Listen to Mailer

A cool wind blew through my tshirt and grey clouds rumbled above my head today, as I scooped water from out the boat. Never the funnest task in the world, I always have podcasts playing in my ears while I balance myself over the boat, keeping my feet from touching the water.

A perfect backdrop for listening to Radio Open Source’s interview with Norman Mailer. I’m often quick to say that I admire Mailer, and look up to him as a writer and a thinker. But as I listened today, I realized I hardly know the man.. and in fact there is much more to admire than I’d previously assumed.

What I liked best was his words regarding ignorance and television. And even his take on George Bush was actually extremely telling beyond the typical criticism you can hear everywhere else. It was about intelligence and admitting one’s mistakes, one’s limitations. Actually if you listen you may hear something even different from the way I summarize it… so you know what to do: listen to it!