Whoa

Tree branches lined by thick fluffy layers of snow, a winter wonderland. And then the wind came, sudden and vigorous, as though determined to put all that accumulation in flight.

A grey misty haze of snow blowing in all directions. Tree trunks as grey silhouettes, paler the further away they are, until there's nothing but the light grey wall of snow in the distance.



And then, a few minutes later:



3 years ago on TTaT: To paraphrase

The tallest I've ever been

San Francisco, April 2003:








The steep San Francisco hills were challenging to walk with those heels, but they are still the most awesome boots ever. Of course, they are Chala's. As is everything you can see me wearing in these photos & 1 thing you can't, ahem. Well, except for the watch and the ring, those are mine.

I don't like yellow or gold, particularly in clothes, but even I thought the shiny gold pants were awesome. And I would never buy a shirt like that but it works pretty well here. "Leave it up to Chala" would probably be my mantra if we lived remotely near one another.

Boots I have been known to look for on occasion, but I've yet to find a pair similar to the ones above, but with ~2 inches of heel rather than 4. (Walking shouldn't take that much thought.)

Chala kindly gave me the jacket, so I need to remember to pull that out once the weather gets nicer.


A year ago on TTaT: Our own Mt. Fuji

Who The Devil Made It

3. Who The Devil Made It by Peter Bogdanovich (4/5)

Who The Devil Made It is a hefty tome with over 800 pages; I was certain I'd pass it on once I'd read it, but I find myself returning it to its spot on the shelf for future reference. The book is a series of interviews Bogdanovich conducted with film directors, many famous & formative in cinematic arts.

Think of a classic movie and it's likely its director is in this book talking about it. For those who are just interested in certain movies or film star tales, their is a comprehensive index. If you're interested in movie making, the business or the nuts & bolts of telling stories, there's lots of great information in this book.

Among the directors included are: Alfred Hitchcock, Fritz Lang, Chuck Jones, Howard Hawks, Leo McCarey, George Cukor, Josef von Sternberg, Edgar G. Ulmer, Sidney Lumet, and Allan Dwan. You may not recognize all their names, but chances are, you know some of their movies.

Bogdanovich, a director himself, describes each director's background and their interactions over the years to introduce each interview. They all seemed quite comfortable talking to him even in cases where it was difficult due to ill health. Comprehensive filmographies are also included.

A pretty fascinating variety of inside looks into the business from silent pictures through Hollywood's golden studio age and its subsequent decline. Even so, I read it over the course of about five months interspersed with other books, definitely conducive to reading sporadically in chunks. Or just find the bits that interest you, perhaps after you rent or catch a flick on TCM.


A year ago on TTaT: Year of the Ox

Kinetic sculpture: winter, night

The sculpture during a winter day was really just context for this (same caveats apply):


(run time 0:55, no sound*)
The holiday lights aren't on anymore, but I do love the reflections they provide. If the wind is right, sometimes I can see a bit of street light reflected after I turn my light out.

*Though if you have Count Basie's "Back to the Apple" from the Hannah and Her Sisters soundtrack, it happens to play along rather well with it.

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A year ago on TTaT: I made it!

back in anger

Deep breath. Another. Perhaps some music would be a good idea. Just started my writing playlist and forgot about the Yoko Kanno pieces from a Ghost in the Shell soundtrack at the top. Good stuff.

So... I was surprised at how furious I was over the election results last night. Not shouting or punching walls*, rather fiercely quiet. When I looked at the back of my hands, my skin was red and blotchy declaring my anger even as I tried to erase it.

That's when I thought: I have a right to be pissed. Not being able to win an election that should be a no-brainer is part of why it's been years since I was registered as a democrat.

Also, I was honestly surprised by the result which I believe is why I was livid rather than annoyed, ticked, or angry. I had heard about the polls beforehand, but I didn't really believe they could be accurate. How could a state so blue change its mind that much in a year's time? I will be checking out the voting breakdown by town in my county.

Moving to another state (or country) is tempting, but I feel like a jinx. I did, after all, live in Florida during the 2000 presidential debacle and then in California when the governor was overthrown and replaced with Arnold. But I also lived in Massachusetts when we passed gay marriage, so that mitigates the feeling a bit.

For now, I think of James Thurber: "Let us not look back in anger or forward in fear, but around in awareness.”

Get it the fuck together, Democrats.

OK, little angry still.


*Well, I was going to box on the Wii around 11 PM, but then I heard the TV downstairs come back on, so I let it go and did a little yoga instead. Probably the better choice at the time anyway.


Two years ago on TTaT: Sette

Registered to vote in MA? Go vote!

If you don't know where to go, here's a polling place locator.

The idea that polling data says the race is neck and neck between the democrat and republican candidate for senator in MA flabbergasts me, also makes me feel a bit sick. Doesn't seem like it should be possible but with complacency, anything is possible. Drag yourself out into the rain/snow--it's not that cold today--and make your democratic, liberal, &/or progressive voice heard with your vote for Martha Coakley. It's critical we keep 60 democratic seats in the senate.

I voted and on my way out held the door for a complete knockout. Really gorgeous. In return, she gave me a killer smile. So that's another good reason to vote.

Please don't screw up, MA!

UPDATE, 10:47 PM: Well.... let's hear it for the money again, shall we? No? I feel nauseated. Perhaps time to punch something on the Wii.


Two years ago on TTaT: DailyLit

Kinetic sculpture: winter, day

But there's a tree trunk in the way.

Yes, I'm aware of that. My bedroom windows are the only ones with their screens removed, so it's a trade off: either shoot through a screen and see the whole sculpture or be screen-free with a tree trunk. I made my choice.

Why not just...

It's cold outside, yo.

OK, but handheld? Really? Don't you know better than that?

Yes, yes, I do, but I wanted to capture the motion I saw before the wind died down. And before you ask, yes, I braced my arms on the windowsill, but I cropped the video significantly to highlight the sculpture which exacerbates the camera shake. Again, another choice.

Enjoy.


(run time 0:55, no sound)
And for contrast, trunkless shake-free summer with sound:


(run time 2:26)
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A year ago on TTaT: Winter wonderland, again