July 24, 2003
Dear Everyone:
I didn’t really expect to be writing a Letter this
week. I thought I would be
in
But I got a call on my cell phone late Friday afternoon from “Frankie”. She said that Mother’s doctor had seen her that day (instead of the following Tuesday, as planned) and that, according to the doctor, Mother was doing so well that she didn’t need to keep the Tuesday appointment.
One of the advantages to using Southwest Airlines is that they let you cancel a reservation, but keep the “ticket” and use it any time within the next twelve months. So I can use the same ticket to visit Mother the week after next.
“Frankie” has since made an appointment with the gastro-wachamcallit for the first Tuesday/Wednesday in August. I’ll fly up on Monday, take Mother to the doctor’s office, and fly back on Friday. In the between times, I’ll hang out at Mother’s place and read books, watch TV and generally relax.
Speaking of reading, one of the good things that came out of my “Grapevine” trip is that I came within three pages of completing the biography of Eleanor of Aquitaine that I’ve been delving into off and on for the past couple of years. I officially finished it this week. All 346 pages of it. It’s not that the book was particularly difficult; it was really quite interesting. But it seems like there’s not much time for reading these days. I would generally drag the book with me to the hair salon once a month. But if “Jeannie” brought the morning paper, I’d generally read that instead, leaving Eleanor to her own devices.
I think one reason there’s less time for reading is because of the VCR’s. Back in “the old days”, if you wanted to watch a TV show, you watched while it was on or not at all (and kept your book in reserve for when there was “nothing” on). There were only four or five channels to choose from. And if there wasn’t anything you liked, you read instead.
Now I may be taping three shows at once, to watch later (also known as “deferred viewing”). And there are literally dozens of channels to select from. Hence, not so much time for recreational reading.
Nevertheless, there’s nothing quite like curling up with a good book from time to time. Especially when you know you can tape your favorite shows and watch them later. Also, airplanes. Airplanes, and airports, are good places for reading. And trains. One thing I learned on the “Grapevine” trip is that trains are a bit too rocky and bumpy to work on the laptop very well. But not so bumpy that you can’t read.
However, you can’t really read at the movies, although I’ve been known to bring a book to read by flashlight until the movie starts. Last weekend, for the first time in well over a month, “Jeannie” and I went to the movies together.
We wanted light, summer fare, so we picked
Pirates of
the
It begins with the arrival of the new governor of Port Royale, played by Jonathan Pryce and a very large wig. The governor has a daughter and a young boy is rescued from what remains of a pirate attack. Fast-forward ten years and enter Captain Jack Sparrow. From the moment he arrives in Port Royale, you can tell he’s a bit down on his luck. Johnny Depp plays Jack Sparrow as haughty, arrogant, imperious, and ever-so-slightly stoned. And he’s sneaky. And he’s got a wicked little grin.
Pretty soon pirates attack the port and make off with the governor’s daughter. Humble Will Turner wants to rescue her, but the new officer is one of those stiff-upper-lip, by-the-book British guys. So Will enlists the aid of Captain Jack Sparrow.
In the meantime, the governor’s daughter, Elizabeth, learns of the curse. By day, the pirates look like scurvy knaves; by moonlight, they look like rotting corpses and walking skeletons. Enter the special effects wizards. The pirates are eager to end the curse, but you just know before the movie’s over there’s going to be a humdinger of a battle with live people and not-quite-dead pirates.
There are some set scenes that clearly will show up on the ride. And some songs, including “Marshall’s” favorite, “Yo, ho! It’s the pirate’s life for me!” And you absolutely must stay all the way through the closing credits. Trust me on this.
Love, as always,
Pete
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