Peep Show, Anyone?

Posted on January 11, 2005
Filed Under And another thing..., the telly | Leave a Comment

No, I’m not talking about a little voyeur action, exactly… I’m referring to the BBC comedy. Ez and I saw one episode at the farm over the holidays (they got Direct TV or something), and liked it. It’s about these two twenty-something guys who engage in a bit of silly self-loathing, which we hear in their heads. The BBC site provides this description. Of course, we don’t get BBC America, so I guess I won’t be seeing another episode for a while!

A New Murakami Novel!!!

Posted on January 10, 2005
Filed Under Blather, the written word | Leave a Comment

I just discovered that there’s a new Murakami novel!! It’s due to be published in the U.S. on January 18th. Ooo ooo! Here’s a preview from the BBC.

Looks like there are many other reviews of the book online. I am just skimming them, myself–don’t want to ruin it. His books all have a bunch of common threads, it seems, yet most manage to be pretty unique in their own special ways, too. I’m anxious to read this one.

And he’s off to a terrific start…

Posted on January 10, 2005
Filed Under Blather, Red Sox | 1 Comment

I’m just comparing this to how Curt Schilling started out in Boston. Hm… We know how that turned out.

Looking at the two biggest markets in baseball… Except for his efforts for Dubya, it’s been a love affair for Curt up here pretty much from the start, even (or maybe especially) with the famously tough media. With RJ and the New York media? Maybe not so much.

Smoking Ban Hits Italy

Posted on January 10, 2005
Filed Under Blather | Leave a Comment

To me, this is a much bigger deal than the bans in Boston or New York. Even though smoking sections will be allowed, this seems culturally unnatural. I find one tidbit from this article about the new smoking ban in Italy especially funny–”Others showed their support for the law by burning piles of cigarettes in the street.” I mean, I guess they were burning them in the street… And then there’s the guy who tried to get out of paying a fine by saying that having a smoke after a cup of coffee was only natural–which I’m sure he fully believes. I’d be equally (or perhaps more) surprised to see a ban like this somewhere else where smoking is a central part of the coffee culture, like, say, Vienna. Eventually, it may happen.

The Nationalization of Film

Posted on January 9, 2005
Filed Under Blather, films, the written word | Leave a Comment

I’m really enjoying Barry Paris’ Garbo biography. One thing he points out that I’d never considered before is the way that sound nationalized film. Before talkies, the crew and actors working on films were often pretty international. Interpreters on the set were not uncommon. One film could play in markets around the world with little or no modification. With the advent of sound, that all changed. Some early sound films, like Garbo’s Anna Christie and Dietrich’s Blue Angel, were actually done twice, in their entirety, in different languages. The German version of Anna Christie is 84 mintues, while the English language version is 72 minutes. The casts in the two films are almost entirely different, and while both versions seem pretty good, Garbo is said to have preferred the German version. I’d like to see it.

*Edit: I’ve now seen the German Anna Christie, and it’s one of my favorite Garbo films. Maybe that will be the subject of another post.

The Arcade Fire-In the Back Seat

Posted on January 9, 2005
Filed Under Song of the Day | Leave a Comment

“I can watch the country side, and I can fall asleep… My whole life, I’ve been learning.”

New office!

Posted on January 9, 2005
Filed Under Blather, this old house | 1 Comment

Yesterday, in a sloppy, slushy ice storm, our new office furniture arrived. I love it. It smells all new and wood-y. It’s so clean and pretty. I’m excited to file away and organize lots of junk that has piled up.

Ezra was a little concerned before we got it that we’d be cramped if we both tried to work at the desk at the same time. (It’s an L-shaped desk, so there’s a space for him and a space for me.) Last night we tried it out, and I thought it worked out fine.

No more trying to get work done from the sofa. Now I just need a decent chair.

Pictures coming soon.

Another Bush Administration Outrage

Posted on January 7, 2005
Filed Under Blather, politics | Leave a Comment

Apparently, the White House paid a commentator–using taxpayer’s money, of course–to promote a law. This CAN’T be legal. And even if it technically is… it is totally wrong. I suppose this article might not tell the whole story (shame how hard it is to trust “news” stories), but it certainly sounds bad.

PJ Harvey-Cat On The Wall

Posted on January 6, 2005
Filed Under Song of the Day | Leave a Comment

Turn up the radio…

Colin, is that you?

Posted on January 6, 2005
Filed Under Blather, friends | 1 Comment

Yes, yes it is. It’s Colin Douglas Stuart, born around 10AM this morning, via C-section, 8 lbs, 5 ounces. Ezra is now telling me that he already blogged about this, but whatevah… it is news worth repeating. Welcome, Colin!

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