Static From My Attic

As if Anno Domini 2025 were not fraught enough with rumors of war and the vain, blustering hubris that ensures a constant level of High

I am heartened that the response to last month’s Static column, “Tearing Apart the Arts,” was overwhelmingly positive. I was expecting a flood tide of

If you’re anything like me, you had “that friend” as a child. Not really a friend, but someone you knew at school or from the

Since TST co-editor, webmaster, and in-house reviewer Joe Bebco generally has a lot to say (and I generally don’t) I’m ceding the Static space to

Aside from the weather and just about everything else, it’s been a good month. This is the sort of old-fashioned winter we had when I

Yes, I admit it. It’s a shorter issue this month. I could just be flippant and say “It’s a short month.” Or I could suggest

I don’t mean to get too serious in this column, but I want to begin by saying how grateful I am to readers who have

Now that The Syncopated Times has achieved nonprofit status and stands on the verge of its tenth year of publication, the excitement in this office

Would you rather be a jellyfish or a cloud? It has to be one or the other. If you opt out of the choice or

Ever since a long-time reader told me my column was “depressing,” I’m hesitant to be sincere about anything at all. Maybe somebody else’s static would

The present certainly has its discontents. As my veneer of magnanimity and tolerance wears molecule-thin, even I must concede that it is too mean, ugly,

There are many (myself included) who regard this paper and music in general as a haven of peace and conviviality in a world that seems

It was distinctly embarrassing (but not altogether surprising) for me to discover the editorial glitches in the June 2024 issue of The Syncopated Times. I’d

As I write this, it is five days since my second eye surgery. In the plus column, this is the first time in nearly fifty

In the March issue of The Syncopated Times I devoted a portion of this space to discussing the immediate delight I experienced on installing a

Of all that which I consider worthy, perhaps the most remarkable is when someone does exactly what they promise they’re going to do. I weep

This week I felt it entirely necessary to buy myself a huge computer monitor—though not the largest one that was available. As my eyesight sinks

This is my Eighth Anniversary Issue of The Syncopated Times, and I suppose I should be eating cake or something. I find myself preoccupied with

It’s a new year, and I am required by law to be optimistic. Never mind that each previous year has, in its own way, been

It’s never not a chaotic month. I spent much of November arranging to have this paper mailed from a new post office. The Syracuse newspaper

As happens every year in this latitude, Autumn is a time of less sunlight and more shadow, and a chilliness that reminds us to bring

I enjoyed an unexpected vacation during the month of August—or I should say I enjoyed those aspects of it that were enjoyable. This brief sabbatical

Even though the Long Intermission is finally over (or we’ve just decided to go on with our lives after three years of hiding behind masks

As I write this on the longest day of the year, I feel like I’ve just lived through the longest week of the year. We’re