Movie madness

I saw a painful movie last night - great acting, but scary. Notes on a Scandal tells a tale of a deluded spinster teacher who ensnares a romantic "wispy" young art teacher in a web of obsession and blackmail, with Judi Dench as the elder school battle axe who narrates through her diary and Kate Blanchett walking into the trap as she juggles her adolescent students and her family. It reminded me of the other painful movie about obsession and delusion - Kathy Bates in Misery. These two movies (and probably the movie Fatal Attraction, which I will probably continue to avoid) epitomize my deepest fears about the word "crazy" - the two characters in question have crafted destructive, dangerous, self-referential world views that impel actions that harm, and never themselves see the problem - the people who get hurt essentially earned it or asked for it. They embody the dark side of "crazy".

What does the word "crazy" really mean? Do all "crazy" characters do harm? Is that the definition - with "wacky" or "eccentric" replacing "crazy" when the unrealistic world views are benign?

Whatever,... I'll keep away from these psychological dramas from now on. Too haunting for me! Back to those chick flicks and Ocean's 13..or better yet the new Harry Potter on IMAX. The concept of crazy in Harry Potter books gives the word a totally different dimension.

And by the way, my birthday was terrific - great party and lots of new music in our newly rearranged house. Go to Eugene Sepulveda's Communitymatters blog July 8th for photos.

Birthdays

So this weekend is my birthday. It's auspicious. On 07-07-07 I turn 56, and I've invited friends and family to celebrate. I am superstitious enough to take this as a good omen and to expect a good year ahead.

Some people go for dining and dancing on their birthday. I seem to always need to do a bit of housecleaning. It's a time to find lost socks, reconcile my checkbook, schedule the doctor and dental visits I've put off too long, as well as spend a bit of time reflecting on the year just passed and fantasizing about the year ahead.

Yesterday I indulged a bit in the fantasizing. I began thinking about all the new cool things I could do or places I could be in the coming year that would let me explore new parts of the world and excercise new talents and interests. Lots of ways to indulge my favorite pastimes.

However somehow, after daydreaming only a short while, I made a mistake and decided to do some reality testing. The internet obliged on a web site that shows how far your current salary goes if you move to your desirable locales. Unfortunately, every locale I was thinking about ended up needing more money than Austin. Check out the cost of living index calculator.

New appreciation for this city, which I have been living in for oh so long. And that's a good thing. Because most recently I have been dissing Austin - downtown is turning into a canyonland of lofts,upscale stores, and trendy destinations. The era of the young cosmopolitan professionals is eclipsing the lifestyle of downhome family-friendly slackers. All the glitter is fun but the charm of Austin is under a bit of attack.

Now that I know Austin is still a "cheap sleep" locale, I'll reconsider my attitude and try to embrace all this transition. And actually, there's alot of good stuff accompanying the growth. Stuff like new transit lines, new neighborhood pride, new arts, and new appreciation of Austin spirit.We'll see how it plays out.

In the meantime, I'll homebase here a bit longer, and find opportunities for cool forays beyond! This year's been great for that - Russia, London, Dublin, Java, Italy, Prague, Denmark, Paris, Boston, Vermont, San Antonio. May it continue!