The Standard Blues

The Standard Blues

n.
the dispiriting awareness that the twists and turns of your life feel new and profound but are not unique—marked by the same coming-of-age struggles as millions of others, the same career setbacks, the same family strife, the same learning curve of parenting—which makes even your toughest challenges feel harmless and predictable, just another remake of the same old story.

A riff on blues standards, the catalog of the most popular songs in the blues genre, which is itself famous for chord progressions that cycle through variations on a theme.

The Standard Blues

Cover image for the The Standard Blues word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Vicarous

Cover image for the Vicarous word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

On Tenderhooks

Cover image for the On Tenderhooks word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Tornomov

a cloudy sky and landscape

Pax Latrina

Cover image for the Pax Latrina word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Ludiosis

Cover image for the Ludiosis word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows