I refused to read Tolkien when my dad tried to give it to me at 8 or 9. He had started me on stories from Galaxy and Analog (he did illustrations for both as well as Amazing while he was in college and for a few years after). Heinlein was “light reading” and I had not discovered Sword and Sorcery, other than the rather iffy John Carter stuff. I read “She” by H. Rider Haggard before I read “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” by Roald Dahl.
Chronicles of Narnia was too sanctimonious and preachy; I stopped after Asshats (sorry) Aslans second coming…. I mean appearance… though I liked C. S. Lewis’ Perelandra trilogy. I put Fellowship down after reading "Bilbo Baggins was celebrating his Eleventy-first birthday." Eleventy-one? Pffft. Please, Dr. Seuss is fun and funny, but this? Eldritch horror to rinse out my mouth and mind please! Quickly! I need Clark Ashton Smith, and perhaps to re-read “The Telltale Heart” or “The Black Cat”! Take me to Trantor, now!
Then I got stranded at a relative’s home in New Orleans one night, while the grown-ups went to play on Bourbon Street. I had hoped to have a pleasant evening with the grownups vanished, as my third cousin once removed on my stepmothers side (or whatever that would be called) was only 5, and my sister Lynne was about a year old. I was 11 plus a few months. The grownups had decided to bring over a babysitter to deal with them, rather than force me to; and she was lovely. “Go ahead! Stay out as looooong as you like!” I thought.
14 or 15, honey blonde hair, big green eyes, lovely accent… and OMG, an IQ rivaled by my cat. I grabbed “The Fellowship” off the book shelf nearby as the only thing I had not read. I had just finished "Dune" the prior month. I recall looking at it like a soiled diaper, and my (step-uncle?) said “You don’t judge a book by its cover, do you? Read the first four chapters”. I could see right away that reading ANYTHING would give me refuge from Barbielite. “You read? Books? Wow, ya’all must be smaht!” Off to my room I went, frustrated and dragging a surely insipid novel along as refuge.
I hit the Barrow Downs shortly after midnight I think, and was utterly creeped out. I even thought about going down and sitting near the blonde. The attack at the Inn in Bree was chilling, and the assault on Weathertop made the lights in the room dim, or so it seemed. When they reached the Fords of Bruinen and Frodo began the desperate escape astride Asfaloth, my heart was racing as fast as the horse’s.
The ‘rents got home around 3 AM, and found me so deeply involved I barely responded to them. My father and uncle drove the ladies out and left me there. They came to get me for breakfast late that morning, maybe 10 AM. I had gone downstairs at about 6 AM and grabbed “The Two Towers” as well as “The Return of the King” and gone back to my room. My stepmother tried to get me to put the book down at the table, to which I replied “I’m not really hungry Marilyn” and got up to go back to my room. My father and uncle stifled her protest instantly, and my aunt brought me up pancakes… or waffles… or shoe leather. I wouldn’t have noticed. If she had stuck one of my feet between two slices of bread, I would have chewed my own foot off and failed to realize it. I finished the novels that evening. I was so ready for more, I read the appendices. Yeah, all of them…..
I have read the trilogy 2-3 times a year ever since. I often grab it on rainy winter days, build a fire even if it’s daylight, or pull the drapes in my room and light candles and one dim lamp. I am not quite at the point of being a Bradbury-esque “People who are books”, but I am damn close. Without trying to get it word by word, I believe I could tell the whole story, in the sequence the novels are laid out even after the parting of the Fellowship. I wrote screenplays for all three novels in the late 80’s, and tried off and on for a decade to get Saul Zaentz or the Tolkien estate to even talk to me. I was fairly pleased with the final Peter Jackson films, though I confess I skip over the bastardized Faramir scenes when I watch the DVD’s.
So, if you ever want someone to read them to your kids, I’m available. If I ever wind up with my own, this is a fixed part of parenting. I will also read “The Princess Bride” (is this a kissing book?) and maybe even the first three Narnia novels. I was 18 before I went back and read all the way to “Voyage of the Dawn Treader”. Oh, and they will also get “The Last Unicorn” and “Wind in the Willows”, “The Phantom Tollbooth” and “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory”. I will leave Poe and Derleth, Howard and Burroughs, Lovecraft and Dunsany, Asimov and Ellison, Clarke and Heinlein until they can turn the pages themselves…..
Monday, January 31, 2011
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Golden Globes 2011
I always like watching the Golden Globes; while it may not carry the "Prestige" (ha ha) of the Academy Awards, it always, or almost always, has a more personal, intimate, and often edgier feel. Certainly having Ricky Gervais host again added edgy this year. I like Ricky, and I like the fact that the Hollywood Foreign Press had him back this year, after he (supposedly) did jokes in 2010 they told him not to do. Kudos to the President of the HFPA, Robert Downey, and Tom Hanks for taking pot shots back at Ricky. Bruce Willis tried, but failed.
Regardless, I was quite surprised and a little disappointed over several of the early awards. Christian Bale getting the first award for Best Supporting set my teeth on edge a bit; certainly winning over Geoffrey Rush was utterly weird to me. Really? Christian playing an obnoxious loud mouthed drunk/drug addict was better than Geoffrey playing a speech therapist? Wow. OK. That was followed by “Carlos” getting the nod over “Pillars of the Earth” or “The Pacific”? Umm, sure, I guess…. I was getting a bit worried already. That was followed by Katey Segal winning for “Sons of Anarchy”, which wasn’t horrible ( I have only seen two episodes) but, beating out Kyra Sedgewick? Oh oh…
Then Chris Colfer won for “Glee”. Good for him. Although never having seen him anywhere BUT “Glee” I was I admit surprised to realize that the voice is not a character choice; he actually IS either a castrato, or the real voice behind Justin Beiber… that was followed by Steve Buscemi winning for “Boardwalk Empire”… and I thought he was there as part of the zombie horde for “Walking Dead”. Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t actually expect “Walking Dead” to win…. I just wanted it to. Zombies never win anything.
The next two awards reset my hopes meter; “Burlesque” won for “You Haven’t Seen the Last of Me” (the theme for Cher’s upcoming final tour?) which is A) a really good song, and B) from a really good movie. The other songs were good strong contenders, and I could have lived with “Coming Home” or “Bound to You” also. Trent Reznor wins for “The Social Network” score! Yay! I love Trent Reznor… but to be honest… nah, I would have gone with “Alice”, or “Inception”.
I was really glad to see “Toy Story 3” win for animated. I also had to laugh over Justin being led out by the younger (and taller) Hailee Steinfeld ( I have no clue who she is, I even had to look up her name) which made him look dorkier and smaller in all ways than he is in person. I was right in my first reaction to seeing him throw down street gang sign backstage after his show in San Jose (where the audience were not allowed to have signs… WTF?). His only exposure to the street is having his hand held while he crosses. Anyway, “Toy Story 3” was a superb sequel, possibly the funniest and most touching of the trio. I just wish there was a way to also award “How to Train Your Dragon” which was wonderful, “Despicable Me” because I want some of those minions, and “Tangled”. I guess the nomination is sort of an award.
I hadn’t seen enough of the other nominees to have an opinion about the wins by Buscemi, Benning, Pacino or Lynch for TV shows. I was glad to see Claire Danes win for “Temple Grandin” though. It was not really an easy film to watch at many points; honestly, the only reason I did was because Claire was in it. (grin). Go Claire! Two for two! OK, David Strathairn was also a reason. The two of them really made this story work for me, and the personas just jumped off the screen. It’s the only reason I had to begrudge Colfer his award, because he beat out David. I was surprised and a bit disappointed to see “Social Network” beat out “The Kings Speech”, although Colin did take Best Actor, and I had been hoping that “Big Bang Theory” might win over “Glee” for best TV show, but seeing Sheldon get the award made that OK. Yay Sheldon! I also wanted Depp to win for “Alice”, but at least Paul Giamatti won, so that’s sort of OK. Paul is a brilliant actor. Having Natalie win for “Black Swan” was also good, although I had not seen any of the other nominees there either. I just really liked Black Swan. “Burlesque” losing out to “The Kids Are Alright” was also not a huge deal, though again seeing “Alice” win, or even “Red” would have been my preferences.
Regardless, I was quite surprised and a little disappointed over several of the early awards. Christian Bale getting the first award for Best Supporting set my teeth on edge a bit; certainly winning over Geoffrey Rush was utterly weird to me. Really? Christian playing an obnoxious loud mouthed drunk/drug addict was better than Geoffrey playing a speech therapist? Wow. OK. That was followed by “Carlos” getting the nod over “Pillars of the Earth” or “The Pacific”? Umm, sure, I guess…. I was getting a bit worried already. That was followed by Katey Segal winning for “Sons of Anarchy”, which wasn’t horrible ( I have only seen two episodes) but, beating out Kyra Sedgewick? Oh oh…
Then Chris Colfer won for “Glee”. Good for him. Although never having seen him anywhere BUT “Glee” I was I admit surprised to realize that the voice is not a character choice; he actually IS either a castrato, or the real voice behind Justin Beiber… that was followed by Steve Buscemi winning for “Boardwalk Empire”… and I thought he was there as part of the zombie horde for “Walking Dead”. Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t actually expect “Walking Dead” to win…. I just wanted it to. Zombies never win anything.
The next two awards reset my hopes meter; “Burlesque” won for “You Haven’t Seen the Last of Me” (the theme for Cher’s upcoming final tour?) which is A) a really good song, and B) from a really good movie. The other songs were good strong contenders, and I could have lived with “Coming Home” or “Bound to You” also. Trent Reznor wins for “The Social Network” score! Yay! I love Trent Reznor… but to be honest… nah, I would have gone with “Alice”, or “Inception”.
I was really glad to see “Toy Story 3” win for animated. I also had to laugh over Justin being led out by the younger (and taller) Hailee Steinfeld ( I have no clue who she is, I even had to look up her name) which made him look dorkier and smaller in all ways than he is in person. I was right in my first reaction to seeing him throw down street gang sign backstage after his show in San Jose (where the audience were not allowed to have signs… WTF?). His only exposure to the street is having his hand held while he crosses. Anyway, “Toy Story 3” was a superb sequel, possibly the funniest and most touching of the trio. I just wish there was a way to also award “How to Train Your Dragon” which was wonderful, “Despicable Me” because I want some of those minions, and “Tangled”. I guess the nomination is sort of an award.
I hadn’t seen enough of the other nominees to have an opinion about the wins by Buscemi, Benning, Pacino or Lynch for TV shows. I was glad to see Claire Danes win for “Temple Grandin” though. It was not really an easy film to watch at many points; honestly, the only reason I did was because Claire was in it. (grin). Go Claire! Two for two! OK, David Strathairn was also a reason. The two of them really made this story work for me, and the personas just jumped off the screen. It’s the only reason I had to begrudge Colfer his award, because he beat out David. I was surprised and a bit disappointed to see “Social Network” beat out “The Kings Speech”, although Colin did take Best Actor, and I had been hoping that “Big Bang Theory” might win over “Glee” for best TV show, but seeing Sheldon get the award made that OK. Yay Sheldon! I also wanted Depp to win for “Alice”, but at least Paul Giamatti won, so that’s sort of OK. Paul is a brilliant actor. Having Natalie win for “Black Swan” was also good, although I had not seen any of the other nominees there either. I just really liked Black Swan. “Burlesque” losing out to “The Kids Are Alright” was also not a huge deal, though again seeing “Alice” win, or even “Red” would have been my preferences.
Monday, December 6, 2010
What I really want in movies. So you should too, of course.
This weekend I saw two films, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" part one, and "Burlesque". Care to guess which one I thought was the better film?
Let me remove the mystery by first saying that I liked "Deathly Hallows". I have read all the books, have them all in hardbound First Editions in fact (geek), and enjoyed them immensely, even standing in line twice to get the first copies (uber-geek). I've enjoyed all the movies. I think the casting has been superb (Tonks is hot) and the direction, cinematography and screenwriting have all been excellent. (Note to WingNut Productions; THIS is how you adapt a novel, Peter, Fran and Phillipa. Note that NONE of the characters here behaved DIFFERENTLY than they do in the books.....idiots.)
"Deathly Hallows" presents some (well, all) of the challenges of a novel versus a screenplay. One, it's huge. Two, it's HUGE. Three, pacing in a novel can be glacial, then cheetah. A film needs a bit more evenness to it. In the novel, Ron, Hermione and Harry spend, oh, six chapters or so.... camping. And bitch fighting. And camping some more. Then they spend some time ambling about. Finally some two hundred pages in they fight for their lives. From a film standpoint it's like taking the first hour of "My Dinner
With Andre" and then strapping on the last hour of "Shoot'em Up".
"Snooooooozzzzzzzeeee.. AAiiieeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!"
I really felt the writers, director etc. did a fantastic job here. They kept huge sections of dialogue and action, kept the characters true (Fran, Peter, pay attention here) and for the people who wanted every moment and word in the book on the screen, they... well.... OK, those people got screwed. Tough. Deal with it. All the key elements were there (and yes, you who know me and read the book, I got misty once, and of course had to wipe my eyes later. You know what I'm talking about...). The movie ended at a properly climactic moment, and certainly left me ready to see part two.
Still, "Burlesque" was much better I thought.
OK, hear me out. I'm expecting to take toon-ville levels of crap over this. Nevertheless....
"Burlesque" stole pretty liberally from the "Coyote Ugly" script, to my mind. Girl with talent goes to big city, falls into a potentially awesome job, gets robbed, meets a boy..... yeah, OK, I got it. Harry Potter is not exactly new either (ducks). The point is that from a performance stand- point, "Burlesque" simply takes you and whirls you away so prettily you don't notice if there are gaping plot holes or not. Nor did I care. I went to see Cher and Christina perform. I got that, and then some.
These are two of the women in modern music with simply massive vocal talents. The film lets them use them, and in a logical fashion given the setting; not American Musical "I am angry! I should sing a song about anger!" style. The cinematography is better than "Cabaret" (ducks again) or "Moulin Rouge" (ducks again? did anyone like this?). The sets are equal to anything Ziegfeld Follies ever did. How they got them in that little club is one of the things you just look at and go "So what?"
Then there are the acting abilities. Cher, well we all know she can act, and brilliantly. Christina on the other hand.... this is her first film. She might have done some TV. Whatever. She's unlikely to grab an Oscar nod for this, but she held her own with Cher, and with Stanley Tucci. He's another reason to see this. If you like him at all, you will love watching two moments of Oscar worthy ability. First is the perfectly droll and deadpan "I never loved you", and later when Cher calls him an asshole..... and there are dozens of others. I'm not going to give any spoilers on his role; if you act, you should see this just for him.
Eric Dane (McSteamy from "Grey's Anatomy") and Alan Cumming (Nightcrawler from "X-Men" and the Tin Man from HBO's "Tin Man" Oz adaptation) are also spectacular in this. The romantic lead.... uhh, whose name I forgot..... wait.... IMDB rules! Cam Gigandet (WTF? I'll never remember that one...) oh. Derp. From "Twilight" (ick) and "New Moon" (ick ick) and "Pandorum" and "Easy A"... shit. No wonder he looked familiar. DERP. Anyway, they were also great in this, and gave both women plenty to work off of. Frankly, Cher and Christina could (and should!) take this on the road, using the sets, dancers, back up vocals etc., and the music. Screw the story, just belt the songs in order. Because Cher's voice is still strong at 64; its as hot as Tina Turners legs..... and Christina? Yow. I confess I worked her shows, and only discovered then she had an amazing voice. I still own no CD's for either woman..... (the Cher tour DVD does NOT count..) but I'm going to get this soundtrack. And listen in my car. Yeah, you heard me.
Don't be hatin...
Let me remove the mystery by first saying that I liked "Deathly Hallows". I have read all the books, have them all in hardbound First Editions in fact (geek), and enjoyed them immensely, even standing in line twice to get the first copies (uber-geek). I've enjoyed all the movies. I think the casting has been superb (Tonks is hot) and the direction, cinematography and screenwriting have all been excellent. (Note to WingNut Productions; THIS is how you adapt a novel, Peter, Fran and Phillipa. Note that NONE of the characters here behaved DIFFERENTLY than they do in the books.....idiots.)
"Deathly Hallows" presents some (well, all) of the challenges of a novel versus a screenplay. One, it's huge. Two, it's HUGE. Three, pacing in a novel can be glacial, then cheetah. A film needs a bit more evenness to it. In the novel, Ron, Hermione and Harry spend, oh, six chapters or so.... camping. And bitch fighting. And camping some more. Then they spend some time ambling about. Finally some two hundred pages in they fight for their lives. From a film standpoint it's like taking the first hour of "My Dinner
With Andre" and then strapping on the last hour of "Shoot'em Up".
"Snooooooozzzzzzzeeee.. AAiiieeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!"
I really felt the writers, director etc. did a fantastic job here. They kept huge sections of dialogue and action, kept the characters true (Fran, Peter, pay attention here) and for the people who wanted every moment and word in the book on the screen, they... well.... OK, those people got screwed. Tough. Deal with it. All the key elements were there (and yes, you who know me and read the book, I got misty once, and of course had to wipe my eyes later. You know what I'm talking about...). The movie ended at a properly climactic moment, and certainly left me ready to see part two.
Still, "Burlesque" was much better I thought.
OK, hear me out. I'm expecting to take toon-ville levels of crap over this. Nevertheless....
"Burlesque" stole pretty liberally from the "Coyote Ugly" script, to my mind. Girl with talent goes to big city, falls into a potentially awesome job, gets robbed, meets a boy..... yeah, OK, I got it. Harry Potter is not exactly new either (ducks). The point is that from a performance stand- point, "Burlesque" simply takes you and whirls you away so prettily you don't notice if there are gaping plot holes or not. Nor did I care. I went to see Cher and Christina perform. I got that, and then some.
These are two of the women in modern music with simply massive vocal talents. The film lets them use them, and in a logical fashion given the setting; not American Musical "I am angry! I should sing a song about anger!" style. The cinematography is better than "Cabaret" (ducks again) or "Moulin Rouge" (ducks again? did anyone like this?). The sets are equal to anything Ziegfeld Follies ever did. How they got them in that little club is one of the things you just look at and go "So what?"
Then there are the acting abilities. Cher, well we all know she can act, and brilliantly. Christina on the other hand.... this is her first film. She might have done some TV. Whatever. She's unlikely to grab an Oscar nod for this, but she held her own with Cher, and with Stanley Tucci. He's another reason to see this. If you like him at all, you will love watching two moments of Oscar worthy ability. First is the perfectly droll and deadpan "I never loved you", and later when Cher calls him an asshole..... and there are dozens of others. I'm not going to give any spoilers on his role; if you act, you should see this just for him.
Eric Dane (McSteamy from "Grey's Anatomy") and Alan Cumming (Nightcrawler from "X-Men" and the Tin Man from HBO's "Tin Man" Oz adaptation) are also spectacular in this. The romantic lead.... uhh, whose name I forgot..... wait.... IMDB rules! Cam Gigandet (WTF? I'll never remember that one...) oh. Derp. From "Twilight" (ick) and "New Moon" (ick ick) and "Pandorum" and "Easy A"... shit. No wonder he looked familiar. DERP. Anyway, they were also great in this, and gave both women plenty to work off of. Frankly, Cher and Christina could (and should!) take this on the road, using the sets, dancers, back up vocals etc., and the music. Screw the story, just belt the songs in order. Because Cher's voice is still strong at 64; its as hot as Tina Turners legs..... and Christina? Yow. I confess I worked her shows, and only discovered then she had an amazing voice. I still own no CD's for either woman..... (the Cher tour DVD does NOT count..) but I'm going to get this soundtrack. And listen in my car. Yeah, you heard me.
Don't be hatin...
Monday, October 25, 2010
Neither snow nor rain...
Sometimes, being a stagehand is nothing more than hours of labor; lifting, pushing, pulling and carrying someone else's crap, and assembling it so they can strut and preen in the public eye; I'm thinking Prince here, or maybe Britney. Then there are days like the last two.
I worked the Bridge School Benefit show for the first time this year, as a follow spot operator. For more than eight hours Saturday, and another eight on Sunday, I sat inside a
ten foot wide, eight foot deep metal box atop a thirty foot tall post, wielding my 300 pound, six and a half foot long spotlight. Saturday I was lashed periodically by wind and intermittent rain, so often that my pant legs and sleeves were wet by the end of the show, even though I was sitting 2 feet back from the opening. Sunday I wore a poncho for the first two hours. Still, my legs and sleeves got pretty damp, and it was not warm at all.
It was worth it.
To begin with, I got to see some of the students who have benefitted from the Bridge School program; students who, in our all too often cookie-cutter mindset society, would have been pushed aside by the public school system; left to waste tragically because they are disabled in some manner. I did not hear the name of the woman that Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder congratulated on recieving her bachelors degree. I did hear the emotion in his voice as he told the crowd how proud he was of her efforts. I wish I could have picked her out sooner, in order to get my spotlight on her; but 250 feet of seperation made it hard to do.... she was actually behind the camera operator from my vantage at first, then it was too late...
I also have to say that of all the bands, star performers, and major artists I saw there, the performance that completely blew me away was Sir Elton John and Leon Russell together on stage as part of T. Bone Burnett's "Speaking Clock Revue". I don't mean to slight the other artists; Kris Kristofferson, Neil Young and Buffalo Springfield, Elvis Costello, Billy Idol, Emmylou Harris, Lucinda Williams, Karen Elson, Jeff Bridges.... all the others performed amazing sets. Ralph Stanley "the oldest and greatest country singer" according to Elvis Costello, even did one of the few country songs I like "Man of Constant Sorrow" which was so big in the film "O Brother Where Art Thou". Also known as "The Odyssey" for those of us with a classical education...
The 30 minute or more set by Sir Elton and Leon was the pinnacle for me. I understand that Leon was not feeling at all well, and in fact had to leave before the finale of the show; if that's how good he is when he's sick, I can't imagine what the set would have been like if he was feeling 100%. Added to that was the unbelievable voice of one of the four female backup singers, (whose names I can't find anywhere, guess I have to buy the CD... which I will), who did a sustain on one song that makes the best of Idina Menzel and Kristen Chenoweth on "Wicked" sound like one bar humming. I have no clue what the song was; I'm not even sure it's on the "Union" cd.... I just sat there, spellbound. Whoever she is, I think she's wasted as a backup vocalist.
I'm glad that after all this time, Sir Elton and Leon are performing side-by-side, a duet that is so powerful and so complementary, I wonder if Billy Joel will have to tour alone from now one. Or maybe, just MAYBE.....
I have the coolest job in the world.
I worked the Bridge School Benefit show for the first time this year, as a follow spot operator. For more than eight hours Saturday, and another eight on Sunday, I sat inside a
ten foot wide, eight foot deep metal box atop a thirty foot tall post, wielding my 300 pound, six and a half foot long spotlight. Saturday I was lashed periodically by wind and intermittent rain, so often that my pant legs and sleeves were wet by the end of the show, even though I was sitting 2 feet back from the opening. Sunday I wore a poncho for the first two hours. Still, my legs and sleeves got pretty damp, and it was not warm at all.
It was worth it.
To begin with, I got to see some of the students who have benefitted from the Bridge School program; students who, in our all too often cookie-cutter mindset society, would have been pushed aside by the public school system; left to waste tragically because they are disabled in some manner. I did not hear the name of the woman that Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder congratulated on recieving her bachelors degree. I did hear the emotion in his voice as he told the crowd how proud he was of her efforts. I wish I could have picked her out sooner, in order to get my spotlight on her; but 250 feet of seperation made it hard to do.... she was actually behind the camera operator from my vantage at first, then it was too late...
I also have to say that of all the bands, star performers, and major artists I saw there, the performance that completely blew me away was Sir Elton John and Leon Russell together on stage as part of T. Bone Burnett's "Speaking Clock Revue". I don't mean to slight the other artists; Kris Kristofferson, Neil Young and Buffalo Springfield, Elvis Costello, Billy Idol, Emmylou Harris, Lucinda Williams, Karen Elson, Jeff Bridges.... all the others performed amazing sets. Ralph Stanley "the oldest and greatest country singer" according to Elvis Costello, even did one of the few country songs I like "Man of Constant Sorrow" which was so big in the film "O Brother Where Art Thou". Also known as "The Odyssey" for those of us with a classical education...
The 30 minute or more set by Sir Elton and Leon was the pinnacle for me. I understand that Leon was not feeling at all well, and in fact had to leave before the finale of the show; if that's how good he is when he's sick, I can't imagine what the set would have been like if he was feeling 100%. Added to that was the unbelievable voice of one of the four female backup singers, (whose names I can't find anywhere, guess I have to buy the CD... which I will), who did a sustain on one song that makes the best of Idina Menzel and Kristen Chenoweth on "Wicked" sound like one bar humming. I have no clue what the song was; I'm not even sure it's on the "Union" cd.... I just sat there, spellbound. Whoever she is, I think she's wasted as a backup vocalist.
I'm glad that after all this time, Sir Elton and Leon are performing side-by-side, a duet that is so powerful and so complementary, I wonder if Billy Joel will have to tour alone from now one. Or maybe, just MAYBE.....
I have the coolest job in the world.
Friday, September 24, 2010
Great new movies
Today I saw both "The Town" and "Easy A".
"The Town" is Ben Affleck's second turn at directing, after "Gone Baby Gone". I have to say, it's an order of magnitude better. While "Gone Baby.." was well done. "The Town" has superb pacing from the start. You are immersed in seconds in the gang, and the nature of the two principles is made clear within the first two minutes. From there on, while it follows a fairly standard plotline for Action/Romance, it's still handled deftly enough that, well, you don't care. The moments of humor are inserted right where they are needed, even during, oh, say, a robbery. When the scene calls for action, you get it in spades.
The funny moments include a short written note near the end that is as funny as the wonderful "how do ya like THEM apples?" from "Good Will Hunting" and felt like a nod to that moment. Sure, lots of the story has already been told in the trailers; you know that Ben's character "Wants out of this life of crime and villainy". So he's the classic whore with a heart of gold Hollywood adores. Again, who cares? Rebecca Hall as the female lead has that same girl-next-door unaffected beauty that Minnie Driver had; and it works just as well. A solid four wombats.
"Easy A" looks like a fairly typical teen-romance-comedy-angst-recovery movie. It is. But that's like saying "Juno" is about a pregnant 16 year old. While true, that's not even the cherry on he top of the sundae; it's the bowl it gets served in. The narrative POV works perfectly for this film, and it's as funny and as full of memorable quotes as "Juno" was. "What, do I have a gnome down there?" By the time that line was delivered, I was already laughing as hard a I did over the "Mr. Burrito" bit from "Toy Story 3". OK, maybe not QUITE that hard. Close though.
Emma Stone is pretty, and at 22 (yes, I looked) still can play a high school senior convincingly. Amanda Bynes as her nemesis is PERFECT, and if you don't want to clip her with a guitar 30 minutes in, you are a zombie. Stanley Tucci as Emma's dad is spot-on, and the dialogue is not only well written, it's flawlessly executed by the cast and the director. Five good fat wombats for this one; it goes in my library once it's out.
"The Town" is Ben Affleck's second turn at directing, after "Gone Baby Gone". I have to say, it's an order of magnitude better. While "Gone Baby.." was well done. "The Town" has superb pacing from the start. You are immersed in seconds in the gang, and the nature of the two principles is made clear within the first two minutes. From there on, while it follows a fairly standard plotline for Action/Romance, it's still handled deftly enough that, well, you don't care. The moments of humor are inserted right where they are needed, even during, oh, say, a robbery. When the scene calls for action, you get it in spades.
The funny moments include a short written note near the end that is as funny as the wonderful "how do ya like THEM apples?" from "Good Will Hunting" and felt like a nod to that moment. Sure, lots of the story has already been told in the trailers; you know that Ben's character "Wants out of this life of crime and villainy". So he's the classic whore with a heart of gold Hollywood adores. Again, who cares? Rebecca Hall as the female lead has that same girl-next-door unaffected beauty that Minnie Driver had; and it works just as well. A solid four wombats.
"Easy A" looks like a fairly typical teen-romance-comedy-angst-recovery movie. It is. But that's like saying "Juno" is about a pregnant 16 year old. While true, that's not even the cherry on he top of the sundae; it's the bowl it gets served in. The narrative POV works perfectly for this film, and it's as funny and as full of memorable quotes as "Juno" was. "What, do I have a gnome down there?" By the time that line was delivered, I was already laughing as hard a I did over the "Mr. Burrito" bit from "Toy Story 3". OK, maybe not QUITE that hard. Close though.
Emma Stone is pretty, and at 22 (yes, I looked) still can play a high school senior convincingly. Amanda Bynes as her nemesis is PERFECT, and if you don't want to clip her with a guitar 30 minutes in, you are a zombie. Stanley Tucci as Emma's dad is spot-on, and the dialogue is not only well written, it's flawlessly executed by the cast and the director. Five good fat wombats for this one; it goes in my library once it's out.
Friday, August 20, 2010
Theatre ghosts
Another of my "epic" dreams today; yeah , you know the ones I mean, the ones that read like a movie script. The ones I can recall in detail years later. This one featured my friends Kim Saunders, Alea Selburn, Dennis Serras, and Jessica Teeter. Hi guys!
I am returning from an evening somewhere in town; the place feels East-coast; older, with a sense of presence you don't really feel in, say downtown Sacramento, or Denver.... even Chicago. The sober seniority of Philadelphia, the somber practicality of Boston. A place where there are buildings that have been standing unchanged for 200 years, block after block.
I am heading towards the theatre where I am currently working as the fight director for a pirate-themed play. It seems like a staged version of something like "Pirates of the Caribbean.". The theatre itself is well over a hundred years old, and has architecture more like a gothic cathedral than a stage. The lobby has high rectangular windows with stained glass, as does the greenroom and backstage area, and the small rehearsal stage.. I'm entering from the greenroom door to the outside, and my friend Alea is with me. We have had dinner together maybe, or have just run into each other in the parking lot. Both of us are just stopping by; rehearsal is over, and we both need to chat with the director perhaps, or the stage manager, some utterly mundane task. As we walk in we are both laughing over a story Alea has just told.
Like all large older theatres, and even a few small ones, this theatre has a reputation for being haunted. This place deserves the reputation more than most however. No one has EVER spent the night here. Props, costumes, and even furniture and set pieces are always found moved the next day. And no one who has ever been there to turn out the lights at night, even if they have people with them, is in the slightest doubt that when the shadows fill the stage, some of them move on their own volition.
This night is different; it's like walking in to the middle of a static charge, or an EMP burst. While the hair on my neck and arms doesn't stand on end, I'm left wondering why they are not, until I realize the psychic pressure is pushing them flat. If this were a horror film, I would be locking the doors in a mortuary. When I turned around, every corpse in the place would be sitting bolt upright, staring blankly forward.
There are a half-dozen people inside, trying in desperation to get everything put away properly and get out. The atmosphere is so intense however that they are bumbling about, or stopping and fidgeting, trying to remember what they were just doing..... Alea and I are standing just inside the door, and staring in amazement at what is going on. Jessica is towards the back of the greenroom area, and she looks like a cat that has been dropped in a dog run full of hyenas. She is moving back and forth in an area maybe five feet long, her arms full of costumes, seemingly unable to decide what to do with them; Dennis is standing by the rack of weapons for the show, with a sword held in his hand, but he seems rooted to the spot. Kim is the only one moving with some purpose; she has seen Alea and I standing there and is running over to us.
Kim already has large eyes; right now, I could put a fresnel lens in one and it would fit like a contact. For the first time I notice that instead of the classic horror-story chill, the room is hot, almost stifling; it's like walking on the tarmac of the airport in Houston in August. Kim is grabbing at Alea and trying to get her to leave, all the time holding her arm like it's her only anchor to reality. Dennis looks at me, and says, in the calm way only he has mastered for understatement "Scott, we seem to be in trouble here..."
The pressure eases for a moment, as I start laughing at this. Everyone else who has heard it is also starting to laugh, and those others most disoriented calm a bit and even manage weak laughter themselves. Whatever force it is causing this draws back, not in retreat, or anger; there is no malice to this at all. Any more than there is malice in heavy rain, or arctic cold. It is simply immense, like a tidal wave or an avalanche. The attitude is more like one of study, and..... waiting.
I can't escape my basic nature. I can see how panicked everyone is, and I'm angry over how badly it's affected Jessica. Kim and Dennis have now moved back towards the door Alea and I are near, all trying to tell us at once how this just swept over them suddenly, and how they knew they had to put everything back properly before they left.... Alea is trying to calm them all down, and I am glaring at the door to the side of the stage entrance. That door leads to a short hallway, with two other doors; the first door inside opens on stairs going to the lofts, the catwalks above the stage and the grid, and to the area above the house. The other door opens on the stairs to the basement and the pit. It stands ajar, as does the one going up; and from there, the sense of waiting and of immense gravity seems to be leaking outwards, like lava penned behind a sheet of plywood
Jessica and Kim seem to realize what I am going to do even before I do it; Dennis is barely a beat behind them, and he steps in front of me to stop me as they grab at my jacket and arms. Alea is too far away, but she turns and look at me as well. I don't know if it's outrage, or frustration, my misplaced sense of chivalry, or a bad decision made from panic; it's not bravado, that is certain. My hands are sweating, I can tell my eyes are wider even than Kim's, and I am not sure I am remembering to breathe. Regardless, I grab a sword from the bundle in Dennis' arms and stalk towards the open door. "What are you doing! How dare you! Look at what you've done to these people..."
My voice fades like a dying breeze. Standing in front of the door now are three young looking children; perhaps ten years old each, one boy and two girls. The clothes they wear look fairly modern, like something you could find at Sears; but the FEEL of the clothes is all wrong, like they are all hand-woven. The children themselves are worse. In spite of the appearance, they feel primordial, they radiate a sense of ancient, like a Pharaoh's mummy... or something even older, something not seen on this earth for millennia. They say nothing, but look at me without expression, so devoid of emotions they could be wax dolls or mannequins. They are utterly horrible.
Before my heart stops, they are simply gone. Stepping from the doorway is a woman, very close to my own height but slender. She is wearing pants and a simple blouse, with a trench coat like jacket. Again, in spite of the seeming modernity, the clothes seem like they are camouflage, perhaps for clothes worn last in 1840. She too carries a sense of incredible energy held rigidly in check, but where the children were terrifying, she is merely scary. For the first time I am aware of breathing again, and I also realize that my hands are trembling. She looks at me and says quietly;" So, what were you planning to do next?"
"I have no clue at all."
"Did the sword help?"
"Uh, not really... habit maybe? These people, these are my friends...."
"Hmm. Yes, I see we have done a great deal to them. A pity that. Walk with me now."
There is little real force to her words, but I might as well be on a leash. I could no more stay where I am than I could hold back the tide with a crossing guards stop sign. What happens next is almost comic. As everyone stands around watching, she leads me to various places in the backstage area, where graffiti has been scrawled on a wall, or designs painted on the floor. Some she approves of; others clearly are offensive or annoying. I even have the temerity to ask if one design that I happen to like could be left instead of removed; it's a little painting on the floor of Oz, from a prior show. She thinks about it for a moment and says "Well, alright, that can stay.."
Then I ask about things like the weapon stands that hold all the swords and rifles. "Oh, those are fine. We like the swords a great deal." In spite of the continuing sense of presence, I have inexplicably relaxed while she has been leading me about. Jessica has joined us, sort of, standing several feet farther away, as has Kim, and both of them are cautiously asking about other things, like the costumes, equipment, if we are even safe in there ever again. Kim asks rather sharply "How often do you think we can stand stuff like this?" The woman looks at her and says softly "If you are careful, it won't happen again."
Now we are standing near Alea and Dennis again, who have formed a sort of human wall with the still badly frightened others behind them. The woman with me looks them over and smiles slightly; whether in approval of their heroics, or amusement at the effort I can't tell. Abruptly she looks back over her shoulder towards the doorway, and what ever she senses there causes her to turn back sharply. "You should take care of these chores on the morrow; perhaps the day after that. You should leave. Now."
With that she turns and strides back towards the doorway, and as she moves her outline wavers and blurs as though she walks through a heat haze. Jessica, Dennis and Alea are herding the rest of the still rather dazed crew out the door; Kim is grabbing at my arm again and pulling me. I can't take my eyes off the shape of the woman however, as she fades out into the increasingly watery images near the doorway. When she is gone completely the distortion vanishes too; and for a heartbeat I can see that beyond the shadowed area in the far hall, there is a boiling deeper area of shadow, held in check still by some barrier I can't see at all. The sword, which I have carried this whole time drops from my fingers as my whole body goes loose. Without Kim and then Dennis as well to grab me, I would collapse on the spot. They manage to get me staggering backwards out into the cooler air outside, and as the door swings shut, shoved frantically by Alea, I have one last image of all the lights inside going out as a wave of utter blackness rolls forward, devouring it.
I am returning from an evening somewhere in town; the place feels East-coast; older, with a sense of presence you don't really feel in, say downtown Sacramento, or Denver.... even Chicago. The sober seniority of Philadelphia, the somber practicality of Boston. A place where there are buildings that have been standing unchanged for 200 years, block after block.
I am heading towards the theatre where I am currently working as the fight director for a pirate-themed play. It seems like a staged version of something like "Pirates of the Caribbean.". The theatre itself is well over a hundred years old, and has architecture more like a gothic cathedral than a stage. The lobby has high rectangular windows with stained glass, as does the greenroom and backstage area, and the small rehearsal stage.. I'm entering from the greenroom door to the outside, and my friend Alea is with me. We have had dinner together maybe, or have just run into each other in the parking lot. Both of us are just stopping by; rehearsal is over, and we both need to chat with the director perhaps, or the stage manager, some utterly mundane task. As we walk in we are both laughing over a story Alea has just told.
Like all large older theatres, and even a few small ones, this theatre has a reputation for being haunted. This place deserves the reputation more than most however. No one has EVER spent the night here. Props, costumes, and even furniture and set pieces are always found moved the next day. And no one who has ever been there to turn out the lights at night, even if they have people with them, is in the slightest doubt that when the shadows fill the stage, some of them move on their own volition.
This night is different; it's like walking in to the middle of a static charge, or an EMP burst. While the hair on my neck and arms doesn't stand on end, I'm left wondering why they are not, until I realize the psychic pressure is pushing them flat. If this were a horror film, I would be locking the doors in a mortuary. When I turned around, every corpse in the place would be sitting bolt upright, staring blankly forward.
There are a half-dozen people inside, trying in desperation to get everything put away properly and get out. The atmosphere is so intense however that they are bumbling about, or stopping and fidgeting, trying to remember what they were just doing..... Alea and I are standing just inside the door, and staring in amazement at what is going on. Jessica is towards the back of the greenroom area, and she looks like a cat that has been dropped in a dog run full of hyenas. She is moving back and forth in an area maybe five feet long, her arms full of costumes, seemingly unable to decide what to do with them; Dennis is standing by the rack of weapons for the show, with a sword held in his hand, but he seems rooted to the spot. Kim is the only one moving with some purpose; she has seen Alea and I standing there and is running over to us.
Kim already has large eyes; right now, I could put a fresnel lens in one and it would fit like a contact. For the first time I notice that instead of the classic horror-story chill, the room is hot, almost stifling; it's like walking on the tarmac of the airport in Houston in August. Kim is grabbing at Alea and trying to get her to leave, all the time holding her arm like it's her only anchor to reality. Dennis looks at me, and says, in the calm way only he has mastered for understatement "Scott, we seem to be in trouble here..."
The pressure eases for a moment, as I start laughing at this. Everyone else who has heard it is also starting to laugh, and those others most disoriented calm a bit and even manage weak laughter themselves. Whatever force it is causing this draws back, not in retreat, or anger; there is no malice to this at all. Any more than there is malice in heavy rain, or arctic cold. It is simply immense, like a tidal wave or an avalanche. The attitude is more like one of study, and..... waiting.
I can't escape my basic nature. I can see how panicked everyone is, and I'm angry over how badly it's affected Jessica. Kim and Dennis have now moved back towards the door Alea and I are near, all trying to tell us at once how this just swept over them suddenly, and how they knew they had to put everything back properly before they left.... Alea is trying to calm them all down, and I am glaring at the door to the side of the stage entrance. That door leads to a short hallway, with two other doors; the first door inside opens on stairs going to the lofts, the catwalks above the stage and the grid, and to the area above the house. The other door opens on the stairs to the basement and the pit. It stands ajar, as does the one going up; and from there, the sense of waiting and of immense gravity seems to be leaking outwards, like lava penned behind a sheet of plywood
Jessica and Kim seem to realize what I am going to do even before I do it; Dennis is barely a beat behind them, and he steps in front of me to stop me as they grab at my jacket and arms. Alea is too far away, but she turns and look at me as well. I don't know if it's outrage, or frustration, my misplaced sense of chivalry, or a bad decision made from panic; it's not bravado, that is certain. My hands are sweating, I can tell my eyes are wider even than Kim's, and I am not sure I am remembering to breathe. Regardless, I grab a sword from the bundle in Dennis' arms and stalk towards the open door. "What are you doing! How dare you! Look at what you've done to these people..."
My voice fades like a dying breeze. Standing in front of the door now are three young looking children; perhaps ten years old each, one boy and two girls. The clothes they wear look fairly modern, like something you could find at Sears; but the FEEL of the clothes is all wrong, like they are all hand-woven. The children themselves are worse. In spite of the appearance, they feel primordial, they radiate a sense of ancient, like a Pharaoh's mummy... or something even older, something not seen on this earth for millennia. They say nothing, but look at me without expression, so devoid of emotions they could be wax dolls or mannequins. They are utterly horrible.
Before my heart stops, they are simply gone. Stepping from the doorway is a woman, very close to my own height but slender. She is wearing pants and a simple blouse, with a trench coat like jacket. Again, in spite of the seeming modernity, the clothes seem like they are camouflage, perhaps for clothes worn last in 1840. She too carries a sense of incredible energy held rigidly in check, but where the children were terrifying, she is merely scary. For the first time I am aware of breathing again, and I also realize that my hands are trembling. She looks at me and says quietly;" So, what were you planning to do next?"
"I have no clue at all."
"Did the sword help?"
"Uh, not really... habit maybe? These people, these are my friends...."
"Hmm. Yes, I see we have done a great deal to them. A pity that. Walk with me now."
There is little real force to her words, but I might as well be on a leash. I could no more stay where I am than I could hold back the tide with a crossing guards stop sign. What happens next is almost comic. As everyone stands around watching, she leads me to various places in the backstage area, where graffiti has been scrawled on a wall, or designs painted on the floor. Some she approves of; others clearly are offensive or annoying. I even have the temerity to ask if one design that I happen to like could be left instead of removed; it's a little painting on the floor of Oz, from a prior show. She thinks about it for a moment and says "Well, alright, that can stay.."
Then I ask about things like the weapon stands that hold all the swords and rifles. "Oh, those are fine. We like the swords a great deal." In spite of the continuing sense of presence, I have inexplicably relaxed while she has been leading me about. Jessica has joined us, sort of, standing several feet farther away, as has Kim, and both of them are cautiously asking about other things, like the costumes, equipment, if we are even safe in there ever again. Kim asks rather sharply "How often do you think we can stand stuff like this?" The woman looks at her and says softly "If you are careful, it won't happen again."
Now we are standing near Alea and Dennis again, who have formed a sort of human wall with the still badly frightened others behind them. The woman with me looks them over and smiles slightly; whether in approval of their heroics, or amusement at the effort I can't tell. Abruptly she looks back over her shoulder towards the doorway, and what ever she senses there causes her to turn back sharply. "You should take care of these chores on the morrow; perhaps the day after that. You should leave. Now."
With that she turns and strides back towards the doorway, and as she moves her outline wavers and blurs as though she walks through a heat haze. Jessica, Dennis and Alea are herding the rest of the still rather dazed crew out the door; Kim is grabbing at my arm again and pulling me. I can't take my eyes off the shape of the woman however, as she fades out into the increasingly watery images near the doorway. When she is gone completely the distortion vanishes too; and for a heartbeat I can see that beyond the shadowed area in the far hall, there is a boiling deeper area of shadow, held in check still by some barrier I can't see at all. The sword, which I have carried this whole time drops from my fingers as my whole body goes loose. Without Kim and then Dennis as well to grab me, I would collapse on the spot. They manage to get me staggering backwards out into the cooler air outside, and as the door swings shut, shoved frantically by Alea, I have one last image of all the lights inside going out as a wave of utter blackness rolls forward, devouring it.
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Never sleep after the gym
Well. This was one for the books. I am a soldier with a sort of colonial marines force, ala "Aliens". We had been sent to a colony world because (naturally) nasty aliens had decided to invade. Or else they were indigenous, and we of course were evicting them. Regardless they were tough critters; over 6 feet tall, and a fire-engine red body. They were chitinous like lobsters, and in fact had a pair of pincer-tipped arms. The similarity ended there. The tails were up in the air, with the head, such as it was, at the bottom on a short extendable neck. Six legs ending in a three toed claw, with the "arms" at the mid point of the body. If you drew one as a cartoon, it would look like a red banana with 6 legs, two arms, and the mouth a round "O" shape. They were not very funny though. The mouth was filled with shark like teeth, and could cut through kevlar armor. The pincers were like tin snips. Not as good against our body armor... but real nasty on, you know, flesh. They were spider-fast, and in attacking could swing that extendable head upwards from the ground to near waist height, while grabbing and tearing with the pincers. They could also kick and gouge with any pair of the legs while standing on the other four. Their own natural armor was tough enough to take several hits from heavy rifles, lasers, or grenades. Mines worked nicely... but there were a LOT of these things.
There were perhaps 10,000 troops on the planet when I arrived, along with two friends from high school (oddly it was in fact two friends, Jeff Adair and Victor Engesser). We had been out on a few patrols, and had our first direct fight with the "lobstrosities" (thanks Mr. King...). Our Captain had decided I should work with two other sergeants (??OK..) and form an "elite" squad of snipers (yipeee!) to work on long range ambushes.
While we were back at the base, I stopped in to visit a girl there I had developed a crush on. Naturally. I'm on planet three days and I have a crush? Come on, even a TV sitcom doesn't move that fast....well, except for "Big Bang Theory"... whatever.... so I have stopped in her apartment where she and her roommate are dressing for a big dinner celebration that night. The girl is tall, and looks like the Egyptian girl from "The Mummy" (actually a Brazilian, I think..) except a bit more muscle than curves. Apparently that was not an issue for me. Her name is Jihanna. I manage to get a date (yay!) and am off like a shot to change out of uniform and get back to the huge hall being used for the party. The base reminds me a lot more of an industrial complex with a support "town" around the edges than either a military base or a colony, but still quite impressive. On the way in I am walking with two other members of my team, and Jeff and Victor. We stop and watch as a rather notoriously clumsy scout tries to navigate his two man ATV around the base perimiter fance... and seemingly manages to drive into, then have to back out of, pothole after pothole. His shotgun rider finally jumps off, screaming that it's safer to walk alone than ride with him. At that point everyone watching starts laughing, including the parapet guards and the lookouts in the closest towers.
On to the party! Once inside it's a weird mix. Half the soldiers are still in full patrol gear; a number are in full dress uniforms, perhaps 30%, and the rest of us, including all the top officers, are in everything from jeans and shirts to semi-formal. The food is also a bit of a mix. There are buffet tables, and also servers bring trays and plates. One consistent element is the dancing and the drinking. Everyone is doing a lot of both, and the number of couples who suddenly vanish from the floor, sneaking off somewhere, is rather comic.
I've managed to dance with my potential next ex-girlfriend several times, and even once with her roommate... who would not be a loss to date... and I am carrying drinks back for all three of us. Suddenly there is a notable vibration in the floor; everyone stops, and then we all begin running for our homes or the closest sets of weapons and armor. As I get outside I can see the cause; another troopship has just landed, and at least 5000 more troops are pounding towards the main gate as fast as they can run. The drop ship is lifting away from the pad in such a rush that the back ranks are lucky not to be killed in the blast wave; as it is they are getting pushed forward and almost carried faster than they are running. From the towers and fence parapets every single guard is firing, and alarms are blaring an alert. From three directions a tsunami of the lobstrosities is rushing at us; if there were 50,000 I would not be at all surprised.
I can see Jihanna rushing towards the apartments she lives in, and I am torn between staying with her and getting my own armor and weapons. I'm slowing down, trying to get my body to go two ways at once. Apparently Jihanna has already figured me out. She takes another look in my direction and yells "Go! I can shoot too you know!" Then she is sprinting off... and waving back over her shoulder. OK, I can take a hint. She likes me! No way these things are gonna kill me now....
There were perhaps 10,000 troops on the planet when I arrived, along with two friends from high school (oddly it was in fact two friends, Jeff Adair and Victor Engesser). We had been out on a few patrols, and had our first direct fight with the "lobstrosities" (thanks Mr. King...). Our Captain had decided I should work with two other sergeants (??OK..) and form an "elite" squad of snipers (yipeee!) to work on long range ambushes.
While we were back at the base, I stopped in to visit a girl there I had developed a crush on. Naturally. I'm on planet three days and I have a crush? Come on, even a TV sitcom doesn't move that fast....well, except for "Big Bang Theory"... whatever.... so I have stopped in her apartment where she and her roommate are dressing for a big dinner celebration that night. The girl is tall, and looks like the Egyptian girl from "The Mummy" (actually a Brazilian, I think..) except a bit more muscle than curves. Apparently that was not an issue for me. Her name is Jihanna. I manage to get a date (yay!) and am off like a shot to change out of uniform and get back to the huge hall being used for the party. The base reminds me a lot more of an industrial complex with a support "town" around the edges than either a military base or a colony, but still quite impressive. On the way in I am walking with two other members of my team, and Jeff and Victor. We stop and watch as a rather notoriously clumsy scout tries to navigate his two man ATV around the base perimiter fance... and seemingly manages to drive into, then have to back out of, pothole after pothole. His shotgun rider finally jumps off, screaming that it's safer to walk alone than ride with him. At that point everyone watching starts laughing, including the parapet guards and the lookouts in the closest towers.
On to the party! Once inside it's a weird mix. Half the soldiers are still in full patrol gear; a number are in full dress uniforms, perhaps 30%, and the rest of us, including all the top officers, are in everything from jeans and shirts to semi-formal. The food is also a bit of a mix. There are buffet tables, and also servers bring trays and plates. One consistent element is the dancing and the drinking. Everyone is doing a lot of both, and the number of couples who suddenly vanish from the floor, sneaking off somewhere, is rather comic.
I've managed to dance with my potential next ex-girlfriend several times, and even once with her roommate... who would not be a loss to date... and I am carrying drinks back for all three of us. Suddenly there is a notable vibration in the floor; everyone stops, and then we all begin running for our homes or the closest sets of weapons and armor. As I get outside I can see the cause; another troopship has just landed, and at least 5000 more troops are pounding towards the main gate as fast as they can run. The drop ship is lifting away from the pad in such a rush that the back ranks are lucky not to be killed in the blast wave; as it is they are getting pushed forward and almost carried faster than they are running. From the towers and fence parapets every single guard is firing, and alarms are blaring an alert. From three directions a tsunami of the lobstrosities is rushing at us; if there were 50,000 I would not be at all surprised.
I can see Jihanna rushing towards the apartments she lives in, and I am torn between staying with her and getting my own armor and weapons. I'm slowing down, trying to get my body to go two ways at once. Apparently Jihanna has already figured me out. She takes another look in my direction and yells "Go! I can shoot too you know!" Then she is sprinting off... and waving back over her shoulder. OK, I can take a hint. She likes me! No way these things are gonna kill me now....
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