SLOWLY, we start again. These days, I'm interested in the Yanomamo and Napoleon Chagnon, Julian Jaynes (deceased author of a book I wanted to read in college, but never got around to until a few weeks ago), and all things archaeological.

Material culture really is what's important--everything else (baseball, Islam, progressive politics, Beethoven) is epiphenomenal. Ten thousand years from now, all that remains of our culture will be the plates on which we pile our dinners, and perhaps a spoon or two (although I'm not optimistic that they won't completely corrode).

Let's see how many months it is until my next entry....