Economy, Transitions - Growing Up or Was that Old/Older - JK Cosmos

Politicians, our reps in DC - how are they talking so much nothing that nothing is exactly what is accomplished? When did the electorate decide to watch tv and tweet & post on fb rather than work up a sweat about the inequities in the US of A? The economy and news about interest rates, jobs, professional development - gloom and doom. The 'talking heads' at both conservative and liberal news outlets; the written work the live news streams and television - shout at the masses - the economy has tanked!

Has it? Has the United States relinguished leadership & power to China, to the Middle East - to what flavor are the media junkies serving today? Where are the reports based on facts and figures? How can the average Joe & Jane learn more about the realities they face? It may seem that the main street Americans are too busy trying to keep body and soul together. They are. It may seem that the middle class, now sliding to poor, has more significant plans, to find that better job, to pay off college costs with their children, to figure out how to keep the house, manage the car bills and to top it off, medical insurance.

And the question becomes, what are the leaders doing? How are we, the people, to view the world now with banks manipulating and continuing to soak up the monetary resources. The banks, who required funding and more funding, greedy and ever-taking from the working class. Prosecuting those responsible for the fall-out would seem reasonable and fair, where are the prosecutors and where is the anger of the people paying the bill on those mis-steps of the very wealthy; bankers and politicians.

And so we think about lobbyists and the powerful hiring more powerful - the few who advocate and dance the dance of those few in control and charming, conniving and manipulating the weaker or perhaps the weakest - the politicians, with eyes on the prize of being re-elected and the money that will accomplish that - not the one vote from consitutuents; but rather the super funds and treasury overload of the conglomerates and the lobbyists that reward that vote, that stall, that back to committee motion.

Is this the bargain? Are we seeing the fruits of our labor? Has the world gone crazy or is this the end-game? Growing up has become a painful reality for most baby boomers. Growing older has not been the peace and loove child of the sixties. The promises of youthful activism and hard-work, studies and volunteerism has lead to what? And that is the rub, the total undenialable and caustic rub...

There are some, a very few, who do not believe the news. The minoirty of the people believe in and for something more. What do they believe in & for while the news people drone on about the negative the downsliding...They believe that America is the greatest nation in the world. They believe that America can and will lead on and move forward. They believe that despite reports and newscasts, the US of A can prosper and the people can aspire to do and be whomever they want and dream to be. For the most part, the they are citizens from elsewhere, the newly minted Unites State citizen, and hurrah for them. The rest of us should and need to listen closely. The rest of us need to stop talking and to take a 'pause' to regroup and to carry on..afterall we are Americans and know that the United States is the greatest nation in the world!

Thanks Tony for reminding me! Well-said!

June lst & another decade. - JK Cosmos

Took my brother, Steven, & his partner, Jim, to Logan Express yesterday as they headed out for Paris. Poignant and sweet recollections, when not in the too far past, my brother & I went to Paris. Young, jubilant and joyful, high expectations and easy going travels. It was an adventure. The journey to Paris, as young Americans, taught us to say we were from Canada, to avoid the 'hot politics' and hate for US that was prevalent at the time. 

Traveling without issues and to just live in the moment was the plan. And, for me, it worked. It worked well, in part, as I bought a pair of French jeans, washed out and tight with a flair at the bottom. I also found platform sandals, about three inches high and black and strappy. Thinking about walking around the city on new platforms, never crossed my mind. And finally, to blend in with Parisians, I found a very red and very slick lipstick and cut my hair from shoulder length flip kinda preppy look to a short, layered model, maybe actress look. It worked and Paris was fabulous and the time spent drifting and being on a small green chair at the Jardins de Tuileries couldn't be written much better than the reality.

Another decade and pinning for France, and more to it; for Paris.

Swan Lake/Black Swan-Paris 1973 Boston 2011

Swan Lake/Black Swan–Paris-Boston(1973/2010) J.K. Cosmos

Ballet, the energy and tension & pure physicality of it, astonishing! The love of ballet began early on and continued in earnest during my formative years and beyond. Providentially, I was in Paris for the foremost dance of Nureyev and Madam Fontaine. The venue, the Louvre, and the setting only in France, laid out the evening on a warm, clear, starry backdrop with the performance of ‘Swan Lake’ the preferred production.
On this night, at this place despite the ‘aha’ moments and fleeting energy of ballerinas fluttering about and the music commanding an audience response; on this night Nureyev dropped Madam Fontaine with a resounding and most dramatic thud. Some were not sure if it was a purposeful drop of the prima ballerina or was it part of the production or was he being such an egotist that he literally dropped her on her dainty and yes, aging behind. After all, this was the last performance for Madam and her retirement was well-known to the arts and creative community.
The morning newspapers cleared up any confusion with articles and commentaries on the ‘drop’ being mean-spirited and by clear intent of Monsieur Nureyev. Horrific in the world of dance! The production, the visuals, the rhythmic movement of the swan/ballet resonates still for me. My emotions high and close clearly mirrored my youth and idealism. The Swan Lake with themes of love and betrayal whispered in my ear the things that I knew were true. The dancers, beautiful and agile, confirmed my knowing that the world was beautiful and lovely. Oh, so lovely.

Response on Conflict in Egypt

Friends have written about religion as the cause of the strife in Egypt. My response was requested and the following is a brief one:

Ralph, not sure if I agree with your analysis, but I respect all of it. There are also Coptic Orthodox Christians in Egypt. My understanding is that Islam is a religion of peace, that is viewed as extreme when the politics are added to the mix. I am not an expert..., nor have I attended services, as you have..I just feel that most people want similar lives, as you mention without harassement & with respect. I wish I had an answer or path to that end, without violence. I think peaceful resistance and demonstrations should work, if the army & police would stand down and not engage with the people. Politicians should listen and do better.

On a global level, changes have to happen to be more just and fair; to give all people a chance at what they deserve, a life which includes a job, a home...I think it goes beyond religion, now. People in the US and Europe are also marginalized and wanting. Egypt is one major part of the beginning of a reaction. I think, not just the middle east, but some European nations, such as Greece, France, Great Britain and Ireland have -rioted and have demonstrations against banks and the government in the recent past and continue to do so. They oppose changing the retirement age and cutbacks on benefits earned. They oppose the backlash of the decades of fiscal irresponsibility. Balancing the budget need not be to the detriment of the middle class, does it? Greed of the upper class and those in power should not benefit on the backs of the working people. Restructuring shouldn't mean the wealthy continue to benefit and prosper while the majority are unemployed, and unable to live their lives with any sense of humanity and without hope.

Love by the Sea

Creative Writing –Fiction

Kate wasn’t looking forward to this next birthday and dreaded the day that was fast approaching. Her life goals seemed to be unattainable if life continued to play fast and easy without real success. She could barely start her day and moved slow and steady without too much thought.
Patrick called as she readied herself for a Court pretrial hearing at the District Court. She was late and Patrick told her that he wanted to take her out for her birthday. He’d pick her up tonight at seven. He told her he’d take care of everything and to just be ready to go.
Kate wanted to feel happy and knew he was trying to please her. She just couldn’t. Thinking about criminals would distract her and she took off.
The Hearing was a basic ‘Show Cause’ with only one police officer testifying to preliminary matters that sometimes make or break a case. Kate’s client sat next to her and he was preoccupied with the legal yellow pad that she gave him and pen for him to jot down questions and any thought he might have about the case. This technique of having clients ‘help out’ worked well and gave her a break from answering their questions when she should be concentrating on testimony being given. Kate had many strategies to keep her clients under control, similar to those she used to keep the cops under control. Both having similar high energy and continual needs for attention, it seemed to Kate that some of the busy work she gave the cops and now the defendants were similar to those for small children. That did make her smile.
The day passed without incident and without much fanfare about her birthday. A few phone calls of congrats and that she was able to handle.
Seven and Patrick was knocking on the door ready to enjoy some time with her on this propitious day. She was dressed and ready but still glum.
He had a small a package with him, wrapped in newspaper and tied with a plain string. How did she feel?
“Happy Birthday! Come on, thirty isn’t so bad.”
He said it out loud, thirty, and she cringed. How fast the year had passed. Being twenty-nine had made her sad and she dreaded this one all year long.
Kate sat on the edge of the sofa and opened the package. Patrick sat next to her and waited, expectantly.
She breathed out thanking him. It was a seagull on a canvas reminding her of Americana but actually nicely detailed. The scene was framed with rough wood and a white line of thin paint on the border. The seagull had the wing-spread and was in air. Most of the painting was of the seagull, not the background sky. Kate loved it. She thought of a book she had read about freedom and life from the perspective of a seagull. “Hmmm, what was the title of that book about a seagull?” Patrick didn’t know. He wasn’t much into reading fiction. He read philosophy books and used the logic to win and strategize his defense of his clients. He was writing a book, but still didn’t like fiction or anything contemporary.
“Let’s go! Are you ready?”
“Thank you for the lovely gift. Thank you, Patrick. I love it.”
They left Cambridge and drove north. Kate wasn’t sure where he was planning to go and just let the air and the movement of the driving taker her away from her darker thoughts. Her mind kept wandering to past days with Jack. How would she be celebrating this day with Jack? She had to let it go and she had to let him go. The last gift that Jack had given her was a paper parasol. It was huge and had a hand-painted flower on it. What would she possibly do with a parasol? She recalled thinking that Jack was so unconventional in some ways. He’d been so happy to give it to her and he had not inkling really on what she would do with it. They had both laughed and Jack wanted her to open it and walk with him up Mass Ave under the parasol. What a crazy idea!
Earth to Kate! Patrick was saying something to her. She hadn’t heard him, the actual words escaped her. He was smiling broadly, so she returned the smile and wondered.
He took her to a place on the north shore that had a secret gate and they walked through a pathway that seemed to be private, but he assured her that it was not. At the end of the path was a small gate that filled an archway. Ivy covered most of the opening. On a closer look, Kate could see through to the ocean. They both saw the ocean in its more active and waves crashing nature. Kate loved it. The temperament of the ocean banging against the rocks mirrored her feelings. She and Patrick crossed through the gate and they were against the rocks on a ledge that went nowhere. They were close up against the rocks looking out to the sea and looking down to the crashing waves. Her spirit soared. Patrick knew her, after all. What joy!
Patrick leaned on her and began to search for her and she was overcome with passion for life and for him. They stood against the wall of boulders and they made love.

Baudelaire - 'Be Drunk'

Be Drunk
by Charles Baudelaire
Translated by Louis Simpson


You have to be always drunk. That's all there is to it—it's the only way. So as not to feel the horrible burden of time that breaks your back and bends you to the earth, you have to be continually drunk.
But on what? Wine, poetry or virtue, as you wish. But be drunk.
And if sometimes, on the steps of a palace or the green grass of a ditch, in the mournful solitude of your room, you wake again, drunkenness already diminishing or gone, ask the wind, the wave, the star, the bird, the clock, everything that is flying, everything that is groaning, everything that is rolling, everything that is singing, everything that is speaking. . .ask what time it is and wind, wave, star, bird, clock will answer you: "It is time to be drunk! So as not to be the martyred slaves of time, be drunk, be continually drunk! On wine, on poetry or on virtue as you wish."

Larsson / Truffault - Magnificent!! - JK Cosmos

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo – Stieg Larsson Transitions – 

From Character to Character & Story to Story Major narration, first with Blomvist and then Salander and the question becomes how to have the overlaps of the stories entwined in such a way that it is crafted seamlessly and effortlessly. Larsson considers both characters and so the inquiry is how to mesh the tales in order to show the plot-lines first as indivisible plots and then as overlapping. The craft of transitions to clarify not confuse is effectively accomplished in this novel. Analyzing the language and the structure of the chapters supports the premise that Larsson is a master at transitions and storytelling. 

 The initial overlap is when Salander is asked to investigate Blomvist in the capacity of her employment with a security firm. She is interested in the dilemma of the inquiry and his recent conviction for slander and libel, necessitating incarceration, in addition to a hefty fine. Her investigation comes to a halt at the client’s request and concurrently, the client invites Blomvist to work for the Owner of a conglomerate with dual purposes. How does this assignment for Blomvist add depth to Salander’s story. The narration moves in a parallel way without the two characters meeting or having knowledge of each other. The transitions from his view to hers is planned to coincide with events that may or may not lead to the ‘ah ha moment’ of uncovering a murderer. The narration switches from each of them, through the events, not particularly chapters as other writers may choose to format the story. 

 I think that the event-driven transitions and point of view change-ups is effective. “The lawyer Frode from Hedestad had hired her to do an investigation of Mikael Blomkvist, the journalist who was given a prision sentence for libeling financier Hans-Eriuk Wennerstrom. A few months later, Henrik Vanger, also from Hedestad, joins Blomkvist’s magazine’s board of directors and claims that there is a conspiracy to crush the magazine. All this one the same day that the former goes to prison. Most fascinating of all: a two-year-old background article –‘With two empty hands’- about Hans-Erik Wennerstrom, which she found in the outline edition of Monopoly Financial Magazine. It seemed that he began his career in the very same Vanger Corporation in the late sixties. You didn’t have to be a rocket scientist to see that these events were somehow related. There had to be a skeleton in one of their cupboards, and Salander loved hunting skeletons. Besides, she had nothing else on at the moment.” Larsson p. 271. The above quote refers to Salander’s perspective as Blomkvist presents himself at the prison for his sentence to begin. 

 Both prior and subsequent to his incarceration, events are dramatic and viewed by each according to their age, station and education, but very purposefully. The stories do run concurrently after each is engaged in a path of discovery and prior to any firm conclusions as to the murder. The transition between both lives and events is not a smooth pathway in terms of what is happening to each of them. It is smooth in regard to the language and structure of the narration. Larsson pulls together clues for the murder simultaneously giving clues to the corporate corruption and Salander’s inquisitive mind and search for facts and inevitably truth. 

 Beyond chapter breaks, Larsson writes methodically to give each story a deeper texture and a clearer comprehension of the engagement of both stories. It is written like a film outline with the chapters and stories paced to keep the reader engaged and pursuing similar outcomes of the characters. Truffault, the French director, used this technique of overlapping and transitions in his film-noirs and this technique used by Larsson is reminiscent of that genre of film and perhaps writing, at least in screenwriting of the day. The technique enhances the plot development and enriches the narration. Larsson use of this literary craft is a successful one. 

 Works cited. Larsson, Stieg: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Vintage Crime/Random House, NYC, NY, 2008. (translated by Reg Keeland) Truffault, Francois: Day for Night (1973).