My blogging history:
2012: diagnosed with and underwent treatment for Primary CNS lymphoma in my brain.
2012-2013: blogged on Caring Bridge.
2013: moved to Blogger.
2017: diagnosed with bladder cancer and blogged through 14 chemotherapy treatments and 37 sessions of radiation therapy, each with its own t-shirt and musical selection.
2018 to February 2020: Treated every 3 weeks with pembrolizumab for spread of bladder cancer to lymph nodes. As of June 2020, continue to be cancer free.
On Sunday we had hoped to go see the new 4K digital print of
Woody Allen’s 1979 film, “Manhattan,” which was playing at The Film Forum in
SOHO. But then we heard on the news that his beloved island was hosting a half
marathon that day, and we have lived here long enough to know better than to
venture into the City when such City-wide events are taking place. Even if the
route does not go through the specific neighborhood you plan to visit, it
throws off traffic all over the City and is just not fun.
So instead we went to see a movie at a small theater up in
Westchester, “The Sense of an Ending.” The movie travels back and forth in
time, emphasizing the stark contrast that can exist between the events we
remember and the events that actually occurred. The life being examined is that
of a fellow named Tony Webster, and you are never really quite sure which is
the real version of the events that shaped much of his adult life. To be
honest, I felt lost during much of it. I had a very hard time figuring out who
was whom then and now.
In our music class this week we studied Mozart’s Piano Concerto #23 in A major. Barry and I had never heard this one, but the instructor, Louis Rosen, is quite fond of this particular concerto, particularly the second movement. This fact led to an interesting discussion about proper behavior at the symphony: to clap, or not to clap, between movements. Should applause be viewed as a dictum from Kohelet (Ecclesiastes), in which Solomon wrote
A season is set for everything, a time for every experience under the heaven:
Should we add to the list of experiences:
A time to applaud, a time to refrain from applauding
The rules of etiquette at concerts have long dictated that applause is reserved for the end of an entire piece, although there is much evidence this was not always the case. Louis said he never thought about this much until he took his teen-age son, not a particular fan of classical music, to a concert, and the young man began to applaud after the first movement. I have to admit that, before this discussion, when I would see someone clapping before the completion of a piece, I would just assume that the person had never been to a concert before. Perhaps it is a “rule” worth reconsidering. Or perhaps not. Call me old fashioned, but the rules of decorum at classical music concerts add a reverence that is a valuable part of the experience. For now, I choose to continue to value the tradition.
After a routine medical appointment in the City yesterday, we decided to head downtown to catch the final day of “Manhattan.” Woody Allen’s alter-ego in this movie is Isaac, a twice-divorced television writer. When the movie begins, Isaac, a man around 40 years old, is dating Tracy (Mariel Hemingway) a 17-year-old senior at the prestigious Dalton School. Then he meets Mary (Diane Keaton) and the two become romantically involved. Meryl Streep has a small role as Isaac’s ex-wife. We have seen this movie a number of times but it is always a special experience to see Woody Allen movies in the neighborhoods so often featured in his New York films.
The winner of the Best Animated Film Oscar for this year was
a movie we saw and I wrote about in March of last year, “Zootopia.” This week
we saw another one of last year’s nominees, “My Life as a Zucchini,” a story
told in Claymation. The original version featured a French cast, but the movie
now showing here has an English-speaking cast that includes Will Forte, Nick
Offerman, Ellen Page, and Amy Sedaris. Like “Zootopia,” it is a film worth
seeing.
Do not be mistaken, this may be a movie about children but it is not a movie for children. The little boy at the center of the story is named
Icarus, but he goes by the name Courgette (Zucchini). He is a lonely little guy
whose father has long since abandoned the family and whose mother is a chronic
alcoholic who ignores or abuses him. A freak accident causes her death and he
is taken in as a ward of the state, where he is placed in an orphanage. But he
continues to have a relationship with the social worker who handles his case
(if you are familiar with Ron Swanson, Nick Offerman’s character from “Parks
and Recreation,” you will agree that Mr. Offerman is perfectly cast here as the
sweet heart under the somewhat gruff exterior) and also develops a kind friendship
with a girl named Camille who comes to live at the orphanage when all she has
is an aunt (voiced by Amy Sedaris) who is more interested in the girl’s
inheritance than her wellbeing. Things start out rough but Zucchini eventually
finds his voice and carves out a friendship with the bully of the group.
The story does end optimistically for Zucchini and Camille,
but you are left saddened by the realization that they were just a couple of
lucky ones in a cruel world that leaves far too many children in very sad
situations. I recognize that these foreign language films are not widely
distributed in the United States, but if you do have a chance to see it, you
should. The care and patience that go into producing a full length movie with Claymation
are awe-inspiring.
One of the many routine e-mail notices I receive is The
Times of Israel Daily Edition, the self-described “one-stop news site covering
Israel, the region and the Jewish people worldwide.” Yesterday, I noticed
the following article with some interest:
Israelis aged 80 or
older will no longer have to stand in line for service at stores, pharmacies,
banks, post offices and other public services, thanks to a legislative change
approved by the Knesset on Tuesday.
The only exceptions
will be made for disabled individuals, who will get priority over the elderly.
The Knesset passed the
bill into law in its second and third readings in the plenary on Tuesday, with
37 lawmakers voting in favor and none opposed.
Social Equality
Minister Gila Gamliel (Likud) said it was unfortunate that the Knesset had to
legislate the measure, which she said should simply be an obvious gesture for
all Israelis.
“From today, …everyone
will make way for them [the elderly],” she said.
The law stipulates
that those over 80 may jump to the front of the line upon their request.
MK [Member of Knesset]
Itzik Shmuli (Zionist Union), who introduced the bill, said he was waiting for
the day when giving way for an elderly person became the norm in society and
legislation was no longer needed.
My fellow Americans, you may need to pause before you begin
to gloat that we have no need for such a law in the United States. On the
relatively unusual occasions when I am out in public on my own, I am frequently
surprised by the kind helpfulness of strangers as I try to maneuver my way
around. Having said that, offers of assistance are certainly far from universal
even when the need is obvious. So while I am not sure it is the most compelling
or appropriate use of time for our busy legislators to worry about this
accommodation of disabled or older adults, it should give all able-bodied
younger folks pause.
On a somewhat related note on social matters, I completed a
brief survey this morning about the New York Times crossword puzzle that, in
addition to age, requested the following demographic information:
Which of the following best describes you? (Select ONE)
Male
Female
Not
listed here / Other
Prefer
not to answer
Is this in the category of “too much information”? What do
they plan to learn from this information that would change the puzzles?
I am sitting here in the comfort of our warm home looking at
the accumulating snow. This storm has been predicted quite extensively over the
past couple of days, and for us the timing worked out exquisitely: we were able
to spend an enjoyable Purim in Sharon
with our family, drive back to New York in time to pick up some groceries and attend
our Monday evening class (more on that in a moment), and be safely ensconced in
our Riverdale home before the first flake fell.
One of the traditions on Purim,
particularly for children, is to dress in costumes. Maya chose to dress as Fern
Arable, the spunky eight-year-old girl from Charlotte’s Web.
Eliana, a huge fan of Minecraft, dressed accordingly:
Our niece, Sarah, who lives in Boston, came to visit and spend time with us.
All in all, we had a fun day.
In early February I wrote about the class Barry and I are taking at the 92nd Street Y, “Mozart and Beethoven: The Concerto for Piano and Orchestra.” This week the instructor, Louis Rosen, chose Mozart's Concerto #21 in C major. Each week, he brings a recording of the piece(s) to be discussed, plays and describes sections of each movement in detail, and then plays the entire movement. I can never remember the numbers or keys of the various Mozart piano concertos but many are quite familiar, and from the first notes I was sure I knew #21. I quietly pulled out my iPhone to look it up and lo and behold it is, indeed, the concerto that, since the late 1960s, has come to be known as the “Elvira Madigan Concerto.”
Hearing this piece in this setting brought back memories and it was a struggle to contain a giggle. The second movement of this concerto, the Andante, was popularized in a movie called “Elvira Madigan.” Here is what Roger Ebert wrote about the film when it was released in December of 1967:
Somewhere in these pages today there is doubtless an advertisement
describing "Elvira Madigan" as the most beautiful film ever made.
That has been the New York critical line, expressed in turn by the New York
Times, Newsweek and the New Yorker. I think it does an injustice to Bo
Widerberg's great film.
"Elvira Madigan" is indeed remarkably beautiful, Almost every frame would make a painting, and yet the film is alive and cinematic, not simply photographs of pretty pictures. Widerberg composes his shots of muted colors -- usually white yellow and green -- and of the remarkably attractive faces of his stars, Pia Degermark and Thommy Berggren.
But then he uses a style of moving his camera away from the direction of the movement on the screen. The camera moves left, for example, as Berggren, on the left, passes a glass of wine to Miss Degermark, on the right. Conventional camera work, I suppose, would require the camera to follow the action. What Widerberg establishes is both the static beauty of the scene and the subtle sense that the "art" is moving against the "reality."
This sense, I believe, is what "Elvira Madigan" really conveys. And that is why it is so similar to "Bonnie and Clyde," although on any objective level the two films are unlike. Widerberg started with a legend well known in Sweden, and he has directed and photographed it with a very smooth, beautiful surface. But what is underneath is altogether different.
The story is a simple one. Elvira Madigan, a beautiful 16-year-old tightrope walker, ran away from her family's circus in the summer of 1889. Count Sixten Sparre, a young lieutenant with two children, abandoned his family and deserted from the army. After a summer together, they committed suicide in the autumn.
Widerberg begins his story with a scene in a sunny clearing. Sixten removes the brass military buttons from his uniform. He shaves off his beard to avoid recognition. They make love. Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 21 provides the sound track. The scene, and most of the following ones, are pure romanticism and are intended to be.
But small events take place. During a picnic, Elvira spills a bottle of red wine and it gurgles into the ground like blood. When the couple is forced to flee detection, the woman who warned them hurries to return Elvira's knitting: "You'll need it when the autumn comes." The couple runs out of money, and a charming early scene in which they dip raspberries into cream is contrasted now with a scene in which Elvira, driven by hunger, crawls on the ground eating nuts and mushrooms until she vomits.
What we have here is the story of two beautiful, stupid, selfish, romantic people, intoxicated by the legendary aspect of their own love affair. Although they seem at the beginning to be simply a young couple in love, the degree of their fanaticism becomes clear in their decision to commit suicide. This is not a tribute to love, but to the human ego.
In that class the other night, I sensed that most if not all the students had their own “Elvira Madigan” stories. Here is mine.
While growing up in St. Louis, I studied classical piano at the St. Louis Institute of Music, which appears to have ceased operation.
The Institute was founded in 1924 by J. P. Blake Sr. It was originally known as "The Progressive Series Teachers College". It was also known to be an orphanage home at one time. The address of the Institute was 7801 Bonhomme Avenue - Clayton 5, Missouri. This was at the intersection of Bonhomme and Bemiston. The building does not exist any longer.
When my family moved to West Hartford, Connecticut in 1969 when I was 17, my parents enrolled me in the Hartford Conservatory, which apparently closed its doors in 2011. I cannot remember my teacher’s name but what I very definitely remember is that he was a HUGE fan of that movie. Of course, in those days there were no computers or YouTube, so it was not until a few years later that I happened to have a chance to see the movie. By then Barry and I were a couple and we went with another young couple (if memory serves, the husband was also a student at the University of Rochester). I was SO EXCITED about going to see the movie I had long waited to see. But it turned out that it was nearly impossible to stay awake through it, and from then on none of our friends were much interested in my movie recommendations. It has only been in more recent years that I have redeemed myself and some of you who read this blog have actually gone to see movies I have recommended and even enjoyed them. I am relieved to say that you have restrained yourselves from any temptation to do me bodily harm for bad advice.
Lastly, our little Maya made it on to the front page of The Sharon Advocate, where she is seen playing with Neko, a Portuguese Water Dog from the Pets and People Foundation at the local public library.
Yesterday was one of those days on which I could not help
but thinking about how different it might have been had my life not veered
off-course five years ago. Yesterday was my 65th birthday.
Lucky for me, Barry did not allow me much time to wallow in
such morbid thoughts. Five years ago, when I turned 60, Barry and our daughters
had planned a beautiful and heartfelt celebration for me. I was not feeling
very well, and Barry recalls considering cancelling the party, but I am glad we
soldiered on. I ended up being diagnosed just a few weeks later.
This year our plans were somewhat lower key. I knew that he
had purchased tickets to “Book of Mormon” on Broadway. But I didn’t know that
he had also purchased tickets for the November 1st performance of the
show everyone wants to see, “Hamilton.” He topped it all off with a beautiful
opal pendant necklace that goes well with a pair of opal earrings he bought me
a few years ago.
Like all long-running Broadway musicals, “Book of Mormon”
was filled with talent, enjoyable music, and tremendous energy. The play was made
especially enjoyable by the couple seated next to us, who (we learned chatting
before and after the show) have lived for many years in Park City, Utah and are
vacationing for a week in New York. They are not Mormons, and acknowledged in
our conversation after the performance that they did not imagine their Mormon
friends would have found the play entertaining. But I cannot remember the last
time I saw anyone laughing as hard as that fellow! Because we are not that
familiar with the Mormon religion or community, there were probably a lot of
references that we simply did not appreciate. But laughter is infectious, so I
suspect that the play seemed funnier to me than it might have had we been
seated differently.
Having said that, I have been offended at times by plays and
television shows that have poked fun at Jewish stereotypes. The line between
humor and insult can be quite thin. In the end, it seemed to me that the real
take-home message of “Book of Mormon” is that love and respect should always
have the upper hand. I hope that any Mormons who may have seen it have felt the
same way.
I have tried to stay away from political issues in my posts.
I am not a student of history, and my memory and cognitive function are not
sufficient to allow me to absorb and process everything I need to know. But
some issues are just so simple and obvious that even I can understand them. So
when I saw this yesterday on Facebook I simply knew I had to share it.
For those of you not familiar with Rabbi Lord Jonathan
Sacks, the author of this brief essay, here is a brief biography from his
webpage.
An international religious leader,
philosopher, award-winning author and respected moral voice, Rabbi
Lord Jonathan Sacks was recently named the winner of the 2016
Templeton Prize in recognition of his “exceptional contributions to affirming
life’s spiritual dimension.” Described by H.R.H. The Prince of Wales as “a
light unto this nation” and by former British Prime Minister Tony Blair as “an
intellectual giant”, Rabbi Sacks is a frequent and sought after contributor to
radio, television and the press both in Britain and around the world.
Since stepping down as
the Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth – a
position he served for 22 years between 1991 and 2013 – Rabbi Sacks has held a
number of professorships at several academic institutions including Yeshiva
University and King’s College London. He currently serves as the Ingeborg and
Ira Rennert Global Distinguished Professor at New York University. Rabbi Sacks
has been awarded 17 honorary doctorates including a Doctor of Divinity
conferred to mark his first ten years in office as Chief Rabbi, by the then
Archbishop of Canterbury, Lord Carey.
Take a few minutes and watch this video. You may even want
to watch it more than once.
In response to a few questions about that lovely car we have
our eyes on, there are (only?) 400,000 souls who have placed their names on the
wait list, each of whom has a $1000 bill on their credit card for this honor, fully
refundable if minds or plans change. So who knows?
On that subject, here was the clue for 1-Down in this
morning’s New York Times Crossword Puzzle
Autos with charging stations
6 letters, and I knew the 3rd letter was an “s”…..
TESLAS
Amazing timing, huh?
Back to the Oscars, one of the movies nominated for Best Picture was “Lion,” a film
based on the true story of a very poor family in India, a mother and her three
children. The two older boys, who seem to be about 5 and 10 years old, go off
to try to help earn some money. The little one is tired so his big brother
leaves him to rest while he goes off to find work. But the big brother never
returns (we later learn that he was killed that same evening), and the little
guy is left wandering around unable to find his way home. After searching for
his brother from place to place, narrowly evading a number of threatening
situations, he eventually ends up in an orphanage, from which he is adopted by
a lovely family from Australia. He has a wonderful life with this loving couple
but as a young adult he decides he must try to find out what happened to his
birth family. Through the miracle of Google Earth he eventually finds his way
back to his mother and his young sister, twenty-five years after having seen
them last.
This was a gripping story beautifully told. I am almost
surprised myself at how much I loved it and cannot recommend it highly enough. I can now see why it was one of the nominees for Best Picture. The actors
who played both the boy as a young child (Sunny Pawar) and as an adult (Dev
Patel) were outstanding.
The second movie we saw over the past few days was quite a bit less enjoyable, but extremely well done and an important film, a documentary called “Keep Quiet,” which received a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. This film is about a Hungarian man named Csanad Szegedi, the former vice president of the Jobbik far-right political party in Hungary. A few years ago he discovered, much to his initial hooror, that his maternal grandparents were in fact Jewish. In the Jewish tradition, Jewishness is inherited through the mother’s line. His grandmother, who had survived Auschwitz, had hidden her faith in the hopes of never again being persecuted. Szegedi hooks up with a Chabad rabbi in Budapest, Rabbi Boruch Oberlander, who helps him find his way back to his traditional Jewish roots. But not everyone in the Jewish community embraces him, and even law enforcement officials are uncertain of the sincerity of his transformation.
Barry and I did not grow up in traditional Jewish homes, and like many of our friends we became more involved in Jewish life in our twenties. We certainly can relate to the idea of people shifting their religious focus as adults. But that is just not the same as this. This young man was a virulent anti-Semite. At the end of the film he expresses the possibility that this newfound religion may not be a permanent transformation. I suppose time will tell.
