best. book. ever. and r.i.p., gene, betsy, & their canine friend

i ordered it from penguin for $20, including s/h. the real book, the tangible tome, i think you'd agree, is much preferable to the online read. including this one.

below is the best article i've read of the sadness of the last days of this actor, with whom i was in abject infatuation from ages 12-15. (before that was humphrey bogart.)

hackman's character of popeye doyle is a bit like james, at least james's hale, fearsome, tough-talking, irish, rogue-cop parts. of course, as with all people, there's so much more... keep your attention tight on your loved ones, is the message i get. cleave close to your fellows, for "no [wo]man is an island." here is the article: A Lonely End for Two-Too-Private People

el futuro es ahora!!!

waiting for signore page to awaken so we can embark upon Big Day numero uno... excited & sleepy! we've been nerding out lately watching a lot of smithsonian, pbs, & TEDtalks... the last in particular is so inspiring!! was glad to hear the more-cynical-than-i-am james say yes, he thinks TEDtalks is impacting culture positively, that it isn't just nerds who are being affected, but the greater population. i know francene my friend said this is the "age of the nerd king," so maybe considerations of more than money & materialism ARE becoming more the american zeitgeist (wait -- a zeitgeist can't "become"... i'm still kind of asleep). anyways, the best overall shows we've watched, in my opinion, are PBS's futurestates. here's a link so you can WATCH ALL OF THEM RIGHT NOW!!
these are some of the best short films i've seen in a long while. as a collection, they are overall THE best! my favorites, tho some are quite dystopian, are these: "a robot walks into a bar," "tent city," "worker drone," & the greatest one of all, "PLASTIC BAG"!!! i laughed & chuckled & felt all warm & fuzzy inside thru the whole film; if you're like me, an enormous fan of the great, over-analytical, eccentric, brave, crazy, ponderous, wonderful director herzog, you will love love love "plastic bag."
hope you enjoy the films. times to go awaken the great one now (& i don't mean gleason!!)