Hal's favorite area at most fairs is the poultry barn. Here are some of the more interested in him contestants at this year's event.
Monday, October 11, 2004
Today's 'Monday Morning Flower' is a bouquet d'artifice, a work of Thai folk art. Though the display space was a bit crowded, we did get a chance to watch Ms. Punnee Burgess at work. Examples of her oeuvre included great floral bouquets (as you see here), all manner of animals (the radish mice were adorable!), intricately carved vases from watermelons. She had no business cards of her own, alas, but there was a URL posted for an informational site on this intriguing artform.
Saturday, October 09, 2004
Crumbs for a Starving Girl
I should have one of those signs like Lucy had in the old Peanuts cartoons - you know, 'the music consultant is IN'?
Karen wanted to give her elder son an actual gift for his birthday and had no idea what to get musicwise (The decision was to give him a couple CDs, but when she asked him what he wanted, he answered in what I consider the old apple doesn't fall far from the tree fashion: "If I want it, I get it. There is nothing that I need."). What to get, then, for a Morphine fan who has everything? How to broaden his horizons? My initial suggestions (Poulenc? Satie? Sibelius?) seemed a bit, well, hardcore(???) and off-putting, so I suggested some Jazz. Ix-nayed for not being classical. (Why? There are as many if not more Jazz snobs out there as classical ones. Joe Henderson has some amazingly eerie/angsty stuff to make even the most hardened 'alt rock' fan get his back up on.) Finally - what about some minimalism? I recommended some Philip Glass - no. John Adams? Love his Chairman Mao Dances from Nixon in China. Karen wasn't too keen on that. Glass/Adams/Cage - minimalism/modernism really strikes fear in the hearts of some.
Finally - Tan Dun. You know, the guy who wrote the soundtrack music for Crouching Dragon, Hidden Tiger? I love the nods to new classicism and to minimalism. Love the western sensibility mingled with the eastern feel. Love the heavy percussiveniss underlying the rich lyricism. Found her an Amazon link for his Symphony 1997(my favorite so far of his work) - a piece written in commemoration of the handover of Hong Kong to China. As one commenter on the review page put it - it's not often that a commissioned piece lives up to the event it's commemorating.
Also sent her a link to Kind of Blue. There's nothing I can really say about that work that will explain it better than just listening to it. I'm giving her a spare one of mine (for some reason, I have multiple copies), because she was so impressed with it and was going to buy an extra one for herself.
She added in a collection of Andres Segovia playing his hits, to round things out.
Great choices, all of them. I was glad, too, to get a chance to talk music with someone - and not just Boston Ballet or BLO stuff, either.
I should have one of those signs like Lucy had in the old Peanuts cartoons - you know, 'the music consultant is IN'?
Karen wanted to give her elder son an actual gift for his birthday and had no idea what to get musicwise (The decision was to give him a couple CDs, but when she asked him what he wanted, he answered in what I consider the old apple doesn't fall far from the tree fashion: "If I want it, I get it. There is nothing that I need."). What to get, then, for a Morphine fan who has everything? How to broaden his horizons? My initial suggestions (Poulenc? Satie? Sibelius?) seemed a bit, well, hardcore(???) and off-putting, so I suggested some Jazz. Ix-nayed for not being classical. (Why? There are as many if not more Jazz snobs out there as classical ones. Joe Henderson has some amazingly eerie/angsty stuff to make even the most hardened 'alt rock' fan get his back up on.) Finally - what about some minimalism? I recommended some Philip Glass - no. John Adams? Love his Chairman Mao Dances from Nixon in China. Karen wasn't too keen on that. Glass/Adams/Cage - minimalism/modernism really strikes fear in the hearts of some.
Finally - Tan Dun. You know, the guy who wrote the soundtrack music for Crouching Dragon, Hidden Tiger? I love the nods to new classicism and to minimalism. Love the western sensibility mingled with the eastern feel. Love the heavy percussiveniss underlying the rich lyricism. Found her an Amazon link for his Symphony 1997(my favorite so far of his work) - a piece written in commemoration of the handover of Hong Kong to China. As one commenter on the review page put it - it's not often that a commissioned piece lives up to the event it's commemorating.
Also sent her a link to Kind of Blue. There's nothing I can really say about that work that will explain it better than just listening to it. I'm giving her a spare one of mine (for some reason, I have multiple copies), because she was so impressed with it and was going to buy an extra one for herself.
She added in a collection of Andres Segovia playing his hits, to round things out.
Great choices, all of them. I was glad, too, to get a chance to talk music with someone - and not just Boston Ballet or BLO stuff, either.
This weekend looks like another gift, and am going to try my darndest to not squander it.
Yesterday, late night working - but was on a roll. Managed to miss both the game (Sox won, of course - I can feel myself getting set up for another heartbreak.) and the debate. (No more of those - I get too upset listening. No matter how much content who I've decided is my preferred one has in his argument, the other will always be declared 'winner' - as if you can call someone a debate 'winner' - based sheerly on style points, and, I'm sorry to say, media partisanship.)
Nothing much in the cards for today, aside from a nice walk, maybe. Shelley, after massaging my lower back the other day, declared that I have no more tone in my buttocks. Doesn't surprise me, as I couldn't walk at all for two weeks, and barely until last week. I've a lot of work to do to put the pieces back together again.
Have been trying to keep faithful to the whole South Beach thing with mixed success. Today, was dying for french toast, though. Managed to come up with something beyond merely ersatz. Actually, I might like this better than french toast, come to think of it:
Sweet Omelet - serves one
2 eggs
dash of salt
1 1/2 T granulated sugar (I substituted a packet and a half of sweet and low_
1/2 t vanilla (I substituted 1/2 t rum flavoring)
1T butter (or Pam, I'm sure. I used Smart Balance)
(sprinkle of cinnamon, or nutmeg or both)
2T confectioners' sugar (I substituted another shake of cinnamon, a dash of granulated maple sugar and a dot of smart balance spread. I think that a wee smear of some sort of jelly would be good, too)
Combine the eggs, salt, granulated sugar, and vanilla and beat only long enough to blend. Put a 7-inch nonstick skillet over the heat. When the pan is hot, add the butter and as soon as it foams, tilt the pan so the butter coats the bottom. Pour in the eggs. Shake the pan forward and backward, pulling the eggs with a fork and letting the uncooked part run out to the edges, until the whole thing is creamy. Fold it in half and roll it out onto a warm plate. Sprinkle with confectioners' sugar.
I adapted this from a recipe in my Fannie Farmer cookbook - it was in the dessert section. Myself, I found it to be a wonderful not too sweet sweet tooth breakfast. Enjoy!
Yesterday, late night working - but was on a roll. Managed to miss both the game (Sox won, of course - I can feel myself getting set up for another heartbreak.) and the debate. (No more of those - I get too upset listening. No matter how much content who I've decided is my preferred one has in his argument, the other will always be declared 'winner' - as if you can call someone a debate 'winner' - based sheerly on style points, and, I'm sorry to say, media partisanship.)
Nothing much in the cards for today, aside from a nice walk, maybe. Shelley, after massaging my lower back the other day, declared that I have no more tone in my buttocks. Doesn't surprise me, as I couldn't walk at all for two weeks, and barely until last week. I've a lot of work to do to put the pieces back together again.
Have been trying to keep faithful to the whole South Beach thing with mixed success. Today, was dying for french toast, though. Managed to come up with something beyond merely ersatz. Actually, I might like this better than french toast, come to think of it:
Sweet Omelet - serves one
2 eggs
dash of salt
1 1/2 T granulated sugar (I substituted a packet and a half of sweet and low_
1/2 t vanilla (I substituted 1/2 t rum flavoring)
1T butter (or Pam, I'm sure. I used Smart Balance)
(sprinkle of cinnamon, or nutmeg or both)
2T confectioners' sugar (I substituted another shake of cinnamon, a dash of granulated maple sugar and a dot of smart balance spread. I think that a wee smear of some sort of jelly would be good, too)
Combine the eggs, salt, granulated sugar, and vanilla and beat only long enough to blend. Put a 7-inch nonstick skillet over the heat. When the pan is hot, add the butter and as soon as it foams, tilt the pan so the butter coats the bottom. Pour in the eggs. Shake the pan forward and backward, pulling the eggs with a fork and letting the uncooked part run out to the edges, until the whole thing is creamy. Fold it in half and roll it out onto a warm plate. Sprinkle with confectioners' sugar.
I adapted this from a recipe in my Fannie Farmer cookbook - it was in the dessert section. Myself, I found it to be a wonderful not too sweet sweet tooth breakfast. Enjoy!
Friday, October 08, 2004
Why buy the slices when you can have the loaves for free?
This shot was taken after one of the races our organisation's informal running club participated in over the summer. When Pigs Fly bakery of York, Maine supplied the bread, which I'd say is some of the best artisanal stuff in New England.
Best of luck to Jo-Ann, Deb, Kelly and Nancy on that half-marathon they'll be running this weekend!
This shot was taken after one of the races our organisation's informal running club participated in over the summer. When Pigs Fly bakery of York, Maine supplied the bread, which I'd say is some of the best artisanal stuff in New England.
Best of luck to Jo-Ann, Deb, Kelly and Nancy on that half-marathon they'll be running this weekend!
When Hardanger is your Violon d'Ingrès
This little gem of a work in progress is a mountain scene. It's designed by Sue Lentz, and Tanya (you probably know her as one of my friends in the accounting division, but she's also a master needleworker.) is stitching it. I can't wait to see it when it's done.
That, by the way, is one of the major things that sustains me here at work - the people I work with both are extremely competent at their paid work and have rich lives outside of work. Though upper management is as upper management generally is, on the functional level, you couldn't ask for a better group of people.
This little gem of a work in progress is a mountain scene. It's designed by Sue Lentz, and Tanya (you probably know her as one of my friends in the accounting division, but she's also a master needleworker.) is stitching it. I can't wait to see it when it's done.
That, by the way, is one of the major things that sustains me here at work - the people I work with both are extremely competent at their paid work and have rich lives outside of work. Though upper management is as upper management generally is, on the functional level, you couldn't ask for a better group of people.
Thursday, October 07, 2004
New Links
Finally got around to doing some house cleaning - and, boy howdy, was there a fair bit to do. If you look over at the sidebar, you'll notice a few new additions:
I've added several new links to people who you've probably heard me rave about before along with some others as well. Ann Althouse, Belmont Club, Captain's Quarters Blog and Bill Whittle of eject! eject! eject! are all there. I also included a link to Roger Simon's site - He, like Bill Whittle, is a former 'liberal' turned (would you call it neoconservative? reformed liberal?) after 9/11. If you're interested in the UN Oil-for-Food scandal, he's done some pretty in depth research on that.
For humor - I've (finally) added Scrappleface. It sort of reminds me of Satirewire, only oddly prescient. (Instapundit has a feature every now and again that he calls "Life Imitates Scrappleface.") As Day By Day is taking a breather (I hope things resolve themselves for the best for the writer - he's really nifty and I miss the cartoon) right now, I decided to add Cox and Forkum's cartoon blog. Pretty trenchant humor there. I like the artwork, too.
Also, you'll note some Iraqi blogs: Iraq the Model, which is the first one I fell in love with, is one family's account of life after Saddam. Do take a look at it-there's some powerfully persuasive writing there. Healing Iraq is by a dentist, I believe. Neurotic Iraqi Wife is a new (only a few weeks old) blog by a young Iraqi woman who works for a humanitarian agency in England and whose husband is back in Baghdad, working with the government. Wonderful stuff there.
I've added a link to Independent Women's Forum - a great site and resource for women who aren't into the 'identity politics' (among other things) of radical/classical feminism. Though they are often called 'conservative,' I think that they're more and truly liberal than any of the feminist groups of yore. Go take a look at their offerings.
How could I forget about...yarn sites! Knitty Dot Com has some hip, sexy, fun stuff - all free patterns - in addition to different articles on knitting as an art, technique, etc. Fun place! Lion Brand and Herrschner's Yarn Sale are two places I haunt looking for good yarn cheap.
Finally: you may notice that there are a couple ads in the upper right hand corner of the page. Why not go take a look at what they have to offer? I let Google put them there and what's displayed is generally topical stuff. I'm not looking to make a fortune or anything. That's what my current job in high finance is for. A little bit of pin money from an ad or two isn't unwelcome, though.
Finally got around to doing some house cleaning - and, boy howdy, was there a fair bit to do. If you look over at the sidebar, you'll notice a few new additions:
I've added several new links to people who you've probably heard me rave about before along with some others as well. Ann Althouse, Belmont Club, Captain's Quarters Blog and Bill Whittle of eject! eject! eject! are all there. I also included a link to Roger Simon's site - He, like Bill Whittle, is a former 'liberal' turned (would you call it neoconservative? reformed liberal?) after 9/11. If you're interested in the UN Oil-for-Food scandal, he's done some pretty in depth research on that.
For humor - I've (finally) added Scrappleface. It sort of reminds me of Satirewire, only oddly prescient. (Instapundit has a feature every now and again that he calls "Life Imitates Scrappleface.") As Day By Day is taking a breather (I hope things resolve themselves for the best for the writer - he's really nifty and I miss the cartoon) right now, I decided to add Cox and Forkum's cartoon blog. Pretty trenchant humor there. I like the artwork, too.
Also, you'll note some Iraqi blogs: Iraq the Model, which is the first one I fell in love with, is one family's account of life after Saddam. Do take a look at it-there's some powerfully persuasive writing there. Healing Iraq is by a dentist, I believe. Neurotic Iraqi Wife is a new (only a few weeks old) blog by a young Iraqi woman who works for a humanitarian agency in England and whose husband is back in Baghdad, working with the government. Wonderful stuff there.
I've added a link to Independent Women's Forum - a great site and resource for women who aren't into the 'identity politics' (among other things) of radical/classical feminism. Though they are often called 'conservative,' I think that they're more and truly liberal than any of the feminist groups of yore. Go take a look at their offerings.
How could I forget about...yarn sites! Knitty Dot Com has some hip, sexy, fun stuff - all free patterns - in addition to different articles on knitting as an art, technique, etc. Fun place! Lion Brand and Herrschner's Yarn Sale are two places I haunt looking for good yarn cheap.
Finally: you may notice that there are a couple ads in the upper right hand corner of the page. Why not go take a look at what they have to offer? I let Google put them there and what's displayed is generally topical stuff. I'm not looking to make a fortune or anything. That's what my current job in high finance is for. A little bit of pin money from an ad or two isn't unwelcome, though.
Oh.My.Goodness.
Best analysis I've seen yet of the first presidential debate. Best documentation of an ideological evolution I've ever seen. Please take a look at eject eject eject. "Deterrence" (pts I and II) is excellent. I'm only partway through "Strength-" will continue later. Showers, breakfast, cat feeding and commuting are all looming over me now.
Best analysis I've seen yet of the first presidential debate. Best documentation of an ideological evolution I've ever seen. Please take a look at eject eject eject. "Deterrence" (pts I and II) is excellent. I'm only partway through "Strength-" will continue later. Showers, breakfast, cat feeding and commuting are all looming over me now.
Didn't feel much like posting anything yesterday - got a good night's sleep, wanted to enjoy the beautiful day out...a couple things struck me, however.
First is this image. Seeing this makes me forget that we're involved in an 'immoral' war on two fronts, and that our priority for women's rights should actually be here. Let's take Augusta, for example, since the NYT saw fit to carry a series on it in the last year or so. We won't be a truly civilized society until women can play golf next to men in major tournaments. Remember that.
Second, Ann Althouse has a couple of posts on the level of political discourse in Madison, WI. Glenn Reynolds has a round up the shooting up of the Bush/Cheney headquarters in Knoxville, along with a round up of other incidents and commentary.
I'm reminded of the National Post newspaper vending machines I saw all over Toronto that someone with a lot of time on their hands went through a fair bit of trouble vandalizing: every one of them that I saw (not just around the U Toronto campus, either) had a swastika painted on them and the word "National" blackened out and replaced with the word "Nazi." (National Post is the one slightly right of center paper in Canada. Mark Steyn used to write a column for it.) Horrendously insensitive? Unclear on the concept? Nazis were socialists, not 'conservatives.' They shut down newspapers, vandalized property and killed people who spoke out against them.
Storming campaign offices and driveby shootings are taking this all to another level, however. I read that these are seeming like a coordinated event all over the country (follow the links). Why isn't this getting more coverage? It depresses me, but none of it surprises me. And I don't know that this is not becoming more mainstream. I mean, I've spoken to people who you'd not expect to be 'extremist' in their beliefs who were outraged and disgusted that the Republicans were even holding a convention this year. It's like people have lost the ability to reason or something. Perhaps we need to look at how the Afghanis or the Iraqis are conducting themselves before their elections to see how we should be behaving.
First is this image. Seeing this makes me forget that we're involved in an 'immoral' war on two fronts, and that our priority for women's rights should actually be here. Let's take Augusta, for example, since the NYT saw fit to carry a series on it in the last year or so. We won't be a truly civilized society until women can play golf next to men in major tournaments. Remember that.
Second, Ann Althouse has a couple of posts on the level of political discourse in Madison, WI. Glenn Reynolds has a round up the shooting up of the Bush/Cheney headquarters in Knoxville, along with a round up of other incidents and commentary.
I'm reminded of the National Post newspaper vending machines I saw all over Toronto that someone with a lot of time on their hands went through a fair bit of trouble vandalizing: every one of them that I saw (not just around the U Toronto campus, either) had a swastika painted on them and the word "National" blackened out and replaced with the word "Nazi." (National Post is the one slightly right of center paper in Canada. Mark Steyn used to write a column for it.) Horrendously insensitive? Unclear on the concept? Nazis were socialists, not 'conservatives.' They shut down newspapers, vandalized property and killed people who spoke out against them.
Storming campaign offices and driveby shootings are taking this all to another level, however. I read that these are seeming like a coordinated event all over the country (follow the links). Why isn't this getting more coverage? It depresses me, but none of it surprises me. And I don't know that this is not becoming more mainstream. I mean, I've spoken to people who you'd not expect to be 'extremist' in their beliefs who were outraged and disgusted that the Republicans were even holding a convention this year. It's like people have lost the ability to reason or something. Perhaps we need to look at how the Afghanis or the Iraqis are conducting themselves before their elections to see how we should be behaving.
Tuesday, October 05, 2004
It's supermarionation!
Get a load of this: a new Trey Parker and Matt Stone movie. This is what the Thunderbirds remake should have been, gosh darnit.
Get a load of this: a new Trey Parker and Matt Stone movie. This is what the Thunderbirds remake should have been, gosh darnit.
A great and ornery country, indeed.
My standard response to people who bemoan the last four years under Bush is to ask them where 20 years with Kerry has gotten Massachusetts.
My standard response to people who bemoan the last four years under Bush is to ask them where 20 years with Kerry has gotten Massachusetts.
Insomnia.
How quickly is the world going to go to hell if Kerry's elected? How long is it going to take for my new aran yarn to get to me? Will I get it in time to knit it up into a sweater before Christmas? Boy, am I going to be in an awful state at work today. Speaking of which, I really need to find a new job...I don't know how much longer I can go on being a zombie in that place. Will the apples last another couple of days in the fridge? It's actually tougher to get them through the foodmill than I remember. Why can't I afford that duplex on Main Street? How long before Sharia courts would be permitted here if Kerry were elected? They have them in Canada now. Why'd I have that glass of wine with dinner? It's verboten on my diet. Will I ever get rid of my belly? Will I ever fit into my nice interview suit (or winter clothes) again? I don't want to have to buy new stuff. I have perfectly good clothes in my closet. What a waste. Why has my face been broken out since returning from Deer Isle? I don't want to have to wear a burkha. I want desperately to go back to school but can't afford to do both that and live here. I don't feel like leaving here either, gosh darnit. Will my knee heal properly? I get this hot, dry pain in it periodically and I still can't walk too much on it, much less run or hike. Gosh darnit - have to get it together to get doctor/PT appointments. Not to mention see the chiropractor; the back's bothering me again. (I'm sure it's the extra weight in the midsection.) I know I get a three day weekend this week - would it be so wrong to have an extra day tacked on? Probably. Sigh. Need to get a new pair of eyeglasses, too. Were all the people who said that Kerry "won" the debate listening to the same stuff I was? Heck, were they even listening at all? I don't watch the TV because I think the images distract from the content. We're not getting frost tonight, I hope. I still have a dozen or so tomatoes left on the vines. Need to clean out the flower beds for the season. Who can get me compost? I wonder if the orb weavers are still in the front? Their webs are still there. Huge spiders - almost as big as my cats. I'd sure hate to run into one while doing yard work. It's four o'clock. Hal gets up now, now that he's on the early morning shift. He wonders if his company isn't going to hell in a handbasket under the new ownership. I worry about him. Wish he was in a better place workwise. Selfwise. I wish I could help. Ech. Look at me. Mess. Should I get my hair trimmed? Cut short again? Should I just let it grow? Can I go back to sleep now? Please?
How quickly is the world going to go to hell if Kerry's elected? How long is it going to take for my new aran yarn to get to me? Will I get it in time to knit it up into a sweater before Christmas? Boy, am I going to be in an awful state at work today. Speaking of which, I really need to find a new job...I don't know how much longer I can go on being a zombie in that place. Will the apples last another couple of days in the fridge? It's actually tougher to get them through the foodmill than I remember. Why can't I afford that duplex on Main Street? How long before Sharia courts would be permitted here if Kerry were elected? They have them in Canada now. Why'd I have that glass of wine with dinner? It's verboten on my diet. Will I ever get rid of my belly? Will I ever fit into my nice interview suit (or winter clothes) again? I don't want to have to buy new stuff. I have perfectly good clothes in my closet. What a waste. Why has my face been broken out since returning from Deer Isle? I don't want to have to wear a burkha. I want desperately to go back to school but can't afford to do both that and live here. I don't feel like leaving here either, gosh darnit. Will my knee heal properly? I get this hot, dry pain in it periodically and I still can't walk too much on it, much less run or hike. Gosh darnit - have to get it together to get doctor/PT appointments. Not to mention see the chiropractor; the back's bothering me again. (I'm sure it's the extra weight in the midsection.) I know I get a three day weekend this week - would it be so wrong to have an extra day tacked on? Probably. Sigh. Need to get a new pair of eyeglasses, too. Were all the people who said that Kerry "won" the debate listening to the same stuff I was? Heck, were they even listening at all? I don't watch the TV because I think the images distract from the content. We're not getting frost tonight, I hope. I still have a dozen or so tomatoes left on the vines. Need to clean out the flower beds for the season. Who can get me compost? I wonder if the orb weavers are still in the front? Their webs are still there. Huge spiders - almost as big as my cats. I'd sure hate to run into one while doing yard work. It's four o'clock. Hal gets up now, now that he's on the early morning shift. He wonders if his company isn't going to hell in a handbasket under the new ownership. I worry about him. Wish he was in a better place workwise. Selfwise. I wish I could help. Ech. Look at me. Mess. Should I get my hair trimmed? Cut short again? Should I just let it grow? Can I go back to sleep now? Please?
Could've knocked me over with a feather.
Really? No kidding. Hey folks: get a load of this. We've got some agricultural experts here telling us that the 'quiet, pastoral life' is stressful on farmers. Especially in the fall. No doubt it's tied in with getting enough leafpeeping time in, or something.
Gosh darnit, does my heart good to know that we've got great minds working on this as well as journalism to keep pace with such discoveries in the realm of the bleeding obvious.
Really? No kidding. Hey folks: get a load of this. We've got some agricultural experts here telling us that the 'quiet, pastoral life' is stressful on farmers. Especially in the fall. No doubt it's tied in with getting enough leafpeeping time in, or something.
Gosh darnit, does my heart good to know that we've got great minds working on this as well as journalism to keep pace with such discoveries in the realm of the bleeding obvious.
Monday, October 04, 2004
Go Roycrofters!
Look at what Hal found this weekend at the Medford Public Library book sale! (lower right hand corner slightly bumped, otherwise near perfect condition. For the cover alone, this is an amazing find - especially at $1. It being some sort of account of Hubbard's travels, it's bound to be a very entertaining read, as well.)
Look at what Hal found this weekend at the Medford Public Library book sale! (lower right hand corner slightly bumped, otherwise near perfect condition. For the cover alone, this is an amazing find - especially at $1. It being some sort of account of Hubbard's travels, it's bound to be a very entertaining read, as well.)
Five movies this weekend...count'em.
Hal's discovered the AV department at the Somerville Library. If you could pick a theme for this weekend's picks, it would be Marilyn Monroe. Or (maybe, but, really stretching it here) "date films."
Let's Make Love: Ever wonder who Pepe LePew was caricaturing? Such a funny story, though not the best musical I'd ever seen. The cameos were super fun, though a bit odd in their 'shattering of the third wall' aspect.
River of No Return: Not the best story in the world, but the views of the Canadian Rockies, plus plenty of Marilyn and Robert Mitchum to look at made up for this. The theme song (sung at the beginning by Mitchum himself, I'm pretty certain, and later by Monroe) is haunting.
Niagara: Fun for the views of Niagara Fall, of course. Very very creepy, though, and quite a departure from the usual, lighter, happier ending sort of stuff I'm used to seeing Marilyn in. I distinctly remember seeing this in black and white as a kid.
I couldn't help but marvel at her costumes in these films. How on earth did they keep that chest reined in for some of the outfits she was wearing and actually being somewhat active in (corsets in "River," some incredibly slinky dresses in the other two)? I'd love to be clued in on this, as I have a very similar form, and, though it doesn't exactly pain me to not be able to wear a lot of the off the shoulder stuff that's been in fashion lately, would be nice if I could at least have the option of doing so.
Other films we saw:
Room at the Top: Romulus studio vehicle for Lawrence Harvey. Incredibly grim social commentary on a young lower-class man whose aspirations for the local factory owner's daughter and affair with the Older French Woman (Simone Signoret) wreak havoc on the town. This one actually gave me nightmares (& made Butterfield 8 seem hopeful).
Summertime: Beautiful visually, but dated David Lean film on an older spinster's dream trip to Venice. Katherine Hepburn engages in a whirlwind affair very young, very thin and very married Rossano Brazzi in this one. As I said - the theme isn't so shocking anymore, and we did find it a bit dull, but the visuals were glorious.
***
In my travels over the weekend, I picked up three films that I'm sure we'll be digging into soon:
Magnificent Trio (Michelle Yeoh, Anita Mui, Maggie Cheung): An amazingly dark, post apocalyptic action film about three superhero women. The fight scenes in this one are so graceful that you don't mind seeing the wires that hold the women up every now and again.
A River Runs Through It: Beautiful, tear-jerker of an adaptation of the Norman McLean novella. This is one of Brad Pitt's first roles. He's wonderful in it.
Some film by Werner Herzog that Hal found and we'd not heard of. It might have been Invincible, but I'm not sure, to be perfectly honest.
Hal's discovered the AV department at the Somerville Library. If you could pick a theme for this weekend's picks, it would be Marilyn Monroe. Or (maybe, but, really stretching it here) "date films."
Let's Make Love: Ever wonder who Pepe LePew was caricaturing? Such a funny story, though not the best musical I'd ever seen. The cameos were super fun, though a bit odd in their 'shattering of the third wall' aspect.
River of No Return: Not the best story in the world, but the views of the Canadian Rockies, plus plenty of Marilyn and Robert Mitchum to look at made up for this. The theme song (sung at the beginning by Mitchum himself, I'm pretty certain, and later by Monroe) is haunting.
Niagara: Fun for the views of Niagara Fall, of course. Very very creepy, though, and quite a departure from the usual, lighter, happier ending sort of stuff I'm used to seeing Marilyn in. I distinctly remember seeing this in black and white as a kid.
I couldn't help but marvel at her costumes in these films. How on earth did they keep that chest reined in for some of the outfits she was wearing and actually being somewhat active in (corsets in "River," some incredibly slinky dresses in the other two)? I'd love to be clued in on this, as I have a very similar form, and, though it doesn't exactly pain me to not be able to wear a lot of the off the shoulder stuff that's been in fashion lately, would be nice if I could at least have the option of doing so.
Other films we saw:
Room at the Top: Romulus studio vehicle for Lawrence Harvey. Incredibly grim social commentary on a young lower-class man whose aspirations for the local factory owner's daughter and affair with the Older French Woman (Simone Signoret) wreak havoc on the town. This one actually gave me nightmares (& made Butterfield 8 seem hopeful).
Summertime: Beautiful visually, but dated David Lean film on an older spinster's dream trip to Venice. Katherine Hepburn engages in a whirlwind affair very young, very thin and very married Rossano Brazzi in this one. As I said - the theme isn't so shocking anymore, and we did find it a bit dull, but the visuals were glorious.
***
In my travels over the weekend, I picked up three films that I'm sure we'll be digging into soon:
Magnificent Trio (Michelle Yeoh, Anita Mui, Maggie Cheung): An amazingly dark, post apocalyptic action film about three superhero women. The fight scenes in this one are so graceful that you don't mind seeing the wires that hold the women up every now and again.
A River Runs Through It: Beautiful, tear-jerker of an adaptation of the Norman McLean novella. This is one of Brad Pitt's first roles. He's wonderful in it.
Some film by Werner Herzog that Hal found and we'd not heard of. It might have been Invincible, but I'm not sure, to be perfectly honest.
Break a leg?
During my wanderings this weekend I noted that a house I absolutely adore is up for sale. As property's absolutely extortionate, I know that I don't stand a snowball's chance in hell in getting funding for this place. I can indulge in wishful thinking, however. Ali at the quicky mart laughed at me when I bought a lottery ticket this morning (he's heard my theory on winnign the lottery many times. In detail.). He knew that either my boss and I were tired of the jobs, or I'd found a house that I was fond of. Those tend to be the only times I play the numbers game.
During my wanderings this weekend I noted that a house I absolutely adore is up for sale. As property's absolutely extortionate, I know that I don't stand a snowball's chance in hell in getting funding for this place. I can indulge in wishful thinking, however. Ali at the quicky mart laughed at me when I bought a lottery ticket this morning (he's heard my theory on winnign the lottery many times. In detail.). He knew that either my boss and I were tired of the jobs, or I'd found a house that I was fond of. Those tend to be the only times I play the numbers game.
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