The Envelope, Please

Ozzie's annual appearance

Yes, it’s that time of year again. Oscar season. After the Super Bowl, it’s one of the major reasons for celebration and parties. It gives life meaning. This February 26th, at the 84th showing of the Academy Awards, a new group of hopefuls will join the ranks of the “chosen few.”

When I was in high school and college, I set a goal for myself to see all the Oscar-nominated movies. Then, of course, I’d second-guess the Academy with my expert opinions. I actually had a pretty high success rate. You can often tell which movies are going to have stay-ability and broad appeal—or those that are hard to forget because they’re so hard to watch.

All too real

In 2008, No Country for Old Men was one of those. Slumdog Millionaire, in 2009 was another. Then in 2010, The Hurt Locker came from behind to surpass Avatar to take the top honor. We saw THL at our local theater in Florence. It was haunting, so we asked our friends what they thought of it. No one had even heard of it, let alone seen it. Hmmm. Then Oscar season rolled around and The Hurt Locker was finally released in the US to rave reviews and sell-out crowds. It won the Academy Award that year for best picture and delivered the best director award to Kathryn Bigelow (James Cameron’s ex—a fitting competition). He’d created such an arrogant persona when he won for Titanic that there were few tears shed for his loss in 2010. The King’s Speech took the honors in 2011, although I also loved The Black Swan (which, in my quasi-expert opinion, should have tied for the honors). That brings us to this week.

Hugo in Paris

Here are the nominees and a few brief comments: The Artist; a fascinating look at the silent picture business. Provocative and creative. The Descendants; a down-to-earth look at family and what really matters. Well done. Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close; haven’t seen it, but the reviews have been lukewarm so I’m keeping my distance. It doesn’t have that “gotta see it!” attraction. The Help; already a staple with in-flight movies, which is usually NOT a good sign. Hugo; saw it last night. Well done. Creative. Great message—my personal pick. And honestly, Ben Kingsley is one of those actors—completely compelling and believable in any performance. (Just an aside: there were four movie-goers in the audience, just in front of us. One opened a bottle of wine and poured it into Dixie cups for himself and his companions. For me, wine + 3-D glasses = total distortion. And . . . the wine was used to wash down a few hot dogs and popcorn. No thank you.)

Brad's new "Chin-ematic" image

Now back to the movies.  Midnight in Paris; Woody Allen’s latest, which we plan to watch. Moneyball; this one is interesting. We’ll watch it before the Oscars, but it doesn’t have the same gravity that Hugo and The Artist seem to muster.  The Tree of Life; saw it. I won’t say that we hated it, but . . . okay, we hated it. Brad Pitt seems to have perfected the art of jutting out his chin for some unknown reason. That jutting lower jaw is my primary memory of his character in Inglourious Basterds, as well—which was fantastic despite his misplaced mandible.  Christoph Waltz was hauntingly excellent. War Horse; haven’t seen it and probably won’t.

Take your pick

So here’s the tally: seen 3, will see 2 more for a total of 5 out of 9. Slightly fewer than 2/3. Not quite up to my college performance, but hey, I’m older and wiser now. Okay, we’ll agree on the older part. How about more “selective?” In any case, I’d be willing to bet that by Oscar night, we will have seen the winning movie.

Save me an aisle seat.

You may also enjoy visiting our other websites:

The Journey – The Ride of a Lifetime

Under the Tuscan Thumb Blog by C & E

Uncommon Promise Story, Music and Art

New Music – Virtual CD

Uncommon Promise Video Channel

In Touch In Tuscany

12-31-11 Hike!

Although the title of this entry sounds like the call from a quarterback, it’s really a description of the way we spent New Year’s Eve 2011.

Skyline Ridge

Everybody’s saying adieu to the frazzled year, anticipating what’s to come in 2012. As we all know, ushering one year out and another in is typically done with much bravado. Parties. Celebrations. Traditions. Our festivities, on the other hand, are pretty low-key by design. For us, New Year’s Eve activities depend on the weather. That’s right. And since we’ve had some unbelievably sunny, mild days of late, we talked over lunch about what we’d like to do as our fond farewell to 2011. Simultaneously, we glanced outside and said, “Hike Skyline.”

Bayside View

As soon as we finished eating, we whisked the girls from their naps for a last minute outdoor opportunity. That done, we changed into our hiking shoes and grabbed a bottle of water. Then into the car and onto the switchbacks and beautiful curves up Big Basin Way, arriving at Skyline Boulevard. Skyline is the road that follows the summit of the Santa Cruz Mountains. The winding drive through the redwoods invites weekend warriors to jump on a bike or motorcycle and ride like crazy or just cruise. As we drove north, to the right we could see the San Francisco Bay and the towns that line that side of the peninsula. To the left, the Pacific Ocean glimmered in the distance beyond layers of lush pine and redwood forests. Even after 20 years, the sight of the mountains rolling from one body of water to the other, and the first sighting of San Francisco in the distance, still causes us to ooohh and aahh like kids.

Reflecting on a Good Year

We parked the car at the entrance of the Skyline Ridge trails and headed out. At the last minute, I grabbed a set of ear muffs and my jacket from the back seat of the car, just in case, since the weather can change rather suddenly. After the initial steep climb, the familiar gorge opened up. The hillsides look so different in the winter, with their straw-colored grasses waving in the breezes. In the springtime, however, it’s another scene altogether with the the lavender, yellow, and white wild flowers everywhere. As we rounded the next bend, a stronger, and much colder wind hit us in the face (Good call on the jacket and ear muffs). Our favorite destination is the stone lookout on the other side of the mountain. It was stunning that day as always, bringing a wonderful reflective pause—for us, 2011 was a very interesting year!

After about 30 minutes or so, we headed back. Judging from the growing number of hikers sharing the trail, it looked as if hiking Skyline was a fairly popular choice for closing out the year.

Alice's Place

Arriving back at the car, we climbed into the trusty Honda and headed north to Alice’s Restaurant. It’s a rustic place, with cow hide covers on the seats of the cozy booths and picnic tables out front. We slid into the familiar benches on either side of the redwood picnic table and perused the menu. An unusual choice caught our eyes: buffalo burger. The server was kind enough to cut the giant sandwich in half so we could share it. Munching away on our buffalo treat, we watched bikers suit up for their return rides down the mountain—clusters of people buckling gloves at their wrists and stuffing their heads into helmets. A family at the next table shared YouTube videos as they ate. It’s a very casual place and that’s what we like about it.

New Year's Day at the Beach

Sadly, Alice did NOT bake our favorite pie on that last day of the year: upside-down apple walnut. So we settled for traditional apple pie ala mode. It was a nice complement to our special sandwich. Even though the restaurant is named for the Arlo Guthrie song, the fact is, you CAN’T “get anything you want,” as the lyrics promise. But it was still delicious, and a great way to pay tribute to the waning year. What next? Well, Emerson suggested that we take a dog and buzz over the hill on New Year’s Day for a leisurely walk on the beach at Seascape. It was a good call: 1-1-12 Stroll!

You may also enjoy visiting our other websites:

The Journey – The Ride of a Lifetime

Under the Tuscan Thumb Blog by C & E

Uncommon Promise Story, Music and Art

New Music – Virtual CD

Uncommon Promise Video Channel

In Touch In Tuscany

Summer Laundry

In California, the laundry room is on the 2nd floor, between the bedrooms. It’s only 10 steps away from any room, so dirty clothes and linens can easily be deposited in the washer, with little effort. A clockwise spin of the dial and I can quickly, securely walk away, knowing that within about 20 minutes the wash will be done. Then at my leisure, at any time of the day or night I can simply pop the clean, damp clothes into the dryer. Again, a quick dial adjustment and I walk away. The process is a little different in Italy (and most of Europe, I suppose).

The "Jiffy" Cycle

First, the washing machine is pretty particular. I’ve figured out that it will accommodate about 10 articles at a time. If the load is bigger than, say, a basketball, that means there are 2 loads—not one. After trial and error I have discovered that one click counterclockwise results in the shortest wash cycle: 42 minutes! I push the avvio, start button and the water starts filling the tank. “Oh, wait! I dropped a sock!” I stop the machine and attempt to open the door. Not possible. Apparently, there is a locking device that engages when you push the avvio button. The sock will have to go in the next load. It has no chance to tumble with its mate in this washload. She is locked inside, with her heel pressed against the window, feeling for her partner.

Now, during the 42 minutes, no other major electrical appliance can be used since it will trip the breaker. No water can be used anywhere inside or outside the house. That means, no showering and no watering plants. There is little to do but wait out the machine.

Between the Lavender and the House

When the readout on the washer shows 4:00 I shift into gear. I slide the wooden closet door aside to get to the standino, the metal folding drying rack. I take it and the plastic clothes pin basket outside and put the standino on the lawn between the house and the lavender. I hang the clothes pin basket on the underside of the rack, just within easy reach and go back inside.

Argh! My 4 minute task has only taken 3 so I stand and watch the readout, willing it to click. It refuses. Finally, the cycle has run its course the readout goes to 0:00 and the wash is ready—almost. I try the door but am denied entry. After a 30 second delay, the locking mechanism releases and the captive clothes are freed.

A Laundry "Room with a View"

I gather the laundry and take it to the standino where I strategically arrange the wash. Socks have to be clipped together and draped over one of the spokes or there won’t be enough room. The orphan sock creates a slight loss of efficiency, since she must be clipped with her toe folded over. Towels must be draped facing the sun and turned every 30 minutes. Of course this helps them to achieve their perfect crispness, which Em says serves the same exfoliating purpose as a loofah. Shirts are opened and draped over one end until they are merely damp, at which time they can be put on hangers and then flutter in the breeze, sails without ships.

Jeans are a different matter. I can only wash one pair at a time and drying time is doubled. Even in the sun, they have to be turned often so that the seams dry. Again, this process guarantees optimum crispness. (See the loofah reference above.)

Finally, several hours later the laundry is finished and put away. I look into the hamper at the lone sock. “Sorry, Guy. I promise to include you next week.”

When the season changes I’ll tell you about winter laundry.

You may also enjoy visiting our other websites:

The Journey – The Ride of a Lifetime

Uncommon Promise Video Channel

Uncommon Promise Story, Music and Art

Under the Tuscan Thumb Blog by C & E

New Music – Virtual CD

In Touch in Tuscany

The Quiet Story

I like the quiet story—the one that runs alongside the main one. We set our sites on going somewhere “interesting,” doing something “meaningful,” and discover along the way that the quiet story is the one that stays with us.

Dario Cecchini, "To beef or not to beef. . ."

Sunday mid-day we went an hour south of Florence to Panzano for lunch at the restaurant, Officina della Bistecca (workshop of the steak). The owner is Dario Cecchini, who has been called the most famous butcher in all of Italy. He has been included in some American cookbooks, is known throughout Italy and is really a living legend. He’s tall, good-looking and gregarious. His staff has been trained in the sweet art of conviviality (cheerful and attentive, I’d say). Dario is so large a personality that when he enters a room, everyone (and I mean everyone) is immediately drawn to him. But here’s the thing—he’s a really nice, caring and generous man.

Josh - Italian Dreaming

We went to the Officina because we knew somebody who had taken an apprenticeship with Dario. Josh held a dream to study the fine art of butchery. Circumstances led him straight to Dario. He wasn’t alone. There were 4-5 apprentices there, from the four corners of the earth. Dario had said “yes” to each of them. Said “yes” to helping them follow their dreams. Josh was smitten with Italy and the Italian people, and rightly so. The only thing better than holding a dream is having it come true.

As I sat watching the drama of the moment, Dario quietly stole away from the cheering diners to embrace and nuzzle the face of his older brother Stefano. I don’t think anybody noticed but me. But then, again, I like the quiet story.

You may also enjoy visiting our other websites:

The Journey – The Ride of a Lifetime

Uncommon Promise Video Channel

Uncommon Promise Story, Music and Art

Under the Tuscan Thumb Blog

New Music – Virtual CD

In Touch In Tuscany

Again

It has been several months since my last post. In fact, I thought that I’d deleted it. That would have been a mistake. It was a reflection about my mother’s passing on~probably more of a declaration of my intention to grieve. And I did. More than I expected.

But I have decided to begin again. Offer some of my views about life and the world. Of course, by that I mean my life and my world. I am sliding downhill to my 60th birthday. With the new calendar year I began. It’s nearly June, so I am almost half way fallen. Age is not something that I spend much time chewing on. It is what it is. But I am curious about this year. So I’ve decided to record my thoughts and feelings along the way.

Here’s one painful observation that I have made: Last year my daughter, Iris, won a Scrabble game against me. It was the first time she had done so, apparently, and it delighted her to the point that she had to share the news. She made a couple of quick phone calls with me sitting there, watching and listening. Her victory was sweet. However, I am not what one might call a gracious loser. I demanded a rematch and as we played, she feigned distraction, laid tiles that created one syllable words, took a couple of incoming calls. In other words, I think she let me win the rematch! The nerve. Since her glorious victory and the subsequent rematch, we have played again and again. Guess what. I don’t recall winning a single match. So here’s my wondering: Is my memory spotty or is she just waaay smarter than I am? Either answer leaves me grumbling. As I mentioned,  I am not a gracious loser.

You may also enjoy visiting our other websites:

The Journey – The Ride of a Lifetime

Uncommon Promise Video Channel

Uncommon Promise Story, Music and Art

Under the Tuscan Thumb Blog

New Music – Virtual CD

In Touch In Tuscany

Sound Bites

Sound bites.
Audio memories.
Sounds bite.
One year ago my mother drifted from this world to another.

I hear voices, memories really, of specific moments frozen by the utterance of words from one person and trapped inside my head as a recording. I hear the telephone ring and when I answer, she says, “Cheryl, it’s Mom.”

Then, last year my brother called early one morning and said, “She’s gone.”

I am quite accustomed to recollections that are sensory. I can smell Noxema from 4 feet away and be transported back to high school. I hear a Beatles tune and am at the teen dance at Le Sourdsville Lake again.  One spoonful of black walnut ice cream whisks me back to the Park Street Ice Cream Shop, which closed decades ago.

Most of the audio memories that I have are pleasant, or I may even find amusing today. But there are those few like the two I mentioned that are edgy. I miss hearing my mother’s voice on the other end of a phone line. I can still hear the tone in my brother’s voice as clearly in my memory today as I heard it in reality a year ago. These are the sounds that etch a lasting impression of something past into my mind. They have sunk their teeth into my memory.

You may also enjoy visiting our other websites:

The Journey – The Ride of a Lifetime

Uncommon Promise Video Channel

Uncommon Promise Story, Music and Art

Under the Tuscan Thumb Blog

New Music – Virtual CD

In Touch In Tuscany

Hello world!

Hello Everybody!

This is my first experience with a blog, so I am going forward on a wing and a prayer.

I am a lyricist/storyteller. My days are filled with collecting. I collect phrases, memories, experiences and perspectives that typically result in a song and/or story. Today we created a “Behind the Scenes” video to go along with our story/song “Main Street,” which is about small town American celebrations. We’ll finalize it tomorrow and then post it on YouTube. So look for it tomorrow evening.

What an interesting process this is. We generate more material than I ever imagined possible. In fact, we’ve (my partner, Emerson, and I) written over 100 songs and stories, illustrated by his detailed pencil drawings.

My plan is to use this format to connect with those who find creativity to be interesting. Whether you love music, reading a short (hopefully thoughtful) story, enjoy looking at drawings or just enjoy thinking about life unfolding, maybe there will be something of interest.

So welcome to the UP Side Lowdown. Thanks for reading—and commenting.

You may also enjoy visiting our other websites:

The Journey – The Ride of a Lifetime

Uncommon Promise Video Channel

Uncommon Promise Story, Music and Art

Under the Tuscan Thumb Blog

New Music – Virtual CD

In Touch In Tuscany