Friday, September 30, 2011
GOOD AND DEAD
There is some weeping and wailing on the left because due process wasn't followed.
Anwar al-Aulaqi, U.S.-born cleric linked to al-Qaeda, killed in Yemen
I read that this is a horrible thing and that more brutality will follow on the part of the US!
I have watched this guy for some time. I have read about his activities and listened to more than one of his harangues.
He is an American. Dual citizenship. He joined the other side. He is an operational enemy of the nation of his birth. Well, one of them. He is also a Yemeni. So, I look at this way. If you don't like killing Americans who have joined Al Queda and have run many operations against other Americans, then rejoice in the fact that the Yemeni side was killed and the American side of him was collateral.
I know. It is all semantics. But I have a hard time with the bleeding heart aspect of this kind of thing. This is a bad guy. If he were on US ground doing what he has done he would very well have been wiped out on a raid on his compound.
Whatever.
He is dead and so is his assistant also a duel Yemeni/American.
Good riddance.
Does that make me a fascist? OK.
Labels: Administration Obama, terrorism
CLEANING DAY
Every Friday we go to the store (John and Booker walk there and meet me, we all ride back) and then we come home and clean house.
We have it down to a routine now. John does the dries and I do the wets. He is ahead of me with the duster and the vacuum and I swoop in with the rag work.
We get done in about an hour and a half now. Pretty good.
Some things are for every week, others less often. I don't scrub all the tile floors every week. Some gets the cleaning every two months or so.
Today was cleaning and oiling the wood dining table. An extra, every so often thing. Our dirtiest dirt here is mostly dust and sand and you wouldn't believe how much dog hair and, of course, the plumbing fixtures and the kitchen.
We are pretty well coordinated now.
The house smells good and it feels like we have done something. Nice to do it together.
215 AD
I am waatching the five hour long version of John Woo's
This version was not shown in the states so there are no reviews of it. The short version was chopped to death. This long saga is very satisfying and I will stretch it out by taking three days to see it.
Starring are Tony Leung (left) and Takeshi Kaneshiro (right>, my main man. The excellent villain (in the middle) is Fengyi Zhang
This is a wonderful movie. I am wallowing in it.
It is a 5 out of Netflix5.
I am not sure why this epic is so engaging for me. I think that the detail is extraordinary and one can never see it all. Today is the third time and I was still seeing stuff that was new for me.
I think one of the attractions is the interplay between the two stars and their subordinates. These are good guys who know that they will have to put their lives on the line. Woo makes their goodness and their abilities evident by showing their talks with one another before and after the engagements.
I don't know. I just love this film.
Labels: films
Thursday, September 29, 2011
TRAGIC TRIANGLE
Today's Kaneshiro film was
Shi mian mai fu / House of Flying Daggers (2004)
I have seen this before. Gave it 5 stars the first time.
It is "new" martial arts with the flying, slow motion and terrific effects. But the core of it is the superb acting by Takeshi Kaneshiro, Andy Lau and Ziyi Zhang.
There are plots and counter plots, agents and double agents and plenty of action beautifully filmed in spectacular locations.
What is not to like.
Still a 5 out of Netflix5.
Labels: films
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
BROTHERS
Today's film was
Tau ming chong / The Warlords (2007)
A NYTimes Critics' Pick with our friend Takeshi Kaneshiro along with Jet Li and Andy Lau.
The Taiping Rebellion in the 19th Century. Three war lords join to become brothers and exchange a vow that if one harms the other he will be killed in turn.
They win the war but don't do that well with the blood partnership. Very dramatic. High production values. Straight forward battle scenes. Short on the love interest except to provide a basis for the first betrayal.
I saw this before and enjoyed it both times. A 5 out of Netflix5.
Labels: films
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
THAT'S US!!!!!
Census Bureau Releases Estimates of Same-Sex Married Couples
The results of the 2010 Census revised estimates are closer to the results of the 2010 American Community Survey (ACS) for same-sex married and unmarried partners. The 2010 ACS estimated same-sex married couples at 152,335 and same-sex unmarried partners at 440,989.The U.S. Census Bureau released today new statistics on same-sex married couple and unmarried partner households. According to revised estimates from the 2010 Census, there were 131,729 same-sex married couple households and 514,735 same-sex unmarried partner households in the United States.
This is another version of "we are everywhere".
I don't know if this is a lot or less than "a lot".
What it does show is that a lot of people, us included, are willing to step forward and be counted.
I predict that in the next report there will be a whole lot more. More marriages, more domestic partnerships and more coming out of the closet.
Labels: gay marriage
TWO COPS TWO GIRLS
Today's film was directed by Wong Kar-Wi and features my man Takeshi Kaneshiro along with Tony Leung. A double treat.
Chung Hing sam lam / Chung King Express (1994)
Kar-wi directed yesterday's film. Similar but not the same.
In this one, two cops fall into "like" with a woman and the relationships become "complicated".
Here again it is not the plot. It is the whole production which moves at a rapid pace with great camera work and, mostly handheld, great city at night scenes.
The stories do not meet each other. So the film is a small anthology. Similar ideas are explored. The fact that these guys are cops seems to be irrelevant except that it keeps them up late and in unsavory scenes and situations.
Kar-wi is compared to Godard. This is a new approach to Hong Kong made films. Modern, indeterminate, situational versus story lines.
I enjoyed it. Once is enough. I will give it a 3 out of Netflix5.
Labels: films
Monday, September 26, 2011
CHINESE FILM NOIR
Today's Takeshi Kaneshiro film was
Duo luo tian shi / Fallen Angels (1995)
in which two "couples" run along parallel plots until the very end when they merge.
The results are a bit confusing because we do not know they are separate stories until we do. In the meantime the mind tries to patch the two together to no avail.
This peculiar mental twist is compounded by each story line itself in which there are many vignettes rather than scenes. Flashes. A bit like a comic strip.
The action itself is zany. What we are seeing is shown straight on and not presented as funny. It just is so.
Then there is the production which is in Hong Kong and modern with a touch of martial arts in some gun play that occurs. It is very hand held with lots of blur and neon lights. Traffic swimming by. Gritty locations.
Look.
It is a stew and a pleasant one if you are willing to sit back and let the film be what it is.
Kaneshiro is the "hero" of one story line. He is a mute who takes over closed shops for the night and invites customers into "his" places of business. See? A bit unconventional.
The other story line is led by a professional killer (Leon Lai ) and his partner who books his work.
While I was watching it my mind produced my old days of night life in Boston. The up-late till closing running around. The street life. The slightly disreputable aura of the whole thing.
I am not sure that there is a day shot in this entire film. All night. scenes. All neon lights. Great. Evocative if you ever lived anything near this life.
I will give this a 4 out of Netflix5 as I know there are some things that I missed. I would like to check those out sometime.
Labels: films
Sunday, September 25, 2011
TAKESHI KANESHIRO
I am watching all of Kaneshiro's films that are on disc. I admired him so in Red Cliff that I wanted to see his other films.
Kineshiro is Taiwanese / Japanese and started as a matinee idol, a singer. But he has put the emphasis on a film career in Hong Kong. He is doing or has done what some singers, most recently Justin Timberlake, sometimes do. A mid career transition. Kaneshiro has been at it for awhile longer.
Interestingly, Kaneshiro resembles Timberlake physically, in an oriental way of course.
Today's film was Tian ya hai jiao / Lost and Found
It is a contemporary romance nicely done with a great ending.
Part of it takes place, improbably, in Scotland. It does make sense when you are watching it. Or not. But the photography there is terrific.
.I liked it and will give it a 4 out of Netflix5.
Labels: films
LET THERE BE LIGHT
When we moved here last year, we bought a fan with three floodlights and a control to make them work. Mostly to change the speed of the fan. All was well.
Then we took the floodlights and aimed them. One for the dining table and two directed at two paintings that hang in the dining area.
A couple of months ago, I found myself straining to see when I read at the table. I began to worry that my cataracts were getting worse. But I didn't have trouble seeing anywhere else.
So I asked John to get a higher wattage bulb. Ours was 40. He got 50. Not enough.
Then we talked about aiming all three lights at the table. It involved the ladder so we put it off.
The other day, I was turning the spotlights off. There is a green button. Suddenly the spotlights went brighter. They didn't go off. I had inadvertently held the green button down.
I held it down again. The lights got even brighter. And then BRIGHTER STILL!
Holy keerist. For all this time we have been slowly dimming them as we turned them off and now the "variac" had reversed and were going to bright. The button has a dimmer on it! At full, the lights are almost too bright.
How could this happen? Well, let me count the ways. Start with not reading the instructions. Then move to not ever considering that we were dimming the lights somehow which would have led to further inquiry. I hope.
None of this happened.
For the last couple of days we have been turning the lights up and down and up and down.
I can read again. It is not my cataracts.
Side comment. When I was in college, the dining hall where I worked had a light dimmer. It was enormous. Made by Variac. A transformer.
It was the first dimmer that I had ever seen. I was a hick. We played around with it a lot too. Now, dimmers everywhere. Even when you do not expect them.
How could we have been so dim!
Labels: condo, engineering
Saturday, September 24, 2011
BACK TO THE INTERVIEW BEAT
Today is my first of season interview with an applicant for admission to MIT.
The 2012-13 school year. Can you imagine? What happened to the aughties?
S/he is the first of a list of fifteen. Some will not interview, others will not go to the stage of admission required prior to an interview.
I am up for it now. This is the fourth year.
I like it. It gives me contact with the next generation which is not as different than it thinks it is, all the newfangled googling gadgets and all. IPads and networks.
They are still the same kids. The age of two of my grandchildren.
They are smart. Achievers. But that doesn't make them much different either.
What amazes me is that I sit before these versions of me fifty years ago and am struck with timelessness.
You know. The more things change the more they stay the same.
Well, the tuition is changed. These kids will pay $38,000. I paid 900 a year. And that does not match the inflation rate.
Pricey.
But they give a lot of student aid. More than I had, actually.
But the kids? Still the same. They look like Paul, Dick and my first boyfriend Edwin. This guy looks a bit like me.
I am on my way now.
Labels: MIT
Friday, September 23, 2011
DANTE'S INFERNO IN ESTONIA
Today's movie was the Estonian filmmaker Veiko Ounpuu's
Püha Tõnu kiusamine / The Temptation of Saint Tony (2009)
A NYTimes Critics' Pick.
This is one of those films that is more or less impossible to figure out what is going on but yet, inside your intuition or other brain, you get what is going it. Well, I think I did.
Part satire, part nightmare, Tony traverses the circles of hell in his well pressed trench coat over black suit.
He is the "company man", the middle manager, the stooge. And he wants out. But he seems to have to walk through a nightmare to escape.
There are small vignettes which at first do not seem to connect but then, in the end, they all come together somehow.
In black and white, there is a somber, cloudy sky, mud everywhere sensibility going on here.
I enjoyed some of it, laughed, maybe inappropriately, at some stuff. The films owes a lot to Fellini and the guys who put together Cabaret.
I didn't much like what they did to and with a dog. I hope that it was PETA approved but I suppose not, it being Estonia.
I turned aside.
I am glad that I saw it but I wouldn't want to endure it again. Some parts are stretched to the last nerve end.
So, let's give it a 3 out of Netfix5. I think that every devoted cineast should see a bit of way out there film every so often. This is mine.
Labels: films
Thursday, September 22, 2011
DENTAL REPORT
I got two front teeth pulled on Tuesday. I am dealing with the aftermath pretty well.
I get to take out the new partial tonight. It was left in for two days to help reduce the swelling.
I am less sore. I don't quite pass the "pretzel test" yet but I can eat almost everything as long as I mostly keep it on the right side. The left is mostly plate and the plate pushes a bit much on the raw guys.
I can bite down on bare teeth and it is only a nudge. No pain.
Of course, I am still on two Ibuprofen and two Tylenol four times a day. But that was little help yesterday on the raw gum. Today, much better.
I am not much aware of it in the times that I am not eating. I try the bitedown occasionally. Just to see. Like sticking your tongue into a sore spot. Which it is.
That's it. I am pleased with the progress and predict a rapid recovery. Maybe a week after T-day.
Labels: dentist
RUBBING IT IN
I have ridden across this bridge.
It is old.
And he calls them OUT!
Very nice.
Labels: Administration Obama, Re-election of Barack Obama
LET 'EM DIE!
This ad will be playing over and over during tonights GOoPer debate.
Fighting back. Nicely.
Labels: Republican primary
THE FIRST END OF THE ROAD
Today, I finished the first season of
And it was grand. I was mentally prepared for a quite different outcome as I know there is a second and third season. Enough said. It was quite a surprise, edge of the seat kind of thing.
I am ready for Season Two but I will put it off for awhile. Maybe 100 in the queue. Still a big 5.
If you are interested in this series, I can assure you that it never flags.
Most episodes, up to the last three, are independent of one another. There are no cliff hangers. The business at hand is dispatched before 45 minutes are up.
In the last three episodes, things are more stitched together and many loose ends that used to be in the background are now brought forward. Each episode builds to the final resolution.
But, the point remains, you could watch one episode and quit. But you will not want to.
Labels: films
FLU
It is that time again and it gets easier and easier to get a flu shot around here.
Most of the drug stores, including my small Walgreen's special purpose (gay) store is giving them.
And, they link it all to medicare so it doesn't cost anything.
Medicare doesn't pay for many shots but the flu is a very cost effective one for people over 65.
It was a snap. Walk in. No line, chat with the clerks, who I know, shot and out.
Good to go for another year.
Labels: health
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
SEEK NOT WORLDLY THINGS
I am back with
Legend of the Seeker: Season One.
They must have found out that they were renewed as there is a lot of strenuous action and many special effects.
This last disc has an interview with Terry Goodkind, the author of the twelve books published on The Seeker. Richard Cypher, a country boy who is chosen to save the world from the Evil Darken Rahl. He joins a Confessor (you will find out what that is if you watch it) and a Wizard of the First Order.
The three set out for a series of extremely well produced adventures of 45 minutes in length. Wildly edited, there is not anything that is wasted and not a minute totally pillaged for exciting action or magic.
Among the many mysteries that the trio have to unravel, none is as astounding as the editing and composition of these stories that somehow manage to convey so much in so little time.I watch this carefully in what little spare time I have in the middle of these episodes and it remains a trade secret of how it is done so well.
This reviewer says the acting is "hammy". Well, hell, yes.
They have a lot to get across. Actually while it is, at times, broad, the acting is very effective. It takes a lot of energy to upstage special effects. These people are very well equipped to do so.
Labels: films
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
DONE AND DONE
Navy Lt. Gary Ross, Partner Dan Swezy Wed As Military's Gay Ban Formally Ends
Just as the formal repeal of the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy took effect, Navy Lt. Gary Ross and his partner were married before a small group of family and friends.
The two men, who'd been together 11 years, decided to marry in Vermont in part because the state is in the Eastern time zone.
That way, they were able to recite their vows at the stroke of midnight - at the first possible moment after the ban ended.
"I think it was a beautiful ceremony. The emotions really hit me...but it's finally official," Ross said early Tuesday.
Labels: gay military
THE SNAKE SPEAKS
James Carville has gone a bit mad from being ignored by almost everyone.
He is such an asshole. And he appropriately looks like a snake. Those beady little eyes.
Here he is with Wolf Blitzer. This is a real broadcast set by Scott Bateman. Watch the comments on the left. They are very fast. It may take a couple of views. One of the difficulties of Bateman's wonderful cartoons.
Of course, James is part of the professional left. He isn't earning much at that these days.
Labels: professional left
LOOKING BACK
2007 Interview.
I think that he may be heading into the counter punch mode.
Thanks Daily Kos
Labels: Re-election of Barack Obama
OUT TAKE
Today's movie was a trip to the dentists office to have two front teeth extracted, bone graft implanted (the cow or artificial kind, I don't know which), a sew up and the fitting of a temporary plate which I will wear for two days before routine removal for cleaning and overnight soaking. This will keep the swelling down. Hard to believe but true.
The whole thing took about 25 minutes. This guy is good and fast.
I will have pain and I can take ibuprofen or ibuprofen and tylenol, the combination being a new trick to alleviate pain which is even superior to some narcotics which I prefer not to take both because I don't like the effect and because as an alcoholic it is walking a little bit toward the wild side.
I was never into pills or narcotics but it is not wise to mess with them unless absolutely prescribed and ordered by the doc.
It is a little sore now and will remain so for a week or so. I go back in two weeks for a look-see.
Almost none of the things I worried about happened. So far.
The next step after this heals is to take care of some remaining teeth. A root canal perhaps and a crown or two. Then, a new permanent plate which will last for 15 years or more. This one is just plastic.
Labels: dentist
Monday, September 19, 2011
HISTORIC
Army Sends Official Notice That 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' is Repealed.
Do you know how long this has been coming and going?
Done. Over. Finished.
Hurray.
Labels: gay history, gay liberation, gay life, gay military, gay rights
WHAT'S IN A NAME
Netflix' change of operations and billing caused a big stir. And they lost some business. Worse than a stir.
This morning, I got an email from Reed Hastings himself with a mea culpa and an announcement.
Netflix to Break Business in TwoI wrote before that I actually benefitted from the policy change so I wasn't mad.
In fact, the prices for disc only customers dropped some and so I changed to a 6 pack on hand from a 5.
I will not use streaming. Period. I know that this ultimatum could change. For example, discs might disappear. But until then no dice.
I can stop and start a disc. I can go back and re listen to a part. I can share the disc in the same house and do so. We watch films on the iMac so it is not a communal activity.
I don't like the new name much. QUICKSTER. What is that?
But I will take it as it comes. Discs and all.
Labels: films
LOST
Today's film was John Cameron Mitchell's adaptation of the play
Rabbit Hole (2010)with Nicole Kidman and Aaron Eckhart.
The play won a Pulitzer. The movie is very, very good. Mitchell is the originator of Hedwig and Shortbus so this is quite the departure or paradigm shift for him. And it is extremely well done.
A young couple's four year old son has died eight months ago. The couple still mourns but, somehow, doesn't know how. Or doesn't get it.
Here the struggle is seen with their larger family and others who are close to them and the event.
There are surprises along the way.
I was a bit scared of seeing this as I did not want a wallow. It is anything but. Sure, there are some tears and hurt but there is also humor and support and, above all, realism.
Recovery can come from the most surprising places.
I would be more than happy to see this again. I will rate it a 4 out of Netflix5.
Labels: films
Sunday, September 18, 2011
IGNORANCE AND HOMOPHOBIA
If anyone is thinking that the likes of John Boehner are any less bigoted or any more committed to support of gay rights, look at this.
Boehner Claims Homosexuality Is A Choice In Effort To Preserve ‘Defense Of Marriage Act’
This canard about "choice" was broken long ago. But who expects the republicans to pay any attention to facts.
I have to admit that I was a bit astonished about this. I still somehow cannot believe that a leader of the country can be so stupid or biased. Or lie. Naive me. And after all these years of GOplicity.
This is another reason why I cannot figure any gay man or woman being a republican at the same time.
I suppose that it is also possible for gay people to be ignorant and full of self hatred too, huh? Or do they think that they can take parts and leave the rest? Whole hog, guys and gals.
Actually, the gay republicans are mostly men. I have not seen any indication that there are any lesbians in these groups.
Not at all fabulous.
Labels: gay marriage, gay rights
Saturday, September 17, 2011
HARVEST TIME
Today's film was Claire Denis'
The French are leaving the unnamed African country. There are rebels and an unstable government. There are, suddenly, child soldiers. Chaos. Total.
A three generation French/African family with a coffee plantation copes.
Isabelle Huppert, again, turns in a tour de force performance as the wife, daughter and mother who is trying to hold it all together. Mostly to stay until things settle down.
She is all but estranged from her husband, her young adult son, blond and blue eyed African has gone native. The old man is dying. What else? A hell of a lot.
She is the center of the storm. Trying to batten down the hatches.
She has a lover who is a leader of the rebels who has lost control and is hiding on the plantation. What else can get fucked up?
Just about everything as it turns out.
Now. What about the film. It is dreamy. A nightmare in color. Time sequence is stirred up. Watch her dresses. She wanders in and out of the small town trying to fix stuff. It is a losing proposition.
It is odd that something so dreamy and out of sequence can make so much sense and, in the end, be a picture of Africa, the colonial past, the reality of the multi racial present and a picture of what is to come.
The child soldiers, boys and girls, are terrifying. Even I wanted to run and I am sitting in Palm Springs in front of an iMac.
All around is the land's beauty and people are running amok.
I could not watch this again but it is a 4 out of Netflix5 in quality. All handheld and right in the middle of things, it involves and engages right down to the last bullet fired in drug addled hysteria by the kids stirred up by a crazy DJ who has taken over the airwaves.
Oh. What is "white material"? A catch phrase for the white's stuff and the white themselves. They are objects. Huppert slowly gets this until she, herself is crazed.
See? I can't end this.
Yes. A 4 out of Netflix5. It is done. I am done.
Labels: films
TRY SOME OPTIMISM
David Axelrod To Democrats: "Chill Out".
One thing that he does not mention is that Obama is not seen in the context of a Republican opponent. He is getting all the shit on him in the debates but up to now he has no target to load up on them.
This is a typical incumbent situation. The man in the White House has to sit and wait until he knows who is running against him. Then and only then is there an election dynamic that can be tested.
Despite falling approval ratings, generated by both those on the right and left of the President, he maintains a good edge over every Republican candidate.
One of the most consistent worries about all the Republican primary candidates is their electability. And rightly so.
The game has not really started yet. Let's see what happens as the GOP primary unfolds.
In the meantime, Obama is asserting himself generically against the republicans with strong initiatives like the Jobs Act. Good reactions to it so far.
And in all generic polls, which aren't worth much, the Republican Party consistently polls behind the Democrats. Not much but something.
Labels: Re-election of Barack Obama
RAISING THE PRESSURE
Obama Tax Plan Would Ask More of Millionaires
Well, we knew that he was maybe going to do this. He has been talking about it. And here it is.
It is interesting that he has dropped or, rather, raised the minimum here from 250,000 to a million. A long held promise from his campaign. It certainly sounds better to anyone close to the 250K line. Also, he has imbedded the Warren Buffet assertion that he pays more percent tax than his secretary. A winning point.
What this does to the GOoPers at a political level is hard to say as they don't seem to behave predictably about anything.
This is supposed to replace the hated Alternative Minimum Tax. I was close enough to this dire alternative several times and it is kicking a lot of people's asses. This, actually, should make the proposal as popular as the "tax the rich" part.
This should be very satisfying to people who want him to be "tougher" whatever that means.
Labels: Administration Obama
TRANSFORMED
Today's film was the second half of Mike Leigh's
In which the team produces the great The Mikado thus transforming their descent into mediocrity with a major artistic and business success.
This half is more devoted to the life behind the stage and also presents a generous amount of musical production to contrast with the difficult lives most of the actors, in fact all the principles, faced. So, it becomes a backstage buddy film.
It is, for sure, a Netflix5. All around.
Labels: films
Friday, September 16, 2011
JAPPANED
Today's film is Mike Leigh's
Topsy Turvy (1999)This is the story of later Gilbert and Sullivan and the crisis that produced their masterwork, The Mikado.
I saw it when it came out. It was a wonderful experience to watch. Then the film went into eclipse. It was not available on disc for many years. Now, in a Criterion Collection restoration, the film glows. I can finally see it again. And, best of all, hear it in all its sonic glory.
Leigh has made this into a deep exploration of the backstage theater. We enter at the crisis point when the two partners are at loggerheads and unable to produce a new operetta. At least the first half of this 4 hour production is about the crisis and the goings on around it. Pure backstage stories. Great.
Then, Gilbert is dragged to the Japanese Exposition by his wife and he is fascinated especially with the drama and music.
Before he knows it a libretto for a new opera begins to form. The second half which I will see tomorrow is devoted to the construction of the greatest G&S production.
I fear that Gilbert and Sullivan's work is being forgotten today. They were very much a part of my growing up in the 50s and 60s because they were everywhere. Productions regularly toured America and they were done in repertory and amateur productions all over America. They were shown on television. Beautiful, wonderful, funny as hell. Intelligent. Maybe that is the problem. They are too intelligent. I know I sound like a geezer with this but there it is.
It is a Netflix5 out of 5.
Labels: films
Thursday, September 15, 2011
THRONES
Another acquisition. Toilet seats.
This is the Magnolia Elite seat.
Pressed wood and paint. No plastic. Easy to clean hinges.
The right size for the toilets that were here.
The ones we had were OK but the paint was flaking and they were just a little small. We have big asses.
Done and done.
FIESTA!
We got "new" dishes today. The choice?
Fiesta Ware!Did you know they still made it? I didn't. 1936. 75 years.
And it is not "fiesta ware" it is Fiesta. Same company. Same colors.
Our china has been showing its ware. Burnishing. It is the worst color for this, grey.
And that is another reason. We are hungry for color.
So we have the basic sets in dark brown, dark blue and black.
The other pieces, bigger bowls and plates, are in the colors.
Mix and match.
The old stuff will go to the thrift store.
How did we get to this? I thought that I wanted "diner ware" the heavy cups and plates.
John took that to the Fiesta idea. Great. As it turns out the mugs are almost as heavy as what I envisioned.
Macy's sells it. It is on sale. Perfecto.
Fiesta!
When I was a kid we had this kind of china. It was the Woolworth version. My Aunt Flora had a heavier set and it may have actually been Fiesta. Perhaps the other 5&10.
Do you know what a 5&10 was? You are dating yourself if you do.
Wikipedia doesn't even carry them separate. They fall under "variety store".
Bullshit. It was a 5&10.
Labels: life
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
B-B-B -BUDDIES
Today's film was
Like a finely tuned auto, this British half history half cornball movie speeds to the gate and runs around the curves very smoothly for almost two hours.
There is no denying that it is a good film. It has good actors although I think the wrong actor won the Oscar, as much as I enjoy Colin Firth, it is the stammering stuff that gets the attention.
More subtly Guy Pierce is the one I want to see more of as the King who loved a divorced commoner. He is great in an unlovable role.
It is also more Geoffrey Rush's film then Firth's. Rush is an executive producer and has the time and talent to steal almost every scene. He gets the meat. Firth gets the potatoes.
So, here we are again with an Oscar film that really isn't as good as it wants or we want it to be.
Helena Bonham Carter is underused. More simpering and a good wife to Bertie with no sex spark between the two whatsoever. Well, they are British.
Does it sound like I didn't like the film? Sure I did. It is calculated down to the last frame to please. This is reminiscent of the Weinstein product when they were still producing with Disney.
Derek Jacoby, Michael Gambon and a woofed up and over the top Timothy Spall as Churchill round out the all star cast. Claire Bloom, who I have not seen in years, was the Queen Mother. Ice.
The best part of it is when Bertie sees a newsreel of Hitler mesmerizing a crowd. He gets that he must do this thing and become equal to the other voice.
I will give it a Netflix3. I liked it well enough but once around is sufficient, thank you.
It didn't get a NYTimes Critics' Pick either.
Labels: films
REUNIONS
Today's film was the documentary
James Taylor and Carole King with various talking heads remember the LA club of the same name. And whip up a pretty good runup of their 2010 Troubadour tour.
I was in my 30s when the era of the singer-songwriter came to be and I was a fan of most of these people.
It is like a scrapbook of the times with some neat perspective on what happened, how it happened and where they are now.
Taylor speaks frankly of his recovery from addiction. He now has 27 years and clearly works it.
Many familiar faces and voices talk about the times, the Troubadour club and its owner, Doug Weston.
Many are quite realistic that those days had to end and, while they were wonderful times, they also had their down side and problems. These are grown up people now. Parents, grandparents, many with still lively careers and making some good bucks from the royalties from their everlasting hits.
I liked it. It was a little teary here and there. I never much liked Carole King but I like her better now.
I will give it a Netflix3.
Labels: films
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
GENERATIONS
These guys are in the generation before us. We know so many who met and stayed together, whose wildest dreams would not include being married to one another.
But at the same time, their example fed to the possibility for us.
We knew a couple who met when they were teenagers and still had photos of each other at that time in their wallets.
We know another couple in similar circumstances.
We will not have 60 years together. Maybe in the 40s. 50s would be good but a bit long.
These guys did not live in a closet. They were out and open. The lived their lives in front of a lot of people. They had resources and they used them.
Of course they are not "everyday" people but the guys we knew with the photos were. They never had a lot of material stuff but they had each other. And they lived in Salt Lake City!
So they are pioneers. I am so happy they were there for us to see.
Labels: gay history, gay marriage
MOURNING
We lived in the old house for 14 years. Our neighbors for that whole time were the Byrnes. Wonderful people who were always around, friendly, helpful in a "moral support" kind of way. Good fences made good neighbors.
Actually there was a fence but we could see over it. They were down lower than us.
Last week, Marlene was bothered by the dogs in the house we used to live in. The guy we sold to is not the best neighbor and the dogs are a neighborhood nuisance. We try not to feel responsible. We don't but we do a little teeny bit.
Marlene wanted to see what was going on so she got a chair and stood on it to peer over the wall. She fell. Into the pool. Which was empty as Bill had drained it for repairs.
She sustained major multiple injuries and got to intensive care but couldn't hold on and died.
It is very sad. They are older than we are and had a great life for 35 years in that house. Of all the people we left behind, it was hardest to say goodbye to them.
Today, we are going over to a local restaurant where they will have a memorial. Fortunately it is only a week since she died and the feelings are still there.
Out here, people wait for weeks to do a "celebration" of people's lives. Awful. I won't go.
I was brought up on funerals and wakes. Loud roaring bawling affairs where people might throw themselves on the body, pass out or just quietly visit with the other friends while the show was going on.
People got out their grief. Their feelings. Their anger and hurt.
Not here. Sweet music and platitudes. By the time they get to the "service" the body is gone, the people are over it and it is hard to remember just why we have gone to the affair. Like I said, I don't go.
But today was close enough that there will be feelings and some old friends back in the neighborhood. And nice memories of Marlene we can share. A few tears. Respects to Bill. A great loss. They were so close one wonders if he can survive.
We shall see. People do. And don't. You can never tell.
Labels: death
WORK
Today was the day of reckoning.
I have been putting off needed work on my upper front teeth for about three years. He wanted to do them all together but I demurred and took the "wait until you need it" approach. Which, actually, he approved.
But this past week I have had an infection in the tooth that is very loose, a pocket infection as it turns out, and it will have to be pulled. Even now, I could wait and just take antibiotics but that is going too far, I think. The tooth has never felt "loose" but now it does. So the process is started.
Next week, he will take two front teeth (there is another tooth that is bad) and put in a temporary plate. A partial. My old one will not accommodate the new spaces. He will put a "bone" graft in the base to stabilize it. Not real bone. No cadavers.
Then we will wait for healing and get the new partial.
In the meantime he will work on the two or three surrounding teeth which will probably involve a route canal and three crowns.
OK. Here we go. Cash in the mouth. He can take that trip to Paris.
I am OK with it. He says the new partial will last 15 years. I have had this one at least that long and I can feel the wires as they are getting exposed by wear.
Time to get it done.
Labels: dentist
Monday, September 12, 2011
THE RATINGS
From The Hill:
Obama's jobs speech draws 31M viewersI saw this the other day and was rather impressed without knowing anything comparable. This puts some meat into it with other relevant Nielsen ratings.
By Jamie Klatell - 09/10/11 11:14 AM ETPresident Obama's address to a joint session of Congress was watched by 31 million television viewers, according to Nielsen.
Eleven networks carried the president's Thursday evening jobs speech, which began shortly after 7 p.m. EDT.
The NFL season opener between the Green Bay Packers and the New Orleans Saints, which began after Obama's speech ended, drew some 27 million television viewers.
During the brief scrap between the White House and House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) over the scheduling of the president's speech, it was widely speculated that competing with football's opening night would take away from Obama's audience.
The Republican presidential debate, which was on Wednesday when Obama had originally planned to speak, drew 5.4 million viewers for cable network MSNBC.
Obama's most watched speech was his late night announcement about the killing of terrorist leader Osama bin Laden. That unscheduled appearance at 11:30 p.m. on May 1, was watched by more than 56 million people, according to Nielsen.
The president's State of the Union address in January drew nearly 43 million viewers.
Sunday, September 11, 2011
PLAYING ALONG THE EDGE
Today's film was the Italian
Cosa voglio di più / Come Undone (2010)
Two hard working people meet and fall in love or lust. Complications ensue as both are in committed relationships and have no time for such a dalliance.
But they dally anyway and it is hard work. Lying, scheming to be together, finding the money and time.
This is an excellent film. These are normal people who are smart and should know better but they do not. Their spouses get hurt. It is a mess.
And they are in love.
What makes this film work is the honesty and reality of the situations. It is a modern look at an eternal dilemma. The stretch between adventure and stability. Loyalty and attraction. The nature of happiness. And not a bit of philosophizing. We can draw our own conclusions. No one here is "bad".
I will give it a 3 out of Netflix5.
Labels: films
BROKEN
John brought back cool weather!
Today and into the entire week, we are to see lower temperatures in the 90s. Breezy days.
This is the first sign of a break from the summer.
There may be some hot days here and there but, if this follows the usual course, we are in the period where the house will be open longer and longer each day and, eventurally, and not that far ahead, the AC will be unnecessary and we will be in the 9 months where we float through ideal weather.
Good. I am just about done with the hot stuff.
Labels: weather
OUT FOR DINNER
Today's film was the French comedy
Le code a changé / A Change of Plans (2009)
This comedy of bad manners between four couples and a few relatives is built around an annual dinner party given at one couple's house.
We see the dinner and then what goes on both coming and going. There is a lot of difference between what people do and say at the party and what they do and say with each other one on one.
OK. Normal so far.
Then throw in the gimmick that the parties are not shown in sequence. Some go to the past some are in the future.
Sometimes it is a little hard to figure when and where you are but the film helps with cues which seem superfluous at the beginning but crucial later on.
It is an enjoyable, somewhat realistic affair. Amusing. Never LOL humor. Gallic.
It was enjoyable. I will give it a 3 out of Netflix5.
Labels: films
911
Well, I can't not write something about it.
I seem to be out of step with a lot of my reactions though.
I was at the gym. Doesn't everyone remember where they were?
My workout was done, I was getting up from situps and looked up to the teevee screens in the big balcony on the second floor. Smoke from one of the towers.
Someone said a small plane hit.
I immediately thought of the plane that flew into the Empire State Building when I was a kid.
I went out to the car and turned on NPR. Confusion. Looking back, I realize that no one knew anything.
We didn't have television and there wasn't much access to streaming video on the internet.
Slowly, the images came in. A very long day.
Of course, we personalize all of this.
For years I trained near Wall Street and stayed in the hotel right next to the Towers. What became a Marriott.
It had been rebuilt after the car bomb in the parking lot below. The blown part was right in "my" restaurant.
For awhile then I stayed at the Millenium Hotel across the Street from the WTC.
I walked this mall every day I was in New York for several years.
All of that. Gone with the Towers.
Later, I became obsessed with the pictures of the people who jumped. Why? Don't know.
I have never faced the attacks as anything but an extension of the war already being waged.
Osama Bin Laden and his serious intentions had been grist for the fear mill in the Clinton administration. Now he was here.
Before that, I traveled the world a lot and remember the fear in London Heathrow. I used to check the field of fire around the cafe where I had my last scone and clotted cream before getting on the plane.
I remember canceling a trip to Austria on points because there had been a gun down in their baggage claim area.
I think somewhere in there, I checked fear at the door. It was, to me, a sign that they were winning.
I read the other day of the phenomenal amount of money, trillions, that attack has cost us. The useless war in Iraq. The surrender of personal freedoms. The barricades in front of public buildings. The ruin of the joys of air travel. All the rest. What a cost. Fear.
Mourning. I didn't know anyone lost in the attacks. I mourned the loss of these innocents. The people who jumped. The people who stayed.
I don't minimize any of it but I do recognize that each day for decades people in the world had been dying as a result of the same terrorism. We didn't care much about them. In fact, at times, it seemed that our stance was that it was deserved. Suddenly it was on our front porch. Our people. Our families. Our government.
It is still "dangerous" to say that we have been wallowing in emotionalism about all this. Fear and rampant emotions of this kind are a powerful mix. We hunkered down.
I won't go on about this.
That means that for today, my mood is defiant and humble. Defiant because I do not want to participate in anything that is fear based. Humble in the realization that we have had it good here and to that extent we have been given a warning. We should pay attention.
I am proud to say that my President has liquidated more terrorists in two years than other administrations did altogether. I am glad that the Obamas reignited the hunt for Bin Laden. And killed him.
I am glad that we commemorate this day with not a "war on terrorism" but a determination that we will track down the terrorists. A different way to see it.
I am happy to see that fear is not manipulated and stage managed with the colored alerts, the phony rhetoric, torture. The rest. That we are micro processing the former war on terror pragmatically and situationally. Rationally. Not as global triumphalism.
I probably do not mourn the deaths as much as others. I am always suspect of long term mourning. But I know that our lives and way of living changed that day ten years ago. Bless those who gave their lives. Bless our country and its people. Bless the anger and pain that drives men insane enough to do such things wherever they happen.
Labels: terrorism
Saturday, September 10, 2011
THE RETURN
Booker and I went to pick up John last night. He had been traveling for 21 hours from Milan.
Booker was enormously happy to see his other Dad.
And, I was overjoyed to see my husband. We have been apart before for this long but each time seems longer.
We all went home together, had a dog pile and I went to bed. I don't know what they got up to after I was gone. Probably a lot of stories about how I didn't really know how to do the morning walk or the afternoon dinner.
That's OK. I am happy enough to turn those things over to the expert.
FOR BETTER OR WORSE
Today's film was the NYTimes Critics' Pick
This is good 9-11 viewing. It shows the insanity that ensued after the planes hit their targets and the runup to the Iraq War.
It is the story of Valerie Plame and Joe Wilson. Both of whom were attacked and outed by the Bushies as they undermined the case there were WMD's in Iraq.
There is a lot of inside stuff about what went down. Scooter (god) Libby and Karl Rove and other minions of the bush wars.
But at heart, it is a story of a marriage in the throes of deep stress.
Sean Penn and Naomi Watts are great as are many of the associates and friends who turn out to be weasels. There aren't many heroes in this film. But two is plenty enough.
I liked it a lot. For such a bureaucratic mess, it is well told, clear and fast paced. We are allowed to think for ourselves and sift the facts.
Of course the bushies are the villains. But we knew that.
There is a lot of video showing George lying and evading. Enough of Scooter and his nasty abuse of power. Enough of the CIA bureaucrats who knew the bushes were wrong, dead wrong, and folded to their power. The Wilsons were having none of it.
I will give this film a 4 out of Netflix5. I would not mind seeing it again just to see the mendacity and to get recharged over the terrible shit that went down at that time.
Labels: films
Friday, September 09, 2011
STUNNING
Today's film was Danny Boyle's
With James Franco, perfect, as Aron Ralston, the guy who fell into a slot canyon along with a rock that pinned his arm in one place.
This is an amazing film. A NYTimes Critics' Pick.
I was totally absorbed in it. There are shocks, laughs, excitement and wonder as Ralston/Franco uses his intelligence and experience to get himself out of the situation.
It takes him quite a while to reach the conclusion that there is only one way out. Losing his lower right arm. But he does this with strength and purpose.
He does stuff to keep him "there", not not lose it. He makes a small movie. He jerks off. He reminisces. He even sees the future which pulls him through at the end. His own son, as it turns out. Although you can get it before you know it.
The cinematography is superb. The wide open spaces and then the tightly confined space with a rock on one's arm. The editing is fast paced. Done in a way that we get the waiting, the pace of time but also are kept engaged.
Beautiful. A 5 out of Netflix5. I will see this again as I have all Boyle's films. A Boyle fest or maybe a Franco fete.
Labels: films
THE SPEECH: PASS THIS BILL!!!
I am so proud of my President.
He looked them in the eye. Some of them blinked.
If you know the background, there were even more points made. Like easter eggs. The bridge between Ohio and Kentucky that needs repairs. Boehner (Ohio) and McConnell (Kentucky). Many more. Many more.
It was up front and personal. And, a campaign speech. A good one. They have to realize that he is going to work this stuff hard. He is out there today. In Virginia where that bastard Cantor has his district.
You know, the GOP leaders, if you can call them that, wanted to see a copy of the speech before hand. He said no thanks.
They are shuffling today.
Obama Challenges Congress on Job Plan
I like watching who stands, who applauds. There was a lot of red meat for Democrats. And a lot of "you can't sit while I say this" lines for the Republicans. A few, I think McCain never stood for anything. A few could be seen being bad boys in the last row. Chucking and smirking.
We will see. While Romney and Perry provide grist for the General mill, Obama is going on the hustings.
You know, when he does this he works locally. He has interviews with all the local media and then there are the speeches and "town meetings". With a lot of local Obama office support on followup. Volunteers are signed up right there.
Labels: Administration Obama
STILL PUSHING IT
When I was elected Moderator for the Town of Plymouth (MA) Town Meeting, the first thing that I did was eliminate the invocation from each session.
It was surprising that no one said anything about it.
For years, they had some sky pilot come in and try to cover the crowd with his brand of crop dust.
Ecumenicalism was a big deal at that time. So were churches, much more than today. Remember that? Every one did their thing, or not, in their own way in their own place. No one prevented a congregation from devoting a Sunday worship to meditation on participatory government.
But anyone could see that it was not an appropriate mingling of the sacred with the profane. First of all, there is nothing sacred about some guy lording it over other people as though he knows something they do not. Or has a pipeline to god.
And second, there is nothing profane about people coming together to solve local problems in an orderly way.
God, as people understand their higher power, is welcome to participate for each of them, in their own way. I figured that they could say their own prayers which would be much more meaningful than if it was led by some pious professional. Professional piety.
I had sat through sessions in which the preacher had gone on well beyond the prescribed purpose and time of the Meeting. And I was having none of it.
And, not a peep from anyone. Some amused grins but not one protest.
Now look at this.
Omitting Clergy at 9/11 Ceremony Prompts Protest
They just don't fucking get it. Most people do not want to have it shoved down their throats. The sermon, the mealy mouthed devotions, the sanctimonious superiority, the blatant hypocrisy.
I have actually enjoyed the company of a few preachers in my time. But they were the exception. Rare was it to find one of them that wasn't on a power trip.
In this day and age, the culture wars are on again. The religionists want to have their say in everything. They don't see that most (this is true, most) of us don't want it. Or need it either.
There is enough bloviation about 9-11 anyway. We are so not over it. The memorials, the ceremonies, the reliving of old wounds. The goddam christians against the muslims all the rest of it.
Three cheers for Bloomberg, a blatant secularist, who has had enough as well. The best approach to this is to do nothing as anything they do will lead to the next level of bullshit, namely the arguments among the religionists themselves. Muslims, jews, christians, I have had about enough of that too.
Labels: christist watch, religion
Thursday, September 08, 2011
I THINK THIS IS PHOTOSHOPPED
Governor Rick Perry Enjoys Corn Dog at Local Church.
Labels: Republican primary, republican whack jobs
SO WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT THIS DOCTOR FREUD?
I am an old fan of using Freud to pick shit apart.
It is good for movies and novels, and as it turns out, politics.
I am not the only one to think so. This from Johnathon Chait.
Perry, stylistically, ruled the roost [in last night’s debate]. The media seems to consider Romney the winner. Pardon the condescension, but they’re not thinking like Republican base voters. Romney approaches every question as if he is in an actual debate, trying to provide the most intellectually compelling answer available, within the bounds of political expediency. Perry treats questions as interruptions. What scientists do you trust on climate change? I don’t want to risk the economy. Are you taking a radical position on social security? We can have reasons or we can have results. His total liberation from the constraints of reason give Perry a chance to represent the Republican id in a way Romney simply cannot match. […]The id. Perry. Great. The ego is Romney? Maybe. Huntsman is the superego. The guide to what is right and wrong with the right.
Far fucking out.
I love it.
For those wanting a brush up on these terms go here.
The ego always has its hair combed. Romney.
Perry is all cowboy id. He struts. He pushes his chest out. He bounces on his feet and he is all appetite. Intellectual pursuits do not interest him. Galileo is a talking point someone gave to him. He had it upside down. Horse's ass but dangerous.
Huntsman? He is quite good actually and wants to do the right thing. Believe the scientists. Social Security is a benevolent institution and not really in danger.
But the Party wants none of that right now.
Labels: Republican primary
CUBAN POET
Today's film was a reviewing of Julian Schnabel's
with Javier Bardem as Reinaldo Arenas, the Cuban writer who was imprisoned and then expelled from Cuba in the Mariel boat lift.
He died at 47 in New York with his lover and companion (Diego Luna). AIDS. Assisted suicide.
This is a powerful, sexy film with lots to watch. It has breath.
I saw it before. It was a five. This is its return. It is still a five.
I meant to play it with the other two Schnabel films, last week but this disc was bad and I had to get a replacement.
Labels: films
JUST IN TIME
Gail Collins is back in the NYT after taking a long leave to write a book.
I was afraid that we would have to weather this shit-storm of a GOP primary alone.
Not so.
Here she is taking the measure of the GoOPers field through the prism of last night's "debate".
The current front-running Mitt Alternative is Rick Perry, possibly the first major presidential candidate opposed to the direct election of U.S. senators since the advent of the Bull Moose Party. He did not do anything superweird at his maiden presidential debate, unless you count bouncing up and down and cocking his head a lot. Or claiming that the reason a quarter of the Texas population has no health insurance is because of government interference.
And Romney cleaned Perry’s clock on Social Security. Young Americans, if you dream of someday running for president, try not to write any books calling Social Security a Ponzi scheme.
“We’re not trying to pick fights here,” protested Perry, inaccurately. Attempting to change the subject, the Texas governor suggested: “Maybe it’s time to have some provocative language in this country and say things like: ‘Let’s get America working again and do whatever it takes to make that happen.’ ”
Labels: Republican primary, republican whack jobs
Wednesday, September 07, 2011
BACKGROUND
Brian Williams gives a fascinating interview on debate preparation and his experiences with the candidates over the years.
It is pretty good. It kept me to the end.
Labels: elections, television
WEIGHT
I am feeling the weight of being alone. I mean this in a good way.
I have been glad for the experience of "handling things" while John is in Italy but, at the same time, I am aware that just because someone is gone, there is the family life to continue. The dishes, the laundry, making the bed, walking the other half of the dog. Yes. There are those things.
But more, the space. Someone is not here. Booker reflects this nicely. He gets little mini-depressions. He knows that the morning walk isn't the way it is supposed to be. And so on.
I am the same way. The days have a piece missing.I had thought that I would have a lot of time and space being alone. That is not the case. I did add a few chores, pruning the hibiscus, cutting down the "garden" to the gravel. Getting ready for a new courtyard.
Anyway, there it is.
Maybe this means that I miss him. Busy work doesn't relieve that.
He goes back to Milan tomorrow from Cinque Terre and then leaves there Friday AM and is due back later Friday night.
HEERE THEN GONE
Today's film was Mia Hansen-Love's
Le père de mes enfants / The Father of My Children (2009)
This is a NYTimes Critics' Choice.
An art film producer (in France) is harried and hurried and down to his last euro and nerve. His wonderful family waits for his return each day and, while there is a great deal of love and energy in the home, he is not there for a lot of it. Two cell phones, a dwindling bank account, a crazy director who is over budget. Little by little we see how little there is left for him in his work.
He will or cannot see the other half of his life, the glass that is half filled. His family.
This is not a spoiler. He kills himself.
Suddenly the beloved wife and three kids must deal with the left over situation.
This is not a weeper. It is very cool, calm and collected. I think that it is very realistic.
Friends step in, life goes on. The company is liquidated and the family finds a new way to go.
Late in the film, after the death, there is a power failure. The family and a friend go outside to "see" in the dark. Other people are there. This segment is totally dark. You only hear the voices.
Then the lights come on, the family goes back into their home. They have a life. The need to move on and do.
A very nice film sweetly acted. A look inside the "business". Very good. I would not mind seeing it again. It will be a 4 out of Netflix5.
Labels: films
