Sarah H, just posted on facebook that she has an extra ticket for the project at Ars Nova tonight. Said that I would take her up on it, sounds like fun---this alters the tone of the blog post today---gets me kind of up---wonder if she will accept. If she does not, no sweat---lots of good and important baseball on tonight.
No work today---spent the morning picketing outside the new "53rd" street library with about 30 other people, protesting the smallness of the new library which it took eight years to build and open. The Donnell library which it replaced was 5 floors and had a teen age center and an auditorium, also many books. Most of the people handing out flyers on the line were in the 60 to 70 range---have very fixed ideas and difficult to communicate with. They understand the large problem that this is symptomatic of, the Mayor's commitment to the real estate industry---but don't have much idea of what to do about it. They don't have a fighting vision of what the next Mayor ought to be, or what he should stand for. Very hot out there, but think that the point was made. Glad that i attended.
Saturday night---very tired from work that day---too tired to visit Brooklyn, managed to get to the Village, but times for movies were off--went to Formerly Crows where I could watch the baseball game---they are very friendly there and let me watch for as long as I wish, but never really find anyone there to talk to. Beer seemed to fill my tired stomach with sugar, so I walked from Crows (sixth avenue and Washington Place) up Greenwich Avenue to 14th and 8th, then north on 8th to23rd. Good walk, many people out, but streets were maneuverable. Took subway home at 23rd. Think that I had a restless night.
Sunday, plan was to see movie at BAM fest, and that is what I did. Had no trouble getting a ticket for the 6:00 showing of A Woman, A Part---interesting movie of which I will say more later. But first, visited Brooklyn library, then down to Mullanes to watch Yankee game, somewhat interesting conversation with a guy visiting his musician son from Australia. Left with much time on my hands prior to movie beginning. Walked east on Greene for quite a while, found a place to have ice coffee at Greene right off Classon, (that is how far I walked from BAM to there). Then found a public garden on the corner of Greene and Franklin. Nice time there for a while, not too crowded, then south on Franklin to Fulton, which is about eight blocks, by this point, all the "revolutionary" streets (Monroe, Quincy, Madison etc.) have joined the grid. Fascinating to think about where they begin; most begin off Classon. Nice walk, fairly uneventful---too bus on Fulton back to BAM (can't walk everywhere)
The movie was a deliberate look at a successful sit-com star who decides to break off from her Hollywood existence (she feels dehumanized by it) and return to the apartment that she has kept in Greenpoint and two old friends with whom she was an unknown several years before. But the two friends have fallen way behind her artistically and the movie is how she relates to them and their problems and how/if they can reconcile. Also, many scenes in which the heroine wanders among vast construction spaces (no end of them in this movie)---as the movie deals with, in some manner, the gentrification craze in Brooklyn. Some scenes in which the heroine wanders around the vacuous construction sites reminded me of Red Desert---a movie Antonioni made in 63 with Monica Vitti.
I saw it twice in 65, at a very difficult time for me---the colors of the movie were fantastic. Anyway, in the end, the woman returns to her "sell out" world and the others are slightly changed. The movie reeks of a kind of "independant" feel, but for the most part it kept my interest. Talk back afterwards revealed that it was shot in 18 days, kind of amazing since the acting is so good.
Had hoped to head for South Fourth afterwards, but a series of events and slow subway trains changed that---starving by that time, I found a pizza place on Montague, had my pizza slice, and very tired, headed home.
That is enough for now---will wait to see if Sarah contacts me and what happens tonight.
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