And so I have returned to MO. A day earlier than planned, you might note. For a variety of reasons that I’ll not go into now, my mother and I decided we would also make the return trip today instead of just my father (he’s flying somewhere tomorrow and thus had to be back here today). The heavy stuff from my car was redistributed so as to reduce the strain on my heap (the fabulous ’95 Ford Escort wagon) and we made the 10-hour drive with minimal stops along the way. So yeah, I’m here.
And I’m sitting at my desk trying to fight off drowsiness for a few more minutes until I can finish eating the orange I just peeled and the beer I just got out of the fridge. Since I got home, I’ve managed to bunk my beds (been sleeping in the same beds since 1984, believe it or not), move my old drafting table back into my room, set up my computer again, unpack some of my car, watch a movie, and harass my cats. I also unpacked some books I had ordered, sorted all the magazines that have come for me in the last three months (it’s like Christmas!), and took a hot but too-short shower.
Right now the Johnny Cash version of Rusty Cage (originally done by Soundgarden) is rocking my world.
The movie I watched was Grave of the Fireflies, a 1988 Studio Ghibli release written and directed by Isao Takahata. This is, I feel, a very important animation and social commentary. If you haven’t seen it, please seek it out. The first time you see it, it may well leave you a bit stunned and shocked. It is among the most depressing things I’ve seen – the kind of story that will have tears in your eyes more than once, no matter how many times you’ve seen it. It is beautifully animated, excellently directed, and generally something of the kind of significance you don’t come close to comprehending the first time around. When I say that I consider this an important piece, I’m completely serious. It has a social and historical significance that I believe has been woefully overlooked by far too many.
I won’t get into a description of the setting, story, etc. If you want that you can look up any of several synopsis to be had online. The point is that this is an amazing piece that I urge you to seek out. It may well leave you feeling absolutely horrible, but I guarantee it’s worth it.
And now I’ve finished both my beer and my orange and while it’s only about 10:40 PM central time, I think I’m going to go to bed. I’m just too out of it to try and type much more. Plenty to do tomorrow, but plenty of time to do it in, so maybe I’ll sleep in a little. We’ll see. But off to bed I go. I’ll write more tomorrow night, in all probability. See you then.
