As Far As I Can Tell


America doesn’t deserve a birthday party

This forth of July weekend has been lazy. I’m up as early as I’ve been in a while, so I guess this whole week has been pretty lazy. With neither Meredith or I having a set schedule, things tend to get pushed later and later in the day.

On Friday I went and saw Spellbound in Grand Rapids. It’s a documentary about the national spelling bee, following a handful of children as they win their regional contests and study for the big day. It’s really interesting to see the variety of background that all the kids come from, and the different reasons that they and their parents, do this. This movie about spelling manages to be funny, insightful, and suspenseful. See also: NYTimes Review, Trailer.

Kalamazoo has been reduced to just one movie theater. Two if you count the UA in Portage, which plays the same movies as the Kalamazoo 10 anyway. Since Hollywood’s latest and greatest only rarely excite me, I’ve searched out the alternatives:

  • K-College European Film Series — Every Wednesday this summer, and I think they’re free.
  • Kalamazoo Film Society — Don’t be fooled by the lack of publicity and absence of roadside announcements; they’re still showing movies every month.
  • UICA Grand Rapids — Less than an hour away, and showing a full schedule of fairly new independent/foreign films.
  • WMU Film Society — Once school starts they show a movie a month at the Little Theater.
  • Arts Council — Not specifically for film, but worth noting.

Fright night was spent hanging out at Meghan’s Grandma’s house. She has a spot on the lake where the fireworks were all around, and a pool and hot-tub to soak in. I think I’m going to get a pool membership from the Radisson Fitness Works downtown. I’m not much for formal exercise, but I think I’d like to wake up and go swimming in the morning.


 

Comments

um. i think america deserves a birthday party.

Posted by: miguel on July 8, 2003 2:43 PM

I don’t.

Posted by: simon on July 8, 2003 2:55 PM

that’s too bad. because for all its faults (and yes, i realize that this country has many faults), america has many things worth celebrating. chicago, for instance? i like to think of july fourth as a time to celebrate those attributes (mlk, jefferson, lincoln, paul robeson, etc). perhaps if we spent more time celbrating the good things about america — and reminding ourselves that we must strive to increase those parts of “the dream” — then things might be better in the long run. so, yeah. happy birthday america! from one first generation immigrant who’s thankful for educational opportunities most people never have, economic opportunities most people dream of, freedom of expression that few other countries enjoy, separation of church & state, and even rock’n’roll, hip hop, blues, jazz, and all the rest. woohoo!

Posted by: miguel on July 9, 2003 3:05 AM


As far as who can tell?


Chicago, IL

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