That's Entertainment

G went out Friday night for a bite to eat. He stopped at a little Mexican joint on the east coast where he and his architect often enjoy lunch. G was horrified to discover that Friday evenings are karaoke night. Double Shot Karaoke Night. He was so horrified in fact, he ended up sitting through several sets after he finished his dinner. I got a phone call from him a little later, absolutely raving, not about the excellence of the performers, for they certainly were far from excellent, or even mediocre, but about the pathetic state of our society in general. Poor guy, he's usually pretty cutting edge, but somehow, he missed out on the whole karaoke thing when it appeared years ago. It was a severe shock to his system.

Last night we watched The Shining with the kids. Hard to believe it's nearly 25 years old. It's still scary. Nicholson is a master; how could he not have been at least nominated for that performance?

We've been introducing the girls to our favorite movies. We finally found A Fish Called Wanda, which was a tad risque due to the language, and The Jerk, which everybody loved, with the little bit of innuendo sailing right over their heads. In connection with our literature and history reading, we've recently viewed Great Expectations and Mutiny on the Bounty. I could only find the 1935 version of Mutiny on the Bounty. Charles Laughton is my ideal Captain Bligh, but Clark Gable is nowhere near brooding enough to be Fletcher Christian. I am still on the lookout for Marlon Brando's 1962 version.

Anyway, back to The Shining -- they were properly terrified. Afterward we watched Making The Shining, a bonus feature on the DVD, filmed by Kubrick's daughter, Vivian, and that took the edge off, some.

Next, we want to show them The Time Machine and The Birds. My cousin B watched The Birds with her children, then took them to the drive-thru at McDonald's, parked, and when no one was looking, threw a handful of French fries up on the roof of the car.

Dad brought over a new video camera for the girls when he returned last night. Their other camera, a decommissioned spy camera from their uncle, finally quit working. Their body of work to date includes: A Christmas Carol, Little Red Riding Hood, and Hamlet. S and G now want to take fencing lessons, and S would like to take a boat building class, so that they can make their own swashbuckling tale.

Do I see a future at NYU?