"Rebel" with Zach

 (Huge miss on that heart - it should say Jim + Judy, not Jane...tsk, tsk, BMFI!)

Sydney in Amsterdam!

Hello from Holy Island!

Lookee what Miss Helen sent to me!!

A Belated Farewell

Rutger Hauer passed away a handful of days ago and I shall always remember him as Etienne Navarre from one of my absolute favourite childhood films, Ladyhawke.

(photo kidnapped from pinterest)

June 2019 Books

Complex 90 ¹ by Mickey Spillane and Max Allan Collins - The only good thing about this book was listening to Stacy Keach. This was the first Mike Hammer book that I really just did not like. But I won't give up on him! (Worth noting was the description of "a tall blonde agent in his early 30s": "He had that kind of blandly handsome face that didn't look like it had had much use." HA!)

Here Is New York ¹ by E.B. White
The Lottery and Seven Other Stories ¹ by Shirley Jackson
* The Rainbow Comes and Goes ¹ by Gloria Vanderbilt and Anderson Cooper
Beezuz and Ramona ¹ by Beverly Cleary
* Mr. Know-It-All - The Tarnished Wisdom of a Filth Elder ¹ by John Waters - I adore this man, there's no getting around that, and I was thrilled to receive my hardback copy (signed - thank you Atomic Books!) and even more excited to listen to the audiobook version, which I purchased off Audible. A lot of what was in this book I already knew from seeing interviews, going to his live shows, and reading his other books, but it was still great fun to listen to JW tell me all that he knows!

* The Body ¹ by Stephen King - I saw Stand By Me when I was about eleven. Aunt Berne forgot that the film was rated R and not acceptable for the eleven and thirteen year olds who were never permitted to watch films outside of the proper age range. The only things I really remember about this movie was Chris, River Phoenix's character, my being grossed out to the max over the pie eating and barfing scene, and then the two new words I learned: balls (as in the command to that junkyard dog: "Sick balls") and tits (Kiefer Sutherland, who was loathsome in his role, to say the least, talked about a girl only letting him grab her tits). To this day I really do not care for either of those words. Then there was the leech scene which scarred me for life. I had seen The African Queen years before and if something could make Bogie shake with fear, I instantly intuited that leeches were terrifying. If memory serves, the night we watched Stand By Me I couldn't fall asleep and walked downstairs to my mother, who was surprised at my being up so late, and told her with complete seriousness that I thought there was a leech on my balls. Ah, youth and ignorance. Anyways, I summoned my courage this month and listened to The Body. All the boys seemed to have lousy families so this book was far from a feel good read, but good writing is good writing. King's stories may not always be my proverbial cup of tea, but the man can tell a tale like no other.

Murder at the Vicarage ¹ by Agatha Christie - Meh. Miss Marple is kinda dull and Richard E. Grant's narration was the only thing that made me listen til the end.

1922 ¹ by Stephen King - This Stephen King story was mega depressing. The cow falling into the well was almost too much for me, but I listened to the end. Eh. Next time I'll stop when I want to and be totes okay with throwing in the towel.
We Have Always Lived in the Castle ¹ by Shirley Jackson - Try as I might, I just really don't like Shirley Jackson's stories.
The Magician's Nephew ¹ by C.S. Lewis
♥ The Garner Files by James Garner - When I first read Jim's book I hadn't seen Rockford or Maverick. I thought it was time to give it another read and it was so much better this time around. When he mentions Stuart or Luis or Jack Garner I know exactly who he's talking about and can see their faces in my mind's eye.
* Julia Child: A Life ¹ by Julia Child and Alex Prud'homme - This was a wonderful book that spanned the life of a fascinating woman, however I do not agree with her love of foie gras, which is as revolting as shark fin soup and veal, and all should be outlawed.
♥ Part Swan, Part Goose: An Uncommon Memoir of Womanhood, Work, and Family ¹ by Swoosie Kurtz - Swoosie is one of those gals that you see at every turn. She is so fresh and talented and I've loved every role I've ever seen her in. Her memoir was engrossing and absolutely worth buying so as to listen to again and again.

♥ Alanatomy ¹ by Alan Carr - Anyone who has seen Chatty Man instantly wishes to be besties with this adorable man. He did a fantastic job as narrator and, like John Waters, it's as though he's telling you a story and not reading from a stack of pages in a recording booth.

¹ - audiobook
² - abridged version
* - liked
♥ - loved
Any unmarked titles were, in my opinion, so-so.

Tagore

The following was taken from The Journal on the 30th of May 2018 by Zara Hedderman (zara@thejournal.ie). Please visit the website to read the complete article and view the accompanying photographs. If you should ever find yourself in Dublin, dear reader, pay a visit to The Green and give a nod of respect to Mr. Tagore.

ON A PLINTH in St Stephen’s Green, in the company of figures including James Joyce, Constance Markievicz, Arthur Guinness and Theobald Wolfe Tone is a bronze bust of Bengali poet, Rabindranath Tagore...

He was commemorated in the Dublin park as a reciprocal gesture for a street in Chanakyapuir, Dehli that was named after Eamon De Valera, in 2007. The statue was unveiled in 2011 by former Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore and India’s Minister for External Affairs, Preneet Kaur.

And that Irish connection? Notable admirers of Tagore’s work included William Butler Yeats, whom the poet met during one of his many trips to England in 1912.


Yeats was responsible for getting Tagore’s work translated to English, garnering a wider audience across the Western World. The Post Office, a play by Tagore was translated by Yeats and performed in The Abbey Theatre in October 1913....

A recurring theme throughout Tagore’s poems is an exploration of man’s connection with nature. The choice, then, of Stephen’s Green for the bust is fitting as the park is a popular destination for readers every summer.

Pretty As You Feel

You're only pretty as you feel
Only pretty as you feel inside
You're only pretty as you feel
Just as pretty as you feel inside
When you wake up in the morning
Rub some sleep from your eye
Look inside your mirror
Comb your hair
Don't give no vanity a second thought
No, no, no
Beauty's only skin deep
It goes just so far 'cause
You're only pretty as you feel
As pretty as you feel inside
You're only pretty as you feel
So girl, don't hang yourself up
On no plastic face
A little bit of soap will wipe away
Any grease
'Cause
You're only pretty as you feel
Say, you're only pretty as you feel inside
Strip
So now you're feeling so pretty
Now you're feeling so good
Now you're ready to face the world
Now you're feeling good
Go out there and knock them silly girl
Go out there, show them how to thrill
Go out there show them how to thrill
Oh, go
You're only pretty as you feel
Say, you're only pretty as you feel
Mama
You're only pretty as you feel (pretty as you feel inside)
You're only pretty as you feel
Feelin' pretty, feelin' pretty
You're only pretty as you feel
Feelin' so pretty, feelin' so pretty
Feelin' so pretty, feelin' so pretty
Pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty mama

- Jefferson Airplane
written by Joey Covington, Jack Casady, Kaukonen, Carlos Santana, & Michael Shrieve

Make some plans to look forward to...

I've been thinking of visiting Natalia and Brett and Teo in Honolulu since they moved two years ago. Next Spring seems to be the best time to visit and I'm having fun looking up Airbnb places and checking out things to see and do. I'm not much of a beach person, or outdoorsey, but renting a car and driving around O'ahu sounds like one helluva good time.

The Green Mile

Oh my god, this book has just killed me. I'm twelve minutes from the end and have been crying for the last hour and a half. How does Stephen King do it? How can he create so many characters that feel so very real? I detest the bad guys in his stories - that's how rotten to the core he makes them - but his good guys are extraordinary and John Coffey is beautiful from head to toe. I'm just crushed that this story is over.

Sunset in Maui

Check out this stunning sunset from Ms. Natalia!

Meet Lil' Blue Harbor

I'm not much for those people that post incessant photos of their pets (says the girl who posts incessant selfies with her nieces and nephews) but this little creature is too sweet not to share her pic with the world (or the three people that read this blog).

Cutest Two Seconds in History

August of 2015 Xavier recorded three year old Jackson thanking me for the postcard I sent to him. I mean, has there ever been a cooler kid? The shaggy, bedhead, tousled blonde hair, oversize cargo shorts, Converse t-shirt, and Converse Hi-Tops sneaks. Plus he has his hand in his pocket and is carrying a toy motorcycle. Oh my gosh, I could watch this til the end of time. He's so freakin' precious! I love the seven year old Jackson we have now, but I do miss this three year old...

Time for Self Care

I was shopping on Etsy and stumbled onto Caylin Perry Art and Design and decided to order her Surprise Self Care Box just for me. I've been feeling crappy about myself these past few months. Putting on weight and avoiding anyone that hasn't seen me in a while for fear of what they'll think. I'm over-spending, over-eating, and sinking deeper into sadness and disappointment. I'm prone to bad depressions but try to appear positive and joyful. Usually I can weather the storms, but looking this way, looking as my-not-so-ideal self is just making me slip further into crappiness. So I thought, what's another forty bucks. I love getting packages in the mail and opening this, taking my time, and not knowing what to expect (other than a mug) was like unwrapping the goodies buried in my Christmas stocking. I including the following information, as the seller, Caylin Yorba-Ruiz, asked to Add your personalization: Please include the recipients names, favorite colors, or favorite things! and so I told her: Star (it's for me!) - colour: green - fave things? bearded men (lol), books!, stars, animals, 1980s art world, vintage fashions (all eras, pretty much) old TV shows (Hart to Hart, Rockford Files), oh, and writing. This is what I received:

I loved that the face mask was cruelty free and the candle was soy based; the pencil read Hello Gorgeous which is a line from Funny Girl, a movie I was obsessed with in high school and still love to this day; I have a decent collection of cute lil' notebooks and the floral spiral bound was a fine addition; I'm essentially a large child, and so the colouring pages made me super happy, especially the quote from dear Oscar Wilde; I love tea, and the flavours she selected were great choices, and the tiny booklet of helpful hints for managing depression was so thoughtful (I had said in a side comment: Hello! I've been a bit depressed lately and have decided to treat myself (like on Parks and Recreation) to a self-care box of goodies just for me. I think this is a brilliant creation on your part and reading the reviews, you should be very proud of yourself for spreading some joy around.). The socks are adorable; the mug is massive and I really like the shape and that my name is in green. The only thing that was less than perfect was that the "t" wasn't all the way stuck on the mug, so I won't be using it to drink from, which stinks. But I cleaned it, Gorilla Glued the "t" down (not terribly successfully) and will just use it at my personal office desk for little odds and ends. And if I'm being super nit-picky, the frame-able artwork: "Stay Close to People Who Feel Like Sunlight" was bent in order to fit in the box and has a permanent crease in it. I had planned to frame it and give it to Kayla, who is radiant sunshine in human form, but it's too messed up. All in all, I would absolutely recommend Caylin's Self Care box because it was so much fun to receive and not know what was in store. I'd imagine it would make a great gift for someone that needs cheering up (divorce, illness, death of a pet, friend, family member, or someone just going through a tough time), or even a birthday gift, graduation, whatever! It definitely put a smile on my crazy ole face.

RJ and Stef

Robert Wagner and Stefanie Powers are known in my house as RJ and Stef because, frankly, not a week has gone by since 2015 that their voices did not reach every corner of my humble abode. I have read their books and have yet to tire of their work. I simply can't get enough of them.

Audrey Flack

 This enormous painting, World War II (Vanitas) - 1978, at PAFA caught my eye immediately.

The Hit

I found a chopped up bit from an email that I had to have sent to Rick AKA Cerpts. I completely forgot I did this; it makes me laugh and really miss the days when I worked at a café with some of the greatest people I've ever known. "When the muffins in the café went wicked stale and were like rocks and I made you stand there while I threw one at your shoulder just to show you how hard they were? That was awesome."

Dropped Names

This book can best be described by that oft-unused word: stupendous. Oh it was just so magically delightful. I have a deep love for stories, I always have, as my grade school year book stated under "It wouldn't be a school day if..." and mine was "...Lisa didn't tell a story." Like all working class folk, I do love stories about celebrities, especially when you find out that actors you've always liked are really nice in person. (I'm talking about you, Dee Wallace. Pax and his sister met her at Monster Mania a few years ago and he sang her praises the whole next day. Apparently she is genuinely kind and extremely intuitive and compassionate.) Mr. Langella is a gifted writer. He is ridiculously detailed at times and makes it so very easy for the listener/reader to conjure up an image in their mind's eye of Marilyn Monroe, dripping with diamonds on ears, throat, and wrists, stepping from a car in a stunning beaded gown and fur coat; the odd and out-of-place extras who appeared in his evening with Elizabeth Taylor, or the back garden and home of a dear friend in Massachusetts. I could nearly smell the chlorine from the pool and hear the creak of the floorboards in the parlour. It is this attention to detail that allows one to peer over Langella's broad shoulders or peek around his sleeve and see the entire scene laid out before you. I adore writers like this - the ones who are able to effortlessly draw you in to their world and allow you to leave your own behind while they spin you a yarn. The audiobook was so good that I went out and bought a physical copy to have on hand. Make no mistake though, this is a memoir that is best when the author is telling you these stories directly. I nearly swooned each time he spoke as Raul Julia, with that delicious accent. I was thoroughly entertained and captivated from the first word through to the last.

Network

I re-watched Network for the first time in several years, having only seen it once before. I still thoroughly enjoyed it and love how after 40+ years it is even more relevant in today's world. This go around I was most taken with Beatrice Straight as Max Schumacher's wife, Louise. (She was the lovely redhead parapsychologist in Poltergeist!) As far as I'm concerned, she absolutely stole the show. Her husband, played by William Holden, says that he is in love with another woman, but ultimately feels in the end he will leave this woman, when it fails, and come back to their marriage. In her composed rage (you'll never see it done better) she shouts at him after 25 years of marriage, "I'm your wife, damn it! And if you can't work up a winter passion for me, the least I require is respect and allegiance!" The camera flicks to Bill Holden's face and it was the face of a man listening to those words and sending back immense emotion without doing anything at all. I love this scene the best out of everything Paddy Chayefsky has written because it feels so very real. This woman's scorn will not play out with clothes thrown out of windows, faces slapped, hysterical tears, or biting bitchy words about how lousy he is in bed, because that's something that mostly happens in the movies. This scene was a woman distraught that after all the indiscretions she has tolerated over the years, she's losing him. She tells the truth, that after creating a family and a home, a haven for him, and standing by his side for decades at office gatherings and cocktail parties, that he is just walking away. He may not have passion for her any longer, but after all she has done for him, she is absolutely entitled to respect and allegiance. It's a beautiful line and she delivered it so fiercely that you can see how it just shrivels Holden's character to a dried pit. Reflected in his sad, sorry eyes is the knowledge that she is absolutely right and that he is a complete and utter shit for leaving her, all for a fleeting relationship that is doomed to end almost as soon as it begins. They are both so good in this brief scene, but Beatrice just blew me away with her every word and every movement; so real that it felt like a documentary, not something staged and rehearsed. I just now looked and it turns out Ms. Straight won an Oscar for her role. Wikipedia said the following "She was on screen for five minutes and two seconds, the shortest performance to win an Academy Award for acting." And now you know why - she is that good.

(photo kidnapped from foggedclarity)

Great Joy

Positano, Italy in 2013. I had dreamed and dreamed and dreamed of one day going to Italy and specifically to Positano. Thanks entirely to Nicole, I was able to go and I hadn't felt such a sense of joy, of having a dream become a reality since I met Ann Jillian in 1988. The entire second day of our time in Positano we walked the beach and looked for tiles and glass pebbles then went back to our hotel room to sit on the balcony where we smoked, talked, drank wine, and listened to the sea. It was an incredible experience.