Frost Nixon

Last weekend I went to see Frost Nixon.and I enjoyed it very much. David Frost, one of the main characters, tried and much to his surprise got the opportunity to interview Richard Nixon. At the time he was not a serious journalist. It was interesting that Nixon agreed to be interviewed by such a light weight--and unknown person--but he did.
You probably would think that a movie about a series of interviews would be a bit of of snooze--but it is not. Most of the scenes are between the Frost character and Nixon. There is a lot of tension there and it really held my attention. I was pleased to see a film without any "action" or gratuitous sex. There really isn't any "hero" in it either--unless you consider both main characters to be flawed heroes. Another surprise--Nixon's portrayal was sympathetic--much to my husband's chagrin. Frank Langella does a great job playing Nixon--he even gets the voice down perfectly. I do recommend seeing this very interesting film.

Some thought on the birds

I've been a little lax about feeding the birds this winter. Finally, I put the seed out that was left over from last winter, and the birds came back to the feeders. They seduced me all over again--first the juncos and sparrows, then the cardinals came. The finches were next and some birds that I couldn't identify stopped by. Now I have the bird book and my binos handy in case they decide to come by again.
Over the weekend, I stocked up on black oiler sunflower seeds and regular songbird seed mix. I also decided to attract more finches by offering nyger seed--their favorite. And to keep the squirrels away from the feeders, I put out some dried corn on the cob. So far, no action, but it's been about 10 minutes since I came inside.

Uncluttering my life

Actually my house. Thursday's Oprah show was about getting rid of clutter. For some reason, probably because I am having a party here next Sunday, I decided to clean up the music room. This room most recently has been the junk room, because I had a lot of boxes from my mother's apartment in there. I have dealt with that already, so now I got rid of a lot of other stuff--mostly music. Some of it it boxed up. Some of it I mailed to my brother. The rest of it, I decided to return to the bookcase. Now the music room is also home to many plants. In the process of watering them, water dripped on the bookcase and warped the back. My husband tried to fix it unsuccessfully. Tomorrow the bookcase will take a trip to the alley, and we will take a trip to Ikea.

Prediction correct

Yesterday's prediction for snow was on the mark, unlike the recent blizzard prediction. That one, expected a blizzard on Tuesday morning got the news and weather people very excited, but turned into nothing.

The snow has been coming down all day. My birdhouses are accumulating quite a load of snow on their roofs.

Twelve inches and more on the way

This has been the fourth snowiest winter in Chicago weather history. And according to the weather gurus, most of the winter's snow occurs after Jan 14. Today is beautiful--bright blue sky, white snow, icicles on the gutters, and very cold. More snow is predicted for tonight and tomorrow. Good thing I bought a new shovel!

My love-hate relationship with Madame Butterfly

First the love. Last night I went to see Puccini's opera, Madame Butterfly at Chicago's Lyric Opera. This was a super production, starring Patricia Racette as Butterfly and Frank Lapardo as Pinkerton, with Sir Andrew Davis conducting. The story is timeless, being rewritten as a muscial few years ago-- Miss Saigon.
Now, I love the music. It is beautiful, and when sung by singing actors, it becomes spectacular. Added to that, a beautiful set and an excellent supporting cast, makes for a wonderful evening.
Now for the hate. I haven't seen Butterfly for about 30 years. It never was one of my favorites. My problem with this verismo opera is that some of the characters, especially Pinkerton are despicable people. Butterfly, a 15 year old girl, is "married" to a US naval officer (Pinkerton) who is spending a few months in Japan. To him it is a temporary dalliance; to her, it is an earth shattering love. Of course, she has a baby with him, born after he leaves town. She waits for him to come back, and when he finally does, 3 years later, it is with his wife. He is so spineless that he doesn't even see her--letting his wife do the dirty job of explaining the situation to Butterfly's companion and servant. The opera ends tragically, the baby leaves with Pinkerton and his wife--probably to face a life of ostracism and racial discrimination in the US.
I know that it is just a story--but it makes me angry.

I'm in love...

with my Ugg boots. My brother gave me a pair to keep my toes warm--and they do that and more. They are warm, they are comfortable--almost like bedroom slippers. You can wear them inside and outside. They are easy to get on and off. Need I say more?

Marley and Me

Living with a dog for over 27 years, I found the film, Marley and Me both interesting and enjoyable. Marley is described by his humans as the worst dog in the world. In fact, he was pretty bad. He did have many redeeming virtues, including humor--because some of his antics were hilarious.
What was interesting were his absolutely clueless owners. Marley was a rambunctious puppy, but most puppies are. What surprised me was that the humans let the dog rule their lives. They did nothing to train him to be a good dog. I never saw any evidence of a crate, a training collar, the rewarding good behavior, and the one attempt at education was an abject failure--blamed by the owners on the instructor. These people allowed the dog to destroy their furniture, sit in the front seat of the car, run around outside without a leash, and on and on. Then they called him the worst dog in the world. I have heard the saying--there are no bad dogs--only bad owners.
On the other side, the story of the family was very sweet, and the way the family cared for the dog was touching. All in all, I do recommend the movie to anybody who wants to see a funny film about a family and their dog.

I've Joined Facebook!

Today, with my son's help, I've joined Facebook. If you want to join Facebook and add me as a friend, click here.