I am listening to Alexandre Tharaud play Bach's "Italian Concerto", which I heard part of earlier in the day on KUSC while driving to the store. I knew I had to Youtube it when I got home, and now I am listening again. I have mentioned before that I love Tharaud's playing, so smooth and clear and well articulated. It's like Liquid Piano. I prefer him over the nuclear-powered virtuosos like Yuja Wang, who play too fast and with too much bombast. Tharaud, by contrast, is an heir to the quieter spiritual pianism of someone like Wilhelm Kempff, who of course is, for me, one of the Holy Trinity of piano (the other two being Vladimir Sofronitsky and Dinu Lipatti). You can't go wrong with anything by Tharaud, especially his recordings of Couperin, Rameau and Scarlatti. ////
I managed to get up to Aliso Canyon today for a full length hike on the Winter Solstice. This was my first hike of any kind since my last period of days off in November. I didn't go on a single one all during my latest work cycle because of shorter days and increased time at Pearl's in the afternoon. It's a far cry from The Legendary Hiking Days Of Yore, in 2014-2016, when I was out on the trails about three times a week and sometimes more, but I will take what I can get, and looking back, I did do some of my most mega-hikes ever this year, including an almost 6 miler at Rocky Peak in June.
My favorite thing about the winter solstice is that the Sun will now be coming back the other way, giving us one more minute of light per day until June 21st, and you really start noticing the difference by mid-January, not only in the extra daylight but in the light quality from the heightened angle of the Sun. Something that is fun to do is to take notice of the position of the Sun in the sky from week to week. I take a lot of sunset pics over the Santa Susana mountains, and I like to watch the Sun's progress from north to south and then back again. It's also fun to watch the Moon night by night, but unless you really follow astronomy it's impossible (for me at least!) to predict where it will appear in the sky.
I do follow the astrological aspects of the Moon, however, so I know what sign it will be in on any given day. This helps you to understand what the vibe will be. Try it, it's very accurate. Over time you will notice how the days differ. Astrologically speaking, it is very important to read up on your Moon Sign and pay attention to it. Also your Mars, Mercury and Venus, i.e. your planets of action, communication and Eros. I have Aries in both Venus and Mercury, which makes me direct in those ways, but in Mars I have Pisces, which makes me very shy. I am double fire in my Sun (Aries) and my rising sign (Leo), but a lot of it gets shut down by the Pisces Mars. I'm an extrovert on the inside but an introvert to the world at large (well, sort of.....it's not that cut and dried). Anyway, do your own chart and discover all of your own planetary aspects. You can Google a free chart online, and when you see what your aspects are, it will help you to understand your own personality and feelings. Astrology is not everything as far as one's persona is concerned, but neither is it bunk. In fact, it is very useful. ////
Tonight I hung out with Powell and Loy for the third time, in "Another Thin Man"(1939). This one has to do with the murder of a wealthy industrialist who was a business partner to Nora's father. She is loaded by inheritence; Nick is a genius detective. He would rather drink martinis in hotel rooms, but she would rather be involved in intrigue (while dressed in satin gowns). Their dog Asta always seems to be one step ahead of either of them. He gets his own scenes in every Thin Man movie, and boy I would love to have a dog like him. He is super smart, yet as "doggie" as he can be.
The "Thin Man" movies are pure formula, but Loy and Powell provide the comic and romantic spark, and the suaveness, to make the plots percolate as they entangle and mess with the assorted mooks, molls and police detectives in the sorting out of the case at hand.
Myna Loy is perhaps the most stylish and sophisticated of the great 1930s comediennes, and William Powell is her ultimate foil. He is an unheralded great in my book. It is their show; he leads, she follows, and Asta always gets the last word (or bark). Two Thumbs Up for "Another Thin Man". I could watch a dozen of these movies and so could you.
That's all for tonight. See you in the morning. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
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