November 17, 2024
# 1685
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Cover and Story
Extol overeating, because bearing down on us like a freight train is the holiday celebrated throughout America that not only urges us to chomp and swallow for hours at a time, but also dictates what menu we must choose, the centerpiece being a humongous roasted turkey whose size dictates that at least a dozen, often two dozen people must gather round the table.
Stuffing made with bread cubes, herbs, sausage, dried fruit, or nuts, mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberry sauce, green bean casserole, and sweet potato casserole topped with marshmallows are all de rigueur. As are pies, at least one each of pumpkin, apple and pecan.
Entertainment intrudes. The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade starts in the morning and captures our attention, and is followed by scores of football games which, while featuring some professional games, showcases traditional college rivalries, and, most widespread, a plethora of traditional high school rivalries that add to the festive atmosphere.
And every family has developed its own way of demonstrating thanks for blessings received. Most commonly, family members express gratitude for the year's blessings. Many families invite each individual to share something they are thankful for before the meal begins.
The most common reason to give thanks is spending quality time with loved ones.
"Freedom From Want" - NARA - 513539
Norman Rockwell - U.S. National Archives and Records Administration
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Commentary
Editor: I cede my commentary in the face of a lovely, personal sharing moment: an email received from our Gen Z columnist, Kat C:
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Kat’s Gen Z Corner
26th Birthday
My birthday is November 6. Do you know what else happened on November 6 this year? Yeah. I don’t remember the last time I cried on my birthday. But on my 26th, I did — twice.
At 3 a.m. I woke up out of anxiety, briefly tried to wrestle down the physical urge to grab my phone, failed, and learned that Trump took Pennsylvania and was on his way to a second term. Out of selfishness and a childish desire to share the gutting news, I woke William up. He hugged me while I silently cried.
I didn’t tell anyone at work it was my birthday. Celebrating in any fashion felt wrong. The stream of birthday message pings that usually make my whole month fell flat. Even the good weather was a taunting reminder of the climate change bound to exponentially increase over the next four years. The day passed like a depressive fog, and shortly after 5pm I was back on my bed, blinds closed, staring at my ceiling for a full hour.
I eventually forced myself up, curled my eyelashes, and put on a nice dress to meet William for dinner. There, I was reminded that even this melodrama has its limits for someone as lucky as I am. The restaurant, Sempre Oggi, turned out to be extraordinary. They printed a dairy-free menu for me. The waitress was specifically attentive, and the food was impeccable for the price. The restaurant decor was smooth and chic.
Over the white-clothed table, I cried again — this time out of the raw and humble love I felt for William. After the whole muck of that day, and a perfect little dinner, he gifted me the most beautiful piece of jewelry I own. It might sound tacky, but we are not extravagant people; so this present, its timing and timeless style, so thoughtful in its selection, overwhelmed me. No one has gifted me such an item, and this extravagant symbol of his love for me, his commitment to us, moved me to tears.
The juxtaposition of this romantic, generous, and obviously opulent gesture to the reality so many will face as a result of America’s decision on November 6 is not lost on me. William did so good. Our country did not. But with him by my side, across the dinner table, I know I will be more than okay. And the Chanel watch (thrifted, of course), gifted to me by the love of my life, is an abundant reminder.
Starry Night" by Vincent van Gogh
This masterpiece captures the night sky in a whirlwind of emotion and movement. Van Gogh's expressive brushwork conveys a sense of awe, wonder, and emotional release.
The Starry Night is an oil-on-canvas painting by the Dutch Post-Impressionist painter Vincent van Gogh, painted in June 1889. It depicts the view from the east-facing window of his asylum room at Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, just before sunrise, with the addition of an imaginary village
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Tucker’s Corner
I found myself disappointed but not surprised when I learned the results of the election last week. I did my best to wrangle how I was feeling and not throw my hands in the air, begging for a sign from the cosmos as to why I should believe in this country or more accurately, my fellow country men and women who chose a president I simply don’t understand. It wasn’t long before I found myself sitting in front of my movie shelf, as I often do in times of soul searching, selecting a few comfort entries to watch. The first was Steven Spielberg’s Lincoln for obvious reasons but as I finished and took stock of my selections I was surprised to find a trend in my choices. Everything else I picked was science fiction.
Over the last decade or so, I’ve seen the genre used not only to examine the power of space travel or a post-apocalyptic future but as a way to address common humanity more than futuristic adventure stories. I realized that that humanity was precisely what I was craving. My choices were the films Gravity, Interstellar, The Martian and the film I’m going to write about this week: Denis Villeneuve's ambitious and moving Arrival.
Arrival is more about grief, time, communication and compassion than it is warp speed, and it's a film that asks questions. How do we approach that which terrifies us? Why is it important to communicate through language and not action? The final act of Arrival gets to the big ideas of life that I won't spoil here, but viewers should know that Villeneuve's film is not a standard crowd-pleaser. It's a movie designed to simultaneously challenge viewers, move them and get them talking. It succeeds.
The early scenes have the stark, anxious clarity of a fable by Ray Bradbury; after learning of an apparent alien invasion from the Twitter-connected students in her advanced linguistics class – a wonderfully plausible bit of staging in which the surest sign that something big is happening is the dead silence of a dozen heads bent over their smartphones – Dr Louise Banks (the always perfect Amy Adams) is conscripted by the military to lead a delegation to one of the extraterrestrials’ spherical ships (a dozen of them are hovering menacingly in locations around the world).
Working with the military and a mathematician named Ian (Jeremy Renner), Louise seeks to find the answer to a very simple question: What do you want? The Heptapods as they're eventually called, speak in sounds that echo whale noises at times, but Louise quickly learns that written language is the way to communicate, even deciphering the complex way the interstellar visitors write. As she gets closer and closer to being able to convey that crucial question in a way that it (and its answer) will be understood, the world's uneasiness continues. Will man's protective instinct kick in before its science and language leaders can figure out a way to stop it?
This set-up closely resembles Villeneuve’s previous film, Sicario in that it takes a brilliant female protagonist and puts her in a situation that powerfully undermines her painstakingly acquired expertise. Lumbering around in a hazmat suit, Louise is miles outside her academic comfort zone and can’t use her vocabulary to keep feelings of fear and inadequacy at bay. Unlike Sicario, Arrival mostly lets its heroine hold her own, and in doing so gives Adams an actual character to play: few actresses are as adept at conveying a native intelligence without lapsing into brainiac caricature.
Louise also has darkness in her life. The opening scenes detail the birth, brief life and death of her child. I haven’t watched Arrival in a few years and these once familiar scenes hit me incredibly hard thanks to my own daughter’s lymphoma diagnosis 10 months ago. Watching Louise watch her daughter waste away connected to all manner of hospital machines is a feeling I know all too well. Thanking all that is holy my daughter Mattie is now in remission and on her way to recovery. Apologies for the bring down but I thought it important to include that detail of my life here because of where Arrival’s story takes us. Funnily enough my daughter reminds me more of Louise in this film than her lost daughter. Even when dealt one of the worst hands possible my daughter has pushed through it all and kept living. She wants to be strong. She wants to be useful. She is. We can all take a page from her book.
Throughout, Adams imbues Louise with a quiet, effective emotional undercurrent that's essential to the film's success. Villeneuve's vision is not particularly CGI-heavy, allowing Adams to work in a way that feels relatable. There's so much going on in this character's mind and heart, especially in the twisty final act, with which Adams could have "gone big," but it's actually one of the more subtle and internal sci-fi movie performances that I've ever seen. And it's a testament to the success of Arrival that it's her face—not the impressive alien ship/creature design—that people will remember.
As he always has, Villeneuve understands the importance of surrounding himself with talented people. In this case, two of the film's undeniable MVPs are cinematographer Bradford Young, the genius who shot Selma and A Most Violent Year and composer Jóhann Jóhannsson. The latter's compositions here are essential to every emotional beat of the film, defining the air of tension in the first half of the film and the moving undercurrents of the final act. Young's approach is beautifully tactile, using the natural world to make this unnatural story genuine. Young's imagery is fluid, unlike the choppy blockbuster cinematography that we're used to seeing in sci-fi. Most importantly, it feels like everything here is of one vision—cinematography, direction, acting, score, etc.—instead of the factory-produced blockbusters we've seen of late.
The inherent intellectual excitement of advanced cryptography keeps Arrival feeling awake and alert for most of its running time, and there’s a nice tingle to the filmmaking whenever the earthlings are airlifted to their arranged meeting place (once again, Villeneuve is great at dread filtered through awe)
The final thematically purposeful scenes of the film are stunningly ambitious and without spoiling the particulars of the plot I’ll just say that here is why I found I wanted to rewatch Arrival. The problem that ultimate needs solving in this film is approached from a global perspective with many countries around the world collaborating and demonstrating humanity at its absolute best.
This is ambitious, accomplished filmmaking that deserves an audience. It's a film that forces viewers to reconsider what makes us truly human, and the impact of grief on our existence. At its best, and largely through Adams' performance, the film proposes that we've all times in which communication breaks down and fear of the unknown sets in. And it is the best of us who persevere, get up from being knocked down and repair that which is broken. It carries a particularly poignant message for Americans right now.
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Chuckles and Thoughts
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Six Word Stories
First kiss, nervous heart, unforgettable moment.
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Travel
One of my stops: with daughter, boyfriend, granddaughter, boyfriend, and grandson.
What fun.
The last night of my recent trip south of the Mason-Dixon line, my daughter Kat and her love, Will, hosted an evening that included my granddaughter Grace and her dear friend, Kai, and my grandson, Dylan. It was an excellently animated evening filled with talk of books, philosophy, bird watching, and many other topics. A parent listening in must feel very proud.
Turkey Stuffing Recipe
Ingredients:
1 cup pancetta, diced (or 4oz duck fat)
8oz celery, chopped
8oz onion, chopped
2 cups chicken or turkey stock
4 cups small bread cubes
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1 TB fresh sage, chopped (or 1 teaspoon dried sage)
Instructions:
1. Cook Pancetta: In a large skillet, render the diced pancetta over medium heat until crispy. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside, leaving the rendered fat in the skillet.
2. Sauté Vegetables: Add the chopped celery and onions to the skillet. Sauté until they are softened, about 10 minutes.
3. Deglaze with Stock: Add 1 cup of stock to the skillet to deglaze, stirring to scrape up any browned bits.
4. Combine: In a large mixing bowl, combine the bread cubes, pancetta, sautéed vegetables, salt, pepper, and sage.
5. Moisten: Gradually add the stock to the bread mixture, stirring until the bread is moistened but not soggy.
6. Bake: Transfer the stuffing to a greased baking dish. Cover with foil and bake at 350°F (175°C) for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for an additional 15 minutes until the top is golden brown and crispy.
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Restaurant
Kathy and I chose the attractive Harvest restaurant for our monthly shared dinner.
We enjoyed sharing several courses starting with a Pate de Campagne with grilled baguette, fig mostarda, and citrus herb salad. Then we shared Nduja & Potato Gnocchi, the sauce made from cured Italian sausage, broccolini, and creamy tomato sauce. That followed by Roasted Baby Lamb Chops with thumbelina carrots, english peas, baby turnips, and sauce navarin, finishing with a Pumpkin Tart with vanilla sablée, (with a delicate, melt-in-your-mouth quality, perfect for a base for the dessert.) The plate was topped with whipped pumpkin ganache, and sage ice cream.
All the food was excellent, with perhaps a small misstep: the lamb chops which were served medium-well instead of the medium-rare that we ordered.
Service was friendly and the pricey wines delivered excellent value.
Attractive dining room at Harvest
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In the Mail
This from Victor P, referring to the November 10th issue:
Dom,
The latest edition of the ezine was a special one for me. The reminder of the pleasantness our Fall Seasons, the return to school, the foliage, my Fall wardrobe and the pleasing ambience of our beloved neighborhood were all brought to mind as I read your opening. And the wonderful photo of your 3 sons was truly admired. Thank you!
Sta bene,
Victor
And this from Peter C:
Good Morning Dom,
How are you?
Life stranger then fiction. The other day someone unknown deposited money into my bank account. I found out days later thier a Swedish film company paying me to finish the pilot/screenplay that I shelved inorder to finish my autobiography manuscript.
BTW I think the great devider has become our Uniter, by taking away our future he's given us the present/moment. Unintentionally of course. Lol.
Peter
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Last Comment
The election is over. We pray that our citizenry did not vote for fascism.
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