Catching Up

[kelly_chambliss]

This Week: Big Picture: I can't even begin to enumerate the dastardly, dangerous, and damaging things Trump has said and done this week. He's been busy screwing the American people (sick people, Puerto Rican people, and LGBTQ people in particular), undermining the democratic process, and saying "fuck you" to the entire world. Seriously, we're all being destroyed by the hour, and there doesn't seem to be much we can do about it. Trump and the alt-right and the misogynists and the white supremacists just steamroll on.

Outside of politics, the big US story seems to be the Harvey Weinstein scandal. Amazingly, many people are shocked -- SHOCKED -- that an enormously wealthy, enormously powerful white man has spent decades abusing women, bullying subordinates, and paying to cover up his crimes. A lot more people are double-shocked to learn that a) this situation has been an "open secret" for years and c) -- triple shocker -- that serial creep Harvey Weinstein is not the only powerful man in Hollywood or politics who behaves like this.

I mean, using sexual power to demean and diminish women and getting away with it and having people cover for you and excuse and justify you. Who'd a' thunk it?

Two Weeks: My Picture: I've dealt with the horrors in a totally courageous way: by running away while the running's good (that is, while I still have the health insurance to cover me if I'm in a car wreck). Luckily, the running has turned out to be a lot of fun. Where have I run to?

1. HP Fandom -- Got a great assignment for hp_halloween.

2. Washington DC -- Still a fabulous place to visit despite the metaphorical mushroom cloud hovering over it.

I spent our Fall Break visiting my 88-year-old bad-ass friend. While she went to a doctor's appointment (just a check-up), I toddled off to the National Postal Museum, which was fascinating, totally free, and only steps away from the Union Station metro.

The next day, since my friend now finds the metro too difficult, we took a cab to the National Portrait Gallery, where the hall of presidents has only recently reopened following renovations. It's really quite well done, and best of all, there's no portrait of the Great Imposter yet. (A president's portrait is not added to the gallery until he leaves office.) We also got to see interesting exhibits on Marlene Dietrich and Sylvia Plath.

On my last night, we went to see Hal Linden (of Barney Miller fame) in an Arthur Miller play called The Price (1968). A couple of fine (if rather over-the-top) performances, but a really weak play. (Miller's an erratic playwright at best.) Speaking of bad-ass elderly people, Linden is 86 years old. . .and he was all over that stage, his impeccable comic and dramatic timing fully intact. Here's The Washington Post's review.

3. BFF Visit -- My best friend, who I've known since sixth grade, had a couple of days off and was able to make her first visit here in twelve years. We had fabulous weather, went out to dinner, went to a play, took a day trip to Nearby Fun Small City, and talked ourselves silly. A fine time was had by all.

So, I'm home now, AND. . .all my papers are graded for the moment. Yes, we're all flying along to hell on the Muggle equivalent of a Gringott's cart, but there are a few nice times to be had along the way.

Comments

[tetleythesecond]

It's not "running", it's called "staying sane". If we deprive yourself of the fun that is to be had, for fear, or for fear that we might not be concerned or alarmed enough to meet the moral standards we've set ourselvs, or for whatever other reason, we're handing them victory on a silver platter. Great to hear you've been doing fun stuff; both the Washington trip and the BFF visit sound great! And I'd love to have seen the Marlene exhibition.

A fallback option for evenings at home, and I'm dead serious: nature and travel documentaries. P and I have been watching lots of them, and found it incredibly relaxing and soothing.

[kelly_chambliss]

we're handing them victory on a silver platter

Good point. I'm glad I had my fun times; you're right about how necessary they are.

The Marlene exhibit was fascinating. They were perhaps a bit too easy on the less-savory aspects of her character, but they didn't neglect them. I've read two or three MD biographies over the years, and it was interesting to see elements of those analyses in the commentary.

Here's a link to the gallery's description of the show. Dietrich really was a genius when it came to image. The pictures were beautifully reproduced: sharp and clear with that glowing silver edge that the "silver screen" actually did have back in the dangerous old days of silver nitrate film. I also enjoyed a little kiosk of film clips; they chose ones that really made her screen persona vivid.

The exhibit did a lot with MD's preference for "mannish" or androgynous dress and the way she played with gender and same-sex sexuality on stage and in life. In the slide show on the website, you can see the photo of her visit to Berlin in the 30s, when she wore a man's suit. According to the museum blurb, she had been warned in advance that given German law, she'd be arrested if she showed up in men's clothes. You see how many fucks she gave.

[miss_morland]

I'm sure people are also SHOCKED to learn that Woody Allen feels sorry for Harvey Weinstein...

[kelly_chambliss]

Everything I read about Woody Allen suggests that he's a narcissist on a Trumpian scale. To me, the most telling part of his interview was when he said that no one had ever told him anything about Weinstein's behavior and then added (paraphrase), "Nor would one want to be told. One wants only to make one's movie." Good lord, self-absorbed much, asshole?

[shadowycat]

Yeah, each week seems more depressing than the one before. I'm glad you could find some breaks of sunshine in the gloom. I'm always glad to hear when someone is happy with their hp_halloween assignment! I look forward to reading what you come up with.

I'm glad also that your trip to DC and your BFF visit went well! :D

[kelly_chambliss]

I've gotten so that I have to take at least two days off from news of any kind -- no newspapers or websites or facebook. Otherwise, I'll go berserk.

I'm looking forward to working on HP Halloween this weekend.

[shadowycat]

I find I really need breaks from the news, too, for my health and sanity.

[minervas_eule]

Ah, I am so happy to read about the great times you had for yourself!

I have just returned home from Japan and start to catch-up... It was nice not to be able to understand anything on TV for 20 days, the only thing we "got" was that they have an election very soon ;-).

[dexstarr]

I've had to cut myself off from the news after 10pm, or I get too fired up to sleep. I just get so mad about what's going on, and how we can't seem to stop anything, just watch it get worse. Ugh.

I echo tetleythesecond -- We've got to remember to enjoy ourselves, or else they really win.

Sounds like you had some really nice times! The exhibits look absolutely fascinating, and thank Merlin there was no portrait of the Imposter.