Here we sit in snowy Indian Valley under a bank of fog & clouds with the juncos & finches & sparrows thronging the feeders. But, hey, there’s red beans & rice cooking, & some new interesting blogs I’ve added to the Blogroll:
Asleep in New York: Another fun classic movie blog, this one by someone with the likely nom de plume of Ginger Ingenue. Ms Ingenue was on a bit of a tear with Dana Andrews, which is ok by me—she says she’s over it, tho. Andrews was great in one of my all-time favorite films, Laura, & was also good as a gangster in a film Eberle & I watched recently for the first time, the hilarious Ball of Fire with Barbara Stanwyck & Gary Cooper (& some truly wonderful 30s character actors). Also love her post on “Hollywood Dolls.” Listed under CinemaBiz.
DIY Poetry Publishing Cooperative: An intriguing blog by & for poets with an interest in taking the publishing game into their own hands, something I heartily applaud, & which is of personal interest to me these days. Not real frequent posts, but informative; also has a ton of useful links. Listed under PoeBiz
New Orleans Ladder: A fascinating compendium of all things NoLa—I was gratified to have Robert Frost’s Banjo appear there after the distinctly New Orleans flavored “Songs 4 Foodies #2,” but this isn’t just quid pro quo. They have articles & links about the New Orleans music, arts & food scene, as well as a lot of info about the re-building of this gorgeous city after the Katrina tragedy, which really should be of interest to all of us. Calling New Orleans “the birthpace of jazz” is more than just hype, & jazz is the most amazing American art form (to me, at least). Listed (fittingly enough) under Blog Gumbo
Citizen K.: An extremely well-written & thoughtful blog about (per the masthead) “Politics. Music. Movies. Books. Travel. Outrage.” The posts cover this blogger’s interests as advertised. Some interesting videos—most recently the Treme Brass Band performing “Down By the Riverside” in support of a protest to save “the oldest black Catholic parish in the nation”; a righteous cause, & some righteous music: love the trombone solo, & really love the sousaphone. Anyone who says blogging is killing the quality of writing should read Citizen K. Listed under Blog Gumbo
Premium T.: Another very well-written blog, this time by a poet. A lot of musings on daily life—all the ones I’ve read being extremely compelling; to me, the best part of blogging is the overt subjectivity; the latest entry is just one example of a well-told story—completely personal, but in a way that should be of interest to anyone. Also entries on food, poetry (including posts of her own work), travel, & some truly gorgeous photographs. A blog by someone with diverse interests who’s able to articulate her fascinations with each. Listed under Blog Gumbo
Hey— as you can see in the pic below—I gotta run!
Hello John! :)
ReplyDeleteIt's nice to meet you.
I saw your blog address listed on my stat-counter while ago, and thought to myself, Wow, that's one of the best names for a blog I've seen in a long time! :)
I love Robert Frost, AND I love the banjo!
I've got a big hunk of a banjo myself -- his name is Burt Lancaster. :)
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I was gonna check your blog out simply based on its title, and was delighted and surprised to see my own blog mentioned here -- How nice of you to highlight it!
I like your blog, too. :)
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As for Ingenue being a nom de plume: Oh, perhaps... ;)
As for Dana Andrews: Yes, he and I have gone our separate ways, though I already miss him desperately.
I too liked him in BALL OF FIRE. In fact, that might be the first film I ever saw him in...I remember thinking, Why on earth would Barbara Stanwyck NOT want to marry him?? He's gorgeous! :)
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Gonna check out that DIY poetry blog, too...just last week, I started thinking about self-publishing for poetry but have absolutely no idea how to go about it.
Hi Ginger:
ReplyDeleteThanks for the kind words. As I mentioned in another comment re: the blog name, I actually have to credit the idea to my wife Eberle-- but as soon as she said it I knew it was good.
Re: Ball of Fire-- Barbara Stanwyck was on the horns of a dilemma, eh-- Dana Andrews vs. Gary Cooper...
You might also be interested in a place called Sparkle Street Press-- you can find a link in my review of L.E. Leone's Big Bend-- there's a permalink to this on the blog's front page. Once I stop procrastinating I intend to contact them to get more info.
Again, thanks for checking out the blog.
John H
Thanks for the plug -- made my day! It's great to have a reader who catches my references.
ReplyDeleteNow I that I know where the name of your blog comes from, I'll you that I googled "Robert Frost banjo" and found a reference to a line in his poem "Wild Grapes": My small wrists stretching till/They showed the banjo strings... The poem is on the immature side (although that sure is a great line) but of interest because it's more than a little sexually confused.
Dana Andrews was underrated. His work in The Oxbow Incident is downright beautiful. He was also excellent opposite Teresa Wright in The Best Years Of Our Lives.
Many thanks for the kind words about my blog!
ReplyDelete