You've probably seen the news about the massive heat wave in Europe. France got up to something like 114º F a couple of days ago. Insane! We've been spared the worst of it here in London -- it did get to about 92º F yesterday afternoon, and that was no fun, but it was tolerable.
Olga and I went to the cemetery in the afternoon. She was excited for a walk but you could tell the heat got to her. She was more subdued than usual and ready to go home earlier. On the way back, she lay down on the cool, shady pavement in front of this skiwear shop, lifting her head so she could pant freely. Or maybe she was gazing at the sign and dreaming of the snowy Alps.
These posters appeared near our flat a couple of days ago. I like them, but Olga couldn't stifle a yawn. She's not into politics.
On Friday I watched Martin Scorsese's new movie about Bob Dylan's 1975 Rolling Thunder Revue tour, on Netflix. It used a lot of archival footage of the tour, which gathered singer-songwriters like Velcro as it traveled around the northeast United States and parts of Canada, becoming a sort of small-venue supergroup featuring Joan Baez, Joni Mitchell, Roger McGuinn and others. I enjoyed the old footage of all those singers in their prime, paired with contemporary interviews about what the tour was like -- it seemed like a very weird affair where Dylan wore white face paint as a "mask." But overall I found it awfully LONG. (About two and a half hours.) And although Dylan is a master songwriter, a little of his singing goes a long way in my book.
Also, it's not a straight documentary. Parts of the movie are explicitly faked. I think this is Dylan playing with reality, poking fun at his own hagiography, but it's exasperating when you're not sure what to believe.
I also finished reading "The Handmaid's Tale." I was afraid it was going to be a didactic slog, but it was actually very good and very readable. I wish I'd read it before I saw the TV show, because although the show follows the book very closely, all my mental images were of those actors and scenes -- Elizabeth Moss as Offred and that kind of thing. I wonder how different I'd have found it if I'd started with a blank canvas?
Don't you just love it when your friends are up late enough to say good morning to you? Do you carry water for Olga on your walks? A recent advisory here cautioned that dogs can suffer heat stroke.I've read about that Revue from a participant. There seemed to be a lot of backstories going on at the time. I hope you, Dave and Olga enjoy your Sunday.
ReplyDeleteAre those Dave's hands in the third picture down? With hands like that it is surprising that he is able to play any musical instruments apart from tom-tom drums.
ReplyDeleteI saw the Rolling Thunder Review.
ReplyDeleteSort of.
I was EXTREMELY pregnant, it was hotter than hell, the event was held in a gymnasium at FSU, there was a bomb scare...
And we had just discovered that one of our best friends had hung himself the night before.
I spent a lot of the whole concert walking around the lobby of the gym in a lot of discomfort and stunned grief.
So maybe I should watch the film and see what I missed.
I had a similar (dis)association when I first watched the tv series of The Handmaid's Tale as I never read it but had watched the movie with Natasha Richardson as Offred and Faye Dunaway ad Serena Joy and I think Robert Duvall as the commander. It's one of those dry/realistic 1990s movies (directed by Schlöndorff who did The Tin Drum earlier and won an Oscar for it) but I remember being blown away by it at the time.
ReplyDeleteI have difficulty reading Margaret Attwood. She's just too weird. I tried the Handmaid's Tale and gave up on it.
ReplyDeleteAh this post reminds me that I saw Bob Dylan in concert once. He was touring with Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. I have no idea where or when this happened. I did read The Handmaid's Tale quite a while ago as well. I think these two things happened around the same time.
ReplyDeleteOlga really does look like she's dreaming of snow covered mountains.
ReplyDeleteI'd forgotten there was a movie of the handmaids tale till Sabine mentioned it above. I should look for it.
ReplyDeleteI read the book years ago but have never seen the movie or the series. 114˚, that's hot. low 90s, pffft. we get that all summer and hotter. don't usually get triple digits til August.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely love that shot of Olga's paws. LOVE it.
ReplyDeleteYour last comment is why I prefer to read! I like to picture the characters and the places as they're written.
I so agree with you - I could always only listen to one side of a Dylan album before I'd yell for someone to please play something else.
ReplyDeleteI pity you all that heat over there. Our AC began malfunctioning yesterday (on Saturday, of course.) But with temps in the low 90's, like you say, it's livable.
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