Well, dear readers, the countdown begins to balls dropping and ringing in the New Year. It is also the evening of our Annual New Year’s Rockin’ Eve Bash and I do hope all of our dear readers will drop by, first to ring in the East Coast New Year and second to ring in the West Coast New Year. And may I just say that it is my fervent hope and prayer that 2025 will be a year filled with health, wealth, happiness, creativity, and all things bright and beautiful. This evening we bid a fond or in some cases not-so-fond farewell to 2024, a year that has had more ups and downs than a rollercoaster ride run amok. But first, let’s dispense with yesterday. Not much to dispense with, as I didn’t leave the house at all. I only got about six hours of sleep, I answered e-mails and had a telephonic call, I had a chicken Caesar salad from Stanley’s for food, the helper came by and got a few boxes of CDs I had here that I don’t need here, I did a little cleaning and organizing, I had the last of the kugel, I did a Ralph’s Instacart order and got everything I need for tomorrow’s afternoon get-together except for chicken, which I’ll get at Gelson’s today. I dozed off for an hour, and then I decided on a motion picture entitled The Brutalist, starring Adrien Brody and Guy Pearce, co-written and directed by someone I’ve never heard of, who has made two or three movies I’ve never heard of. So, it’s rather surprising to find that The Brutalist runs three-hours-and-twenty-minutes. It’s an audacious little movie, and I believe it’s the first movie shot in VistaVision since 1961 or thereabouts – and yes, we get the classic VistaVision logo. It looks very good and I’m sure will look stunning in 4K when that eventually comes around. The acting is excellent. I can’t speak to the film yet, as I have another hour to go, but its director, who is thirty-six, obviously is a fan of big, epic movies like Once Upon a Time in America, and certainly he must like The Fountainhead. It’s so easy to see places to tighten the pace, but it is what it is and I haven’t really been bored yet. There are nice compositions in the film but also some minor shaky cam stuff that I will never EVER understand in a period film. The opening of the movie is called Overture, and then there’s a part one, an intermission, and then part two and a coda. If I can get these here notes posted on time, I’ll try to finish it this before bed.
That was about it, I didn’t really eat anything other than the salad and the kugel, and here we are. The Salad and the Kugel – that’s the title of my next novel.
Today, I’ll be up by ten, I’ll shave, then at eleven-thirty I’ll mosey on over to the dentist to get my permanent crown, which I hope will be a painless and easy thing. After that, I’ll go to the mail place and pick up at least the most important of the two important envelopes, but hopefully the second will be there, too. After that, I’ll get the chicken for the faux chicken stroganoff at Gelson’s and then I’ll come home. Then I’ll relax until it’s time for our partay to begin, will drop our collective balls, I’ll do my contemplating thing I do, I’ll have my sip of champagne at midnight whilst shouting “HAPPY NEW YEAR” and then I’ll get to bed.
Tomorrow, I hope to be up by ten at the latest and then I begin writing my new book, after futzing and finessing the twenty-something pages I did in advance. Certainly, I’ll finish the first chapter and probably write a good deal of the second, since I know exactly what happens. At around three, I’ll get everything in the works for our intimate gathering at four. That will last two hours, and then I’ll probably do some more writing and then watch, listen, and relax. The rest of the week is just enjoying the last of what some would laughably call my vacation, and then come next Monday, we begin casting Drat! The Cat!
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, be up by ten, shave, get my new permanent crown, pick up an important envelope and hopefully the second one, too, I’ll go to Gelson’s, then we have our partay, I do my contemplating thing, balls drop, champagne will be sipped and we’ll bid 2024 farewell and welcome in 2025. Today’s topic of discussion: A silent topic – silently tell yourself what your wishes and hopes are for 2025. Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, ready to say farewell 2024 and welcome 2025.