Did I mention that it snowed in Memphis? It was wonderful— no, astounding— no, GLORIOUS. Lots of snowballs and lots of icicles on my car. I saw a very sohpisticated mini-snowman sitting on the hood someone’s car on campus. I dared not drive in such unfamiliar weather (with my luck I would hit a jaywalker), but I did venture on a passenger’s joyride to Corky’s BBQ! By the way they serve a delicious banana pudding. The city was dusted in white, and I couldn’t help but record our trek with my spectacularly foolproof camcorder. Here’s the gold:
As my writing workshops are nearing the halfway point of the semester, I’m discovering the odd sensation that I am writing poetry… and people are reading it… and therefore I am a sort-of poet. How did I get here? In my head, I am still poetry-challenged. It’s as if I magically woke up one day with a new aesthetic proficiency. (I wouldn’t say “talent.” I’m not so great.) I suppose it’s one of the manifestations of higher learning, but one can’t be certain.
I hope everyone had a good V-Day, whether it was with your hunny bunny, going to work and making bank off of the holiday cheer, or watching violent movies at the theater with friends! (What a great singles idea!) I got fancy/inadvertently old-timey-looking and hiked over to Ronnie Grisanti’s for dinner—of course I had to have the romance of Italy in my night! The dining room’s oversized landscapes of the Tuscan countryside and of the Florentine skyline made me miss my time abroad—acutely—and I started considering the number of years before I might make it back to the Fancy Boot. Cinque Terra, Capri, and Sardegna await! Then Portishead played over the speaker (who I saw in concert in Florence, remember?) and it was the weirdest coincidence of the month.
Movie Recommendations:
1. Let the Right One In : Swedish 12-year-old boy meets Swedish 12-year-old vampire girl! Fantastically creepy with a dab of artsy.
2. Ghosts of Cite Soleil : Documentary of two brothers who are gang leaders in the most dangerous city in Haiti. They and their guns get caught up in Haiti’s political upheaval. Also some love-triangle business with a French woman who’s a relief worker.
3. Semi-Pro : Will Ferrell gets more funny half-way through the film– unexpected, but great!
4. The 13th Warrior : A poet from Baghdad (Antonio Banderas) is exiled and joins the Norse to protect their village against bear-monsters.
***Offsides: have any of you ever lived in Miami? Tell me what you thought of it!
Mr. Berky is from Miami, so I suggest you talk to him if you are considering the location. However, Blake’s perspective will of course be subjective and thus involve commentary on shows, clubs, and amusement parks.
Thanks for the tip, Leslie! Don’t worry, subjective viewpoints are key to my research, but I want a lot of them!