in search of a dream to call home
Guess what came out of my mailbox today? My copy of Bridges, the alumni magazine for Brigham Young University’s Kennedy Center for International Studies. And guess what I found on page 14? An article about the Tunisian Revolution. Written by me.
If you’re a regular reader of this blog, you’ve probably already heard what I have to say about Tunisia. But if you think it’s as cool as I think it is to see my name in print, you can access the online version here.… Read more
One of the fun things about having a blog is seeing which search terms lead people to Casteluzzo.
I had no idea I was an “authority” on so many bizarre topics. Whenever I need a good laugh, I just open up my google analytics. So here, for your reading pleasure and edification, is a somewhat annotated list of some of the latest queries.
“why can’t people eat non newtonian fluids”
Because they come from another dimension. Also, the mouth-feel is too chalky.
“how to pronounce grishnakh”
In Italian Orkin or Tunisian Orkin?
“weirdos outside buckingham palace”
Each place seems to have a particular style when it comes to bumper stickers. In Utah, I mostly remember the kind that show off how many kids (and pets) people had, and a lot of “my child was student of the week . . .” When we spent a year in Washington during the Bush era, I saw endless variations on “War is not Pro-Life” and “A Village in Texas is Missing its Idiot.” Despite Italy’s low birthrate, the favorites there seemed to be the little yellow pseudo road signs suction-cupped to the window and proclaiming, “bebe a bordo.” Bumper stickers in San Diego are mostly anathema, due to everyone’s cars being too nice.… Read more
I absolutely cannot stop listening to this song, so I thought I’d share it with you. It is the official version, so you have to actually go to YouTube to watch it. But it’s worth it.
httpv://youtu.be/zNtDe7hfETQ
Fashionable Italian hippies recreating Woodstock in Amsterdam, and Laura Pausini by firelight. What’s not to love?… Read more
My piece on the Mormon political candidate conundrum was republished over at Times and Seasons today, so if you’ve forgotten what I said (or are just dying to see it again) you can go ahead and pop over there to read it.
Note for non-Mormons (and Mormons too, I suppose): Times and Seasons is not an official Church website. It’s more of an informal virtual drawing room set aside by a group of individual members for doctrinal speculation, cultural commentary, and other vaguely intellectual Mormon-related pursuits. I think of it as a sort of Mormon equivalent to the Medieval Christian debates about how many angels could dance on the head of a pin.… Read more
Today I checked my App and Game requests on Facebook, and found that I have a closet full of HOT clothes. I’ve also been accepted into the school of wizardry, appointed starting pitcher, and put on the library staff. Several acquaintances have admitted to stalking me (isn’t being “friends” on Facebook already stalking?), I’ve been passed an Argentine mate, and people want me on their birthday calendars in various different languages, each of which (annoyingly) has its very own app. Smiles, hugs, diamonds, zombies, time machines, and empires are all mine for the taking. I guess life is full of opportunities.… Read more
Just a few days ago as I was writing a certain post on this blog, I thought of a really good quote I wanted to include. It’s the famous one where the French historian Alexis de Toqueville describes his visit to the United States in search of the true source of “her greatness and genius.” He concludes famously:
“America is great because she is good, and if America ever ceases to be good, she will cease to be great.”
The whole gamut of American politicians, from Reagan to Clinton, have loved this quote and embellished their speeches with it. It seems to strike a special chord with us as Americans, because it embodies one of our deepest held beliefs about the foundations and strength of our country.… Read more