Essays and memoirs - click here for latest column and complete archive Political satire essays - click here for the latest column and complete archive Short bursts of mental activity Unsolicited opinions on an industry I love and loathe An Uncommon History of Common Things - book review (3/30/10) Routledge Dictionary of Modern American Slang and Unconventional English - book review (7/20/09) Most memorable albums of 1999 (I penned Built to Spill's "Keep it like a secret") (6/22/09) Make it Big! A 25th Annniversary Wham! Tribute (I wrote about "Freedom") (4/1/09) Grammar Girl's Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing - book review (1/8/09) Encyclopedia of Superstitions - book review (12/16/08) Semantricks and The Daily Candy Lexicon - book reviews (9/19/08) Confessions of a Falling Woman - book review (6/26/08) PopMatters' "TV on DVD": The Wire (10/12/07)