Brian Kenneth Swain

Every metal has its melting point. But for even the most malleable of alloys, that point is far higher than the flash point of paper, fabric, or human flesh. This happy thought springs to mind as my tiny Mercury space capsule, code-named ‘Annabelle 1’, hurtles toward the sun at nearly forty times the speed of sound. Well, not exactly towards it, but in an inescapably declining orbit whose destination is, nonetheless, that most sweltering of destinations. It’s been twelve hours since the capsule’s retrorocket system failed – twelve hours. Hell, by now I should be aboard the carrier – cleaned up, sipping champagne, and on my way home.  Instead, the engines failed to slow my momentum enough to allow reentry into earth’s ...

I am Bennett. I’m twelve already and feeling every year of it. Slouched, at the moment, in the back seat of ma’s old Ford Pinto, I slurp the last of a Mountain Dew and stare senselessly at the never ending pine trees that speed by as we make our way up the Maine Turnpike. My one-year younger sister is up in the front seat. If she doesn’t get the front seat, she always pitches a fit and says she’ll get car-sick and puke and so I usually just give up and sit in the back. It is November. Winter is here early and it’s pissed. Before the first week of this month was even over, an eight-incher had already dumped on the whole state, catching everyone, even the old timers, with their snow shovels still stuck up in the garage rafters. ...

Introduction The following observations are presented in no particular order, save for that in which they occurred to me. Which is to say that no one item is any more or less important than another, unless of course there is a specific safety issue being discussed, in which case I will make that plain, and expound as necessary. The only preemptive statements I will make by way of establishing credibility in the home repair field are to observe that I own a formidable collection of tools, both manual and powered, and yet I still possess all of my appendages, digits, and assorted extremities, which is more than I can say for my seventh-grade shop teacher. Safety Since I’ve brought it up already, a few quick words about safety are in ...

Following is the complete unedited transcript of an extended interview conducted by Rolling Stone Feature Editor Marvin Foxtrap with Detroit Lions punter/place kicker Ryan Mitchell, following his team’s 45-6 loss to the Dallas Cowboys, during which game Mitchell missed 3 field goals, made 2, and punted an NFC single-game record 18 times, of which 3 were blocked, averaging 26 yards per punt. MF: Ryan, I want to spend a bit of time talking about tonight’s game, but before we get into that I’d like to hear your overall take on the job. Place-kickers get a lot of criticism for having the lightest job on the field. What’re your thoughts on the job? RM: You are absolutely right. Kickers take a lot of shit from their teammates. But ...

We who are alive must make clear, as she could not, the distinction between creativity and self-destruction. Denise Levertov Let me begin by stating, for the record, that I was more than a little hacked off when I heard about David Foster Wallace hanging himself a few years back. Just to be clear, this initial reaction wasn’t a sad or mournful thing; I was genuinely pissed: at him, his doctors, his family, anyone who could plausibly be blamed for his abject failure to successfully handle a life replete with talent, fame, and money, all things so many long for and so few actually possess[1]. Wallace, however, spent much of his life in some state of depression, much of it heavily medicated, and he, not surprisingly, had a difficult ...

When a complete stranger voluntarily spends enormous amounts of time and energy working to convince you to spend money on something you neither need nor want, that’s marketing. It is the very essence of capitalism, as vital to the free flow of wealth (from you to them) as the invention of cash[1] itself. And no matter how you feel about marketing—supportive, jaded, or ambivalent—it is absolutely critical that you understand how it works, because whether you acknowledge it or not, it is taking place all around you, every minute of every day. In fact, it is being done to you, whether you want it to be or not. And the people who are doing it to you aren’t only the professionals, though there are certainly plenty of those. It is also ...

I am experimenting a bit with Chapter 3 in which the falcon Ain Fir reflects in first person about his life as a trained hunting falcon. I am trying to set up the relationship between the bird and the boy Rodrigo, as this will be an important relationship throughout the story to come.  I am after three distinct voices with this–the bird, the boy, Columbus. To further distinguish the changes, the boy’s chapters will be past tense, whereas Columbus’s will be present, to give them a bit more immediacy. We’ll have to see how this all works. I would really like though for Ain Fir to have a sense of superiority, almost as though he tolerates being with the boy, all the while knowing that he is free to take off whenever ...

Posted for the first time today the cast, glossary and bibliography on the web site for others to review. I also began getting some decent traction in Chapter 2, in which we begin to deal with Lope’s grief over Catalina’s conviction and impending execution. I remain undecided on whether or not to oblige Lope to attend this execution. Doubtless the officials of the inquisition would have required this of anyone who had been reconciled to the church, as a sign of their penitence, etc. Still, to have to watch your spouse burned at the stake? A bit much…. This chapter is where we will begin to get to know know Rodrigo better, important as he is our main character in this story once things get rolling in earnest. He will have ...

Cast of Characters Columbus, Christopher – Explorer who traveled to the New World four times in the late fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries. Ferdinand II of Aragon (the Catholic) – King of Aragon and Castile, from 1479 to 1516. Fir, Ain – Rodrigo’s pet peregrine falcon. Isabella 1 (the Catholic) – Queen of Castile and Leon from 1474 to 1504. Morillo, Miguel de – Dominican friar and one of two original inquisitors of Castile, appointed in 1480, well prior to Torq’s appointment as IG. Torquemada, Tomas de –Inquisitor General of Spain (from 1483 to his death in 1498), Spanish Dominican friar. On Oct. 17, 1483, Thomas de Torquemada, ...

Bibliography Burman, Edward. The Inquisition: The Hammer of Heresy. Gloucestershire, UK: Sutton Publishing Ltd., 2004. Cohen, J. M. (Editor, Translator). Christopher Columbus: The Four Voyages. New York, New York: Penguin Books, 1969. (in work) Dyson, John. Columbus: For Gold, God, and Glory. New York, New York: Simon & Schuster, 1991. Edwards, John. Inquisition. Stroud, Gloucestershire, Tempus Publishing, 1999. (done) Fernandez-Armesto, Felipe. Columbus and the Conquest of the Impossible. London, England: Phoenix Press, 1974. (done) Grant, George. The Last Crusader: The Untold Story of Christopher Columbus. Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway Books, 1992. (done) Granzotto, Gianni. Christopher Columbus: The Dream and the ...