REMEMBER FUN? The Game of Life -Mark Harris Players -Andy Steiner Running Scared -Craig Cox The Miracle of Mediocrity -Jon Spayde Discuss the Joy of Play. Click here: café.utne.com Utne Essay Contest What are your secrets for having fun? For mor information go to. www.utne.com/funcontest

Ishmael Reed

Cerebral R&R

He’s published nine novels and five books of poetry. In 1962 he helped found The East Village Other, a landmark underground newspaper. He’s been nominated for a Pulitzer Prize, has written two librettos and numerous television scripts. Since the late 1960s, he’s been a popular lecturer at UC Berkeley. His latest book of essays, The Reed Reader (Basic Books), hit bookstores last year.

So what does Ishmael Reed do for fun?

'I guess I have what you’d call serious hobbies,' Reed says from his home in Oakland, California. 'For the past 10 years, I’ve been studying two languages—Yoruba and Japanese. It came in very handy when I went to Japan, and in Nigeria I was able to read some of my work in their language. With the help of a tutor, I’ve been translating The Force of God, the epic of the Yoruba culture, into English. In my spare time, I study jazz piano.'

So is it fair to assume that for Reed, play is serious business, rigorous exercise for a complex mind—not cerebral R&R?

Not always. 'I also watch television too much,' he confesses, somewhat guiltily. 'But then again, I’ve been able to translate some of that into my work. I’ve become a bit of a media critic, writing and publishing pieces about things I’ve watched on television. So maybe that could be considered a serious hobby, too.'

Though it seems that he treats fun like a job, Reed insists he’s actually quite a playful guy. You see, for him, thinking is fun. He follows his natural intellectual curiosity wherever it leads, whether it’s to flights of fancy, new languages, or beautiful music. He thinks everyone should live this way.

'The ideal would be for more Americans to have more time to follow their passions, for more people to work fewer hours and to make time for themselves to get involved in some serious fun,' he says. 'I know I’m lucky that I’ve been given the time in my life to really pay attention to what feeds my brain. I think everyone else should have that opportunity, too.'

Debbie Stoller

Knit, Purl, Grrrl

They used to say the revolution will be televised, but if you ask Debbie Stoller, editor of the Third Wave grrrl zine Bust, these days it’s more likely that the revolution will be knit, sewed, and tied up in a funky-colored bow. Speaking from the magazine’s office in New York City, this mouthpiece for the New Girl Order says today’s most explosive revolutionary act involves knitting needles, not Molotov cocktails. And while vibrators are still popular among her set, even hotter items are a good crochet hook and a crazy-cool pattern.