July 29, 2011

Dear readers,

I posted my first Wall of Paul piece on Sept. 15, 2007. Over the course of almost four years, I’ve covered scores of topics with varying degrees of positivity, resignation, good humor, ill will, and sarcasm. I hope there’s been a consistent streak of intelligence in there, too, but if there wasn’t, I’m sure I’d be incapable of recognizing it.

At any rate, Wall of Paul will now be falling dormant, which isn’t the same as being dead, but pretty damned close. I’m simply putting too much of my focus into these pieces to have them read by so few people each week, and the readership long ago reached what scientists like to call a point of stasis. I feel there are better things to be done with my energy and passion. I’ve long toyed with the idea of writing a novel, so I need to get down to what I imagine will be the absolutely brutal work of wrestling it from my brain to the page. I may not survive the process, but better to die trying.

I’ll be keeping the site in working order for the foreseeable future, so you’ll be able to re-read any pieces you enjoyed in the past, or catch up on any you may have missed the first time around. And, of course, the terrific music and video clips will remain.

If something truly earth-shattering happens in the world of politics - Another Great Depression anyone? - or if one of my favorite movie directors or rock & rollers suddenly releases an unexpected masterwork, I may have something to say about it. But new pieces will be very few and very far between from now on, and if I feel the Wall of Paul itch becoming a vague memory, I’ll likely stop altogether.

If you want to know why I feel the bombing sequences are the only parts of the movie version of “Catch-22” that properly capture the tone of the novel, or what I think of Leonard Cohen’s lyrics, or why Randy Newman is one of my writing heroes, or why I consider Jack Nicholson’s performance in “The Last Detail” to be the best of his career, or why I have a soft spot for the Elton John song, “Philadelphia Freedom” (all articles I planned to get to sooner or later), just give me a call. I’m in the book.

There’s a handful of Wall of Paul enthusiasts who I met solely through my writing, and I now consider them to be my friends. I look forward to staying in touch with them via Facebook and email…and over beers, whenever they make it to New York City. Thanks, then, to Jody Whipp, Deanna Wallo-Whipp, Bill Wilson, Brady Goodman, Chris Collins, and Byron Lee for their repeated support and encouragement. And thanks also to my buddy, Bill Shaouy, who volunteered to design and maintain Wall of Paul in light of my idiocy in all things web site and Internet, and to Matt Dobbins, for always congratulating me on a piece when he thought I deserved it...which was more often than I thought I deserved it.

Now go watch a great movie or listen to some great music. Then tell someone about it, and encourage them to do the same.

It’s all sitting there, just waiting to become a part of you.

Take care,
Paul