Posted in Latino/a Literature & Culture, Pop Culture, Uncategorized on Jan 5th, 2009 No Comments »
Today is Víspera de Reyes, the eve of Three King’s Day. If you are placing a shoebox full of cabbage beneath your bed tonight, chances are strong that you’re Puerto Rican (or Boricua).
Few celebrate the Christmas holidays as extensively as the Boricuas, whose traditions closely intertwine with those of the Catholic Church. Boricua Christmas [...]
Posted in Myth, Pop Culture on Dec 20th, 2008 3 Comments »
Kissing beneath a mistletoe, like most Christmas traditions, owes its magic to much-disputed mythology. Norse legend, a gnarl of Celtic, Roman, and Greek mythology, ties the plant to Baldr (also Balder or Baldur), a god whose tale is as disputed as any in late-northern Norse literature. According to Mortensen and Crowell in the recent Handbook [...]
Posted in Myth, Pop Culture, World Literature on Dec 15th, 2008 No Comments »
“Why I don’t know, but it was the best thing in New York City was to try to get to Bernie Madoff. And to make enough money so that you could get into Bernie Madoff…and everyone wanted to be there because nobody thought that they would ever lose any money.” Barbara Flood’s confession spilled [...]
Posted in Pop Culture on Nov 15th, 2008 No Comments »
The past three months only deepen my suspicion: depression-era art just might be en vogue. I noticed its mark in the fashion industry when I picked up a part-time sales position at a notable retailer. At first the 1930s revival only influenced the color palettes: muddy greens, murky browns, and steel grays. [...]
