Maira Kalman

This week the New York Times made its special "Times Select" features available to everyone for free. So now people can see Maira Kalman's monthly illustrated columns on the web. Check them out!

All work and no play makes Monkey Fur a dull blog?

Oh, Finland. This weekend the Finns hosted the finals of the International Air Guitar contest. My favorite was last year's defending champion. But he came in second.



The french guy, "Moshe Pitt" (pronounced "Moe-she Peet") won. Maybe because his routine featured a really spectacular ending. Which you can see here.

Our little human lives

“Why does anybody tell a story?” Ms. L’Engle once asked, even though she knew the answer.

“It does indeed have something to do with faith,” she said, “faith that the universe has meaning, that our little human lives are not irrelevant, that what we choose or say or do matters, matters cosmically.”

Dang. Madeline L'Engle died. She was one of my favorites when I was growing up. The quote is from a New York Times Article about her.