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Book: The Loop / Joe Coomer
This is one of those books that inspires you to write a book. A couple of simple ideas, artfully combined, shed light on countless facets of life. Uncovering the history of a parrot, and patrolling the loop of highway around Ft. Worth. Of course there’s more, much more. Like all great books, much more than…
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Movie: Gorky Park
I found this to be a pretty cheesy melodrama. I wonder how much I was influenced by the dated 80’s soundtrack. The movie uses a format that may have inspired today’s CSI TV shows, rebuilding the crime as the investigators learn more. Maybe today’s higher gore tolerance and flashy special effects reduce some of the…
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Book: The Last Report on the Miracles at Little No Horse / Louise Erdrich
For me this book was like entering the state of waking up, when dreams and reality can mix, making the transition uncertain for a moment. This story looks at one side of something like that, then another, and then the strange place where the two mix. Man and woman, Indian and Catholic, love and pragmatism…
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Movie: Spirited Away
I don’t know if I’ll ever be a fan of this kind of animated movie. The animation is great, but there always seems to be at least one shrill-voiced character that grates on my nerves, and I usually don’t find the plots compelling. It’s the same to some degree with other animation films like Princess…
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Horsetooth Reservoir
With a clear sky and temperatures soaring into the 60s, we weren’t the only ones that headed up to Horsetooth for some bouldering. We met Lisa there with her 3-month-old Dyson on his first bouldering outing. It didn’t take long to shred the fingertips, but it sure felt good. Very nice also to finally get…
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Movie: Gosford Park
I thought I’d catch more my second time through this movie, but it’s really challenging. It’s like actually being at a party in a foreign place and time, the many conversations going at once in unfamiliar accents make it a little overwhelming. The bits I do catch are witty and revealing, and thankfully you can…
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Movie: Shrek 2
Well, it’s not as fresh the second time around, but these movies make fun of things in a way that works for me. Vulgarity implied instead of shown, stereotypes teased and then broken, and out-of-place cultural references all kept me laughing again this time. A Tom Waits tune in the soundtrack doesn’t hurt either.