Spitball Army

I remember reading this letter when I first received it in my inbox three years ago. Everything in the room went silent then, as if in the thrall of some cinematic effect, and my focus was completely on the text.

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Christopher Hitchens, who seems to have made a career out of frustrating, infuriating and intriguing his readers on matters of politics, history, and social culture, talks here with CNN’s Anderson Cooper about his recent encounter with, and treatment for, cancer.

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I’m thinking about writer, actor, memoirist and monologuist Spalding Rockwell Gray this evening. Today would have been his 69th birthday. I miss his insight and humor, and his remarkably unique view of the world around him.

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3. Try never get drunk outside yr own house

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There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.

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I read the e-mail message completely, rather than deleting it immediately, as it was obviously not spam. I have been receiving e-mails for some other Fred for years, and they rarely have been of much consequence. This day I was feeling frisky, so I decided to have a little fun.

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The Orchestra Rocks;
celery;
interactive journalism

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Great Lake Swimmers’ Lost Channels;
printable paper;
water

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– My favorite writing instrument is an L.C. Smith manual typewriter with glass keys that is in perfect working order, sits atop a desk in my office, and rarely gets used.

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Making a list such as this is a really simple activity, really. In fact, if one is able to separate the really personal and intimate details about oneself from the mix, there are hundreds or thousands of fascinating bits of minutiae that can populate a “25 Things” list many times over.

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