What, August already? Languid days, languid nights...
July 29
Is my younger daughter a Generation Xer?
(Suggestion of possible recreational activity is made)
Daughter: Done that. Seen this.
Author: Don't you mean, "Been there. Done that"?
Daughter: No, this is one I made up.
July 28
*I know it makes good marketing sense in the '90s, but Web sites for historically recreated settings seems like
resodding a Civil War battlefield with Polyturf(tm).
*Viewing: "One Night in the Life of Jimmy Reardon" -- talk about scattered ideas, this one takes off
on the "wild teenage spree" theme, but drifts into a lyrical conceit and muddled relationships. And
what was with River Phoenix's hair, fer Goshsakes.
July 27
Viewing: "Foreign Student" -- several good ideas (interracial love in '50s South, furriner on a redneck football team), all rushing headlong to nowhere;
still, the sequence with "Howlin' Wolf" and "Sonny Boy Williamson" was marvellous.
July 26
*OK, I chickened out -- got basic trim instead of serious haircut. So kill me.
*Viewing: "(John Carpenter's) Village of the Damned" -- certainly can see why it would
be a meaningful premise today (i.e., emotionless children beyond our control). But the platinum hair makes all the
girls look like tiny Jean Harlows and the boys like televangelists.
July 24
Viewing: "The Frighteners" -- trapped in a half-life itself, midway between comedy and
horror...and not particularly successful in either domain.
July 23
Book completed: "The Error of Our Ways," by David Carkeet -- insightful examination of two kinds of "modern" men.
But what an ending! Surprising, sad, yet resilient and upbeat.
July 20
*Book completed: "The Saskiad," by Brian Hall -- charming, wistful, whimsical, like peeking into the mind
of many a precocious 12-year-old. The interplay of Saskia's fanciful turns on myth and history become ever
more poignant as she begins to lose hold of real life. One thing this points up, though: the need for
male coming-of-age stories with equally complex and sophisticated lead characters.
*Nostalgic trip to an "old" playground, where OD and YD practically dwarf the
equipment. How big it all once seemed, even to me.
July 19
*Glorious release from the heat and humidity, with a trip to the local sprinkler park,
our favorite ice cream stand and far-flung suburban playground.
*Viewing: "The Advocate" -- Umberto Eco meets Peter Greenaway? Well, not quite. Good ideas,
some good acting talent, but just doesn't quite pan out.
July 18
*Book completed: "In a Pig's Ear," by Paul Bryers -- nice meditation on the link between history,
myth and film-making, and with a European instead of American point-of-view, which made it
refreshing. Shift to the darker tone is inevitable, but still jarring.
*Viewing: "A Simple Wish" -- OK, OK, it was hot and the theater was air-conditioned. Kathleen Turner
was, as usual, terrific (made to play a villainess) but Martin Short is a sad experience.
July 17
Read that Vermont has, for 12 years, been the site of the country's largest reggae festival. Vermont.
Next revelation: Nebraska to be site of world's premier sea chanty competition?
July 16
Viewing: "Start the Revolution Without Me" -- classic early '70s loopy irreverence, although not up to
other standards (e.g. "Harold and Maude," "Where's Poppa?"). More restrained than it needed to be. But that
Ewa Aulin...
July 15
Sports note: WNBA issued a $500 fine to a player for holding another around the neck. Yes, why should
loutishness and thuggery be the sole province of male pro hoop players? Now awaiting the
first head-butting of a referee.
July 6-13
Seven Days of Solitude: Life Without Children
Kids are bundled off to Ole Virginny, with little or no problems. The week that follows will appear, to most observers, nothing but
the most mundane domesticity. But surely, LW's titantic, three-day-plus struggle to tame the out-of-control
Home Finances Beast is the stuff of which epic poems are made. And our combined efforts at exploring the Children's
Clothing Mountain Range was worthy of any Everest expedition. Mostly, however, there was the utter
absence of routine, of being able to eat, read, sleep, work, watch videos (or whatever) whenever we wanted to.
Movies:
*"Star Trek: First Contact" -- good fun, I suppose, although only Alfre Woodard's cuss words separates this and
a TV special.
*"The Lover" -- Jane March's lips and teeth alone would've earned this at least a PG-13.
*"Ju-Dou" -- wonderful moral tale, with gloriously slow fades and the recurring shot of the dyed fabrics.
*"A Pyromaniac's Love Story" -- an Ealing Studios quality about it, although William Baldwin comes a bit too
close to chewing an excessive amount of scenery.
*"Mermaids" -- the more I see Bob Hoskins, I can't decide if I like him better as an Americanized comic figure, or
as a close to/over the edge British psycho. Unlikely, but terrific chemistry between him and Cher.
-----
So now we are reunited, with tanned, joyful kids who clearly relish being back home. Glad to have had this week,
even more glad it's over.
July 5
The child tugging at heartstrings as she contemplates her first trip without parents: Does she, she asks, have
to pack all this "tough" outdoor wear, i.e., blue jeans and cut-offs? What about a dress? Well, she's told, you're
going to want to spend a lot of time outdoors, running around...
"But I thought I'd just spend a lot of time inside thinking about you and Mom."
July 3
Recent musical acquisitions:
*"Lubican," La Musgana: nice blend of ancient/traditional instruments with electric bass. Interesting how the cittern/bouzouki
seems to have pervaded almost every contemporary interpretation of European-based folk music.
*"Undiscovered Australia," Martyn Windham-Read: actually the first full album of his work I've ever gotten, the rest being
guest star-type appearances (e.g. "Maypoles to Mistletoes") or on compilations. Man, what a voice, and a shrewd use of arrangements
and instrumentation to put it to best use.
July 2
Viewing: "The Vanishing" -- quite chilling, along the lines of "banality of evil" (i.e., the Raymond character), but more so --
a man who cannot be content with the family life he leads, and must compartmentalize it alongside his darker impulses. Very
unsettling, all told.
June 30
Viewing: "Claire's Knee" -- someone once wrote about the role young girls play in so many of Eric
Rohmer's films: as advisor, provocateur, sounding board, even occasionally as (brief) love interest.
Like "Pauline at the Beach" or the girl in "The Aviator's Wife," and in this case, Laura, they
seem to have a control over the situation which surprises even them.
June 29
From the sporting world: Mike Tyson bites Evander Holyfield in the ear. Twice. I think of all the
great broadsides and songs from the British Isles chronicling boxing matches, and yes it's true:
they really _don't_ write 'em like that anymore.
June 28
*A day at Old Songs: heat and light, splendid music from La Musgana, a $30 bodhran we _just_ missed buying, a 10-minute
seisun stop (knew it was worth it to bring the mandolin), one go at contra dancing that left us breathless...Think this
may just have to be a yearly pilgrimmage.
*A night with Old Friends, toasting the memory of late family friend Ruth: kids who've grown bigger, their parents who've grown older (but none
the worse for wear, as near I could tell), and the usual wonderful assortment of song, food, drink and conversation.
June 27
*Off to Albany, after usual hell-bent preparation.
*Viewing: "Blue in the Face" -- who makes "neighborhood" movies any more? I mean _real_ ones, which show
that the interaction of many cultures and backgrounds has its mundanities and absurdities, as well as its
flashpoints. Cameos by Lou Reed and Jim Jarmusch(sp?) were hilarious.
June 26
Interlude at the BC Gaelic Roots Festival: quiet,
enjoyable jam with Kevin on piano, then two-hour guitar workshop with Zan McLeod, then brief recital given by Zan,
Jackie Daly, Tommy Hayes and Gerry O'Connor, who seems to have been visited by the same benevolent Spirit of the Banjo
as Barney McKenna. I've _got_ to do this more often.
June 25
*Song learned: "Slip Jigs and Reels," by Steve Tilston. Good story-telling, good turns of phrase, and
all inspired by an old photo, legend has it.
*Viewing: "The McMullen Brothers" -- such lovable yutzes, you just want to smack 'em upside the head until
they get it (affectionately, that is, not in the manner of their Da). I will maintain that this film would not
have been as endearing without Seamus Egan's score.
June 24
*Book completed: "Hunger Moon," by Suzanne Matson. Very Sue Milleresque, what with the
Boston and New England settings, intense introspection and shifts in point-of-view. A nice, compact
story, generally believable.
*Viewing: "Natural Born Killers" -- one long assault against almost every sense a human possesses (
well, maybe not smell). Stone threw in a little too much David Lynch with his Jean-Luc Godard. And
what, pray tell, is Juliette Lewis' appeal?
June 22
*Happy Birthday, Mom. Wish I knew the Afghanistan greeting.
*When a parent needs a straight face: younger daughter, aggrieved by perceived injustice, spots
stuffed animal underneath car seat and declares "He's the only rabbit who _understands_ me."
*Viewing: "35 Up" -- such a great idea for a documentary series. Only hoping Michael Apted and
his subjects can sustain it a while longer. Most poignant is the fellow who, after being a homeless
drifter, appears to have established a fragile toe-hold in the Shetlands. Interesting tidbit: how
many of these folks already lost one or both parents.
June 20
A proud, emotional moment, ladeez 'n gentamin: Les Barker has apparently decided to
use my suggested for his latest volume of poetry -- "Roverdance."
June 18
Viewing: "Defending Your Life" -- Albert Brooks is that paradigmatic Nice Guy whose quips tend to make
you chuckle more than guffaw. Wonderfully tacky idea to have the Afterlife as an upper middle-class
leisure experience. And this was about the most appealling I'd seen Meryl Streep in some time.
June 16
Book completed: "Autobiography of My Mother," by Jamaica Kincaid. It took a while for this book to
grow on me, though it's hard to explain exactly why -- perhaps because it seems _so_ internalized (despite the
ruminations on socioeconomic exploitation). But there's some great turns of phrase ("My father's skin
was the color of corruption..."), and it certainly cannot be discounted.
June 15
Father's Day full of love and laughter, French toast in bed, outing to DeCordova Museum,
new pants, Swiss Chocolate Almond sundae. Think I'll keep the job.
June 14
Viewing: "Pet Sematary" -- one of the more unpleasant movies I've "seen"; Shawn requested
we stop the tape about 3/4 of the way through, and though later I put it back on I did a lot
of fast-forwarding. Shame, Stephen, Shame!
June 13
The 1997 school Color Day another successful combination of youthful enthusiasm
and restrained competition. Was assigned the ever-popular basketball shot station, ensuring
continuous activity and a hoarse voice by the end of it.
June 12
Viewing: "Life is Sweet" -- Mike Leigh is to London what Roddy Doyle is to Barrytown. More great
characters (Aubrey may be his best creation, ever). Wish the sound on our version was better.
June 11
*OD at last makes public debut on string bass -- and lo and behold, is looking
to re-up for next year. Well, if she thinks she can be the next Danny Thompson, why not?
*Have been officially named associate secretary for Banbury Cross (Publicity Division). Guess Wednesday
nights will definitely _not_ be for grocery shopping come fall.
