Various newspapers I have read

In London circa Sept. 2001 to Dec. 2001, I read the Guardian and the Times. The Guardian was full of the hyperventilating compassion and paternal concern of a certain brand of leftism, which at the time worked as a salve against the psychological blemishes that kept cropping up whenever I deigned to think about what falling buildings might mean in the larger scheme of things. The Times I read out of curiosity, to steep myself in Englishness to the extent that it was possible.

From November 2003 to November 2004, I read the NY Times, the Washington Post, the Christian Science Monitor, the Wall Street Journal Editorial Page, and three or four major dailies in whatever state I was researching at the time. I got paid to do this, which is not really an excuse when you think about it. I had a handle on upwards of 40 Congressional races, inasmuch as knowing the relevant issues, campaign finance numbers, polling data, the favorables/unfavorables, and so on amounts to having a handle on something. I began to suffer from ocular migraines, which gave me shimmering mystical visions and an excuse to put my head on my desk.

In the past year, I began to read a free publication entitled Farm and Rancher’s Weekly, mostly because it arrived in my PO box once a week and I receive very little mail. I like reading the advertisements for estate auctions (ranch families have loads of shit you won’t find in antique stores), the recipe in the farmer’s almanac, and articles on topics like mad cow’s disease, Japanese imports of Angus beef, Future Farmer’s of America livestock judging competitions, and crop rotation strategies.