Spent the morning finishing another John M. Ford novel, sitting on my bed, enjoying the sunshine pouring over me. I'm trying to read as much of his work as I can, preparatory to interviewing him for SH. I'll refrain from saying much now, since you'll hear all about my opinions when I do the interview.
Instead, I'll tell you about the movies I've seen recently. Paul and Marcia loaned me Moulin Rouge and I watched it yesterday morning. Actually, I started it the night before, but it was so intensely romantic that I ended up stopping the DVD and calling Kevin instead. Good conversation; we've spent so much time talking about all this intense relationship stuff that it was just really nice chatting, with no big decisions hanging on what each of us said. He was trying to figure out how to reroute the cable TV in his condo; I was just lying in bed, falling asleep. Pleasant. But anyway, I finished the movie the next morning -- I liked it a lot, but I'll warn you that if you're looking for fully-rounded characters, this isn't the movie for you. It's not about that -- it's about archetypal figures (the young romantic hero, the fallen woman, the greedy villain, etc...) and spectacular sets. And lots of song and dance numbers. I thought it was really clever and funny, and I even got caught up enough in it that I cried a little at the end. Highly stylized. A sort of super-musical. Often quite surreal.
Carol and I went out and saw The Royal Tenenbaums yesterday -- that was surreal too, in a very different way. Sort of an Edward Gorey fairy tale. A very dry, droll kind of humor. Tons of fabulous little jokes. The dalmatian mice made me giggle every time they skittered across the screen. And at the heart of it, a very sweet family story that kept me engaged throughout. I suppose if it's not your kind of humor the whole film won't work for you -- but that's just the risk you take when you go to see a comedy, I suppose. I still don't understand why people thought There's Something About Mary was funny.
So today, I have no excuses left, I must do the Due. The Due is due. Even if I am a little sick. Thus the price of procrastination. I took down my Christmas decorations this morning (except the lights in the sunroom -- those are staying up). I have some laundry going, and I might do a load or two of dishes. But otherwise, I just need to write. That's it. That's all. Especially if I want to go to a party that's apparently happening at 3...
Hope y'all are having a nice lazy Sunday, not confronting deadlines brought on by your own work-avoidance. :-)
Oh -- current book bid: $100