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Archive for the ‘Culture’ Category

A New Lincoln

Posted in Movies, tagged , , , , , , , on 19 Nov 2012| Leave a Comment »

In the absence of factual data, we often fill in the blanks with archetypes. So it was with Abraham Lincoln. Admired, respected, nearly deified, the Lincoln we knew in our youth was a tall man of serene demeanor, with a deep voice, and an unflappable dignity.

About the only part we got right was that he was tall.

Using Doris Kearns Goodwin’s excellent book as a foundation, Steven Spielberg and (most especially) Daniel Day-Lewis have given us a new Lincoln, a more complete Lincoln, and he is in nearly every way different from what we’ve imagined.

“Lincoln” is in every way I can judge an excellent film: from the direction to the costumes, set decoration to the screenplay, acting to the cinematography. It has to be on the short list for Oscar contention, and we should just give Day-Lewis his award right now.

If I had to pick on something, it would be the soundtrack. (more…)

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Poetry as a Tool

Posted in Culture, Writing, tagged , , , , , on 17 Nov 2012| Leave a Comment »

Kurt R.A. GiambastianiI am not a poet. Well, no more than the next person, I’d say. But as a writer, I think poetry is a useful tool. I learn from writing poetry, whether it’s free verse or a more formal structure. Like etudes to the pianist, I learn technique through poetry. I learn how to be spare.

I put some of my poetry online here, today, a new annex off the Writing page. Some of them still make me smile. Many are bittersweet, as that’s the mood that most resonates with my Inner Poet. Rueful, I guess.

In my opinion, poetry should not read like prose, as so often happens these days. Like a lot of modern art, I think a lot of modern poetry is a sham. But I’m an old, crusty curmudgeon, so what do I know, eh?

k

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Take a Bite

Posted in Books, Culture, Writing, tagged , , , , , , , , on 16 Nov 2012| 2 Comments »

Full disclosure: I do not like vampire stories.

Puzzlement: I’m going to recommend one.

The past twenty years have seen an ever-increasing convolution of the vampire, twisting and shoving the original ’50s monster into the tightening straight-jacket of political correctness. I mean, sparkling? Seriously? That’s why they can’t see sunlight now? They sparkle? I haven’t done a study of it (nor will I) but I wouldn’t be at all surprised if there’s a vegan vampire out there, sucking the life out of blood oranges and beetroot. (more…)

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Time for a Change

Posted in Culture, Hi Tech, tagged , , on 15 Nov 2012| 2 Comments »

Obey the Kitty!In other news, I’m getting a divorce.

Yes, after 20+ years with the same company, I’m finally so weary of the booshwah that I’m going to risk a re-entry to the job market. It’s not often you find someone who’s been with the same company for 20+ years, nowadays, but it happens. To be frank, it’s the way I’ve always thought it should be.

Growing up, I watched my father work long and steady hours for only two companies. He was a lithographer, and there weren’t too many shops back then, even in San Francisco, but there were enough that he could have switched jobs every few years. But he didn’t. Few people did. Longevity was the norm, back then. You found a place you liked; you stayed there, and your tenure was respected. (more…)

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Baring it All

Posted in Hi Tech, Seattle, Writing, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on 14 Nov 2012| 4 Comments »

Somewhere between the publication of FC:IV and the writing of FC:V, I got sidetracked. It was a lot of things, really, but one thing, primarily: I met my mortality.

When I was young, like many melodramatic youths, I expected to die young. At the age of 32, to be precise. Who knows why that age and not, say, 34, became locked in my mind like some sort of Logan’s Run sell-by date, but it did. When the age of 32 came and went without so much as a blip on the death-o-meter, it wasn’t a surprise; by that time, I’d realized how silly the conceit was.

Then Death came by for a little visit. (more…)

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Retreat, Retrench, Repair

Posted in Culture, Writing, tagged , , , , , , on 13 Nov 2012| 2 Comments »

Yesterday, I went to Paris.

Put bluntly, yesterday was a crappy, crappy day. It wasn’t a tragic day, thankfully, but it was a crappy day, and one that means major changes ahead. And last night I was in that dangerous “fret zone,” where everything in my mind was whirling around the troubles, playing If Then Else with my future, and getting uncomfortably close to the death-spiral that would pull me down into depression.

Consciously, I retreated. It’s a mechanism I’ve learned, and it’s kept me from tumbling down into the dark many times. I retreated from the problem, tucked myself into a safe trench, and filled my forebrain with a fond memory while my subconscious wrassled with the problem.

And thus, Paris.

(more…)

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The Empire Strikes Back

Posted in Culture, Hi Tech, Writing, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on 12 Nov 2012| Leave a Comment »

Remember when I posted the sad story of a bestselling writer trashing his competition in bogus reviews? Well, it seems that Amazon is doing something about it.

Salon and other sources report that Amazon is deleting book reviews made by authors. That’s right. Deleting them. Poof. Gone. Nothing. And from now on authors will be banned/prohibited from posting reviews on books. That’s right! “The Evil Empire” is censoring my words and opinions! Egad! Zounds! Help! Help! I’m bein’ repressed!!

Actually, I’m fine with it. (more…)

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