Revised Poem

My poem was recently published in a meditation group's newsletter (Insight Meditation Community of San Francisco), but now that I look at it again (and with feedback from my boss Karen), I have a much improved version, as follows:

On Retreat at Spirit Rock (2005)

Emerging from the dining hall
after tea, a crowd gathers in silence
as the bright circle of a full moon
edges over the hillside--
everything depends
on just this moment.

Link

In Memorium: Robert Altman 1925 - 2006

Director Robert Altman (M*A*S*H, The Player, Short Cuts, Nashville, Gosford Park) died last night at the age of 81. I first heard this news today over the radio from Terry Gross while driving to work. She played an excerpt of an interview she did with Altman back in 1990. She asked him if there were any of his films that he felt failed completely or that he would not want people to see. He said all of them accomplished what he set out to do artistically. How many other directors could say that and mean it? He will be greatly missed.

Link

James Bond Movie Primer

The new James Bond film "Casino Royale" is out and it's pretty good--Daniel Craig gets it done. I recently wrote the first half of a Bond movie primer for Greencine.com (similar to Netflix) which can be found here (or click on title above for direct link):

www.greencine.com/static/primers/bond1.jsp

To be exact, I wrote about the early Bond films up through "The Spy Who Loved Me" and my friend Craig Phillips wrote about the later period up until now. I'll include a quick sample of what I wrote about the 007 factor:

Similar to the written tales, the James Bond films have always been a triumph of style over substance, as Bond's frequent black tie attire would seem to attest. Bond, a.k.a. Agent 007, will never win any humanitarian awards for his brand of public service-which in many ways is part of his charm. He isn't bound by the usual rules of civilized society. In fact, as a member of the British Secret Service, he officially carries a "License to Kill." He also drives only the sportiest of cars (e.g. the Aston Martin DB5), dresses impeccably, enjoys "a certain way with the ladies," and-perhaps most importantly-boasts an uncanny knack for getting himself into and out of harm's way. Bond breathes that rarefied air most of us can only dream about; he is above the law and beyond reproach (despite the occasional scolding from his boss, M).

Link