JWG's Experimental Eccentric — July 5, 2011

Zwerglipatch  July 5, 2011  6:20 a.m. EDT

“Mary and Max” was the claymation film René and I watched last night. We were surprised at its cleverness. Not knowing anything about this film, we watched with open minds. It was fresh  and quirky. We gave it a five-star rating.

The night before, we watched the three-star “The Red Violin” which could have been five stars if it had made the result more plausible, the Lord Frederick segment less opulent, and had placed more footage on the cutting room floor.

“Mary and Max” had a genuine storytelling style including narrator. And, it was a story of two people who were loners so much so they became eccentrics. Their problems were believable. Their lives crossed. This film concerning two independent people was good viewing for Independence Day. As we watched it, we could hear the fireworks going off in our own neighborhood. Why do people like this noise?

Why do people enjoy playing war?

Today, I read where, in Old Bethpage, a Civil War training reenactment is happening. Why must this history be lived? I do not know. Yes, I have read reasons; all I read has a falsity cushioning the underlying theme that men enjoy shooting and killing. I will not play these games.

Yesterday night, after “Mary and Max”, I stood at our kitchen window  and could see the entertainment of the actual fireworks being set off from the corner house. It was a pretty sight to see the sparkling in the sky. Then, I heard the round of firecrackers on the ground which is such a needless noise.

Each Fourth of July, Daddy [Garand] would buy sparklers. I would hold the wire and marvel at the spitting sparks. I would swirl the fire about in circles. It was fun. Firecrackers were never fun. They were noise. There has always been unnecessary noise.