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IN MEMORIAM: ROBERT FAGLESMonday, March 31, 2008
Harriett
Very few can claim they have translated not one, but three, of the major classical epics. Robert Fagles has made modern literary history with his translations of Homer's The Iliad (1990), The Odyssey (1996), and Virgil's The Aeneid (2006). Combining a modern sensibility with a classicist touch, Fagles' translations are accessible, energetic, and masterfully written. And best-sellers. Requiscat in Pace.
WRITERS & THEIR FRIENDS Monday, March 31, 2008
Harriett
The LIT is now accepting nominations / submissions for the 8th annual Writers & Friends literary showcase, to be held Saturday, September 6, 2008. This gala honors writers who live and work in the northeast Ohio area, and showcases a dramatic reading of their work.
- Work must have been published within the past two years (January 2006-April 2008).
- Writers must live in the following counties: Ashland, Ashtabula, Cuyahoga, Erie, Geauga, Huron, Lake, Lorain, Medina, Portage, Stark, Summit, or Wayne.
- Work must be submitted in published form, or photocopied from published texts. Publication information (including source and date) is necessary. Actual texts are preferred.
- All literary genres are eligible for nomination.
- Work can be self-nominated, or nominated by an outside source (publisher, colleague, etc.). The author's permission to have the material considered is mandatory.
- Attach biographical information about the author, including name, address and phone number. Reviews of the work (stating sources) are encouraged.
- Entries should be marked "Literary Showcase" on the outside of the envelope, and mailed to: Writers & Friends; c/o The LIT, 2570 Superior Avenue, Suite 203, Cleveland, OH 44114. Submissions will not be returned.
All entries must be received by May 1, 2008.
Upon receipt of all entries, a jury will select 15 pieces according to the highest literary merit to be performed at Writers & Friends 2008.
FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION, contact The LIT, 2570 Superior
Avenue,
Suite 203, Cleveland, OH 44114, call 216.694.0000, or e-mail
peggy@the-lit.org. Periodic updates will be posted on the website: www.the-lit.org.
EASTERFriday, March 28, 2008
Harriett
The Alabama cousins complained about the 38 degrees for their Easter egg hunt (our high temp today). But it looks like they had fun anyway. I'm sorry to say it's still snowing in Cleveland, but not as bad as last Easter on April 8, 2007. Why do I always talk about the weather? Because with a record snowfall of 30.5 inches in March (and counting), I'm just plain old sick and tired of winter, and I could really use some flowers. Are those flowers in that picture?
OHIO DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Thursday, March 27, 2008
Harriett
With a one week warning to pending applicants, the Ohio Department of Energy has ended its residential grant program for solar and small wind projects. What does this mean? This means that the state of Ohio, which collects a 9-cent monthly assessment on every municipal-owned electric bill, is making this money available only to commercial and large scale projects and is cutting the small residential projects out of the loop. In other words, residents pay into this fund, but can no longer access it. It also means that the renewable energy installers who work in this state can be out of business by the time the state decides to change this policy. So, when this money is available once again (as surely it is legally required to be so), you won't be able to use it, anyway, because there'll be no one around qualified to install it. Does that strike you as ludicrous? Send an email to Sherry Hubbard at the Ohio Department of Energy and let her know what you think.
AFRAHThursday, March 27, 2008
Harriett
I mentioned Anna's twins the other day, but I forgot to mention Roberta's Afrah. Roberta used to work in Strong Bindery before she moved to Minnesota and had a baby. She came back to Cleveland a few weeks ago, with a walking and almost talking adorable little girl. Here's a picture of Afrah reading Gallop! (a great book featuring animation -- polarized pictures that simulate movement when you move the pages). And, she's expecting a new sibling in a couple of months!
CENSORSHIPWednesday, March 26, 2008
Harriett
Indiana: new home of the literary wary and repressed. The Governor passed into law a vague and therefore sweeping legislation requiring all stores that sell "sexually explicit materials" to register with the state. This apparently includes everything from sex ed to Lolita and much tamer things in between. In other words, most of modern literature. The ABFFE is focusing an effort to repeal this, visit their website to learn more.
TWINSSaturday, March 22, 2008
Harriett
Anna brought in her twins the other day. They moved a little too fast for perfect camera opportunity, but one started climbing onto the book cart, and the other one followed. For a brief moment, they were both on the bottom shelf together and it was too cute for words. But they moved too fast for my shutter finger.
FREE MOVIESThursday, March 20, 2008
Harriett
I have free passes for a pair of movies here. I don't know much about the films, but you can check the trailers out online and decide for yourself. Besides, they're free. If you're interested, please call or email to reserve and then come pick 'em up. Cheers.
21. Wednesday, March 26, 7:30pm at Regal Richmond Town Square.
Stop-Loss. Thursday, March 27, 7:30pm at Regal Richmond Town Square.
DAD DAYWednesday, March 19, 2008
Harriett
It's been six years since Dad died. The hole refuses to fill. (Not that there's any reason to force a landscape to be something it's not.) My brother says the last JRCS Journal has a new half dime discovery, the 1835 LM-12. New discoveries! (New holes to fill!) Dad would've been excited. Peace...
BOOK REC: THE TRUE
MEANING OF SMEKDAY Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Title: The True Meaning of Smekday
Authors: Adam Rex
Reviewer: Audrey [Loganberry's first employee]
What is
Smekday? It is, of course, the day the aliens came to Smekland (we used
to know Smekday as Christmas and Smekland as Earth). Gratuity Tucci
("Tip" to her friends) knew something was up when her mom came home
with a new mole on her neck. Gratuity's mom then said that aliens were
contacting her through the mole. Guess what? They were.
Gratuity's not
only a funny and witty 11-year-old narrator, she explains lots of
mysteries. Why is Happy Mouse Land in Florida always so clean, for
example? Why do cats love the aliens? Why is Gratuity on the run with
an alien named J.Lo? The True Meaning of Smekday mixes thinly veiled
criticism of certain dominant world powers with pop culture and adds a
dollop of references to the ol' canon of Western lit (Gratuity aligning
herself with J.Lo thinks, "Well, I'll go to hell, then!" in a wonderful
Huck & Jim moment). Hurrah for delightful Adam Rex! Hurrah for his
excellent narrator who is going to get lots of press for being mixed
race (Mom was Italian and Dad was black), but who should be getting all
that press for being wise beyond her years and for being vastly
entertaining. Get this book for all the smart kids you know, and all
the adults who were once smart kids and still recognize and appreciate
literary gems for the shorter set. This title has been recommended for
elementary and middle school children, but I would not hesitate to push
it on college students, retirees or anyone else. Such as urbane and
discerning blog readers.
CLEVELAND INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL Sunday, March 16, 2008
Harriett
The film line-up was good enough to stay the whole day, but my eyeballs have a two-film limit. Erika really wanted to see the animation, and I finally got to see Jump!
The Thread of Life -- This was a delightful animation from Syria. It featured two wonderful worlds, one foreign, one fantasy, and a feast of colors, shapes and a gorgeous soundtrack. It took awhile to really hook me, and was sometimes a little slow, but its build, the storyline, and its moral were all well delivered.
Jump! -- This is the film I missed while stuck on the RTA on my birthday. It received two extra screenings, however, and I made it at last. It's a documentary on the sport of rope skippers -- a highly competitive and gymnastic version of jumprope. There's the speed competition (won by a kid with asthma who looked like she held her breath for 3 minutes), the individual freestyle, and pairs freestyle, and the legendary double dutch. The film tells a good story from five different teams, but doesn't cover them quite equally. I loved some of the overlapping and editing tricks, but hated the occasional emotional voyeurism. The sport is an awesome show, and seeing the preparation for it made it even more enjoyable. That much fast-clipping gives me a headache though, and makes me wonder if I ever saw one full routine. Still, I'm sure it will prove a very popular film, and will probably do wonders for escalating the popularity of the sport, and for this it is to be commended.
CLEVELAND INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL Saturday, March 15, 2008
Harriett
It got crowded during the interim of Film Fest week. Yikes! But we managed okay, with the exception of the time between the two films, trying to make it down the hall from one theatre to another. Bedlam.
Roming -- I enjoyed this Czech/Slovak film about the Gypsies, and the quest for a written epic to give their culture the status and respect other cultures achieve through written literature. Two stories intertwine, one the enactment of the epic being written, one a modern tale of trying to keep the culture alive. It's also a father-son story, and a coming of age story, and all four stories are nicely done, with humor. I especially liked the seeming disparity of the two tales at the beginning, and their winding ever closer together by the end of the film, and a sweet happy ending. Not that it wasn't a challenge to get there!, which only makes it the more sweet.
The Art of Negative Thinking -- I need to remember to avoid Norwegian black humor films. (Last year, Erika walked out of The Bothersome Man twice.) Although it definitely had its moments, the overall effect was much more depressing than some films billed as sob-stories or violent stupidity. I commend the actors in this film however, as well as a tight well-worked script and skillful filming. But it's hard to recommend something that borders on cruel, sadistic, depressing, hopeless and sick. Still, the sun rises at the end of the film, and with it comes hope. After the night preceding, there's really no other direction possible.
PI
DAYFriday, March 14, 2008
Harriett
It's Pi Day! Happy Birthday, Pi! Featured to left is an entry from the International Edible Books Festival (coming up again this year, on Saturday April 5th!). But, even better than pies, I have music! I am delighted to learn that some intrepid soul caught Lucy Kaplansky in action, and you can hear her dad's Song About Pi with a simple click. Thanks to Lucy and Irving Kaplansky for the Pi song, and to whoever sneaked it onto the web.
BIRTHDAY BAND Thursday, March 13, 2008
Harriett
It's Gene's birthday today, and she's playing at our monthly gig here with Gene's Jazz Hot. Stop on by for cake and swinging tunes. The sun's been out all day, Shaker Heights crew took all the snow mountains away, and we can dream of spring. (Other than that, I'm exhausted and daylight savings time in March has my body really messed up.)
DUTTON'S BOOKS CLOSURETuesday, March 11, 2008
Harriett
Another one gone. Dutton's Brentwood in LA has been a legendary independent bookstore, the kind of community resource that creates legends. They opened another branch in Beverly Hills a few years back, and got forced out by the landlord seeking more rent from "yet another steak house." Now their current landlord in Brentwood is redeveloping the strip mall, and Dutton's will go down in the dust. Whether they re-materialize like the phoenix remains to be seen, but closings and openings command a lot of capital, and in trying times, that's exactly the missing piece of the puzzle. A very nice eulogy by author Jessica Teich is posted on the online Nation. Farewell, friends.
DR. SEUSS CAKE CONTESTTuesday, March 11, 2008
Harriett
The Food Network has issued a Challenge. Four top cake artists will design cakes inspired by Dr. Seuss, including Horton Hears a Who and Cat In The Hat. The winner takes home $10K. Airtimes include: March 9, 8:00 PM ET/PT; March 12, 11:00 PM ET/PT; March 15, 2:00 PM ET/PT and March 16, 7:00 PM ET/PT. Looks like good preparation for the Edible Books Festival on April 5th!
HOLLYWORDSTuesday, March 11, 2008
Harriett
The Global Language Monitor has announced the top ten HollyWORDIES of 2007. These catchphrases from films often work their way into common language, so if you're wondering where these sayings came from, here's the source. Note the top two are films made from books.
1. “Call it, Friendo.” (No Country for Old Men) – Chigurth’s flip of the coin (Javier Bardem).
2. “I drink your milkshake.” (There Will Be Blood) – “I drink it up!” Daniel Day Lewis.
3. Juno-verse (Juno) -- phraseology includes "doodle that can't be undid,” “Silencio”, and, of course, "Shoulda gone to China, because I hear they give away babies like free iPods." (Ellen Page).
4. “Maddness? This is S-P-A-R-T-A!” (The 300) – Kin Leonardis engages the Persians in Battle (Gerald Butler).
5. “I’m not the guy you kill; I’m the guy you buy off.” (Michael Clayton) – Michael Clayton’s self description (George Clooney)
6. “I think I am beginning to disappear.” (Away From Her) -- (Julie Christie)
7. “Either you're somebody, or you ain't nobody.” (American Gangster) – Frank Lucas (Denzel Washington).
8. “Squeezin' that watch won't stop time.” (3:10 to Yuma ) – Ben Wade (Russell Crowe)
9. “Sometimes birth and death go together.” (Eastern Promises) -- Anna (Naomi Watts)
10. “It was the things you don't choose that makes you who you are.” (Gone Baby Gone) -- Casey Affleck as Patrick Kenzie
IN THE NEWSMonday, March 10, 2008
Harriett
Two articles worth mentioning today: one about Seattle, and one about hometown Larchmere Boulevard.
The first is a NYTimes business profile of Seattle's enormous influence in the world of book publishing and buying. As the home of Amazon.com, Costco, Starbucks and famed librarian Nancy Pearl, this city seems to be a mecca for powerful book buying decisions. Most of the publishers are in New York, but these four very different recommenders of books wield enormous publishing prowess. It's interesting to see that they actually have something in common.
On the homefront, David DiVita's Larchmere Deli and Beverage was chosen to be the location for an upcoming Ohio Lottery commercial. He was closed last Thursday for the event, and the film crew took over. They worked for 8 hours for the 30-second spot, which should air starting March 31.
CLEVELAND INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL Sunday, March 9, 2008
Harriett
Cleveland began to recover from the snow on Sunday, including the RTA trains. We went downtown twice, in fact, to see three films. Let's call it River Day.
Mahek -- I thought an Indian children's film with a Walter Mitty plot would be great. I was a bit disappointed by it, and its molasses pace. While seeing upper-middle-class India was interesting, I wanted to shake young Mahek out of her daydreaming depression. The wide range of costumes was great, however.
Up the Yangtze -- I would like to know more about the Three Gorges Dam, especially its massive scope, its engineering and construction, its impact on the environment, the dispossesed, and the new urban beneficiaries. There are two films about this project in the film festival this year, and I thought I chose the one that wasn't a film about one family's ordeal of relocation. Well, I was wrong about that. It was an interesting film, but small in scope. I would like to know both sides of the story. Perhaps that requires two different films? And why did the omniscient Chinese-American filmmaker never reveal himself or his grandfather who took him to see the Yangtze River of his youth? Where are the archival photographs, or at least a chronology of maps? How much of this naturalistic film was scripted and rehearsed?
Black Waters -- a film about the Ganges River in India was canceled.
Return of the Cuyahoga -- Well now, I learned something. The most interesting tidbit was that the famous photos of the Cuyahoga River on fire were not from the 1969 event that began Cleveland's reputation as the Mistake on the Lake, but probably a photo from the 1920s. Manipulative and powerful propaganda! The interviews were mostly informative and covered many fields (except the industrial dumpers, of course). I would recommend this film to anyone interested in environmental politics.
CLEVELAND INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL Saturday, March 8, 2008
Harriett
The #1 film choice for me was Jump, a film about competitive jump roping. The massive snowstorm that started on Friday had dumped more than a foot of snow by Saturday afternoon, and there was no end in sight. Driving was out of the question, but I would have taken the Rapid anyway. Even walking to the station was a challenge. The trains seemed to be running fine, and a rail-mounted snowplow was just ahead of our train, which looked like a good sign. But after a slow and hiccup-ing kind of ride, the train broke down just before reaching the station and trainyard at E. 55th St. Eventually the driver radioed for help ("this train is not moving, 704"), and help arrived from both ends, and failed to make our train move. After an hour and a half of waiting, we were issued off the train, and told to board another train, which ignored us. Back on the train. This tedious wait was made more painful by Miss Suburban Mom whose middle name must be Entitlement. She actually called customer service on her cell phone, thinking that the peons on phones would have more control over the situation than the technicians out in the cold checking the brake lines.
Okay, so we did eventually arrive at Tower City. I had allowed 1.5 hours for this trip (which takes 17 minutes under normal conditions), but we missed the movie anyway (yup, the whole thing). It was about time for the next round, so we stayed and watched World's Best Commercials. Some of them were great, but I needed more funny ones. Still, the fat guy applying for a brewer's job who did his costumed Flashdance as inspiration for hiring him without any experience, was a real winner. Give the dude a beer.
BIRTHDAY
STORMSaturday, March 8, 2008
Harriett
That's a lotta snow, folks. Shoveling twice yesterday was just a prelude. Woke up this morning to at least a foot of fluff, and as it compacts, it may not look as mountainous, but it's heavier and denser. The main streets are mostly clear, but be careful on the side streets and especially intersections. I dug out enough to see the storefront here, with alleys out to the street. Are we open? Oh yeah.
CLEVELAND INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL Friday, March 7, 2008
Harriett
And, we're off! On this first public night, I saw two films. Here's the report:
Vivere -- a German/Dutch film of 3 women who converge, given in turn from each woman's perspective. I liked the way their stories of the same events were different, and the twist realization at the conclusion of the film (never spelled out, but somehow obvious, even though contrite).
Bluff -- French Canadian film featuring various stories a condemned apartment building tells - fabulous, riveting, and engrossing. Highly recommended.
NORTH COUNTRY BOOKS Wednesday, March 5, 2008
Harriett
There were three major reasons I decided to open Loganberry Books in Cleveland, Ohio instead of Burlington, Vermont. Reason number one was the great opportunity to share retail space (and overhead) with Dede Moore and her outstanding collection of oriental rugs. Reason number two was family and that book scouting mother of mine. Reason number three was a new bookstore had just opened in Burlington in the very months I was making this decision, and you could tell it was run by someone who knew what he was doing. It wasn't on the Church Street Marketplace yet, it was just a hair north, but it was just a matter of time before they moved. I've visited North Country Books every time I get to Burlington, which admittedly isn't as often as it used to be, and I've seen the store grow and meld into a wonderful used bookstore with great depth of field, some wonderful collectible gems, and a great bookish atmosphere.
I've just read that they are closing. Mark Ciufo states he'll continue the online business and close down the shop and its overhead, a common fate to used booksellers these days. But there's also a new Border's that just opened across the street, and of course that has an impact. I am disappointed to see them go, even from my seat in Ohio.
P.S. Still having web publishing issues here... sorry if the image doesn't appear.
STRUGGLING ON Monday, March 3, 2008
Harriett
We are glad, indeed fortunate, to have our computer back unharmed. We've been struggling with the time it requires to catch up, host special events (the SHAC concert with the Hoopes Trio was great!), and the continuing learning curve that comes with a new computer and new programs. Website publishing remains tricky (why when I update a page do some of the older icons go AWOL? and why does it occasionally loop into neverland and have to be aborted?). But, we're here, and working hard. Sarah will have two dedicated days to update the Stumpers page, and our March newsletter is almost ready. Thanks, again, for your patience.
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