”—yes, the … Read more
This month, all sorts of lucky boys and girls are sporting shiny new electronic doodads, freshly delivered from Santa and other thoughtful gift-givers. It’s good timing: A hot-pink Motorola RAZR or aquamarine laptop does much to cut through the gray midwinter cloud cover, not to mention spruce up many a gloomy coffeehouse interior. In fact, … Read more
Don’t think all the Hillary Clinton hullabaloo has gone unnoticed by the likes of me. Truth be told, I’ve been very busy at work this work, whereas my inner life has been consumed by a rage caused, for one, by the MPD’s horrific, paramilitary-style antics, but also by the revelation that certain political conservatives hate … Read more
Part of the Walker’s Out There festival of experimental theater, this show, by a youthful New York City ensemble called the TEAM (Theater of the Emerging American Moment) defies rampant cynicism by presenting a work of resounding optimism. Set in Kansas, the action unfolds within an evangelical household. The parents have just been killed by … Read more
The History Theatre has hit its share of fouls lately—last fall’s production based on the life of Kirby Puckett was uniformly blasted, and the recent Hormel Girls had a lackadaisical score and a script wholly reliant on stereotype. But this institution also boasts a singular and noble characteristic: It commissions more original works by living, … Read more
Who better than Robert Bly to revive this cautionary tale of misdirected masculinity? Peer Gynt is the most deplorable of characters, a swashbuckler who, during the course of a single play, manages to desert his mother, cajole a bride into the mountains on her wedding night, get crunk with some hillbillies, and go on a … Read more
That first hit made my brain tingle. And so, a few days later, I found myself reaching again for the can of enriched oxygen—just a few huffs before heading to the gym. Normally, those initial minutes of exercise are somewhat skull-rattling. On this occasion, however, I bounced along the cushioned surface of a gentle high, … Read more
Last weekend, in the Sunday Times, one of the meatiest, most interesting Style articles was found … in the business section. I also liked the ETSY profile in the Times magazine, but that’s a different matter-one that, I’m afraid, nearly inspired a very long, boring post about my preference for receiving hand-made Christmas gifts. In … Read more
Whew, it’s been such a busy week as we’ve put finishing touches on our January issue (and we’re not done yet) that I almost forgot to tell ya: The Voltage 2008 designers were announced recently. (Yes, yes, by now it’s old hat … ) Here they are, in any case – a who’s-who of great … Read more