What's New??

Well, my work week began on Sunday night and each morning the drive home has been a harrowing, white-knuckle experience. Black as pitch on mostly rural roads; roads so covered in snow that I couldn't make out where the centre line or shoulder were; spots so icy it was like skating; aggressive drivers who have no respect for the laws of physics. Arrggghhh!!! Man! Weather! You name it; we've had it. Driving rain, sleet, freezing rain, lots of snow, fog..... the whole shebang. When I got up this afternoon there was rare and glorious sunshine so, in my tracks, a t-shirt, slippers and my robe I sat with a coffee and basked on the steps outside our kitchen door and enjoyed the rays. Beautiful!

Just outside a moment ago checking out the almost full moon and noticed Jupiter and Venus are slowly trackinng further apart in the southern sky.

Here at work the guys have been quiet this week - a good, focused group intent on recovery - and no one in crisis or with other serious health concerns. It makes my job a lot easier. It has also allowed me time to watch a couple of movies - something I rarely do on the job, perhaps 4 or 5 times a year.

I posted about having rented a particular one and Amuirin from Stop & Wander directed me to a post about it she recalled having seen written by Quoin Monkey over at red Ravine. 'It' being, 'I'm Not There', the Dylan biopic. After having watched the movie I headed to red Ravine to check out the post and it made it a fuller experience for me getting other perspective on what I'd seen. Of the 6 portrayals I was most impressed by Cate Blanchett's performance - we're talking Oscar caliber acting here. Definitely not to all tastes but I would likely watch it again (to see what I missed the first time in this multi-layered production). Thanks to Quoin Monkey for a great post and to all her commenters as well - see QM's post here: http://redravine.wordpress.com/2007/12/06/im-not-there-the-6-faces-of-dylan/

When I dropped those movies back at the store I grabbed one that Amuirin had referred to months ago; I recognized the image on the cover and recalled the name - 'The Visitor'. This one wouldn't likely have a wide audience but I really enjoyed it. It's a good story, a good character and plot driven film , well told in a linear fashion. A half hour is spent laying the foundation where you're wondering where this is going.... and it draws you in, pulls you along and succeeds in making you care about the outcome. I won't give any clue to the ending but I left it at home tonight for Lynda to watch. She called and left a message on my cell during our meeting tonight - 'I liked it but you know I don't like movies that end like that. Damn it, why would you recommend I watch it?' Well, I recommend you search it out and watch it, too. And thanks Am for the heads up.

A couple of shout-outs for significant milestones hit by blog buddies. Robin of Bountiful Healing hit the 'Big 5-0' last weekend. Kel from Xfacta and her hubby Mr X celebrated 20 years of wedded bliss yesterday. And over at Stop and Wander, Amuirin's daughter 'S' turned 11 years old!! Happy times!! Congrats all around.

Of the music I borrowed from the library I've listened to just two of them so far. Just finished Leonard Cohen's '10 New Songs' (2001) and enjoyed it. I'll need to have another go with the lyric sheet in front of me to fully appreciate it. The other is a CBC Records recording titled 'African Guitar Summit' (2006) which is simply great; nimbly flying fingers up and down the fretboards. A completely different approach to guitar playing than Western artists. Love it!! More info here: http://www.africanguitarsummit.com/home.shtml

Th-th-th-that's all folks.