More Vanitas in the Basilica of Santa Maria del Popolo, Rome
This church owes much to Pope Chigi, who was really obsessed with vanitas and had them portrayed everywhere. In his
funerary monument
by Bernini
in St. Peters the gilded skeleton as Death brandishes an hourglass, and it seems that of death “he everywhere carved in the avelli and in the cup where he drank, and for everything he had images”. Chigi died at age 66 from kidney failure. He kept his coffin in his bedroom, and a skull carved by Bernini on his writing table, because he was always aware that he would someday die.
This could explain the numerous vanitas that are found scattered in
Santa Maria del Popolo. Surely it explains the floor of the chapel, a marble inlay depicting a winged skeleton supporting the Chigi crests. Designed by Bernini, it was probably the Pope who suggested the theme.
detail views of Death in Bernini’s monument to Pope Alexander VII (Chigi) - gilded bronze with the shroud of Sicilian Jasper - St. Peters, Rome
- May I pass along my congratulations for your great interdimensional breakthrough. I am sure, in the miserable annals of the Earth, you will be duly enshrined. The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension 1984 | Dir: W.D. Richter
It all starts with a nightmare, a terrifying vision of Jorbin Peterson at the bottom of the ocean with a talking lobster. Soon enough, Jorbin wakes and begins a fateful journey that will put his wildly inconsistent and belligerently hateful philosophies to the test, challenging everything he thought he knew about himself.
Now followed by a strange manifestation in the form of a handsome, shirtless lobster, Jorbin is struggling to find mental balance. Is he really the suave intellectual giant he sees in his head, or a deeply goofy bigot who’s utterly out of his mind?
No matter what, one thing’s for sure: Jorbin Peterson is an awful hang.
This important tale is 4,500 words of sexless self-discovery between a physically manifested humanoid lobster and a smug, self-important manic who uses vague, half-baked ideas and big words to sound smart when in reality he’s just a weird little guy and honestly it’s not that difficult to see it.
—-
new poundless tingler ‘JORBIN PETERSON IS NOT POUNDED BY HIS RAMBLING CONSERVATIVE TALKING POINTS DISGUISED AS INTELLECTUALISM BECAUSE THEY’RE UTTERLY MORONIC AND NOTHING MORE THAN HATEFUL, BARELY COHERENT WORD SLUDGE’ on amazon or patreon
<older man and older woman chatting amiably at a table, their conversation is just on the edge of intelligible>
Denise: Oh, hello!
Bill: We were just talking about you kids.
D: I’m Denise Heberle (HEB-er-lee)…
B: And I’m Bill Goodman.
D: Together we’ve been fighting fascism for over 50 years.
B: And so much has changed over those 50 years, such as the ingredients to a successful firebomb!
D (cheerily): And the glass that bank windows are made of!
B: But there’s one thing that hasn’t changed over 50 years, something that is so important to tell you kids who are new to this movement.
Both: Shut the fuck up.
D: You’re sitting in the police transport van after a protest?
B: Shut the fuck up. In a holding cell, with your comrades?
D: Shut the fuck up. Cop knocks on your door?
B: Shut the fuck up.
D: Texting on an unsecured device?
B: Shut the fuck up. Pulled over by the cops after a protest?
D: Shut the fuck up. Cop just asking about your day?
B: Shut the fuck up. Feds call your mom?
D: Tell your mother to shut the fuck up.
B: Now. Repeat after me. When the cops come calling, what do you do?
(Cut to Bill standing with eight kids)
Kids: Shut the fuck up!
(Cut to Card:
“Shut The Fuck up
A Public Service Announcement from
NATIONAL LAWYERS GUILD
Detroit & Michigan Chapter”)
Reminder, because people need to be aware of this even more now.
This is not about being arrested!
This is about, the officer asks you, “When you were at school on Friday, did you see anything unusual?”
This is about, the police knock on your door and say “we’ve heard reports of problems in the neighborhood; do you know anything about them?”
This is about, the police show you someone’s photo and say, “have you seen this person?”
This is about, the police say “you’re not under arrest; we just want to ask some questions. Tell me about your normal workday.”
All the advice applies DOUBLE if you’re under arrest. In that case, say NOTHING without talking to your lawyer.
But this advice is for “you haven’t been arrested and the police are just asking for ‘help’ and they’re fishing for info.”
Don’t give them info. You don’t remember the details. You’re not sure what happened. You don’t think you know that guy but maybe he looks familiar but you don’t know for sure; there’s a lot of people around here that look familiar. You didn’t notice. You don’t think you were there but you aren’t certain. You weren’t paying attention and you just want to get on with your day; can I go now officer?
And that’s if you feel like you have to answer them at all. If they’re not specifically asking you, don’t volunteer anything. ANYTHING. Not even to correct someone else who is botching whatever they’re saying.
There is NOTHING the police can offer you that makes it worth talking to them. They can promise you immunity from prosecution… but they won’t promise the same to your family or your friends. And they are very, very good at sounding like they’re promising something when they’re not. And they are legally allowed to lie to you: They can also say, “your friend told me you were in the room” when they didn’t, when they haven’t even talked to your friends.
Repeat: They are allowed to lie to you. But you lying to them is a crime. So don’t lie. Just dodge: You’re not sure, you don’t remember, you haven’t noticed. You can’t be certain, and you wouldn’t want to mislead them, so you’re very sorry but you can’t answer.
If you’re in a situation where you need to make a deal with a cop… get it in writing and signed by a judge or it’s vaporware.
But mostly: Don’t talk to cops. About anything. Ever.
With the Shortest Day upon us (in the northern hemisphere anyway), and the festive season in full swing, we thought it’d be nice to give folks a year’s-end chance to grab a whole pile of ebooks—more than two million words’ worth*—for not a whole lot of money.
As always, all our books are DRM-free
and can be moved from device to device at your pleasure. If your
computer or e-reader crashes, if you change platforms, or if you just
plain lose your ebook files, we’re happy to replace them for you free.
(And why not? You’ve already paid for them once. It’s not like we’ve got a
space program to support or anything…) And if you want to send one of
these packages as a gift, just email our support address and we’ll sort that out for you.
This offer will last only 72 hours, starting at 1700/5 PM GMT on Tuesday, 20 December 2022. So if you want to take advantage of it and get our whole ebook store for $44, here’s all you need to do.
Go to the following page and follow the directions—
(Our apologies in advance to our UK friends, whom we can’t include in this offer due to Brexit. More info about that over here.)
Meanwhile,
thanks for your interest! (And to those who decide to avail of this offer, thanks in advance for your support of small independent online
book businesses.** It’s much appreciated.)
*Oh, all right. 2,685,698 words…
**Especially from the author who’s going to have to go have a spinal MRI right after the New Year. Looks like a few decades spent in a typing chair can take their toll…
a protection medallion— and if the gorgon’s head doesn’t work, you will always have your teeth.
Personal art inspired by trauma and the many gorgons in the Met Museum open access collection (my favorite being a pottery stand signed by Ergotimos from 570BC).
