The other day I caught a movie on the vintage film channel that I remember watching with my mom back in the sixties. It’s a 1949 British black comedy called Kind Hearts and Coronets. The plot involves an aristocratic descendant denied his rightful place in the family when his mother marries an Italian and is cast out into a life of shame and deprivation. The son vows to avenge his mother’s honor after her death, so he begins systematically killing off the eight heirs who stand in his way. The best part is that all the soon to be murdered family members are played by Sir Alec Guinness. It’s a remarkable tour de force for Guinness, who plays everything from an old man to a young woman, all destined for untimely deaths.
There was a moment that made me say, “No way!” out loud, and I was all alone at the time. Playing a priest about to be poisoned at dinner by the outcast relative, the actor most known to modern audiences as Obi-Wan Kenobi looks at the wine decanter next to his dinner guest’s hand. Gesturing for his glass to be refilled, he says, “The port is with you.” For real? The port is with you? You think George Lucas maybe saw this film? Prove he didn’t.
Husband and I are frequently talking about the lack of passion and cohesive purpose among the generations that came after the days of student rebellion and protest, aka our days. Well, recently Facebook took its place as an instrument of positive social change when a group of New Jersey students organized a walkout to protest school budget cuts using their Facebook pages. Way to use your resources for good instead of evil, kids. And what a great prop for a network that has been linked of late to less worthy news stories, like teen suicides due to online peer bullying. Likewise the Clockwork Orange-scented flash mobs the site has been used to promote. Wasted talent.
The week just ending was filled with census training for me. I was hired as an enumerator for the 2010 census and it requires over thirty hours of instruction and orientation. Of course, everything is confidential so I can’t tell you much (unless you say please) but I was amazed at how quickly we in the group all started speaking Government. It’s a total language, you know. There are a dozen different forms and three training books and every single one has a number or call word to identify it. Like the forms 602 and 602Supp in case the first 602s didn’t do it for you. The abbreviations all reminded me that we have the U.S. military to thank for phrases like SNAFU (situation normal all fucked up) and FUBAR (fucked up beyond all recognition). But I’m a guvmint girl now, and if you live in my area and didn’t mail in your census form I may be knocking on the door to count your lazy ass.
Now that I’m part of the club, I especially enjoyed the radio ad I heard in my car today for the beleaguered postal service. They want the public’s ideas on how to cut costs for the post office so they don’t have to raise the price of a stamp again or eliminate Saturday service. The request was genuine and they had me at hello until the announcer said, “E-mail your ideas to. . .”
Daughter’s Featured Fotos say go on and Look
taxi work
speaker seat
vintage haring
jef aerosol