Once Upon A Time That Never Was

I've been busy lately, driving trains.  Train Sim 5 is pretty cool and lots of fun.  My runs for Southeastern and Thameslink between Dartford and Gillingham, Faversham and Rainham now run pretty much on time.  I'm providing "good service" now, as they say.  I'm still trying to get the hang of the high speed run between St. Pancras and Ashford International.  Once they are going those trains are hard to stop.  So far my top speed has been about 205 kph.  Different viewpoints are allowed during the journey, and I can even watch my train zoom past from any location.  So if I haven't blogged too much lately, it's because I have such a busy timetable to keep.  Deb and I had once built a small HO layout with a desert setting, and I would run trains there.  But this is much more realistic.  In fact it's quite scary how realistic it all is.  There is a very slow speed limit in and around Rochester station, especially crossing the rail bridge over the River Medway.  But in the background once can see Rochester Castle and the cathedral.  Great fun!

In film news, Deb has just released her latest short film.  It's a music video called "The Once Upon a Time that Never Was", and it has just received its first (of many, no doubt) film festival acceptances.  The singer is from Argentina, and has an incredible voice.  The film features Deb's usual assortment of stunning and very original visuals.

 

Deb's latest short film.  It can be found on her website (see upper left margin here). 

 

In film watching news, there are several to report.  Beginning with the earliest viewings, Deb chose two films from Criterion.  One of my choices was also from Criterion.  The Cry of Granuile had a promising premise, but the film ended up just getting muddied, muddled, and muffled.  From 2022 Irish director Donal Foreman, the film attempts to link an Irish-American woman filmmaker researching an Irish legend for a possible film, with the local scenery and folk that she encounters.  However, things just go astray, and the film ends up being about nothing, really.  Any truths behind the legend of Granuile (a 16th C. pirate queen) are unreachable, and the female filmmaker ends up using completely fictional stories about her from modern times.  The main reason to watch the film is for some very fine landscape photography.

 

Leaving Criterion May 31st. 

 

Demon Pond is a  Japanese fantasy film from 1979, and can be called the Japanese version of The Last Wave.  A village stricken by drought is fed up with a local custom of ringing a ceremonial bell 3x daily so that the village never floods.  Legends say that a nearby pond contains a demon that is pacified by the bell, and that if the bell is not rung the demon will escape the pond and flood the land.  With some usual bad choices made, the pond eventually does flood, and a catastrophe ensues.  A second plot concerns a man on holiday out exploring the countryside.  He encounters a long lost friend who had up and disappeared one day many years ago.  He is the current bell ringer, along with his enchanted female companion.  Her part is played by Tamasaburo Bando, a male Kabuki actor known for his female roles.  A very odd film and no doubt rarely shown until now, this is certainly one to look out for.  It is showing on Criterion.

 

Now showing on Criterion. 

 

Dario Argento's Deep Red is from 1975, and is almost a very good film.  David Hemmings plays a jazz pianist who witnesses a murder and then becomes involved in solving it.  The first half of the film is a masterpiece of composition, setting, and atmosphere.  The second half is filled with animal torture and more graphic violence than probably any other film from the 1970s.  While this kind of violence usually works fine in a manga, on the screen it becomes a bit much, even laughable at times.  And it quickly becomes apparent that the murderer (not revealed until near the end) would have been incapable of getting to most of the places where he/she does the killings.  And then getting in quietly and in perfect position to commit the murders, one time with a three foot robot!  How did they get behind that curtain?  How did they get to the mansion, and the school?  Anyway, the first half of the film is great, and likely, if the director had not been so warped, could have been a decent and perhaps masterpiece murder-mystery.  But then he would have only been half as famous.  Leaving Criterion May 31st.

 

David Hemmings makes all the usual horror movie mistakes, and the director puts in all of the expected horror movie tropes.

 

The weather so far in 2025 has been mostly uncooperative towards amateur astronomers.  Tonight looks hopeful; so have many other nights, until the time actually arrives, as do the clouds.  But I am eternally hopeful!

 

Mapman Mike.

 

 

 

A Trip To Sudbury

May 11th was Mothers' Day.  It was also mom's 96th birthday!  We left home on Wednesday May 7th.  We drove back roads about 60% of the way, spending the night in Midland after visiting some breweries in Collingwood.  It was our first visit to this area, on the south shore of Lake Huron.  On Thursday we continued our drive north to Sudbury, and stayed until Tuesday morning, the 13th.  We managed the drive home in one go, taking about 7 1/2 hours.  Traffic and road construction did not hamper our journey.  

We ended up purchasing a new AC unit in Sudbury for the upstairs room, and we installed it this afternoon.  It's much smaller than the older one, which was 10,000 BTUs.  This one is only 6,000 BTUs.  It will get a trial run tomorrow and Friday, which are supposed to be pretty warm days.  We also came home with some fine ales from breweries along the way, as well as a restocking of Mead.

 

Trilliums were in bloom, and we stopped near Ridgetown to view some.

 

A quiet forest and some lovely trilliums.

 

Located in Alvinston ON, this has become a regular stop on the way north.  Our vehicle sits in the parking area.

 

The tap list at Northwinds Brewery in Collingwood.  We brought home some Nosey Parker and some Milk Run.

 

Just around the corner was Endswell Brewery, with some terrific English style ales on handpull!  There was also a separate pizza business inside with vegan pizzas, so we stayed a while and had our dinner.

The two beer engine handles are on Deb's right.  Both cask ales were superb!

 

Two ales were on cask at Endwell Brewery.  We will be back!

  

This is the final lock on the Port Severn/Trent canal.  After this lock boaters find themselves with access to Georgian Bay and the upper Great Lakes.

 

We hiked at Port Severn on the way up to Sudbury next day.  There were two dams, two waterfalls, and the canal lock.

 

The lake at Port Severn, which sits just above Georgian Bay.

 

One of the waterfalls scurries beneath a bridge at Port Severn.

 

Meanwhile in Sudbury a mining train crosses the Regent Street Trestle.  The trestle crosses two roads, three train tracks (two of which are mainline) and Junction Creek.  Trains pass about 100 meters from where my family lives, and where I grew up.

 

A quiet path leads from the hill near the family home to a vegan paradise corner in Sudbury.  There is a vegan Mexican restaurant, a vegan cafe and bakery, and, in season, a vegan ice cream shop.  The trail emerges at the railroad trestle, seen above.

 

Family dinner.  Deb's right hand on left edge.  Lynne, my sister-in-law; Emma Lee, my youngest niece; my brother Steve; Joe, partner to my oldest niece Alicia; mom.

 

Emma Lee created this masterpiece vegan black forest cake for our dessert.

 

Emma Lee puts the finishing touches on her creation. 

 

Since the family in Sudbury subscribes to Netflix and Disney+ (which we do not), we were able to continue watching the newest Dr. Who series.  We managed to finish Season One (much better writing, and some really fun stories), watched the most recent Christmas Special, and then caught the first episode of Season Two.  We also watched most of the rest of Season One of the newest version of Lost In Space.  We have one episode remaining in the first season.  Much like the old series, the adventures are mostly ruined by Dr. Smith.  This time it's a she, and she is evil through and through.  There could easily have been enough story opportunity without the miserable character of the doctor.  After a while one wishes to just stop watching, which is what we did.  The other characters are great, including the three kids.  Ruined by overuse of Dr. Smith; sound familiar?

 

In film news, there are two to report on that we watched before our journey north.   The Assassin is a film from 2015, split between Hong Kong and Taiwan.  Director Hou Hsiao-Hsien has created a masterpiece of cinema, a far cry from the acrobatic and violence filled Wuzia film type many have become accustomed to.  This film, by contrast, is mostly quiet and reflective, with occasional bursts of lightning fast fights that sometimes end with both combatants simply walking away.  The photography is stunning, the acting is restrained, and the sets are lush and a bit other worldly, with frequent use of filmy curtains.  The film won Best Director at Cannes!  It's easy to see why.  Worth more than a single viewing, this film is highly recommended.

 

The film is leaving Criterion May 31st.   

 

Antonioni's 1957 Il Grido follows a man who has been spurned by his wife.  She leaves him suddenly, though obviously things have been building for a while.  He keeps charge of his young daughter, and together they leave home and travel while he searches for work and a place to live.  The film is ruined by a totally stupid ending, but otherwise is quite good.  When he ends up at a lonely gas station with a beautiful woman who runs it, he has a grand opportunity to settle down and start a new life.  However, his problem is that he loves no other woman except his wife.  He thus throws away an opportunity that might have saved him.

The film rambles a bit, and the settings and locations are as bleak as the man's life.  One feels sorry for the little girl, whom he doesn't seem to really love or cherish.  She seems more like a stray dog to him that he picked up on his travels, and he treats her as such.  We meet many interesting characters along the way, including a former girlfriend who would also have liked him to stay with her.  He doesn't stay, choosing instead to move on like the proverbial wandering cowboy.

Though not a particularly great film, it has moments that are memorable and unique.  The frustration for viewers when he finally returns to his home village and sees his wife but fails to go and see and talk to her, are off the scale.  Then comes the stupidest ending of almost any film I have seen.  An early film by the master that his fans should seek out.

 

Now showing on Criterion. 

 

Mapman Mike

 

 

 

 

Spring Woodland Wildflower Walk

This long-awaited event usually happens on May 1st, the day after Beltane.  This year it occurred on May 2nd, due to wet weather on the 1st.  Beltane itself was a pretty good party, with music, our final indoor wood fire of the season, and Deb's highly anticipated return to normal eating by ordering a pizza from Armandos.  They offer several vegan style pizzas, and Deb had her first chew in many months.  Her jaw, which had stopped her from all solid foods, seems to be healing now, enough at least to have the occasional pizza.  In general her health has improved nearly 100% since Spring Equinox, including her bladder and kidney issues and those nasty blood clots in her lung.

 

The woodland walk was at a nearby conservation area that encompasses a large woodlot just northeast of the town of Essex.  This is a favourite location for our Spring walks, as it is usually filled with wildflowers.  This year was no exception, and we saw acres of them, with huge amounts of both wild ginger and jack-in-the-pulpits.  Of course spring beauties were everywhere, and violets in three colours.  A lot of buttercups were also seen.  The only important spring flower that this site doesn't have is the trillium.  At least in our adventures here we have never come across any of them.

 

 

Spring beauties up close.

 

A carpet of beauties surround a stump.  They seemed to be singing to it.

A sighting of the rare red-headed forest walker wildflower! 

 

 

 Wild violets up close.

 

 Wild violets not so close.

Wild ginger flowers are remarkably beautiful, but they are shy.  They usually hide beneath the broad leaves.

 

Things were happening in the woods today.

 

 

Part of the trail is on a boardwalk.  There was a lot of standing water today in places, and the mosquitoes won't be too far behind.

A buttercup. 

 

 

Part of our trail as it skirts open farmland.

There were some beautiful mosses seen today, always a favourite of mine.

 

In movie news there are a few to report.  Grand Tour is a Portuguese film from 2024 and directed by Miguel Gomes.  A man in Burma is about to meet his fiancee, arriving on a ship from England.  He gets cold feet and heads for the hills.  He goes to Bangkok, then Singapore, then into Chinese back country.  Though the year is 1917, the director uses modern scenes to describe much of the story.  In some cases budget restraints work wonderfully well if creatively handled, as does this film.  There is very little acting to do in the film, which is as much a travelogue as it is a story.  The narrator and filmed scenes of various cities and their street life present the story, often with much humour.  The film, mostly in b & w, reminded us often of the films of Guy Maddin, though this director's vision is far saner and more easily viewable.  Just when one thinks that are no new ways left to tell a story, here is a brand new and very effective way.  Highly recommended viewing.

 

Now showing on Mubi. 

 

Next came five short films by Romanian director Radu Jude.  The Tube With A Hat is a heartbreaking story of a poor family trying to get their old TV set repaired.   From 2006 it features a father and son all day trek (in the rain) to visit a TV repair shop in the city.  They carry the beast all the way there and all the way back.  Hiking, hitch hiking, and riding the bus eventually get them there and back.  However, the man drops the repaired set as they near their home again, slipping in the mud.  Will the TV work when they get it back inside their leaky-roofed home?  The film is 23 minutes of pure father-son adventure.

Shadow of a Cloud is from 2013 and is 30 minutes long.  A Bucharest priest is called to the side of a dying woman.  He begins to administer the last rites, as the woman is clearly dying.  However, the daughter of the dying woman interrupts him and tells him no, they want a prayer of healing.  He complies and leaves.  When the woman dies shortly afterwards, the daughter blames him entirely for the death, and his second visit does not go well.  An odd but effective film, very slowly paced.

The Marshall's Two Executions is from 2018 and is 10 minutes long.  Using actual b & w footage from a 1960s 4-man execution by firing squad in Romania, the director pairs the actual killings (which were filmed at the time) with a later colour film that also recreates events as they happened.  Thus we get to see a very grim part of Romanian history not once, but twice.  Gruesome and sad.

Plastic Semiotic is from 2021 and is 22 minutes long.  It is an hommage to childhood toys, many of them plastic.  Instead of using stop motion, the director sets ups dozens of tableaux featuring the toys, including some hilarious ones of toys having sex with each other.  This is as very fun film to watch, and the toy variety and quality are astounding.  Worth many viewings.

Caracturana is a 10 minute film that highlights graphic works by Daumier in a very unique manner.  The director organizes the film around hand gestures of the characters in the prints.  Quite fun, especially the prints themselves.

The Potemkinists is from 2022 and is 18 minutes long.  More Romanian history is detailed, having to do with the crew of the Potemkin.  They were actually accepted into Romania during the revolution, thus thwarting Russia's attempts to bring them all to justice.  A giant monument to the men stands on a high hill overlooking the Danube canal in Romania, but the bottom parts have been vandalized and removed by scrap thieves.  The film is about the historical events, but at the same time we see a man trying to convince a female bureaucrat to get the government to fund a repair job.  She is not convinced at first, but he manages to alter his vision slightly and get her on his side.  A fascinating bit of forgotten history.

 

Following our enjoyment of his small films, we attempted to watch a feature called Do Not Expect Too Much From The End of Time, from 2023.  Despite its success in festivals and high ratings from critics, it was not our cup of tea.  We bailed after about 20 minutes.  I see a lot of positive reviews from male writers, but female critics (where I am looking) seem absent.  Small wonder.  The profanity and misogyny are off the scale here.  Sure it might turn out differently, but in the meantime who wants to sit around and listen to a "friend" of Andrew Tate spout off about what he "knows" about women.  Boys may laugh (though I sincerely hope not), but I highly doubt that girls would.

 

Mapman Mike

 

 

 

 

April Books Read

Not a lot of volumes were read this past month.  Two of them were quite long and one of them was very intense and required careful and somewhat slow reading.  I also enjoyed 4 nights of astronomy last month, which always cuts into evening reading time.

 

Fires of Scorpio by Kenneth Bulmer, #29 in the Dray Prescott series, is a direct continuation of volume 27, beginning where Dray has just come out of the mountain tunnels.  He becomes reunited with his friend, but is immediately dragged away again by the Star Lords to another location and assignment.   His main purpose now seems to be to interrupt the religion of the Silver Leem.  He arrives at a point where a female child is to be sacrificed to their god.  Of course he saves the girl, and the first part of the story is enlivened by the presence of the child accompanied by Dray.  She has a personality (she is just under 4 years of age) and adds humour to the proceedings.  The latter half of the story is more serious.  Dray is reunited with another warrior friend who is also a chosen one in aiding the Star Lords in whatever it is they are trying to accomplish.  They team up again and the adventures are nonstop until the end of the book.  Though they have managed to disrupt the religion, there is a lot more to do.  And on it goes....  Another solid entry in this remarkable series. 

 

 

From 1974 comes Eater of Worlds, the 126 page on-going adventures of Kennedy and his male cohorts.  This time they are assigned to a case where a prisoner who was being transferred escaped with help.  Many innocent people were killed, and so Cap is trying to find out why this prisoner, with only a year left in his sentence, escaped.  This is one of those rare truly SF stories.  The bad guys think they are about to dig up secret treasure from a lost civilization, and the escapee was the only one with the coordinates to the site.  The location is on a barren planet (we find out later why it is barren), in a sandy desert prone to fierce wind storms.  They discover that the "treasure" lies within a protective shell in the form of a skull (I wonder what that could mean?).  Once they get inside, a very dangerous type of alien life form is released, killing anyone it touches in its form as first a liquid, and then a vapour (after someone panics and shoots it with a blaster).  It begins to spread, and it's now up to Cap and his team to try and stop it.  This is actually a very good story, and would make an excellent SF film.   

 

Collecting Myself: The Uncollected Stories of Barry Malzberg is a 2024 publication and 259 pages long and contains about 35 short stories by Malzberg.  He also contributes a very brief essay at the beginning.  The stories move chronologically from 1970 to 2022.

 

Terminus East is from 1970, and is about the failed colony on the moon.  It is a violent story, and not that appealing.  ** 1/2 stars.

 

Making Titan is from 1970 and details the bizarre 6th attempt by humans to land on Titan, Saturn's largest moon.  Will this one fail like the others, or be the first successful mission?  Remember, this is Malzberg. *** stars.

 

Exploration is from 1971 and is a Malzberg special; no one else writes about how being in space makes you crazy so well as this author.  The captain of a Mars exploratory mission loses it. **** stars.

 

Conquest is a silly tale from 1972 about first contact, which turns out to be a test for the human candidate who will be sent out to greet the aliens.  *** stars.

 

Two Odysseys Into the Center is from 1972.  This one has some pulp fiction humour attached, which ups the rating.  *** stars.

 

Dreaming and Conversions: Two Rules By Which To Love is from 1973.  Another great story of insanity and its self justification.  Of course aliens are involved.  **** stars.

 

Conversations With Lothar is from 1973.  This story and a few others were to become the 1975 novel Conversations, reviewed above.  It works well as a very short story, but the novel is quite incredibly good.  *** stars.

 

Triptych is from 1973 and is as much a satire of pulp SF as it is an homage.  Several possible pulp novels are condensed into a few paragraphs each.  Entertaining to read, and I find myself wishing I could read some of those novels.  *** stars.

 

The Wonderful, All-Purpose Transmogrifier is from 1974, and is way ahead of its time, as it describes addiction to virtual reality gaming.  Dated, obviously, but at the time well ahead of itself.  ** 1/2 stars.

 

Revelation in Seven Stages is from 1980.  Malzberg comes up with quite possibly the most bizarre and unusual use for ancient Eygptian mummies ever conceived.  Funny and weird.  *** 1/2 stars.

 

There The Lovelies Bleeding is from 1981, and tells of a blossoming romance in the far future, where such liaisons have been much frowned upon until now.  Progress against the repression is slow, but gaining momentum.  *** stars.

 

1984 is a one page story from 1985, on the expected theme.  Not too successful, in my opinion.  ** stars.

 

J. S. Brahms is from 1985 and features Sigmund Freud undertaking a cognitive test.  A pretty funny story no doubt related to Malzberg's novel.  Music afficianados will appreciate the humour more.  *** stars. 

 

The Queen of Saigon is from 1987, a story about the Vietnam War as seen through the eyes of a Saigon prostitute.  Fine storytelling of a still touchy topic.  *** stars.

 

Ambition is from 1987.  A SF story in which a communications officer is responsible for the planet of Jubilation's inhabitants rebelling against the Earth invaders.  Offbeat and very short.  *** stars.

 

No Hearts, No Flowers is from 1989.  This is a funny mob-related story, where a casual social reporter thinks he has erred in mentioning a recent mob massacre one day before it happened.  He is summoned to pay a visit to "Bruno" and realizes his time is up.  But Bruno gives him more than he bargained for.  A fun read. *** stars.

 

Safety Zone is from 1990, a somewhat bizarre tale of a barfly and a man she meets one night.  A bit puzzling, but still some fine writing.  *** stars.  

 

One Ten Three is from 1991, and is one of the funniest stories I have ever read.  A race horse talks to a betting man and tells him he will win the next race.  The man bets $80.  Did the horse win?  In a way.  A truly wonderful story, and laugh out loud at times.  **** stars.

 

Dumbarton Oaks is from 1992, a story in which the devil is given tasks by the big boss.  A bit weird.  ** stars.

 

Gotterdammerung is from 1992, and is the story of a wizard who is visited by interested parties in finding the magic ring that was lost in the river.  The wizard is outsmarted, though the ring still remains lost. *** stars. 

 

Is This The Presidential Palace? is from 1992, a typical Malzberg story about an alien with an agenda meeting a human.  Quite amusing.  ** 1/2 stars.

 

It Comes From Nothing is from 1994 and is a spin on the end of King Lear.  Not a very nice spin, either.  In fact, kind of a cruel spin.  * star.

 

Sinfonia Expansiva is from 94, and is a somewhat sex-obsessed story that doesn't really work very well. ** stars.

 

Of Dust and Fire and The Night is from 1994, and is the author's take on the star of Bethlehem and three wise men.  It never hurts to throw the legend of the phoenix bird in, either.  A bit silly, but fun. ** 1/2 stars. 

 

Close-up Photos Reveal JFK Skull On Moon is from 1994.  A bizarre story where JFK ends up on the lunar surface, Elvis is now in France after having plastic surgery to alter his face and singing in small clubs.  He is being pursued by a 102 year old female fan who just birth to twins, who turn out to be JFK and Elvis reborn.  Marilyn Monroe reveals her unsuccessful pursuit of Elvis.  *** stars.

 

Getting There is from 2002 and is another powerful Vietnam anti-war story.  **** stars.

 

The Third Part is a view of Revelations as seen from the perspective of a southern redneck.  Most odd. *** stars.

 

Crossing the Border is from 2003 and deals with a man who has a sex change.  *** stars.

 

These The Inheritors is from 2006, and tells of the revenge of the insect world on humans, with a Jewish slant. ** stars.

 

The Passion of Azazel is from 2008.  A man who recently attended therapy and made a revealing discovery about himself make a golem in the form of a goat.  Inspired by a quote from Leviticus. ***1/2 stars.

 

Why We Talk To Ourselves is from 2011, and is a meditation on the 9/11 destruction of the Twin Towers in NYC. ** stars.

 

Richard Nixon Saved From Drowning is from 2014, as we hear words and thoughts from the not so great former president.  ** stars.

 

The Terminal Villa is from 2014, and was inspired by a quote from Dick Cheney, who had dramas while recovering from heart surgery.  Meant as a tribute to J G Ballard.  ** stars.

 

The Phantom Gentleman is from 2022, and has some musing of Malzberg on his upcoming "final Journey."  ** 1/2 stars.

 

January 2018 is from 2018, and isn't much of a story to end this pretty decent collection.  ** stars. 

 

Cover by Jeff Jordan.

Mother London is from 1988, a mostly disappointing novel by Moorcock that is 496 pages long.  It purports to give glimpses of London from the 1940s through 1988, mostly through the eyes of three people who survived by were greatly affected by the Blitz.  We get a pretty strong sense of what it was like to live under the threat of German bombs during WW II, especially the dreaded V2 rockets.  David, Joseph, and Mary meet in an institution some 15 years after the war.  Mary has been in a coma since she was 15, awakening at 30.  The three become very good friends, often interacting during the story.  The problem with the book is the storytelling itself, as well as Moorcock's complete inability to depict a troubled mind.  Both Mary and Joseph seem to have some type of psychic ability, and the novel is filled with italicized inner dialogues, sometimes of others near them and sometimes of their own thoughts.  I eventually learned to just skip over these sections, as they offered up nothing for the reader.  It's a silly attempt to be avante garde, or modern, and these passages often show just how clueless the author is about inner voices.

 

The storytelling is often divided into chapters that take place in a certain year, anywhere between 1941 and 1988.  The problem is that the chronology is completely messed up, with a 1970s chapter followed by a 1940s one, and then one from the 60s.  It destroys any kind of continuity the story badly needs to build up a sound picture of the main characters and their friends and acquaintences.  At one point we attend the funeral of a friend of David's before we even know who the person is.  Although I could go back and reread the novel and try to do it chronologically, the story itself and the characters are simply not interesting enough.  Much of the book is quite dull, and it was a struggle to get through it all.

 

With a title like Mother London, we get a rather superficial glance at the great city, possibly the greatest city of the world.  I had high expectations, but alas they were not fulfilled.  I found the parts dealing with the bombing and its aftermath the most interesting part of the book, but much of the rest held little to no interest for me.  I think much of that has to do with the way Moorcock (and his editor) chose to tell the story.  It's confusing enough trying to keep track of three main characters, but to have the time jumps interfere and confuse readers further, I found a lot of this book to be a waste of time.

 

Cover by Greg Ragland.

 

 

Olaf Stapledon's Star Maker from 1937 gives the reader everything.  Literally.  The full history of not just the Universe is here, but of everything else, including god (to humans) the creator.  Stapledon simply calls him Star Maker.  Stapledon creates not a novel in any sense, but a blow by blow description (highlights only) of life in the galaxy, in all of its myriad forms.  He imagines any kind of life that is even remotely plausible, bringing it into our minds as a done deal.  He explains the many pitfalls that doomed civilization after civilization on world after world, and how gradually the galaxy somehow (he explains how, don't worry) banded minds together and began a vast collective.  The author leads us by the hand as he gradually increases the scale of discovery until we have galaxy minds contacting other galaxy minds, and as the galaxies' lives come to their inevitable end, finally reach a state of total understanding.  

 

Stapledon goes on to then to describe the creator, the Star Maker, from his (he uses the masculine but by now we know what he means) own creation from pure matter, on to his juvenile creations, to his later masterpieces as he reaches his prime.  His final definition of the Star Maker did not please a lot of people, C. S. Lewis for one.  To this reader it is a totally brilliant concept, so far beyond and removed from the simplistic version of god held by most religious doctrines as to make it seem more than a possible answer.  Of course the author is limited to what was known about astrophysics in 1937 (stellar evolution is all wrong here, for one thing), but I think he can be forgiven this.  Considering this is fiction, his facts are pretty secure.

 

Stapledon influenced virtually every serious SF and fantasy writer, from E. R. Eddison, Jack Williamson, James Blish, Frank Herbert, Iain M. Banks, and on and on.  From this volume comes every story ever told, every story that will ever be told, and stories by the trillions that will never get told, due to a shortage of time remaining for our universe to exist.  The book, like his earlier Last and First Men, is all-encompassing.  Like it or not, Stapledon has given us a comprehensive and plausible history of everything that ever was or ever will be.  Rich reading.  A masterpiece.

 

Cover by Bip Pares.  I read the Kindle edition by Delphi Classics. 

 

Gitanjali is a set of 103 verses by Rabindraneth Tagore.  Written in Bengali in 1910, Tagore did his own translation into English in 1912.  He won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1913 largely due to these amazing verses.  Ideally a person would read one of these a day for 103 days, and meditate on them.  Many are similar, though, and can be read carefully over a few days, as I did.  They can and should picked up at whim and opened to any verse.  Most of them deal with a human being trying to see and communicate with his god.  The verses made a nice follow up to Star Maker, placing human endeavour fairly high on the scale of evolution.  It's always nice to know that a few humans have made a significant spiritual journey during the short time allotted to us.

Prior to this came the short poem "My Golden Bengali," written in 1906 shortly after Bengal had been divided into two different religious states.

 

Mapman Mike

 

Late April Update

With Beltane fast approaching, it's a time for daffodils to wither and leaves to spring forth.  We have about a thousand day lilies striving to bloom before the leafing trees block their sunlight.  Our spring got off to a late start this year, and we are a few weeks behind.  Our grass has not even been cut yet, but it is certainly starting to grow quickly now.  With my final recital scheduled for Saturday afternoon, next week should be a relaxing one.  We will celebrate Beltane with our final wood fire of the season, and on May 1st we will walk in the woods to scope out any blossoming wildflowers.

In home front news, Deb is slowly recovering from her two medical procedures.  She is now busy selecting and entering film festivals with her newest film, Just A Peek.  Check her website for any updates on public showings (upper left of this page).

 

There are several films to report, so I will get started on that.  Claire's Camera is from 2017, and was directed by Hong Sang-Soo from South Korea.  Filmed entirely in Cannes during the film festival, a female teacher from Paris meets a Korean director by chance at a cafe, beginning a series of social encounters that will hardly change the world, but will give viewers pleasure in watching developments.  Claire likes to use her instant camera and takes a lot of photos of people.  She also meets Manhee, recently fired form her film promotion job by her female boss, and Claire helps the Korean woman understand why she was terminated.  It's a film that is not really about a whole lot, and it is very short.  A low point of the film is when the Korean director berates Manhee in public for wearing shorts.  This from the guy who slept with her recently.  It does show the ridiculous social differences between east and west, especially with someone from an older (male) and more rigid Asian background.  All in all a pretty likeable film.

 

Now showing on Mubi. 

 

Songs of Earth is from Norway, directed by Margreth Olin.  From 2023 it is a combination nature film and one about the director's aging parents.  Her 84 year old father leads us to the secret and sacred places in the awe-inspiring valley where he has lived all his life.  Using expert drone and helicopter shots, we get unprecedented views of glaciers, forest, mountains, and the sea.  Olin uses a four season approach, and we get to spend a year in the valley, most of it outdoors exploring and walking and climbing.  Co-produced by Liv Ullman and Wim Wenders the film is meant for a big screen.  Please do not watch it on your phone.

 

Leaving Criterion April 30th. 

 

Art College 1994 is also from 2023, an animated film from China that details the life of art and music students from a Chinese college 30 years ago.   Directed by Liu Jian, we follow the life of several male art major slackers and two very different female music majors.  While the film is often laugh out loud funny, we can also feel the agony of these students trying to figure out how they are going to fit into an adult world that is alien to them.  Viewers might classify the art boys as slackers, but they are constantly trying to push boundaries and find limits, usually butting against tradition as they seek out a more modern outlook.  Definitely worth checking out.

 

Art College 1994 is showing on Criterion. 

 

In further local news, we have updated and enlarged our main computer monitor, mostly for gaming purposes.  I am playing a lot of Train Sim 5 now, and working my way through Amnesia: Dark Descent.  It's a Ben Q model and much much better than the older and smaller one.  That one is now upstairs on my non-internet computer that I use for older games and such.

 

The next update is likely to be my slender reading list from April.  See you then.

 

Mapman Mike

 

 

 

Dartford to Rainham by Thameslink

In local news, Deb had part 2 of her two-part medical procedure done today.  It was quick and she even went in ahead of schedule.  No more stent.  It was an aggravating ten days with it inside of her, and I doubt she will miss it now that it is gone.  As usual I got some reading done in the waiting room.

Last week I played my program for some non-piano friends.  It went well, and I seem to be getting comfortable playing most of the pieces.  One more recital and then I can put these pieces away and begin some new works.

I had a wonderfully clear and cold night of astronomy last night (Wed.), the first of the new session.  But it will be cloudy now for at least several days.

 

In gaming news I am playing the first Amnesia game (Dark Descent), a haunted house mystery puzzler set in a dark and abandoned haunted mansion.  So far it's been pretty good, but I am only halfway through part 1 of 4.  Many times these games begin fairly but end up being unplayable after a time, usually due to bad construction, or a sudden jump of difficulty that only the creator can figure out.  So we shall see....

 

In much more exciting news, I bought Train Sim World 5!  There was a great sale on, and for $22 Can. I got 3 huge packages, with enough engines, trains, and routes to last me indefinitely.  Of course I have spent most of my time at the training center, learning how to drive different locomotives.  I have about 15 or so to choose from, and yesterday I took my first lesson in driving a steam engine.  Not as easy as those electric diesels!  So far my favourite route is driving the Thameslink train from Dartford to Rainham.  This is an exact real time run, with all the correct scenery, tunnels, bridges, buildings, rivers, etc.  So far I have not been able to keep to schedule, as I have not driven at the maximum speed limit very much yet.  The route is about 20 miles and there are 11 stops.  There are uphill and downhill grades and miles of tunnels.  Each time I have driven the route the weather and times have been different.  The earliest run is the 5:58 from Dartford, and the morning fog is gradually dispersed as the sun rises.  I have also driven the final night run, also with some fog, and the moon shining above and some stars.  So far I have not crashed or sped through a red light, but it is hard to stop the train on steep downhill grades.  Anyway, it's been great fun.  The Southeastern segment has at least a dozen runs I have yet to do. and I haven't even had time to get to the German or North American ones.  

 

3 screenshots of my BR Class 700/0 EMU that I drive between Dartford and Rainham.  I still have to learn how to take my own photos within game.  Stay tuned!

 

 In film news we are all caught up for now.  We did finish a six part series called Monsieur Spade. 

Sam's final adventure takes place in France, and though the plot is a bit overdone, it's an enjoyable series to watch, filled with quips and plenty of murders.  The plot centers around a young Algerian boy who is gifted as a code breaker and a code maker.  Everyone wants him.  Set in a unique small French town, it has great locations and camerawork.

 

Mapman Mike

 

2nd Recital

I had a 2nd opportunity to perform my latest recital pieces today.  Thank you to Randy, Kate, and Peter for coming by to hear what I've been up to since last July.  The chance to perform is always a welcome one, and twice in one week is even better.  When Paula and Jenn are back from their travels I will run through the pieces again.  All went pretty well, with occasional slips and lapses.  The first Bach piece went really well, and overall the Haydn was quite fresh and zippy.  The Chopin Prelude, on its own, is a powerful little piece.  The Gnossienne also went really well, as did the Debussy and Glass.  So not a lot to complain about, though I know it could have been even better.  Such is life, and such is live performance.  Here is the program:

 

Michael Ethier

Piano Recital April 2025

"Simple Ingredients"

2-part Invention #9 in f minor

3-part Invention #9 in f minor..........................................J S Bach

Sonata in C major (HOB. XVI/35; L.48)

Allegro con brio

Adagio

Finale: Allegro.........................................................F J Haydn

***********************************************

Prelude #20 in c minor.....................................................F Chopin

Third Gymnopedie

Third Gnossienne.............................................................E Satie

Prelude #6 Bk 1 (..Des pas sur la neige)........................C Debussy

Etude #20.........................................................................P Glass

Mysterious Barricades.....................................................F Couperin

 

The only piece here that I have ever performed before this month was the Couperin.  When I begin working on the new program, the first half will be all Couperin, and on the harpsichord.

 

Deb is still feeling poorly, and likely will be until the concluding half of her medical procedure is undertaken.  Next week the stent will be removed, and hopefully that will end months of pain and infections.  In the meantime, she just has to hang in there, and take a happy pill as needed.

 

As full moon approaches, we have a perfect night tonight, with clear, dry skies.  Useless, though, as far as observing with a telescope goes, thanks to the brightness of the moon.  It's been a bad year so far, with only two usable nights to date.  I have so much work I would love to accomplish before I'm too old to lift the telescope and set it up and take it down.

 

In movie news, there are two to report, as well as Season Two of Picard.  Try to imagine a scenario where Wesley Crusher, Q and the Borg come out looking okay.  All this and more, folks, believe it or not.  Crusher, Q, and the Borg provided some of the most tropy and unwanted moments in Next Generation, and the writers stretched themselves to the limit in Picard to make them come out looking pretty clean and decent.  Unfortunately, there was overuse in Season Two of Picard's childhood background, with his insane mother who ended up killing herself.  There are so many flashback scenes to his boyhood that they ended up dragging down the series.  We get to see Data's creator, and he is evil in Season Two.  I imagine he will return, but hopefully not.  One more season to go, though we will wait awhile before viewing it.  We are still also immersed in Dark Winds and Monsieur Spade.

 

L'Innocente is a costumer by Visconti from 1976.  The main reason to watch the film is to view the parade of women's dresses on display.  Most of the film's budget must have been spent on costumes.  Here is the blurb from MUBI:

In late-19th century Italy, Tullio, an insatiable aristocrat, grows bored with his wife Giuliana and neglects her for his more exciting mistress, the wealthy widow Countess Teresa Raffo. After learning that Giuliana is having an affair of her own, he becomes tormented and descends into madness. 

It's quite a long film, mostly watchable but not always.  High society shows itself, yet again, for what it really is; empty.  Tullio is a hideous character, another less than fine male role model to follow.  To make matters worse, Giannini wears one expression throughout the entire movie, his grim face.  The camera work is excellent, as are the sets, lighting, and mise-en-scene, also spot on.  Visconti is a master director, and all of his skills and artistry are on display in this extravagant film.  I won't say it's the most engaging film I've ever seen, but it's certainly one of the better looking films.  Recommended if you enjoy beautiful women in incredible clothing.

 

The film was showing on Mubi, but has now departed. 

 

The Love Witch, written, directed, and produced by Anna Biller, is a 2016 murder/horror film that tries to emulate films from the 1960s.  Drenched in rich colours, mostly reds, and filmed with humourous parodies of Hammer films and such, the movie is great fun to watch.  A beautiful female California witch uses magic potions and rituals to try to land a faithful and loving boyfriend/husband.  Her spells are successful, but she tends to overdo them, driving the male crazy after a time.  Once she realizes that he is not the guy for her after all, there is only one way to rid herself of them.  The film succeeds on many levels, and its 125 minutes running time passes quickly.  The visuals are stunning, and the lead actress is both beautiful and funny, even though she acts the sincere part, playing it pretty straight.  A must view for fans of early 60s colour horror films!  My only complaint is that she should have been a redhead.

 

Leaving Mubi in three days. 

 

Mapman Mike