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About the Author

James B. Moog is a writer and researcher driven by intellectual curiosity and passion for literature, philosophy, art, and psychology. He is the author of three different blogs:

Advanced Leisure: A "lifestyle blog." for meditating on the nuances of everyday objects and the time that we pass as "leisure."

Mind of Moog: A general collection of creative non-fiction, comics, poetry, and literary criticism, among other things.

A Bon Vivant in STL: Focused on food writing and travel. Additionally, it will cover other tangential issues related to Saint Louis.

Popular posts from this blog

On Leisure: Part 1

I am never less at leisure than when at leisure, nor less alone than when I am alone.  -Scipio Africanus It occurred to me that it might be well worthwhile to define what I mean by leisure . First and foremost, I think of the quote above. This sense of leisure reaches back to the Greeks and the concept of schole , as in school . Leisure, or schole, is associated with learning, self-cultivation, philosophy, and freedom. In this sense, " Leisure is not the cessation of work, but work of another kind, work restored to its human meaning, as a celebration and a festival ."  This conception of schole is represented in the notion of a Sabbath, a time set aside for contemplation and reflection. In an article titled, "Learning and Leisure: Developing a School of Schole," Christopher Perrin writes:  " In 1948 the German philosopher Josef Pieper wrote a small book (about 130 pages) entitled Leisure the Basis for Culture .  Classical educators need this book.  Pieper does ...
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Fountain Pens

The renaissance of fountain pens might be compared to that of vinyl records in several ways. Both the fountain pen and the vinyl record were eventually felt to be obsolete technology. Nevertheless, each maintained a steadfast cult of aficionados. Additionally, like the vinyl revival, the fountain pen frenzy seems to be a response to the desire for a "hands-on experience" and a preference for quality over convenience. Fountain pen owners enjoy the experience of drawing ink into the pen, wiping the nib, etc. The appeal of multiple fountain pens relates to the variety of their nibs and one can affix different nibs to a given pen to customize the feel. In similar fashion, many people rotate between different phono cartridges to modify the sound of their system to taste. The golden age of fountain pens occurred in the early 20th century and ended with WWII. I have read that many collectors focus on pens from the 1920-30's, which featured luscious gold nibs and luxurious materi...
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Streaming & Powered Speakers: A Review of the Dynaudio Music 7

I love Tidal, the "audiophile," MQA quality, music streaming service. There are others that cost less but, in my opinion, it is worth paying more for lossless quality. At any rate, I haven't used any other service for long. One of the great things about Tidal is that I am able to use it across different audio systems and this is made even easier by Roon's library management system. Streaming audio has given rise to a wide range of new "powered speakers;" speakers that just need to be plugged into a power outlet, connected to your Wi-Fi, and linked to your Tidal account to be ready-to-go. After diddling around with a wide variety of component systems, I think that the Dynaudio Music 7 (or one of Dynaudio's other Music models) would be the best choice for most people who are willing to drop some money for good sound but don't want to break the bank. It would be especially ideal for those who are keen on preserving their space and wish to maintain a ...
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