A Texan scholar and a mortician's intern from Ohio captured these snaps of Pigasus at the Rose Bowl. (It's our porker, all right; you will note the trademark eyegear and scarf, the proud thrusting snout, the butcher-may-care grin of quiet resolve and a pig at peace with self and sty.) The float's sponsors, designers, operators and the Rose Bowl organization itself are all being sued back into the Stone Age. We'll see just what our good jpt alumni on the Bench think about defendants' initial answer, "Relax, dudes; a pig is a pig."

Bartleby de Scrivener, the splendid wordsmith responsible for "Who Killed Cock Robin?" [Issue 17], has appeared in jpt before but sporting a different bio ["Up Jumped the Devil," Issue 12]. Same Bartleby? —Melville Man

Complex fellow. —ed.
Moving target. —visiting journalist/ed.

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Gentlemen [& ladies —ed.],
Your sources and resources are impressive for a nonpaying online publication that apparently has remained entirely free of commercialism. The unique, informative jazz-themed histories, autobiographies and essays, for example, cannot be found anywhere else online at any price, to my knowledge. I have derived great benefit from the Henry Blackburn articles (especially enjoying the Muggsy Spanier, Jimmie Lunceford,--name misspelled "Lunsford" in your URL page header, by the way-- Lee Collins, and Jimmy McPartland ones), as well as the "Kid Spats Deepelum" essays (Issue 13, Issue 14, the three-part "Handful of Riffs" beginning in Issue 15), and most recently, the first part of Lawrence Jones's excellent "Confessions of a Jazz Fan" memoir (Issue 17). Given the amazing range and scale of your production, two questions: how and why do you do it? —B.K.

The How: We have done it with the extraordinary generosity and enthusiasm of the distinguished authorities you cite, and that of many others. The Why: two parts. Part one is capsulized by an expression taken from staffer Fartch Bombastric Foldlegod's Tennessee cousin: "We are drove." Part two is the expanding potential for connecting with that special reader like you. As for misspellings, always doubt what you claim to have seen. —ed.

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Dear Editors,
W.C. Smith's Book of Wine & Seizures story "The Time of Attempted Wisdom" caught my eye, as I have recently seen a website devoted to incidences of "attempted wisdom." Is the one related to the other? (Through some distant connection, I mean. I think there's probably nothing that relates concretely to The Book of WS, now my leading source of recondite quotations.) —Gayle

Wine & Seizures bleedoff has happened at a trickle through the years, though now it seems to threaten torrents. On one hand, unconnected people do come up with identical expressions; words do combine freely. On the other, people sometimes consciously or unconsciously borrow clever concepts they have been exposed to, even decades ago, in (or from , via second party) the Book of Wine & Seizures! There's little point fussing about the inevitable; for whatever reason, everything that's good in The Book will sooner or later be found all garnished, fresh and delectable on some other plate. —ed.

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Dear jpt,
The great biker stories and photos [John Rice; Pilgrim] make your unusual journal even more unusual, which I consider to be a good thing. I like the action and humor but I have to admit that heavy thinking isn't what I'm about at the end of the day. There's always something for me now in jpt and something I'd rather put off till later, sometimes a lot later. I think your best articles usually include plenty of pictures. But I'm sure others have their own tastes. —S.N.D.

No, you 've probably nailed the monkey in the knob with that one, D. —ed.

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Dear editor,
Laughed myself silly at Mom's way of keeping kids from smoking-- dousing her ciggy bitts in the grape juice. Keep this lady coming! —saycheese

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[Editor],
I've read [Issue 17] and enjoyed it greatly.  I especially liked in this issue Bill's third installment of his '"Riffs" and also that [beautiful] "Smells to Remember" essay, which I assume was his (did he leave you a group of Nostalgick Essays?).  It is wonderful and moving to sense Bill's voice coming back from beyond death.  It would be great if we could continue to sense that voice.

Like to write, but worried?
The jpt editors love turning your stutter-steps into great leaps for humanity! Send your stories, poetry, essays, scholarly papers and psychotic ravings to :
isubmit@provincialthought.com
It's FREE because you never get paid; but you CAN get published and do your duty to society with the favor of sharing.
You may read our Contributors' Guide, but don't panic. It's all easy. You are special to us.