grayb

After the cold and snow last Wednesday we've had much warmer weather and considerable rain the rest of the week. The effect on the local rivers and streams has been quite noticeable.



I've been having a good week, but the best day by far was Monday. The peak of the most awesome celestial show of the year, the Geminid Meteor Shower, was predicted to occur just after midnight on Sunday (12:10 a.m. EST Monday morning). I honestly didn't expect to be able to see anything at all; we'd had cloudy skies, sleet and fog for the entire day and evening. I stepped outside a few minutes before midnight, looked up, and was immediately thrilled to see a bright meteor streak across the surprisingly crystal clear sky. I dashed back inside to grab a blanket and my coat, dragged a lawn chair out into the middle of the yard and enjoyed the spectacle until a bit after 2:00 a.m. when the fog finally rolled in again. The Geminids have long been my favorite meteors - I was thrilled to be able to see them again this year.

Happy and excited, but somewhat tired and chilled, I went inside to sleep for a few hours and awoke to find the sun shining brightly. After being trapped indoors for several days by the relentless rain I was anxious to spend the day outside. I received an unexpected call from my best friend and we decided that this would be the perfect day to take him to see and hike around The New Croton Dam for the first time.



It was an excellent day. There was a prodigious amount of water rushing over the spillway of the dam and down the falls - more than I've seen in quite some time.



The Aqueduct trail was rather muddy and there were several scattered patches of ice. It was slow and slippery going and we weren't able to walk as far as I'd hoped. The sun sank below the western hills while we were still on the return leg of the journey. It was well after sunset by the time we arrived back at the dam. We stood near the base and enjoyed the falling waters until darkness and cold finally got the better of us.

thirty minutes after sunset

On the way home we stopped by the Goldens Bridge railroad station to pick up two good friends that were coming back from a day in the city and we all went out for burgers and beers at a long time favorite bar of mine, The Blazer Pub, which is just up the road. It was a wonderful day.

I've been watching lots of great films. The first three on the list were new to me, all the rest are old favorites - some of them are my very favorite films of all time.

Teeth (2006) Mitchell Lichtenstein
Julie & Julia (2009) Nora Ephron
Matador (1986) Pedro Almodovar
Big Fish (2003) Tim Burton
Finding Neverland (2004) Marc Forster
Encounters at the End of the World (2007) Werner Herzog
Lolita (1964) Stanley Kubric
Dr. Strangelove (1964) Stanley Kubric
2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) Stanley Kubric
Black Book (2006) Paul Verhoeven
Gloomy Sunday (1999) Rolf Schebel
Sansho the Balffi (1954) Kenji Mizoguchi
The Pillow Book (1997) Peter Greenaway
Belle Epoque (1992) Ferando Trueba
Gloomy Sunday (1999) Rolf Schebel
The Fifth Element (1997) Luc Besson
The Lair of the White Worm (1988) Ken Russell
Gone with the Wind 1939 Victor Fleming
The Girl on a Motorcycle (1968) Jack Cardiff
Casablanca (1942) Michael Curtis
Blue (1993) Krzysztof Kieslowski
White (1994) Krzysztof Kieslowski
Red (1994) Krzysztof Kieslowski

I had just (re)watched Kieslowski's Trois Couleurs series about a month ago. I simply needed to enjoy it once again.



Books:

I'm getting back up to speed with my reading. I enjoyed the new John Irving novel, two more from Simon R. Green's Nightside series and finshed the Algernon Blackwood compilation and the last book in the Neanderthal Paralax series. I enjoyed them all. The list:

Last Night in Twisted River - John Irvng
Tales of the Uncanny and Supernatural - Algernon Blackwood
Hex and the City - Simon R. Green
Paths Not Taken - Simon R.Green
Hybrids - Robert J. Sawyer



Just a few more days until The Solstice. I hope that the coming season will be a good one for you. Take care...