So much rain. The grass is neon.
Got to one movie this week. Despite good reviews, I didn't think much of this, often sour, film. The Italian family portrayed seemed so generic and the jokes did as well. I was happy to see a decent audience although too many of them forgot to turn off their phones. I think a better writer could have pulled a stronger script from the pieces left behind.
SUCCESSION is still amazing me. Talk about strong writing. There are at least three podcasts that have devoted themselves to an analysis of it.
BARRY also seems to be going out on a strong season.
I watched one episode of THE DIPLOMAT and Rufus Sewell seems to be stealing the show. Tried MRS. DAVIS but not sure it's for me. Because so many series are shot in New Mexico now that landscape seems more familiar to me than New York or LA.
SPIN on the Roku channel seems promising but a very short series apparently.
Enjoying HELLO BEAUTIFUL, which is an homage to LITTLE WOMAN, with Laurie becoming a more central character. If you don't remember him, he was the neighbor boy who eventually married Amy.
Off to see a play today. What's new with you?
17 comments:
Congratulations on winning the Peter Robinson giveaway. I have it coming from my library soon.
Went to my oldest granddaughters wedding this afternoon. Outdoor service. A little on the cool side but at least no rain. Turning 75 on Wednesday. Wish it was 35. Oh well.
Reading City On Fire by Don Winslow. The second of a trilogy. The third is finished. He says he is retiring in order to spent his time on political activism. Also read a number of short stories by Barry Hannah.
No movies at the theater. Watching Perry Mason, John Oliver, Barry, From.
My knees are bothering me a lot but reluctant to have any work done. My apartment building is full of people who have had surgery and are still limping around. For me it will be a last resort.
Glad to see you're keeping active -- certainly more active than I am.
Chilly the first part of the week, then it warmed up nicely. The crew spent the weekend in Atlanta to celebrate Amy's birthday. (I stayed home with Jack and Walt rather than spend so much time on my feet). Saturday was spent at the aquarium (always an awesome time) and then everyone went shopping and evidently bought everything that coulod be bought in the city. On Sunday Jessie and her girls hit the Ren Faire, while Christina and her crew did the zoo; evidently Erin's boyfriend Trey was a goat whisperer. Who knew? Back on the Panhandle, Jack's soccer team won their game, with Jack scoring two goals; the team is now 4-0.
The usual minimal television this week: PERRY MASON, John Oliver, Weekend Update...
Another heavy reading week, with many of the old standbys: Volume 3 of THE DEAD MAN with novels by James Daniels, Jude Hardin,and Bill Crider; two of Lee Goldberg's MONK novels, MR. MONK ON THE ROAD and MR. MONK GETS EVEN; two of the Fox and O'Hare books by Janet Evanovich and Goldberg, THE JOB and THE SCAM; two Dortmunders by Dpnald E. Westlake, GET REAL and WATCH YOUR BACK!; Joe Lansdale's THE DONUT LEGION; two Bernie Rhodenbarr books by Lawrence Block, THE BURGLAR ON THE PROWL and THE BURGLAR IN SHORT ORDER (which finishes up the series for me); Damon Knight's anthology 13 FRENCH SCIENCE-FICTION STORIES (my FFB); and Arthur W. Saha's anthology THE YEAR'S BEST FANTASY STORIES: 9. Currently reading James M. Cain's THE COCKTAIL WAITRESS. Coming up are Christopher Golden's THE PANDORA ROOM (the follow-up to ARARAT, which I read earlier this month), Volume 4 of THE DEAD MAN, and another collection of Max Allan Collins and Terry Beatty's MS. TREE comics.
The DeSantis administration is saying that, because of its anti-Woke policies, many in the LGBTQ community are leaving Florida, as well as teachers and doctors. They are saying that PROUDLY. These people have something seriously wrong with them. I'm trying to behave, but it's difficult.
What's not difficult is wishing you a fantastic week! Stay safe, Patti.
Sorry to hear the film didn't thrill you, Patti. But I am glad you're getting out and getting a chance to do things now that the spring has come. I hope you get some drier weather soon! I've heard Hello Beautiful is good; I'm glad you're enjoying it!
My legs are bothering me too, Steve, and I am not sure if it's the cancer drug I take or not. It came on suddenly.
Probably need to go to a arthritis doctor. I am hoping not to fall most days.
Amazing how many books Jerry can put away in a week. Jeff too.
I liked DEAR EDWARD by Napolitano too, but I guess the series was not very faithful to the book nor very good.
One of the guys at the Pool fell and showed up with a black-eye. I blame his fall on all the rain we've had lately...all the sidewalks are slippery.
Patrick is in Germany at a conference. Later this week he'll fly to Ireland on a GOOGLE mission. Then he flies to Stockholm and next week he'll fly back to NYC. Katie will be flying to Washington, D.C. this weekend to visit a friend. I'm staying home.
Diane's Book Club read LESSONS IN CHEMISTRY and apparently all the members love it. I had a different reaction.
I'm in the process of getting my Passport renewed before our trip to BOUCHERCON in San Diego in August. Wait times are now 12-14 weeks! Stay safe!
We have a matinee on Wednesday, of PICTURES FROM HOME with Nathan Lane, Zoe Wanamaker and Danny Burstein as their photographer son (apparently based on a real person). Seems odd casting as Lane is 68 (granted, his hair is white now) and Burstein is 58, but I guess on stage they can fudge that. Burstein has mostly been in musicals - SOUTH PACIFIC, FIDDLER, etc.
We finally gor rain Saturday night, though two inches at one time might have been a little excessive. Nonetheless, everything looked lush yesterday and the cars are clean and shiny. Did a lot of walking this week, to restaurants and the grocery mostly. Costco today and we will see if we can get another booster, as our last was in September.
Rufus Sewell is wonderful in THE DIPLOMAT. We missed the first season of FROM, but after a couple of mentions here we watched the first episode on Epix/MGM+ (as I think it is called now). Definitely Jackie's kind of show. Also watched the first episode of BEYOND PARADISE, now that we finished the latest DEATH IN PARADISE series. Kris Marshall was the second of four (so far) Inspectors on that show, and when he left it was supposedly to marry his fiancee and stay in England. Now they are in her hometown in South Devon and he is about to start work in this picturesque town. The goofy young Constable is played by the guy who was the goofy English cousin (James) in DERRY GIRLS. Worth watching for the scenery alone so far. Abd boy, Barbara Flynn is in everything lately. (She wa the wife on CRACKER.) Not only THE DURRELLS but we saw her in a Poirot from 2004 (DEATH ON THE NILE). Here she is the fiancee's mother.
What else? You've heard of actors you would listen to read a phone book (which such things existed). Well, STAGED may not have much of a plot, but watching David Tennant and Michael Sheen interact over Zoom passes a half hour in no time. Also watching the second series of SINGLE DRUNK FEMALE (on Freeform). Series two of SWEET TOOTH starts Thursday on Netflix. Jackie also wants to try the Belgian ROUGH DIAMONDS (Showtime?). We finally gave up on YELLOWJACKETS. Even Melanie Lynskey and Christina Ricci and Juliette Lewis could not keep us watching the rest.
I'm reading the final Dr. Siri novel by Colin Cotterill, THE DELIGHTFUL LIFE OF A SUICIDE PILOT, as well as a couple of short story collections.
Have always meant to read the Cotterill novels. I watched two seasons of STAGED during COVID. They are both wonderful actors.
I'm with you on LESSONS, George, although my book group wants to read it.
My passport came through in about about a month, George.
Finished two books this week. One was THE BLIND MAN OF SEVILLE by Robert Wilson. I had been worried that it had too much graphic violence and sex for me, but I was OK with that until it got to the really downer ending. End the end I am glad I read it anyway.
Also finished The Echoing Strangers by Gladys Mitchell, which I was reading with a group at Jason Half's blog. I haven't read that many books by Mitchell, but this was one of the better ones.
I have to go off and do some shopping so I will stop by later too, if I can.
In the end, not "end the end." My typing is horrible lately.
I'll try not to be too much the curmudgeon, but FROM is the kind of series where the monsters for some reason won't break through a window, but will open a window to get in...and yet people in the afflicted town/limbo still have yet to nail all their domiciles' windows shut permanently...and one episode in season one made much of how an alcoholic man hadn't gotten home to nail his family home's windows shut, so his wife and children were Gotten...because adult women can't nail a window shut, and all adults aren't teaching their children from no later than age 8 to do so as well. Or, for that matter, using less damaging means of making the windows immobile.
Because.
Inasmuch as the MGM+ new season is #2 of FROM and the first of an AMITYVILLE HORROR: THE ORIGIN STORY, which is still presenting the Amityville "haunting" as Real True Events, I will be skipping, most likely, the MGM+ new season. I gave AMITYVILLE 101 about ten minutes, and it was all This IS TRUE!!! and we get enough of that from "news" and Warner Discovery and "travel" channels already.
I will recommend the Comedy Central INDIANA JONES/ROMANCING THE STONE/THE LTBRARIANS et al. parody series DIGMAN, starring Andy Samberg and a good vocal cast all-'round, and in the spirit of BROOKLYN NINE-NINE. SOMEONE SOMEWHWERE's second season has started well, as has BARRY's, and I'll be happy when MINX's new episodes roll out, I think. TOONING OUT THE NEWS remains a very sharp parody of news channels and what they cover (Colbert's team), and the current rotation through THE DAILY SHOW's regular cast as hosts for a week is working better than guest hosts have, on balance, unsurprisingly.
Also, is anyone catching LUCKY HANK, the blocked-writer, small/mediocre university comic drama series? I can recommend that, as well.
BARRY's new season, rather than its second, that is, of course, and it's probable last, as Patti notes.
I can share knee woes with the assembled, but will see what can be done. Almost time, after the elementary school across the street ends its day, to mow the lawn.
I don't have MGM or AMC or EPIX or MHZ and I'm not ordering any more channels because PEACOCK and PARAMOUNT are disappointments and I cannot figure out how to get rid of Peacock. I wish I could see Hank though. Also don't have many regular channels like Comedy Central.
Been many years since I read Gladys Mitchell but I can picture the book covers on a few.
I hope the news has circulated that Tucker Carlson has joined Lou Dobbs in being among those fired by Fox "News", in its current flurry of lawsuits (Dominion only being the first to be settled)...likewise, the only slight less annoying Don Lemon is out, in the long wake of Chris Cuomo, at CNN.
I'm sure they'll all land at "News"Max or "News"Nation" or create their own damned channels on the web, and continue annoying. I see Carlson particularly as a Good Fit over at the Falun Gong/MAGA-esque culty New Tang Dynasty network and their "news"paper THE EPOCH TIMES.
I forgot to mention Lucky Hank which I am liking a lot.
I enjoyed the DEAD MAN series quite a bit. I've not tried to re-read any but should consider doing so.
I started listening to KILL ANYTHING THAT MOVES: THE REAL AMERICAN WAR IN VIETNAM by Nick Turse about intentional and policy-driven civilian deaths in Vietnam. It is dark reading and that is why it took me 10 years to get to reading/listening. Civilians always get it in the neck during war. And callousness grows naturally. I hope that our recent wars had better oversight, but that's something we won't know until years from now when people are willing to talk and historians dig in the records. The recent case of Eddie Gallagher reminds me of William Calley where people discounted any evidence of a crime to support a political side.
Boy #1 runs a half-marathon in Eau Claire this weekend and my wife and I will drive up to watch and say hello. He is 20-years-old now and still exerting his independence and likely wanting as short a visit as possible.
Boy #2 has several AP tests coming up. I figure he will get nice scores since his grades are always strong and he tests well.
Meanwhile, I was on my Rotary Club's scholarship committee and we met last night. I am reminded once again about the great work and promise shown by teenagers. SO many deserving students and so little money to grant. I am grateful Boy #1 received one of the scholarships a couple years ago - I was not on the committee - against equally tough competition.
One of my favorite college course was one on Vietnam. I took it in the nineties and there are 100 students in it, smaller than when he had taught it a decade earlier. But the last time it was taught there were barely 20 students.
Tried DIGMAN and thought it was utterly horrible and cliched unfunny stuff.
Very much enjoyed BEYOND PARADISE and am very glad it just got renewed for a second season.
Am watching and enjoying the new seasons of THE BROKENWOOD MYSTERIES and DALGLISH.
Current read is SLEEPLESS CITY by Reed Farrel Coleman. Big fan of his and this new one now dropping in July is one heck of a read.
By the way, the new anthology, CRIMEUCOPIA: STRICTLY OFF THE RECORD came out yesterday and includes my short story, "Sweet Dreams Are Made Of This."
Have a good one, folks. Stay safe.
Post a Comment