uneven numbers, except five, with special attention to three; pottery; people who do not appreciate dark humour; concrete cities; being given gifts; throwing myself into projects based on false information; contest shows on television, especially when it concerns singing; (literary) critics who don’t understand the fundamental difference between “realist” and “realistic;”

Originally published for a nineteenth-century British literature course. Ignore the madness. In my short, but incredibly prosperous and famous existence, I have read Brontë’s Wuthering Heights many times—the last time I did so was about six months ago—and yes, that means I haven’t re-read it for the course. Whatever. Did you guys see the Academy [...]

“On your left you have a God who is all-knowning and omnipotent, and on your right you have a book that contains more errors than a Lindsay Lohan post-it. The left, being omniscient, omnipotent and living outside time, has no ability to change his mind; the right, being from human origin, contains more changes of opinion, mind and action than a Diana Ross show contains dress changes.”

I do not know how it feels to be a second-rate citizen by law, growing up in a liberal and progressive country, but I do know how it feels to be considered second-rate and to be treated like you are worth nothing. It still amazes me that evolved and cultured people in this day and [...]

A great nation—and optimistically speaking, any nation—is supposed to represent all its inhabitants, equally and without discrimination. It shouldn’t see a difference between people of different sexual orientations, between people of different races, between the personal beliefs of its citizens. And yet, in many countries—commonly third-world and second-world ones, but unfortunately often also in first-world [...]

“The knowledge exists by which universal happines can be secured; the chief obstacle to its utilisation for that purpose is the teaching of religion. Religion prevents our children from having a rational education; religion prevents us from removing the fundamental causes of war; religion prevents us from teaching the ethic of scientific co-operation in place [...]