Friday Donuts

Dear Members and Constituents, What sets a great work of art apart from the rest? Take a musical masterpiece, for instance. It uses the same notes as lesser works (88 on a modern piano). It is arranged according to a set structure dictated by the scale the piece is composed on.  It has themes that repeat, like all the rest. It follows a certain rhythmic pattern. Yet there is something about an inspired composition that stands-out. While there are many dimensions that go into making a magnum opus, it seems to me a key variable is knowing the rules intimately and then selectively choosing which ones to deliberately break. That unexpected sharp or that silence where a note should be create a certain element of surprise. An anomaly which contrasts with the familiar fabric of the expected. Like salt on a dish, break a couple of rules and the experience is enhanced; break too many and you’ve ruined it. That’s why we don’t enjoy the sound of a child pounding a piano (unless, of course you