Observations (with a video)

Just a few quick things to share, as I am a VERY BUSY WOMAN these days. Someone in my building was moving out this weekend. First there was a tell-tale "Ab Rocket" (whatever that is) -- or a piece of it -- in the vestibule. The next day, there was a dusty VCR (picture, right). Later that afternoon, a framed black and white poster from the movie "Swingers." I tried in my head to put together a "profile" of the person(s) in question but I was laughing too hard to get anywhere.

Today, I exit my apartment and am confronted (well, they were down the hall, near the vestibule and I'd need to walk by them) by the two most enormo guys. Not scary-big or pudgy but FAT as all get out, with gigantic twin beer bellies. Now, you know I don't like to make fun of others less svelte than I, but.... Later on, the poster was gone (!) but there was another (supposed) piece of the Ab Rocket laying there for the super to haul away.

Observation: at 9 am on a Sunday it's just too early to see a young black man singing Tommy James and the Shondells' "I Think We're Alone Now" (we're talking 1967 here, people) at full volume, completely out of tune, while walking briskly up the street.

And I'm playing with some new software to get "the Ken Burn's Effect" (ha) with still photos in video format. You'd never know I went to film school. But it's not horrible for a first try. Well, now that I've seen it posted, it kinda looks like crap. I don't think I'll ever get the optimization right. Oh well.

Baseball and Bridges

I like baseball. Quite a bit. Okay, not enough to actually blog about it but I'm a consistent quasi-fan who once went to a Yankees parade (1996. And those are not for the faint of heart) And J. who once dated a cop from upstate, actually went to that World Series (I think it was) and entered the stadium on a horse! (I think that's how it happened. I remember he wore a pinky ring and they broke up soon after, though I'm not sure any of this is related except tangentially and for ... color commentary for whatever it's worth.)

All this to say, I had nice afterwork rendezvous with C. at Ideya, the fun Jamaican joint on W. Broadway.

The experience was made even more delightful by a late-meal sighting of Ken Burns at the table near us. His life's work to date is simply incredible, both in volume and quality, and all the more amazing in its breadth and depth -- and subjects: how cool! Jazz! Architecture Baseball! Radio! And more than a dozen other impeccably forged pieces. He's a hero of mine, truth be told.

Years ago, I was a documentary filmmaker for about twenty minutes, post-TSOA -- with a still-yet-to-be unearthed gem of a video called "Working Dreams," presumptive analogue to Studs Terkel's wonderful Working, created with old friend Janine and great DP Doug Shannon... It languishes in 3/4" obscurity. We interviewed subject ranging from a chimney sweeper to Pam, a Bloomingdale's perfume sprayer. But I digress.

Ken's Brooklyn Bridge is closest to my heart; I'll tell you why some other time.

Anyway. Happy to see the guy; happy to know he had some good grub tonight. Happy there are people like him in the world, here and now, actively preserving the past in a way that makes one almost certain there is hope for the future.