A somewhat desperate and vain attempt to quiet the naysayers in my head
Friday, June 30, 2006
Movie Friday Returns!
Hey all...
I know you've missed Movie Friday as much as I have, but I've been busy dammit! I'm moving on Monday and I've been working lots of overtime at work and... Truthfully, it's all lies. I have been busy, but I use that excuse for everything. I am an underachiever in the best sense of the word. :)
This week I'm recommending an older film, but one I thoroughly enjoyed and still do to this day. Searching for Bobby Fischer was released in 1993 and I don't know that it did all that well at the box office. The film is loosely based upon a nonfiction book of the same title. It tells the story of a young boy who is a chess prodigy and born into a normal all American family. After his father discovers his talent, he is eager to have his son win matches and become a champion. His son, Josh, is still a little boy growing up and doesn't quite understand the adult concentration on winning and being better than everyone else. As Josh grows up through the film, so does his father. The movie makes an important and valid point that child prodigies are still children first and foremost.
This film has an extraordinary cast. Max Pomeranc gives a believable and authentic performance as Josh. I wouldn't say he's as good as the kid in Little Man Tate, but he's pretty darn close. He comes across as a normal and affable kid who's caught up in the melee that has become his life. Ben Kingsley is amazing as Max's chess coach and Laurence Fishburne brings his usual strength of character to his role as a chess playing homeless man from the park. Joan Allen, in one of her earlier roles, brings forth the kind of power that would carry her to starring roles in later years. She is fierce and I am such a fan of her work. I refuse to gush anymore, but she could read names out of the phone book and I would pay top dollar to listen. Joe Mategna also gives a great performance as Josh's father, the guy who wants everyone to know his kid is a genius. You also see William H Macy amongst other actors with supporting roles before they went on to bigger projects.
Searching for Bobby Fischer is an extraordinary gem of a film that I cannot say enough about. I hope you all enjoy it as much as I have.
So Pride Weekend has come and gone once again. No one lost any teeth this year (thankfully). This weekend happened to be our bi-yearly shift change at the PD, so I wasn't able to get Saturday off for the Pink Party. I got out of work early Sunday morning at 1 AM. I then headed back to my house to mix 2+ gallons of Cosmopolitans for the parade.
Sunday morning, I made it to the parade by 10:00 AM. It was the perfect San Francisco day. Cool, breezy, and sunny. A gaggle of my friends came out. We enjoyed the parade, downed the Cosmos by noon, and then trooped over to Civic Center for the rest of the festivities.
Pride did seem a bit subdued this year. In the center area, there weren't nearly as many booths and the Latin stage was pretty quiet until Fey started performing around 4 PM. I suppose performing is a strong word as she lip synched her entire act a la Britney Spears. Still, she had some great dancers. Gloria Trevi hit the stage at 5 PM and gave a good performance.
My man had some friends in from LA and San Jo, so he and I met up periodically during the day. After Pride, we crashed at his hotel for a few hours. He and his crew ventured out to the Castro while I went home and crashed.
Monday, I picked him up just after noon and we spent an amazing day together. We stopped in at Tartine, and then headed over to Dolores Park where we sat on the grass in the sunshine and dog watched. Following that, we headed over to Ocean Beach where the fog had rolled in thick and heavy. It was one of those amazing San Francisco days where the tourists draw back in fear, yet I revel. It is hard to express why I feel so much a part of the fog. The wind plays the fog like an accomplished musician artfully plays their instrument. It chills me to the depths of my soul and makes me feel such a great love and connection to my home, my City by the Bay. San Francisco is a city of extremes. You will not find anyone who thinks San Francisco is ok or just alright. Either you love it here with all of your heart and soul or you were not built for the chaos and the havoc that is the Land of Misfit Toys.
We finished up the day with dinner at Hotei and then I regretfully headed to work for a late night overtime shift.
After a nearly perfect and effortless day, I am pleased to announce that the man who makes me beam (even now at 5 AM) and has made the last few weeks so special and amazing has agreed to be my boyfriend. Thus far, our relationship has consisted of happiness, joy, laughter, passion, sharing, exploration, and a level of comfort with each other that takes months if not years to achieve. He has brought forth parts of me that I did not think would ever emerge from the shadows of disappointments, previous relationships, broken promises, and a general distrust of gay men as a whole. For this, my fervent hope is that I am able to provide him with even one tenth of the happiness that he has brought forth in me. Te quiero mucho Oziel.
Hope that everyone had a great weekend. Movie Friday will be back this week. Promise.
I've got that Brady Bunch song Sunshine Day stuck in my head. It's so bright and sunny here this morning. It's also supposed to be in the mid 80s today. Craziness.
I've been working crazy overtime at the PD since two of my coworkers have been out on maternity leave and an ATV accident respectively. After nine months of training, I was all excited to complete training. The funny thing is once you clear training and you are on your own, you're suddenly like, "Fuck... I don't know if I have any clue what I'm doing." When I took my job as a dispatcher, I had very little appreciation or respect for how difficult this job can be. It's very much like a juggling act where the guy starts with two balls and then they keep throwing in more to see how many he can handle at one time. Sometimes, you've got way too many balls in the air and you're hoping they don't all come crashing down. Overall though, I work with some very cool people and thus far my experiences have been good. Also, I'm enjoying having one job for what is likely the first time in my life since I was 18.
I met a man about two weeks ago now. I've been dating here and there for some time now, but I've fallen into this relationship effortlessly and it almost feels too easy. After dating in this city for so many years, I'm so bitter and jaded that nothing seems real anymore. It's very hard to let your guard down and just trust someone. Our work schedules are not quite in synch, but I've been able to spend several wonderful days with him thus far and he seems like a sweet, fun, sexy guy. Oh yeah, he's latin too and hotter than a volcano. After going to my friend's wedding last week, it definitely stirred up feelings of "I want this too! I want the fairy tale." (Thank you Pretty Woman and my sisters who watched and wore out 3 VHS tapes of that movie.) In some weird way, I think it might be possible with this guy. My only other long term relationship started this way as well. I fell into it very quickly and it just felt right. I'm trying not to over think this and enjoy it for what it is right now. Hopefully, my OCD won't ruin this for me.
It is Gay Pride week here in San Francisco. The film festival is in full swing and I am going to catch a movie tonight and on Thursday. Sunday is parade day and I will be making my popular Pride Margaritas. Last year was a total blast and I look forward to this year being the same. Gay Pride here isn't so much about being gay, but about spending the day with good friends and recognizing the fact that we can live our lives proudly, openly, and comfortably. It's what makes this city so talented, amazing, and sexy.
So I haven't posted this week. Sorry all... Life seems to get busier with every passing week.
I signed a lease on an apartment in Oakland for July 1st. Yes Oakland. Stop hissing all of you crazy queens. It's a short bridge crossing away and it will put me much closer to work in Fremont. On my days off, I'm sure I will be spending much time in the city. Driving an hour each day to and from Fremont has become tiresome and I figure I will save bridge tolls and gas by moving. I found a terrific urban apartment with cement floors, modern appliances, and it's built over a grocery store. Can anyone say convenience? The apartment is on the border between Oakland and San Leandro, so it will cut my commute by more than 50%. I hesitated a bit as the neighborhood is slightly ghetto, but no worse than anywhere else and the apartment is what I've dreamed about for years. It's also pet friendly, so I can get a dog if I want later on in the year. I'm stoked to be on my own again. Much as I have loved living in Noe Valley, I have way too much stuff for the small room that I have rented for the past two years. I'm looking forward to having a decent amount of space to call my own. Decorating will be a blast too, so on all fronts, it is going to be a lot of fun.
I took off to Vegas on Tuesday of this week for two short days. My old friend Angie from Hawaii got married and I had the time off from work, so I made the trip. I was based in Las Vegas for six months about two years ago. My parents lived there at the time, so it was a great opportunity to catch up with them. On the flip side, I really don't like Vegas culture. I'm whiter than white, so I'm cooked after fifteen minutes in the sun. Cooked or uncooked, my two settings. I don't enjoy gambling. The obese tourists lining up at the buffets in their wheelchairs and gorging themselves to death is always a nice site to eat by. The cigarette smoke, the trashy people, the heat, Celine Dion, it's all way too much.
That being said, I ended up having as good a time as I have had in Vegas. We stayed at the Golden Nugget which is located in downtown Las Vegas. This was my first time visiting the older casinos and it's a very cute scene. It reminded me of Reno, only cleaner. I think the slots were looser too because I won $30 on top of the $10 the Golden Nugget gave you to gamble with if you signed up for their frequent player club. I have never walked away from Vegas having won anything, so the $40 I won was a huge achievement for me. The hotel itself has been recently remodeled and was an excellent value for the price.
The wedding was a lot of fun. They brought over leis from Hawaii and tried to do as close a traditional Hawaiian wedding as is possible in Vegas. They had a hula troupe come in and dance during dinner. It was a nice touch and very Hawaiian except that we were in Vegas. The food was buffet style and very good. The worst part about the whole wedding was the DJ package that the hotel provided. The DJ did stupid game after stupid game after stupid dance contest. He kept Angie and her new husband Norm hopping. They were so busy trying to do all of his stupid special dances and such that I don't think they truly could enjoy their wedding. My friend Angie works as a television anchor, so she wanted everything to go off without a hitch and it did for the most part. I haven't been to a wedding in a long time, so it was fun to see. It made me wish I could get married one of these days. I assure you, if and when I do get married, it will not be in Vegas.
So I flew home this morning and went straight to work. Needless to say, I'm a bit beat. I also met someone earlier this week that is very cute and very sweet. We shall see where things go from here, but thus far, I'm liking my flavor of the month.
This week, I would like to recommend one of my favorite movies of all time. I saw this movie a couple of years ago and was mesmorized. When I watch it today, I am still overwhelmed by the beauty and magic of it.
Frida tells the true life story of Frida Kahlo, the famed Mexican artist. The only thing that disappointed me about the film was that it was in English. The film would have been even more beautiful and authentic if it was in Spanish. Salma Hayak plays Frida Kahlo in the role of her lifetime. She brings a confidence and tenacity to the role that I did not see in her before this film. The rest of the cast is magnificent as well; Alfred Molina, Ashley Judd, Geoffrey Rush, Edward Norton, Diego Luna, and many many more talented actors.
Julie Taymor directed this film and created a vivid and beautiful world for our imaginations to live in. She intertwines scenes of Frida's life with amazing animated scenes utilizing the skeletons from El Dia de Los Meurtos festivities. It gives the film an other world quality that is hard to describe. The soundtrack is also beautiful and haunting, featuring the amazing Lila Downs. Her voice touches the deepest reaches of your soul.
Frida Kahlo crammed much into her short life and interpreted her life through her paintings. Everything is there on canvas for us to see; her joys and sorrows, her strengths and faults. This film is a fitting tribute to her memory and an inspiration that we all add some color to our lives.
So I kissed a boy this weekend and now I am feeling ill. Oy vey, it seems that I always get myself into trouble by kissing boys.
I had my final day at CPK yesterday and it was heavenly. Tonight, some friends and I are going out to celebrate. I wish I felt better, but I'm not going to let a little cold stand in my way.
I sold Mimi (my old car) this weekend to a dealer in Burlingame. My only hope is that her new owner is not some punk kid who puts a fin on her and drives her to rice rocket rallys. She was always a great car and I will miss her dearly.
Tomorrow marks my first day at the PD as a real in-service dispatcher. I'm very much looking forward to being on my own after nine months of training.
June is Gay Pride Month across the U.S. Here in San Francisco, Gay Pride weekend is the last weekend of the month (which is the 23rd through the 25th). San Francisco has a month long celebration with the Film Festival (www.frameline.org) and many other activities planned throughout the month. The funny thing about Gay Pride weekend is that you run into all sorts of people throughout the weekend. It's more of a big party than anything else. I ran into a girlfriend of mine, her firefigher husband, and two young kids last year at the street fair. When I asked, "What are you doing here?", she beamed and responded, "It's Gay Pride! Where else would I be?"
This week, I'd like to recommend Good Bye Lenin! It's a German film set in 1989 around the time of the fall of the Berlin Wall.
The main character of the film is Alex. He's a normal teenager whose mother is a dedicated communist in East Berlin. His mother falls into a coma just as the wall falls. When his mother awakes eight months later, she has no idea of the changes that have occurred. The doctors warn Alex that any major changes or shocks could kill his mother. Alex creates an artificial bubble for his mother where nothing has changed, but this becomes harder and harder to do as she regains her health.
Daniel Bruehl, who plays Alex, is a talented (not to mention cute!) actor who gives a sweet performance. This movie is quite funny and touching at the same time. I think deep down inside, all little boys want to take care of their mothers and this movie definitely tugs at those strings. It's also a great look at how East Germany literally was changed within a year or two of the wall coming down and the chaos that ensued. I remember seeing the trailer of this film and thinking this movie wouldn't be that good, but it really is a lovely film. I highly recommend it.
