Backrooms: Wut I Thunk

It's more about what's scary than it is scary.  It's more about liminal spaces than it is a liminal space in itself.  It's certainly Lynchian in a few spots, but definitely not Lynch.  And for me this whole thing, despite an interesting setup, falls apart towards the end when an imitation of a Boogie Man, certainly not a scary or even interesting Boogie Man in itself, shows up.  I couldn't stop laughing.  And it was not a comedic moment by any means.  Ultimately this is a movie idea in search of some characters and plot to hang its analog jacket on.  I'll also admit, this probably works for a lot of people who buy into it, but I tried and couldn't.

Two beige ottomans out of five!

World Cup Fever

I was all set to write up a short, angry post about the World Cup and how moving to 48 teams has ruined all my Christmases forever.  Germany dispatches Curacao 7-1, and that's that -- mediocrity reigns.  But then Spain immediately shits the bed against (checks internet again) Cape Verde in a scoreless tie and here we are.  And despite losses, Iraq, Haiti, and Jordan have all put in worthy performances

So what the hell do I know?

And America and South Korea (my two teams, basically) are off to fantastic starts.

Update:  Congo just tied Portugal.  What even is football?

Disclosure Day: Wut I Thunk (Minor Spoilers!)

Spielberg has admitted this is his spiritual successor to Close Encounters of the Third Kind.  Which is great, because I'll take sci-fi speculative Spielberg over dreary historically "accurate" Spielberg any day.  Throw in some of Christopher Nolan's Inception as well.  As for the meat of the film, the first half is a colossal bore.  It's a first contact story and really doesn't need the depth of explanation provided (reminiscent, of all things, of Ghostbusters and the Keymaster needing to find the Gatekeeper).  And we all already know about Roswell, New Mexico!  Americans love the conspiracy shit, they really don't need it spelled out for them!  But the film eventually hits its stride, things fall into place, and I'd say it sticks the landing pretty well.  Another problem though: the corporate bad guys are appropriately well armed and, well, bad.  But even they seem to silently admit at the end that a decades-long coverup wasn't worth it given that the alternative is peace on Earth, forever.  Ultimately, it's peak Spielberg both for better and for worse.

Three animatronic cardinals out of five!

The Living Is Easy

I'd say for the last ten years my primary reading has been fiction, with some forays into history.  I'm trying to read more poetry these days though, like when I was a much younger man.  In the past year I've re-read Sylvia Plath and Philip Larkin, both very much worth my time.  (I'd forgotten how damn funny Plath is, biography be damned.)  I came upon this poem -- "Places with Terrible Wi-Fi" -- and had to buy the book by J. Estanislao Lopez.  Along with new stuff, I've got plans to reconnect with T.S. Eliot and Emily Dickinson before the summer ends.

And things are good.  I'm going down to North Carolina in August to check out houses.  I'm thinking the US men make it out of the group stage then get crushed (typical, really, and not all that bad for a Football / Basketball county).  It's hot and humid.  Ultimately, I'm just excited to be leaving Frederick.  Some charms, but mostly boring and filled with rednecks.  And while I realize I'm moving to the South, at least I'll have good beaches down there to visit.

Not All Experiments Succeed

America is facing a pretty essential question right now -- What happens when a Democracy has a critical mass of folks (roughly one-third) who are too dumb to act and / or vote in their own self interest?  Who will vote for somebody hurtling towards dementia with his only goal being to loot the US treasury for himself and his family?

Granted, even Socrates knew this could be an issue.

Brotherly Love, City of

Greetings from Philadelphia, in particular the lovely and bougie Manayunk neighborhood!

Why am I in the lovely and bougie Manayunk neighborhood, your might ask?  It's a long story!

My Dad, who passed almost three years ago, was a scientist with the Department of Agriculture.  He got sent around the world (Africa and Asia mostly) to help local farmers and scientists grow more food using advanced (or in some cases, quite primitive but effective) agricultural techniques.  He met many fellow scientists along the way, and developed many friendships.

So in the 1980's, he helped with getting visa sponsorship for an Indian colleague and his wife (a medical doctor).  It's a complicated story, and one that almost didn't work out, but in the end my Dad helped these two very accomplished people and their daughter settle in the United States.  They had been reaching out to my Dad for years, but due to his hearing being shot and his dementia, he wasn't great about keeping in touch with friends.

In any event me and my sister and my nephew drove up to Philly yesterday for lunch with these very wonderful people (and their daughter and her husband, and assorted grandchildren).

So that's how I ended up outside of an organic Italian restaurant crying, when these folks told me and my sister how the memory of my dad was a blessing for their entire family.

People are complicated.  My dad could be so stern and withdrawn on meeting him, and you might never realize how damn funny he was after a beer and getting to know somebody, anybody, a little bit.

I miss you Dad.  We had such a great time celebrating you yesterday but I have a feeling you already knew that.