Runester

The gf and I went to the movies this weekend and saw Fracture. It was a good movie, but what impressed me was that it was an old fashioned closed-room mystery. The kind that Agatha Christy wrote, or something like the movie Dial M for Murder. These stories were solved by deductive reasoning and a little imagination and not by finding the one piece of forensic evidense that seals the case. In Fracture, there is never any doubt who commits the act or why or how. All of the mystery, is in how he manipulates events to get away from it and how the young lawyer from the district attorney’s office tries to prove it. After all, the law isn’t about what happens but what can be proved in a court of law, to have happened.

It’s nice to sit through a ‘thinking’ movie that is more about performance and personality and a devilishly clever killer then chase scenes or the like.

I haven’t written in a long time, and I have lot’s of news. Some of it, not so good.

First …

My gf’s uncle, Frank, went into the hospital for an Angioplasty. Instead, they found much more blockage then they expected and performed a quadruple bypass with heart valve replacement. He’s been in Intensive Care ever since. We went to see him on Sunday, and he looks very frail and week. After the bypass he had a stroke which affected the left side of his body. They can’t tell how much was affected by the stroke because he still has a breathing tube in his mouth and can’t talk. When they finally take the tube out (hopefully tomorrow, or sooner!) he will be much more comfortable and then they’ll perform some tests to see if his swallowing &/or speach were affected by the stroke.

Prayers on behalf of Frank are certainly welcome!

Second …

A few weeks ago I found some more lumps on Snow, my senior, female, all white, cat. I took her to the vet last Monday where the Vet confirmed that they were tumors and recommended surgery. She had the surgery on Friday and I got to bring her home Monday evening.

For what it’s worth, she seems to be doing very well. She is active and acting very normal … albeit with an E-Collar on her head (to prevent her from licking out the staples over her new scar). This time the vet cut significantly more and the scar wraps about 60% around her body! I have to keep it clean, apply an antibiotic ointment, and give her two doses of antibiotics, daily. For everything she’s been through, she seems to be doing pretty well.

Here are a few photographs.

First, a quick movie review. The gf and I went to see a movie (as we do most weekends) and this time the best we could find was “The Messengers.” It was supposed to be a horror movie, and it did have a few high-tension scenes - so I guess that makes it better then a poke to the eye. On the other hand, the premise was incredibly hard to believe and the plot kind of handed you the “who” in the who-dunnit of the opening scene.

When I say ‘hard to believe’, I don’t mean the whole ghosts in the basement thing - that’s par for the course. I mean, that a family from Chicago would pack everything up and move out to the most desolate place I’ve ever scene and move into the most dilapidated, spooky old house around in order to make a fresh start … growing sunflowers. The second complaint was the transparency of the plot. The first few minutes of the movie are very effective, showing a family terrorized by some unseen force; each disappearing down into the basement even the innocent little boy. The only problem was what they DIDN’T show you … the father. This immediately implied that it was the father of this doomed family on some sort of rampage. So, later on when a mysterious stranger, a man, shows up and volunteers to work long hours for months at a time for no wages other then a place to stay and some meals … alarm bells went off.

I was almost thrown off by some red herrings, but the red herrings weren’t there to lead you to another potential killer, just caste doubt on the right one. In other words, they didn’t introduce anyone else in the movie that it could have been and they didn’t convincingly prove that it couldn’t have been him. So, when they perform the ‘reveal’ and show him in the initial scenes as the ‘unseen force’ it doesn’t really surprise anyone.

Finally, the movie followed a particular plot that is so old and hackneyed in horror that smack’s of Hollywood cheese. Namely, the teenager who knows what’s really going on but who can’t get any adults to believe them. Let’s get this out in the open … (saying I eventually have a daughter) if I were to look into the eyes of my daughter, even a daughter who was a rebellious teenager who’s gotten into trouble as teenagers tend to do, and see abject terror … I’d tend to believe her and not dismiss the entire story as her ‘antics’. This movie wasn’t as bad as others, but in many, the parents have to disbelieve a whole sequence of events including people disappearing, strange wounds appearing, and other creepy signs and portents. In “The Messengers” all the parents had to do was disbelieve strange bruises on their daughters ankles, her repeated stories of spectral attacks, the disappearance of the previous tenants, and the complete terror that came radiating off of their daughter whenever she related the events. At some point, of this disbelieving smacks of abuse.

Here’s a partial review, and radically different from movie mentioned above. It’s the business / organization book, recommended to me by my mother, “From Good to Great.” At first it seemed a little dry and business-book-ish; but as I got past the introduction I found that it was utterly fascinating and the lessons completely believable and utterly applicable. The believability comes from their firm roots in empirical facts, not gilded theory. The applicability is due to their universal nature. I may never be the CEO of a large corporation, but the description of a “Level 5 Leader” applies just as much to a person improving their own lives, or the head of a family improving his family’s life, as to a corporate leader improving the entire organization he heads. This is only a partial review since I’m only about 30+ pages into the book, but if the rest proves to be as good as this section then it was money and time well spent.

I finished the Caitlin R. Kiernan book, Daughter of Hounds, a few days ago.

Of all of her books, this one had the most ‘concrete’ feel to it. Instead of the endless ambiguity in her descriptions of monsters and magic, this book actually came out and described everone and (nearly) everything in it, in fairly unambiguous terms. Good! Also, the final denoument actually felt like a denoument instead of the point where the author just got tired of writing and decided to stop.

This is now my favorite Caitlin R. Kiernan novel, with “Alabaster” being my favorite book (it’s a collection of short works about one of my all time favorite characters, Dancy Flamarion).

Does my review sound a little harsh? Would it surprise you to know that I am actually an avid reader / collector of Kiernan’s works? The aspects that drew me to her writing still recommend her work to others. Namely, her amazing characterization of young people on the fringe of society and the dark (Lovecraftian) fantasy they interact with. The sense of place and gritty realism is expertly counterpointed to the fantastical elements, and each character feels amazingly real and yet so far outside the norm, that you can’t help but be pulled in. And Boy! Can this lady write! The use
of language is extraordinary; with the overly wrought flourishes of her early work tamed as she matured in her craft.

The negatives, are her use of ambiguity to communicate the sense of Lovecraftian horror. I feel for her predicament: if she were to clearly describe what the creatures were and what rules have to be followed in order to survive or defeat them … then the sense of wonder and dread would evaporite right off the page and this would read like a turn-of-the-century zoology paper. But, with very little concrete description it’s hard to figure out exactly what’s happening. Not only is the ‘what’ mysterious, but then the ‘why’ is as well. So the whole time you’re reading you’re thinking, “who is that? why did they just do that? what does that paragraph mean?” and then when you get to the end of the book, it tends to just stop. No real wrap-up or finale or conclusion. It. Just. Ends.

The most disappointing example of this is her sci-fi book, “The Dry Salvages.” If any book ever gives the impression that the author got bored with the topic and just tacked on a bullet-point list of what would have happened if she’d felt like finishing it - then this book would be it! The whole intro was fascinating, the characters intriguing, and the situation very original. Then you get to the last few chapters and wish you hadn’t. In fact, without those chapters tacked on, I would be free to fantasize about the ‘unfinished manuscript’ and what could have happened had the author ever completed it.

In summary: Caitlin R. Kiernan, an absolutely fantastic author who can accomplish the near impossible. The ‘real thing’ in a genre replete with pretenders and poseurs. Someone more then worth reading, if you can overlook or at least tolerate her few, minor foibles. If you “absolutely have to know!” then she definitely is not for you. If you can immerse yourself in a world full of vibrant characters and decaying settings, and tolerate never really knowing the full story or the real ending, then this definitely is for you!

Well, I’ve spent another low-key weekend with the gf. We went and saw a movie called “Notes on a Scandal.” It stars Dame Judy Dench, Cate Blanchett, and Bill Nighy. The acting was top-notch, and was what really made the movie. At only 92 minutes and with a single threaded plot, it felt more like a short story instead of a novel (which it is allegedly based on). My only complaint with the movie, is not much actually happens, plot wise. The real ’story’ is in the complex relationship between the two women and the eventual realization of Blanchett’s character to the duplicity and neediness of Dench’s character.

Personally, I’d like to see “Flags of our Fathers” and then “Letters from Iwo Jima.” I’m fascinated that we have both sides of that war story … something almost never done, especially as it relates to WWII.

I’m nearly done reading the latest book by Caitlin R. Kiernan, namely “Daughter of  Hounds.” This book is very different from her usual, and I’m not sure why she’s changed her modus operandi. Most of her works are filled with loose ends and ambigious situations and rather disappointing endings. I’ve admired her for that, except for the cases where I was thoroughly frustrated by her (”Dry Salvages” comes to mind). In this novel, she’s as explicit as she’s ever been. The monsters are described, the hero’s call on magic and it’s quite obvious, and (for the most part) it reads more like an action / adventure novel then an atmospheric horror novel. To be brutally honest, I like it better this way! Let’s see if my opinion remains the same when I get to the end.

Well, I’ve finally scanned and uploaded the photo’s my mother gave me of the actual fire that consumed Izzy’s Bistro in New Baltimore, MI. I believe these were taken by someone passing by and passed to my family. In a previous post, you can find photo’s of before and after … here is during the fire.

As of this post, and the last news I’ve heard on the subject, the insurance company still hasn’t paid. The cause of the fire was determined to be accidental; a wiring fault or failure in the attic.

Well, my diet is pretty much on a holiday hiatus. I haven’t binged or anything, but I’m not sticking super close either. Part of it is the desire to enjoy shared meals with others, from the office pizza party to the upcoming Christmas dinner with Lisa’s mom. The other part of it, is the odd ‘out of the normal routine’ these two weeks always elicit. In any case, I’ll probably have two or three “Christmas Pounds” to lose before I’m fully back on track.

In other news, I’ve going podcast crazy! I started with one or two RPG related podcasts, but now have been listening to a podcast about ‘real women’ from Leann, and to a couple of music podcasts. The music podcasts, especially “Well Made Music” reminds me of the college / indie music shows that used to be on 89X radio in Detroit - back when alternative music was actually alternative and not just another variation of pop. This music is totally different, but the sense of musical exploration, of being introduced to something that I’ve never heard before and to a whole music scene that is ‘not from here’ is certainly present. And, the host Neil, has a cool Scottish accent.

The only downside to this amazing wealth of resources and communities and podcasts available online is how easy it is to live in a bubble completely unique from anyone else around you. In other words, there are over a thousand people listening to “Fear the Boot” - but I’m the only one living in my area. The same goes for “Well Made Music” and probably some others. Some activities are funner to do in groups, but that’s hard when the ‘group’ you belong to is geographically dispersed around the world.

Interestingly enough, the “House of the Harping Monkey” has a virtual inn in the online world called “Second Life.” They’ve had meetings there and used that shared virtual space to meet listeners and fans whom they’ve never met in RL (real life). Is this the harbinger of things to come? Is this some indicator of trends that will continue or just a momentary fad that will fade when people ‘get serious’ and pull out of their virtual lives? Who knows? It just occurs to me that the pull of human hearts and human minds to form communities of interest and families of intention is stronger then geography.

Well, I did OK this week, but not great. I made it to the gym on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday but not today (Thursday). I can help my record by making it in tomorrow, though!

I’ve already seen a marked increase in performance. I realize that I’m just reactivating dormant muscle fibers - but it’s nice to see the weights and the reps both go up.

The Restaurant Fire

While I was in Michigan, I was able to take some pictures (with my Treo700p) of what was left of Izzy’s Bistro, and the restaurant where my father works now, Jack’s on the Waterfront. I was also able to find a couple of pictures of Izzy’s before the fire, from an old website some previous owner had set-up.

Izzy’s Before the Fire

Izzy’s After the Fire

Jack’s on the Waterfront

I’m just wrapping up a very pleasant weekend spent with Lisa. We went and saw the new James Bond flick, “Casino Royale” - and it was very good! Daniel Craig makes a great James Bond, and this film really seems to be getting back to the roots of action hero instead of gadget-guy. Well, done.

I wasn’t exactly on-diet this weekend, though Saturday was my “day off” and I did pretty good on Sunday (well, there was that piece of pumpkin pie!). Tomorrow morning, I’m back in the gym and back on track. I can say I’ve lost what little weight I gained before my two (2) weeks in vacation in Michigan. Everything from this point on will be new progress.

After speaking with my brother about his business ventures this weekend I learned something new and disheartening. Nothing is ever as easy and straight forward as you hoped. He does research on a business and gets to know the current owner and looks at the books and assembles his co-investors and then … the soap opera begins. These facts were hidden and that person who hadn’t even made an appearance before decides to cause trouble now, etc., etc., etc.

The point? That the hard part of being an entrepreneur is not the financials or the operations or even the risk. The hard part is managing the intangibles and the constant background level of chaos that exists. Do you know why you’ve never read that in a book on business management? Because while high-falutin’ intellectuals are theorizing about how business should be managed with fancy whiteboard diagrams, the reality is stuffed up toilets in the women’s room and a vindictive ex-employee spreading rumors to your regulars.