GOODBYE SOLO

Watched a delightful, though sad, movie last night, titled Goodbye Solo. It is about a Senegalese cabdriver who takes on the mission of trying to thwart the apparent desire of one of his regulars, an older white man, to kill himself by jumping off Blowing Rock in North Carolina. Solo, played by Savane, is wonderful, as he struggles to reach for his desire to be a flight attendant, keep his pregnant girlfriend and her daughter happy, and his self-appointed rescue mission. There are many lighter moments as the plight and relationships of immigrant workers in the country are lightly touched upon. The photography is very nice. I wouldn’t watch it if you are seeking an uplifting experience, but it is a very worthwhile movie.

CARAMEL

There is something special and appealing about a movie that delves into the universal themes of love and longing, especially when it opens windows into a different culture. Director, screenwriter, and actress Nadine Labaki (Layale) presents the excellent film Caramel, a story about a group of Christian Lebanese women who work in a beauty shop (and a couple of women associated with the business). The title refers to the caramel mixture they use to remove (wax) women’s faces and legs, though it also serves as a metaphor for dealing with the unwanted detritus of relationships gone bad. Ladaki, gorgeous and sultry, is caught in the familiar "other women" role, sadly waiting for a man who will not leave his wife. The other women each wrestle with their own desires: an aging commercial actress and mother of teenagers trying to latch that elusive spot; a lesbian woman in the midst of a very traditional society, whose heartthrob enters the shop one day, and keeps coming back; a bride-to-be worried about masking the fact that she is not a virgin; a older seamstress suddenly offered a chance at a relationship; and a cantankerous, naughty, intrusive, senile crone, who provides much of the comedic sideplay in the movie. Enjoyable too is the role of a clumsy, love-smitten traffic cop who has fallen for Layale. All the women have to deal with a patriarchal and restrictive society (one women being forced to accept, and then redecorate, accommodations in a bawdy location because no one will rent her a room unless she can prove she is married) with many rules on behavior for women. The more I see films from the Middle East, I realize that many want to tell the story that despite oppression, women find many ways to resist and challenge the roles they are expected to fulfill, even if they cannot totally escape the parameters set for them. One of the best scenes occurs when Layale waxes and removes hair from the face of her smitten admirer, and the glow on his face as he leaves the shop. Hopefully she writes a sequel in which they are a couple. The only disappointment is that some storylines might have been explored, and they is little reference to broader themes of society in this contentious location.

LET THE MAN SPEAK

The rabid rabble-rousers of the right have gone too far. To complain about a president making a speech to children encouraging them to stay in school and work hard, is pushing the opposition envelop a bit too far. Shame on them. I guess now that any pat on the back or encouragement from this president "automatically" has sinister political connotations! I hope America is ready for the Third Red Scare. Yet presidents, and for that matter all levels of politicians and government officials, have made talks at schools and in classrooms across this nation. The minions of Rush and his ilk scream about what Obama might say, without ever seeing his speech, and claim it is just another attempt to promote socialism (what bosh!), while they engage in politicizing to promote their racist, exclusionary, wrong-headed agenda that only maintains the status quo and allows for no improvement in society. What hypocrites these folks are. Anyone with half a brain can see that dropout rates are unacceptably high and only result in disillusioned youth, higher criminality, and rampant delinquence down the road. Will a speech keep kids on the right path? Probably not, but it certainly can’t hurt. Bush felt perfectly free to lecture children about staying off drugs (can we say "hypocrite" once more?), and all manner of public officials during the Bush years, if my memory serves me right, preached about abstinence from sex and other issues to the nation’s children. If the President says something objectionable, then take him to task. . .but at least have the courtesy to let him make the speech in the first place.

THOUGHTS/DOINGS

After a bit of moving stuff into the truck yesterday for Dave and Arina, and a quick trip to McDonalds, I took the boys to see UP, which turned out to be a delightful, if not at times melancholy, story about an old man trying to recapture some of his past love, of special love itself, and adventure. I really enjoyed it; probably laughed harder than the boys. We also took along my friend's three-year-old Luba. She was very good in the movie and seemed to enjoy it too. The Pixar animation was wonderful, as always. I highly recommend it to adults, for the main message is for you!

Finished reading Del Toro's The Strain. It is the first in a planned trilogy. If you like vampire stories, I think you will enjoy it. Nothing radically new from what you have seen or read, if you are a fan, but an enjoyable story nonetheless, fairly well told. I look forward to the next installment.

Chimo observation, while talking about recycling he did on his vacation: "Wow, Dad, you know, they drink a lot of beer in Connecticut."

I saw this very attractive woman and said, "Boy, she sure is pretty." Chimo looks over and says, "Well, if she had a better face." I was dumbstruck. He is 8.

Joey tried to get out of doing his vocabulary, which was supposed to be turned in on Friday. Guess who is in his room on Sunday doing old homework! :)

BONILLA VISIT

Last month my friend and graduate-school roommate, Clark, brought his lovely newlywed-wife, Eva, through Columbia on their way down to Charleston. It was delightful meeting Eva for the first time. We had dinner at Yesterdays, which happens to be the first place Clark and I ever ate together. It was a nice visit, albeit too short. Not sure why Chimo is grinning like the Cheshire Cat.

WHY THE LIES?

The current health-care debate is heated and getting uglier. Despite the fact that there are clearly problems in coverage (too many not covered, or underinsured, or financially burdened by the coverage they can afford) and decision-making based on crass profiteerism, rather than making sure all Americans get adequate and compassionate care, the conservative pundits and politicians---who seem to be in the pockets of BIG Insurance and other BIG financial interests---employ scare tactics and outright fabrications to thwart any positive improvements. There are legitimate and worrisome details for conservatives, and even liberals, to consider, but the Right has decided to employ major lies to scare people? Why? Because it is effective? Do Americans simply swallow everything Beck & Limbaugh say without thinking? Well, yeah. How can smart people misconstrue the funding for poor people to make legal decisions about the end of their lives (like most middle class and wealthy already do) before they are incapacitated, be misrepresented as encouraging euthanasia? What part of their asses are these people pulling their grossly wrong assessments of foreign health care? Do these people not look at all at the sound bites the insurance PR people supply them before they mouthing them? These little McCarthys simply assume that people will accept the lies, and if found out, no one will hold them accountable. We need constructive debate on a host of issues in this country, not rabid, foaming-at-the-mouth reactionary posturing. I guess there is nothing wrong with people getting heated up by policies that directly affect them, but the level of dishonesty recently is appalling.

Dad on Sennett

My old man served aboard the USS SENNET from around 1966 to 1968. I just found these pictures on a website devoted to the submarine (I think provided by him in most cases). Thought I would share them here as well. This is the boat:

My mom must have come aboard to visit Dad, sometime around 1968.

I think this pic was taken during a cruise around South America, most likely in port in Montevideo, Uruquay. My Dad is standing far right. The other officers (l to r) are identified as Larry Brownley, Victor (Gene) Clemons, Bob Burnett, Art Thompson (C.O.), Tom Luckman, and Jim Abbey.

Dad is in front of the trio of officer standing behing the speaker, his cap jauntily tilted forward!