For this week’s Rhapsody we have something fun.
Full disclosure here, I’m comfortably sure this doesn’t count as a rhapsody. The score is one of Carl W. Stalling‘s brilliant arrangements (in this case based mostly on Modest Mussorgsky‘s Boris Godunov I think.) and as always he delivers.
So sit back and enjoy one of Warner Brothers’ best pieces of World War II propaganda, Bob Clampett‘s Russian Rhapsody! Also known as Gremlins from the Kremlin.
Well, part of my weekend was made more interesting by finally biting the bullet and upgrading my machine to the new OS X Mavericks (I was curious what name the Apple marketing team would use once they ran out of big cats!) I’d been putting it off due to general luddite paranoia but after being reminded several times I decided to take the plunge.
The results were good but not without consequence. The first thing that happened was the software warning me that some of my existing software was incompatable with the new operating system. This included an older version on Photoshop which I don’t use anyway and my old version of Poser which I do. The Poser thing was a blow. It’s been a useful tool and I probably will put off upgrading on my laptop so I can still use the copy I have on it until I finally get the new version.
The second surprise I got was at the end of the reboot it expected me to sign the new agreement again no problem except that another piece of software Mavericks had declared obsolete was the driver to my tablet.
I hadn’t used the mouse that came with my computer for anything besides a paperweight for years and it took me some time to find the thing and put fresh batteries in it in order to manage to use my machine again. Finally I got through and reinstalled the driver and everything is working just great. There’s a whole lot of improvements including incredible improvements to safari and the calendar as well as a lot of cloud specific tech which includes some really cool syncing with my social networks, so for the most part worth the headache.
The only downsides I have so far was a glitch in Photoshop which I was able to fix with a downloaded plugin and thanks to being more cloud-centric and what is probably some Apple planned obsolescence is that cool calendar I was bragging about isn’t syncing with the one in my iPod.
I just saw the latest trailer for Game of Thrones and quite frankly I’m getting a little crazy with anticipation. One thing I enjoyed about the last season was not being a purist. I’d read all the books. (Okay, I still have halfway to go through Dance of Dragons but since The Winds of Winter won’t come out til next year I’m not in a hurry.) But what I’ve found fascinating is that changes have had to be made while the outline’s the same, things have become very different. So one thing I find myself doing while waiting for the fourth season to start one of my favorite activities is handicapping it. Because the fun thing having read the books I know what is going to happen but I don’t know when and how.
Well for the last couple of weeks the drama of my life has been putting out preliminary feelers for a new house hunt. This all started on a Sunday night when my landlords came to my door to tell me personally in the most polite, diplomatic, no hard feelings, you’ve been a great tenant really, way possible that since they will be overhauling all of the units (reasons given: retirement fund and sending son to college) they won’t be renewing any leases. So anyway now I have just over sixty days to find a new apartment.
The first week was the worst despite having taken at well I was pretty useless for the first couple of days afterwords going back and fourth between anxiety and depression but for the most part started working my basic plan and countdown. Since they had given me plenty of warning while I would certainly start packing asap I would not let myself get rushed into anything. Having said that I started studying the ads just to get a feel for the market. This went back and fourth from having me feeling hopeful to being told in numerous different ways how the market had changed for the worst.
So anyway today I went to what was supposed to be an open house again the plan was this was practice and nothing more. Just as well since when I got there there was no evidence of any such an activity but I got to get a very good look at the unit. On the way home I couldn’t get Pete Seeger‘s “Little Boxes on the Hill Side” out of my head.
I’m pretty sure he was singing about Levittown and similar planned communities when he wrote it, but I think it applies to today’s craze for overpriced condos as well. On the way home I saw way too many of those god damned little boxes.
Today’s Rhapsody is the Forest Rhapsody by Taiwanese Ocarina player You Xue-Zhi. Performed by Cris Gale on Standard Tenor and Soprano Ocarinas.
Fedya turned to walk away from the loft’s office nook, still checking his pockets. He was certain that Dielle was grinning. It must have been the March weather, he thought. With the temperature going back and fourth between warm and cold there was no way of knowing what he would be wearing one day or the other but still, how could he have forgotten to put a pack in his donkey jacket?
Casually he walked towards the far corner of the loft where the Circle Band did most of it’s practicing. He brushed his hand behind one of his speakers and..
“Oh, I did a little bit of house cleaning the other day. You wouldn’t believe what you guys leave lying around.”
Fedya grimaced. . The goddamn, he somehow managed to suppress the first few words to describe Dielle that occurred to him, person! She was enjoying this! Housecleaning? She knew damn well Mr. Lu came in to sweep twice a week and HE knew what not to throw away… most notably anything taped to the back of a speaker.
“It is good you is tidy person, my friend, he said, with gritted teeth.
Dielle returned his half smile, looking suspiciously smug.
Fedya looked around, trying hard to not look frantic. It was bad enough Dielle forced him to smoke on the street, now she was taking his emergency stash. Wait. Maybe she hadn’t thrown them away! Maybe she had…. Fedya glanced over at the office area where Dielle had gone back to doing paperwork. He would not give her the satisfaction by asking he would check the desk drawer when she…. but he needed a smoke NOW!
He could tell he was getting irritable already. The argument between Kevin and that punk Amazon guitarist, what was her name, Bian was beginning to get on his nerves. To be fair it wasn’t much of an argument it was Bian yelling and Kevin was just standing there and…. that was it!
“Ah, Bian, my friend! I am sorry to interrupt, but I am needing to borrow your boyfriend for short while”, he said with his best smile.
Bian paused and turned to look at him scowling. “He’s not my boyfriend,” she growled.
“That is good,” Fedya said putting a hand on Kevin’s shoulder. “Then you not mind me taking him for little talk then, no?”
Bian said nothing.
Fedya paused as he led Kevin away, “So… if you not find one… you look for good replacement, yes?
Bian glared at him but, as Fedya noticed with a wry grin, did not say no.
He turned back to Kevin who hadn’t moved from where he had moved him. “Ah Kevin, my friend, I have something very important to ask you.”
Kevin blinked and turned to stare behind Fedya . “How important?” He asked.
Fedya followed Kevin’s gaze but all he could see was a small plush koala bear seated on the other speaker. He shrugged. “Is nothing big. You just still have my spare smokes, yes?
Kevin blinked again and started patting his plaid shirt until he finally got to the breast pocket; the shirt’s only pocket Fedya noticed annoyed, pulled out a crumpled packet and passed it to Kevin. Fedya snatched them, no longer caring if he looked desperate. The packet was crumpled. Two cigarettes were crushed beyond repair but that was okay. He had rolling paper One looked wet, possible moldy and nibbled by something. The other three looked fine and…. Fedya let that last thought sink in. “This no good.” He said slowly.
“Sorry.” Said Kevin.
This not good. This not enough to last until gig… this barely enough to get… He grabbed Kevin by the shoulder. “Come, we must get to my place. We need to get supply.
“But what will Dielle and Michelle say when…”
“They understand. This Emergency.”
