This Side of Lost

Well, much of Us has now made the trip. The really important parts of Us (yours truly and Robert) at least. All the less important stuff (bed, clothes, furniture, spatulas, etc.) will be along soon, we hope, though I'm not getting too excited about it. Everything went pretty much according to plan in California: Robert was handed off to the great people at Continental Cargo (having used them twice now with hardly a problem I feel comfortable recommending them now) on Monday and arrived safely, the movers showed up and took away my things on Tuesday, I cleaned the place within an inch of its life on Wednesday and caught my own flight (on the overrated Virgin America) on Thursday. Jessica was a most excellent host for my last two evenings in town -- hopefully those leftover cleaning supplies and bottles of liquor are payment enough.

I've got a bit of time to relax before the new job starts, so I've been enjoying sleeping in and lounging around in the new, somewhat sparse place. It's a townhouse, complete with three levels -- small levels, but levels nonetheless. It has a two car garage and a washer/dryer! It's like a real home almost. Props to Samantha for finding a great one.

Danbury seems to be a big town/small city in the midst of changing demographics. Much of the core of the town is a mish-mash of old banks and churches and Mexican/Brazilian restaurants and businesses. Further out along winding roads (so winding! I've grown used to ramrod straight city streets crisscrossing the Valley) are the big box stores and chain restaurants. Doesn't seem to be a hive of high culture, at least not at first glance. But it will be interesting to explore nonetheless. I've already ventured out a couple times to find a sports bar to watch my Twins flail pathetically at the Yankees.

There is still much to learn: where to worship and sing, where to find good spanikopita, where to buy Soyrizo. I always enjoy that part of moving though. As for today, I made the trip to Samantha's workplace with her this morning, as we are headed out to see a silly movie this evening with some of her colleagues. And Friday is my first fencing trip in a while: off to see Samantha represent her fencing region in the Empire State Games. Traveling, lots of reading, staying with friends and in hotels -- it's almost like a vacation!

In no particular order:

1. The convenience of the weather. Contrary to what most people think, I will not miss the weather itself. But I can't deny that it makes life very convenient here. Here's the entirety of the thought process involved in going outside: "Is it winter? If it is, grab a light coat and your umbrella. If it's not, you're fine."
2. The burgers. They do 'em right around here. I can name half a dozen places within a ten minute drive from my apartment where you can get a great cheeseburger, from the internationally-famous to the lesser-known but still high quality local chains to the really, really local joints -- oh, so ghetto, but oh, so good.
3. The Arclight. I'm never going to be pleased with a movie theater ever again, unless theaters in Danbury also have no ads, reserved seating online and Häagen-Dazs ice cream in concessions.
4. The friends we've made here. But that is true about every place I've lived and left.

A surprisingly (or, perhaps, not surprisingly) short list.

I'm not sure we'll ever be able to move on from our loss. But from what I know about grief, it's something that never totally goes away -- you just don't think of it as often. And, for better or for worse, we've been forced to move on, to not think about it as often, because there's a lot to do. But we're still thinking about it nonetheless. All of our friends, old and new, have been wonderful and supportive. Many thanks to you.

But we have to move on. I had my last day at work on Tuesday. The moving truck comes next Tuesday. I have a busy week ahead of me, and it's already three-sevenths over. I've taken care of many details, but there's many left to go and I've barely started packing. Fortunately, everything else appears to be going smoothly -- Robert's flight is booked and I have the name of the driver from the moving company and assurances he'll be in touch on Monday. Meanwhile, Samantha has been kept very well distracted by Rare Book School -- she's learning a lot, making some new friends and enjoying her time in Charlottesville. She heads home tomorrow.

Part of me can't believe I'll be in Connecticut next week. But the other part of me thinks it can't come any sooner. I hate these in between times when I have no schedule -- it unsettles me. And I am forever reminded of our missing cat looking around this apartment, and Robert seems to be realizing that something is amiss -- he has been more than needy. We need a change and we need it now. Good thing it is indeed coming soon.

Not much else going on around here. I have been distracting myself with Gilmore Girls and Battlestar Galactica in my spare time. I am attempting to eat my way through the rest of my pantry. I hate moving. That is all. How are you?

What is there to say? He's gone.

Continue reading "Angus" »

I had my first roller derby experience last Saturday. Or, as perhaps I should phrase it: I'm no longer a roller derby virgin. And man did it feel good.

My friend Mari skates derby back where she lives and was in town for our professional organization's big annual conference. We managed to slip away for a while to catch the first day of Battle of the Banks, a big two-day tournament hosted by the LA Derby Dolls. It was a great introduction to the sport for me, as I was able to watch almost four full bouts and six different teams. I was pretty lost for the first one, but finally picked up on all the rules for the second bout, and was cheering my voice out by the third.

Mari and I were rooting hard for Team Awesome (some photos NSFW), a group of WFTDA all stars from various leagues around the country, including two skaters from Minnesota (Harmony Killerbruise and Biscuit). Despite being unfamiliar with banked track skating, they more than held their own and just barely lost two close bouts with the Derby Dolls top squad. Biscuit did a fantastic job jamming, but not as good as another jammer named Jackie Daniels, who I've decided is my new derby crush.

It was a great, great time. I would definitely go back for more bouts. You know, if I wasn't leaving the state in two weeks. Good thing there are leagues popping up all over the country. CT RollerGirls, here we come!

In other news:

• The aforementioned conference was a good time, especially hanging out with Mari. We took off a little early on Monday to see Venice Beach, stop by an awesome ice cream place (I had pistachio lemon) and catch a showing of WALL*E at the Arclight (excellent movie, but left me feeling very strange).
• My trip to San Diego to see the Twins and the Padres was very successful. Petco Park is a wonderful place to watch baseball, I got a picture taken with Joe Nathan, and the Twins trounced the Padres 9-3. Thanks to my colleague Eric for coming along and driving!
• Planning for the move continues. I'll be flying out on July 17th. We are tempting fate and hiring movers again (noooooo!) despite our poor experience two years ago. The cats are traveling in style, the same way they did two years ago. Stay tuned...
• I'm in the process of planning a happy hour for my birthday/impending departure from LA. How does the 12th or the 14th sound? Let me know.
• I never filled you in on my recent Amoeba haul, did I? The bounty: Ciao, Baby by theSTART, The Bird and the Bee (eponymous) and Night Falls Over Kortedala by Jens Lekman. All have been very enjoyable in very different ways.

My days are numbered here in California... it seems like I still have a ton to do, but I know these two weeks will race by. Thanks for coming along on the ride.

We head to the golden age of Hollywood romanticism for this 1939 adaptation of Emily Brontë's classic novel. Laurence Olivier and Merle Oberon star as forever unrequited lovers Heathcliff and Cathy as life's events bring them together and apart in heartbreaking tragedy. William Wyler directs.

Here's another film that totally matches what I was expecting to see coming in to this project. Big stars, big stories, drama, action, passion! I may sound like a movie trailer, but what many movies claim to have, this one truly delivers.

First of all, Olivier and Oberon are tremendous. As Samantha put it, "These are very pretty people." Olivier is strikingly handsome, dark and brooding -- perfectly fitting with the character. His acting is at once understated and powerful. Heathcliff's immense contempt for Cathy in the later parts of the film couldn't be clearer on his face (perhaps because Olivier and Oberon didn't get along in real life). Oberon too is well cast as the beautiful but conflicted and selfish Cathy. It's worth the price of admission to see these two making doe eyes at each other.

But the rest of the film also matches up. The supporting acting (particularly Hugh Williams as Hindley) is fine. The Oscar-winning cinematography (by Gregg Toland, who would go on to become famous for his work on Citizen Kane) creates a perfect setting with strident dark and light hues reflecting the moodiness of the story. The screenwriting is excellent and makes the cuts necessary to craft a well-paced and concise film out of Brontë's sprawling novel (though purists may take umbrage at the second half of the book being completely left out). The California hills stand in well for the wild Yorkshire moors.

It's not an easy sight to watch these beautiful people destroy one another, but darn if they didn't put it together well. Chalk up another winner.

(See this post if you're confused why I'm reviewing movies.)

1) Be sure to go vote for Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau for the All-Star Game. They are both second in the running behind Red Sox players and within striking distance -- especially Mauer, who has been far and away the best catcher in the American League this year. You can vote up to 25 times! Win tickets to a Twins game! What are you waiting for?!

2) I am basically this guy, except with less profanity. I have settled in 15th place in my fantasy league and, barring a miracle, am likely to stay there. I blame the entire roster of the Washington Nationals.

I think lazy summers is one of the main reasons I have always wanted to stick around in academia for as long as I can. Being a high school teacher was too much to make the summers off worth it, but academic librarianship provides the perfect balance. I don't get the summer off, but things definitely slow down. Add to this the end of the choral music season, and I've got a lazy week coming up. Woo hoo!

Of course, that laziness isn't going to last long. The big annual conference for my professional organization is coming up at the end of the month, and then I've got my cross-country move after that. Guess that means I should enjoy my downtime while it lasts.

It's been a while since my last newsy post, so let's try and catch up...

• My mom's visit to LA was successful. We visited some mom-worthy spots (the Getty, the Huntington, the coast), she saw my library, she enjoyed the concert -- all went well. Thanks for coming out, Mom!
• I managed to get out to Poughkeepsie one more time, thanks to the job search. The highlight of the visit: a trip to the Hyde Park drive in theater for a double showing of Indiana Jones and Iron Man! Tons of fun as we rolled Roz into the parking spot backwards and opened up the hatchback into the cool Hudson Valley evening. Awesome.
• Speaking of the job search, it's over now. In case you missed that.
• My choral season is also nearly over -- just one last Sunday service at the end of the month for my church gig. It's been a long and very busy year for me, so I'm not sad to see it end. New friends and fun memories, as always, are what I'll miss.
• One of said new friends gave me a going away present: the first season of Battlestar Galactica on DVD. I just finished watching it last night, and it's pretty frakkin' awesome. Just put the next few discs on hold at one of the local libraries (using their brand spanking new catalog).
• I have been less distracted by baseball of late. I think my 5-year honeymoon with the Minnesota Twins is over. They're not a very good team again this year -- offense is bad as usual, and the pitching has been much better. They're hovering around .500 for most of the season, which might actually cut it, given that the rest of the division is also worse than we expected. Who knows?
• But, I am going to see the Twinkies soon. Thanks to the wonders of interleague play, the San Diego Padres are hosting a three game series with my hometown team next week, and I'll be in attendance for the Wednesday game, along with a friend from work. An excellent use of my personal holiday, if I do say so myself. Baseball road trip!
• Then, not two days later, my good friend Mari arrives for the aforementioned conference. We're also hoping to do a few extracurricular activities... possibly including an LA Derby Dolls bout and some, uh, research for her cookbook.

What are you looking forward to doing this summer?

How much would you pay for this cinnamon roll? Looks awesome, doesn't it? Note that it's approximately as big as my head.

Think now.

$2.25, you say? Well, yes, that's how much money I gave to the nice lady at Panaderia in San Fernando earlier today. But that's not all I got. Here's the rest.

Some delicious pan dulce (which I have since devoured) and a tasty looking cookie. I think I've found my new favorite bakery ever.

The first in a three part series about my crazy year masquerading as a professional choral singer in Los Angeles.

Continue reading "Singing in LA #1: The Los Angeles Master Chorale" »