Yes, back again so soon. That's what will happen when you can't go out, and even if you did, there are no movies, no theater, no opera, no gym, no library, no community centers, no restaurants..... What a strange time this is.
First, the promised theater review. I saw (twice) The City of Conversation, a play written in 2015 (i.e. before the 2016 election) but every bit as relevant, if not more, than when it was written. The aforementioned city of conversation is Washington, D.C, and the play takes place in the Georgetown living room of a liberal opinion maker, starting in the Carter administration through the Obama administration. It is a very smart play, and addresses our ability to think that only we have the right answers, the silos we live in, and how that arrogance destroys people and families, and, perhaps, the country. If we ever get theater again (or, perhaps, on UTube?), and you get a chance to see it, I highly recommended it.
Books. Surprisingly, only four to report, and those are all pre-quarantine. (I'm finding it hard to concentrate on books right now, and am mostly reading articles from old New Yorkers and Economists.)
First, The Splendid and the Vile, by Eric Larson. (What an awful title. What brilliant marketing person had the great idea to put "vile" in a title?). Some of you remember Eric Larson from The Devil in the White City and In The Garden of the Beast. He is a wonderful popular history writer. This one is about Churchill, and London in the days of the Blitz. It is certainly not one of his best offerings, but well worth reading, in my mind (although not well reviewed).
A Golden Grave, by Erin Lindsey. A piece of fluff, mystery set in the gilded age in New York. Fun.
Olive Again, by Elizabeth Strout. Not fun. Olive is a most annoying woman. However, it is well written, and describes getting old as well as anything I have read. And a very satisfactory ending. (I often find endings very unsatisfactory.) I understand that there was an Olive book before this one, and a subsequent Olive. I will look for them, when the library is open again, of course.
Finally, Where the Light Enters, by Sara Donati. A meaty novel, intergenerational, again, an author I was unfamiliar with, but would recommend (if you like the kind of book that is fronted by a family tree, has an epilogue, and gives you a concussion when you fall asleep reading it).
Whatever you do, don't order these books on Amazon. In fact, don't order anything on Amazon. One of the many articles I have read recently is an in-depth discussion of Jeff Bezos and Amazon. What a piece of work that man is, and what a terrible place for people to work, the $15 hourly wage to the contrary notwithstanding. Boycott Amazon!!!
And then there are our illustrious politicians! The Democrats in Washington tried to put Planned Parenthood in their emergency bill - and many other such partisan goodies. Meanwhile, the Republicans' provisions would have resulted in the Trump hotels getting millions of dollars in emergency money. And before the Canadians start to get too smug, how about the Liberals attempt to get unsupervised taxing and spending authority until the end of 2021 in their emergency bill? Pah. A pox on all their houses.
On a lighter note, the weather has been good (although the rain has started up again today). I'll close with pictures from yesterday's walk.
.....below is a once crowded playground.....
....very different from the Desert sky....
First, the promised theater review. I saw (twice) The City of Conversation, a play written in 2015 (i.e. before the 2016 election) but every bit as relevant, if not more, than when it was written. The aforementioned city of conversation is Washington, D.C, and the play takes place in the Georgetown living room of a liberal opinion maker, starting in the Carter administration through the Obama administration. It is a very smart play, and addresses our ability to think that only we have the right answers, the silos we live in, and how that arrogance destroys people and families, and, perhaps, the country. If we ever get theater again (or, perhaps, on UTube?), and you get a chance to see it, I highly recommended it.
Books. Surprisingly, only four to report, and those are all pre-quarantine. (I'm finding it hard to concentrate on books right now, and am mostly reading articles from old New Yorkers and Economists.)
First, The Splendid and the Vile, by Eric Larson. (What an awful title. What brilliant marketing person had the great idea to put "vile" in a title?). Some of you remember Eric Larson from The Devil in the White City and In The Garden of the Beast. He is a wonderful popular history writer. This one is about Churchill, and London in the days of the Blitz. It is certainly not one of his best offerings, but well worth reading, in my mind (although not well reviewed).
A Golden Grave, by Erin Lindsey. A piece of fluff, mystery set in the gilded age in New York. Fun.
Olive Again, by Elizabeth Strout. Not fun. Olive is a most annoying woman. However, it is well written, and describes getting old as well as anything I have read. And a very satisfactory ending. (I often find endings very unsatisfactory.) I understand that there was an Olive book before this one, and a subsequent Olive. I will look for them, when the library is open again, of course.
Finally, Where the Light Enters, by Sara Donati. A meaty novel, intergenerational, again, an author I was unfamiliar with, but would recommend (if you like the kind of book that is fronted by a family tree, has an epilogue, and gives you a concussion when you fall asleep reading it).
Whatever you do, don't order these books on Amazon. In fact, don't order anything on Amazon. One of the many articles I have read recently is an in-depth discussion of Jeff Bezos and Amazon. What a piece of work that man is, and what a terrible place for people to work, the $15 hourly wage to the contrary notwithstanding. Boycott Amazon!!!
And then there are our illustrious politicians! The Democrats in Washington tried to put Planned Parenthood in their emergency bill - and many other such partisan goodies. Meanwhile, the Republicans' provisions would have resulted in the Trump hotels getting millions of dollars in emergency money. And before the Canadians start to get too smug, how about the Liberals attempt to get unsupervised taxing and spending authority until the end of 2021 in their emergency bill? Pah. A pox on all their houses.
On a lighter note, the weather has been good (although the rain has started up again today). I'll close with pictures from yesterday's walk.
.....below is a once crowded playground.....
....very different from the Desert sky....
Supposed to rain for the next few days. I'll see what I can amuse you guys with tomorrow....
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