Ah the Holidays. The time of year when tastes in entertainment wildly fluctuate between traditional (when you're trying to offset the deluge of commercialism, and rekindle the childlike wonder of innocent Christmas's Past) and non (when too much traditional leaves a saccharine taste in your mouth). And so, to indulge both polarities of mirth I offer my list of alternative Christmas films, and favorite quotations from A Christmas Carol.
The Top 5 Alternative Christmas Films (in no preferential order):
1. Die Hard 1
2. Die Hard 2
3. Lethal Weapon
4. Love Actually
5. Brazil
Honorable Mention (for those films that feature Christmas but aren't exclusively set during Christmas)
-About a Boy
-Ronin
And the Dickens' passages, starting with the Spirit of Christmas Present, an angel...
"There are some upon this earth of yours," returned the Spirit, "Who claim to know us, and who do their deeds of passion, pride, ill will, hatred, envy, bigotry, and selfishness in our name, who are as strange to us, and all of our kith and kin, as if they had never lived. Remember that, and charge their doings on themselves, not us."
163 years after its publication, and still as relevant as if it were written this year...
and finally,
"No fog, no mist; clear, bright, jovial, stirring, cold; cold, piping for the blood to dance to; golden sunlight; heavenly sky; sweet fresh air; merry bells. Oh, glorious! Glorious!"
Magnificent.
Sunday, December 24, 2006
Thursday, December 14, 2006
The Idea of My Home
One of the downsides of living in your basic boring suburb is that you can never fully relate to the settings and scenes in literature. Sometimes it's all too only present in the imagination, when sometimes you would like to be shown something you know well in different lighting.
I have only had the thrill of a writer dipping their hot pen into my memory of place twice: first, an offhand reference in John Steinbeck's East of Eden, where the character Lee tells an uncharacteristic story of getting drunk and waking up in the belltower of The First United Methodist Church in San Leandro - where I once attended (I remember feverishly asking my wife, "They have a belltower?"); and second, in Curtis White's The Idea of Home, which takes place (mostly) in my burg (actually, it's more of a step-burg, since living here was a thrust of circumstance), of San Lorenzo.
Above and beyond ample references to local events, the names of known streets, and the inclusion of local figures (especially David K. Bohannon - the developer who supposedly resembles Walt Disney, though the portrait Mr. White refers to in the novel no longer adorns his namesake middle school for me to confirm; and the Mervyns of department store fame), this novel affirmed for me how history festers under the thin topsoil of time, so that discovering what faction of your identity is related to the places you have lived requires not only defining an area's zeitgeist or hidden curriculum, but discovering and evaluating great bloody stains across the landscape, even here in a relatively quiet post-war suburb. While I don't agree that one can be judged by the history of your town/state/nation, I can't ignore the influence of latent angst from others that have gone by the label of San Lorenzians, Californiansm, Americans.
That, and The Idea of Home is one of those rare examples of consistently readable experimentation. Check out this novel and others by Curtis White recently re-released by the venerable Dalkey Archive Press (http://www.dalkeyarchive.com/)
I have only had the thrill of a writer dipping their hot pen into my memory of place twice: first, an offhand reference in John Steinbeck's East of Eden, where the character Lee tells an uncharacteristic story of getting drunk and waking up in the belltower of The First United Methodist Church in San Leandro - where I once attended (I remember feverishly asking my wife, "They have a belltower?"); and second, in Curtis White's The Idea of Home, which takes place (mostly) in my burg (actually, it's more of a step-burg, since living here was a thrust of circumstance), of San Lorenzo.
Above and beyond ample references to local events, the names of known streets, and the inclusion of local figures (especially David K. Bohannon - the developer who supposedly resembles Walt Disney, though the portrait Mr. White refers to in the novel no longer adorns his namesake middle school for me to confirm; and the Mervyns of department store fame), this novel affirmed for me how history festers under the thin topsoil of time, so that discovering what faction of your identity is related to the places you have lived requires not only defining an area's zeitgeist or hidden curriculum, but discovering and evaluating great bloody stains across the landscape, even here in a relatively quiet post-war suburb. While I don't agree that one can be judged by the history of your town/state/nation, I can't ignore the influence of latent angst from others that have gone by the label of San Lorenzians, Californiansm, Americans.
That, and The Idea of Home is one of those rare examples of consistently readable experimentation. Check out this novel and others by Curtis White recently re-released by the venerable Dalkey Archive Press (http://www.dalkeyarchive.com/)
Sunday, December 10, 2006
Quotations Various # 1
My wife was looking for something to bring the industrial revolution alive for her classes, and coming up with "Oliver Twist" I set off to see if I had any pertinent quotes for her to use.
You see, about five years ago I got the idea that if I wrote down some of the passages in books and magazines that impressed me perhaps I would, in the act of scribing, remember the particulars of what I read better. I began with an essay by Richard Meier, a thirsty page of college-lined paper, my irascible fountain pen, an empty binder, and the pretentious title of "Collage," (because I was taking the found art of others and incorporating them into something for myself). Now, while the aide it has been to my memory is questionable, at least when asked about a book I've read I have a chance at presenting something concrete.
As I filled my Collage pages, themes began to emerge in what I chose for perserving: beauty, in word play or sentiment; wit; quotes with an aphoristic edge; writing about writing (something I think every writer has a fetish for); and class struggle.
Which brings me back to Dickens. From time to time now I will share some of my favorite quotations and passages, and this one following, from "Oliver Twist" has such a rich blend of my just-stated interests, that it seemed a perfect beginning.
"You shall read them, if you behave well," said the old gentleman kindly; "and you will like that, better than looking at the outsides - that is, in some cases; because there are books of which the backs and covers are by far the best parts."
"I suppose they are those heavy ones, sir," said Oliver, pointing to some large quartos with a good deal of gilding about the binding.
"Not always those," said the old gentleman, patting Oliver on the head, and smiling as he did so; "There are other equally heavy ones, though of a much smaller size. How should you like to grow up a clever man, and write books, eh?"
"I think I would rather read them, sir," replied Oliver.
"What! Wouldn't you like to be a book-writer?" said the old gentleman.
Oliver considered a little while, and at last said he should think it would be a much better thing to be a book-seller, upon which the old gentleman laughed heartily, and declared he had said a very good thing. Which Oliver felt glad to have done, though he by no means knew what it was.
"Well, well," said the old gentleman, composing his features. "Don't be afraid! We won't make an author of you, while there's an honest trade to e learnt, or brick-making to turn to."
Fantastic.
You see, about five years ago I got the idea that if I wrote down some of the passages in books and magazines that impressed me perhaps I would, in the act of scribing, remember the particulars of what I read better. I began with an essay by Richard Meier, a thirsty page of college-lined paper, my irascible fountain pen, an empty binder, and the pretentious title of "Collage," (because I was taking the found art of others and incorporating them into something for myself). Now, while the aide it has been to my memory is questionable, at least when asked about a book I've read I have a chance at presenting something concrete.
As I filled my Collage pages, themes began to emerge in what I chose for perserving: beauty, in word play or sentiment; wit; quotes with an aphoristic edge; writing about writing (something I think every writer has a fetish for); and class struggle.
Which brings me back to Dickens. From time to time now I will share some of my favorite quotations and passages, and this one following, from "Oliver Twist" has such a rich blend of my just-stated interests, that it seemed a perfect beginning.
"You shall read them, if you behave well," said the old gentleman kindly; "and you will like that, better than looking at the outsides - that is, in some cases; because there are books of which the backs and covers are by far the best parts."
"I suppose they are those heavy ones, sir," said Oliver, pointing to some large quartos with a good deal of gilding about the binding.
"Not always those," said the old gentleman, patting Oliver on the head, and smiling as he did so; "There are other equally heavy ones, though of a much smaller size. How should you like to grow up a clever man, and write books, eh?"
"I think I would rather read them, sir," replied Oliver.
"What! Wouldn't you like to be a book-writer?" said the old gentleman.
Oliver considered a little while, and at last said he should think it would be a much better thing to be a book-seller, upon which the old gentleman laughed heartily, and declared he had said a very good thing. Which Oliver felt glad to have done, though he by no means knew what it was.
"Well, well," said the old gentleman, composing his features. "Don't be afraid! We won't make an author of you, while there's an honest trade to e learnt, or brick-making to turn to."
Fantastic.
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