In the New Yorker...

[serious crayons]

Last year, I went to Shakespeare and Company in Paris, just across the Seine from Notre Dame. It was a fun place but I was slightly disappointed because I was hunting for books in French for my grandchildren. All their books are in English! Why go to Paris and buy books in English? At a different bookstore, I got a book on medieval France for my older grandson, a book on ballet for my granddaughter, and a book called "Ou est Charlie?" (exactly like "Where's Waldo?") for my grandson Charile.

Your grandchildren read French? Impressive! They're homeschooled, right?

[Jeff Wrangler]

There is a Shakespeare & Co. in Philadelphia, too. It's less than a block from Barnes & Noble. I used to spend a Sunday afternoon just browsing in Barnes & Noble. I bought all my Longmire books at Barnes & Noble.

[Front-Ranger]

Your grandchildren read French? Impressive! They're homeschooled, right?

They're picture books with just a few words of French on each page.

[Front-Ranger]

There were quite a few good cartoons in this issue. Here's one that I sent to my grandson.

I just discovered something. You can download NY cartoons to your computer, but after a while they...decompose or something.

[serious crayons]

Making my way slowly through the food archive issue, starting with Anthony Bourdain's entertaining day in the life of a chef. I see a number of others I want to read as well.

[Front-Ranger]

I read that one half-way through and realized that I had already read it when it first came out.

[Jeff Wrangler]

Somehow I got through the M.F.K. Fisher article, but what's the big deal about mashed potatoes?

I don't think I want to bother with anything else in that issue.

It's weird. You'd think I'd remember Kelefa Sanneh's article on scotch. It wasn't from too long ago, yet I had no memory of it at all, even after reading it now. However, it was interesting because since its original publication, I had learned to know what Islay scotch is, and to appreciate its smoky taste. especially Laphroaig.

[Front-Ranger]

I haven't developed a taste for it, and because of the wildfires this year, I'm not even interested in the thought of it. I have very plebian tastes when it comes to Scotch. The best one I've tasted was Dewars and that only on Rabbie Burns' birthday.

[serious crayons]

I read that one half-way through and realized that I had already read it when it first came out.

I believe I did, too, but I often read essays twice (there are several David Foster Wallace essays I've read at least three or four times). I never read Kitchen Confidential and probably won't get around to it, but Anthony Bourdaine was an interesting writer and person.

[Jeff Wrangler]

I haven't developed a taste for it, and because of the wildfires this year, I'm not even interested in the thought of it. I have very plebian tastes when it comes to Scotch. The best one I've tasted was Dewars and that only on Rabbie Burns' birthday.

I don't follow your connection between scotch and wildfires, but let be. Dewars is a perfectly acceptable/unexceptional blended scotch, very popular in bars--or at least it used to be.

But like the author said, blended scotches are gateway drugs. You start on them, but when you try single-malts, there's no going back.