Please join the fight to stop LG from building its high-rise tower in Englewood Cliffs NJ, that will RUIN the Palisades. This fight can be won if enough people voice their opinions, boycott LG and step up to the plate to fight. Let's win this for future generations. Because if we lose this fight, the beauty of this historic natural park/landmark will be destroyed forever.
Saturday, April 19, 2014
Friday, April 18, 2014
Doubled in bulk—Making Norwegian Whole-Wheat Bread
This is
Easter week—a job-free week, one that I am taking advantage of at home. The
weather since Tuesday (a gorgeous spring day) has returned to something
resembling late winter/early spring. It’s been rainy, windy, chilly, and gray--not so motivating in terms of wanting to be outdoors. But today is shaping up to be a nice day, so we'll see. I was looking through some of my old
cookbooks on Wednesday, and happened upon one that I have used on occasion--Beard on Bread. On the cover, it states:
“To: All Bread Lovers. My 100 favorite
recipes, with variations. Everything you need to know about breadmaking”. So I decided that I would make some bread for Easter. James
Beard (1903-1985) was an American chef and food writer, born in Portland
Oregon. Beard on Bread (catchy title)
was first published in 1973, and given to me by my aunt and uncle as a school
graduation present, if I remember correctly. They knew already then that I
loved making bread, both yeast and non-yeast. My mother never made yeast breads
after a few fiascos; she said that the dough never rose for her. I cannot say
the same; I have had good success with the yeast bread recipes I’ve tried. It’s
all about not killing the yeast cells that are there to do the job
of leavening. If conditions are right for them, your success is assured.
I came upon
a recipe in his book called ‘Norwegian Whole-Wheat
Bread’ and tried it. What surprised me was how fast the dough doubled in
bulk and how it took over the bowl I had set it in (see photo)! You won’t be
disappointed with the results. I’m including the recipe here as Beard wrote it
(the comments in parentheses are mine).
Norwegian Whole-Wheat Bread
Taught in the
Norwegian Government School for Domestic Science Teachers in Oslo, this recipe makes
a very dense, coarse bread full of honest flavor, and it slices nicely. The
dough will be stiff and difficult to knead, but I am sure you will find the
results worth your labors.
2
packages active dry yeast
4 cups
warm milk = 100o to 115oF, approximately
8 cups
whole-wheat flour
2 cups
fine rye flour
2 cups
unbleached all-purpose flour
1-2
tablespoons salt
Cornmeal
Makes 2 free-form loaves
In a large
mixing bowl dissolve the yeast in ½ cup of the warm milk. Allow to proof. Add
the remaining milk, and gradually beat or stir in the three flours and the salt
to make a firm dough (I used 7 instead of 8 cups of whole-wheat flour and 3 instead of 2 cups of unbleached all-purpose flour since I didn't have enough whole-wheat flour left). Remove the dough to a well-floured board and knead 10 to
12 minutes (I used an electric handheld
mixer with dough hooks and that did a good job—it was a tough dough to knead).
When you have a satiny, elastic dough, form it into a ball. Place in a
well-buttered bowl, and turn to coat the surface. Cover and set in a warm spot
to rise until doubled in bulk.
Punch the
dough down, turn out on a floured board, and knead again for 2 or 3 minutes.
Cut into two equal pieces. Sprinkle one very large baking sheet or two small
ones with a bit of cornmeal. Shape the dough into round loaves, and place them
on the baking sheet or sheets (I used two
adjustable-size bread pans instead and adjusted them to long). Cover and let rise in a warm place
until almost doubled in bulk, which will take as long as 2 hours, because this
is a firm-textured bread………Bake in a preheated oven at 375oF for about an hour, or until the loaves sound
hollow when you tap them with your knuckles. Cool thoroughly before slicing.
This bread cuts beautifully and will remain fresh for quite a while if wrapped
in a towel or placed in a plastic bag in the refrigerator.
Thursday, April 17, 2014
Protect the Palisades--Don't let LG win
In recent months, I have become an avid online supporter of protecting the Hudson River Palisades from those who would destroy its natural beauty. I've signed my share of online petitions, shared them on Facebook and tweeted them on Twitter. There comes a time in each person's life when he or she has to take a stand. This is my time. I just never figured that it would take the form of environmental preservation issues, but it has. No apologies for that--I'm quite happy about it. I grew up in a Hudson River valley town--Tarrytown--and looked across the river for years at the beautiful Palisades, that were always especially lovely in the autumn. Talk about the colors of the foliage; you didn't need to travel to New England to witness the gorgeous colors. But like so many people, I may have taken that view for granted. And now it may change unless more people act to stop what is happening.
In short, the fight is to stop the multinational electronics manufacturer LG (a South Korean company with headquarters in Seoul) from building a high-rise office building on the Palisades that will ruin the natural beauty of the Palisades and open for more development along that lovely ridgeline. The alternative suggestion is for them to build a low-rise office building, but they are refusing to consider that because they were granted permission to build their high-rise building by the borough of Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey and its mayor Joe Parisi. Hence the fight.
Please support this fight against LG. You can read more about this on the following sites:
http://www.protectthepalisades.org/
https://www.facebook.com/ProtectThePalisades
https://twitter.com/StopLGTower
http://blog.nj.com/njv_editorial_page/2013/07/protect_the_palisades_editoria.html
http://www.nynjtc.org/issue/protecting-palisades-ridgeline
In short, the fight is to stop the multinational electronics manufacturer LG (a South Korean company with headquarters in Seoul) from building a high-rise office building on the Palisades that will ruin the natural beauty of the Palisades and open for more development along that lovely ridgeline. The alternative suggestion is for them to build a low-rise office building, but they are refusing to consider that because they were granted permission to build their high-rise building by the borough of Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey and its mayor Joe Parisi. Hence the fight.
Please support this fight against LG. You can read more about this on the following sites:
http://www.protectthepalisades.org/
https://www.facebook.com/ProtectThePalisades
https://twitter.com/StopLGTower
http://blog.nj.com/njv_editorial_page/2013/07/protect_the_palisades_editoria.html
http://www.nynjtc.org/issue/protecting-palisades-ridgeline
Tuesday, April 15, 2014
The feeling of Easter--walking along the Akerselva river
Spring has
arrived in Oslo, and I took a long walk today up along the Akerselva river. Watching
the river and the land come back to life after winter’s pall warms my heart the
way the sun warms my face and hands. It’s the best feeling in the world—walking
along the river on a sunny blue-sky spring day, not a care in the world. This is the feeling of Easter—a peaceful rebirth of
the heart and soul, and nature reflects that. Trees and bushes are budding en
masse, the magpies, seagulls, ducks, pigeons and sparrows are out in force,
sitting in the tree branches, searching for worms in the earth, sitting at the river's edge, or flying
overhead. Green ivy is starting to make its way up along the stone wall of a
house. Daffodils and tulips are blooming, forsythia likewise. And the river? It does what it does best—flows along through the natural
curves and bends in the landscape, through the city that borders its banks, and over the small waterfalls. The stillness
and peace of a walk along the river, out in nature, are gifts that money cannot
buy. I have waited an entire winter to feel
like this.
Flirting at the river's edge |
Reaching for the sun |
Pigeons roosting |
Magpie nest |
Hanging blooms |
Reflections of spring |
The Akerselva River winding its way through Oslo |
River curve and tree shadow |
Ivy on its way to taking over a wall |
Daffodils add color to the greens |
The waterfall at Hønsa Lovisas house |
Tulips are a true sign of spring |
Sunday, April 13, 2014
Cleansing and rebirth--Darren Aronofsky's Noah
It’s hard
to have a clear opinion about Noah,
Darren Aronofsky’s new film about the ark-builder, family man and reluctant
servant of God given the task of saving the animals in order that the old
corrupt world can be destroyed and a new purified one can take its place. That's because it raises so many unanswerable questions, using the biblical story of Noah. The Earth must suffer fire to cleanse what little
remains in the way of civilization and flood waters that will wipe out mankind
and allow for the birth of a new world. Noah is aided in his task of building the
ark by the Watchers, creatures that are essentially beings of light
(angels) that disobeyed the will of God by helping mankind, and who ended up punished
by God--trapped by the elements of Earth—mud and rock. They are also called the 'giants in the earth'. When Noah (played by Russell Crowe), his wife Naameh (played by Jennifer Connelly) and his family
meet them, they are giant stone creatures resembling small mountains when stationary, who destroy any person who dares to
cross into their territory; they no longer trust humans. But they come to
understand that Noah, who visits his grandfather Methuselah (played by Anthony Hopkins) in order to discuss
with him the dreams he’s been having, is a good man, descended from the line of
Seth, and not of Cain (who murdered his brother). The latter line has succeeded
in the space of five generations in ravaging and plundering the Earth and
destroying the creatures—animals and birds—who live on it. The Earth is a
devastated place, lacking food and water. Noah and his family are nomads and
vegetarians, who at times run into large groups of marauders who think nothing
of murdering innocent people and taking what they want from them. As you watch
the film, you know that the end of the world is coming; it cannot continue this
way forever; the film is pervaded by this apocalyptic vision. It’s hard not to
make the jump to the present day, where mankind’s brutality, violence, and continual
devastation of the environment have marked our own world for extinction—in our
case perhaps via global warming and/or natural catastrophes caused by our destruction
of the planet we live on. The symbolism is not subtle.
The group
of marauders descended from the line of Cain is led by a man named Tubal-Cain (played by Ray Winstone),
who is ruthless, dangerous and proud. He believes man was made in the image and
likeness of God, using that as an excuse to behave badly; he is not
God-fearing, preferring to believe that man can behave like God and decide who
lives and who dies. Noah is presumably the hero and Tubal-Cain is the
anti-hero. Except that it never is that black-and-white, because as the film nears
its end, it’s clear to all that Noah is not without sin. In fact, he is a
guilt-ridden, deluded, plagued man, angry with the world and with God for
assigning him this mission, merciless and ruthless in his own way. The tasks of
building the ark, saving the animals, and saving his family prove to be too
much for one man’s sanity, especially when he is challenged by his son Ham (played by Logan Lerman),
whose pleas to save the young woman he has met and wishes to take with him
onboard the ark are ignored, resulting in her death. Ham and Noah become
estranged, and Ham is tempted to betray his father by Tubal-Cain, who has
managed to come aboard the ark, threatening the survival of all those on board.
The film’s
imagery is impressive. It’s hard not to be moved by the scenes of earthly
devastation, the eventual flood (rising waters and death by drowning), the battle
scenes between the marauders and the Watchers (and their eventual deaths and
release from this world), the scenes of birds and animals making their way to
the ark, as well as the segment on the creation of the world in seven days. The
latter is especially impressive. But it’s also a provocative film as well as at
times an over-the-top and illogical one. The numbers of innocent women and children
who perished in the flood is hardly justifiable, if God is a righteous God. But
we know that the God of the Old Testament was hardly a merciful God, in
contrast to Jesus in the New Testament. In fact, the lives of women and
children in this patriarchal age were worth very little. Why did God allow
that? Why did God spare Noah and his family alone? Surely there were other good
families that could also have been saved? Why did Noah first listen to Ham’s
wish to find a woman to take aboard so that he would not be alone in the new
world, only to vehemently repudiate that idea (he concludes that his only task
was to save the animals, not that humans should repopulate the Earth. The scene
where he tells his infertile adopted daughter Ila (played by Emma Watson) who is together with his son
Shem (played by Douglas Booth) that she is a gift no matter that she cannot reproduce perhaps portends
this)? Was that the correct conclusion? Who can know? Why did he consider murdering
Ila’s twin daughters, only then to change his mind (he presumably goes against
the will of God as he had divined it)? Did God really want him to kill his own
grandchildren (one is reminded of the story of Abraham being asked to kill his
son Isaac)? These questions are not answered in the Old Testament, and
Aronofsky does not answer them either. I left the theater knowing that I had
seen a film that would make me think about the things that Aronofsky is clearly
preoccupied with—what are we doing to our planet, are we incurring the wrath of
its Creator, is the Apocalypse coming, why are we so preoccupied with the end
of the world and can we stop it, can we cleanse our world of sin, how can we be reborn and what will it take, is there a merciful Creator, is love the
answer to all things (do women intuit and understand that message better than
men), and are both men and women necessary to keep the balance between the
cerebral and the emotional worlds we inhabit? We cannot have too much of the
one or the other as mortal human beings. Or can we? What is Paradise, and why
were its original inhabitants so willing to risk their happiness for something
they (perceived that they) did not have? Why were they so gullible to temptation?
And if they did not have happiness, then how could where they lived be called
Paradise? Is it man’s curse to be forever dissatisfied with what he has? Or is
this perhaps the greatest temptation of all—to trust others (sometimes in the guise of
well-meaning, wise, 'religious' seekers and worldly leaders) to define happiness for us, when
we know deep within ourselves what it really is? We must constantly be on the
lookout for, and be able to identify, those who would deceive and mislead us, and we must not deceive ourselves. Not easy tasks, much like building an ark and rebuilding a broken world.
Thursday, April 10, 2014
A Sinkhole and a Chimney Fire
Our little
neighborhood in the Sagene district of Oslo has been the subject of two newsworthy
events within the past several days, both rather disconcerting. On Tuesday
evening, a sinkhole about ten feet wide and fifty feet deep opened up in the
road in front of a housing development right around the corner from where we
live. Sinkholes seem to be a more common occurrence around the world now than they were before,
or perhaps it’s just that they make the news more often these days, especially
when they claim lives, as did the one in Florida in March 2013, when a house
fell into a sinkhole that suddenly opened up, taking the owner with it (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/01/florida-sinkhole_n_2788114.html).
The one in
our neighborhood did not result in any casualties, luckily; the police and fire
departments were on the scene immediately, and a geologist was called in for
consultation. As it stood on Wednesday morning, road crews were busy working on
it. Why it developed is a mystery, but it seems as though the combination of
steady rain and recent roadwork contributed to its formation.
Sinkholes, whether they are on land or in the water, are scarily fascinating, as this link clearly demonstrates: http://abcnews.go.com/International/photos/incredible-sinkholes-world-18651806/image-corvettes-collapse-giant-sinkhole-22481216.
They can also suck in whatever is near them in the space of seconds, as the following video depicts. In this case, the sinkhole devoured trees in
Assumption Parish, Louisiana http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dcOPz_7KVQU&list=FL4rKLincZWuFolZVFChzj5g&feature=share.
Besides the
sinkhole, our neighborhood also experienced a chimney fire on Wednesday
evening. If you have never seen one, be glad that you haven’t. It’s a powerful
reminder of how fast a fire develops, especially on a windy evening. The
homeowners had clearly forgotten to clean their chimney before they lit a fire in their fireplace;
whatever creosote and ash buildup that remained from previous use had obviously
not been removed. I was watching TV in my living room when suddenly I noticed
that the sky outside had become foggy. Within seconds there was a blanket of
fog outside. And the fog was moving and blowing about, since Wednesday night
was quite windy. But then the fog got thicker and darker, and I knew that it
was smoke from a fire and not fog. I looked out the window and saw where the
smoke was coming from—the chimney of one of the houses right across the street
from where we live. As I watched, the smoke got even darker, billowing out of
the chimney, followed by fire that leapt up out of the chimney. At that point,
I ran to get my phone to call the fire department, but then I noticed that
there were people in the house. I could see them through the windows, and I
wasn’t sure if they knew their chimney was on fire. I decided instead to knock
on their door and let them know, but when I got there, there were already people
who had had the same idea, and who had called the fire department as well. The
firemen arrived very quickly, and set about putting out the fire. Two of them
made it onto the roof, and lowered down a device called a fire scrubber into
the chimney, which by this time was spitting out glowing embers of quite some
size. The fire scrubber removes the burning creosote by scraping the sidewalls
clean; this took some minutes but it worked.
One thing
is certain; had the roofs been made of wood, they would have caught fire. Luckily,
they were Mediterranean-style clay tile roofs. However, the houses they sit
atop are often old wooden houses that do burn rapidly and effectively if they
catch fire, unfortunately. Watching what transpired was a reminder of how
quickly accidents and disasters can happen. In the case of the sinkhole, no one
could have really predicted that it would have happened, but with the chimney
fire, it’s clear that it could have been prevented if the homeowners had
remembered to clean their chimney before using the fireplace.
Wednesday, April 9, 2014
This video will touch your heart
A wonderful video, actually a commercial from Thailand, with a positive uplifting message. If it doesn't bring a tear to your eye, I don't know what will.
This is the kind of book promotion I like
Monday, April 7, 2014
Sunday, April 6, 2014
Quotes about friendship
One of
the most beautiful qualities of true friendship is to understand and to be
understood.
--Lucius Annaeus Seneca
Let us
be grateful to people who make us happy, they are the charming gardeners who
make our souls blossom.
--Marcel Proust
The
friend who can be silent with us in a moment of despair or confusion, who can
stay with us in an hour of grief and bereavement, who can tolerate not
knowing... not healing, not curing... that is a friend who cares.
--Henri
Nouwen
In
everyone's life, at some time, our inner fire goes out. It is then burst into
flame by an encounter with another human being. We should all be thankful for
those people who rekindle the inner spirit.
--Albert
Schweitzer
I cannot
even imagine where I would be today were it not for that handful of friends who
have given me a heart full of joy. Let's face it, friends make life a lot more
fun.
--Charles
R. Swindoll
So long
as the memory of certain beloved friends lives in my heart, I shall say that
life is good.
--Helen
Keller
A true
friend is someone who is there for you when he'd rather be anywhere else.
--Len
Wein
Each
friend represents a world in us, a world not born until they arrive, and it is
only by this meeting that a new world is born.
--Anais
Nin
There is
nothing on this earth more to be prized than true friendship.
--Thomas
Aquinas
Sometimes
being a friend means mastering the art of timing. There is a time for silence.
A time to let go and allow people to hurl themselves into their own destiny.
And a time to prepare to pick up the pieces when it's all over.
--Octavia
Butler
Friends...
they cherish one another's hopes. They are kind to one another's dreams.
--Henry
David Thoreau
A real
friend is one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out.
--Walter
Winchell
You can
always tell a real friend: when you've made a fool of yourself he doesn't feel
you've done a permanent job.
--Laurence
J. Peter
Nothing
but heaven itself is better than a friend who is really a friend.
--Plautus
Sunday, March 30, 2014
Thinking about the future and retirement when you are young
I’m always
a bit surprised by what people respond to on social media sites. I am a rather
infrequent commenter myself on social media; it takes a lot to get me to write
a pithy response to an online article that I found provocative, timely or
interesting. If something strikes me as inherently kind or compassionate, I may
write a short note praising the writer for his or her insights and empathy. This
past week I read a very short but good article on the Care2 website that
dispensed some good advice on how to stop wasting money and to think about the
future (http://www.care2.com/greenliving/top-6-ways-we-all-waste-money-and-how-to-stop.html).
I thought the article was well-written enough to comment on, and this is what I
wrote:
Very good tips. If I could emphasize one thing,
it would be this. Think about retirement when you are young and starting out in
the work world. It's never too soon to start saving your own money toward
retirement.
The Care2
community likes to deal out what it calls Green
Stars of Appreciation, and I got quite a few for this little comment
(notification by email). All well and good. What struck me was that this way of
thinking is perhaps not so widespread as you might think. When I worked at different
American workplaces in the 1980s, there was always the requisite orientation day that included presentations of 401K plans and IRAs and that sort of thing, so we were in fact briefly introduced to the topic of retirement. But it wasn’t ‘emphasized’ to think ahead, to sock
away as much as possible so that you had a good nest egg for when you were
older. And when you’re young, you think you’ll be young forever, so you don’t
save as much as you should toward retirement. I asked several people, all of
whom are middle-aged like me, whether they had been encouraged to save for retirement
when they were young and starting out in the work world. The answer was
unanimously ‘no’, and that’s true for me as well. Several of those I talked to
wished that it had been hammered into them—save
for retirement no matter what.
I make it a
point to tell the young people I know to save a lot toward retirement when they’re
young. Think income, promotions and salary raises. Look out for yourself. I say
this to young women especially, but the advice is relevant for young men as
well. Why? When you are young, work matters a lot, in fact, identity becomes
wrapped up in one’s work. You love your job and you think you will want to work
forever. You don’t consider any other possibility. And the world around you is
telling you ‘don't play it safe, take
risks, live for now’. But mindsets change as we grow older--gradually for
some people, abruptly for others, depending upon how you are treated by your
workplaces in many cases when you reach middle-age. Suddenly you may find yourself
thinking about retiring early in order to pursue a new career, course of study, hobbies,
volunteer work—but you don’t have the funds to retire. You don’t have the
freedom to change your life. This might not seem like a big deal to some
people, but it is a big deal. It is no fun to be stuck in a job or a way of life you are weary of until
you are 70 years of age in order to have enough money to retire. I think it
might also be smart to tell young people that they don’t have to have the
biggest homes, multiple cars, expensive vacations, and all the rest, at the
expense of a good retirement account. You don't have to achieve the materialistic dreams that society deems important. Enjoy life, enjoy material pursuits (to a point), pursue your work dreams and
goals, but be smart about the future. One day you will retire and you may want
to do it sooner than later.
Monday, March 24, 2014
Favorite movies from the 1980s until now (so far)
- 2010 (1984) with Roy Scheider, John Lithgow, Helen Mirren, Bob Balaban
- 28 Days Later (2002) with Cillian Murphy, Naomie Harris, Christopher Eccleston, Alex Palmer
- A Fish Called Wanda (1988) with John Cleese, Jamie Lee Curtis, Kevin Kline, Michael Palin
- Aliens (1986) with Sigourney Weaver, Michael Biehn, Carrie Henn, Paul Reiser
- Another Earth (2011) with Brit Marling, William Mapother, Matthew-Lee Erlbach, DJ Flava
- Body Heat (1981) with William Hurt, Kathleen Turner, Richard Crenna, Ted Danson
- Brokeback Mountain (2005) with Jake Gyllenhaal, Heath Ledger, Michelle Williams, Randy Quaid
- Bugsy (1991) with Warren Beatty, Annette Bening, Harvey Keitel, Ben Kingsley
- Casino (1995) with Robert De Niro, Sharon Stone, Joe Pesci
- Children of a Lesser God (1986) with William Hurt, Marlee Matlin, Piper Laurie
- Coraline (2009) with Dakota Fanning, Teri Hatcher, John Hodgman, Jennifer Saunders
- Dances with Wolves (1990) with Kevin Costner, Mary McDonnell, Graham Greene
- Despicable Me (2010) with Steve Carell, Jason Segel, Russell Brand
- Dracula (1992) with Gary Oldman, Winona Ryder, Anthony Hopkins
- Exit Through the Gift Shop (2010 documentary) with Banksy, Space Invader, Mr. Brainwash
- Far from Heaven (2002) with Julianne Moore, Dennis Quaid, Dennis Haysbert
- Ghost Busters (1984) with Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis, Sigourney Weaver
- Girl with a Pearl Earring (2003) with Scarlett Johansson, Colin Firth, Tom Wilkinson, Judy Parfitt
- Grey Gardens (2009 TV Movie) with Drew Barrymore, Jessica Lange, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Ken Howard
- Hamam (The Turkish Bath) (1997) with Alessandro Gassman, Francesca d'Aloja, Carlo Cecchi
- Home Alone (1990) with Macaulay Culkin, Joe Pesci, Daniel Stern
- I Am Legend (2007) with Will Smith, Alice Braga, Charlie Tahan
- Ice Age (2002) with Denis Leary, John Leguizamo, Ray Romano
- In the Mouth of Madness (1994) with Sam Neill, Jürgen Prochnow, Julie Carmen, David Warner
- In the Valley of Elah (2007) with Tommy Lee Jones, Charlize Theron, Jonathan Tucker, Jason Patric
- In Time (2011) with Justin Timberlake, Amanda Seyfried, Cillian Murphy, Olivia Wilde
- Jacob's Ladder (1990) with Tim Robbins, Elizabeth Pena, Danny Aiello
- Jane Eyre (2011) with Mia Wasikowska, Michael Fassbender, Jamie Bell, Su Elliot
- Jodaeiye Nader az Simin (2011) with Peyman Moaadi, Leila Hatami, Sareh Bayat, Shahab Hosseini
- Jurassic Park (1993) with Sam Neill, Laura Dern, Jeff Goldblum
- Lady Chatterley (2006) with Marina Hands, Jean-Louis Coulloc'h, Hippolyte Girardot
- Le renard et l'enfant (2007) with Bertille Noël-Bruneau, Isabelle Carré, Thomas Laliberté, Camille Lambert
- Light Sleeper (1992) with Willem Dafoe, Susan Sarandon, Dana Delany, David Clennon
- Lincoln (2012) with Daniel Day-Lewis, Sally Field, David Strathairn, Joseph Gordon-Levitt
- Marley (2012 documentary) with Bob Marley, Ziggy Marley, Jimmy Cliff, Lee 'Scratch' Perry
- Max Manus (2008) with Aksel Hennie, Agnes Kittelsen, Nicolai Cleve Broch, Ken Duken
- Men in Black (1997) with Tommy Lee Jones, Will Smith, Linda Fiorentino
- Michael Clayton (2007) with George Clooney, Tilda Swinton, Tom Wilkinson, Michael O'Keefe
- Minority Report (2002) with Tom Cruise, Colin Farrell, Samantha Morton, Max von Sydow
- Miss Potter (2006) with Renée Zellweger, Ewan McGregor, Emily Watson, Barbara Flynn
- Moon (2009) with Sam Rockwell, Kevin Spacey, Dominique McElligott, Rosie Shaw
- Oblivion (2013) with Tom Cruise, Morgan Freeman, Andrea Riseborough, Olga Kurylenko
- Out of Africa (1985) with Meryl Streep, Robert Redford, Klaus Maria Brandauer
- Pandorum (2009) with Dennis Quaid, Ben Foster, Cam Gigandet, Antje Traue
- Pan’s Labyrinth (2006) with Ivana Baquero, Ariadna Gil, Sergi López, Maribel Verdú
- Phoenix (1998) with Ray Liotta, Anthony LaPaglia, Daniel Baldwin
- Pitch Black (2000) with Radha Mitchell, Cole Hauser, Vin Diesel, Keith David
- Prometheus (2012) with Noomi Rapace, Logan Marshall-Green, Michael Fassbender, Charlize Theron
- Ratatouille (2007) with Brad Garrett, Lou Romano, Patton Oswalt, Ian Holm
- Romancing the Stone (1984) with Michael Douglas, Kathleen Turner, Danny DeVito
- Romeo is Bleeding (1993) with Gary Oldman, Lena Olin, Wallace Wood, Juliette Lewis
- Scarface (1983) with Al Pacino, Michelle Pfeiffer, Steven Bauer, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio
- Shoot the Moon (1982) with Albert Finney, Diane Keaton, Karen Allen, Peter Weller
- Skyfall (2012) with Daniel Craig, Javier Bardem, Naomie Harris, Judi Dench
- Sleeping with the Enemy (1991) with Julia Roberts, Patrick Bergin, Kevin Anderson
- Snow White: A Tale of Terror (1997) with Sigourney Weaver, Sam Neill, Gil Bellows
- Solaris (2002) with George Clooney, Natascha McElhone, Ulrich Tukur, Viola Davis
- Something Wild (1986) with Jeff Daniels, Melanie Griffith, Ray Liotta
- The Accidental Tourist (1988) with William Hurt, Kathleen Turner, Geena Davis, Amy Wright
- The Age of Innocence (1993) with Daniel Day-Lewis, Michelle Pfeiffer, Winona Ryder
- The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007) with Brad Pitt, Casey Affleck, Sam Shepard
- The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2011) with Judi Dench, Bill Nighy, Maggie Smith, Tom Wilkinson
- The ‘Burbs (1989) with Tom Hanks, Bruce Dern, Carrie Fisher, Corey Feldman
- The End of the Affair (1999) with Ralph Fiennes, Julianne Moore, Stephen Rea
- The Grifters (1990) with Anjelica Huston, John Cusack, Annette Bening, Jan Munroe
- The King's Speech (2010) with Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush, Helena Bonham Carter, Derek Jacobi
- The Last Seduction (1994) with Linda Fiorentino, Peter Berg, Bill Pullman
- The Long Kiss Goodnight (1996) with Geena Davis, Samuel L. Jackson, Yvonne Zima, Craig Bierko
- The Money Pit (1986) with Tom Hanks, Shelley Long, Alexander Godunov, Maureen Stapleton
- The New Daughter (2009) with Kevin Costner, Ivana Baquero, Samantha Mathis, Gattlin Griffith
- The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) with Danny Elfman, Chris Sarandon, Catherine O'Hara, William Hickey
- The Proposal (2009) with Sandra Bullock, Ryan Reynolds, Mary Steenburgen, Craig T. Nelson
- The Shawshank Redemption (1994) with Tim Robbins, Morgan Freeman, Bob Gunton, William Sadler
- The Shining (1980) with Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall, Danny Lloyd, Scatman Crothers
- The Silence of the Lambs (1991) with Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins, Lawrence A. Bonney, Kasi Lemmons
- The Sixth Sense (1999) with Bruce Willis, Haley Joel Osment, Toni Collette, Olivia Williams
- The Skeleton Key (2005) with Kate Hudson, Peter Sarsgaard, Joy Bryant, Gena Rowlands
- The Unbearable Lightness of Being (1988) with Daniel Day-Lewis, Juliette Binoche, Lena Olin, Derek de Lint
- The Witches of Eastwick (1987) with Jack Nicholson, Cher, Susan Sarandon, Michelle Pfeiffer
- Traitor (2008) with Don Cheadle, Guy Pearce, Archie Panjabi, Saïd Taghmaoui
- Twelve Monkeys (1995) with Bruce Willis, Madeleine Stowe, Brad Pitt
- Volver (2006) with Penélope Cruz, Carmen Maura, Lola Dueñas, Blanca Portillo
- What Dreams May Come (1998) with Robin Williams, Cuba Gooding Jr., Annabella Sciorra, Max von Sydow
- What Lies Beneath (2000) with Harrison Ford, Michelle Pfeiffer, Katharine Towne, Miranda Otto
- What Women Want (2000) with Mel Gibson, Helen Hunt, Marisa Tomei, Alan Alda
Saturday, March 22, 2014
Favorite movies from the 1930s - 1970s
- 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) with Keir Dullea, Gary Lockwood, William Sylvester
- 40 Carats (1973) with Liv Ullmann, Edward Albert, Gene Kelly, Binnie Barnes
- Adam’s Rib (1949) with Spencer Tracy, Katharine Hepburn, Judy Holliday
- Agatha (1979) with Dustin Hoffman, Vanessa Redgrave, Timothy Dalton, Helen Morse
- Alien (1979) with Sigourney Weaver, Tom Skerritt, John Hurt
- All That Heaven Allows (1955) with Jane Wyman, Rock Hudson, Agnes Moorehead, Conrad Nagel
- All the Fine Young Cannibals (1960) with Robert Wagner, Natalie Wood, Susan Kohner, George Hamilton
- Arsenic and Old Lace (1944) with Cary Grant, Priscilla Lane, Raymond Massey
- Barefoot in the Park (1967) with Robert Redford, Jane Fonda, Charles Boyer, Mildred Natwick
- Brigadoon (1953) with Gene Kelly, Van Johnson, Cyd Charisse, Elaine Stewart
- Burnt Offerings (1976) with Karen Black, Oliver Reed, Burgess Meredith and Eileen Heckart
- BUtterfield 8 (1960) with Elizabeth Taylor, Laurence Harvey, Eddie Fisher, Dina Merrill
- De Dødes Tjern (1958) with Andre Bjerke, Bjørg Engh, Henki Kolstad
- Dial M for Murder (1954) with Ray Milland, Grace Kelly, Robert Cummings
- Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark (1973, TV) with Kim Darby, Jim Hutton, Barbara Anderson, William Demarest
- Don’t Look Now (1973) with Donald Sutherland and Julie Christie
- Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1941) with Spencer Tracy, Ingrid Bergman, Lana Turner
- Fantasia (1940)
- House of Dark Shadows (1970) with Jonathan Frid, Grayson Hall, Kathryn Leigh Scott, Roger Davis
- House of Wax (1953) with Vincent Price, Frank Lovejoy, Phyllis Kirk
- I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang (1932) with Paul Muni, Glenda Farrell, Helen Vinson, Noel Francis
- It’s a Wonderful Life (1946) with James Stewart, Donna Reed, Lionel Barrymore
- Klute (1971) with Jane Fonda, Donald Sutherland, Charles Cioffi, Roy Scheider
- Light in the Piazza (1962) with Olivia de Havilland, George Hamilton, Yvette Mimieux
- Marlowe (1969) with James Garner, Gayle Hunnicutt, Carroll O'Connor, Rita Moreno
- Midnight Cowboy (1969) with Dustin Hoffman, Jon Voight, Sylvia Miles, John McGiver
- Mon Oncle (1958) with Jacques Tati, Jean-Pierre Zola, Adrienne Servantie, Lucien Frégis
- Oliver! (1968) with Mark Lester, Ron Moody, Shani Wallis, Oliver Reed
- Psycho (1960) with Anthony Perkins, Janet Leigh, Vera Miles
- Rebecca (1940) with Laurence Olivier, Joan Fontaine, George Sanders
- Romeo and Juliet (1968) with Leonard Whiting, Olivia Hussey, John McEnery
- Rosemary’s Baby (1968) with Mia Farrow, John Cassavetes, Ruth Gordon
- Splendor in the Grass (1961) with Natalie Wood, Warren Beatty, Pat Hingle
- Straight Time (1978) with Dustin Hoffman and Theresa Russell
- Sunday in New York (1963) with Rod Taylor, Jane Fonda, Cliff Robertson, Robert Culp
- The Barretts of Wimpole Street (1957) with Jennifer Jones, John Gielgud, Bill Travers, Virginia McKenna
- The African Queen (1951) with Humphrey Bogart, Katharine Hepburn, Robert Morley
- The Apartment (1960) with Jack Lemmon, Shirley MacLaine, Fred MacMurray
- The Paradine Case (1947) with Gregory Peck, Ann Todd, Charles Laughton, Charles Coburn
- The Pearl of Death (1944) with Basil Rathbone, Nigel Bruce, Dennis Hoey
- The Sentinel (1977) with Cristina Raines, Ava Gardner, Chris Sarandon, Martin Balsam
- The Split (1968) with Jim Brown, Diahann Carroll, Ernest Borgnine, Julie Harris
- The Two Mrs. Carrolls (1947) with Humphrey Bogart, Barbara Stanwyck, Alexis Smith
- The Uninvited (1944) with Ray Milland, Ruth Hussey, Donald Crisp, Cornelia Otis Skinner
- Westworld (1973) with Yul Brynner, Richard Benjamin, James Brolin, Norman Bartold
Sunday, March 16, 2014
Street Art in Oslo III
Out walking yesterday in the nice weather, as were many others. We came upon some newer street art (at least I haven't seen it before on my walks around Oslo) and snapped some photos. There were a lot of other hobby photographers doing the same. A lot of artistic talent out there......Enjoy today's photos, and my earlier posts about street art in Oslo: http://paulamdeangelis.blogspot.no/2012/10/street-art-in-oslo.html and http://paulamdeangelis.blogspot.no/2013/06/more-street-art-in-oslo.html
Sunday, March 9, 2014
Another great poem
Invictus
by William Ernest Henley
Out of the
night that covers me,
Black as the Pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.
In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.
Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds, and shall find, me unafraid.
It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll.
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.
Black as the Pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.
In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.
Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds, and shall find, me unafraid.
It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll.
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.
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