a day in hell: cat on a hot tin roof relived

later that day....

It must be movie weekend cold and rainy with no fireplace is the recipe for movie time. I just saw The Incredibles. A great way to spend two hours. I think I was the only person laughing out loud in the place. It feels good to laugh.
I heard The remade Ladykillers was not as good as the first. Nothing ever is. But I still need to finish the one I currently have in the machine. My brother in law is a film critic--he recommended an old 40's Noir "The Set-Up" and also a new release called Sideways. Not sure if it's playing in town, but here's to hoping.
I stopped by the house today to pick up my mail. It was strange; the smells, the changes in decor, not a good feeling. Hopefully this will pass.

On the eve of Thanksgiving I witnessed the first snowfall under the lamplight. It was late but I wanted to tell someone. The excitement was simliar to the feeling I used to get when school was cancelled. Although this time, I wasn't sure whom to call--so I watched it through the blinds and went to bed.

Not much to say about the passing holiday but I was able to escape the tension in tact and without many questions. With my birthday in less than a month and Christmas shortly thereafter, I will have to learn to deal with happy coupledom conversations: painting the dining room, the new bedroom suite, surprise birthday presents with thought from newleywed hubbies, putting up christmas decorations, fussing over food preparation, etc.

And then there is "Big Daddy." Enough said.

Just watched the modern day film of Plato's Symposium last night. I didn't find the acting terribly convincing but the whole concept was fairly entertaining.
The other film I picked up on a fluke has been thoroughly entertaining--The Ladykillers. Below is a review from the EFC.

Things I noticed today:
*absent-minded youngish professor leaving his keys and exiting out the entrance of the post office. When I retrieved them for him after he nearly ran me down in the line, he looked at me like I handed him a winning lottery ticket. Didn't know I had such an affect/effect on people.

* the peace and calm in the library on an early Saturday morning. Also the delicious smell of books. I love library gnomes.

*my anxiety and yet the thrill I feel of working at the Community Kitchen today.

*law school loftiness...

THE EFC REVIEW: The Ladykillers
It certainly seems like an artistic and potentially profitable coup that the Coen Brothers were able to get Tom Hanks to star in their latest comedy. And surely it won't hurt the movie that it shares a title with a quietly adored old British comedy. But the one thing working against 'The Ladykillers' is that, while it's a great goofball comedy, the movie fans will want to know how it measures up to the Coens' previous efforts. Judged on that scale alone, this new one is a mite disappointing; on just about any other level, 'The Ladykillers' is a dark and hilarious success across the board.
It must be really difficult once you've made 10 or 12 fantastic movies; everyone expects that level to be maintained. So when the Coens decided to go high-end with their Clooney / Zeta-Jones affair, we felt slighted when it wasn't up to the standards of a Fargo or a Raising Arizona. But like I insisted upon the release of Intolerable Cruelty: even a mildly disappointing Coens flick is better than 92% of anything else playing at the multiplex.

So while The Ladykillers doesn't match the brilliant lunacy of a Big Lebowski or an O Brother...who really cares? Judged on its own merits, The Ladykillers is odd and ingratiating and consistently amusing enough to earn your twelve dollar box office donation. Sometimes a solid triple is just as satisfying as a home run, and (thanks mainly to the inspired work of Tom Hanks and some of the patented Coens lunacy) The Ladykillers is, at the very least, a 2-run double.

Spun off from the 1955 Alec Guinness comedy of the same name, The Ladykillers is about four clueless criminals, a sweet-natured old lady, a big pile of cash, and an uproariously verbose ringleader who goes by the name of Professor G.H. Dorr. The conniving crooks, posing as Renaissance Fair musicians, set up shop in granny's old root cellar while scheming to loot the local casino office. Needless to say, their criminal plans go awry. Early and often.

Much of the film consists of your typical heist contrivances, only filtered through the brilliantly twisted eyes of the brothers Coen. But this time the brothers have Tom Hanks as their lead, and it proves a match made in heaven. Mega-huge superstars like Hanks and George Clooney seem to thrive under the employ of the Coens; to call Hanks' performance here 'one of his funniest ever' seems a lofty compliment (hey he's a funny guy), but it is an accurate one. The always-affable Mr. Hanks gets to wrap his tongue around dozens of long and twisty little monologues; the Coens' intellectually amusing verbosity discovers a newfound friend in Tom Hanks. His breathlessly devious performance is a thing of comedic beauty; the words spilling from his mouth are the arcane icing on a mildly misshapen cake.

The brothers are also somehow able to elicit a strong supporting performance from the generally irritating Marlon Wayans, while crafty character actors like J.K. Simmons (last seen as J. Jonah Jameson in Spider-Man) and Stephen Root (now a Coens staple) steal a few scenes for themselves. Lovable old granny figure Irma P. Hall contributes an excellent performance; her handful of scenes between she and Hanks are near-priceless.

Special notice is due to Roger Deakins' amazingly lovely cinematography and the resoundingly warm and gospel-heavy score by Carter Burwell. And whoever trained the cat (oh yeah, keep your eye on the cat) deserves a cash bonus, because that skinny little furball earned some solid giggles all by herself.

You could be a 'glass half empty' person and acknowledge that 'The Ladykillers' doesn't measure up to the Coens' finest works. Or you could be an appreciative optimist like myself and acknowledge the fact that, after eleven movies, Joel & Ethan have yet to release ONE sub-par flick. 'The Ladykillers' may not rank among the Coens' most excellent films, but I bet it still ends up as one of this year's best comedies.

mixology

Making a mixed cd for someone requires great care and sincerity. It's a lot like picking out the right birthday card for your mom--certain things have to be there--sentiment, words, images created by lyrics all packaged neatly in a cool jewel box. Depending on the person, you want to include songs that remind you of them and they of you. Or perhaps hint at how you feel about them. I love to make them for people I care about. The only problem is you put yourself out there when you share songs--kind of like poetry. And you can't take it back.

What's even worse is when you receive no feedback from the person as to whether or not they liked it--or (god help them) understood it. I am sure most of mine have long been tossed, made into coasters or colorful mobiles. I guess that is something?
I've been holding this one mix aside--waiting to send to a long-distance friend--but I realized that it would go unappreciated. So I kept it for myself.

I haven't received a personal mix from someone since 1994. Until yesterday. So thanks to my observant student who noticed that I needed a pick me up.
To you I wish a Happy Thanksgiving. To all the rest....well.....

Metaphor for life: Rush Hour Traffic

While driving home from Indy last night I was sitting in the midst of traffic, watching the stream of tail and break lights pulse in front of me. A red river or stream. A ribbon of light. The stop and go was driving me insane. And once you are on the freeway, there is no slowing down or getting off.

After three hours of back and forth and mean, rude, apathetic people, the papers are filed. They really need to find someone who has some compassion manning the counter. I mean it's hard enough to go through with the proceedings and then you have to give them to someone who could give a damn. I feel my heart just drying up like an old prune. Solitude is King. Come take me away.

"I see Bastard People"

If I be waspish, best beware my sting.
-Taming of the Shrew

I have found there are some people in this world who cannot make polite conversation. It is difficult if not impossible to understand this particular makeup of person. I can talk to pretty much anyone and it's always lighthearted. Now granted, I am not ugly and I do have a really good sense of humor on most days..So the exchange of words, you would think, would be fairly harmless. It boggles. It stupefies, really. And it makes me sad to think we have come so far---only to be right back where we used to be.
So I feel sorry for you people who have trouble casually talking to another person who wants nothing more from you than kindness.

It's hard to live alone--and when the babe stays all weekend, it again becomes a non-stop dance--she dodges, I parry. I am spent.
Just a few priceless moments:
*No Elmo DVD--up at 4:35a.m. to Wallmart: a quest.
*Out of diapers. Had to resort to a swimmer and doubling up on pants--back to Wallmart, changing her on the cold floor in the Infant section.
*Words words words...She is the most talkative, outgoing, curious creature I have ever known.
Together we are Hester and Pearl. Pearl and Hester by the flowing creek.