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February 26, 2006
"Flame Me"
D: She looked a little like Velma from Scooby Doo.
A: The smart one?
D: Yeah.
A: ...
D: What, say it.
A: A lot of people look like that on Capitol Hill.
D: ...
A: They do.
D: Some girls on MySpace might be offended by that comment.
A: They can be offended, then. Flame me.
Posted by Dipika at 5:03 PM | Comments (4) | TrackBack
February 22, 2006
SciFi Film Stuff (2)
They had a sellout crowd at the Science Fiction Short Film Festival I was telling you about. I'd gone to the second set of screenings, along with 799 other people.
After the shorts, a bunch of the directors lined up to talk about their movies. For their day jobs, most of them work in film or video or animation, but one person was in IT. Someone was from Dublin, someone else from Israel, and the sole woman in the group from Canada. They all said how delighted they were to have their movies up there on the big screen*. One film was shot in 48 hours, and cost $60 CAN, another was a three-year project upwards of $30K. So it just depends.
One of the SIFF folks said they didn't know there'd be so much demand for this kind of thing, so they may expand it to two days in 07.
This one girl had on a black strapless dress, kind of like a sundress, even though gale-force winds that day nearly toppled cars. Come to think of it, a lot of people wore black. I wonder if there was an unwritten dress code? If so, I certainly broke it. My coat is white.
*My own short movie, "The India Tapes," will screen on March 24 at Central Cinema in Seattle. More on this later.
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February 21, 2006
Nine Lines from Paul Bowles
"You know," said Port, and his voice sounded unreal, as voices are likely to do after a long pause in an utterly silent spot, "the sky here's very strange. I often have the sensation when I look at it that it's a solid thing up there, protecting us from what's behind."
Kit shuddered slightly as she said: "From what's behind?"
"Yes."
"But what is behind?" Her voice was very small.
"Nothing, I suppose. Just darkness. Absolute night."
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February 20, 2006
Denny and 5th
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February 17, 2006
Two Movies and a Play
This well-dressed guy in his late 30s is sitting next to me yesterday at Theater Schmeater in Capitol Hill. It's a tiny little spot that you wouldn't notice, really, if you happened to be walking by.
I'm early for "Catch 22."
So there I am, hanging out, on page one of "Schrodinger’s Cat," and he says he's read something else by Robert Anton Wilson and likes him. So we get to swapping lists of what’s good and what’s not and he says how much really good art there is out there to read and experience.
This resonates with me, as I decided earlier this year to take myself to more plays. All of a sudden he goes: "Wait til you get to the age when you realize you’re not going to have time to read all the stuff you want to."
"I’m getting to that age."
Clearly he doesn't believe me. "Sure. Well, one day you'll see you just don’t have time to get through everything. So now if someone says Book X is good, I ask, ‘Yeah? Why?’"
So I say yeah, that’s why I decided to finally rent "Shortcuts" just last night. It’s this film based on short stories by Raymond Carver, who tells stories straight. No gloss. I saw another movie this week, "I (Heart) Huckabees."
Getting back to the play, Major Major kept shuffling around this window frame, which he brought onto the stage when it was his turn to talk. I thought this would be how Yossarian would make his exit, but I was wrong.
After letting go of Snowden, who turns blue on a hot day in August, Yossarian says, "Man without soul is just matter." That wasn't the end of the play, but it seemed the point where he left.
Date:Through February 25
Place:Theater Schmeater, 1500 Summit Ave., Capitol Hill
Tix:$18
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February 13, 2006
Going Places
D: I’m going to San Francisco. I’ll take the train, I think.
R: How long will that take?
D: 22 hours.
R: What!? Why don’t you just fly, dude?
D: …
R: Not as romantic.
D: No.
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February 11, 2006
15th and Pike
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February 3, 2006
Some Sun Came, Then Went
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February 2, 2006
Weather
D: You know, I have a feeling it's going to rain tomorrow.
A: Dちゃん. Um, that's not very insightful.
Posted by Dipika at 7:18 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
February 1, 2006
"That's a fun name! Now, how do you want it today?"
I finally went to get my hair cut today after about three weeks of "I think I need a haircut" moments in the bathroom. I go to this semi-chain place called Rudy's, which sort of caters to the Capitol Hill hipsters around "Pike-Pine Corridor". It's set up like a co-op, where hairdressers take people on first-come-first-served basis, instead of usual appointment system. This means every time, I get a different person, and a different haircut.
I find myself going back to this place, though it isn't especially convenient for me (there are several other choices that are closer or about the same distance from my home). The results vary widely, to say the least. It's not especially cheap, either.
So why do I go back? If it's not the product (the haircut), can it still be called brand loyalty? Maybe. I think it's the familiarity. I've come to expect the hipper-than-thou clientele, the nonchalant reception when I walk in. I have learned to enjoy finding a spot among the blood-red chairs, staring at an old issue of iD, or listening to Jeff Buckley or Cat Power wailing on the store PA, which is always on, a tad too loudly. It's rather odd to think that this hipster joint became a familiar, comfortable place for me to frequent, but I guess some things are starting to rub off on me after two years.
Also, I do like the thrill of not knowing what my new haircut will look like beforehand, and of sometimes being subjected to fresh-faced hair school graduate who would pinch the back of my neck. What's life without a bit of surprise, eh?
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