Well, dear readers, it is a holiday Monday so many people are off, banks and post offices are shuttered, but we are open for business, baby, we are happening, we are here to fulfill all your needs, unless you have to go to the bathroom. You’re on your own for that stuff. But if you need advice for food, if you need some hot links to cool videos, if you need to dance the Lambada (The Forbidden Dance), if you need to laugh and be happy, if you need companionship, if you need to vent or complain, if you need an upside down cake or a pick me up cake, we are your full service site for all of the above. What the HELL am I talking about? That was a litany of loose change, wasn’t it? That was just a bunch of random coins rattling around in a pocket. Otherwise, I am sitting here like so much fish listening to Samuel Barber’s first symphony, a wonderful work in a blistering monophonic performance by Bruno Walter. In fact, Walter’s was the very first recording of the piece, done in 1945. But a decade earlier, the New York concerts of it were conducted by our very own Rodzinski and he also conducted the West Coast premiere at the Hollywood Bowl. It runs about twenty-one minutes in one movement. Wonderful music, but then Barber has never really disappointed me. I wonder if I ever disappointed Barber? Certainly, I never met the man. Had I visited he and his ever-lovin’ Gian-Carlo Menotti in their home, I might have sat in a Barber chair. It took a long time to get to the punch line, didn’t it? I did manage to watch the first half of a motion picture last evening, entitled Uncovered, from the mid-1990s, and adaptation of a novel by the author of The Club Dumas, which Roman Polanski turned into the film The Ninth Gate. This one’s based on The Flanders Panel. It’s about the mysteries an old painting holds, being restored by a young gal art restorer, who lives with her guardian. Kate Beckinsdale plays the gal – very young se is in this one and not very good, with her guardian played by John Wood. Two wonderful Brit character actors are in it, too – James Villiers and Michael Gough. It’s directed by Jim McBride who began with a faux documentary called David Holzman’s Diary, which is considered one of the great films. Unfortunately, that was the high point for Mr. McBride. He did a couple of 90s thrillers but just wasn’t a very good director – competent, yes. Visually interesting, sure. But there’s just something off about everything in Uncovered – the writing, the performances, and the direction. And yet, I am sticking with it, so we’ll see how it turns out. I’ll probably finish it after posting these here notes.
I did get eight hours of sleep, arising at noon-thirty. I answered e-mails, ordered a chopped Eyetalian salad from California Pizza Kitchen. That arrived fairly quickly and was excellent. Then I spent the next few hours as I buckled d own, Winsocki and chose the final three songs – good choices, I think – and got them to the moms of the people who’ll be performing them. Then I wrote about five pages of what may be a new book. And then I started the movie. After half, I shut it off and ordered some tempura from a local jernt and it came and I ate most of it and it was a good snack and most importantly, not heavy. And here we are.
Today, I’ll be up when I’m up, I’ll do whatever needs doing, which is probably nothing, then I’m going to try and write for most of the day. At some point, I’ll get together with Marshall Harvey to give him the hard drive that has the Drat! The Cat! video elements on it. Don’t know if we’ll eat or not – we shall see. Other than that, I’ll finish Uncovered and I have a couple of other movies in my to be watched list on Prime, so I’ll choose one of those. One is a Naomi Watts and Bill Murray new movie called The Friend. It looks like fun.
Tomorrow, I have a lunch meeting at some nearby jernt I’ve never been to, otherwise I’ll start figuring out how to schedule the Kritzerland show – the kid shows are really hard for some reason, so I want plenty of time to get it so that it works for everyone. I have other meetings, a meal out on Friday night, and the weekend is unknown to me.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, be up when I’m up, do whatever needs doing, write, get together with Marshall Harvey, eat at some point, finish a movie, and watch another movie. Today’s topic of discussion: It’s free-for-all day, the day in which you dear readers get to make with the topics and we all get to post about them. So, let’s have loads of lovely topics and loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, happy to be open for business, and here to fulfill your wildest imaginings.