The Summer House

The Summer House, Edward B. Gordon

It's going to be 106° today ... or is it 108°? Either way, too darned hot! This looks like a cool, refreshing place to be instead.

Corn and Bacon Pasta

I admit this recipe sounded a bit far-fetched but it turned out to be really wonderful. Get it at Meanwhile, Back in the Kitchen.

Green Goddess Chicken

From Cook's Country, this is an easy roast chicken dish that has a really fresh taste and makes a nice summery meal. It's posted at Meanwhile, Back in the Kitchen.

Through a Web

Through a Web, Remo Savisaar

Would we serve Jesus with a chipped dish?

If everyone were holy and handsome, with “alter Christus” shining in neon lighting from them, it would be easy to see Christ in everyone. If Mary had appeared in Bethlehem clothed, as St. John says, with the sun, a crown of twelve stars on her head and the moon under her feet, then people would have fought to make room for her. But that was not God’s way for her nor is it Christ’s way for Himself now when He is disguised under every type of humanity that treads the earth.

To see how far one realizes this, it is a good thing to ask honestly what you would do, or have done, when a beggar asked at your house for food. Would you–or did you–give it on an old cracked plate, thinking that was good enough? Do you think that Martha and Mary thought that the old and chipped dish was good for their guest?

Dorothy Day, Room For Christ, The Catholic Worker, December 1945, 2

Listen Up, Nerds! Henry VI, Le Morte d'Arthur

I've linked to websites below but both of these are readily available on iTunes or various other podcast providers.

The Chop Bard podcast passionately picks apart the plays of William Shakespeare, scene by scene, line by line, in search of entertainment and understanding, in order to lift the plays off the page and onto their feet. With passionate insight and fearless examination, we offer the works of William Shakespeare in the spirit for which they were originally intended: As entertainment for a diverse and current audience.

Ehren Ziegler truly is the cure for boring Shakespeare. He loves the history plays and is launching another one for us to explore — Henry VI, part 1. You are in plenty of time to join in since only the introduction has posted.

Starting in July 2018, Mythgard Academy will present a free seminar on Le Morte d’Arthur, the classic cycle of Arthurian tales retold by Sir Thomas Malory. The tales have been the source of many later retellings of the Arthur mythos, including, for example, The Once and Future King by T. H. White and the 1981 cinematic feature, Excalibur.

Our Catholic women's book club read this book years ago. I admit that I had enough trouble with the text that I resorted to a children's version to get through the story. So I'm delighted to have one of my favorite teachers diving deeper into the tale.

The first episode was wonderful, opening my eyes to several points about the story I'd never have noticed on my own. (As is Corey Olsen's way.)

Well Said: Whistling Dixie and the Truth

If ever you see a man put his fingers in his ears and whistle Dixie to keep from telling the truth, you may assume he's a fool, but if he puts his fingers in your ears and starts whistling, then you know you are dealing with a journalist.

Andrew Klavan, The Killer Christian
collected in The Big Book of Christmas Mysteries

Endless Water, Starless Sky by Rosamund Hodge

Romeo had looked at a Catresou girl and loved her. He had believed that Juliet was more than a weapon, and that it was worthwhile to love her, however little time they might have. He had died believing it.

Juliet had believed that once too.

She couldn't free her people. She couldn't free herself. And she couldn't save the city from its doom.

But she could be like Romeo, and learn to love her enemies. She could protect these people around her for whatever time they had left.

It wasn't exactly hope, but maybe it could be enough.

This is the second half of the tale begun in Bright Smoke, Cold Fire which I reviewed here. It will come out on July 24.

The city walls are not holding despite increasingly large blood sacrifices. The dead continue to rise, mindlessly hungry. (Yep. Zombies and the end of the world.)

The Juliet has been trapped into protecting Romeo's family at great cost to her own. Meanwhile, Romeo is attempting redemption by protecting Juliet's family. (Oh the irony! And the romantic gestures!)

Paris is still dead but alive enough to obey the necromancer's spell. Runajo is still trying to find a way to protect her city while tortured by her betrayal of her friend Juliet.

So we've got the perfect setup for the conclusion of Rosamund Hodge's riff on Shakespeare.

The story is complex enough that I'd forgotten important details from the first part and had to reread it before I could launch properly into Endless Water, Starless Sky. We still have all the big themes and literary devices that gave the first part depth and complexity. Here the story has everyone running as fast as they can to try to avert disaster, both of civilization and of their personal lives. There is a lot of fighting and a lot of talking in the first half — we did mention this is a riff on Romeo and Juliet, right? But it all works.

As engrossing as most of the book was, it really entered new territory in the last fourth where it becomes an otherworldly, Dante-esque journey. This part was wildly inventive and yet delicately balanced to guide the reader to the ultimately satisfying conclusion.

I really loved it and will definitely be rereading it, sooner rather than later. If you liked the first half, you'll like this. If you haven't read either, then you've got a treat in store.

Summer, James Tissot

Summer, James Tissot

Worth a Thousand Words: Zebra Back Rub

Zebra Back Rub
taken by Valerie of ucumari photography
some rights reserved

You're really missing a treat if you don't browse Valerie's photography. There are some simply wonderful candid animal shots.

"I wouldn't want to do this with anyone but you."

These little choices to not selfishly take out one's frustration on another are not so different from the choices we have to make elsewhere in life in order to get along with others. In this sense, getting along with MrsDarwin is not so very different from getting along with anyone else. Thinking about marital virtue in this regard, one can think: Love is a choice. It doesn't have to be just one person.

There's truth in that too. Yet, it's so much easier to make those choices with someone to whom I'd so much rather be married.

I wouldn't want to do this with anyone but you.

Darwin

The best of all is when I love him because he is, literally, God’s gift to me: the unique spark of God’s creative love through whom, by the graces of marriage, I find my path to heaven. The path may be dark sometimes, or rough, or busy, or blissful, but it’s never solitary. Through the sacrament of marriage, we walk it together, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do us part.

Mrs. Darwin

Over at DarwinCatholic the Darwins have a lovely post in praise of marriage that is written with both idealism (even after 17 years) and loads of reality (because - 17 years). I really enjoyed it and the above excerpts can't do it justice. Please do go and read it for yourself.

Summertime in Holland

Allegory of summer, Jan van Goyen

The medium and the message

In Jesus Christ, there is no separation between the medium and the message: it is the one case where we can say that the medium and the message are fully one and the same.

Marshall McLuhan, The Medium and the Light

Ridiculously Entertaining: Tashan and Dhoom 3

I was going to stop talking about Bollywood movies unless I came across something that I thought would be good entryway films.

And then this weekend I came across two such movies. These are both by director/screenwriter Vijay Krishna Acharya. That is completely coincidental but it did wind up leaving me with my first Indian director to keep an eye out for. Both these movies were on the top 100 Bollywood movies list that Rose is working from for guidance in exploration. Dhoom 3 has the added advantage of starring Aamir Khan who is a favorite of ours.

At any rate, both these combine recognizable Western styles with Bollywood filmmaking. It makes for extremely entertaining viewing.

Jeetendra Kumar Makwana is employed full-time at a Call Center and works part-time teaching English. He is recruited by an attractive young woman, Pooja, to teach her Hinglish-speaking boss, Bhaiyaji, English. Jeetendra agrees to do so, falls in love with Pooja, and joins forces with her to steal a bag containing 25 Crore Rupees in cash. He will soon find out that Bhaiyaji is a hoodlum and extortionist known to the Police as Lakhan Singh. And that spells big trouble for everyone.

Tashan means style and this picture has it in spades. It is ridiculously fun Tarantino style action (without the gore because it is Bollywood not Hollywood) with big song and dance numbers (Bollywood not Hollywood). Indian reviews wavered on giving approval but American reviews all raved, as did we. This director obviously has a way with movies that appeals to American sensibilities.

My favorite character was the hit man sent to retrieve the two thieves. The "Jackie Chan of India" he played a character who turned into a lovable oaf (much like Jayne on Firefly) and won my heart. My favorite number was the Hollywood film one, which got so many tiny Hollywood things wrong (in a charmingly Indian way) but still worked most amusingly. It also gave me a new Khan to keep an eye out for — Saif Ali Khan — whose charming twinkle reminded us all strongly of Bradley Cooper.

This was a milestone for us in several ways because we got an in-joke about Indian movies, recognized posters for other movies on city streets, and recognized two of the stars from other movies we'd seen. Baby steps. But fun.

Rating — Introduction to Bollywood (come on in, the water's fine!)

Hannah and Rose talk about Tashan at An American's Guide to Bollywood.

To avenge his father’s death, a circus entertainer trained in magic and acrobatics turns thief to take down a corrupt bank in Chicago. Two cops from Mumbai are assigned to the case.

Another ridiculously entertaining film from Vijay Krishna Acharya, starring Aamir Khan who carries the film on his broad, capable shoulders. It is part of the Dhoom buddy-cop franchise only in a minor way, with Jai and Ali's part being a subplot rather than the main action. And that works. In case we we were wondering who the movie is about, three of the four musical numbers are Aamir's, while the fourth is the female lead's audition for the Great Indian Circus — danced for Aamir. Aamir is the film's ostensible villain but by the time the film ends, we were wondering why policeman Jai gives a spech about the evil bank. (I guess that told us who the real villain is.) Anyway Aamir Khan's character is what this movie is about and Our household approved all the way.

This movie was set in Chicago which made us even more interested to see it and, as with Tashan, there were some endearing misunderstandings of America. My favorites were a newsstand which clearly looked Indian and the fact that the flashbacks were costumed as if they were from the 1920s instead of the 1990s. We could only figure that the filmmakers wanted to be sure we got a sense of "long ago" and couldn't find enough obvious differences between the clothing of 2013 and that of 20 years before. Regardless, it was extremely entertaining and those little missteps only added to the charm for us.

Rating — Introduction to Bollywood (come on in, the water's fine!)

Clara the rhinoceros in Paris in 1749

Jean-Baptiste Oudry, Clara the rhinoceros in Paris in 1749

Clara wowed them in Paris, prompting a lot of paintings. This is the one usually featured and I really love it.

Lagniappe

Helen shivered next to Jane. “Perhaps we should return to Charlotte. She probably misses us.”

“Us? Charlotte doesn’t know you exist.”

“Well, if she did, she would surely miss me.”

My Plain Jane; Cynthia Hand, Jodi Meadows, Brodi Ashton

I might find this as amusing as I do because I really loved Helen's character.

Some Great Summer Reading: My Plain Jane and Understanding Movies

My Plain Jane
by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, Jodi Meadows

Move over, Charlotte Bronte. You may think you know the story. Penniless orphan Jane Eyre begins a new life as a governess at Thornfield Hall, where she meets one dark, brooding Mr. Rochester-and, Reader, she marries him. Or does she? Prepare for an adventure of Gothic proportions.

This was thoroughly enjoyable. I love Jane Eyre and these authors honor that classic novel by being (mostly) true to the storyline while simultaneously weaving it into another story completely.

Both Jane and her friend Charlotte Bronte get swept up in this tale which is loaded with ghosts, murder, revenge, love, and friendship. And humor. Lots of humor. As with these authors' previous book, My Lady Jane, you could see major plot points coming but it didn't take away from the fun.

I said it before for My Lady Jane and I'll say it again for My Plain Jane: For what it was — a humorous, inventive, light, romantic, alternative history — it was practically perfect in every way. It was sometimes silly but always charming and I was glued to it in every spare moment.

A wonderfully entertaining summer read read by the perfect narrator.



Understanding Movies: The Art and History of Film (The Modern Scholar)
by Raphael Shargel

Why does the cinema have the power to move the heart, stimulate the mind, and dazzle the imagination? How did the art of film develop from its origins to the present day? In each lecture, Professor Raphael Shargel introduces a period of film history, talks about its importance, covers aspects of cinematic technique, and illustrates his points by analyzing specific movies from the era under discussion. The course thus has both breadth and depth, covering the major movements in film history while at the same time focusing on key pictures worthy of study and enjoyment.

I really learned a lot from this class. The teacher has an mild-mannered, personable style that I enjoyed a lot and his own love of movies came through clearly though he never allowed his own preferences to overpower the commentary. This is only available as an audio class and there are a lot of negative remarks about sound quality on Audible. The sound must have been cleaned up at some time because I didn't hear any of the problems mentioned. This was delightful if you like movies.

A Little More Bollywood: Chak De! India and Ek Tha Tiger

RAW agent Tiger is on a mission to retrieve information from a scientist in Dublin. The plot centers on an Indian spy (RAW) code-named Tiger who falls in love with a Pakistani spy (ISI) during an investigation and how Tiger’s ideology and principles change over time.

This was our first movie by Salman Khan, the last of the Three Khans for us to sample.

The movie had problems, being a blend of James Bond with romantic comedy. And not a stellar version of either genre was being blended If that sounds awkward, then I did my job describing it.

Adding to the problems, Khan reminded me of no one so much as Sylvester Stallone. Now, there's nothing wrong with Sylvester Stallone. I am second to none in my admiration of Rocky, but he has definite limitations as an actor. And that's what we saw in this example of Khan's work.

Just a few Bollywood song and dance numbers in this one, with the stellar one being over the end credits. I realized I was a bit addicted to the Bollywood format by how happy I was to see a musical number begin. Happy out of all proportion considering they used to make me roll my eyes.

This won't be our last sampling of Salman Khan's movies. I want to give him a fair chance. He's a top Bollywood actor. But this isn't his finest hour. (Or if it is, then he just isn't be my favorite of the Three Khans.)

Rating — Introduction to Bollywood (come on in, the water's fine!)

Chak De! India follows a team of rag-tag girls with their own agenda who form Team India competing for international fame in field hockey. Their coach, the ex-men’s Indian National team captain, returns from a life of shame after being unjustly accused of match fixing in his last match. Can he give the girls the motivation required to win, while dealing with the shadows of his own past?

This was really solid. Shahrukh Khan shows he can play nice with others by not having to be in a lot of the scenes even though he is the main character and star. This is our second of his films and it was nice to see him in a more conventional role though I did miss seeing him shirtless in a dance number. This movie had songs but, as seems to be the case with some of the modern movies, they were played against standard montages (training, traveling, etc.).

It was a fairly straight forward feminist underdog sports film with an interesting undertone of combating regionalism in favor of nationalism. I never knew that was an Indian problem but I read that this movie was really significant for India in several ways and I'd guess that was one of them.

Overall it is, as I said, solid. And definitely enjoyable.

Rating — Introduction to Bollywood (come on in, the water's fine!)

The House of a Thousand Candles beginning at Forgotten Classics

The House of a Thousand Candles is part adventure/mystery and part romance. Jack Glenarm stands to inherit his grandfather’s estate, but only if he can remain for one year in residence at the old man’s unfinished “House of a Thousand Candles” in Annandale, Indiana, with only his grandfather’s mysterious valet for company. If he violates the terms of the will, the house will go to a young woman, heretofore unknown to him, whom the will also forbids Jack to marry if he wants to retain his inheritance. Soon after Jack’s arrival at Glenarm House various strange occurrences ensue, and he soon finds himself absorbed in the most lively adventure of his life! (summary by J. M. Smallheer)

This mystery was the #4 American bestseller in 1906. It is a favorite of mine and should be a lot of fun. Join us at Forgotten Classics where the first episode has just posted!

Simply beautifully said — "the gardener God walked again in the garden"

On the third day the friends of Christ coming at daybreak to the place found the grave empty and the stone rolled away. In varying ways they realised the new wonder; but even they hardly realised that the world had died in the night. What they were looking at was the first day of a new creation, with a new heaven and a new earth; and in a semblance of the gardener God walked again in the garden, in the cool not of the evening but the dawn.

G.K. Chesterton, The Everlasting Man