Abyss Wed, Sep 8, 2010 at 11:20 AM

Sinking deeper
In a free fall now
Blackness darker
Bottomless abysmality


Sent from Joe's BlackBerry Storm

Roller Derby Returns

Catch on CW 17 at midnight, Feb 5!

Flat Track... I have been attending since November 2008.

This Season, they are members of the national women's flat track association.

Catch them starting in March at Mandarin Skate Station or Jacksonville Indoor Sports!

Click on Schedule to enlarge.

recent movies...

Movies seen recently...

True Grit, Rabbit Hole, Nowhere Boy, Casino Jack, Little Fockers, Black Swan, RED, The Dilemma, Green Hornet, King's Speech, Country Strong, The Fighter, How do you Know, Burlesque, Secretariat, Morning Glory, Despicable Me, The Social Network, No Strings Attached, The Way Back, Due Date, Love and Other Drugs.

Of these, Black Swan, King's Speech and Nowhere Boy were my favorites.

I would also recommend True Grit, Rabbit Hole and Country Strong (I enjoyed the atypical ending).

I liked Casino Jack because it was a story I had followed for a long time. It impacted one of my favorite fast food restaurants (Miami Subs) and our local gambling boat operations (Suncruz Casino)...

I guess The Social Network, Unstoppable and Secretariat were OK.

The rest were crap. Other than Despicable Me, I have not seen any cartoons lately... thank goodness...

48 Hour Film Project Eco-Challenge, Feb 18-20

As a bonus to our normal participation, we are participating in a special online 48 Hour Film Project Competition, 48 Go Green. More details to follow.

Walt Disney World, Feb 12-13, 2011

It is that time of year again; time to head back to the house of the mouse.

Originally scheduled for Feb 19-20, it had to be moved up to accommodate the 48 Hours Film Project- 48 Go Green

This trip includes Kimberly and may include Makynzi.

Should be a good time-- pictures to follow.

Swan Lake by Tchaikovsky, Sat, Feb 26, 2011

Swan Lake, scheduled for February 26, 2011 at 7:30 in Orange Park at Thrasher-Horne Center for the Arts, will be performed by National Russian Ballet Theater.

The story of the Odette, the swan queen (so called because she is the 'queen' of her companions at the lake, who have met a similar fate at Von Rothbart's hand), cursed by Rothbart to live as a swan by day and as herself at night, a curse that can only be broken by securing the eternal love of a man.

This man (in the story) is Prince Siegfried, who sees Odette one evening as she is transforming from swan to human. For him, it is love at first sight. He invites her to a ball at the castle where he says he intends to choose her as his bride. Instead of pledging his love to Odette, he (mistakenly) pledges his love to Odile, Von Rothbart's daughter, thinking she is Odette. Before Siegfried pledges his love to Odile, Odette appears at the (window) opening, pleading, in swan form, that Siegfried remain faithful to her.


Afterward, Odette flees to the lake and throws herself in, expressing that she cannot live without
Siegfried; Sigfried follows her, and in this display of eternal love, Rothbart's spell is broken over the other swans of the lake; they are transformed into their human forms permanently.


The Russian National Ballet Theatre was founded with the help and support of the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation.

Talent and devotion to Art is its major principal. This is supported by the outstanding talent and devotion of the celebrated masters of the Russian ballet, such as, People's Artist of the USSR Professor Igor Moiseev, People's Artist of Russia Professor R. Stuchkova, People's Artist of USSR M. Lavrovsky, People's Artist of USSR Y. Vladimirov and others.


(photos courtesy of SARA Artists- Societe Anonyme de Representation Artistique).

JSO, Thurs, Feb 24 Tchaikovsky's Fourth

Times Union Center, Jacoby Symphony Hall
Featuring Performances of:

Glazunov, Spring, Musical Picture in D;
STRAVINSKY, Violin Concerto*; and
Tchaikovsky, Symphony No. 4.

*soloist Jennifer Frautschi

The featured piece, Tchaikovsky's Fourth, is considered his most colorful symphony, packing a wallop of belting good tunes, toe-tapping rhythms and vivid orchestration, combined with fatalistic tragedy and balletic grace… and of course the famous pizzicato movement.

The following is a past performance of Ms. Frautschi of Stravinsky's Violin Concerto:

L'elisir d'amore By Donizetti, Feb 5, 2011

The Elixir of Love (L'elisir d'amore) by Donizetti will be performed at the Times Union Center’s Moran Theater on February 5, 2011. One of the 20 most performed operas in the United States; it is a simple story of a man (Nemorino) smitten with a woman (Adina) in a station above his. The man is beguiled by a travelling salesman (Dulcamara), who offers some rancid wine as an elixir of love.

Before the potion can take effect, the object of his love is offered a proposal of marriage by a sergeant (Belcore). She accepts the sergeant’s proposal, although in a subsequent interaction between Adina and Nemorino suggests that she has feelings for him. As he is waiting for the potion to take effect, he acts indifferently toward Adina. The sergeant suggests that they move the wedding up to the following day, and Adina, in response to Nemorino’s indifference, agrees.

The following day, there is a wedding banquet. While awaiting the arrival of the notary, Adina frets over Nemorino’s absence. Meanwhile, Nemorino appears after she exits the set and asks Dulcamara for more potion. Dulcamara refuses as Nemorino has no more money. Upon hearing that Nemorino is in search of money, Belcore offers Nemorino an enlistment bonus to join the military. Nemorino accepts and uses the money to purchase more elixir.



Meanwhile, most of the town learns that Nemorino has inherited a large sum from an uncle. Suddenly women are acting very friendly to him. He sees it as proof that the potion is working. After finding out from Dulcamara that Nemorino has used all his money to buy potions to try to win Adina’s affections, Adina shows up, saying that she has purchased his military contract and that if he chooses not to go, he will no longer be sad. They drag it out, but she finally confesses her (mutual) love for him, and they live happily ever after. Belcore muses that there are plenty of fish in the sea, and Dulcamara sees Belcore as a potential mark…

Self Portrait- on a call

Fromm: The Art of Loving

The two persons become well acquainted, their intimacy loses more and more of its miraculous character, until their antagonism, their disappointments, their mutual boredom kill whatever is left of the initial excitement.

Yet, in the beginning they do not know all this: in fact, they take the intensity of the infatuation, this being "crazy" about each other, for proof of the intensity of their love, while it may only prove the degree of their preceding loneliness.

There is hardly any activity, any enterprise, which is started with such tremendous hopes and expectations, and yet, which fails so regularly, as love.

If this were the case with any other activity, people would be eager to know the reasons for the failure, and to learn how one could do better - or they would give up the activity.

My Truck was in an accident

My truck was in an accident during Christmas time rush.

The damages they were minor, but I was elsewhere- receiving medical treatment.

A backing accident, truly accidental.

My insurer did not like that the vehicle was "garaged" at the address of the unlisted, household driver.

They took a recorded statement.

They decided to pay. The claim was closed in exactly 28 days. They paid $817.21.

My truck is reported to have sustained no damage. I will see when I return for it and my other worldly possessions. That is all I have in life is that junk. Otherwise, I am all alone.