Q&A with Josh Lanyon discussion

I've just found out now. I was hesitating before starting my computer this morning because then I would found out the results...

Now we can breath ;-)

Kari wrote: "Yes, MD passed Question 6. By popular vote. Maine and Maryland both and Washington, last I heard, was hanging in there with the yes with 50% of precincts reporting in (or thereabouts).

It's been a..."

Congratulations on that and the president election!

Congratulations, USA!!

Here in Wisconsin we're proudly sending the first openly gay (lesbian) senator to the US senate AND her congressional seat was filled by a gay man, so no net loss of gayness in Congress from WI. Along with the marriage equity votes - that's pretty cool.

I'm happy with the presidential election and other races too. As horrible as it may sound, I was much more invested in Question 6, though. Question 6 was personal. Intensely personal. That doesn't mean I didn't care about election results otherwise, because I certainly did and do. I didn't cry over those results, though. I cried over Question 6. A lot.

It's a good day.

A good news from Spain too:

Spain's Gay Marriage Law Reaffirmed By Top Court

I was worried. I always use Spain as a paragon of how a Catholic country can still support equality. I am really envious when I see countries go forward in their legislation a little bit at a time. We are stuck here in Italy :(

Dev wrote: "Here in Wisconsin we're proudly sending the first openly gay (lesbian) senator to the US senate AND her congressional seat was filled by a gay man, so no net loss of gayness in Congress from WI. Al..."

I knew about the senator, but didn't realize her seat in Congress had been filled by a gay man. That is great news, Dev!

:-D

I agree. That was one heck of a night!

I'm putting Anna Karenina on my Movies I Must See list. It looks gorgeous!

My best male friend, straight but very much gay friendly, came to visit because I had told him I've got some gay movies I'd like to see but not alone, because I suspect they don't end well and I like to share the heartbreak with someone.

But we couldn't find a gay movie to see: the DVDs we both had not yet seen didn't have German subtitles, and he doesn't understand enough English. So instead of ''My Own Private Idaho'' we ended with ''Gran Torino'' by and with Clint Eastwood. We liked it. It had German subtitles, but I pointed out for him the racist slurs ;-).

I often tend to forget that many people have a language barrier to overcome with English...

Josh wrote: "I'm putting Anna Karenina on my Movies I Must See list. It looks gorgeous!"

Yes! No HEA, though. ;-)

My husband and I were planning on seeing Skyfall last weekend, but got caught up in housework/prep for visitors. Instead I watched Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace streaming on Amazon. I missed seeing them in the theaters when they came out, which is kind of funny because I've a long history with James Bond, including a complete set of Signet paperbacks collected in the 1960s (.60 each!).

Anyway, a funny thing happened when I was watching Quantum. Bond was barely in Bolivia and then in Russia and then the credits rolled. I watched this whole non sequitur passage before realizing that the cat must have walked across my keyboard when I got up to fix tea. Guess I just expect that kind of thing from these films. ;-)

Antonella wrote: "My best male friend, straight but very much gay friendly, came to visit because I had told him I've got some gay movies I'd like to see but not alone, because I suspect they don't end well and I li..."

I remember going to see "My own private Idaho" when they showed it in the theatre here when it first came out. I went alone since I didn't know anybody else who wished to watch it. The whole theatre was filled with gay couples. :). And me. The movie made a great impact I recall.

Karen wrote: "Anyway, a funny thing happened when I was watching Quantum. Bond was barely in Bolivia and then in Russia and then the credits rolled. I watched this whole non sequitur passage before realizing that the cat must have walked across my keyboard when I got up to fix tea. Guess I just expect that kind of thing from these films. ;-)"

LOL. Mr. Bond sure has that "the world is my oyster" thing going on... and your cat obviously wanted to participate... ;)

OMG!!! I'm officially hooked! I found pinterest.com yesterday. So much beautiful pictures to look at!!! I can't believe I haven't known about this site before!

I'm only starting to learn how to operate it, but I managed to find Cleon and Josh on Pinterest. Anybody else there?

I'm there, Johanna. http://pinterest.com/kzsnow/

Last night I watched the first part of a new series by Ken Burns on PBS, The Dust Bowl. Second part is on tonight. It's easy to see how this decade-long tragedy was one of the top five environmental disasters in history.

What wimps we are compared with the residents of the Great Plains in the 1930s!

Oh cool, K.Z.! I'm following you now! :)

Johanna wrote: "OMG!!! I'm officially hooked! I found pinterest.com yesterday. So much beautiful pictures to look at!!! I can't believe I haven't known about this site before!

I'm only starting to learn how to op..."

YAY! I'm a very visual person and I love Pinterest to death.

Cleon wrote: "YAY! I'm a very visual person and I love Pinterest to death."

Well, I enjoyed hugely the cute animal pictures you have on your Awww-dorable board, Cleon. And I didn't think that your Hot men pictures were too bad either... *grin* You do have a decent amount of pictures on your boards, you know! :)

Johanna wrote: "Cleon wrote: "YAY! I'm a very visual person and I love Pinterest to death."

Well, I enjoyed hugely the cute animal pictures you have on your Awww-dorable board, Cleon. And I didn't think that your..."

Glad you like them. And as for the amount of pictures, now you know why I'm not writing. LOL.

Cleon wrote: "And as for the amount of pictures, now you know why I'm not writing. LOL."

*nod nod* That explains it. ;)

Lou wrote: "Has anyone else seen The Eagle? (It's on TV a lot lately.) I swear the creators of this movie set it up to be slashed.

"

I really enjoyed The Eagle. I dragged my dad and my nephews to see it at the theater. They loved it too.

Johanna wrote: "OMG!!! I'm officially hooked! I found pinterest.com yesterday. So much beautiful pictures to look at!!! I can't believe I haven't known about this site before!

I'm only starting to learn how to op..."

It's fun, isn't it? I haven't been able to pop in much lately, but it's very relaxing.

K.Z. wrote: "Josh wrote: "I'm putting Anna Karenina on my Movies I Must See list. It looks gorgeous!"

Yes! No HEA, though. ;-)"

I fear not. ;-P

If you'd like to know more about that period, Lou, I strongly recommend The Worst Hard Time: The Untold Story of Those Who Survived the Great American Dust Bowl. It's heartbreaking but riveting.

Now I have to go see who else is on Pinterest. It'll be a nice, nosy break from edits. :)

Lou wrote: "K.Z. wrote: "Last night I watched the first part of a new series by Ken Burns on PBS, The Dust Bowl. Second part is on tonight. It's easy to see how this decade-long tragedy was one of the top five..."

I have to see this for sure.

BBC4 just started the Danish "The Killing 3" - I'm getting my jumper out to cheer on Sarah Lund.

I only watched a few episodes of the US version before, I think it resembled very little of the original, and the US female lead seemed to have a sour face forever... That's not my Sarah.

I'm so sappy that the first film that comes to my mind is Notting Hill (1999) with Hugh Grant and Julia Roberts. Funny, sweet, easy to look at... ;)

ETA: The other one would be Lasse Hallström's Chocolat (2000) with Johnny Depp and Juliette Binoche — but I suppose it's not a comedy...?

Lou wrote: "I have a quick question: what's your favorite romantic comedy?

I'm looking for my friends daughter--she's a smart thirteen-year-old, who reads Shakespeare and Jane Austen."

If she reads Jane Austen, then she needs the version of Pride and Prejudice with Colin Firth in it. :-)

I also really like "About a Boy" and "Four Weddings and a Funeral", and of course the best of all time is "The Princess Bride".

Lou wrote: "I have a quick question: what's your favorite romantic comedy?

I'm looking for my friends daughter--she's a smart thirteen-year-old, who reads Shakespeare and Jane Austen."

"Princess Bride" was an excellent fantasy/romantic comedy.

Lou wrote: "I have a quick question: what's your favorite romantic comedy?

I'm looking for my friends daughter--she's a smart thirteen-year-old, who reads Shakespeare and Jane Austen."

"Love Actually". And it is the correct choice for Christmas too :)

Anne wrote: "Lou wrote: "I have a quick question: what's your favorite romantic comedy?

I'm looking for my friends daughter--she's a smart thirteen-year-old, who reads Shakespeare and Jane Austen."

"Love Act..."

Love Actually is my favorite romantic comedy too! Chocolat is one of my all time favorite movies, but yeah, it's not comedy, I think.

Cleon wrote: "Anne wrote: "Lou wrote: "I have a quick question: what's your favorite romantic comedy?

I'm looking for my friends daughter--she's a smart thirteen-year-old, who reads Shakespeare and Jane Austen..."

Love Actually is a good one. It also has some great music in it... AND Colin Firth. ;)

A holiday weekend with lots of visiting family — here to celebrate and to watch my 23 year-old daughter star as Peter Pan in a production with her dance company. I watched twice, with 18 of us cheering her on Friday evening, and again at today's matinee.

A number of us also went to a late Thursday night showing of Skyfall. This is definitely a darker Bond — my appreciation of gorgeous scenery and fine acting is at odds with my ambivalence over being entertained with so much murder and mayhem. When Bond and a rival agent battle you don't understand how either could walk away from it intact. Of course Bond does, more or less.

Karen wrote: "A holiday weekend with lots of visiting family — here to celebrate and to watch my 23 year-old daughter star as Peter Pan in a production with her dance company. I watched twice, with 18 of us chee..."

Sounds like a great weekend and so fun about your daughter. I am sure you are proud!

thelastaerie wrote: "BBC4 just started the Danish "The Killing 3" - I'm getting my jumper out to cheer on Sarah Lund.

I only watched a few episodes of the US version before, I think it resembled very little of the o..."

I think I need to see this. I was so disgusted with the end of the first season I never watched again.

I found a complete (and affordable!) VHS set of the multi-award-winning documentary The Civil War, which originally aired on PBS in 1990. It's every bit as informative and gripping as I remember, and the actors who do the voice-overs are perfect. (Yes, I still have a VCR. :) I'd be lost without it, since I couldn't possibly afford to replace all my tapes with DVDs.)

One of the many things it made me realize, again, is how beautifully people wrote letters in the 19th century. Even those who were grossly under-educated by today's standards managed to express themselves with a simple eloquence that can move me to tears. (The letter that concluded the first tape just ripped my heart out.)

That's how I felt about The World at War, a cult classic British documentary on WWII. I mean, it's narrated by Laurence Olivier.

(That said, I should check out the Civil War one - I owe a friend a CW novel.)

K.Z are you referring to the letter written by Col. Belleau to his wife upon his death? (Sorry, it's been awhile since I have seen it, so spelling maybe wrong). I was so moved I made a copy of it, so I could read it from time to time. Eloquent and moving from the battlefield. An incredible piece of work. I'm looking forward to Burn's new one The Dust Bowl.

Togainunochi wrote: "K.Z are you referring to the letter written by Col. Belleau to his wife upon his death? (Sorry, it's been awhile since I have seen it, so spelling maybe wrong). I was so moved I made a copy of it, ..."

Close. :) It was written by Sullivan Ballou, who was killed a week later in the First Battle of Bull Run (or Manassas) in 1861 -- which of course makes the letter all the more poignant. I guarantee, hearing Paul Roebling's reading (with "Ashokan Farewell" playing in the background) is enough to make even the biggest Billy Badass weep.

You can see/hear it on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HxDP6q...

I just saw Burns's The Dust Bowl. It, too, is excellent, but The Civil War remains his masterpiece.

K.Z, I agree the Civil War is his masterpiece. I appreciate it more so, since I now live in Virginia between several momentous battlefields.

K.Z. wrote: "Togainunochi wrote: "K.Z are you referring to the letter written by Col. Belleau to his wife upon his death? (Sorry, it's been awhile since I have seen it, so spelling maybe wrong). I was so moved ..."

Thank you for the link, K.Z. It's so tragic and beautiful and touching.

Saw the Red Dawn remake last night...So many iconic moments from the first movie were lost, I couldn't enjoy it despite the many impressive explosions and pretty actors. Do not recommend. :(

Johanna wrote: "K.Z. wrote: "Togainunochi wrote: "K.Z are you referring to the letter written by Col. Belleau to his wife upon his death? (Sorry, it's been awhile since I have seen it, so spelling maybe wrong). I ..."

You're welcome, Johanna. It's the kind of thing that can put one's petty concerns in perspective.

''The Man Who Will Come'' (L'uomo che verrà) is an Italian movie from 2009 who won lots of prizes and it deserves them all. Still, it left me quite upset.

It is about one of the massacres by nazi soldiers in Italy in 1944: 770 deads, 200 of them children, the rest mainly women and old people. I knew this, but a friend of mine (and the reviews) said it was not too upsetting because everything is seen through the eyes of a child and is very poetical. In fact is was, but I could have thought that the main story was inevitably still there.

Anyway, here is the trailer:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o8D7Co...

Kari wrote: "Saw the Red Dawn remake last night...So many iconic moments from the first movie were lost, I couldn't enjoy it despite the many impressive explosions and pretty actors. Do not recommend. :("

I was hoping to see that at some point, mostly to perv on Jeffrey Dean Morgan. I haven't seen the original though, so that might make a difference.

K.Z. wrote: "Togainunochi wrote: "K.Z are you referring to the letter written by Col. Belleau to his wife upon his death? (Sorry, it's been awhile since I have seen it, so spelling maybe wrong). I was so moved ..."

You're not wrong there. Thanks for the link.

Antonella - super interesting, thank you!