A fantastic article on the pleasures and pains of being a bibliophile!
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/15/garden/15library.html?partner=permalink&exprod=permalink
Friday, January 16, 2009
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Films of the Break
In an effort to prove that I did something-
The films I watched this break in reverse chronological order-
To Have and Have Not (Hawks)
The Big Sleep (Hawks)
The Godfather Part II (Coppola)
The Godfather (Coppola)
Rio Bravo (Hawks)
Le Bete Humaine (Renoir)
The Great McGinty (Sturges)
O, Brother, Where Art Thou? (Coen)
Juliet of the Spirits (Fellini)
Dazed and Confused (Linklater)
Oh god, is that all!?????!!!! Ten movies in in 22 days. I've even failed at being a film sl/nob. I should have at least been doing two a day, but, keep in mind, the two Godfathers are quite long- over six hours!!!! And I should special point for focusing on a director.
The films I watched this break in reverse chronological order-
To Have and Have Not (Hawks)
The Big Sleep (Hawks)
The Godfather Part II (Coppola)
The Godfather (Coppola)
Rio Bravo (Hawks)
Le Bete Humaine (Renoir)
The Great McGinty (Sturges)
O, Brother, Where Art Thou? (Coen)
Juliet of the Spirits (Fellini)
Dazed and Confused (Linklater)
Oh god, is that all!?????!!!! Ten movies in in 22 days. I've even failed at being a film sl/nob. I should have at least been doing two a day, but, keep in mind, the two Godfathers are quite long- over six hours!!!! And I should special point for focusing on a director.
A post!?
It feels like so many blog posts begin with an apology, "I'm sorry I haven't posted in a while, I've been so busy, what with the multiple surgeries, and that recurring and mysterious taste of sweetness that comes upon me just as I start to work. I stop to think about it, oh, probably just a side effect of the medication, but I leave my blog and start to search for answers online, answers that I've already read a hundred times. But still I search on with the hope that this isn't something serious. By the time I'm done with this fruitless enterprise, I'm spent, my body and mind fatigued by the stress and I fall asleep before even beginning a blog post." Well, fuck that, I don't need to apologize. And I don't even have a good reason! All I've been doing this break is watching movies, I read two hundred pages, and then quit, my attention span to short to maintain the intricacies of modernist literature. Oh, but I can read the shit out of a film blog... yes sir. My one great work of productivity this break was the brilliant transformation of my bedroom, which heretofore, with its mattress on the floor aesthetic, had the vibe of a crack den. Now, with my vintage-y metal bed frame, soft lighting, art deco poster, and red leather chair, it has the delightful vibe of an opium den. Speaking of which.... We had a delightful little concert in our house tonight, I love the idea of our very humble abode being a venue!
Well, it's three in the morning, and the wind howls like a hammer. The whole house literally shakes, right down to the core of its shoddy nineteenth century frame. I am very afraid that my house will literally fall apart, crushing me, and my newly redecorated room. I briefly toyed with the idea of sleeping in jean and tennis shoes, with all my valuables in my pockets, but I figured that if the house fell down I wouldn't have time to get out. While cleaning out my bookcase, I stumbled upon the old senior yearbook, and I am shocked at what a popular fellow I was. I'm currently rather a recluse, not unlike my original sophomore self from four years ago, but if I could get up and running at the full senior year mode that I was at... m god! And how thin I was! But this time around I'll be able to talk about college-y stuff like semiotics and Absalom, Absalom! College has been a fascinating experience, and extremely up and down. Last semester was such a confidence boost, and a real confidence downer, my professional life really strongly manifested itself after hiding for a year. I starred in a hit play! and I got all A's, I didn't even manage that in high school, but of course, I didn't get to take Screwball Comedy back at FHS. My social life almost completely disappeared, and I can barely manage to talk to strangers without breaking into a sweat and cracking my voice. That said, the people I spent most of my time with are great. And of course, I'm thinking specifically of one little lady who I spent most of my time with, who somehow managed to get me to love cats as much as her, even though they are wicked animals. That dear friend is a delight, I use these euphemisms because the internet is so public! I love my Lena so much, and miss her this break, I'm sure she will read this soon enough, but I want her to know that it's not just the wind that keeps me up, but the solitude that seems so much more tangible when she's not here with me.
Goodness, I really hope no one reads this stuff, I should just right myself a personal journal entry.
Well, it's three in the morning, and the wind howls like a hammer. The whole house literally shakes, right down to the core of its shoddy nineteenth century frame. I am very afraid that my house will literally fall apart, crushing me, and my newly redecorated room. I briefly toyed with the idea of sleeping in jean and tennis shoes, with all my valuables in my pockets, but I figured that if the house fell down I wouldn't have time to get out. While cleaning out my bookcase, I stumbled upon the old senior yearbook, and I am shocked at what a popular fellow I was. I'm currently rather a recluse, not unlike my original sophomore self from four years ago, but if I could get up and running at the full senior year mode that I was at... m god! And how thin I was! But this time around I'll be able to talk about college-y stuff like semiotics and Absalom, Absalom! College has been a fascinating experience, and extremely up and down. Last semester was such a confidence boost, and a real confidence downer, my professional life really strongly manifested itself after hiding for a year. I starred in a hit play! and I got all A's, I didn't even manage that in high school, but of course, I didn't get to take Screwball Comedy back at FHS. My social life almost completely disappeared, and I can barely manage to talk to strangers without breaking into a sweat and cracking my voice. That said, the people I spent most of my time with are great. And of course, I'm thinking specifically of one little lady who I spent most of my time with, who somehow managed to get me to love cats as much as her, even though they are wicked animals. That dear friend is a delight, I use these euphemisms because the internet is so public! I love my Lena so much, and miss her this break, I'm sure she will read this soon enough, but I want her to know that it's not just the wind that keeps me up, but the solitude that seems so much more tangible when she's not here with me.
Goodness, I really hope no one reads this stuff, I should just right myself a personal journal entry.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
