The Unnamable

The Beckett Apmonia led me to a film clip. Scroll down to "Samuel Beckett: The Unnamable" and view the quicktime film. The short is based on Samuel Beckett's novel by the same name. Like all of Beckett's work, it is very strange. Seemingly meaningless, it is at the same time very disturbing. Here is the description of the film:

This film animates body parts, chess pieces and mechnical motifs as life's conveyor belt threatens to grind to a halt, but never does.
Contact jenny.triggs@blueyonder.co.uk for further information.

The bizarre film shows paper doll parts of a human body laid out and a set of hands moving the parts around, attempting to fit them together. A clock ticks away, as if to rush the maker. The body goes together but the pieces are mismatched. The body has an iron jaw, an armor shoulder and a disfigured claw-like hand.

A piece of paper (the instructions) are folded up and fed to the man. The man is electrocuted (it seems), then his eyes flicker and he comes to life. The film ends with the man on his knees, groping around, his head attached to a string.

I'm a Student Again

I enrolled in the graduate program in English at the University of Central Oklahoma today. My emphasis is in Creative Writing (playwriting). Tell me this degree isn't designed for me. Here are my classes for the fall:

1) Shakespeare's Comedies
2) Heroes and Heroines of the Bible
3) Playwriting

Anyway, back to school I go.

New One Minute Play

As you may remember, I like to sit and pound out a one minute play every now and then just as a writing exercise. I have written a new one, aptly, about a police officer. It's called "One Second in the Life of a City Cop"

Actor is not on stage or is hidden. Blue light. Steam. Perhaps a yellow light from above and to a side, a street light.

COP
(speaking very rapidly.)The whole thing took only one second. I got out of the car. He was standing there. Standing, right over there. First a stunned look like a dear in headlights. A cliche, I know. He was standing there, facing me, after the stunned look, a look of recognition. Not of me individually, we've never met. Or have I seen him before? On a call? Yes, I think so. He's sizing me up. He sees the blue uniform. He sees the badge and the belt. His torso is shrinking. He's drawing into himself. What is doing? Is he trying to fight, is he trying to run? His hand is moving. His right hand. He wears a yellow shirt and baggy jeans. His right hand is going in his right pocket. Now it's in his pocket. Tell him to show his hands. He's not showing his hands. Say it again, add a swear word. His hand is coming out. His hand is coming out but there's something in it. There's embroidery above the pocket, the name brand of the baggy jeans. His hand is still coming. Tell him to drop it he's not dropping it. Tell him to drop it now. Tell him and use a swear and draw. Fundamentals. Remember your training. Front sight, squeeze. Draw now. Draw faster and then there's a...

A shot is heard and a flash of light.

COP
It's over. But is he dead or am I? Was I too slow? Am I lying in a pool of blood in the gutter? Was I too fast. Was it a cell phone he pulled from his embroidered pocket? Should I have looked harder first? I need a moment to work it all out. Give me just a second.

That's Why They Call it the Bush Leagues

No night at the ball park is a bad night, unless your the guy that nearly got killed with a foul ball but tonight was pretty rough at the Brick.

The night started well enough. Jonny Bench, the greatest catcher of all time and an Oklahoma native, threw out the first pitch of a double header.

The first game was a makup game from April that rained out before the start of the third inning, so we saw the last seven innings of a three month old game. At the start of the day, the Redhawks had a 1-0 lead but when all was said and done, they turned it into a 9-2 loss. The only new run was a homerun by Jason Botts (I got a picture of the swing and they pics are forthcoming).

At the end of the first game, there was a thirty minute intermission before the start of the second. We let to get some ice cream at Marble Slab. We returned to find out that the second game would also only go seven innings, reportedly to aloow time for post game fireworks. I thought, surely it can't be. I know they're not shortening a game to make room for fireworks. Actually there is a rule that a game after completing a suspended game must be shortened but the announcement said that the game was only going seven so that we could enjoy the fireworks. Hmph.

THAT'S bush league. Hpw can a game really be comeplete without finishing nine innings? Rain shortened games being called complete makes me crazy enough.

The Wrap Up:

The game started badly. Starting Southpaw, Derek Lee saw eight batters in the first inning allowing two runs in the first on two hots and three walks. By the time Lee was through (after four inning) Lee allowed two runs, both earned, on five hits. He walked three and struck out there.

The Redhawks looked like they might have an inning going in the sixth when Catcher Tom Gregorio hit a lead off home run, they Meyer got a double and moved to third on a fielder's choice from Baldiris.

So when it seemd like the Hawks were still in the game, the Hawks third pitcher Scott Feldman came in and allowed another two runs on three hits (two of them doubles)

Nashville's starter Justin Lehr, on the other hand turned in six innings allowing only one run. He struck out four but did not walk anybody. Zumwalkt the came in for the seventh and got the last three batters in order, striking out former Red Sox Adam Hyzdu.

Box Score

The Sizzle is the Sound of our Skin

Oh blessed cool front, may you come and rescue us from these 110 degrees.

The Prophets Speak

ESPN has gone on a limb. Here was the intro into Sportcenter this morning:

No playoffs for the Bronx Bombers this year. Why the Yankees 11 year postseason run is about to end.

Every single ESPN baseball analyst has predicted the Red Sox to win the division based on the Sox defense (who thought they'd see the day), pitching and bullpen. More specifically they cite Red Sox pitchers Craig Hansen and Mike Timin as middle relievers who can get the ball to Papelbon, compared to the Yankees lack of strong middle relievers to get to theit star closer Mariono Rivera.

Then, of course, is the dominance that is the AL central. This is gearing up to be the first time ever that two teams from the AL central will advance to the playoffs as it looks to be almost a sure thing that the wild card will come out of the Central Divsion this year in the person of either the White Sox or the Tigers.

Oh, would heaven be so kind to give us a playoffs without the Yankees? Oh could that day truly come?

Most of them also predict a World Series of White Sox vs. Mets. I'm pulling for Red Sox vs. Mets and Alan and I will be enemies for seven games, this time without Bill Buckner or Bucky F&*^%$ Dent.

And One More Thing

Bud Selig can kiss my pucker. Maybe he should worry about fixing the steriod problem instead of pretending he's a doctor.

Shameless Name Dropping

My Memphis friend Mick Wright got a write-up in the Commercial Apeal (the Memphis daily newspaper). This is after he got some national media attention for his efforts to draft Condi Rice for President in '08. I thought I'd give him some attention here because you numb-skulls don't pay attention to the world around you and also so that I can gloat that my friend is famous.

Couple Pics from Boston

Fenway Park from the First Base Pavilion


Us at our table at "Top of The Hub" restaurant. This is on the 52nd floor of the Prudential Building


Us on a river boat tour on the Charles River with skyline in background. The tall building in the right side of the frame is where the restaurant in last pic was.


The Old State House. Sight of the Boston "massacre"

Spruill's in Beantown

Well, against our wishes, we have returned from Boston. Here's the story of our trip.

To save money, we flew out of Tulsa and into Providence, RI. The flying out of Tulsa was easy, because our friends Chris and Cory live there so they took us to the airport. Providence was another story. We landed in Providence, then took a city bus to the Dowtown bus terminal. On the bus ride, we met a character who we now lovingly call "Bleeding Gums." An apt name because the entire time we spent with him, his teeth became redder and redder. We then wait at the bus terminal for a Bonanza Bus (which is a company like Greyhound) where we picked up a bus to Boston. That bus took us to Boston's South Station with short stops in Pawtucket and Foxboro. When we reached South Station, we went down a flight a steps, up a flight of steps, down a flight of steps, then down another flight of steps and stepped onto the Subway. On the Subway we took the red Line to Park Street then the green line to Lechmere, where Eric (my uncle) picked us up.

After a trip to the Pals Club of Newbury Street (a club that Eric is a member of, which consists of two tables a T.V. and a fridge full of cheep beer) where I had a Corona a listened to each of Erics friends come in one at a time and say, "You should take the Duck Tour," all of which is actually pronounced, "Yoo shud tayke theh duck touh," we finally got to Eric's home in Belmont. If your're keeping track, that was planes, trains and automobiles all in one day. Tulsa to Cincinnati to Providence to Pawtucket to Foxboro to Boston to Cambridge to Belmont.

Our first full day in Boston, we spent the day in the Back Bay, mostly in Fenway Park where we took a tour then got to got go to a game, where Eric (who I think may have mafia ties) got us great tickets on the third base line. It was like visiting Mecca. It's hard to describe Fenway Park to non-baseball fans. It's so gritty and yet so beautiful. It's a tiny park as far as major league parks go, completely surrounded on all sides by city streets. The atmosphere is crazy. It's so loud and everyone's packed in so tight. I stood feet from Manny Ramirez, David Ortiz and Pedro Martinez who was visiting now with the Mets. I also saw my childhood hero Wade Boggs, who was on the '86 team, the first year that I was a Sox fan.

We spent the rest of the week visiting pubs, museums and historic sights. I'm not much of a beer drinker but there's nothing like drinking a Sam Adams Boston Lager in Boston, while a Sox game plays on T.V. with your fish and chips in front of you and your cute waitress with her Irish Accent taking your order. I fell in love with all my Irish waitresses. And that's okay because Charissa is in love with Sox outfielder Coco Crisp.

We even got to spend time with our college friend Angie who is doing her residency in Hartford and came up to spend a day.

There is plenty to say but this has gotten way too long, so I'll stop writing now. Make sure to see our pictures from the trip.