Without Comment

Old News, very old news

This is one of those things, like the fact that TV commercials are louder than the programs, that we have always known, despite the fact that people whose income is involved tell us it's nonsense. Expensive wines are better than cheap wines because ...

.... because they're expensive.

Freakenomics Radio has the info. Here's my favorite quote:

One of these researchers is Robin Goldstein, whose paper detailing more than 6,000 blind tastings reaches the conclusion that “individuals who are unaware of the price do not derive more enjoyment from more expensive wine.”

Then there is the noted Princeton economist (and wine buff) Orley Ashenfelter quoted on the same site about expertise in general:

I mean, S&P, Moody’s, Fitch, these people all rated securities that apparently completely tanked. So there’s obviously something in the demand for expertise, the imprimatur, which is not really about the fact that they do a good job. By the way, those organizations are not transparent either, just as the Wine Spectator isn’t. So there’s some similarity here that I think probably gives us a little insight into things that are much broader than wine and food.

Which explains my contempt for most (not all) "consultants." It's something I learned when I worked for a big computer company.

But, practical use of this new found old news: Buy one really really expensive bottle of wine. Drink it. Preferably just you and perhaps one other. Then lay the bottle on your sideboard in full sight at your next wine party and serve the cheap but good Chilean wine you got at the grocery store.

In a decanter next to the empty bottle.

If my family contained anyone who actually liked good wine I would try it this holiday in that smelly old port city to our south.

Nota bene: Carmen makes objection to that last comment about the infamous port city. Just thought I'd let you know for the record.

More on Romance novels

I always thought successful romance writers were well paid. Then I met Cheri the Archivist at the Minnesota Historical Society. She had a sister who wrote romance novels. She did it part time and only cranked out one a year and was usually paid $5,000 (1987 $) for each one. So that's why most writers churn out at least two a year. And why so many seem to follow the same formula.

One of the workshops at the Washington conference for Romance novelists (see last post) was called "High Concept," and consisted of a slide presentation on how to create instantaneous plots by choosing items from under the headings of:

Universal Themes, Classic Plots and Innovative Twist.

Think: Good vs. Evil + Twins Switching Places + Banshees.

This explains a lot. Some idiot probably used this device to come up with:

Think: Good vs. Evil + Jane Austin + Zombies.

It would never sell.

well, time to get back to writing my article on the Alans. See if I can find a bodice for them to rip. It's going to published in Russia.

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Books: romance genre

I think it was books like "Wuthering Heights" that may be the great grandmother of today's 'bodice rippers.' Someone has to take the rap. Back when I was a grad student in the frozen north country a bunch of us history students would gather at the Oscar B. Lykes Bar and Grill every Friday to discuss history, and professors, etc., over large amounts of beer. When we were really toasted we would fantasize about writing Romance novels with historical settings. It was great fun - we actually came up with some good plots (if I could only remember what they were) - but I always had the sneaking suspicion that it took more skill and made less money then we thought. I was right on both counts.

Which may explain why I was so amused by this article in the Washington Post today about the Washington Romance Writers of America's annual conference. It's a hoot. I especially like the part about workshops for creating the perfect Alpha male love interest.

More than 100 sessions address everything from "High-Octane" kisses to sketching believable alpha heroes (sub-categories include: Warrior Alpha, Chief Alpha, Extreme Alpha, Bad Boy Alpha, Wounded Alpha, Swashbuckling Alpha, Geek Alpha and Gentle Alpha) to sketching out "imperfect" heroines...

Geek Alpha! Jack, I think I have found our niche. Anyway, at the Clemens household Leo the Dog thinks I am the Alpha dog. I like to think of myself as Warrior Alpha, or maybe Swashbuckling Alpha, but Carmen thinks of me as Bad Boy Alpha. Leo seems to think of me as 'Master-of--treats-I-really-shouldn't-have Alpha'.

now, about those "High-Octane" kisses

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Coming up: The Age of Restraint

The Age of Restraint. A phrase coined by Peggy Noonan who is famous for coining phrases. There is a certain sense of satisfaction in your faithful correspondent as he slides easily into geezerhood, striving for the coveted title of "Old Fart*" in seeing the younger generation suddenly realize that restraint rather than consumption can be a virtue. The richest society on the planet ever has suddenly discovered that there really are limits. Or as Noonan puts it:

There's something else going on, a new or renewed sense of national shame. Or communal responsibility. Or a sense of reckoning. Whatever it is it's a reaction to the excesses of the O's, a reaction against the ways of those who caused the mess on Wall Street and Main Street. It is a reassertion that there actually are rules, and that it is embarrassing to break them in a way so colorfully damaging and destructive to everyone else.

The excesses of the Os. Or the Double Zeros as I like to think of them. Apparently they topped even those of the 90s.

* though I recall that a girlfriend of mine told me after meeting my father, "Well, he certainly isn't an old fart."

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