Matthew Dessem
@matthewdessem.bsky.social
I’m the enchanting wizard of rhythm. I came here to tell you about the rhythms of the universe.
This is my representative, who emailed me this week about her plans to reform ICE by withholding funds until they agree to a mask ban and promise to start following existing law. It isn’t credible to act worried about Trump trampling fundamental rights while letting the secret police stick around.
February 13, 2026 at 7:24 PM
This is my representative, who emailed me this week about her plans to reform ICE by withholding funds until they agree to a mask ban and promise to start following existing law. It isn’t credible to act worried about Trump trampling fundamental rights while letting the secret police stick around.
Every dollar we spend on AI is a dollar we could be spending building the donut machine from Homer Price.
February 12, 2026 at 9:53 PM
Every dollar we spend on AI is a dollar we could be spending building the donut machine from Homer Price.
Eighteenth century alt text in the Catalogue of Prints and Drawings in the British Museum.
![Entry 42122 in the Catalogue of Prints and Drawings in the British Museum. It reads:
A New Flying Machine upon Dr. Musgrave's Plan that moves with
ye same Rapidity as Mr. Moore's Machine without Horses.
[Aug. 2, 1768]
An engraving of the sea shore, with " Bareges" on a distant coast, that of France.
It was to this place that the Earl of Bute departed, Aug. 2, 1768, as illustrated in " The Flight from Dover", No. 4211. In the air is a large "flying machine", or vast pair of wings sustaining a platform, in the middle of which is an air-pump worked by the Devil, who cries:— Now I've got you, Head & all; I was afraid I should have had only the Trunk." This is addressed to Lord Bute, who is seated at ease on the platform, with many bags of money at his side, pointing to the distant Barèges, and saying:—" Waft me to Bareges, or any where but to Tower Hill." Many of Lord Bute's opponents hoped that he would suffer, as they asserted he had deserved, decapitation. On the shore below the "flying machine" stands the Princess of Wales, wringing her hands, and lamenting:—" And art thou fled? so is my Happiness." See "Gisbal", No. 3848. On the cliff is a cow grazing, having apparently broken from a team.](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:f2sg3ygf633embjv5c6xvybb/bafkreiab2tmjb5iqdhxmiqogkm3jfx6ae3oc2gzqkhd4xxi5dzws2ekm3u@jpeg)
February 12, 2026 at 9:39 PM
Eighteenth century alt text in the Catalogue of Prints and Drawings in the British Museum.
Put your makeup on, fix your hair up pretty,
Sousa is playing in Atlantic City.
Sousa is playing in Atlantic City.
February 10, 2026 at 8:42 PM
Put your makeup on, fix your hair up pretty,
Sousa is playing in Atlantic City.
Sousa is playing in Atlantic City.
Sluggo is lit!
February 5, 2026 at 11:25 PM
Sluggo is lit!
In these difficult times, we must all try to remember that the last twenty seconds or so of the album version of “California Love” are just aimless noodling around with the vocal effects.
February 5, 2026 at 3:51 PM
In these difficult times, we must all try to remember that the last twenty seconds or so of the album version of “California Love” are just aimless noodling around with the vocal effects.
Now here is a man who has never read Nabokov’s Good Readers and Good Writers. Artists create their own worlds; those worlds are not obviously connected to the one we know. Beyond all his other mistakes, he has made a category error that puts a ceiling on his enjoyment and understanding of fiction.
February 3, 2026 at 2:16 AM
Now here is a man who has never read Nabokov’s Good Readers and Good Writers. Artists create their own worlds; those worlds are not obviously connected to the one we know. Beyond all his other mistakes, he has made a category error that puts a ceiling on his enjoyment and understanding of fiction.
Which SelectaVision format is the right SelectaVision format for you?
February 3, 2026 at 1:31 AM
Which SelectaVision format is the right SelectaVision format for you?
I think this is a decent way to think about art restoration of any type. Once something is gone, it’s gone until it resurfaces, maybe in another form. That’s just how time works. Edmund Malone and William Henry Ireland both did interesting work, but they weren’t in the same profession.
February 2, 2026 at 9:50 PM
I think this is a decent way to think about art restoration of any type. Once something is gone, it’s gone until it resurfaces, maybe in another form. That’s just how time works. Edmund Malone and William Henry Ireland both did interesting work, but they weren’t in the same profession.
I got my hands on a copy of “Algorithms of Oppression,” an assigned reading for school this quarter, from an actual print run on decent paper with embossed printing, instead of Amazon Print-on-Demand, and these are just not the same product.
February 1, 2026 at 8:25 PM
I got my hands on a copy of “Algorithms of Oppression,” an assigned reading for school this quarter, from an actual print run on decent paper with embossed printing, instead of Amazon Print-on-Demand, and these are just not the same product.
UCLA Anderson School of Management, I *love* the idea of festooning your building with Successories-type slogans! I just have a tiny note about the one at the top of the stairs.
January 30, 2026 at 4:19 PM
UCLA Anderson School of Management, I *love* the idea of festooning your building with Successories-type slogans! I just have a tiny note about the one at the top of the stairs.
The Reason for the Superior Quality is the size of the picture!
January 30, 2026 at 5:09 AM
The Reason for the Superior Quality is the size of the picture!
(And if you’re thinking “Why would theatrical releases be bound by the technical requirements of televisions, I encourage you to watch some “framed-for-pan-and-scan” films and check out the vast unused areas of the screen. “Reality Bites” is a good example.)
January 27, 2026 at 8:10 PM
(And if you’re thinking “Why would theatrical releases be bound by the technical requirements of televisions, I encourage you to watch some “framed-for-pan-and-scan” films and check out the vast unused areas of the screen. “Reality Bites” is a good example.)
Moneypenny has watched all your videos of dogs playing in the snow and, after careful consideration, has decided to remain in Southern California.
January 26, 2026 at 8:48 PM
Moneypenny has watched all your videos of dogs playing in the snow and, after careful consideration, has decided to remain in Southern California.
Today’s vocabulary word is “fuck,” a variant spelling of “fuk,” which referred to some type of fifteenth century sail.
January 22, 2026 at 6:09 PM
Today’s vocabulary word is “fuck,” a variant spelling of “fuk,” which referred to some type of fifteenth century sail.
Pretty sure Royce Hall used to be a Wendy’s.
January 22, 2026 at 4:48 PM
Pretty sure Royce Hall used to be a Wendy’s.
Is this the look, like, desaturated like a faded magazine? For my money the two movies that did the best jobs imitating the look of various no-longer-used film stocks and color processes were The Aviator and Blonde.
January 22, 2026 at 4:02 AM
Is this the look, like, desaturated like a faded magazine? For my money the two movies that did the best jobs imitating the look of various no-longer-used film stocks and color processes were The Aviator and Blonde.
I’m finally making my way through “The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich” (shaking my head so people know I disagree) and (a) I bet this section heading was one of the seeds of “The Producers,” and (b) Don Delillo could never.
January 20, 2026 at 7:30 PM
I’m finally making my way through “The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich” (shaking my head so people know I disagree) and (a) I bet this section heading was one of the seeds of “The Producers,” and (b) Don Delillo could never.
Nothing on the colophon that indicated it isn’t from a real print run—I have some Ian Fleming trade paperbacks from Covid that were print on demand, but they said so, and were fine, as well bound as the real Thomas Mercer editions (a slightly different card stock for the covers).
January 18, 2026 at 8:42 PM
Nothing on the colophon that indicated it isn’t from a real print run—I have some Ian Fleming trade paperbacks from Covid that were print on demand, but they said so, and were fine, as well bound as the real Thomas Mercer editions (a slightly different card stock for the covers).
You ever hear about the oranges, Jonathan? Tell me about the oranges.
January 14, 2026 at 8:17 PM
You ever hear about the oranges, Jonathan? Tell me about the oranges.
Fred Ott will return in Avengers: Doomsday.
January 7, 2026 at 12:08 AM
Fred Ott will return in Avengers: Doomsday.
Update: definitely from the tape masters, look at that scan line.
January 5, 2026 at 11:26 PM
Update: definitely from the tape masters, look at that scan line.
My 2026 “Vision Board” is the cover art from “At Home With Screamin’ Jay Hawkins,” and nothing else. Just like last year.
January 5, 2026 at 8:46 PM
My 2026 “Vision Board” is the cover art from “At Home With Screamin’ Jay Hawkins,” and nothing else. Just like last year.