photo caption: Nature Morte, Santa Olaya, PR - November, 2011

11/22/63
STEPHEN KING

SECTION 3
CHAPTER 24
PART 9 - pg 621
(8/29/63 : Jodie, TX)

"Jake."
"Yes, honey."
"Can you predict the future? You can, can't you?"
I said nothing.
In a small voice she said, "Did you come here from the future?"
I said nothing.
Her face was very pale, "Jake, did you?"
"Yes." It was as if a seventy pound rock had rolled off my chest...
"How...how far?"
"Honey, are you sure you --"
"Yes. How far!"
"Almost forty-eight years."
"Am I...dead?"
"I don't know. I don't want to know. This is now. And this is us."
She thought about that.

[Espanol]

"Jake".
"Sí, cariño".
"¿Puedes predecir el futuro? Usted puede, ¿no?"
No dije nada.
En voz baja me dijo: "¿Has venido aquí desde el futuro?"
No dije nada.
Su cara era muy pálido, "Jake, ¿verdad?"
"Sí". Era como si una piedra setenta libras había
   rodado fuera de mi pecho ...
"¿Cómo ... ¿hasta dónde?"
"Cariño, ¿estás seguro de que -"
"Sí. ¿Qué tan lejos!"
"Casi cuarenta y ocho años."
"Estoy...muerto?"
"No sé. Yo no quiero saber. Esto es ahora. Y esto somos nosotros."
Pensó en eso.

[translation via google]

Jan Galligan
75Grand/Sur
Santa Olaya, PR

http://JANGuarte.posterous.com [art blog]
http://cinefestsanjuan.posterous.com [cine blog]
http://about.me/JanGalligan [about me]

photo caption: Oller Medical Plaza building, Rt 167, Bayamon, PR (Francisco Manuel Oller y Cestero : June 17, 1833 – May 17, 1917 : was a Puerto Rican visual artist, considered to be the only Latin American painter to have played a role in the development of Impressionism. [Wikipedia])

"Although the visual is divided into special interest categories: painting, photography, lifelike dreams, among others, 'forget-all questioning as essential in a positivist culture' is the true meaning of the visible."

[translated from the spanish via google translate]

John Berger "About Looking"

from: Juan Alberto Negroni via: facebook

Jan Galligan
75Grand/Sur
Santa Olaya, PR

http://JANGuarte.posterous.com [art blog]
http://cinefestsanjuan.posterous.com [cine blog]
http://about.me/JanGalligan [about me]

photo caption: Noche Buena, Barrio Santurce, San Juan, PR, 11:59PM 12/24/11

THE MAP AND THE TERRITORY
Michel Houellebecq
PUBLISHED 2011 BY
William Heinemann, Random House, London, UK

Part Two
Chapter 12
p. 82

Jed woke up with a start at about eight, on the morning of the 25 December. Dawn was breaking on the place des Alpes. He found a towel in the kitchen, wiped up his vomit, then contemplated the sticky debris of "Damien Hirst and Jeff Koons Dividing Up the Art Market."

Franz was right: it was time to organize an exhibition. He had been going round in circles for a few months, and it was beginning to rub off on his mood. You can work alone for years, it is actually the only way to work if the truth be told; but there always comes a moment when you feel the need to show your work...for in a social species individuality is little more than a short piece of fictio

Thinking again of Franz's exhortations, he wrote an email reminder to Houellebecq, then made some coffee.

SPANISH
Jed se despertó con un sobresalto a las ocho, en la mañana del 25 de diciembre. Amanecía en la Place des Alpes. Se encontró con una toalla en la cocina, limpiar su vómito, a continuación, contempla los restos pegajosos de "Damien Hirst y Jeff Koons dividir el mercado del arte."

Franz tenía razón: Ya era hora de organizar de la exposición había estado dando vueltas en círculos por unos meses, y estaba empezando a borrarse en su estado de ánimo. Que puede trabajar solo durante años, en realidad es la única manera de trabajar. Si la verdad sea dicha, pero  siempre llega un momento en que usted se siente la necesidad de mostrar su trabajo ...

CONTACT: MICHEL HOUELLEBECQ

Jan Galligan
75Grand/Sur
Santa Olaya, PR

http://JANGuarte.posterous.com [art blog]
http://cinefestsanjuan.posterous.com [cine blog]

1) lechon asado, check
2) coquito, check
3) musica folklorico del campo, check
4) regalos, check
5) calendario 2012 de YEYITO - alcarde de Santa Olaya, check
6) tarjetas de Navidad, check
7) run de Barrilito (de Bayamon) 3 stars, check
7) que mas?

Jan Galligan
75Grand/Sur
Santa Olaya, PR

http://JANGuarte.posterous.com [art blog]
http://cinefestsanjuan.posterous.com [cine blog]

photo caption: Window display, hardware store, Barranquitas, PR

@ THE BEACH - PUNTA SALINAS,PR NORTH SHORE NEAR SAN JUAN W/ NO OTHERS. HOT CHICKEN, FRESH BREAD, RED WINE & SUNDOWN.

-- DID YOU REMEMBER THE BEACH CHAIRS? LILLIAN ASKS.

-- CHECK.

-- TOWELS AND BEACH BLANKET?

-- UH-HUH.

-- FLIP-FLOPS, SUNSCREEN, READING MATERIAL?

-- YES.

-- WINE AND CORKSCREW?

-- OF COURSE.

-- THE COOLER'S PACKED?

-- SURE.

-- TABLEWARE AND NAPKINS?

-- YEP.

-- ANYTHING I'M FORGETTING?

-- NOPE.

-- O.K., NICE WORK. LET'S GO.

-- CAN I HAVE A BEER?

-- SURE, WHY NOT...

"Navidad is the best of Puerto Rican culture. Nowhere else is Christmas celebrated like in Borinquen. Navidad is the time of tradition, aguinaldos, décimas, y de ser jíbaro Puertorriqueño."
http://www.elboricua.com/pr_christmas.html

Jan Galligan
75Grand/Sur
Santa Olaya, PR

http://JANGuarte.posterous.com [art blog]
http://cinefestsanjuan.posterous.com [cine blog]

No one expected the Puerto Rican Inquisition...especially the Met!Now I'm terrified about having sent my latest piece to you for review, Mr. de Torquemada.-----Original Message-----From: J. Galligan Sent: Thursday, December 01, 2011 10:04AMTo: Stephen FisherSubject: Re: Fitful Thinking - The (curre-megient) View from the BrigSteve:[I'll read your piece, right after I send the letter below]Maybe it's the weather, but my inner cornmudgin is emerging...curmudgeon [n] (plural curmudgeons) 1. An ill-tempered (and frequently old) person full of stubborn ideas oropinions. While numerous folk etymologies surround this word, there is no widelyaccepted etymology. An alternative spelling attested in 1600 is cornmudgin,in Holland's translation of Livy, rendering frumentarius "corn-merchant".This has been suggested as the original form of the word, but OED notes thatcurmudgeon is attested some years before this, concluding that cornmudginwas merely a nonce-word by Holland.

On Thu, Dec 1, 2011 at 10:02 AM, Jan Galligan  wrote:

Letter to Peter Gelb, General Manager, Metropolitan Opera, NY, NY:

The Met HD - Viewing "Satyagraha": The Dis-advantage Point
01-12-11

Dear Mr. Gelb:

Last night I witnessed my first "The Met in HD" performance at Cine Metro in Santurce, PR. Over many years I have attended live opera performances including a couple in person at the Met, and as well routinely listened to live Saturday radio broadcasts of the Met in high fidelity. An ardent fan of the music of Philip Glass, one live performance I saw at the Met was the 1975 presentation of "Einstein on the Beach," so, I was primed with high expectation and careful preparation for this HD version of "Satyagraha." Unfortunately, my preparation did not include watching clips from any of the previous Met-HD productions. If I had, I would have purchased a Sony audio CD via Amazon, and stayed home.

As you said about Met-HD, "We want the electronic medium to give people an equivalent experience to what they'd have if they were here in the opera house. That's why the cameras ... were so hyperactive. The production's kinetic and that makes it cinematic. Some of the cameras are robots and we mounted them on the only vertical dollies in the world. They could rise 30 feet in the air on their internal poles and this created that sense of exhilaration you felt. (the opera) spills off the stage."

I did want the electronic medium to give me an equivalent experience to what I'd have if I were there in your house. Instead, I found myself at the end of a 30 foot pole being flung about from one end of the house to another. Things started out ok. Wide view of the proscenium stage, outside edges of the stage just meeting the limits of the projection screen. Then within moments, I'm flung up out of my seat nearly landing on the lap of one of the principals, only to be swooped up into the Family Circle, then row one of the Orchestra where I'm looking up the nostrils of the leading characters, then wham, I'm back in the Dress circle, and oops now I'm in the orchestra pit for a moment, and then, swooped nearly to the ceiling for a bird's eye view. Well, you get the picture. Maybe this works for most Met productions. It does not work for "Satyagraha."

Philip Glass's opera is a stately, majestic ritualistic pageant - I'm speaking musically - which demands similar staging and production. It is a slow unfolding of monumental events. It is not a story of small intimate details. The viewer should be left to witness for himself, in his own manner and at his own pace the slowly evolving force of truth. For this opera in particular, the viewer should not be forced to view the hairs on the back of Ghandi's hand, Miss Schlesen's rouged cheeks, or the sweat on Kallenbach's brow. We do not need to follow along on Gandhi's or Miss Schlesen's shoulder as they make their way through the crowd. Leave us in our seat, allow us our own view of the action, please.

I left at the end of Act I. Figuring mine is probably a lone voice in the wilderness, I google-searched other opinions of the Met-HD and as I suspected found the results to be generally favorable, although Tom Service, writing in the Guardian UK a few years ago said, "Give me divas - not DJs. More toe-curling attempts to make opera 'cool'? Stop it - it's doing just fine as it is." So, he and I agree. In fact, since the tele-visual production values of this HD presentation of "Satyagraha" seemed to derive most directly from HD football and baseball as seen on FOX Sports, I'd add, "Give me divas - not O.J., the football player or the soap opera character."

J. Galligan
Santa Olaya, PR

=============

From: Contact Us (The Met-HD)
Date: Thu, Dec 1, 2011 at 10:03 AM

We have received your form and we will respond or a staff member will contact you, depending on the topic.

Thank you for your interest in the Metropolitan Opera.

-----Original Message-----

From: Dr. M. Jumpower (in guise of Peter Gelb)
Date: Thu, Dec 1, 2011 at 11:11 AM

Dear Mr. Galligan:

In response to your thoughtful missive of 12/1/11:

Bah! Humbug! Feathersticks!  Bullfeathers! Hogwash!  Hooey!  Phooey!  Balderdash! Claptrap! Gibberish! Poppycock! Gobbledygook! Babble! Jabber! Bunkum! Hokum! Baloney! Twaddle! Rubbish! Rot! Drivel! Codswallop!

Sincerely,

Peter Gelb

==================

Jan Galligan
75Grand/Sur
Santa Olaya, PR

http://JANGuarte.posterous.com [art blog]
http://cinefestsanjuan.posterous.com [cine blog]

Picture caption: Shoe repair shop (Zapateria), Bayamon, PR

Syllogisms in the news...

1) Article regarding crime in PR. Quoting a sociology professor on how the government response is bankrupt: "We need to give a 360 degree turn to the way we reflect on the problems of crime and violence." (oops, right back where we started. [ed.])

2) Report on Deficit Reduction Supercommittee in DC. Quoting supercommittee Democrat Chris Van Hollen: "We need to find out whether our Republican colleagues want to continue to negotiate or whether they've drawn a hard line in the sand."
(oops, wind's blowing, might have to redraw that line. [ed.])

Jan Galligan
75Grand/Sur
Santa Olaya, PR

http://JANGuarte.posterous.com [art blog]
http://cinefestsanjuan.posterous.com [cine blog]

photo caption: Desktop still life with Kara Walker, Santa Olaya, PR, 2011

From the Archives
Monday, June 12, 2000
Albany, NY

I needed to go to our Blockbuster which is on Delaware Avenue to take back my overdue movies: "The Millionairess", with Rock Hudson and Anita Ekberg; "The Long Goodbye", with Eliot Gould; and David Lynch's "Lost Highway". I had wanted to get Groucho Marx in "Night at Casablanca" and "Mambo Kings" with Tito Puente, but the teenage-movie-buff-clerk on duty that night told me both films were in moratorium.

"Both films?" I asked him.

"Yep," he replied.

"What's a moratorium?" I asked.

"Well, I don't exactly know," he said, "but that's where they are."

"Whatever for?" I asked.

"It has something to do with communism, the embargo of Cuba, and other remnants of the cold war," he said.

"What?" I asked...

[click here for continuation]

Jan Galligan
75Grand/Sur
Santa Olaya, PR

http://JANGuarte.posterous.com [art blog]
http://cinefestsanjuan.posterous.com [cine blog]

picture caption: table-top still-life with Donald Judd, 2011.

-----Message-----
From: Robert
Sent: Nov 11, 2011 11:11 PM
To: Galligan
Subject: "I'm very well, thank you so very much."

I think Netflix streams it, might be a good alternative to
leaf-raking this afternoon.

Sent from my iPhoneme

On Nov 11, 2011, at 11:11 AM, Jan Galligan wrote:
>
>> Bob:
>> When is the last time you watched Alphaville?
>> For me it had been many years, but now that I have
>> an almost up-to-date connection to the internet and
>> many lost hours in the jungle, I've been watching
>> movies via google's UTube...

>> >> Here are a few reflections:

>> Ford Galaxie
>> Poetry
>> Eckel & Jeckel
>> 508
>> 344
>> Capital of Pain
>> The Naked Truth
>> "One sugar, or two?" Two.
>> Capital of Sorrow
>> "Story 842" (punchline: two cups of very sweet coffee)
>> Ivan Johnson/Lemmy Caution
>> "Fuck your logic."
>> SUD
>> POLICE
>> Journaliste and Justice, both start with J
>> gold and women
>> Positif
>> Negative
>> NORD
>> car chase in winter
>> forward & reverse
>> "I am time."
>> "We are happiness."
>> "Natasha!"
>> 23.15
>> "Don't look back."
>> "I love you."
>> I+N+F
>> [FIN]

-----Original Message-----
>> >> From: "Robert"
>> Thank you for your cooperation. >>

Jan Galligan
75Grand/Sur
Santa Olaya, PR

http://JANGuarte.posterous.com [art blog]
http://cinefestsanjuan.posterous.com [cine blog]

photo caption: Currently working on a project combining Kenosha, WI and Santa Olaya, PR
[translation: LOOKING FOR ... be prepared in case there's a career - phone 787 798 1199 now]

THE RUM DAIRIES

[excerpt]

A) KENOSHA

To: Galligan
Subject: You asked for it, you got it!!!!
Date: Dec 09, 1998

1995 -- Jorge Rodriguez, 22, went before a Kenosha, Wis., municipal judge in November on charges that he had hit a parked car while driving drunk. Rodriguez earnestly handed the judge a Monopoly-like "Get Out of Jail Free" card that had been distributed by a candidate for sheriff as a gimmick during the just-ended campaign. Said the prosecutor, "Clearly, the defendant has the impression it is legitimate." Rodriguez received a fine and probation.

1993 -- In February, the Kenosha, Wis., City Council withdrew a controversial proposed ordinance to strengthen the city's anti-nudity regulations. They had wanted to add a provision banning "covered male genitals in a discernibly turgid state," but they apparently heard from too many law-abiding men who were worried that they could be arrested if they innocently got an erection while fully dressed in public.

1993 -- In May, Kenosha, Wis., police arrested a 40-year-old, heavyset man inside a women's restroom at the University of Wisconsin-Parkside, charging him with disorderly conduct. He was dressed as a French maid, bound and handcuffed, and police said he had been arrested before for a similar incident. Police said he paid a female student to tie him up, claiming it was part of a fraternity prank.

1992 -- In May, after Kristin Warford, 20, and Richard Payette, 22, survived their suicide pact, Warford told the Kenosha News that the adventure "was the singular most stupid act in my life." Said she, "After (Payette) sliced his wrists, I'll never forget him looking at me and saying, 'I don't like this. I don't like this at all.' After a while we looked at each other and thought, 'Whoa. This isn't fun. It's dirty. It's messy. It hurts.'"

M.Jumpower, PhD
Decisive Risk Management Program
_____________________________________

B) SANTA OLAYA, PUERTO RICO

RE: SAN JUAN STAR
Santa Olaya, PR
Wednesday, 12-2-98

I picked up the local newspaper today to see if I could get more information about the plebiscite scheduled for the middle of December. We've experienced a few plebiscites in the years we've been coming to Santa Olaya, but this is the first time that the vote is more than opinion, i.e. this is a binding-resolution that will then be submitted by the governor of Puerto Rico to the U.S. Congress for their approval.

The other night the t.v. was filled with programs about the plebiscite and efforts were directed towards explaining the choices (columns) on the ballot. People were constantly waving huge posters of the ballot, but I could not really see what the choices were. I did learn that the PPD (Party Popular Democratica) was promoting the fifth column called "None of the Above". I was hoping that the newspaper would print a facsimile of the ballot. I know column three is Statehood, because I saw many people at the televised rallies holding up three fingers. This included the Governor, who sang the statehood song backed by a plena orchestra. One of the other columns is Commonwealth or "status quo" and another column is "Indepencia". I was most interested in what is the last choice? The newspaper did not have a ballot or explanation, so I read other local news.

The weather: Sun rise at 6:38 am and sun set at 5:46 pm.
Moon rise at 1:58 pm and set at 1:19 am. High tide
at 3:47 am and 3:47 pm. Sunny with a few scattered clouds.
Chance of rain 10 percent. Yesterday's high 83. Today's high 84 (est).
Yesterday's low 73. Today's low 73 (est).
Winds southeast 10 to 15 knots.

My Horoscope (Aries): I know Sunday is suppose to be a day of rest, but
set this aside for now. Do something new you've been
wanting to try, especially whatever stimulates your imagination
and creativity.

Comics: REX MORGAN, M.D.: A man and a woman sit in the front seat
of a car, her door is open. She: "Come back after you see the doctor!
and don't make any stops! He: "I won't!" Next panel, close up of his
face. He: "And Jessie...lighten up! Everything's going to be all right!"
Last panel, close up of her face. She: "No stops, Carter! Understand?"

Crossword Puzzle: #55 Across. Q.) Mexican sleeping sickness fly?: A.) TESTE

Local News: 5-month old baby dies after falling from table into
fish tank. A baby, barely five months old, died when it fell
from a table into a fish tank on the floor, police reported. The
mother had left the child in the care its aging grandparents and
siblings, the eldest being only 11 years old. The father is serving
a sentence for robbery and domestic violence. The mother left the
house for a party. The house is not in good repair due to Hurrican
Georges and is in extremely poor condition.

Police Briefs: Distraught man sets himself afire. A 49 year old
man set himself afire in front of the home of his wife, from whom
he had been separated for several months, police reported. He got into a 1977 Chevrolet and set himself ablaze. He sustained
first, second and third degree burns and remains in grave condition.
The vehicle was a total loss.

FYI: Beauty queen pays visit to St. Marteen. Miss Puerto Rico 1998,
Maritza Feliciano is in St. Marteen representing the island in
the Miss Caribbean Hibiscus International Pageant. The Miss Puerto
Rico pageant is a local competition and unrelated to the island's
Miss Puerto Rico Universe pageant.

Outdoor movie showings to continue: "El Faro" an Argentine film about
one young man's battle with an incessant thought that clouds his
senses, an accident, twisted metal, and a car with a lifeless family
inside. Only two little girls survive. Film shown outdoors at UPR.

People: Hulk Hogan to run for president of U.S. in 2000. Burbank, CA.
Professional wrestler "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan announced his retirement
from the ring to throw his hat into the ring for president of the
United States in 2000. Hogan, 45, whose legal name is Terry Bollea
said that the former pro wrestler Jesse "The Body" Ventura's election
as governor of Minnesota inspired his presidential bid.

TV: Tonite's Movies. 9:00 pm. Family Channel. "Life, Liberty and
Pursuit on the Planet of the Apes". (1974). Roddy McDowell. Galen
the chimp finds an old love is now a surgeon at the ape hospital.
Edited from the TV series. (2:00).

Business: Warning labels hinder drive to restore virility of Viagra
sales. New York. Pfizer, Inc. plans a national television campaign
for its impotence pill Viagra, just as FDA requires new warning
safety labels which would have to accompany those commercials.
Among the warnings required: The FDA has received reports of men
suffering painful, prolonged erections after taking Viagra. An erection that lasts longer than four hours requires prompt medical
attention.

Personal Tips: Massages. TABU MASSAGES & VIAGRA. Daring & different
totally estimulating. we have what your looking for. male & female
masseuses, daring & sensual. If your daring come and you won't be
sorry. Hotel & Residence service. there's no competition! Christmas
specials available.

Jan Galligan
75Grand/Sur
Santa Olaya, PR

http://JANGuarte.posterous.com [art blog]
http://cinefestsanjuan.posterous.com [cine blog]