Almost a New Year!

Good Morning on the last day of this year!

I am not sure of what this last year means to me. Surely the election of new President with hopes for us all is certainly a positive note. But, we have lost so many folks that I grew up with that it saddens me to think of their passing. Paul Newman and George Carlin are representatives of that group, not that they are the only ones of importance, just emblematic of an era for me.

My youngest daughter got married and that is good. My tenth year as a ranger in the Tetons was, for the most part good. The new duty station at Jenny Lake presented a new challenge for me but was a nice change. However, the last three weeks of duty made me begin to question whether I wanted to continue on with the park service. Maybe the coming summer will bring with it travel to places I have wanted to get to but haven't.

Yesterday my friend Marc came up to Flagstaff and we got some XC sking in at the nordic center. There is still a lot of snow out there but with the warming temps it is beginning to do that "freeze/thaw" thing. Plus, it warmed up pretty fast and we were shedding layers right away. The skiing itself was pretty good but conditions were a bit slick to begin with and getting soft by the time we finished, not the pristine conditions I had before Xmas. However, it was good to get out there.

Since last I wrote I have seen two movies. The first, Marley and Me, I saw with my daughter and grandsons in California before leaving. It was a nice family picture (although my grandson Cole said there were a couple of naughty parts). It was entertaining and enjoyable for what it was. The second movie, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, is one of the best movies I've seen this year (I will list my top 10 for 2008 in my next posting). Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett give career performances. I found the story both poignant and thoughtful. There are many lessons here for living one's life. I highly recommend this film.

Happy New Year to all. Lets hope it brings better things for our personal lives, our country and the world.

Peace!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas from NOT so sunny southern California!

I have been here since last weekend and it has been rainy or cloudy everyday, which is Ok for me. My sister Norma and I are having pretty low-key morning with a few presents to open and no kids around. Last year I got to spend my only Christmas morning watching my grandsons tear through their packages. That was not possible this year. Norma has usually gotten to spend the holiday with at least one of her daughters and grandchildren but that is not case for her this year. So, like my years spent with our mother on Christmas Eve and Morn, we have had a quiet morning and previous evening. Later we will go down to sister Marlene's place to have our dinner with her, niece Ashley, and our brother Russell. That will give us a nice family get-together. This evening I will stop by to see my daughter, son-in-law and grandsons and the aftermath of their day. In addition, I am thinking about daughter Natasha and her husband in snowy Flagstaff this morning.

Before driving over from AZ, I was able to get in a morning of XC skiing. It was beautiful and quiet skiing through the woods. I cannot wait to get back to Flagstaff to get back into it. It has snowed fairly constantly off and on since I left. There should be a good base.

At any rate, even though it is nice to get over to San Diego County to see family and friends, it will be good to get home to snow on the mountains and winter activities.

I hope that those who read this mundane drival have had a nice Christmas.

Movie reviews: 7 Pounds with Will Smith is a so, so presentation and I figured out the ending in the middle of the film but I like him and it is nice little bitter-sweet "feel good" movie (if you are "into" that genre). On the other hand Milk, about the assassinated first elected openly gay politician (San Francisco in 70s) was well acted by all the cast, especially Sean Penn and Josh Brolin. It is sometimes difficult to sit through but is worth seeing.

Cheers!

Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow!

Good Morning All, or least those few hearty souls who still read these diatribes,

I guess local events here in Flagstaff come under the heading of "be careful what you wish for." We have had pretty close to a week of major snow storms. Personally, I like it but many here are saying enough is enough. My friend Ed, another old curmudgeon, is again ready to move to Scottsdale, or Florida. My only concern is one of getting out of here to head down to Prescott then California for the holidays. With the Interstates both being pretty icey I am afraid of being hit by other motorists as was the case a couple of years ago.

That is pretty much the reason I have yet to get out to the Nordic Center to cross-country ski, concern for other drivers on the road. Yeah, yeah, I know, I have been waxing on about getting out there and now we have had at least two days where I could have hit the boards. However, today is the day, or at least I hope it is!

As for Christmas, I head out tomorrow leaving behind daughter Natasha and her husband Jason.

They have opted to stay in Flagstaff on their own. She has to work, and since they do not have a car cannot make a short trip to Prescott to be with her mother and Grammy. In addition, they have a new cat that cannot be left behind for the week. I hope their first Christmas as husband and wife is a good one. Tasha and Shylock

Christmas fast approaches and the road beckons yet again. I am excited to see my family members and a friend in Southern California, not so much the place itself (even though it is my "hometown"). My mother was a big part of Christmas for me and with her passing the holiday became that much more diminished. I look forward to watching my grandson's joy on this holiday. Our lives move on and we step-up as the next generation with the passing of our parents.

Again, I wish you all a very happy and safe holiday. Here's hope for a good coming year as well!

Cheers!

Holiday Cheer?

Another Flagstaff Good Morning,

We were suppose to start getting snow last night but it did not happen in town. I should be cautious about complaining too much about lack of winter weather as my niece Kelly and her family are right in the middle of the massive power outages in New Hampshire due to Ice Storms.

Tonight, here in Flagstaff, there is the annual Christmas parade downtown. Up until this year, if I wanted to watch it, I could just step outside my door. I haven't done that the last couple of years.
Now my residence is a couple of miles from there which means, in all probability, I will not make the effort. Since Tasha and Jason have my old apartment maybe they can get in the holiday spirit for their first wedded one together by enjoying the parade.

My Christmas cheer has been waning quite a bit over the last few years. As a non-Christian, actually non-believer, my orientation to the holiday has always been tied up with family and the festivities. Last year was nice because I got to stay with my daughter and grandsons for the first time. I was able to again watch children open their gifts. But, that was an exception, and I am back to the status quo. I will be staying on the couch at my sister Norma's apartment.

For my mother's last ten years of life she and I spent very quiet Christmas Eves and mornings together alone. In the afternoon we would head up to my sister's for dinner and I might get to see Tania and the boys later in the day/evening for an hour or two. I remember the years prior when everyone dropped by Mom's place on the Eve. She was our "center." My mother has been gone two Christmas' now and I miss her. Christmas meant more to me when she was here on earth.

I wish everyone a good holiday and hope that niece Kelly and her family are safe and well.

As the "Monty Pythons" use to say, "Now for something completely different . . ."

Movie Review:
I keep expecting more good movies to emerge since this is the time of year when all the studios shoot for big "Oscar" releases. You would think that every weekend they would be hitting the theaters. But that does not seem to be the case. There were the few good ones before and around Thanksgiving, The Changeling, for one. They seem to be waiting to pile up on Christmas Day. Besides, there does not seem, from the previews, many that look all that good.

Keeping all of this in mind, I went to see the opening, in Flagstaff, of The Day the Earth Stood Still. I have to say that it is no where near as good as the 1951 original with Michael Rennie. The earlier movie was a much more daring premise for its time. Remember the rabid McCarthyism was taking place and to put a film out that was anti-nuclear/war was a brave endeavor. In the new film the threats to the earth are up-dated and I applaud their attempt here but it is to heavy handed. They picked the right person to play the Alien representative. Keanu Reeves is about the most "wooden" of actors on the scene today. But, He is no Michael Rennie. There is no nuance in Keanu's portrayal. Jennifer Connley does a good job in the role played originally by Patricia Neal. I am prejudice here though; I like her.

As for movies I am looking forward to; they are Valkyrie, with Tom Cruise, Gran Tourino, with Clint Eastwood, Nixon and Frost, with Frank Langella, and a French Christmas film I cannot remember the name of that has a number well known artists to include one of my favorites, Catherine Denuieve (sp). The latter will never come to Flag so cannot count on seeing that one before DVD.

Cheers.

Chilly but NO Snow!

Good Morning Folks,

Thanksgiving has come and gone and I am back in relatively warm Flagstaff. The nights have been in the 20s but the days are balmy highs in the 50s. While on my trip south for the holiday, there was some minimal snow here, enough to make the peaks white for awhile but by the time I returned nothing at the lower levels. It looks like no XC skiing for a while.

My time in Prescott and Goodyear with friends was very nice. That is probably how holidays should be spent, with friends and/or family. The usual and only downside is that you are there for a short time and do not get the "Turkey leftovers" (as you would if you were preparing the meal at home). But, I have to say that was not the case this year. I got "leftovers" the two nights following Thanksgiving at Bob and Cindys (yummy), and on Tuesday my friends Ed and Bonnie, here in Flagstaff, invited me over for more. It was a bonus year for Turkey and the trimmings.

The saga of living in this beehive apartment complex goes on. It was perhaps one of the worst decisions I have made (amongst several in my life) to move in here. It is noisey with so many young folks residing in such close proximity. I recognize their right to live as they want to, but where has common courtesy gone?

This has been a pet peave of mine for years, not just since becoming an old curmudgeon. I go out of my way to be a good neighbor wherever I live, not too noisey, especially late at night and such. But, this whole "Me" thing that developed with my generation is exasperating. People cut each other off in traffic, do not respect other peoples rights/property, and just generally feel as though they are entitled to everything without working for it. They are discourteous in stores and restaurants. They talk loudly on their cell phones in public as if we are all interested in their conversations with no regard to the surroundings. I had a philosopy professor in college who said, "one person's freedom ends at the end of their nose." Think about it! That is my pre-Xmas rant.

As for movies . . . I saw three over the holiday, the best of which was a French film (yes, subtitles) with Kristin Scott Thomas. This is by far her best performance since the English Patient. The worst of the three was Four Christmas.' Vince Vaungan is a "one trick pony." He has no acting range at all. I have to admit that he is funny, but the film was a waste of the talents of Reese Witherspoon, Robert Duval, Sissy Spacek, and John Voight. The other film was a nice little Brit fil called Happy-Go-Lucky with Sally Hawkins.

Yesterday Natasha, Jason and I went to see Australia with Nicole Kiddman. This movie harkened back to the old romantic epics of my youth. It is a bit long and could have had about 30 minutes edited out too tighten it up. But, it was very entertaining and had great sweeping panoramas of Australia. The acting was very good throughout the cast. Even though long, I did not once look at my watch and that is usually a good sign.

Cheers!