Snow Pics

I'm not in Tacoma right now (this is a little light blogging between flights here in Chicago) so I am appreciative of ThriceAllAmerican publishing some winter pictures of his walk to work this morning.

Thanks, Jamie!

Missed it

I missed the snow!

My favorite 2-day season in Tacoma, the snow season, seems to have come and nearly gone.

But I guess I got to be in New York instead ... Macy's on the busiest shopping day of the year ... top of the Empire State Building ... walking across the Brooklyn Bridge ... not to mention the unseasonably warm temperatures.

So it didn't come out all bad.

The Vertical Hour

I saw David Hare's new play, "The Vertical Hour" yesterday with Julianne Moore and Bill Nighy (AKA Davy Jones from Pirates of the Caribbean.)

The play was still in previews, so I'm not quite sure what that means when it comes to whether it's finished or not. But I enjoyed it, in general. Bill Nighy was very good. Julianne Moore was a little miscast, but still good. The play weaves in the current Iraq war as best as possible without dramatically dragging down the play. But I much prefer Altman's method of critiquing the Vietnam war: use the Korean war. The play could have been set in 1991 and been more effective because it wouldn't have gotten bogged down in so much detail.

This was the 2nd David Hare play I've seen (the first was "My Zinc Bed" which I saw in 2000). This was also the 2nd play I've seen that Sam Mendes directed (the first was "To the Green Fields Beyond," also in 2000). I think both have done better work, but it was still very cool to see a Broadway play.

More New York Reflections

This city really does feel pretty good. What I find interesting is that it doesn't take long for "Central Park" and all the mythos surrounding it (thanks to the world of film, books, and TV) to drop away a little bit.

Certain pieces of the city would probably always have a certain awe-inspiring quality, like Mt. Rainier does in our area, but I guess what I'm trying to say is that New York could easily feel like home and it probably wouldn't take that long.

Of course, on the other hand, I can also tell that cost to live in this city would be astronomically high if you wanted to take advantage of the cultural opportunities it offers. This weekend, for example, I saw a play on Broadway, a jazz evening at Lincoln Center, fine dining all around, and a few other not cheap activities. Living here would kill the budget in no time flat.

The Best Christmas Tree in the World

Or at least, that's what Mr. Trump would say. "It's huge. Everyone in New York comes to see it. It's the best Christmas tree north of Rockerfeller Center."

On the Big Apple

New York is a pretty rocking place. I could go through a laundry list of places I've seen, and it would be quite something for being here less than 48 hours so far. But suffice to say: s'cool.

I appreciate the urban parks throughout the city, the ease of the subway, the fantastic architecture, and the common occurence of stumbling on to recognizable movie settings.

I still have a lot to look forward to. Today will be David Hare's new play "The Vertical Hour" starring Julianne Moore. And tonight is "The Music of Benny Goodman" at Dizzy's Club 5 stories above Central Park. Tomorrow will be the NBC tour. I expect to get drinks after that with Matthew Perry.

More the next time I find an internet connection. This has been the first time in a long time that I haven't stayed in a hotel with wireless. But the hotel was featured in Woody Allen's "Manhattan Murder Mystery" so maybe that's a good trade off.

New York via the Cell Phone Cam

It's been a whirlwind of a walking tour, but I managed to capture a couple interesting cell phone pics along the way. I also got some nice real photos, too, but the cell phone was much more handy. Here's Times Square and the Brooklyn Bridge.

Ranked on Google

I typed Horatio Theater into Google, and was blown away to see that every search result is about the Horatio, taken from the website, this blog, Exit133, and the Tribune's coverage. Type in The Horatio, and I come up above The Horatio Alger Association. Type in Horatio and I'm still nowhere to be seen, because Lord Admiral Horatio Nelson and Horatio Alger are still the top picks.

But still, that's a pretty remarkable search engine Google has going there to have such current results.

Many thanks to the company, without which my business would be much harder to run. Their company provides me merchant checkout for Horatio memberships, free blogging software for this blog, quick searches to allow customers to find me, and address look-up and directions on their mapping program. It's pretty surprising how much help a transnational business that hires 100 people a week (on average) and with a stock price above $500/share can be such a help to a little theater in a little alley.

Tip my hat to Google!

1,000 Posts

My Robert Altman Post was #1,000. That's a big milestone for Erikemery.com.

I should have recognized it at the time but I missed it. Dang.

Thanksgiving

Last night was Bellarmine's Thanksgiving Mass, which has been a favorite mass of mine since I graduated in 98. But this year, in my role as Alumni Director, I actually had to plan the mass. Who knew how much work that would be? And how many people needed to be involved?

But it was turned into a nice Thanksgiving treat, and it always gets me in the mood for "The Season." Christmas tunes get to start today off my playlist. I'll start brainstorming for my Christmas tree. It's always a very nice time.

Especially since tomorrow I will be missing out on the shoppin fervor since I'll be bound for New York. I think that will really make the season feel right.

Happy thanksgiving!

What Andrew's Thankful For

Andrew Sullivan's personality and personal politics make themselves pretty clear in his list of things to be thankful for this year. Here's his list:

There has been no 9/11-style attack on the U.S. homeland in over five years.

Bird-flu has not broken out into a full-scale epidemic.

Torture is now illegal again in the U.S. military.

Donald Rumsfeld is no longer defense secretary.

Washington has divided government.

The self-destruction of Mel Gibson and Tom Cruise.

Saddam found guilty in a reasonably fair trial.

Kids can still fly kites in Kabul.

Jim Webb and Bob Casey Jr.

Air-conditioning.

Downloading the new Pet Shop Boys album onto an iPod.

The exposure of Ted Haggard and Mark Foley.

Netflix.

The quiet car on Amtrak.

Patrick Fitzgerald.

Dolly Parton.

South Park is as good as ever.

YouTube's early days.

Protease inhibitors.

Alt Man

Robert Altman's death today marks a loss for film. I was so impressed with his last movie "A Prairie Home Companion" as well as many other films of his that have stuck with me, including The Player, MASH, and Gosford Park.

While the Grand had Prairie playing I used to sneak in the back and watch some of the songs. I would watch the Bad Jokes song over and over, not just to listen to the audience laugh but also to watch the uncannily good filmmaking that Altman used to make that scene as funny as it was. Watch the scene. And then watch it again and again. It's brilliant comedic filmmaking.

I sincerely appreciate his films and will miss the opportunity to see him keep working.

The Big Apple

I will try to do a little travel blogging over the weekend, too. I'll be visiting New York the day after Thanksgiving and staying a full four nights.

(One of my favorite office jokes was about New York last year. Michael tells the camera, he's going to New York. He says, "It's the city so nice they named it twice. New York and ... Manhattan.")

I'll be doing a little theater viewing, too. "The Vertical Hour," by David Hare will be in previews with Julianne Moore. I saw Hare's play about addiction and alcoholism ("My Zinc Bed") in 2000 when I was in London with Julia Ormond and Tom Wilkinson. I got Julia's autograph afterward, too!

A few notes on Tacoma right now

I've fallen off a little bit on my heavy Tacoma blogging. It's not that there isn't a lot of interesting things going on in Tacoma right now, but just that a) I've been busy. And b) lots of other bloggers are doing the Tacoma beat much better than I am right now. I don't know what I'd do without my daily dose of Tacoma blogs (listed on the right) not to mention the random traverses through the Trib blogs (Ed Murrieta's back from his vacation!).

My favorite happening right now is the Post Office sale, which I think can help bring a lot of people to that area especially late at night. It's not just the renovation of the building, it's the parking lot they occupy, too, that could be so good for Tacoma. Here's Dan Voelpel on it. And Exit133 (with all 19 comments). Paul at the BIA weighs in, too.

And I've now been to the Matador 3 full times and found plenty of tequila in front of me while I'm there. It's a pretty cool new place.

The other exciting news: PSP's expansion (Puget Sound Pizza to the layman). Jim is weeks away from a big expansion with a lot more space for their pizzas. I'll be checking that out a lot, you can bet, since it's across the street from the Horatio.

The Power of a Blogger

This is a stunning piece in the New York Times. If you want to find out how much has changed because of a single blogger, look no farther than Brian Stetler who writes the must-read end-all be-all blog of television news (called TVNewser).

It's written for the cable news folks, and is read daily, all the time, by TV Executives and anchors, including Brian Williams, for example. The head of CNN domestic operations gave the TVNewser blogger his cell phone number. MSNBC invited his as their guest to the White House Correspondent's Dinner where there was a line to meet him. Anchors, executives, and others leak stories and information to him in hopes that he'll write favorably about them.

So who is this incredibly powerful blogger? Would you believe Brian Stetler is a 21 year old student at Towson University just outside of Buffalo? Who is majoring in Mass Communications and edits the school newspaper. Who has never worked in broadcast news.

Here's one of the many incredible paragraphs in the article:

When his postings dropped off last month after his girlfriend dumped him, Mr. Stelter found himself fielding complaints from powerful network executives about when he was going to get over his romantic travails and get back on track. “I was dealing with drama,” he said.

Here's another one:

The network publicists generally know his class schedule — afternoons on Tuesdays and Thursdays — and barrage him with material, which they often expect him to post within minutes. While recording a radio segment for one of his classes — Mass Communication 381 — he turned his cellphone off for 15 minutes, then turned it back on to find one nagging voice mail message from an ABC publicist and another from CNN.

You really should read this article. Talk about the power of the Internet and the power one individual has with some super-powered servers.

The Theater Buzz

If you're interested in theater, you might want to check in on The Playgoer, a New York blogger. He does good work about the theater scene. I'm getting to really like his style and subject.

Check it out!

Images of Tacoma

I ventured downtown with my cell phone cam handy again. First, the building on 6th & St. Helens is being restored (next door to the future site of Jay Heights). I think this building has big potential, although I don't know if there is already a planned use for it. Anyone know?



And, second, I took a picture of the Tacoma Christmas tree at 9th & Broadway. Maybe it's just me, but I believe this tree is a little shorter than usual. When I lived at the Bostwick in 2003 I could see the tree out my window, so I have a pretty good sense of the size it should be. I think they're running out of trees.

Casino Royale

When Daniel Craig got picked last year to be James Bond, a lot of people called him James "Blond." Which I thought was kinda dumb. I mean he's not that blonde. And it's not his defining feature. But the man was a great, great, great Bond.

"Casino Royale" starts differently than most Bond films by intercutting two black and white scenes of his first two killings that made him a Double O. The main titles are a little weird; it was an ok concept that should have worked better. And then the movie begins and we are given one of the most exciting chases in a Bond movie that is--amazingly--all on foot. It's crazy how well it works.

Good scenes throughout the film. Eva Green is a classic and wonderful Bond Girl. Everything really just works. The pacing is a little off toward the end, but that can be overlooked. It's a pretty rocking moving. Big thumbs up for Daniel Craig and Casino Royale as well as one of the best deliveries of "Bond, James Bond."

Milton Friedman

The man was a strict conservative economist with market freedom as one of his biggest priorities. I'm usually a pretty darn liberal thinker. But Milton Friedman was frequently very very convincing. I read some of his non-academic stuff in classes before and thought the man was brilliant. Here's Steven Levitt on the news on his Freakonomics blog.

This Third Thursday

Glad to see so many people on the town. Thanks to those that stopped by the Horatio! If you missed coming by tonight, don't forget to come by Sunday sometime (we'll have tours from 12 - 7, so you can come either before or after the Seahawks game).

Good to see Derek and the Exit133 come by as well. Also Jim from Puget Sound Pizza dropped by the theater to greet his new neighbor. All seems to be well--or at least, reviving--in the Theater District.

Stadium Bistro

On a recommendation from Exit133 I also tried out Stadium Bistro, although not for a full dinner. I enjoyed my wine and the people there are eager to help. I didn't expect it to be so fancy, however. I'd never seen a French Onion Soup presented so nicely. They are open but I'd recommend hanging back a short time until they get a little art on the walls. It feels a little bare right now, but I think it'll warm up real quick.

I am pleased to see that it is right next to Doyle's. So welcome to my neighborhood!

Return to the Matador

I ventured back last night to The Matador and tried their tequila list for the first time. It's a long list, far longer than their wine list. Prices range from $6 to $85 for a shot of tequila. I compromised and asked for the best $10.00 shot of tequila, but since there was no way I was going to shoot it, they brought it to me in what looked like a mini brandy glass.

The tequila actually was really good. No big kick and pretty smooth. Actually, it could have done with a little more zing, I think. But I'm willing to try something like that again.

Good nachos, too!

More on the new Amtrak Route

Here's the Tribune on the subject. It's too bad the focus is on the trains "zooming" through Tacoma while the picture shows cars parked on the tracks.

Hmm. That seems to be setting up an image in my mind ... Oh God, look out! I remember those videos from driver's ed.

Follow along

Here's an awesome site. N2yo.com tracks the positions of satellites and other space objects (like the Hubble telescope or the International Space Station over Google Maps. It's a cool technology.

I left the website going while at work today and I was rather surprised to watch the ISS cross the Pacific from Japan to Baja California in about 20 minutes. That thing is flying.

Consolidating our transit

I appreciate Derek at Exit133 linking to the plans from the WSDOT and SoundTransit to cut the Amtrak route by eliminating the need to go through Point Defiance and instead going through South Tacoma.

One of the reasons I like this idea so much is that it would put the Amtrak station at Freighthouse Square, instead of down the street. Consolidating all transportation routes at Freighthouse Square and the large parking garage there is great public design. Anyone visiting Tacoma from Portland via train would currently be stuck at the Amtrak station in the middle of nowhere. Move the track and they have many bus and light rail options that can get them to downtown and their hotel.

I think it's pretty great. I hope it works!

Sweetness

I have no reason to suspect this picture is a fake, but it's so cool it seems like it could be. Anyway, witness the launch of the space shuttle, as seen from the International Space Station.

Sweet.

Where I found the pic.

The Alchemist - Redux

I called this alchemy before. And I'll call it alchemy again.

Turning garbage to diesel is the modern equivalent of lead into gold. I just don't believe it. This plant in Fife is never going to get off the ground.

Thanks to the News Tribune for investigating.

Funniest. Movie. This. Year.

Borat was hands down the funniest movie I've seen in a long time. At an hour and a half, I laughed straight through. This movie was just plain funny. No disclaimers.

It sounds like it would be mean-spirited, but only a few people come off badly: the frat brothers and the rodeo organizer. Everyone else is pretty nice, really, and puts up with an incredibly trying tourist.

You just really should see this movie.

Horatio in the Trib

Rosemary's article about the Horatio appeared in today's Soundlife. Check it out here.

I was surprised to see my smiling face in the paper, since I couldn't remember posing for a picture. But then I remembered the headshot that Soren Andersen asked me to submit in March of 2004 when I took the job at the Grand. Apparently that photo will stay around for awhile in the Tribune files.

But really ... madness? I'm not that crazy. I'm only mad north-northwest. When the wind is southerly, I can tell a hawk from a handsaw.

Stranger than Fiction

Will Ferrell's new movie is quite good. Kind, warm, and sweet in all ways, the movie really tries to get to the bottom of the Big Questions but stays funny throughout.

The cast is great, Maggie and Will and Emma are particularly good. I just really enjoyed this movie. High marks.

How this works

I've went back and labeled the last 50 posts I've made on this blog (I don't know if I'll get to all of them, this is the 981st post here, so doing all of them might take awhile).

Anyway, the general idea is that if you see a theater review, you can click on either "theater" and see everything I've written about theater, or you can click on "reviews" and see all my reviews, whether theater, restaurant, book, or movies.

It's a good way to get past the stuff you don't care about and find topics that you do care about. I think it makes blogging much easier for the reader.

That was easy

It's like I have a Staples "easy button." Apparently I'm good to go for blogger-beta and tagged posts.

Blogger Beta

At some point this weekend, I might try to conversion to blogger-beta. We'll see if I can get anywhere with it.

Death in the Afternoon

The title of this post refers to Hemingway's book about bullfighting. Which is off topic because I want to write about the new Tacoma restaurant, "The Matador."

I wasn't swanky enough to go to the pre-opening gala on Wednesday, but I ventured in last night. A very cool space, although smaller than I thought it would be. The space next to Meconi's used to have the liquor license in it, but now it is a showroom for Prium Homes.

Anyway, the Matador had darn good food, an awesome atmosphere and vibe, and the dishes were incredibly reasonably prices. I would expect those to go up a buck or two at least in the coming months, so go early!

Thumbs up from this guy.

Television Update

So "Studio 60" has fallen on some real hard times. But "Veronica Mars" finally picked up to its former greatness, "Lost" has had a couple killer episodes in a row, and three cheers for "The Office," too, even though last week's episode had the most painful and gutwrenching marriage proposal I'd ever seen.

Crazy

As I check the Internet after the power outage on my block, I find a great map at the NYT for the races around the country.

Here's the amazing thing: as of 12:06 am, the Democrats have not given up a single seat. No Democratic incumbent in the Senate, House, or Governorship has lost. But 4 Republican Senators have lost, 26 Representatives, and 6 governors. That is an incredible change of power from recent elections. And one of the most lop-sided victories for a single party in awhile, too.

To not lose any seat but only gain? That's quite a victory. We'll see if it's still true by morning.

Horatio Theater is a go!

It's taken me a few months to be able to write those words, but I've got a lease and I'm up and running. Yahoo!

Take a second and visit www.thehoratio.com if you haven't already. It's been souped up recently. I have on-line ticketing for "It's A Wonderful Life," staged as a live 1940's radio play. Sign up for e-mail newsletters, or support the theater by joining as a Founding Member (most appreciated!).

This may also be a good space to re-publish the Artistic Vision for the theater.

ARTISTIC VISION for the Horatio Theater

“There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.”
– Hamlet, Act I, Scene 5.

The Horatio Theater Company is dedicated to producing high-quality theater experiences that investigate Hamlet’s claim.

We seek to search (whether successfully or not) for love and connection in the face of overwhelming adversity and risk.

We accept what appears impossible and we accept the absurdity of the world.

We look for humor and truth even in the face of suffering.

We do not shy away from tragedy but do not dismiss hope, either.

We distrust the emotional distance of irony but jump into the full range of human experiences.

We find joy in the creative process and believe that no matter how tragic or heart-breaking, a well-told, captivating story lifts the human spirit.

Thanks to everyone who has already been a big help so far. I'm excited!

Link to Horatio Theater press release posted at Exit133.com.

Speaking of the elections ...

Everyone seems to be talking about the House, but few are talking about the Senate. The Democrats only need 6 seats to take back the Senate (if they get five then Cheney will get a lot of action as the tie-breaker vote).

At times like this I turn to Wikipedia to find out what's going on. Here's their page on the 2006 Senate races. They post only analyses data from the non-partisan polls. Of those polls, I check in regularly with the Rasmussen Reports. Why? Because--also according to Wikipedia--The Rasmussen Reports were "the most accurate polling firm for the 2004 United States presidential election."

So I think they seem to be reliable. As of today, they put two current Republican seats in the "Safe Democrat" column, Ohio and Pennsylvania. Another (R) seat is "leaning Democratic"--Rhode Island. And then there are four Republican seats Rassmusen believes are a toss-up. Missouri, Montana, Tennessee, and Virginia. There are no democratic seats that are a toss-up or leaning Republican.

Assuming Rasmussen is correct in their polling, then after Ohio, Penn., and RI, the Democrats would need three of those four toss-ups. Who knows if it's likely, but statistically those races are in a tie.

If I could be so humble, I'd like to say that I would not like to see the Democrats get 5 seats. Get 6, get 4, but man, don't get five. A 50/50 Senate would be scary in times like these. You want to talk about nasty mudslinging, partisan politics? That's what the 50/50 Senate does. Either the Dems win, or they don't, becuase getting us to a tied Senate would be rough.

Best laugh of the day

Thank you, Joe, for writing this great line:

Inspired by the success of Girls Gone Wild, Congress has decided to put out a monthly scandal, which they keep sending out even after we've told them we don't want them.

You can see more of Joe's pre-election jitters on his blog.

Warren Miller's "Off the Grid"

I've seen probably 3 or 4 of Warren Miller's films now, and I do appreciate them in many ways. The action shots of skiing are pretty great, of course, but I'm a big fan of the international footage in each film. By showing skiers who travel to remote places for their kicks, we also see a little bit about their cultures.

In this film, three skiers traveled to Kashmir (not exactly the safest place to travel right now) and in between shots of them cutting down the slopes, we see them teaching Indian kids to ski, we see a floating vegetable market, and get the rarest sliver of what life might be like there. The film also has scenes in Austria, Switzerland, remote Alaska, Japan, and probably some other places I'm not remembering.

In a lot of ways, if you've seen one ski movie, you've seen them all. But it was still good fun. And the Pantages lobby was absolutely beautiful. Well done, Broadway Center!

The Rain

I kinda like it. Even if Tacoma is floating away.

A Midsummer Night's Dream

I've only seen this show once before last night. The Ashland production was an incredible piece of theater. And, as it turns out, so was the UPS production. Perhaps this script, like A Comedy of Errors, just lends itself to a great night of theater.

The show at UPS was very very good, and in all the theater I've been seeing recently, the production was certainly one of the best pieces. It hit its jokes, it found new ones, and it was great fun for the duration.

Puck, Hermia, and Bottom were all especially good, I thought.

And once again ... a packed house. Good news all around!

Another Cherry Tree

This one at Bellarmine. I forgot how pretty it was. Of course, what the picture doesn't show you is how incredibly cold it's been.

Brrrrr!