Sunday, September 9, 2007
G'parents day
Happy Grandparents Day to anyone out there who has the great good fortune to be a grandparent. I still cringe at the word because of connotations of white hair and old age, but then I remind myself that one needs only to be 40 to achieve this pinnacle. I have to acknowledge that it's mysterious and wonderful when one's children have children and that those children2 are simply the best. So if you have or are a grandparent, tell the other side of the equation how much you love them and how much fun it is. Sure these days are greeting card company constructs, but they're also nice opportunities to be more vocal in our appreciation of each other than we might otherwise allow ourselves to be. Enjoy the day!

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Permalink | 3 comment(s) | posted by jau at 8:26 AM

Saturday, August 11, 2007
Mel Shavelson
Thanks to Laura for her tribute to screenwriter/director/producer Mel Shavelson who has just died at age 90. A detailed obituary is here on the USC site. He taught screenwriting at USC for decades, stopping only just last year. He married his second wife five years ago (at 85!) after his first wife of an amazing 63 years had died in 2000.

Among his many (35!) produced and filmed screenplay are Houseboat, Yours Mine & Ours, The 7 Little Foys, I'll See You in My Dreams and Five Little Pennies (one of my all-time favorites and it turns out he won the Writers' Guild award for the screenplay, how about that?!). He also created and wrote the pilot for Make Room for Daddy and the theme song for Gilligan's Island on tv.

He directed many stars, including (but not only) Lucille Ball, Yul Brynner, James Cagney, Vittorio De Sica, Angie Dickinson, Kirk Douglas, Robert Duvall, Henry Fonda, Clark Gable, Cary Grant, Barbara Harris, Charlton Heston, Bob Hope, Danny Kaye, Jack Lemmon, Sophia Loren, Paul Newman, Lee Remick, Frank Sinatra, John Wayne, and Joanne Woodward. Quite a list.

He had many stories about the actors and films, and must have been an extraordinarily entertaining and good teacher. I'm looking forward to checking out his autobiography, How to Succeed in Hollywood Without Really Trying: P.S.—You Can’t!, which was published on his 90th birthday. I wish one didn't discover such interesting people only when they leave us, don't you?

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Permalink | 0 comment(s) | posted by jau at 8:46 AM

Monday, January 15, 2007
caregiving
There's an interesting if slightly difficult thread over at Seablogger, about dying and who might be there to help in one's last months and days. This is on account of Alan looking at various possibilities himself, about which he often thinks aloud. It's sometimes scary and often sad but he always arouses interesting thoughts and reactions from me as well as from other readers. After all, some of us are inevitably getting older, even though we'd rather not think about it most of the time, and we will have to face what Alan's facing in some way or other, eventually. But then along comes a blow for ingenuity and wit as Ligneus first bows toward a recently departed friend and then adds his always unique take on things by telling us about an erstwhile invention/fantasy:
I ‘invented’ once a device for protection against creeping senility. It is implanted under the skin and contains a dose of lethal poison. It contains a battery that releases the poison when it runs down after thirteen months. The idea is that you change the battery on your birthday, if you are too far gone mentally to remember to do so on that date of all dates, you have a months grace.
A grand idea except for those of us who already have memory problems. Unless, of course, he's also got an antidote to implant side-along-side the poison.

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Permalink | 1 comment(s) | posted by jau at 5:24 PM

Monday, January 8, 2007
holy baby boomers, robin
David Bowie is 60 today. I need smelling salts.

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Permalink | 0 comment(s) | posted by jau at 2:56 PM

Thursday, July 6, 2006
more happy bdays
Check it out. Today is the Dalai Lama's, Nancy Reagan's, Sylvester Stallone's, George W. Bush's, and my friend's sister-in-law's birthday. Quite a day! Hard to know what to make of that combination.

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Permalink | 0 comment(s) | posted by jau at 10:45 AM

Wednesday, July 5, 2006
happy birthday!
Happy happy second birthday to the younger of the tcgitw! It's astonishing that she's been here for two entire years. Like her first cousin, she is simply a sweetheart and I hope she has a wonderful day and year. Aren't hearts amazing things? Apparently they're endlessly expandable when it comes to holding all the special people we love.

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Permalink | 0 comment(s) | posted by jau at 12:02 AM

Sunday, July 2, 2006
happy 230th
It's a hazard benefit of friends and family being away that I browse blogs more than usual. Hence many links to many things. I must add that the blogging world is a grand place in which, agree with them or not (sometimes especially when not), one finds musings, dialogues, ideas, philosophical treatises, quirky vents, observations, and points of view spanning every color, size, political side, etc. It's interesting, thought-provoking and downright encouraging about the human race. (Feel free to point out others.)
-Mark Steyn on Ann Coulter (ht Spiced Sass)
-Mathematical Imagery - wild! (ht the ever-awesome Sweet Familiar Dissonance)
-Life Nut - interesting observations (ht --Amy's Humble Musings)
-Would you believe a pacifiers web site including a diamond one for $17,000?! (ht Life Nut)
-No smoking in a car with children?! (ht several blogs)
-Quizzes and facts about the government and the First Family
-Mark Steyn on the recent Supreme Court decision
-Now and Then by Sophie Hannah - terrific poem (ht Spiced Sass)
-Cell Phone Complaints by Lynn - funny and wishful thinking that I yearn for!
-The Eternal Meaning of Independence Day
-Calvin Coolidge's Speech on the 150th anniversary of July 4, 1776 - a knockout
-Time Slip - apt short short story for today (ht Spiced Sass)
-What's so great about America? by Dinesh D'Souza (ht Seablogger)

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Permalink | 0 comment(s) | posted by jau at 11:51 AM

Friday, March 31, 2006
non-technical support
Borrowing his title, I'd like to refer you to Dustbury's March 19th post musing on mine of the same day which was wondering about how one might gracefully and somewhat contentedly endure and perhaps conquer aloneness and sometime sense of meaninglessness. I find his title and thoughts quite meaningful, actually, therefore not non-support and though not really a solution still somehow and somewhat satisfying. Brother. I guess I'm getting older in my older age.

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Permalink | 0 comment(s) | posted by jau at 1:10 AM

Sunday, March 19, 2006
being alone
I watched a (pretty bad) movie this morning that made me think about something kind of important about people even though it's sad and serious. We humans need to feel valuable and worthwhile, that seems evident. One reason I like my work, for example, is that my manager and colleagues convey their respect and appreciation vocally and often. On a personal level, being loved by partners, friends and children is so important and yet it's difficult for people who live alone or have no partners or intimate friends because no one asks after them on a regular basis. It must be easy to feel as if no one cares what they do or how they are. And that must make it hard to stay interested in eating well or staying fit or anything much. If we live a long time, many of us will be there, so I wonder what would work well to keep from feeling sad or meaningless?

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Permalink | 0 comment(s) | posted by jau at 12:19 PM

Thursday, November 17, 2005
Real age
Maybe not be ideal to be so out of sync with reality, on other other hand this is cool and it's certainly no huge surprise: "You Are 29 Years Old . . . . 20-29: You are a twentysomething at heart. You feel excited about what's to come... love, work, and new experiences. 30-39: You are a thirtysomething at heart. You've had a taste of success and true love, but you want more! . . . " (What Age Do You Act?)

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Permalink | 0 comment(s) | posted by jau at 5:32 PM

Monday, November 7, 2005
Women & heart attacks
Interesting, compelling and important post about Dr. Helen's heart attack when she was 37. Yes: female, young and in good shape. Pay attention if you feel short of breath and panicky.

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Permalink | 0 comment(s) | posted by jau at 9:54 AM

Saturday, April 2, 2005
Interesting thread
There's a long thoughtful exchange about talking with an aging and difficult parent, here at Fresh Bilge. Feel free to weigh in on the subject here.

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Permalink | 0 comment(s) | posted by jau at 9:41 AM

Wednesday, March 9, 2005
Barbie's birthday
Happy birthday to Barbie!! Hard to believe she's 46 today - she doesn't look a day over 18. (Her birthday party ideas and supplies are here.) She really should publish a book of her beauty secrets although I guess not having requisite body parts including skin might be part of her secret and would be hard for youth-seeking women to imitate.

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Permalink | 0 comment(s) | posted by jau at 10:28 AM