Got behind on blogging; life and other things (namely Facebook and the ease of putting things up there) got in the way. A long post for catching up on stuff.
Monday Memorial Day: watched Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of Crystal Skull. Hmm. If you’re an Indy fan, you’ll have to watch it. Good movie, yes; great? Not quite. I think the Indiana Jones and the Crusades movie was better. But, Indy came off mature and sweet, as he lives in the 1950’s America and the Cold War. It’d be easy to imagine how he got through World War II; hard to believe he never got around to getting back with Marion or other friends during the interim? But, the adventures continue, evidentally.
Interesting posting from the NY Times’ City Room blog, on the status of private libraries. I’ve walked past by the General Society Library of Mechanics and Tradesmen on 44th Street, and kept wondering how did it come about; this City Room post at least explains how such libraries existed and what may be their path toward the future.
Interesting NY Times article: “Mystery Writers, She Once Wrote,” by Gregory Beyer — how mystery writers who portray NYC try to keep it real, even if there’s not as much murder in the city as there used to be.
A profile on the man behind Wii, Mario, Donkey Kong…
Theatrical lawyer turned producer: on John Breglio, who helped bring “A Chorus Line” back to Broadway. Hmm… I have to admire a lawyer who found a way to turn his interests as a part of what he does.
So, what does it mean to be “elitist“? NY Times’ Elizabeth Bumiller on the historical contradiction of how American politicians try to be both the best of the best while still trying to be “just like everybody else.”
Newsweek’s Jonathan Alter, a cancer survivor himself, notes that if the senators really are serious about helping Ted Kennedy fight the good fight against cancer, it’s about doing serious legislative work. Some good points in his latest column.
Can meditation really help? Or is it just a red herring/placebo? Hmm. I just don’t think it can hurt all that much.
A look at the secret (or just nice little spots) gardens of NYC. I like the Battery Park gardens myself – so nice and making you forget that you’re in the city…
Chef John of the Food Wishes blog presented a video where NY Times’ Mark “The Minimalist” Bittman argues over how we should be aware of the impact that the food production system has on our diet and take action. You don’t have to stop eating meat; just eat less and demand better from the “industry.” Hmm. Food for thought, indeed.
That the NY Public Library’s Donnell Library is (temporarily) closing is sad; it really is one of the nicer branches of the NY Public Library system. Sewell Chan’s City Room blog posting — the original version, to some extent, of his co-written article about the Donnell Library closing – with additional reporting about the various closings and renovations throughout the NY Public Library system. I thought that the Brooklyn Public Library system could frustrate me, but sometimes I wonder what NYPL is trying to do with the public at large…
Wow – as a big Alexander Hamilton fan (well, my dorm room in college had a good view of ye olde Hamilton Hall and the Hamilton statue in the quad, so kind of unavoidable) – this is quite an exciting development. The idea of moving his house to the nearby city park is to kind of recreate how the Hamiltons lived back in 1802, when the neighborhood was more rural.
A fascinating article in Washington Post, by Blaine Harden on Jerome White, Jr., who’s developing a singing career in Japan singing enka, a sort of Japanese folk song genre on lost love – with his own kind of hip hop twist. He’s of mostly African-American heritage – but became inspired by this genre due to his Japanese maternal grandmother. Fascinating to read about someone who connected with his Asian heritage and handling this mix of cultures.
NY Times’ Ginia Bellafante on the thinking and contemplating of “Lost.”
And, speaking of “Lost,” I finally watched the season finale over the weekend. Quite a watch. The island moved – to where, or when? Other set up for next season: Jack joining forces with Ben to go back to the island? What the heck has Locke done? Hmmm… James Poniewozik of Time makes his observations, as does Jeff Jensen of Entertainment Weekly, and David Bianculli was pretty cheerful about it (or at least eager for the season premiere, which won’t be out until January 2009 – that long a wait?).
So ends May – a season of tv and APA Heritage month events. Will June be interesting? Stay tuned…