May 22, 2011

Mae West: "You stick with me, dearie, and you'll be platinum blond!"--Night After Night

    Dreamed of the Beatles song "She's Leaving Home" (which I sang at karaoke last night); living an RPG about people going from the rural Deep South to Minneapolis; a cinema showing Ben-Hur with a soundtrack commentary like on a DVD.

    Dinner was lasagna and a recipe with lentils, spinach and couscous.

    Finished spading the garden.

    Started a DVD of early anvant-garde films involving dance.

    Saw the DVD of Night After Night, a gangster romance lucky enough to have Mae West in a supporting role. (You can have the rest of the movie...)

May 21, 2011

    Long time getting to sleep.

    Dreamed of visiting London briefly; "waking up" in a standing position; being unable to open my eyes.

    Baked whole wheat bread.

    Joined some of the Aspergers Meetup people for dinner at the Golden Griddle. (Evghenia organized it through Facebook.) I met Anthony, who's going to be baptized for the second time.  I had spaghetti and meatballs.

    Afterward I went to Bar Plus for a Karaoke Meetup, where we rented a room again.  I sang "Limbo Rock" for the first time.

    The world hasn't ended so far. [Some people were predicting the Rapture would take place on that day.]

May 20, 2011

Cary Grant: "I wish I could trust you."

Mae West: "Of course you can--thousands of men have!"

--I'm No Angel

    Dreamed of a non-existent Warner Brothers cartoon about animals in the luggage compartment of a train; a non-existent episode of Hogan's Heroes about a POW who was Colonel Hogan's cousin; extra scenes from Barry Lyndon involving money.

    Finally got a start on preparing the garden! (But it didn't last long, what with the rain.)

    Dinner was lamb stew.

    Saw the DVD of I'm No Angel.  Mae West was ahead of her time!

    Got sick in the evening. (I think it was the calamari from the Portuguese restaurant last night.)

May 19, 2011

    Dreamed of meeting a supermodel.

    Went to a Dining Meetup at the Portucale restaurant, just around the corner from this house.  We had a six-course Portuguese dinner, with soup, sardines, calamari, risotto and marinated pork. (I skipped the dessert.) It was pretty oily and salty. [But they were very friendly.  It closed a few months later.]

May 18, 2011

    Dreamed of getting a non-existent letter to the editor published in The New Yorker 20 years ago.

    Went shopping.

    Dinner was chili.

    Went to the Open Minds Cafe.  This time I didn't suggest any new subjects.

May 17, 2011

Homer: "Look at those idiots!  I paid my taxes a year ago"--The Simpsons

"Homer, you're like the son I never had!"

"And you're like the fathe I never visit!"

--ibid.

    Went to see an ear, nose & throat specialist at a clinic near Main Street station. (I've been having a slightly sore throat since last summer.) I seemed normal, but they'll give me a CT scan anyway.

    On the way back, I got two new tickets for the opera cinemacasts in July, to replace the ones that got misplaced.

    Dinner was sausages and mashed potatoes.

    Saw the DVD of the Mystery Science Theatre 3000 version of Ring of Terror.  Lots of jokes about the actors clearly being too old to play college students.

May 16, 2011

    Dreamed of actress Demi Moore in bondage.

    Baked white bread.

    David Kiang came to visit.  A retired Dalhousie math professor, he was one of Father's early students back in the 1950s. (He was babysitting at our house and left behind the Chinese novel Wandering Youth, which I've been translating in recent years.)

    Dinner was McDonald's.

    At choir practice we did most of the rest of Nabucco, except for the finale. (When we got to the Slave's Chorus it turned out it wasn't in the score copy we'd received, and we had to scramble for our older copy.)

May 15, 2011

Grandpa (getting a haircut): "No, the George Raft look is out.  I want Audie Murphy!"

--The Simpsons

    Dreamed of coming onto a game show; the MC saying that my job was dancing the bossa nova, and insisting that I dance with him.

    Saw Kelly Reichardt's western Meek's Cutoff at the Lightbox, the first time I've seen a movie there.  Pretty good, despite the elliptical ending. (I also looked at a Mary Pickford exhibit on display in the same building.)

    Dinner was roast chicken.

    Finished the DVD series America:  The Story of Us.  The last two episodes, dealing with the post-1945 era, were especially weak.  No mention of the Korean War or the Gulf Wars, and the Energy Crisis was only mentioned in passing!

May 14, 2011

Moe: "It's been four years since I had a date with a whatchamacallit?-- a woman."

The Simpsons

    Dreamed of joining Prince Andrew on a hike from Moncton to my hometown Sackville, N.B., through a forest path; sweat on my lower back; non-existent piano pieces that I didn't quite master.

    It turned out that the internet connection on the side of the house somehow got yanked off. (John came and fixed it in the morning.)

    Went to a Fair Vote rally in Queen's Park.  The speakers included Judy Rebick, Carolyn Bennett and William Molls.  Pretty good turnout considering the rain. (I also saw a demonstration by a group of Libyans.)

    John and Kathrine brought dinner over, which was vegan lasagna.

May 13, 2011

Child: "Psychiatrists are easy to fool"--Mad Men

    Dreamed of reflecting that the expression "One of the two or three most" bugs me. (You could just as well say "one of the three most" or "one of the most.")

    Dinner was the rest of the lasagna.

    Went to Mary's games night.  I played Alhambra and Say Anything.

    The internet connection is off!

May 12, 2011

"I'm not the solution to your problems.  I'm another problem"--Mad Men

"I don't want to believe it."

"So don't."

--Weeds

    Dreamed of visiting a public library in Brooklyn.

    Dinner was lasagna.

May 11, 2011

Young son: "Stop pretending to be a mother!"--Weeds

"Less talk, more eat!"--ibid.

    Dreamed of a western about a woman successfully investing in mines; a non-existent article in The New Yorker about the Unsinkable Molly Brown's husband (who didn't really reunite with her after the Titanic sinking--the musical ended with an audience-pleasing lie!).

    Went shopping.

    We ate out at Red Lobster, and Donald came with us.

    Headache!

May 10, 2011

"We can take the boat up the Hudson."

"I'll take the train--water doesn't agree with me!"

--She Done Him Wrong

"One of the finest women who ever walked the streets!"--ibid.

"He's the kind of man a woman has to marry to get rid of!"--ibid.

    Dreamed of reflecting that the neoliberal magazine The New Republic isn't worth the worms to eat it!

    Baked multigrain bread.

    Dinner was ham quiche.

    Went to the Toronto City Opera board's annual meeting (for the first time) at Barbara's house in the Annex.  We managed to make a profit!  Seems that our ticket sales vary with the size of the chorus. [A big chorus means lots of friends and relatives coming to see the show.]

    Saw the DVD of the Mae West vehicle She Done Him Wrong (for the second time).  I have a feeling some of the off-colour jokes went over my head.

May 9, 2011

"This country has a religion, and it's business"--Mad Men

    Dreamed of taking a music course in a place in the American west; missing a whole morning class because I'd taken a sleeping pill and overslept. [I'd just started taking sleeping pills in real life.]

    Went to see Dr. Ang, and after a long wait it turned out that last Monday's tests were unclear. (The heartscan turned out to be negative.)

    Dinner was the rest of the scalloped potatoes.

    At choir practice we basically just review everything we've learned in Nabucco. (There wasn't much time for learning new stuff.)

May 8, 2011

"I sent you some messages."

"And I ignored them.  That's my message to you."

--Mad Men

"You've crossed the line from lubricated into morose"--ibid.

    Dreamed of one of the lenses in my glasses being cracked and not fitting in its frame; reflecting on the tragedy of President Ulysses Grant being forced to abandon black civil rights at the end of Reconstruction; the Nik Kershaw song "Wouldn't It Be Good" (which I've never liked).

    I've lost my opera screening tickets! (Or rather, Moira misplaced them when she cleared my room without me asking her.  I'd known exactly where they were before.)

    Dinner was scalloped potatoes and ham.

May 7, 2011

    Dreamed of the song "Beyond the Sea."

    I've started using sleeping pills again.

    Went on an art walk on Queen Street.  We met at Analogue Gallery, where some actors performing in The 21st Annual Puttnam County Spelling Bee did a number for us. (They also did an audience participation thing, and I spelled the whaling slang word "caterjunes" correctly.) I left the walk early.

    Dinner was spaghettini.

    Had a games night with Nepeta's Fun & Boardgames group. (She's off meetup.com now.) We played The Amazeing Labyrinth, Ticket to Ride and a new Scrabble-like card game called Do I Have to Spell It Out For You? (It was pretty fun.)

May 5, 2011

Don Draper: "I come from the Midwest.  People there are taught that it's rude to talk about yourself"--Mad Men

"It was all going great, until it wasn't"--ibid.

    Dreamed of a non-existent story in the comic strip Mary Perkins on Stage set in rural Canada and culminating in a barn being set on fire; the scene in the Fiddler on the Roof movie where the Fiddler comes down to the ground.

    Dinner was roast chicken.

    Went to Blockbuster and rented the DVD of the first episodes of the fourth season of Mad Men.

May 4, 2011

"Dan is the only man I know who had the guts not to commit suicide"--The High and the Mighty

Drug cartel man: "Either you eat the bear, or the bear eats you"--Weeds

    Dreamed of the song "You'll Never Walk Alone"; a strategic game involving a civil war in the region of Angola; recalling the actual workplace comic strip Lolly (from the 1960s and 1970s), where my favourite character was the boss' tipsy son Junior.

    Went shopping.

    Dinner was sausage and mashed potatoes.

    Saw the DVD of William Wellman's The High and the Mighty.  Entertaining '50s hokum with John Wayne in his element.

May 3, 2011

"Insignificant molehill sometime more important than conspicuous mountain"--Charlie Chan in Egypt

    Dreamed of the western High Noon; reflecting that the townspeople balked at supporting Gary Cooper because the plot required them to; the TV show The Sopranos.

    Poor Michael Ignatieff!  He even lost his own seat. (The NDP should set up a coalition with the Liberals and Greens.)

    Dinner was fettucine alfredo (which I cooked).

    Saw the DVD of Charlie Chan in Egypt.  I always liked Warner Oland in that role. [Rita Cansino later became Rita Hayworth!]

May 2, 2011

"Hope for sun, get ready for rain"--Weeds

    Dreamed of a murder mystery set in Shanghai's International Settlement; a square couch with an ad promoting a breed of apple.

    Voted [in Canada's federal election] early in the afternoon.  I thought my health card would be enough, but I had to go back and bring a bank statement with my address on it.

    Went to a clinic near College & Euclid and got an abdominal ultrasound and a chest X-ray.  All the doctors there seem to be Chinese.

    Dinner was pork steak.

    At choir practice I told Giuseppe I was putting my singing lessons on hiatus for now.

May 1, 2011

"You shouldn't be here."
"That's not what you said last night."

--Troy

    Dreamed of visiting the junior high school in my hometown Sackville, N.B., with Moira; telling her "I'll never be doing lab experiments in there again."

    Dinner was McDonald's.

    Saw the DVD of Wolfgang Petersen's Troy.  A pretty intelligent script, though I wish the Achilles-Briseis relationship had been fleshed out a bit more.

April 30, 2011

"The only way to inner peace is by sticking"--American History X

    Went to the clinic at St. Clair & Bathurst and gave them a urine sample. (No doubt they want to see if my kidney's causing the trouble.)

    Dinner was lobster rolls.

    Saw the DVD of Tony Kaye's pretty disturbing American History X.  Could have used fewer arty touches (like slow motion and choral music).

April 29, 2011

    Dreamed of having a penis swollen to the thickness of a wrist; being on a plane taking off from a moving ship.

    Phoned Giuseppe and cancelled next week's singing lesson. (My energy level is low.)

    Went to see Dr. Ang again.  This time she was in, though I had to wait a couple of hours.  She arranged for me to get an X-ray and ultrasound.

    Dinner was spaghetti and riceballs.

    Saw the video of Jamboree, a 1950s rock & roll movie featuring performers from Count Basie to Silm Whitman, with cameos by DJs like Dick Clark. (Too bad about the dorky romance in the foreground.)

April 28, 2011

Matt Helm: "Shouldn't we be introduced first?"

Babe: "You're Matt Helm."

"That's good enough for me!"

--The Silencers

    Baked raisin bread.

    Tried to go see Dr. Ang about my "stitch," but she isn't in on Thursdays.

    Did some more campaign leafletting along Arlington and Rushton streets, which I'd planned to do two days ago.

    I was late getting home for dinner, which was fish.

    In the evening I finished the area west of Christie Street. (We need a new doorbell!  I forgot my house key, and when I came home I rang five times, but they only heard me when I banged on the door!)

    Saw Phil Karlson's The Silencers, the first of the secret agent series featuring Matt Helm.  A languid spoof of James Bond with an emphasis on the drinking and womanizing, it's very much a Dean Martin vehicle.  What a 1960s artifact!

April 27, 2011

    Dreamed of getting published in a periodical; a murder scandal involving a wealthy Edwardian widow that was made into a silent movie.

    Got another blood test at the Bloor & Bathurst clinic (for the haematologist).

    Dinner was salmon.

    I've had a "stitch" in my side since yesterday evening.

    At choir practice we're now concentrating on Nabucco.  A Canadian Opera Company chorus baritone came and gave us a lift.

    We've now finished the Peyton Place episodes they released on DVD. (Hope they release some more!  Mother really enjoys it.)

April 26, 2011

"Rodney the Righteous, armored in ignorance and spoiling for a fight!"--Peyton Place

    Dreamed of seeing skyscrapers blow up; starting to write about someone starting a worldwide trade network; York University campus with new train connections.

    Went shopping.

    Dinner was more turkey pie.

    Headache.

    Saw a DVD of The Queen and the Skipper, a CBC Canadian Experience documentary about the Bluenose.

    Once again, I went to bed early, then woke up for several hours in the middle of the night.

April 25, 2011

    Dreamed of a movie comedy about a bunch of slobs in college.

    At today's singing lesson Giuseppe was going to lend me a book about Verdi for Moira but I forgot to ask for it.

    Dinner was turkey pie.

April 24, 2011

    Dreamed of Flash Gordon being on a train on a path that seemed to be circular (like in Hanna-Barbera cartoons).

    Went to a Games Meetup at the Yellow Griffin.  I played a new game called Factory Manager, a spinoff from Power Grid.  Then I played Ticket to Ride.

    Donald came over for dinner, which was turkey.

    Felt sleepy after dinner and napped for three hours.