Mary Phillips-Sandy lives here.

Ha, so, this. I don’t condone crazed overreaction to innocent mistakes, nor do I “row with a lot of other women who share the same first name,” but I may as well take this opportunity to lay out the guidelines for using my nickname, which, if you have to ask “what’s your nickname,” the answer [...]

…whilst spring cleaning: The red canvas tote bag someone bought for me on the street outside the Bedford L stop Favorite Nivea lip balm Six (??) pillows Two large, authoritative-looking binders Two small, calcified piles of cat vomit hidden behind the furniture Three dust- and hair-covered cat toys hidden under the furniture An empty cardboard [...]

“Oy” edition: A week-long break from any activities involving typing or thinking or both at the same time A burger, medium-rare, with no condiments except charred onions Some quality time with the acupuncturist, followed by a nap A hovercraft Meanwhile, here is a picture of my cat pretending to be shy:

Right now, honestly: 1 part orange juice to 4 parts water, room temperature (cold things hurt) Rite-Aid brand “Non-Drowsy Head Congestion Cold DayTime [sic] Severe Caplets” My inhaler, or “puffer,” or “lung crutch” Kombucha, not that I’ve been able to find the kind I like in this fungusforsaken town, making do with some weaksauce oversweetened [...]

No no no no no: “tweeps” “tweetup” “twitterati” “commentariat” “apps” “Michele Bachmann”

YOU Or the Invention of Memory by Jonathan Baumbach and via Lauren Cerand’s brilliant New You Project Contemporary Economists in Perspective, Vol. 1  Part B, Henry Spiegel and Warren Samuels, eds. Prep by Curtis Sittenfeld (FINALLY) Captain Freedom by the aforementioned G. Xavier Robillard (with whom I conducted an interview, here) The Solzhenitsyn Reader: New [...]

Don’t be catty with people who post New Year’s resolutions a week after the new year starts. Don’t be catty with people who post New Year’s resolutions for you. They are just trying to be helpful. Get a library card if you don’t have one. Use it! Also, have a conversation with the librarians while [...]

Piece, when used in reference to something someone wrote and published: “Did you see that New Yorker piece about the soaring cost of pastrami?” No. No you did not. You saw the New Yorker story about the soaring cost of pastrami. Or the New Yorker article about the soaring cost of pastrami. Or the New [...]

Top 10 albums 10. The Mountain Goats – Heretic Pride 9. The Mountain Goats – Heretic Pride 8. The Mountain Goats – Heretic Pride 7. The Mountain Goats – Heretic Pride 6. Phantom Buffalo – Take to the Trees 5. The Mountain Goats – Heretic Pride 4. The Mountain Goats – Heretic Pride 3. The [...]