I’m desperate for distractions right about now. (Note: writing a dissertation on Cold War literature does not qualify as an emotionally productive distraction from grief.) And I think I’ve found a good one. After reading this profile of Iris Miller in the Chronicle, I walked over to the library and checked out the following:
- Washington in Maps by Iris Miller
- The Mall in Washington, 1791-1991, edited by Richard Longstreth
- The Life of Pierre Charles L’Enfant by H. Paul Caemmerer
Two asides: First, I hope I never have to work in an office that is more than a ten-minute walk from a good research library; Second, if you want to read the piece in the Chronicle but don’t have a password, send me an email and I might be able to help you out.
If there were but world enough and time, if things like jobs and money and familial obligations were of no concern, I’m pretty sure I would live in Washington, D.C. Probably somewhere between Cleveland Park and the National Zoo. As close as possible to the Uptown Theater. The Uptown, which hosted the world premiere of 2001 in 1968, is also where I finally got to see Kubrick’s masterpiece in 70mm for the first time. Amazing.
Miller’s book is apparently a cultural history of D.C. told through its maps. The other two books should supplement it well.