Author: bookmarcus

A Wedding Story

Nataliya Topchiy and Brian Rector, July 17, 2010

So I’m happily writing and posting stuff on eatsforone and it is Wednesday evening and Brian calls, “Natasza and I are getting married on Saturday. Do y’all want to come?”

“Well… yeah.”

on the road again...

So Carol works it to get off work on Friday and we leave for Reno at 9:20, grab lunch at Jack in the Box and get to Brian’s a little past two. Immediately, they are all over us. Natasza wants Carol to go hair and nails and cake and stuff with her. Brian wants me to go suit shopping with him. He wants a linen suit, preferably cream, and Men’s Warehouse is having a sale.

Finding Men’s Warehouse was not exactly easy, even with Brian’s superphone. We walked into the largest mall I’ve ever seen and asked questions until we found it at the exact opposite corner of the Mall. Along the way, Brian stopped at an AT&T kiosk to say his phone wasn’t acting right. Guy rebooted and everything was fine. Except this Men’s Warehouse was a tiny tuxedo rental place. There was one linen suit hanging on the wall. The nice lady directed us to a real Men’s Warehouse in the strip mall across the road. Not a great start.

We came out of the mall at the same time as a short woman with pigtails (and very large bazooms, I noted). He asked her about Men’s Warehouse. She said she used to live around here… didn’t know about Men’s Warehouse, but there’s a Joseph A Bank at The Summit – south on Virginia, past where I-380 crosses over.

Men’s Warehouse is in a concrete block, stand-alone building off to the side of the strip mall. It has a modest storefront and inside a rack of six or eight Calvin Klein linen suits. They were very white and none in Brian’s size, we learned. The salesman walked Brian around and showed him other suits, but nothing remotely interesting. B asked where else we could go and the salesman mentioned Burlington Coat Factory.

So we headed to The Summit, WAY south on Virginia Ave, a large outdoor shopping center with Macy’s and Dillard’s and generally upscale stores.

Carol: Natasza and I are plying the strip centers of Sparks. We go to the Bakery closest to the house that Brian mentioned to check out a wedding cake. Oops, $48 and probably wouldn’t be ready by Saturday noon.

Picture this: Natasza doesn’t drive, so she hasn’t done much shopping in Sparks or Reno. I have driven around, but never shopped for bakeries or had my hair done. Hadn’t even thought about it. The Internet isn’t much help in dealing with neighborhood bakeries and hairdressers.

Working our way across town to a bakery recommended to Brian, we found a wonderful little Austrian bakery with all kinds of tempting pastries. And yes, they do wedding cakes and can have one ready by Saturday noon. Natasza described her dream cake, white and light with whipped cream and strawberries between the layers. The price was a bargain $20.

The cake deal done and while ‘the boys’ were away, Natasza showed me her dress and asked me to help her with her veil and head dress. The dress laced up the back with broad silk lacing through fabric loops, quite lovely and the current style in wedding dresses. Natasza had made the veil and it was to go on her head with a circle of flowers. She had yet to try fitting it to her head. Continue reading “A Wedding Story” →

Pigroast, 2010

Last year an actual pig was actually roasted. Pig ca. 2009

The Hales, as I know them, are centered in Lancaster, Ohio and like as not they celebrate their Haleness annually at a reunion wrapped around a Pigroast at Alan’s farm, Hale Hollow. A pig wasn’t actually roasted this year, but as a celebration – and it was a celebration – Pigroast is such a better name than picnic.

Picnic: A basket brought to a field somewhere, maybe under a tree… booooorrrrring. Pigroast: A rollicking good time by a bunch of folks churning around farm-like terrain. Flames and smoke are involved.

Pigs made a contribution by way of two of the meats of choice – keilbasa and pork tenderloin: “the other meat” in this case was brisket, and all were expertly smoked over the preceding 24 hours by Alan with an assist from Eric and Tillie.

This year was special. In addition to filling up on pig parts and other goodies, we were celebrating the life of Edward E. (Bus) Hale, the patriarch of the family who died in March. A service was held at Grace Church where scores of friends and family gathered to pay their respect. Son Mark spoke a tribute called “Dad” and grandson Brian read “Ode to Bus.”

For me, the highlight of the celebration was all those folks mingling in the church lobby before and after the service.
Continue reading “Pigroast, 2010” →

Germany 0 – Spain 1

2010 World Cup Semifinal.

Scootering to the Market on Tuesday on Pacific Ave, I spotted a place on the corner of Mason with a Spanish flag hanging in the doorway, on the hill, just above North Beach. A sign with a World Cup logo said, “WATCH IT HERE.”

La Lola, A Tapas Bar on Mason at Pacific

On the way home, I stopped and checked it out: La Lola, Tapas Bar. I’d been wanting to watch the Spain, Germany semifinal at just the right bar, but was clueless about where. This looked like the place. At a bar in Vancouver where we watched the Europe Cup final in 2008 I scored an Espana scarf. I got it out of the closet and was good to go.
Continue reading “Germany 0 – Spain 1” →

SFiFF53 My Favorites

After the Festival, I sent the following email to Sean Uyehara, the programmer I know best at the Film Society:

Sean,
Standing in line, I was often asked, “What’s your favorite film so far?” I would usually answer, “The last one I saw.”

I just want to let a programmer know how much I enjoyed the Festival this year. I saw 18 films plus 4 Tributes (including films). Of all those, I there was only one that I really didn’t like (Woman on Fire…).

The four Tributes and their attendant films were outstanding (Hertzfeldt, Salles, Duvall, Ebert); and I considered seven of the other films I saw outstanding, with many runners-up.

WAY OF NATURE
CAIRO TIME
WILD GRASS
MOTHER AND CHILD
ALAMAR
SEDUCING CHARLIE BARKER
BILL CUNNINGHAM NEW YORK

Please convey my appreciation to Rachael, Rod and Joe; and of course, Graham.

Until the fall season…
Sincerely,

Marcus Rector

So here are the descriptions and MY TAKE for my favorites. Film descriptions are from the Program Guide or from Scoop du Jour, the daily chronicle of Festival activity.

WAY OF NATURE
Documentaries – Sweden, 2008, 107 minutes

A mostly wordless meditation on the seasonal ebb and flow of life’s rhythms on a remote Swedish farm, where the sights and sounds build to create an elegantly subtle drama of biodiversity and sustainability in action.

MY TAKE – Fabulous. And beautiful. Way better than Sweetgrass (which was really good), as this film concentrates on the farm and the animals, with the sole purpose of vividly showing a year-in-the-life. My favorite scenes were near the beginning, of big draught horses and their young galloping in the snow. The family farm raises – from what I could see – heritage breeds of horses, dairy cattle, sheep, turkeys and chickens. Milk and eggs are sold in bulk, and they make butter and cheese and mow their own hay. The 107 minutes flew by and I wanted more. ***** Continue reading “SFiFF53 My Favorites” →

SFiFF53: The Scene

Random bits and pieces of SFiFF53:

Most films are at the Sundance Kabuki, where 5 screens are utilized.
House #1, has a balcony where one may enjoy food and adult beverages; it seats about 600. The other four houses seat about 200 each.

Let’s say we have tickets to ALAMAR at 6:45pm. A line forms outside on the sidewalk about an hour before the film begins. I would show up a little after six and Carol would join me, coming directly from school about 6:15. Our line would go in about 20 minutes before the show.

The Rush Line. If all tickets are sold for ALAMAR, its not “sold out,” it “goes to RUSH” and a Rush Line is formed. Once all ticketholders are seated, the staff fills no-show seats from the Rush Line. First come, first served, cash only.

Really big shows (Opening Night, Closing Night and certain Tributes) are at the Historic Castro Theater (1400 seats).

Before the Robert Duval Tribute, we had a bowl of chowder here on Castro Street. It’s a lot like the Swan Oyster Depot on Polk, but a bit classier, and larger, with a row of tables. Good stuff. Yum. Continue reading “SFiFF53: The Scene” →

SFiFF53 TRIBUTES

I’m not going to publish my take on every film I saw at the 53rd San Francisco International Film Festival; that would be boring as Carol and I saw 18 films between us in addition to the Tributes. But I do want to share the four Tributes we attended; I thought all were brilliant.

DON HERTZFELDT                             PERSISTENCE OF VISION AWARD
Golden Gate Persistence of Vision Award – The POV Award honors the lifetime achievement of a filmmaker whose work is crafting documentaries, short films, animation or work for television. This year’s recipient is Don Hertzfeldt.

An Evening with Don Hertzfeldt
Friday, April 23
7:30 PM pm Sundance Kabuki Cinemas

From the Program Guide:
The 53rd San Francisco International Film Festival is proud to present the Golden Gate Persistence of Vision Award to Academy Award–nominated short filmmaker Don Hertzfeldt for his unique contributions to animation. Over a long career, Hertzfeldt has remained fiercely independent by sticking to short format and challenging the boundaries of his craft. The popularity of his work is unprecedented in the world of short animation and his films are frequently referenced in pop culture. Hertzfeldt will be presented with the award and participate in an onstage interview at the Sundance Kabuki Cinemas. The shorts program Life, Death and Very Large Utensils, a collection of short films, past and present, is set to follow.

In her introduction, Rachael Rosen, the program director, said that most films – thus most awards – are centered on narrative, feature length films. The POV Award is about the others.

MY TAKE – Accepting the award, Hertzfeldt said, “I’m kind of nervous, getting this award at my age (he’s 32); what if I screw up later… do I have to give it back?”

The great thing about film festivals is that you can see things here you can’t see anywhere else. Don Hertzfeldt is a brilliant storyteller, both in person and in his films. His film stories are, for the most part, told with hand drawn stick figures. Some very funny, some poignant, some slice of life, some one joke stretched out and embellished. Brilliant. One can see his work on DVD and on the internet, but it ain’t the same as being in a packed theater – with him.

Continue reading “SFiFF53 TRIBUTES” →

Giants v Braves

April 11, 2010

“The money lies with the RBIs.”
Jeff Kent

We left Russian Hill at 11am; light rain was falling, but there was no wind. We wanted to get to the game early for the ceremonies marking the 10th Anniversary of the opening of PacBell Park. Kirk “Woodie” Reuter will throw out the first pitch, he was the Opening Day starter ten years ago. Barry Bonds, Jeff Kent, J.T. Snow and most of the other members of that team will be in attendance. The Giants give good ceremony.

When we got off the 45 bus, it was very windy and the rain was getting serious. We met Sarah in the Dugout Store for the other important reason to be early: to get our Tim Lincecum wigs.

On into the park and up to the view level, to claim our excellent View Box seats. I got my routine Giants Dog and Harp, but there was no place to go and the wind-blown rain was pelting harder and harder. The only place covered is the concourse and there’s no place to sit. It’s 12:15, game time is 1:05 but there’s no way. The radio says they’re shooting for a 4:00 start. We took a vote: unanimous, we’re outta here.

View from the Promenade Level.

I taped the Masters, so we went home and watched that. Excellent choice. After the Masters, we tuned in the Giants game; it started at 5:15, with no ceremonies. The Giants trailed two-zip into the fourth inning, then 2-1, then 3-2. Lincecum retired after the 7th with 10 Ks and 107 pitches. In the eighth, Panda smacked a 2-run bomb into the Arcade and the Giants ultimately won 6-3. With the final out, it started pouring rain.

Marc eyeing the escalator… its in up-only mode.
Carol deciding if she likes being here.
Nice day, our seats are this way…
Sarah and Carol headed home.

“In all the years we’ve been doing this, this is one of the angriest bays we’ve seen.”
Duane Kuiper, Giants TV play by play guy.

Spring Trip to Reno

…and back It’s a beautiful sunny day and we’re on the road to Reno. We were last there in October; there is more snow now, but thankfully not on the road. (An ominous voice somewhere outside my consciousness says “Just wait, buster.”) Our lunch stop at Jack in the Box. OK, its fast food, but it is fast and unlike other burger joints, it has a broad selection of tasty menu items and it’s cooked when you order. Be nice if they paid some attention to the ambience… not to mention the restrooms.

fish n chips, fish sandwich
This dog loves his air (at 70mph).
Snowmobiling is over – or is about to start – on an early Saturday afternoon.

My mission is to drive Brian to Lovelock NV, about 70 miles east of Reno, to pick up a Tacoma he bought on E-Bay. Carol’s mission is to go shopping while we’re away. Brian has guests – Ken-the-kilt-guy and his wife Leigh – so Carol and I went straight to the Peppermill Sports Book to watch Butler kick K-State butt and West Virginia send Kentucky home.

What could be finer than soggy nachos? Not a good foodie day.
Back at Brian’s place, the Nevada sky at dusk demanded a picture.

SUNDAY

Sunday, Brian dropped Ken and Leigh at the airport and went to his office for a bit of catch-up. Sadly, I missed the drive through the desert, as the Tacoma guy brought the truck to Brian. For a late lunch, I grilled hot-dogs from Fatted Calf served with grilled Acme buns – stuff I brought from SF for the occasion – a step up from Saturday’s fare on the foodie chain. Michigan State led Tennessee by a point with 1.3 seconds to go… the Tennessee half-court heave at the buzzer was UGLY, sealing an MSU win. Duke had no trouble with Baylor, rounding out the Final Four.

Brian made broiled potatoes and carrots to go with grilled sausages. Carol critiqued.

After dinner, we played a game of Homer Simpson CLUE. That was fun (‘cause I won) (Marge in the Nuclear Plant with the necklace). MONDAY First thing Monday, Carol followed me as I took Brian’s Camry for an oil change. B is fixin’ to sell it, since now has a wikkid Toyota Tacoma truck, dark green with a big “Off Road” logo on the back quarter. We went from there to Legends featuring outlet stores for every National Chain you ever heard of. Whoop! But it’s well designed and landscaped, using their one-percent art for sculptures of Nevada State Bird, Flower, Tree and so on. On this day, it was really windy, a portent of things to come. Continue reading “Spring Trip to Reno” →

Edward E. “Bus” Hale

The first time I met Bus — I didn’t allow myself to call him Bus until I was well over 50 — I made the drive to Lancaster to “meet the parents.” I showed up at the door – a junior in college – with a fuzzy goatee and met the mom.

Promptly at 5pm, mom, Carol, her four siblings and I, gathered around the kitchen table. In walked Bus, sat at the head of the table and commenced to eat Chili… on a plate!… with no onions (he didn’t like onions). That was a first for me.

On a subsequent visit, feeling my oats over dinner, I made a college boy derogatory comment about labor unions. I was abruptly advised that he was a proud member of the pipefitters union. I never brought that subject up again. Surprise! He allowed me to take his daughter’s hand.

One thing sure, when I visited the Hales, there was always a game on the TV… the Reds, the Buckeyes, the Bengals or Browns. I remember him most, sitting… sitting in his big Barcalounger for the games… sitting on a bench outside a shop at the mall… sitting at the head of the table… sitting in the driver’s seat – he loved to drive. In 2006, he took us out in the big Ford on a driving tour of the back roads of Fairfield County, pointing out where he and others grew up, hung out, went to school; and where a drunken uncle or two stumbled their way home. I loved that tour. I felt like after all those years, I knew a little about the man, and that’s what I’ll remember.

Party Hearty

sb_invite_XLIV_jpg

Every year on the Sunday closest to my birthday, we throw a party and guess what, a Super Bowl breaks out. This year they called it XLIV. All the regulars showed up minus Leslie (we missed her) and plus Brian (welcome to the tradition!). Food was prepared and consumed; money changed hands. It was a beautiful day and a great good time was had by all. Not only that, the Saints triumphed over the mind numbingly boring team from Indianapolis, faux Colts. WHO DAT! WHO DAT! Who dat say dey gonna beat dem Saints!

sb_veggies

We swapped last year’s Bacon Explosion for piles of veggies. That stuff in the jars is my home made pickled cauliflower and carrots. Here they are on their way to the dining room… betting central.

Not that we didn’t have meat, we had plenty. That’s a Burgers’ Smokehouse “City Ham” from Missouri. I made a K-Paul Meatloaf and macaroni salad with a barbecue flavor. Now that was good, and it’s a good thing because we had enough to eat for a week.

We didn’t make everything… here’s Paula with her deviled eggs and Sarah with her chili. After a taste of Sarah’s chili, one need an egg to cool down one’s palate. Continue reading “Party Hearty” →