Monthly Archives: February 2019

— Interlude in Egypt —

I’ve been off cavorting in Egypt for a couple of weeks, well, back last Wednesday to be more accurate. The weather turned as we got to Minneapolis and my sister, who was also on the trip, was stuck here either waiting for planes or waiting at the airport until she finally got a flight out to Fargo 250 miles way. We all thought they coulda made it with a plane, but then again, we don’t fly planes. The highways were closed off and on. I’m sure she now knows the Minneapolis airport better than I do. We spent a remarkable amount of time toing and froing from the airport at rush hour as that seems to always be the time something came to a no-go. With the nearest Interstate entrance ramp twenty-five blocks away and a constant state of snow or blowing snow, moving around always took longer than anticipated. We did drag her to see Sunken Cities at the MIA, which was interesting after two weeks in Egypt at Cairo and points south of there.

I bought a big new Sony camera to take with me to Egypt and took a few pictures. I’ve gotten about five days up on Facebook. The albums are public, but my profile is private, so I’m not sure how to get people past one and into the other. My attempts using an incognito browser ain’t been a great success.

My lazy-ass photo processing process ain’t up to the level of the new camera yet, and I’m mostly trying to process pictures to jpgs, enchance them a bit, cut out the stupid, and post them. I am trying to post them in discreet groups rather than “Here’s 600 pics from Aswan” that’s my usual wont. For example, Abu Simbel – Rameses II – Inside — it’s still 600 pics from Aswan, but at least you know what you’re getting into. 😉

I was the resident self-appointed know-it-all for the group of six I was traveling with, the one that put Ramses the II in the Middle Kingdom at least once, but I think we all had a great time. Egypt was great, except for the traffic in Cairo. I could have stayed twice as long. We went Giza, Aswan, Abu Simbel, Lake Nasr, Aswan, Nile, Luxor, Cairo. I took too many pictures through the bus with the big Sony. I shoulda used my cell phone. I expected a larger number of out-of-focus pics, but I think I done good. It did seem like time’s winged charriot always hovered near in the form of “Don’t be the last one on the bus.”

A couple of people had got something while we were there, but I survived fine until I got on the plane back home, when I could feel something settling around me. I’m doing a different antibiotic and I have a small jar of codeine cough syrup to see me through. (I wanted a gallon, but I’ll take what I can get.) I denuded the house of chocolate one night and decided that “No, it does not work as well as codeine.”

I am starting to load pics on fotki, where I have a few. Link Something between me and Photoshop and fotki is flipping pictures, so keep a limber neck. Pics from the Valley of the Queens and Valley of the Kings are up on Fotki, and I’ll be adding more as time goes by, maybe even flipping the flipped ones back. With luck, this link goes to a full-screen version of the Mortuary Temple of Pharaoh Hatshepsut

NY Time’s Critic’s Picks — Catch-Up Edition

A Tuba to Cuba
NYT Critic’s Pick Documentary, History, Music Directed by T.G. Herrington, Danny Clinch, T.G. Herrington
This joyous documentary follows the Preservation Hall Jazz Band to Cuba for a celebration of musical history and common bonds.
By JEANNETTE CATSOULIS

Fighting with My Family
NYT Critic’s Pick PG-13 Biography, Comedy, Drama, Sport Directed by Stephen Merchant
Dwayne Johnson helped produce this charming comedy about a family of professional wrestlers, their chops, drops and drama.
By MANOHLA DARGIS

Clara’s Ghost
NYT Critic’s Pick Not Rated Comedy, Drama, Family, Thriller Directed by Bridey Elliott
This unhinged comedy shines a spotlight on a family’s maladjusted dynamics.
By TEO BUGBEE

Sorry Angel
NYT Critic’s Pick Drama, Romance Directed by Christophe HonorĂ©
Set in early 1990s Paris, Christophe Honoré’s new film presents us with a middle-aged, H.I.V.-stricken writer falling, wearily, for a bookish 20-something.
By GLENN KENNY

PĂĄjaros de verano
NYT Critic’s Pick Drama Directed by Cristina Gallego, Ciro Guerra
Cristina Gallego and Ciro Guerra follow their Oscar-nominated “Embrace of the Serpent” with a saga of the drug trade set amid the Wayuu of northern Colombia.
By A.O. SCOTT

High Flying Bird
NYT Critic’s Pick Drama, Sport Directed by Steven Soderbergh
The director Steven Soderbergh teams up with Tarell Alvin McCraney and André Holland to take on the contradictions of modern sports culture.
By A.O. SCOTT

One Million American Dreams
NYT Critic’s Pick Documentary Directed by Brendan Byrne
This haunting documentary guides viewers through heartbreaking tales of the lost souls buried on Hart Island.
By GLENN KENNY

The Oscar Nominated Short Films 2019: Animation
NYT Critic’s Pick
This year’s Oscar-nominated shorts will make you cry, laugh, cry, think, cry, wonder, and cry some more. Have we mentioned they might also make you cry?
By BILGE EBIRI

The Oscar Nominated Short Films 2019: Documentary
NYT Critic’s Pick
This year’s Oscar-nominated shorts will make you cry, laugh, cry, think, cry, wonder, and cry some more. Have we mentioned they might also make you cry?
By BILGE EBIRI

Daughter of Mine
NYT Critic’s Pick Drama Directed by Laura Bispuri
Ardent and primal, Laura Bispuri’s drama addresses complicated ideas with head-clearing simplicity.
By JEANNETTE CATSOULIS

Velvet Buzzsaw
NYT Critic’s Pick R Horror, Thriller Directed by Dan Gilroy
In this bilious satire, Jake Gyllenhaal plays an art critic on the edge of sanity as the paintings he covets turn murderous.
By GLENN KENNY

Never Fear
NYT Critic’s Pick Drama Directed by Ida Lupino
“Never Fear,” a 1949 movie directed by Lupino that has been superbly restored, tells the story of a dancer felled by polio.
By MANOHLA DARGIS

The Image Book
NYT Critic’s Pick Drama Directed by Jean-Luc Godard
Jean-Luc Godard’s latest film is a gloomy, lively essay on some disturbing history, cinema and himself.
By A.O. SCOTT

The 5 Browns
NYT Critic’s Pick Documentary Directed by Ben Niles
A new documentary tells the painful but ultimately hopeful story of a classical music quintet of siblings, three of whom were molested by their father.
By GLENN KENNY