Enjoy Yourself

I'm in China. No one knows where my luggage is. Rather than spend a third day in the same clothes I went to the local 'everything in the world' store for some Enjoy Yourself™ underwear and other necessities. Yes, I think I will. ~ss.

I Don't Wanna Holiday In the Sun

Berlin Wall - 3/20/09 ~ss.

A Peaceful Commute

Amsterdam - 3/18/09 ~ss.

When Signage Fails

London - 3/14/09. ~ss.

The Montauk Project

On August 3rd of last year we visited Camp Hero, the former US Air Force base located at the very end of Long Island in Montauk. Originally de-commissioned in the late 60's, conspiracy theorists believe the base, along with it's SAGE radar system, continued to be secretly used to further the mind control and time travel experiments started with Project Rainbow, otherwise known as The Philadelphia Experiment. According to legend, Runaway kids were rounded up and used in testing, some having their psychic abilities enhanced to where they were able to materialize things out of thin air. Time portals were created allowing researchers to travel in time and space, even exploring underground tunnels on Mars. Things finally went awry after the Montauk Project successfully connected with the 1943 U.S.S. Eldridge, the ship used for the original Philadelphia Experiment, on August 12, 1983 - 40 years after the ship's initial disappearance and rumored dimensional travel. During this meeting in time, two men, Al Bielek and Duncan Cameron, claimed to have leaped from the U.S.S. Eldridge while in hyperspace, landing disoriented in 1983 Camp Hero. Shortly after 'Junior', a monster from another dimension, was unleashed and wrecked havoc across the base forcing all power to the station and the SAGE radar to be cut physically with axes. Some say Junior still lurks around the area near the former Battery sites. Since the 80's, most of the facility has been sealed off, with the bunkers even filled in with cement. A few years ago the grounds were re-opened as a state park with all of the structures off limits to the public. We sneaked through the fences to get a closer look at the SAGE and some of the grounds. The woods surrounding the camp carry a strange atmosphere with uprooted trees and twisted branches that have since grown into a bizarre lattice. I recommend wiki-ing The Montauk Project. It's fascinating reading. ~ss.

Have You Seen?

Scaramouche (1952) - dir. George Sidney

I think my dad recorded this one onto VHS when I was a kid because I remember thinking Stewart Granger was the coolest guy around since about sixth grade. Based on the novel by Rafael Sabatini, Scaramouche takes place during the French revolution. Andre Moreau (Granger) is the bastard son of a nobleman, unaware of his parentage. His best friend writes an incendiary manifesto criticizing the royal class and receives the business end of a fencing foil belonging to the Marquis de Maynes (Mel Ferrer), the greatest swordsman in all of France, who is in love with his cousin the Queen, who has ordered him to marry the ingenue Aline (Janet Leigh), who is falling mutually in love with Moreau, who may secretly be her brother.  Right?  Moreau swears revenge on the Marquis, but has his work cut out for him since he knows nothing of the sword. He takes up with his on again/off again girlfriend Lenore (Elenore Parker) and her troupe of traveling performers playing the masked Scaramouche. In secret he uses his revolutionist contacts to learn fencing from the Marquis' master instructor. You know how this must end, with probably the greatest sword fight ever caught on film. And, of course, some shocking twists!

Scaramouche kills it. Granger has some of the best written dialogue and timing you're likely to see (think of a more dashing, more poetic Bruce Campbell). Both he and Ferrar give amazing technical performances when it comes to the swordplay, doing their own stunts none the less, and with sharp swords. Ferrar moves like a dancer (he was). There's humor, history, horse chases, love triangles. The costumes are incredible and the music outstanding. Pops knew what he was doing when he dubbed this one on to the old yellow and black Kodak VHS stock. I'm glad he did. I suggest you check it out. But hurry, the dvd is out of print and although I was still able to pick one up through Amazon, there's not that many left. ~ss.

Sunrise Monk

Early morning, Hong Kong, 2008. ~ss.