This post is part of the ongoing series of Musicilove.
He is so right about the accessibility of “classical” music. There is something intimidating for so many, and what a shame. I’m so glad James is on his mission to make it personal. His passion is infectious:
continued here:
Oh, yeah, a fake fan letter is a must:
James,
I love your stuff! You are dead on. Keep it up!
Sincerely,
One of your rabid fans, and no, I’m not rabid about everyone despite the look of things here.
Contrary to the belief of some, I was not taken in a rapture, but I have a disclaimer: I am currently on drugs, don’t really feel like editing this piece, so please don’t hold against me anything I say below. And you can sue me for the title, but that about sums up where this blog is at the moment.
A few weeks ago my clever hat was consigned to the dustbin without my consent, or to be clear, real life intruded on my little idyll here. In the meantime, I’ve been trying to get back in the mood of blogging. I figured the best way to do that was to review my previous posts to pick up the thread of what I was doing. My first observation is that I have some typos which years ago would have made me want to crawl under a rock, and even a few months ago would have made me cringe. Now? I got a good laugh out of them. Well, I did cringe just a little at first. Second, I really have had fun with this thing, whatever it is. Third, I’ve got a lot more to say, but no, I won’t lay all of that on you here. Fourth, I need to do some serious editing on some of these old pieces. Am I allowed? Oh, yeah, I’m allowed. Fifth, I’m lousy at being cryptic. I just read two of my diary entries that get a lot more reading than some, and I grew weary at how they go on and on and on and on and don’t essentially convey what I wanted. I edited out the parts that really held them together, and in the doing of that, they lost something that dare I say makes them compelling.
Oh, well, that was the point of this exercise of blogging — to learn how the heck to say some of this stuff — so I’m not going to get too irritated about it. Maybe just a little irritated. I do make the disclaimer in one of the pieces that I had not taken the hatchet as much to it as I did some others, but therein was the problem — it either needs more taken out or to be completely left alone. I think I may break out something to deal with it. A machete? Oh, and I finally let SO read it, and he said, “I liked the stream of consciousness.” LOL! I appreciate his encouragement, but then he had to smile a little as he said it. Whatever. If that’s how my brain works, no wonder I’m tired. Fighting through all of the winding around and pontificating and cryptic cuteness was work, and if there is anything I don’t want to happen here for the reader it’s work. Come to think of it, I may put the ‘public service’ tag on that post once I’ve cleaned it up.
Haven’t been online much this week and had to make up for it by inhaling as much of my Reader as I could. What does that have to do with maintenance? Well, it’s part and parcel of what goes into this blog, a type of maintenance if you will. Oh, you thought some of this just sprang from my head fully formed? I couldn’t think up all of this innervating junk. Thank God.
Some of what I found:
Summer is coming. Yes, it comes every year like clock work, and you would have to be deaf, dumb, and blind not to know that you have to get ready if you’re going to be a part of it. Um yeah, the arbiter of worthiness is whether or not you can wear a bikini successfully.
For those who are feeling less than at their best, some of the beautiful were slumming to make the rest of us feel better.
There is hope if you’re still not feeling better. Supposedly men like women who have “guy humor,” so you can leave the bikini at home. Yes, the bikini is really about the guys. No, don’t try to bullshit me with a feminist treatise. It’s about men. But if you can’t wear that bikini, your mouth might make up for it, and before I read this piece, I assumed it mostly meant girls are attractive who can appreciate crudeness, and yep, I was right. Sadly, no one will read that this was a flawed study. Aren’t most of them? Although after living with a man for quite a few years, I believe embracing some crudeness is a must.
And I guess I’m not the norm, since I’m not as attracted to brooding men possibly filled with shame (the characters of Richard Armitage aside :D) as some women. My thumbnail on this is that women are attracted to men like that because many of us have a bit of a savior complex, which could lead to some worship. Don’t we all want to be loved, adored, cherished (take your pick) and what better way to know than to be worshipped? Meantime, I couldn’t get this out of my head:
No, not those dweebs, but they do make a point about the crudeness that’s just part of that Y chromosome. And this is the reason some women will almost kill themselves to get a bikini body? When really they just need to crack some crude jokes and maybe perform some crude acts.
Perhaps the only reason I didn’t fall into the normal pattern of being drawn to shame filled men is I knew I really wasn’t worthy to be worshipped as a savior. Therefore, a confident, at peace, smiling man, was my choice. I’m happy to report that he’s still smiling although he’s had his obstacles, and had his moments of introspection, anger and yes, some villainy (he is a human being), but still loyal. May my daughters be drawn to such a man.
I do sometimes worry about the male society my girls are going into. People are not loyal. That is the great dichotomy of this world. Many want loyalty but don’t want to give it. That’s why commitments don’t happen for most. In some cases the need to shuck it off is understandable. Maybe their driver will lose them over there. Unfortunately, there is a line to take their place. So glad I’ve never watched those shows, and I hated that I even spent any of my time watching that clip. Hopefully, the next paragraph will redeem the erroneous investment.
Back to the point. Commitment is the key, and of course I understand a piece of paper is not necessarily indicative of commitment, but this is how I’ve put it to my girls: do you want to make a commitment to someone who is not clear about their commitment and is not willing to declare it to others? I never have understood how a nebulous arrangement was edifying. No, don’t fill me in, the drugs would keep me from really receiving it right now. It just seems that it’s really about f*cking (of course enjoyable f*cking), but when did that ever get a firm commitment? Really? I don’t think so. It’s just f*cking unless someone’s heart is engaged, and out of the abundance of the heart someone will speak. And yes, God yes, take an accounting of their character before the witnesses are present. Speaking a few words at a hyped up ceremony designed to put the bride and her momma in a euphoria are not enough. Never have been. I laugh when I think my mother got married in a brown suit with spectator pumps while standing in front of the fireplace of her future sister-in-law’s living room in a service that was planned by my Dad and her mother was not there, or if I think of SO’s mother who got married in a blue tea length dress (her best dress at the time) at The Hitching Post wedding chapel, which was the first one on The Strip and no mother there. And no f*cking was necessary from them before hand. Just a man of character who loved them. My father passed away after 40+ years of marriage and was still committed to my mother on his way out and she to him. That was after all the hard times they weathered. Piece of paper my ass. The commitment was clear from the start, and I don’t believe my mother has ever owned a bikini nor has SO’s mother.
If I’ve thoroughly depressed you, well, you may not have to live with it long. If someone really does succeed in hacking Lockheed Martin well enough, they might be dropping those bombs soon.
In the meantime relax and maybe watch some “So You Think You Can Dance.” It’s going to be on a little longer. Where are those drugs?
Oh, and I was going to put in a line about missing Nat, and then she showed up! Good to see you posting again, Natalie. You are a ray of sunshine.
Last, did you catch Amy Poehler’s speech to Harvard’s graduating class? Well, it’s viral now, so I’m sure you can find it easily. I’m too lazy to post a link. She didn’t say anything that really hasn’t been said a thousand times at graduation speeches, i.e., LIVE! but she really did understand the humor in them choosing her. I’m not sure the class got that, and I find myself not really caring.
Found the drugs. See ya later.
edit: for those who asked, yes, I’ve worn a bikini many times, so this is not my angst about inability to do that. I just think it’s crap that women still see their worth as almost totally equated with their bodies and their ability to give some. Hate that.
This is a tangent post, which means little or no Richard Armitage, so you can skip it if you’re only here for Richard. :D But this is also a reply to the readers who have sent me notes wondering why I have cut back on posting regularly about RA. I really appreciate your interest. It makes me want to get back to posting regularly much sooner, but please know that I’ll be back posting about our favorite guy in the next week.
In the meantime, I just thought I would share a little about what takes me away from this blog at times. I have two other favorite guys — SO and this one (aka son of SO):
The boy in the front is how I think of him. That’s his usual position on the track. Of course I’m not proud. ;-)
Seriously, this kid has run his backside off, and he doesn’t have much backside to begin with. He has earned first position, but more than that, he is just a great person. Yes, I’m biased! I admit freely that I’m proud he’s my son. It’s hard not to be proud when I consider his stellar character which has influenced his peers for the good. He in no way puts himself in first position when he’s off a racecourse. Kindness just pours out of him — the sort to quickly come to the aid of old women, and his friends have followed suit. This is the part of him of which I’m most proud, and his friends are not the only ones affected for the good. He’s made SO and I and several other adults I know want to be better people.
I’ve now spent over 10 years going to track and cross country meets and seven of those years were to watch my son. I should have known this was my fate when I took up with SO, who was a serious runner and now a phenomenal coach. But the regular meets are about to come to an end next weekend, and I have to confess part of me is relieved. The other part of me doesn’t want to think about it. By mid-August, my son will be gone from home, and SO and I are grieving this. It’s really hard for us to even talk about it without breaking down, but I guess today I can’t help but talk about it hence this post.
Thanks for letting me indulge my maudlin self, and I’ll be back next week to talk about Richard.
I’m not even going to promise this is my last piece on the Royal Wedding and no mention of Richard Armitage, but this is actually a geek post and not so much about the wedding. In keeping with all things tech that fascinate me, I had to bring this for your edification. The picture may not seem all that fascinating on first glance, but just click on it and see what comes, and be sure to let yourself play with it. :D
No, there is no Richard Armitage in this piece either.
I was in the middle of writing my next post about the Royal Wedding when I realized I had a new follower on Twitter: @wisebirdswords (aka Marcy Jay). So I went over to check her profile and realized she has a blog. The first piece I read is below, and after I read it, it was clear I had no need to write anything myself. This says it all:
The inescapable truths of the Royal Wedding:
Many of us are in a happy state of post-wedding euphoria here in the UK. Even the ‘republicans’ and ‘not interested’ became swept up in the tide of good will and sheer joy surrounding the happy couple.
Today the newspapers are full of interesting and amusing commentary about every aspect of the biggest event in the UK for decades and in my home town of Amersham in Buckinghamshire we are no different. Amersham is a lovely small town nestling at the foot of the Chiltern Hills, a stone’s throw from where the Vicar of Dibley was filmed and proud home of the 16th Century coaching inn where Four Weddings and a Funeral was filmed. ‘Grass roots England’ which today provided a good snapshot of the happiest of post mortems. Of course, everyone agreed that Kate was as serene, beautiful and Royal and William as adoring, dashing and ‘surprisingly nervous and normal’ as we could have possibly wished.
Here are the other matters of great importance that have occupied us:
Love the blog; hope to read more. Just got done with the piece about men’s listening abilities. Fascinating, and perhaps the men who read this blog will read it. No need to ask the women; I know they’ll read it. LOL!
Take care and thanks for following me. I’ll definitely be responding in kind.
Sincerely,
Frenz (and I would tell you my real name, but then I would have to kill you. :D)
Did Pippa Middleton steal the show? I think she did. Yesterday, the would be queen’s sister got most of the attention at the Royal Wedding, and I think it was somewhat deserved. She was as spectacular as her sister and all her own. You would have to be dead not to have noticed her. Well, if you’ve got it flaunt it, and she did, but I don’t think she was trying to upstage her sister.
She was placed in a position that potentially could draw notice if you’re in a stunning gown with a great figure, great skin and have excellent carriage, and women who look at you want to be you, and I’m afraid to say what I think the men were thinking, and of course she appeared to be good with children:
But all of that wasn’t what sold me on Pippa. It was the smile:
I knew immediately she had a sense of humor. Perhaps she is a total ass (no pun intended) in person, but my gut says a resounding no! Whatever the case, that infectious smile makes me say, “I would love to meet her!”
And now a picture for the men who read this blog, which I figure is deserved after all of the fangirling of Richard Armitage that you’ve witnessed:
Of course I’m drawn to her hair in this picture. Lovely.
I was one of those who was not going to watch the Royal Wedding, but I’ve been in on so many public events of William’s life, how could I miss this one.
Kate’s last moments before entering the church. I remember the feelings I had when I entered a wedding ceremony almost 28 years ago. The dress and veil were very, very similar to this one, and I got a little misty-eyed looking at this picture:
Photos from Euronews and Jezebel (click on photos for links and more photos).
No-one gives a shit about your blog. It's official. There was a meeting. Didn't you get the memo? Nobody cares what you think. It's no longer a secret. No-one has to fake an interest in your problems, read your posts, click your affiliate links, look at 'cute' pictures of your cats, or listen to what you have to say. Life is short. People are busy. Leave them alone. Oh, we know you've had your suspicions. But now, the cat is out of the bag and ta … Read More
It’s easy if you try. And with the advent of torrents and some other tools for consumers to get their hands on video clips quickly, it’s certainly a possibility. So the media industry is feeling the pinch and trying to get out ahead of the demand. But I’m wondering if moving up the ability to access VOD (Video on Demand) in home is the answer, and some well known names in the business are certainly taking exception to it.
Peter Jackson, James Cameron, Michael Bay and More Write Letter Opposing Premium VOD Service
Peter Jackson and James Cameron write letter opposing Premium VOD Service
This Thursday, DirecTv will launch its new Premium VOD service, which allows viewers to watch new movies from Warner Bros., Sony, Universal, and 20th Century Fox in their homes just 60 days after a title’s initial theatrical release for a fee of $30. Today, 23 of Hollywood’s top directors have published a letter in opposition against this VOD platform.
This letter, which was put together by James Cameron and his producing partner Jon Landau in conjunction with NATO (the National Assn. of Theater Owners ), is set to coincide with Thursday’s launch of the Adam Sandler comedy Just Go with It, which will be the first Home Premiere title available to HD customers for $29.99.
Along with James Cameron and Jon Landau, other letter signers include Michael Bay, Kathryn Bigelow, Guillermo del Toro, Roland Emmerich, Peter Jackson, Shawn Levy, Michael Mann, Todd Phillips, Brett Ratner, Adam Shankman, Gore Verbinski, Robert Zemeckis, Karyn Kusama, Antoine Fuqua, Todd Garner, Lawrence Gordon, Stephen Gyllenhaal, Gale Anne Hurd, Bill Mechanic, Jamie Patricof, and Robert Rodriguez.
Here is the letter in full:
AN OPEN LETTER FROM THE CREATIVE COMMUNITY ON PROTECTING THE MOVIE-GOING EXPERIENCE
We are the artists and business professionals who help make the movie business great. We produce and direct movies. We work on the business deals that help get movies made. At the end of the day, we are also simply big movie fans.
Lately, there’s been a lot of talk by leaders at some major studios and cable companies about early-to-the-home “premium video-on-demand.” In this proposed distribution model, new movies can be shown in homes while these same films are still in their theatrical run.
In this scenario, those who own televisions with an HDMI input would be able to order a film through their cable system or an Internet provider as a digital rental. Terms and timing have yet to be made concrete, but there has been talk of windows of 60 days after theatrical release at a price of $30.
Currently, the average theatrical release window is over four months (132 days). The theatrical release window model has worked for years for everyone in the movie business. Current theatrical windows protect the exclusivity of new films showing in state-of-the-art theaters bolstered by the latest in digital projection, digital sound, and stadium seating.
I’ve waxed on elsewhere about artificial scarcities being created where none normally exists, and how that irritates me, and keeping people from VOD is strictly creating a scarcity — or trying. Yet I’m wondering what would be sacrificed (even short term) if we inch open the floodgates some more for access to movies. Oh, you say they’re already open? Well, not quite, but it’s not long before they are, so is there a good reason to keep people from quicker in home access? I don’t know. Will there come a day when we look back at movie watching in a theater as a quaint old custom? Oh, I have lots of thoughts about this, but I’m interested in yours.