What I'm Reading Now -- The Sense of an Ending

My latest postal book club book is Julian Barnes's The Sense of an Ending.  I've heard great things about this book for years, and I'm super excited that it has now made its way to the top of my reading list!

I'm about eight pages in as I write this, and so far the writing is simply beautiful.  I can't wait to see what the rest of the book has in store!

Goals 2018 -- March Edition

My March goal (okay, my "remaining 3 weeks of March goal") has two prongs; it's weather dependent.

If the weather is good, I will get out and ride my bike.  Last year I didn't ride nearly as much as I wanted to, and now is the time to get off to a good start.

However, if the weather is bad, I will (1) revisit my February goal, (2) finish reading The Secret Battle, and (3) finish reading my next postal book club book, which you all will hear about in the next couple of days.

No matter what the weather, I will be busy!

Goals 2018 -- February Recap

I totally failed in February.  And not for any good reason either; I was working!  Boo hiss.

I sit at a desk, starting at a computer, all day.  So the last thing I want to do when I get home is stare at a computer, deleting old emails.  And so I didn't.  I did, however, get an excellent piece of advice from Dad, which was this: "delete everything."

This one will come around again, and I probably will delete everything.

What I Watched -- Oscar-Nominated Animated Shorts

Dear Basketball: a retiring Kobe Bryant reads a love letter to his sport and reflects on his life-long dreams of playing professional basketball.  I am surprised to report that this was probably my favorite of the shorts (the soaring John Williams score doesn't hurt).  I just wish it hadn't been quite so Kobe, because he appalls me as a person.

Revolting Rhymes: this is an animated retelling of the Roald Dahl retelling of several classic fairy tales.  While cute and clever, it was too long.

Lou: a cute tale of the playground bully being taught a lesson.  Pixar always does a good job.

Negative Space: a sweet retrospective about a son's relationship with his father.

Garden Party: an unfortunate (and gross) political and social commentary.

What I Watched -- Oscar-Nominated LIve-Action Shorts

It's Oscar season, and the Tivoli showed both the live-action and animated short films in a single night.  S indulged me, and we went to see both.

DeKalb Elementary: an elementary school office assistant comes face to face with a troubled man who is threatening to shoot up the school.  A timely and sensitive portrayal of both people.

My Nephew Emmett: a look at the last days in the life of Emmett Till, a Chicago kid who got himself in trouble when he moved down south.

The Silent Child: a deaf child whose family is too busy and troubled to make time for her connects with her sign language teacher.  My favorite.

The Eleven O'Clock: a comedic interaction between a psychiatrist whose patient believes he's a psychiatrist.

Watu Wote (All of Us): overtly a story about religious discrimination in Kenya between Christians and Muslims.  The real story is about the goodness that can emerge even in the face of such hatred.

What I Watched -- Newness

Newness is an attempt at social commentary.  It is the story of two millennials who find each other via an online dating app.  The question appears to be: "have dating apps ruined our ability to find love?"  The question turns out to be: "in a world where there are endless choices and no one can commit, can love survive an open relationship?"

It's not really the question that I wanted answered.  I much prefer stories about how millennials are destroying society than about how nothing has ever changed and nothing ever will.

Spoiler alert: the answer to both questions is no.

Bottom line: a good effort, but not what I was looking for.

The Clover and the Bee

After our recent symphony date, S and I headed to The Clover and the Bee.  It's the newest brainchild of the Olive + Oak folks.

I've been to O+O a couple of times, and I believe I have neglected to write about it.  I apologize.  In brief: though the food and drinks have been delightful each time, it is usually crowded and always noisy.  Plan to go early or pick a nice night so you can sit outside, and you will thoroughly enjoy yourself.

The Clover and the Bee is the casual younger sibling of O+O.  I was unable to go during its first few months because they were only open for breakfast and lunch, but they are now also serving dinner!  They have an early-dinner happy hour, which was a nice surprise.  They have several beers, their house wines, and a variety of appetizers on the happy hour menu.  Their food is fresh and local, and they do both dine-in and carry-out service.

When we were there, I had the burrata sandwich and S had the bucatini.  The sandwich was oily, but in the best way.  The bucatini was surprisingly rich and filling.

It's a place I would be happy to go back to -- and it's much quieter than it's fancier neighbor.  A nice spot for a date night!

SLSO - Show #6

Our second-to-last show of the season was a stunning combination of early-career works from three well-known composers: Schubert, Weber, and Mendelssohn.  I am not terribly familiar with any of their canons, so this was a fun smorgasbord and a learning experience.

I really like the Franz Schubert piece, Symphony No. 3 in D. Major, D. 200.  It was lively and engaging.  The piece by Carl Maria von Weber, Clarinet Concerto No 1 in F Minor, op. 73, was hit or miss.  The clarinet parts were wonderful, and the SLSO's soloist nailed it.  The non-clarinet parts I found to be a little dull.  The final piece, Felix Mendelssohn's Symphony No. 1 in C Major, op. 11, was also a winner.  It was the title show of the piece, and was a real stunner.

What was so incredible about this group together was that they were all such early works; Schubert was 18, Weber was 25, and Mendelssohn was 15 when they composed the subject works.  Pair those ages with all the Olympic medals who were just won by people half my age and I'm feeling quite unaccomplished.

What I Watched -- While We're Young

Weirdly, or perhaps not, because I have no idea how Netflix recommends anything anymore, right after watching Sunlight Jr., Netflix recommended another Naomi Watts flick: While We're Young. 

This was a better choice.  Still not great, but an improvement.  As a rule, I find Adam Driver irritating, which he was in this movie.  But Ben Stiller was not, so that was a nice change of pace. And Amanda Seyfried, who is often vapid and bratty, was a nice counterpoint to Naomi's character.

Naomi and Ben play Cornelia and Josh, an early-middle-aged, childfree couple who feel unmoored when their best friends have a baby.  They meet Jamie and Darby -- younger and hipper versions of themselves.  Josh is an independent filmmaker who has been unable to finish his current project, and Jamie flatters his way into an assistantship.

The film is an examination of the spaces we sometimes find ourselves in, which are neither here nor there.  It's a common sentiment, and the movie hits on a lot of the relevant emotions; however, it goes astray with the whole storyline about Jamie using Josh as a way to get to Cornelia's dad, who is a famous filmmaker himself.  It was an unnecessary detour which detracted from the whole.

Bottom line: a good effort that didn't get there.  I wish it had, though.

What I'm Reading Now -- Wedding Toasts I'll Never Give

S picked up Wedding Toasts I'll Never Give at the library one Saturday while I was at work.  He read the whole thing that day. I'm not that quick of a reader, but I'm working my way through it.

It's not overly profound on the subject of marriage, but it's extremely readable.  I have no idea who this Ada Calhoun lady is, or what her writing background is, but so far I like where she's ended up.  I'll report back upon conclusion!