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Sour Grapefruit
re:#7 I ate at Chez Panisse a few years ago, Naomi, with a different outcome. It was planned ahead that, after presenting at a conference at Berkeley, I would have a celebratory meal there ---(just by myself, it ended up being around $150--generous tip counted). NO SALT on the table--I had to request. I remember this distinctly, because I am always slightly embarrassed to have to ask, even though I know my tastebuds are not numb, and because it was a unique experience, dining so extravagantly by myself. The food was otherwise exquisite, just the kind of fresh, uncomplicated, nourishing, yet elegant fare this pescatarian needed after a day of academic brain drain. WARNING TO ANYONE WITH DENTAL WORK...OR TEETH: I bought some Hawaiian black salt at Trader Joe's, to--yes--sprinkle lightly. Ack! It is like fine grade gravel, and I think I cracked another crown! Beware to anyone purchasing this stuff; I don't know if it even melts into a dish if you use it for cooking...— February 10, 2010 8:51 a.m.
Valentine's Day, Massacred
"SDaniels points out that it may be a question of degrees:..." That was not my point at all. I meant not to evoke a question of degrees, but the fact that the lifestyles mentioned are just different, with a life of children and marriage not necessarily to be judged as more complete or active than the choice to be alone and without children, etc.— February 9, 2010 8:21 a.m.
The Girl with the Pearl Earring/Picture Poem
I could see this as a laptop or cellphone skin art design--so 'right now' of you to take a classic painting and do a typographical job on it, nan--love!— February 9, 2010 7:53 a.m.
Global Warming Is Crap!
Hey wolfgang, nice to meet you. But check carefully over the posts--nowhere do I espouse what seems to be your position--I do believe, yes, along with standard, accepted science, that global warming is a problem. I do bemoan the fact that, in the eyes of a right-wing public--and like so many other issues--just a vast liberal conspiracy to gain political control and rob taxpayers' pockets. It is reactions like this that hamper and 'retard'-- to vary the usage of one of Pete's favorite words--action on levels from grassroots to industrial and corporate. In fact, arguments like Pete's serve to continually excuse the wanton waste of our environment by corporate entities that just keep dumping in the ocean and sky rather than ceasing to use unnecessary (but cheaper) products. To say that it is potentially of no consequence whatsoever that at the community and personal level I do not use industrial detergents to clean my home is just ignorant. If we all switched to plant-based surfactant cleaners and boycotted companies using toxic and wasteful plastics, and did not demand such an array of out of season produce on our shelves, or drive mammoth vehicles, we could run irresponsible companies like Johnson & Johnson out of business, and see improvement in the quality of our water and air. Yes, population overgrowth is a huge problem, but again, if we take the advice from Volaire's Candide seriously, we'll start with our own little gardens. Some things take so little adjustment, and yet seem too much for those who are clearly not just lazy or arrogant, but also afraid to contradict the biblical notion that the earth--just a waiting room--is ours to waste, while we expect to be rewarded with bigger and better pastorals in some unimaginative heaven crafted by corporate greed.— February 9, 2010 4:13 a.m.
One More Furlong
""Those New York bettors are smart," Robert would often say, as he had handicapped a maiden race with a seven-to-one shot bet down to three-to-one." Obligatory lame pun o' the day: Is there something sexy about horse-race talk, or not? I am not decided--leaning toward 'racy' but not sexy ;) Cute last line, and a nice little primer on the races. Thanks, gringo! Oh--how much longer do you think till they get electricity on those lots?— February 9, 2010 3:04 a.m.
Exigency
Strange coinky dink: I have a cousin named Athena, who hasn't been back in school that long, either. Oh, and she had issues getting back in the swing of things, but is doing fine. Good luck on the transition to uni--it is a whole 'nother world, and a really good one to be in right now ;)— February 9, 2010 2:38 a.m.
High Biscuits
Welll, which kind did you get, nan? ;)— February 9, 2010 2:34 a.m.
Valentine's Day, Massacred
"Then, as I touched her shoulder in the morning before setting out on my way, she whispered that she doubted I could ever fall in love with anyone. Over the years, I've heard that one more times than I've wanted to." Well, why do you think you've heard it? You've suffered a lot of unrequitednesses, frequently with the object of your affections hardly aware of your existence. Distancing tactic, to allow yourself to have that experience, but without the dangers of real intimacy? Common story if so, my friend. "There must be lots of others like us in the world, but most of the time it just seems like everybody else goes in and out of relationships and the euphoria and disappointment of life changes while we just stay the same." Do you want more excitement in your life, and more change, or can you learn to appreciate that you've made the choices you have? It only matters what you think, not the scores of friends or relatives who have opinions on when you should have spawned or married, etc. The question is whether you think you've maintained some degree of calm and sanity in your life, or if you have somehow stagnated, while avoiding the more rigorous stages of emotional development attendant to having children and working things out in a monogamous relationship. It sounds like you've had the opportunities to do things many people don't, like getting a higher degree and traveling all over the world for work. Perhaps those folk who seem to make more of life's stages are actually envious of your life, and saying the same thing of themselves? ;)— February 9, 2010 2:23 a.m.
Back in the Spotlight
Shizzy wrote: "a review is typically published before the release of the movie, and most people read the REview to get a PREview of the flick" Shizzy, I'm used to reading critical reviews that give away everything but the kitchen sink, and don't care what is revealed, because, though I do watch them for narrative strategies, I don't primarily watch films for plot. SB seems to be of like mind, perhaps just tired of hearing people moan about plot spoilers when there are so many other elements of a film to concentrate on, important aspects of the creation of film that the general public tends to ignore right along with the directors who employed all of these filmic devices (instead focusing on the actors, as though they created the film alone). So, continuing to speak for SB, there is a lot of resentment behind this issue, I guess--on the part of a culture of filmgoers who revere the directors for their work, and the film as an analysable cultural object not limited to hasty consumption for plot and story values. However, you are not the only one out there angered by reviews that reveal too much of a film's plot. I agree that everyone should follow IMDB's lead, and announce "Plot Spoiler Ahead," or something of the like. ;)— February 8, 2010 8:09 p.m.
Back in the Spotlight
SantaBarbarian, I don't think we've heard enough from you to justify the 'tude--you're going to have to share a little more in order to earn your smug. Why don't we start here? #6: "There's not enough space here to expound on why Mystic River is a masterpiece." Of course there is. Plenty of space in the blogosphere. I have not seen Mystic River, but--can appreciate some filmic techniques, and how they interact with narrative. Whatever you have to say, I will understand. #8: "Thank me for my time." Perhaps we will, but let's hear what you have to say first--and let's not rely on Duncan Shepherd too much, ok? We want SantaBarbarian's analysis.— February 8, 2010 6:41 p.m.