Well, dear readers, I am in what would seem to be the home stretch. Yes, you heard it here, dear readers, it would seem that I, BK, and in the home stretch of the new book. To celebrate, I stretched in the home, just to keep the whole thing symbiotic. I would say I’m anywhere between 130 to 160 pages from finishing. I suppose that could change, but I really don’t think it will, at least from looking at where I am and finally having figured out how I want to handle the end section of the book. That finally came to me yesterday, but I won’t solidify that until I go for a jog on Saturday morning – that’s the time when I’ll be close to starting that section and the jog always helps me know what’s right.
Yesterday was another twenty-seven-page day. I finessed in the morning – that took longer than usual because I made several additions and smoothed out quite a bit. I wrote a couple of new pages, then had an early lunch at Hugo’s with my friend Lauren Rubin, who’ll be joining the cast of the next Kritzerland show. We’re waiting to hear about the last cast member and are hoping that will work out. And our guest star will be the inimitable Richard Sherman. I’ve pretty much locked down the songs and our musical director has the music now. I may change a couple of things when I’ve actually had a moment to think about the song list, which I won’t until Sunday. Then I picked up a couple of packages, did some banking, then came home. I wrote about twelve more pages, then took a break to sit on my couch like so much fish.
Last night, I watched part one of a very long motion picture on Blu and Ray entitled Exodus, a film by Otto Preminger, starring Mr. Paul Newman and Miss Eva Marie Saint. I know it is quite fashionable to not like this film, but I have never been fashionable and therefore I’m here to tell you I DO like this film. I’ve always liked this film. I probably always WILL like this film. Let’s put it another way: I like this film. I saw it when it came out in 70mm and six-track stereophonic sound and I thought it was great. I saw it in 35mm with four-track stereo sound and I thought it was great, although not as great as it was in 70mm and six-track stereophonic sound. When the DVD came out I snapped it up like a lobster in heat. That DVD was, of course, a complete travesty – terrible sound, faded and brown and ugly transfer and non-anamorphic to boot, and just one of the worst DVDs ever issued. A few years ago I went to the Aero to see it in 35mm and Technicolor. But the Aero’s projection is all yellow so I didn’t enjoy it at all. I was very excited when I found out that a French Blu and Ray from France was coming out. I wish I could say it had been fully restored from the 70mm negative, but I cannot say it because it would not be true. However, the new Blu and Ray is a gazillion times better than the DVD. The quality fluctuates, but a lot of it is very sharp and with pretty good color. Some scenes are still too brown/orange/yellow, while others are fine. The other good news is we get a real stereo track. The aspect ratio, which should be 2.20 is 2.35, which means they went off a 35mm internegative. But at least we now have a version of Exodus that’s watchable – not perfect by any means, but not a travesty like the DVD. It’s mostly a very clean transfer, although the first twenty minutes does have some negative dirt and scratches. The main titles are also weird, with bars on the sides. There was no intermission slug where there should have been.
After part one, I came back to the computer and wrote a lot of new pages. I was just on a roll and I wanted to get through the little section I was in because it was exciting and fun to remember and write about. By the end of it, the page tally for the day was twenty-seven. At that point I was completely and utterly exhausted.
Well, why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button below because I must get a good night’s beauty sleep so that I have full energy to write more pages now that I am in the home stretch.
Today, I shall hopefully arise after a good night’s sleep, after which I shall finesse, write a few new pages, eat, hopefully pick up packages and an important envelope, write, write, watch part two of Exodus, write, and relax.
Tomorrow, I’m quite sure, will be more of the same. And Sunday, I’m quite sure, will be more of the same and the same goes for Monday and Tuesday right up until I finish this here book. Muse Margaret will get new pages on Monday and it will be a lot of them, so I’m sure it will take her a couple of days to get through them.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, finesse, write, eat, hopefully pick up packages and an important envelope, write, write, and watch part two of Exodus. Today’s topic of discussion: It’s Friday – what is currently in your CD player and your DVD/video player? I’ll start – CD, nothing – I’m in book mode. Blu and Ray, the rest of Exodus. Your turn. Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, after which I shall arrive and continue to be in the home stretch.