Kier@n Culkin just ordered a burrito

I just get this notification in my e-mail box. It had his address and phone number, but I'm cutting those out.

Kier@n Culkin

DELIVERY INSTRUCTIONS:

Please include plastic utensils, napkins, etc.
line
1
Meat Burrito
$7.25 x 1 = $11.75


* Steak




* Guacamole

$2.50


* Bottle Water

$2.00
line
Order Placed: Wednesday, July 08, 2009 3:17 PM
Allocated Member Expense Code Amount
Kieran Culkin $0.00
Payment Information Amount Order Type
Coupon Last 4: 0000
Personal Credit Card $0.00 Personal

Product Total: $11.75
Sales Tax: $0.98
TIP: $2.25
Discount Amount: ($14.98)
Grand Total:

$0.00


For food or delivery/pickup related issues, please contact Pinche Taqueria at (212) 625-0090
For billing questions or assistance, please contact SeamlessWeb at (212) 944-7755

Professor on Democracy Now

Driving back from upstate New York yesterday, I happened to come across an interview on Democracy Now with one of my favorite professors from graduate school--M@rilyn Y@ung--as well as Howard Zinn and the journalist Johnathan Schell. It was so startling to hear her voice. They were discussing the death and legacy of Robert McNamara. You can see it online. I became kind of fascinated with McNamara after seeing the Fog of War, and made my students watch it this year. I don't think they found it quite as interesting as I did.

More wildlife from Slosson Lane...

The deer here are so tame they just lie out in back until Uncle John gets home to feed them

Tuck Reclining

This is action hero Tuck reclining on Grandmary's bed with his arms around a stuffed cat -- This is his favorite thing to do after a night out hunting.

Summer Hours/Oswego Days

I was just in NYC this weekend and I can't believe I missed seeing Summer Hours, an apparently wonderful story about three French siblings dealing with the disposition of their mother's estate. Kate told me about it Sunday night (too late for me to see given my upstate schedule), and then another friend told me about it today. I now have it as one of my highest priorities on my next movies' list.

In lieu of seeing it, I went to the reviews. A.G. Scott's NY Times review is a rave and other reviews I've found are similar in their high praise. Scott notes that "one of Mr. Assayas’s themes is the way that inanimate things accrue value, sentimental and otherwise — the curious alchemy that transforms certain objects into art."

I also loved this article (and not just for its title) -- Familial Bric a Brac by Dennis Lim -- in a Summer Movies summary back in May.

I wish we could all see Summer Hours before we start the Oswego meetings, but whether we see it before or after (or never), it's nice to know that someone has taken the care to explore how to deal with the emotions of "life goes on" with grace and intelligence.

It can be either homework or vindication.

PS: I tried to get it on Netflix, but it's a new release and while they know about it, they can;t supply it yet. If anybody has any ideas about how to get a DVD or live stream copy before next weekend, let's hear 'em.

Neilson's Mom in the Media

Neilson's mom, aka Erica, has been popping up all over the internet.

She has joined the Huffington Post as a blogger and has two posts up already, one about noise in restaurants and one about the new movie Cheri. Yes, that is my birthday party is she is complaining about in the noise post. The Cheri post stemmed from a slightly confrontational interview she had with Stephen Frears for IFC.com

Omar Little and President Obama

The president has said his favorite show is The Wire and his favorite character is Omar Little. (Not news- here is a news article from during the primary). I'm sure I've already said it here, but I can't resist repeating it- he is a BMCC grad! (Michael K. Williams, that is).

Up

I went to see Pixar's latest movie Up last week with my friend Patty. I have to admit, I loved it. I laughed, I cried, all while wearing my 3D glasses. Like all of the Pixar movies it combines incredible visuals with a sentimental story- that's their job and they do it well. Kym and Matt told me about it when they were in NY, it seems to be a hit with the whole family. Cranky old man, adorable round Asian kid, talking dogs, floating house- what more can you ask for?

ABC

While the wall-to-wall coverage is out of control, I still feel a little sad about Michael Jackson. Especially when seeing the footage of him as a child. I remember finding an old Rolling Stone in Geneva (from when it was still published on newsprint) with a very young MJ on the cover. It talked about what a sweet kid he was and how it seemed, unlike some of his brothers, he so stable and good humored that he would be able to handle fame just fine.

Jacob Borshard

There is a great article about my brother in law Jacob in the online fact magazine. You should check it out and his website where he is posting his comics.

Stolen picture

IMG_3307
Originally uploaded by Jody C.

I am stealing this picture from Jody's Flickr account. We had a great lunch with Kym and Matt a few weeks ago, when they were in town for a few hours. (Literally). TV was discussed of course. The restaurant had a cocktail which included Geneva's famous Cherry Stomp.