esrosedotblog

It has been a month and two days since our wonderful dog Booker died.

In a way, it seems forever. In another, as though it happened yesterday.

The deep grieving is over. I can think fondly of him and laugh about stuff.

But there are times when my reflex is to look for him or something comes up where he would be right there in the middle of it with me. And he is not.

Other times, I get blindsided by situations that require confrontation with the pure fact of his absence. Such a one happened today.

A neighbor came out with his dogs to "walk" in the grassy park across the way. I truly went over to pet the dogs. I am still laboring under the illusion that other people's dogs can fill a gap. Not so. One of the little bastards tried to nip me and the schnauzer, who is a terrier after all, ignored me rather completely which would have been Booker's reaction to such an intrusion on his private time.

The guy asked where Booker was. Keerist! Doesn't he gossip? Hasn't it occurred to him before? Didn't he ask around? No. And we are not that important. We are not on a lot of peoples "beyond cordial" radar. Nor, honestly, are they on mine.

But there it was. I had to go through it again. One more time. It is not easier with time but it is less emotional. Not necessarily the same thing.

The guy was embarrassed and so I had to assure him that he had not spoken out of school. I ended up fucking comforting him!

Such is the case when you are a sensitive warm person. I think that's it. Not me, but a little bit sometimes. Also a good way to get out of the way and say goodbye.

It is OK.

I am still ambivalent about another dog. Everyone asks that question. You would think that I would be ready for it but I am not. I do have an answer but it doesn't roll out.

The answer is I don't know but the soonest it would be possible would be October when we are all done traveling and running around, the both of us home.

We do have the feelers out to our dog resources and have not pulled them in really. If a dog showed up who fit the bill entirely we might make a move earlier. Nothing is never, no way. But unlikely.

It is hot. We are in and out of town. It is not a good time for us until the fall. Period. End of paragraph. Done with the story.

For now, for fucks sake.

Labels: dogs

I watched one of my all time favorite films today. Martin McDonagh's

In Bruges (2008)

Two guys. Their boss tells them to go to Bruges, Belgium to lie low after murdering a priest and accidentally killing a little kid.

The boss has put them in Bruges because he thinks it is a nice place to visit. He had a good time there.

The boys enjoy each other's company until it becomes apparent that one had a slightly different assignment than the other.

So far so good. This summary doesn't include the appearance of a film crew with a dwarf as one of the actors, a girl who deals drugs who gets attracted to one of the guys or the fact that in the brief time the two guys are together they develop a deep friendship, almost a mentor student relationship.

A rich stew. Funny as hell. Great dialog. Beautiful to watch, the cathedral and "fairy tale" streets.

Brendan Gleeson and Colin Farrell are the two guys on the lam. Ralph Fiennes is their boss and Peter Dinklage is a member of the movie cast who keeps being in the wrong or right place at the opportune or inopportune time.

Everyone is on their finest form but this is the film that shows Colin Farrell as a wonderful actor who is not going to have a movie hero career. He is an actor from top to bottom who becomes this dodgy character who one cannot stop watching.

I am not sure why this movie plays so well for me. I need to space it out a bit between viewings to disremember the plot details but I think I could actually watch it more frequently.

It is also truly scary. This is McDonagh's forte. Scary, intelligent and funny suspense films and plays.

A 5 out of 5. I will see it again in a year or so.

Labels: films

We used to be committed Saab owners but GM ruined that. They bought them out and Saab sold out to them. And the dealer arrangement. Piss poor. A bunch of Chevy salesmen who didn't understand the Saab at all.

So we were off to Volvo. Hard to swallow as long time Volvo sneerers we took the pill and got over it.

A beautiful "station wagon" later and now a 2103 convertible, the last of the hard tops, has turned us into excited fans. Nothing like converts for enthusiasm and commitment!

This video review is fun. It is for the new 2015 crossover, a new idea for Volvo.

Driven | 2015 Volvo V60 T5 Drive-E

If we were looking for a dog car again, this might just be it.

I have finally surrendered to "tear drop" shapes and sloping back windows. I will squint. But the video shows that the Volvo has taken over a whole category and is a proud companion for the other models which we are now committed to.

In any market, a brand committed buyer is a valuable commodity and we have become brand buyers.

My first job was with a brand, Ocean Spray Cranberries, and the new management at the time, of which I was a part, had brand loyalty as gospel.

When I left there and started working for a chain store which had its own private labels (I was an engineer working on our own food operations) I converted. An apostate. A denier of a truth which still holds today. Brands do matter. There is more care, and yes, your money, spent on maintaining the integrity of that brand and the money is often, if not always, spent in the right place.

Volvo is pricey of course. We are lucky enough to be able to afford the difference but when it stacks up with the Audis, the BMers and the rest, it is still a good deal. And it no longer looks like a box on wheels. They have spent their branding money where it all counts and it seems this new one is no exception.

It occurs to me, after the fact of writing this, that to be honest, we not only became heretics we went to Chrysler, a Jeep and then a Sebring convertible, in the interim between Scandinavian cars. It was fun. It was useful. We loved both cars. But the yearning for the imports was still there and could not be stamped out. We were back with the Volvo in a wink as soon as we moved to the condo and could only have one vehicle. Besides, Chrysler went into the shitter too what with its being bought and thrown about hither and yon finally fully owned by Fiat! Not bad, Italians, but not enough.

Labels: Volvo

Not many people know you can go to MIT without paying any tuition.

But it is true. Up to a point. Look here: MIT Open Course Ware

More and more of the kids that I interview have taken one of these programs.

But anyone can do it.

I guess other schools do the same thing but MIT was an innovator in the field.

I am not sure how this will sit with the lifetime ticket to any job you want that we all had when we went there. But it has to be significant.

It is the real deal. Not some watered down version of a live class.

It is a new age in higher education where, in reality, there is no "higher" in that anyone seeking success needs at least 14 and probably 16 years of school under their belt.

Labels: education, MIT

Recording artist Dave Grohl becomes a film maker and pays tribute to

Sound City (2013)

A recording studio in Van Nuys CA that has been the epicenter of rock record production.

Many stars come to visit and record at this last bastion of analog recording. Analog? That old fashioned system where the sound is a lot better. Warm and full. Tape! Microphones in a room where the sound is important. The "feel" is discussed at length.

The film is great to watch and to listen to. The artists abound with bits of their music and talk about working in a studio and why this one is the best.

It all ends with a triumphant visit from Paul McCartney who is still making recordings at a ripe old age. But there are plenty of young artists here also.

I liked it. Very entertaining and informative. What else could you ask. I would happily watch it again. I would like to hear the snatches of music and see the people again. Many who are no longer on the scene like me. A 4 out of Netflix5.

Labels: films, fun. music

The desert willow at the corner of our courtyard is wildly in bloom.

Gorgeous.

It is a bright yellow, not pink like the photo of another tree.

These trees are desert trees. They do need water but they do not wilt in the heat. They thrive.

There are some other trees that work. Acacias, orchid trees, cascolote (wildly yellow round blooms), Mexican bird of paradise, palo verde and some others. All have a lot of flowers.

This flowering tree thing was a big surprise to find. But there are a lot of trees that are possible in the heat.

There are even a few that don't need much water. They are all some form of cactus that look like trees.

The blooms will stay there for quite a while. When they are done, we will have other places to look for flowers. Our mexican fire birds are already going strong.

Spring is just as big an event in the desert as it is in the northeast. Only different.

Labels: desert, horticulture

But not boring.

I suppose I won't be able to use that joke again.

Today was an irregular meeting of the Condo Board of Directors. It was sort of an off the record meeting which we are not supposed to have but it wasn't secret. Only three members of five attended but that is a quorum. Of course, you would have to know someone to know about it but we didn't lurk around. You could see us right through the front window of the condo in which we met.

The purpose was to draft the budget for the next fiscal year which begins in October. We have to show it thirty days before it is voted and so, if you take into account that we are not meeting in the two summer months, we had to go over it today.

There is nothing dramatically surprising in the budget if you have been listening to us for six months or so. We are going to repair all the roofs (24 four unit pods) in the complex and it is going to cost a lot. So much that the monthly owner fees, the lowest in the valley, will jump 60 dollars a month. Ouch.

But one of the reasons the fees have been low is that they were not repairing the roofs. Or painting, which we are doing now, or much of anything else. So we are stuck with it.

Figuring we might as well be hung for a sheep as a goat (huh?) we are going all the way and raising the monthly rates at the beginning of the fiscal year. September I think.

It was pretty calm. We all agree that it has to be done and while it will not make us very popular, it is a necessity. A nice letter will go out explaining the dereliction of previous boards.

I like the people on the Board. It is fun. This is a nice place.

We also decided to remove all the broken and useless playground equipment in the pool areas. Partly because it is a liability issue.

I found out today that in California if you are a volunteer director they can't sue you. If you are paid they can sue the shit out of you. We are not paid.

Look at that stock picture. Not us by a long shot. It is all men and we are a lot more grizzled. It is the only thing they can get around here. Retired old farts who don't much care if they are pilloried or not. Doing the job no one else wants.

Labels: condo

Conquering a high mountain has a lot in common with dealing with an alien war.

A group of veterans of the Iraq war climb together to the top of a very high mountain. They seek to conquer.

High Ground (2102)

This is a very emotional journey but, at the same time, a journey which is full of adventure and new experiences for the people we see and for the viewer watching courage in action. Inspiring.

And not in a "poor them" kind of way. These people are proud veterans of a horrible war and each had bad bad experiences. As they climb this mountain together they talk about their past and the present and how it all folds together.

There are real heroes here and it is hard not to watch them in action without a measure of pride in their struggles and their success in meeting their life challenges. Most are disabled in some way but it does not deter them. Blind, single legged, whatever.

This is a great movie about the human spirit and also a fascinating climb to as high as you can get without wings.

I liked it a lot and will give it a 4 out of Netflix5.

Labels: films

I have not been writing about my reading.

Let me catch up.

Little Failure by Barry Shteyngart, a memoir by a writer that everyone but me has heard of. A backward success story. A kid who grows up in a Russian Jewish family with all the trimmings. Very funny, heartfelt. A treat to read.

Love Nina: A Nanny Writes Home by Nina Stibbe. Another improbable choice. I read a review and decided what the hell. Well, what the hell! This is a hilarious account of the Nanny for the kids of Mary Kay Wilmers the editor of the London Review of Books. Hoi polloi. Neighbors of Alan Bennett, friends of a host of literati, most of whom are charming to watch through Ms. Stibbe's lens. I want to be Alan Bennett's neighbor. He sort of invented Beyond the Fringe a hilarious act which sent up all the best people for a long time on stage and television. He is a charming neighbor who takes Ms. Stibbe under his wing and tutors her in how to deal with the rich and famous. Amazingly enough, it is to treat them just like anyone else.

American Romantic I have read every book by Ward Just. Who I keep thinking is writing his last but he is still going strong in his eighties. A career diplomat wins, loses and retires. It is the writing that matters here. Wise and caustic. Funny and sad. Deeply respectful at the same time it recognizes the duplicity of a life spent representing the mother country abroad.

Updike by Adam Begley A thoroughly entertaining, warts and all, bio of the beloved writer. Inspiring to such an extent that I thought, briefly, about re-reading the 47 or whatever books this great writer turned out.

The Splendid Things We Planned by Blake Bailey a family chronicle that I could not finish. Too painful. A family with a problem child is a fascinating organism and this book is so touchingly real that the pain behind the pages was too much for me. Bailey's brother Scott was a bad boy from the beginning into no end of trouble and the impact on the family is devastating.

Jack of Spies by David Downing. Author of the "Station" spy books, this kicks off a new series (I hope). It is the twenties here, a British auto salesman, cover for his role in the spy service, finds himself with a shiv in his side in Shanghai, followed by a long scary trip across the US to the east where he falls for a woman he is tailing. She is the sister of some Irish Terrorists. Good read. Fun.

Prayer by Philip Kerr The author of the long lasting Bernie Gunther Nazi espionage series starts a new run with this contemporary book about atheists being gunned down by what? Religious nuts? Not so simple. Gil Martin, an FBI agent, tracks the terrorists down. Edge of seat.

Labels: books

I have so admired young actor/director Xavier Dolan.

Now he has won an award at Cannes sharing the prize with none other than Jean Luc Godard. One of the most prestigious prizes.

Dolan is gay and has made five films. All of them starring himself. A formidable task.

To the extent that he is out they become viewed as gay films but they are the best of films gay or not.

In this interview it does not seem that he minds the label very much.

He is also an innovator. In this film the aspect ratio is similar to the films that we were brought up with. Daring.

Labels: films, gay films

Making a gay film about a gay film porn star can be a hall of mirrors.

But the film I saw today avoids the bad luck of busting the mirrors.

Adored: Diary of a Porn Star (2004)

is from our private collection. I ran out of Netflix films with the long weekend and so I start with our gay film collection. From the beginning.

I think I will start to work my way through it.

It has been awhile since I have seen any of these films and it was refreshing and enjoyable to watch this one again.

Today's film has a story which is slight but sentimental enough that there can be tears at the end if you can let go and just be in the moment of the film. The sexiness is nice, not in your face. This is a guy who makes money by being a porn star but he is more of an R rated porn star than the XXX kind.

He has a life and he has interests and above all, the film is about reconciliation with his brother. So it is a brother film with a gay twist.

It is 5 because I bought it. It is really really a 3 because it is an averagely good brotherly-love story. I have a soft spot for these because I am an only child, I guess.

Labels: films, gay films

The idea of best straight friends, male, trying out gay sex as an "art project" is pretty freaky.

At least, they are pushing the edge compared to other projects that might qualify for the Portland Ore, Artfest. But it is Portland so I don't know.

It does make for a good seriocomic film as demonstrated by

Humpday (2009)

with Mark Duplass and Joshua Leonard as the two terminally awkward and cringe making men.

What begins as a challenging idea ends in a welter of embarrassment and, for males the ultimate shame, the inability to perform.

How a straight guy would even want to try gay sex after all the baiting and cruelty is a sort of mega jump ahead of the zeitgeist. Which is what makes it both shocking and funny.

The director is Lynn Shelton, female, and she does not hesitate to subject these guys to extreme undermining of their macho poses.

The premise is a precarious one but the actors, Duplass and Leonard, as well as other members of the cast, carry the thing off with verve and compassion. It is not a freak show and is, somehow, not at all homophobic.

In fact it is rather kind to innocent straight dudes as well. It is not a feminist manifesto.

The laughs are soft and gentle. This could have been one of those not funny "comedies" that play with sexuality for laughs. There is a lot of compassion.

Duplass is a master of the cluelessness and innocence of this character. He thinks himself a wise sophisticate and, as it turns out, he is pure bush league.

The women, especially his wife, are great too. Shocked but not freaked, an important distinction, Alycia Delmore carries the serious side which is necessary for all good comedy to work. She is the straight man/woman. Excellent.

This is very good film. A 4 out of Netflix5.

Incidentally it doesn't even come close to being a "gay film". This guy is so straight you can hear him creak. But I used the "label" anyway in case someday someone wants to see two straight guys set down on earth to be gay without a clue as to what they are supposed to be doing. Of course, the sex, which they cannot do at all, is the whole point so they are, indeed, pointless.

Labels: films, gay films

I am still in mourning for our friend and companion Booker.

It has been a month since he died. A hard word to type. So final.

But the "pain" still lingers. I awoke with it last night. And it stayed awhile. An ache in the chest. A feeling in the soul. Not so much thoughts of him as simply his absence.

It is hard to contemplate non-being. Non-existence. I have trouble even getting my head around it let alone my emotions.

It is not that I think he is coming back. Not really that he is waiting for us on the Rainbow Ridge, a popular conception served up for grieving pet owners (it does tug at the tear ducts, no wonder about its appeal).

I occasionally have the raw desire to just have him back. Not another dog. Him. Now. Please.

I think I am a mature person. I am intelligent and have some detachment from the emotional bonds that often tie humans down. But that is no proof against grieving.

And, in fact, I do not really want to be immune from the process.

I loved our dog very much. He is gone. That leaves a hole in my life. I am sad. I am in some pain and it is a sign of the bond and love I had and still have for him.

Talking about it helps. People who have lost dogs understand all too well when I talk to them. I also know that there is such a thing as going too far. Not being maudlin. No one wants that. Well, most of us. But going too far into the pain that is left, fondling it, becoming attached to it, that is not a good idea. It is not healthy.

The idea, I think, as with all emotions, is to experience the feelings and to let them go.

There are some losses that can not be tempered. This is one. The last time this happened, with Franklin, we went out and got Booker. Not to make us feel better but just as a natural process of wanting a dog around. We were ready, we didn't have to look very hard. We took a few steps and there was Booker.

This is not likely to happen this time. There is no obvious step to replace our friend or to displace our feelings with another dog.

That doesn't mean there won't be any. But right now it is not a solution. We have some places to go and plans to live out which make getting a new dog right now a bad decision. We will be overseas. We will be going on a weekend trip or two. It is summer in Palm Springs and not a time that a new animal is going to like being around if he is not used to it.

So there is grieving. A process. Nothing to be done except to go along with it and have it out.

Prayer helps me some. A personal solution that has come late to me in life. Answers do come to me. One is clear. My Higher Power doesn't seem to think that I should dodge grieving. I should have it out.

It is not the final such loss I am going to experience unless I bite the big one myself. It is good practice. It is cleansing. It is healing. And it helps to finish off the mourning that I might have avoided in other past situations.

So, I will do it, take it, be it. Consume it. It will pass. I know that. Even now, I think of things about Booker that make me laugh. I even know that he died peacefully and with no pain or suffering in his last days. He had a very good life. He came to us when he was eight and stayed for over five years. As long as a guy his size and breed is expected to. This was life. This is life. This will be life. Ongoing and blessed.

Labels: death, emotions

I was brought up to see Memorial Day as a non-holiday. Well not one to have fun on.

In those days, it had not yet acquired the phoniness of being just another Monday off. An excuse for a long weekend.

The history is pretty well laid out here.

It came into being after the Civil War and was basically continued over time to incorporate the memorial of all veterans killed in the line of duty. Another holiday, Veterans Day, is meant to honor all veterans of all wars.

The basic idea was to decorate the graves of the fallen, hence the original Decoration Day.

It was not until 1968 when Congress passed the uniform holiday act which set various Mondays aside as the official celebration.

So, on Memorial Day, which could have been any day, we had the day off sort of.

In our community there would be a service around the big flagpole at the consolidated (all 12 grades) school.

Then a march to a cemetery which varied from year to year. Some of them were too far and so we were bused to a starting point. Then marched.

It was a solemn event.

Each year we would go to a specific grave where there would be another service including a firing squad and some other stuff.

I was in the band so I always had to go to this. Saxophone. Mostly faking it. But that is another story.

I remember that in our town there were only so many dead veterans, killed while in service, to go around.

I am not sure whether they were killed in battle or not. Maybe just while in the service.

I remember that there were about four guys. They rotated.

By the time we had the services and marched there the day was pretty well blown. There were no picnics or other recreation.

I remember a sort of vague ache behind the eyes, the result not of withheld tears but of utter boredom.

There was always a good turnout of the professional veterans. The Legionnaires, the VFW. Their little hats on a bit cockeyed. The vague odor of alcohol hovered over.

My Dad was a veteran and he did see some battle. He was in the Legion but he was not a drum beater. He took it seriously though.

I can remember the feeling that if there was any possible way that I could get out of military service I would do it.

In those days it was mandatory. I used the ROTC as a quasi service. I learned there to do the minimum, to get by and, if at all possible to malinger. My first commanding officer was a past master of this and he taught me well.

That is not to say that I don't take the day seriously but now it has been so diluted with bullshit of one kind or another, the original purpose is lost and along with it any stray feeling of memory or respect.

Sorry.

I am more into Veterans Day.

Although I am not officially a "veteran". If one is a reserve officer it is not the same thing. I never quite got the distinction but I suspect that when Congress passed the 6 month wonder legislation, the old grizzled veterans made sure that none of us fake soldiers would benefit from any veteran benefit at all.

I didn't feel slighted. Still don't.

Labels: holidays, nostalgia

Today's film is a gay slasher film with a side of horror.

It is a sort of sealed box. And it is a very hard box to get out of even if I sort of want to.

Stranger by the Lake (2014)

A gay beach with a routine of cruising, having sex and sometimes going home with one another. Typical, only French.

The same might be said of the film itself. It is basically a slasher film. A guy with a knife who likes to use it when he is not drowning people.

All this seen by a guy who shows up to meet other gay men. An outsider.

It doesn't take too long before he is a regular and not long after that realizes that there is a killer loose among the habitués of the beach.

The newcomer is attracted to the murderer before he realizes what is going on. But he lingers just a little too long around this guy to make it credible.

But that is the way with this type of film. There are a lot of loose ends and odd circumstances.

The point is more to scare the viewer than to provide a deep substantial drama.

To this extent it worked. I tried to extract myself, to see through it, to nod at the hooks that were laid out for me and I did succumb to it.

I am upset and freaked out at the whole thing. The director has achieved his result.

I could say that I didn't like it but I didn't turn it off. And that is the whole thing. At some point the hero is having sex with the killer and he can't help himself from doing so. So, we are complicit.

In a way it is a lot of nonsense, blarney. But it has its effect. This is the art of the genré. I have never seen a good horror film that I could really walk away from.

I am not sure that I would watch this again.

I suspect that knowing how things turn out doesn't matter. It will still be scary as fuck.

A 4 out of Netflix5.

Labels: films, gay films

This is old stuff. The prude who gets caught with his pants down or the bigot who turns out to be part whatever he is bigoted about. Our version is the homophobe who gets caught doing the deed in a way that seems he is just crying for "help".

This one is an anti-gay priest. So much the better.

ILLINOIS: Leviticus-Quoting Catholic Priest Busted For Indecent Exposure

It is actually sad. But it is hard to gin up any sympathy for this. Not in this day and age.

The fact that it is a priest is sort of a double whammy. The anti-gay catholic who is supposed to be celibate. Well, I guess flashing is not breaking one's celibacy. I am not up on canon law for this one.

Labels: christist watch, hypocrites

This is a wonderful film, from Chile, about a woman who is going it alone in the world.

She has a son and daughter, she has an ex husband, she has a career and for a little while she has a boyfriend who, it turns out is not exactly what she needs to be happy.

He is OK in a way, a retired naval officer, but he can't handle the happy independence of

Gloria (2012)

The story here is of her attraction to this guy and the price she has to pay to be his "girlfriend".

Paulina García is the woman and the aging Lothario is Sergio Hernández.

This is a wonderful movie. It is rich in emotional detail. It takes time to watch people respond to one another. It slows things down so that we can see happiness and sadness come and go. Sometimes exist at the same time. Rich and full.

I cried at the end.

I would happily see this film again and so it is a 5 out of Netflix5.

Labels: films

Obama is still surprising us and in a good way.

Obama in Afghanistan

When you think of it, this is just what he ought to be doing.

It is not his war but it is his to finish. And while most/many of the troops are coming home soon, they are still serving in a god forsaken part of the world that is hostile and painfully uncomfortable to be in. And yes I know that Afghans live there all the time but it is a shithole and there is no nice way around it. It is a horrible place with marginal people and fucked up politics.

What could be more fitting for a Memorial Day weekend? A time to honor those who still serve and dedicate ourselves to the memory of those who did not make it out of there. Sent for no purpose other than the political whims of a handful of wingers.

No, I am not bitter. I am mad. Still angry that for a long period of time we wasted our capital on this kind of adventurism.

They are still there incidentally. The meddlers and the fixers who see the American way as farting around with others in the world as though they have all the answers.

I will hold my horses here. Further ranting will be to no avail. No minds will be changed.

Suffice to say that Obama cares enough to go half way 'round the world for a fitting tribute to those who got caught in the machine of war.

Labels: anti-war, obama, wingnuts

I am not a fan of horror movies.

But I took a flier on a NYCritics' Pick

In Fear (2014)

It scared the shit out of me.

Once in it I could not get out and I could not get any distance from it at all.

It had me and shook me and wouldn't let go.

A couple are on their way to a music festival.

They stop along a road at dusk.

They are lost.

They get some help. Or seem to.

I can't really write about the movie. What I can do is simply wonder at how a formula of some sort can be concocted that will upset the most resistant and jaded audience.

I suppose that, in a way, the viewer has to want to be scared. And part of the setup is a seduction where one gets to like the nice couple and the idea that they are going to have a good time.

When there is car trouble there is another dynamic that sets in which is that somehow the problem will be solved and that there is nothing evil about the fact that they have lost their way through a series of roadsigns to the hotel they are seeking. The festival.

It does not occur to them or to me that the signs are bogus.

And so on.

This is a great movie. It is an easy 4. I am not sure whether I could see it again. There are, I think, no spoilers here. In fact, if I were to watch it again I would be as upset as I am now as I am de-adrenalyzing.

Labels: films

As pioneers in gay marriage, we are excited to see the dominoes falling all around the country.

With eye on history, judges nix gay marriage bans

This sort of goes without saying but I thought I would say it anyway.

We have been married since October 8, 2008 when, for a brief time, the window opened in California. We are among 18000 people who made it through at that time.

As far as I know we have not even caused a ripple here in Palm Springs but maybe it is different in other places.

I doubt it though.

If people mind their own business and stick to the fundamentals of American justice then there is no problem, has been no problem and will be no problem.

The impact on us, however, was deep and wide.

We had been together for many years before 2008. Met in 1975 and started a relationship that had ups and downs as well as ins an outs for as long as five years. But we moved in together in 1978 and married symbolically around that time. A friend was a catholic priest. He did the honors.

I quit looking over my shoulder as a gay man a long time ago. But not that long before our meeting. I came out in 1975 and it didn't take too much time before I met John. I tried to get away but he wouldn't let me. Fate.

The legitimacy that marriage affords is daily from the ease of living together, doing the legal things we need to do as a couple and, above all, helping us feel proud and out and able to be a power of example to others.

I have to say that we have not had even a moment of discrimination or trouble. There might have been some situations, an epithet from a car in Las Vegas comes to mind, but we have never seen any of that as prejudice. Mostly because we are not threatened by it. We have, conversely seen it as fear in the taunter, the insecure, the poor bastards who do not understand that judging others is a disease of their own.

And our fear factor is very low.

Our love factor is deep and abiding. It is so strong that taunts or comments or any kind of negative reaction are reduced to small bits. We do not even hear them. If they are there at all.

It all began with a date after some personal ads in the paper. We bloomed together and came out openly in our community. The difficulties were not trivial but they were never stoppers. We knew we were on the right track and we loved back to those close to us. We never looked for trouble and we never got any.

It is true that the more people who come out openly the less trouble there is. It has worked. It is working. See the headline.

I have no advice to people new to this game. Just hold on to what you and your lover have together. If it is right it will be strong.

I don't consider some supportive laws to be the whole thing. There are still a lot of shitty attitudes and some bad people out there. But they have themselves to deal with. Hatred is consuming of the hater.

Labels: gay marriage

Robert Gates poses as a moderate Republican. Reasonable. Not a fiery eyed wing nut.

But when it comes down to it he talks from both sides of his right wing mouth.

Gates Would Have Allowed Gay Adult Scouts

Last year. But not now. Not that he is the new president of the scouts.

His appointment had me feeling pretty good for awhile. The scouts have a bad record with "the gays" as well as other social issues. Being neat and kind doesn't extend too far beyond the usual christian boundaries. The scouts still have the tinge, and more, of its churchy past. Protestant variety. They used to be a the bane of catholic boys. Not supportive. Now that still extends to gay men and other misfits in the Prot demonology.

This is the old association of gay with pedophila. A canard buried long ago. But not here.

My Dad had a term that fits these guys. "Mealy mouthed bastards".

I was a cub for about a minute. Our organization was very flimsy. Later, when I had boys of my own we tried with cubs, even had a den in the house but it didn't last. Attendance, leadership. Mostly my inability to gin up enthusiasm.

I believe that the guys who turn out to be two faced on gay issues are the real enemy. At least you can see the ones who hate. The liberal conservatives hide under a mask of being nice that only goes so deep.

Labels: bigotry, Republicans

Today's film was

Philomena (2013)

Very touching story of a woman who goes to America to find her birth son which was adopted away when she was an unwed mother. The catholics again. Gone berserk.

The story is pretty well known. So I won't go over it here.

Judy Dench and Steve Coogan. She the woman looking for the son, he the investigative reporter that has to help her out to get a story and re-rail his career.

The film is about the two of them. A study of contrasts and an opportunity for both actors to shine. Which they do.

At bottom, this is a tearjerker, but a very good one. Nothing wrong with that.

The son, as it turns out, was gay and died of AIDS but his life story becomes apparent through the love of his partner who resolves the long mystery about the son's life. What happened, how did he live, what did he do?

An irony is that the son was one of those republican reagan gays, a closet case.

This goes without much comment but, of course, it was not lost on me nor was it lost in the story. He may have gone and had a happy life but he was also closeted to the end.

This was also about the irish catholic child business. Nuns who sold babies of "sinful" mothers and all. A terrible sinful story.

I will give this one a 4 out of Netflix5.

That's him in the photo. He is real. So is Sister Hildegard also in the photo. The story about this is here. They deny it all.

They did bury him in his orphanage graveyard.

Here is Dench and Coogan in the film.

Labels: films

Ever since we lost Booker, people have been full of advice, all of which boils down to "get another dog".

Usually a puppy.

We have processed all of this advice and come out, more or less, with the idea that we will do nothing right now.

The feelings for him are way strong and we do not want to shortcut the grieving process. We think that this will not only be good for us emotionally but also help us be better dads for a dog later on.

And, it does seem pretty sure, that we will want a dog sooner or later. Probably sooner.

One immediate consideration is also that we are about to be going through a period of instability in our living situation. I will be in London, then San Diego in the near future. John in Italy.

Not a good time to introduce another member of the family.

So the soonest we would act would be late in the summer or early fall.

It is a little hard to pull out of the process in that our Airedale lady does have a six year old Irish Terrier. Right age. But I am not ready. Not today. There are also other available dogs. No airedales at all.

So. It is hard not to just jump back into it but I have to admit that we are rather liking not having another pet right now. At the same time, we miss Booker a great deal. So. Mixed feelings.

Our old adage is "if in doubt do nothing".

That will be the case until we get back from summer trips. Then we will go into the tank again.

Labels: Booker, dogs

Personal experience and a lot of reading demonstrates that there are a preponderance of gay men in the roman catholic priesthood.

Films keep being made about this. You would think by this time there would be something on offer for the gay priest than the closet and celibacy.

The celibacy part is a dilemma for all priests gay and straight. The few guys that I have known who are, as far as I know, still gay and still priests tell me that there is a lot of action if one is willing to keep it on the down low.

In any case, there are conflicts galore and it makes a good movie subject.

Here we go again in

In the Name Of (2013)

In this case, a latent queer priest finds himself unavoidably smitten with an equally queer young man under his care. He does have a history which is not, apparently, because they keep transferring him. And so here he goes again.

As we all know, a bit of knowledge apparently lost on the catholic hierarchy, you can't really suppress mother nature and the healthier the priest the more likely he is to be an active sexual man in whatever arrangements suit him.

This is a very good film. It avoids many of the pitfalls of the formula gay priest film and somehow just makes this a coming out story. Two men, incidentally.

I will give it a 3 out of Netflix5 only because I cannot like a film that sort of condones or goes along with something so alien to human nature. But, it is a Polish film and the Poles are deeply indoctrinated catholics, even the apostates.

The acting is great. The small town setting superb. The feel is quite realistic and it brings home the quandary that must be felt by these guys. After all, they did sign on for life, marrying the church and all.

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Labels: films

Some of us need more time to get started than others.

Jeff Who Lives at Home (2011) is one of those people.

This is a nice gentle film that treads the delicate line between loving humor and mockery. It succeeds.

The Duplass Brothers ask us to focus on a guy who seems to be a loser and see that he has another story than the one we think is going on. He is sort of a fuckup and a loser but in a good way.

The wonderful Jason Segle is Jeff. Ed Helms, his long suffering but very loving brother. Gentle comedies like this are hard to come by and it is nice to watch the Duplass guys making their way in the world.

Some day this will be in a cherished collection set and I will probably buy it.

For now, it gets a 4 out of Netflix5.

Susan Sarandon and some others help out mightily.

Labels: films

We are trying to find a workable way to have our outside lights on automatic.

To turn off when it gets dark and on when it gets light. Simple, no?

No.

We bought a switch with a bunch of small slider things that once you set could run and turn the lights on and off at whatever times we wanted.

Again, no.

Disastrous.

It didn't work at all. John thought it was working because I was over riding it every night and morning when I realized it had missed the mark.

The dial went around OK but somehow it had its own idea of when and how the lights would actually function.

So, back to the drawing board.

What we are now trying is a fixture that screws into the bulb place and has its own little electric eye. You put the bulb in this gizmo and it works on off when the light does.

We do not know yet whether it will work or not.

If not, I vote to go back to the old reliable, sometimes, system of a human turning the lights on when it gets dark out and then off again when it gets light.

Not high tech. Lower failure rate than the devices used so far.

Labels: condo, electronics

We are back to normal.

Sort of. To the extent that things are ever normal here.

Our daughter Lisa has gone back home to Northfield MA.

We had a great time together. Always do.

I took a huge nap today. Not because I was tired out or even missed any sleep while she was here but it is an adjustment which requires a bit extra sleep to resume life's rhythms.

I know. That sounds like bullshit. But it is not. For me. Sleep is the great cure and regenerator. Sadness can be salved, intentions can be resharpened and, as it happens, routine can become re-engaged.

I watched a movie, you knew that. I am making dinner for two. Back to the menu list, a hundred twenty separate items in rotation. A system always works for me.

Sausage, this time the real pork kind, on mashed (modeled after bangers and mash from England) and a side of peas with pearl onions. A salad.

And prep for tomorrow. Fruit to be thawed for my yogurt and fruit morning. This alternates with the egg and apple sauce days.

Blah blah. See? I am boring again.

Labels: food, routine

Today's film is a biopic about Charles Dickens and his mistress of many years.

How they kept their secret hidden and maintained their relationship.

The Invisible Woman (2013)

Directed and starring Ralph Fiennes as Dickens, the main character is the "other woman" played splendidly by Felicity Jones. The two meet and become close friends, then lovers. Dicken's wife is aware of the situation so we have a triangle of sorts but it being the Victorian era it is played on the down low. The fact that he is famous has a bit of the tabloid possibilities looming even then.

This is a very nicely turned out film with great locations and costumes. I liked it a lot and was gripped with the drama of the situation.

A debut of Fiennes as a director, he did very well. I will give it a 4 out of Netflix5.

Labels: films

We are walking on a trail that could lead to our getting another dog.

Soon.

Not to replace Booker. He is irreplaceable. But we are guys who need a dog in the house.

We started looking for smaller dogs and were looking at Welsh Terriers which are mini-Airedale looking. Same coat, same black and red color combination. Only 20 pounds instead of 80. Stands 18 inches. Still pattable from a sitting position.

That in turn led to the suggestion from our old Airedale friend Rusty, who got us Booker, that we look at an Irish Terrier. They are the same size as a Welsh only slightly heavier and they are all red.

She has one who is six years old ready to be adopted.

We have also written to a guy in LA that has a two year old Welsh Terrier female who is looking for a home.

We like the Irish Setter setup. Rusty is a trusted entity who would match us as well as she matched us with Booker.

We will see.

The Irish is all red. No black. But looks for all the world like the Airedale body and tail. It can be trimmed the same way. This one is looking right at you. A generic Irish but close to what all Irish Terriers look like.

Labels: Booker, dogs

Today's movie is a teen flick with a gay theme.

One of the teens is gay and, actually, does very well when he comes out to himself, his family and at school. Sort of.

His straight best friend doesn't handle it that well. So it is more about the awkwardness than the happy results.

Date and Switch (2014)

Not a bad movie but not a good one either. More well intentioned than skillfully carried out.

I have to admit that I skipped and that makes it a 2 out of Netflix5. Automatic.

Here, the straight, on the left, makes a fool of himself in a gay bar.

Labels: films, gay films

All is well, the plane arrived on time and our visitor came straight to the house yesterday.

A good visit so far.

Today is time out while we attend to some local business. I have a Condo Board meeting all morning and John has another job going with Program work.

Both things were set by others and we can't/won't try to wiggle out of them.

But our guest has plans of her own and is happy to do some shopping, some pool sitting and getting a pedicure. Palm Springs is pedicure center. So much to choose from.

I used to be a regular but got stalled somewhere along the line. Perhaps I aged out of it. Manicures too.

But that is about me me me. It always comes back to that somehow.

We will hook up by dinner and then the next two days are free and clear.

This means there will be some skimpiness in blog writing, maybe. Forewarned. If you are addicted to this you need to get a life anyway!

Labels: condo, pedicure, visitors

Our daughter Lisa is arriving today for a long weekend in Palm Springs.

There are no ambitious plans, just hanging.

I am planning to do the cooking each dinner except Monday when we will celebrate our last night with an outing.

The regular schedule will go along. I have my Board meeting Saturday, the condo association.

I am sure she will find plenty to do. We are a first class resort after all. And still warmer weather than back east.

There is the pool and many walking or running routes.

We are looking forward to it. It has been awhile since the last kid visit so we are ready.

Labels: visitors

Another new thing around the house are cut flowers.

Not a big deal but a definite plus.

We have never been much for indoor plants or flowers. I say we but that means me. I am the gardener.

On the other hand, I am not the florist. The arranger. That is John.

So, I have been buying a bouquet at Ralphs for him to arrange.

I am learning about what to buy. Roses do not last worth a shit. Daisy types of flowers a lot longer. So daisy types it is.

I don't get the selections that include dyed flowers. And that is a lot of them. Mostly the daisy type and lilies.

The prearranged stuff tends to run to color selections. The ones I bought today are yellow. A little sunflower, some carnations, some daisies.

It is not a big deal but worth a mention.

Labels: flowers, shopping

One element of the new chapter in our lives is to go out to eat more often.

Not that we couldn't do that with Booker here but we didn't. And the places we could go were limited. Outside dog friendly.

The time for outside is over.

It is too hot tonight to sit in the air which we would do, dog or no dog. From now until maybe October it will be all inside.

Fortunately, the snowbirds have flown. So there are plenty of tables.

Last week we went to Shermans, a favored deli and tonight, Panera. A chain that is pretty good and hardly seems like franchised food.

It is a nice thing to do and while it does not displace the mourning, which is actually lightening, it is something new and different from our routine. A benefit.

Labels: food

Today's film is the biggest argument I can think of in support of my no sequels policy.

I even thought of not writing about it, embarrassing. But I will soldier on.

This is the fifth in a series and an already weak premise has gone into total collapse.

Open Weekend (2012)

And it still had some funny spots and some endearing spots and, as always, they manage to steer around stereotyping ourselves, a frequent trap of gay comedies.

This is the last gasp of the "Eating Out" series. Long may it wave.

I won't be watching any more. Even if they come out with another one.

I saw it all the way through. So it is a 2 out of Netflix5.

Labels: films, gay films

Today's film was the Paraguyan (!) film.

7 Boxes (2014)

It is a thriller.

We know. And so does the kid, eventually. It is all he can do to get the boxes out of his hands.

This is a thriller with a tinge of fun built in. Tension.

I liked it a lot. I would almost see it again because there is no doubt about the ending early into the film. It is more about how the kid gets to where he is going than the endpoint. The journey not the destination.

The kid, Celso Franco, is the whole picture really. He is great.

Labels: films

Only it doesn't look like a carpet. Or, even, fake.

The green is a little too healthy looking for the desert, but if we had fed it well and kept it watered, it would be this color. It is very detailed. Under the pile, there are yellowed blades, dying out. The color is not uniform. When you walk on it there is a lush feel but it feels like the real thing. I didn't try it barefoot. Too many workmen around. Later.

We had gravel before. Hibiscus bushes with a gravel carpet in front. A fairly big one. 15 feet x 7 feet.

I have always been against fake nature but since we got the artificial olive tree for the living room, we are in for an inch so why not go a mile?

It is the end of the struggle with the gravel that was there before, weeds sprouting up and a general shitty look that just can't be remedied.

The thing about this grass is that no one is going to be fooled about whether it is real or not. And once that "shock" is over, they will have to admire the lushness and the fine work that this very expensive "artificial" lawn represents. Right in the middle of it, here and there, are three or four blades that are "too long", like a cowlick. Under the mowed top (not totally uniform) there are some yellowing blades. Some bent. Some even "dead".

Verisimilitude.

This is not "astroturf", not by a long shot.

It took three guys to lay it down. About three hours. They were meticulous. The preparation is extensive. Flatten the gravel, add some sand, vibrate, pound. Lay the grass.

Labels: garden

Today's film represent Godard's view of the future.

Alphaville (1965)

And like a lot of Godard it is pretty bleak.

He has wisely made it not dramatically different, physically, from the present. Well, the 1965 present. We are half way to the time he depicts. 2040 something.

People are not all that dissimilar from now either. It gives him a chance to make some social comment.

I liked it but not a lot. It is a 3 out of Netflix5. I was disappointed in some aspects of it as it seemed unimaginative. Solid but not pizzazz.

Of course that is just what Godard expected from the future. Since I am living in it I obviously do not find it as dull as he seemed to expect.

His images are up to his impeccable standards. A great film to watch! See!

When seeing bleak, we have to remember that this is also French to the core. Bleak.

Labels: films

Booker came home again today.

A nice box with his "cremains" in it. This will match Franklin's box although I think that Book got a little bit more ornate with his. A black gauze bag and some pin things inside. We are not going to open the bag.

We aren't sure what we are going to do with the ashes. There have been a couple of scenarios.

One is to sneak into our old house's grounds at night and bury them side by side in the garden. I don't think we will do that.

Another is to scatter them in a significant place. That is still under discussion.

I hope that they have found each other wherever that is.

There is a lot of hokum about this and we try not to get to poetic about it. It is certainly so that we want them to be together and in some place other than here.

Isn't that where the idea of heaven comes from? The undeniable finality of death. Hard to accept.

In any case they are in our memories and minds and, in that sense, they are together.

It is astounding to me that they can be such different boys. Pure Airedales follow a strict set of characteristics and they were both show dog material (except for Booker's too large size) but personality wise, quite different. Habits not the same at all except a fixation on eating. Eating anything. Except lettuce leaves.

And, of course, they both loved to be petted and spoiled. Ride in the SUV. They were normal dogs.

We miss them and yet have such happy memories that our hearts are full of gratitude for the privilege to share their lives. I know they would have been good buddies in life. It is nice to think so anyway. Grrrrr.

Labels: Booker, Franklin

We are coming up to the monthly Board meeting of the Condo Association. The Rose Garden, rightly named. A long time ago actually.

Of which, if you recall, I am a member. And the Treasurer.

So stuff is kicking up. Some owners are submitting appeals denied by subcommittees, the landscaping committee needs to be brought to bear on some problems and I, as usual, will get to present the financial reports. We are at 6 months and so the budget versus actual is a little more apparent. In fact, we are in pretty good shape.

I met with my pro-counterpart the other day. We have a management company run the day to day business. He and I went through a summary of issues he thought should be discussed and, surprise, wrote the actual Treasurer's Report for me. This will be put in the pre-meeting packet for the first time, so they will have a chance to see what's what. I will recite from it at the meeting.

I am psyched. I like this stuff a lot. I am in the right place.

Here's a view from our house, sort of.

Labels: condo

Today's movie was a classic, Milos Forman's second picture.

The Fireman's Ball (1968)

Critics like to tout it as a metaphor for the Czech communist government. Well, they did ban him and the film for life.

But it wins as a fine comedy of errors when a fire department puts on a ball to honor the 85 year old veteran chief.

You must have seen it.

If not run, do not walk, to the local rental and take a look.

It is a great film and should be in everyone's memory banks.

This is the fourth, maybe, time I have seen it. Always fresh. Always LOL funny.

A fiver out of Netflix5.

Labels: films

Today's film is an old style coming out film in that there are tragic results.

Monster Pies (2013)

An Australian film. They have a lot of gay product coming out there. Or, at least, it seems that way.

Here, two teenagers fall in love and find their gay identities together.

It is a beautiful love story and, unfortunately, it has to make a statement and add tragedy at the end. Not a spoiler really but since I was taken in by the Netflix happy description I was not ready for it.

It actually seemed a bit forced. Things, while uphill, are going well and then suddenly they are not.

It is not the old style "punishment for being gay" theme but a more political one which seeks to demonstrate the tragedy of homophobic parents who will not accept their gay kids.

I would still have watched the film if only to support gay made films. I can handle the ending. I just wish it wasn't added in a tacked on kind of way.

This earns it a 3 out of Netflix5.

Labels: films, gay films

Michael Sam gets the news he will be the first NFL gay player.Of course they aren't putting that way. He is being told he is on the Rams roster.

Watch the boyfriend. Fearless. Side by side, the two of them.

This is a big deal even if, in a way, it isn't. The walls are crumbling for gay men everywhere. This is one of the most recently publicized.

Little did we know in 1975 +/- that things would evolve so soon. Or at all!

Miracles do happen and the hearts of Americans are a lot more open than anyone thinks that they are.

I am proud of my country for confronting all the madness and getting it sorted out as fast as it has.

Labels: gay history, gay rights, gay sports

Today is Mother's Day, the world over.

A commercial plot to sell flowers, cards and knick knacks.

And, of course, a day to really acknowledge mom. Or Mom.

I always opted for the plant. Usually a geranium. Hardy, long lasting, red. Appealing to a kid. I don't know what my Mother thought.

Later I saw our kids do the Mother's Day thing. Fun to watch. Nice.

I think that the commercial stuff seeps out of it and leaves a nice residue of love and respect. Moms run the world. Or they should. They have the world's best interests in heart. The kids.

My Mom was a tough nut. Hard to please and unrelenting. I can see that I have some of that and it comes from her. She had a hard life and it showed sometimes in the way she held on to stuff. I can understand that more today than I did before.

I loved her. I still do.

Hey, Mom, thanks for all you did.

Your love was smothering at times but it was real and ever present. It taught me a lot. Still does.

Labels: holidays, mothers

Today was the second Sunday walk without our friend Booker.

Less emotional than last week but filled with more memories. Mostly funny.

He had a lot of "rules" for walking. You had to go along.

There was a thing about grass. It had to be investigated. And of course, peeing, anything new and a lot of old things. Marking the airedale territory which was a pretty wide one. Today all the way up to the high school and over to Ramon. Still without the pup it was only three quarter of an hour long. With him, an hour. Stop and sniff. Wander "over there" to investigate.

We miss him a lot but the deep pain is gone. We smile. Sadly, but we do smile.

He was a great gift in our lives as was "first dog" Franklin.

We talked a little about what to do with the leashes and the "thunder shirt" (which didn't work all that well as a security blanket, you cannot fool a smart dog). Other stuff. His gear.

So we are letting it sit where it is.

Last time we got rid of stuff and then had to buy new.

We did take his bed to the "used dog" place for someone else to use. It was too heavy a reminder there in the bedroom. And he didn't use it that much anyway. Grudgingly, it seemed. He had led a barebones life until he came with us and he wasn't about to give up on a lot of those habits. Sleeping rough was one of them.

Labels: Booker

I realize that the photo below is the most homo photo I have "ever" put on the blog.

Funny, I didnt even think about it until I saw it this morning.

I guess there are a lot of stages of coming out. This would be one. Well, it is what it looks like. No beating around that bush.

No apologies either. (smile)

Labels: blogging, gay film

Today's movie is outrageous and silly and fun.

This is the fourth edition of the romantic comedies that began with Eating Out. Double entendres intended.

It is not very good in a way but fun in another. A guilty pleasure.

They do not bother with continuity between one edition and another. New actors and all. But the situations are similar.

A lot of "camping" in

Eating Out Drama Camp (2012)

There is a fifth one to come and it will be welcomed in the same way. Cringeworthy but still worth a laugh and some time. Or some time and a laugh.

I am not sure if you need to be gay and a certain age to enjoy these but it probably helps.

It has all the stuff that used to drive me crazy about gay "art" but somehow I have mellowed or it has gotten more skillful.

Maybe both. Incidentally it is all more or less G-R, not really even R. Shirts off, some bare asses. A little cuddling.

A 3 out of Netflix5.

Labels: films, gay films

You know, I guess, that all that shit about cholesterol and unsaturated fats is just that, shit.

Check it out here: Study Questions Fat and Heart Disease Make that "studies" as there are a lot more than one.

I probably wrote about this before.

Now, I can report that there has been a mild impact on our eating.

From the day we heard the scare stuff about saturated fats, we did a 180 on our eating.

Butter, out. Fatty meats, out. Fake spreads, in. Turkey, in.

The revisionism news for today is that we had real pork sausage for dinner. With pancakes as the "starch". And fruit salad, mixed frozen to balance the "bad" stuff.

You have no idea, well maybe you do if you are also a sinner, how much better real pork sausage tastes than the turkey kind.

Worlds of difference.

John said that it made him want some more. Me too. But we kept it to four ounces. Our usual meat portion. And that was pre cooking where a lot of the fat just melted out.

I don't imagine that there are going to be a lot of changes in diet because of all this.

But things like the sausage are in, baby, in.

Labels: diet

In fucking Arkansas for chrissake.

Arkansas Judge Strikes Down State's Gay Marriage Ban

This is good news. Again. Depriving gay people of their rights is beginning to look pretty fruitless. Maybe they will quit.

But I suppose they will find some other shit to throw on the situation.

There is no denying that we have come a long way from 1975 when I found my boyfriend, now husband.

We wouldn't be going to Arkansas anytime soon anyway but it is nice to know that if I do I will be legal.

Labels: gay marriage

Today's film was old fashioned in a good way.

A traditionally constructed film with a lot of heart, laughs, tears and a story line with a moral to it.

Toothsome.

Saving Mr. Banks (2013)

Who the hell is Mr. Banks? That is for you to find out but suffice to say there is a lot of biographical stuff in the famous book as there is in Mr. Disney's approach to life. Fathers. Jeez.

I loved this movie and I will see it again for sure. That makes it a 5 out of Netflix5.

Are you surprised? Well, I don't have an unending bias against Hollywood films especially if they are well made and have actors who do the job totally. Emma Thompson plays the redoubtable Travers and Tom Hanks the Disney. Colin Farrell is Traver's dad in the almost 50% flashbacks that comprise the film.

It is Farrell's debut as a mature, serious and extremely talented actor. At least as far as I am concerned. I have always liked him in his way and in this film I think he steals it. He is the weight on the flying kite. You will get the allusion when you see this.

Labels: films

We are going out for dinner tonight.

A date night.

Not that we have been complete stay at homes for ten doggy years but we have certainly curtailed our time to do the walks, the time together and not to leave them alone. I was just hell on leaving them alone even though they probably enjoyed it. "No humans fucking around with me tonight."

Be it as it may, it will be nice to dress up a little, not cook, be out in the swim of stuff. Thursday night is open house night on the main drag. But we are going at 530 and we have reservations at a place way out to the north end.

Jakes. A nice quiet place where we sort of know the people and we were always happy before. We actually did take a dog or two night there. Jake is their dog.

Anyway, out we go. Time to have a little air time. No walks, gotta get our air.

Labels: society

Today's documentary was an Oscar winner.

That is as much why I watched it as the subject, Marjoe Gortner, who made a considerable splash in the 70s as a tent-god preacher.

It is a bit of an expose which Gortner willingly participates in. A bit of honest testifyin'.

The style here is cinema verite' and it is totally absorbing.

Marjoe (1972)

How this game works, how Marjoe was able to work it from the time he was a 4 year old preacher until he disavowed, and how the people lap it up.

Somehow, even though we know the "plot" we are bamboozled all over again by the wizardry of this crowd hypnotism. Mass hysteria. Fainting, talking in tongues, gyrations and the like.

I have seen this kind of thing before but Marjoe is a master of the game and is so watchable I can't take my eyes off.

His honesty about what he does/did is really something. He does not seem to be at all sorry about it. But it was time to quit so he made the quitting good and, it must be said, lucrative.

I didn't come down to the altar but I sure admired the showmanship involved. I enjoyed this film very much! A 4 out of Netflix5.

Labels: films