The Broken Foot, Part 1

I have had two wonderfully clear nights so far this session, and am hoping to score one more.  The first night out was last Sunday.  Sometime in the middle of that session I turned around and kicked my metal chair over.  It was closer than I thought it was.  It seemed to hit a spot on my foot that it really shouldn't have.  Years ago I broke my right foot and remember well what that felt like.  This feels pretty much the same.  It is the left foot, up near and around the big toe.  I've been gimping around on it all week, hoping that it will magically get better.  The last break took six weeks to feel better, and despite x-rays and visits to the doctor, it still took six weeks with no interference.  I will see how things are by Monday before I decide to visit my M.D.  It still hurts when I walk on it, but the non-walking pain has subsided.  Ice is helping, too.  Unfortunately this may seriously interfere with late September travel plans, which have to do with lots of walking.

 

The two astronomy sessions were epic, though the warmest on record for me.  When I began observing Sunday night it was 82 F at 10:30 pm.  When I left at 2:00 am it was 79 F.  A light breeze kept the bugs down.  I returned on Monday night for a similar experience.  It had been so hot during those two days (96 F and 98F) that the humidity had burned away, leaving me with a dry night and good sky transparency.

 

Our current passports have six months remaining, so it is time to renew them.  The process will begin very soon, or sooner.  By the time we travel to Europe there will be less than 3 months remaining on the old ones. Ten years managed to fly past us.

 

In more local news, we have had 5 days of 90 F+ so far this summer (which is one week old).  That has come with enough humidity and rain to keep everything green and jungle like, including here at the Homestead.  Here is a recent photo of our front yard day lilies (there are many in the back yard as well).

 

Our front garden day lilies seem happy enough. 

 

In movie news there are three to report.  We just finished watching a very old favourite of ours.  We sat down and turned on the live TV stream of Criterion.  We caught the last half hour of an early Renoir film.  We decided just to see what was coming on next (commercial free of course), and ended up sitting through a two hour movie.  It was Peter Weir's The Last Wave.  The more times we see this film the more we are able to pull out of it.  It is a masterpiece of cross cultural contact, as well as being carefully thought out and brilliantly executed.  It remains one of our top favourite films.

 

Showing on Criterion. 

 

 Vicky Christina Barcelona is a film written and directed by Woody Allen from 2008.  The film uses the backdrop of Barcelona for romantic comedy that seems to gloss the surface of relationships rather than try to delve into them.  It also glosses the surface of art and of the city of Barcelona itself.  In fact it is difficult to say what this film is about.  Two young woman, one of whom is recently engaged, come under the spell of a handsome Spanish painter.  One of the women ends up living with him for a time, while the other has sex with him once, despite feeling guilty about her engagement.  While clever dialogue and some half decent acting helps thing along, overall the film is a bit of a mess, as it barely skims of the surface of what a relationship is.  Of course it means something different to each person in the story, but none of this is really explored very deeply.  It is romantic, and it does have humour, but it doesn't seem to have much spark to it.  It is certainly a film I would not wish to see again.

 

Leaving Criterion June 30th. 

 

Finally came Rene Clair's 1928 silent film The Italian Straw Hat.  With a running time of nearly two hours, this is an overlong romantic adventure film.  though often very funny, it just seems to go on and on with the same joke.  For instance, the marriage ceremony is presided over by a windbag of a marriage officiant,  As he drones on and on various parts of the plot continue elsewhere, while we are also entertained by the relatives sitting through it all.  The concept is quite good and often really funny, but it carries on and on until you never want to see another marriage ceremony as long as you live.  The married woman whose hat was half eaten by a horse and her military man lover are not very good characters, and they are given way too much screen time.  Cut the film by 25-30 minutes and it might have been a masterpiece.  As it is it requires far too much patience from the viewer to sit through.

 

Showing on Criterion as part of a Rene Clair retrospective. 

 

Coming soon: June books reading summary.  See you then.

 

Mapman Mike 

 

 

Summer Solstice

We've been observing Solstices (and Equinoxes) since about 1984-85.  Back then we lived in Windsor and were able to walk to bars, bakeries, etc., and were even able to take the tunnel bus to Detroit.  Since moving to the 'burbs, however, our walking destinations are nil.  So the party has been house and yard focussed now since about 1989.  Wood fires in the autumn and winter and spring, and staying inside and trying to survive the heat in summer.  Despite enjoying a very cool spring, the heat and humidity have arrived now, hitting us with both barrels.  85 F at 9 am is a bit extreme, as we head for the upper 90s over the next few days.  I have two photos to share of the Solstice, one of the sunset and one of the high speed train to Ashford.

Summer Solstice sunset looking across the Detroit River towards Michigan.  Families of geese were swimming by.  The little creek that empties into the river here is the same one that flows through our back yard, cutting our property in two.  In the summer it's the sunset that matters, as it represents the death of the sun.  From here until December its rays become less direct and weaker as each day passes (north of the equator).  People could get a lot more sleep if they realized that it isn't the sunrise that matters at Summer Solstice.  That event is for the Winter Solstice, when the sun is "reborn" and begins to get stronger each day.

 

Summer Solstice twilight on the high speed run from St. Pancras to Ashford International.  Train Sim World 5 photo. 

 

It's been a good month for reading, as the end of month summary will tell.  One of my biggest discoveries this month was Cornell Woolrich.  More on him later, but his books and short stories have been made into so many Hollywood films.  I just read his first novel and was quite blown away (it's called "Cover Charge).

 

Astronomy this time of year is difficult, due to the lateness of the hour when it becomes dark.  In the winter session I can be packed up and heading up at the time I am just beginning to observe in June and July.  Still, I am likely heading out tonight, and will try to pull an all-nighter (about 5 hours of observing).  Dawn breaks around 4 am, and it isn't really dark until after 11 pm.

 

In film watching news, there are two to report.  Cotton Comes To Harlem is from 1970 and was directed by Ossie Davis.  Chester Himes, a crime writer of black murder mystery fiction, created the black detectives Grave Digger Jones and Coffin Ed Johnson.  This time the bad guy is a black preacher, taking money from poor Harlem folk and promising them they will be sent back to Africa, a land of promise with no white man to tell them how to live.  He is a major crumb bum type and has no intention of spending a penny of that money for any worthy cause.  Lots of action centres around a bale of cotton that appears, and might hold the stolen money.    I've never read any Chester Himes, but I might now.  I hope the characters on the page are a bit more fun than the two detectives in this film.  They really don't seem like anybody special; they appear like two police detectives working outside of the system (like nearly every Hollywood detective before and after them).  Still, there is a lot of local colour with views of Harlem that are likely long gone now.

 

Leaving Criterion June 30th. 

 

Two Timid Souls is from 1928 and was Rene Clair's final silent feature film.  A timid lawyer (how did he get through law school?) and a young woman fall in love.  However, he is too timid to do anything about it.  A man that he defended for wife beating also falls for her.  The hero is too timid to do anything about it.  Her father is pretty much the same, and gives her to the bully.  And so on.  Essentially this is a 30' film that has been stretched to 77 minutes, and it becomes quite painful to watch.  The lawyer channels Buster Keaton in his performance, but Keaton would never have acted such a coward.  There are some brilliant storytelling touches done with split screen.  Though I dearly love the films of Rene Clair, this isn't one I would wish to see again.

 

Now showing on Criterion. 

 

Amanda L. paid an unexpected but welcome and fun visit this Sunday afternoon.  She was in town for her aunt's memorial service and managed to squeeze in a visit.  Food, drinks and conversation were had and enjoyed.  We heard about her recent visit to Colombia, mostly Medellin.  Sounds like a really wonderful place to visit and wander the streets!

 

8 pm update: It was 96 F today (35.5 C).  It's 94 right now.  The new AC unit upstairs can barely keep up.  Hotter tomorrow, and on until Wednesday, when temps will revert to more seasonal ones.  Blistering sun and no clouds, either.  But it's a clear night, so I will be heading out to use the telescope later on.  It will be a warm one, but it isn't supposed to be all that humid--I think it got burnt off today.

 

Mapman Mike 

 

 

 

 

More About Films

I'm getting a little bit behind in reporting on our film watching.  A while back came The Imitation Game, a 2014 film about Alan Turing and his success in decoding the German Engima machine.  While hardly up to the standard of Oppenheimer, the film is watchable thanks to another good performance by Benedict Cumberpatch, and also by Keira Knightley.  While the film follows a predictable path, it tells the story through flashbacks that sometimes I found confusing.  We learn of the school bullying that Turing endured and of his inability to make friends easily.  The one friend he did have died young.  Being gay in 20th C. England was akin to being a witch in the 16th C., and Turing suffered terribly from all sides.  Watchable, and it is fun watching the decoding machine spring into action!

 

Now showing on Prime. 

 

Sometimes films from the 1960s age reasonably well and are still relevant today.  However, a few that were probably abominable upon release remain so if viewed today, only worse.  Francis Ford Coppola's first feature is from 1966, called You're A Big Boy Now.  The movie is almost cringe worthy from start to finish.  It's a 'comedy' about a young man who was mothered a few years too long and is trying to make it on his own.  He falls for a go go dancer and actress and they live together for a short span of time.  With forgettable music sung by the Lovin' Spoonful, this is a movie that needs to be reburied in the deep vaults of time.

 

Leaving Criterion (thankfully) June 30th. 

 

Next came another major director's first film, this one still very enjoyable after more than 100 years.  The Crazy Ray is from 1924 and directed by Rene Clair.  A night watchman atop the Eiffel Tower awakens to a city frozen in time.  He eventually finds a small group of people also not frozen, and they move about the city partying and generally enjoying themselves.  They eventually find a young woman trapped inside a building and after rescuing her they learn the cause of the stoppage of time.  This is quite an astounding film, which I would file under SF.  Lots of gags and at first a good puzzle of a picture.  Recommended.

 

Showing on Criterion. 

 

Across 110th Street is from 1971 and is a cop action thriller directed by Barry Shear and Starring Anthony Quinn and Tony Franciosa.  The mafia is being squeezed out of Harlem by black management, and a bloodbath ensues.  Franciosa plays a mafia hitman given the task of restoring order and getting back money that was stolen.  Quinn plays an aging police captain who has to give up leading his squad to a black lieutenant.  Racism plays a big role in the plot, but by the end of the film most of the racists are dead, leaving the blacks to deal in Harlem.  All is right with the world.  Lots of action, bloodshed, shootings and chase scenes.  Over the top fun 1970s style.

 

Leaving Criterion June 30th. 

 

I have found out how to take basic photos within Train Sim World 5.  You are now about to see a few.  First come a few images of normal runs; high speed (HS1 Southeastern) and a freight run from Leipzig coming into Dresden.

 

Zooming along at 220 kph in southeast England.

 

Bringing empty freight cars towards Dresden at 100 kph.

 

Approaching Dresden, with the tail lights of a passing passenger train behind me.  The game is played in real time.  Weather and dates can be manipulated.  For now I am running trains in June.

 

The game has something called "Free Roam" where I can place any train on any track.  Of course the train must be able to run.  For example electric trains require either overhead wires, as in the two trains shown above, or they won't work.  Standard diesel engines work almost anywhere.  So I took a little German switcher engine and brought it over to California, along with some Dresden passenger cars for a tourist run to the top of Cajon Pass.  This was a long but very fun excursion!

 

Something one does not see every day--German trains on American tracks.  I have also begun experimenting with German electric on English tracks. 

 

Bakerloo Line, North Wembley.

 

Bakerloo Line evening run, in and out of Wembley Central.  Crossing the A406.

 

We are still waiting for the heat to crank up in our area.  Looks like next week.  So far it's been a decently cool spring with sufficient rain.  A funeral to attend tomorrow (husband of a teacher we taught with).  Earlier in the week a female teacher passed away after a long illness, also from APS, though many years ago now.  RIP Tammy.  And a former student was killed last week in a local motorcycle crash.  RIP John Paul.  Weird.

 

Mapman Mike 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

More About Trains

Train Sim World 5 is a blast!  I am now regularly running different locomotives on four different railways.  Southeastern is still my main go-to, with its three mainlines which include Thameslink and the high speed connection from St. Pancras to Ashford International.  I am improving on the high speed train, moving along at 225 kph and getting better at stopping on time.  My second favourite route is now the Dresden-Leipzig one, which includes some lovely single track at times, as well as a visit to the pretty river and forest village of Meissen Triebischtal.  Some of these trains are also only two cars in length, which I enjoy driving.  Next comes the main line to the north of London, between London Euston and Milton Keynes.  I have only driven this route twice so far, but it seems to be a fun line to operate as well, reaching speeds of 90 to 100 mph.  When I purchased this set recently, it came with a portion of the Bakerloo Tube Line and the 1972 blue and red and white trains.  So I am getting better at driving from Harrow and Wealdstone to Queens Park, the part of the tube line that is mostly above ground.  The Youtube video I watched for instructions was given by a retired driver who had driven this exact train for many years.  He was a great teacher and very thorough, and he was also quite impressed with the realism of Train Sim World 5.  The fourth route I use regularly is a heavy freight one that climbs from a lower point in California and ascends Cajon Pass.  This is probably the most challenging one to drive, pulling freight cars more than a mile long up and then down a mountain, sometimes using 6 or 7 massive diesel engines.  No disasters yet, but the potential is certainly there.  It's scary when you apply the brakes and nothing happens for about 15 seconds, especially if you are rolling downhill with a mile of cement cars behind you.  Then the brakes begin to work, and some relief sets in.

 

We had a visit from Jenn G. yesterday.  She brought beer (!) and the three of us tasted samples of different kinds throughout the day while getting caught up on our travels.  There is a chance that we might see Jenn in London this October, too.  It is okay for Deb to drink now, since here RA seems to be in remission.  Without having to take Methodtrexate, her liver can now find other ways to damage itself.

 

We are replaying a PC adventure game called Everyone's Gone To The Rapture.  This might be the best computer game we have ever played, and we have played so many totally amazing ones.  We finished it the first time through quite recently, and are back again.  A small English village is invaded by a strange alien light, and things don't go well.  A wonderfully beautiful game in which to walk, accompanied often by stunning music.  No real puzzles to solve, as it's mostly piecing together a tragic story.  Unforgettable and riveting from start to finish.

 

In movie news, there are two to report. Little Murders is from 1971, a comedy directed by Alan Arkin and written by Jules Feiffer.  It is a loud and frenetically paced look at a typical disfunctional New York family, living amidst crime and watching their daughter marry a shipwreck of a husband.  The husband is played by Elliot Gould, a photographer who has learned to never fight back.  This infuriates his girlfriend who at one point says, as she tries to change him, "I love the you I want to mould you into."  This is an Oscar Wilde moment, one of several very funny lines and scenes that pass by very quickly.  The family dinner, the wedding, the subway ride with Gould wearing a bloody shirt, and the tragic ending are all wonderfully acted and are highlights of the film.  I'm glad we caught this one.  Not your standard Hollywood comedy.

 

Leaving Criterion June 30th. 

 

The Importance of Being Earnest is a 2002 film starring Colin Firth, Reese Witherspoon, Judi Dench and Rupert Everett.  This is a very decent filming of the Oscar Wilde Play, with many laugh out loud lines.  The one referring to the English education system of the time is only one of several priceless jokes.  This one has been on my Prime Video watchlist for some time.  I am glad I finally got around to watching it.

 

Now showing on Prime.  

 

Mapman Mike