Saturday, 23 November 2024

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Ted Kooser. Photo credit: UNL Publications and Photography.


Jane Hirshfield, who lives in California, is one of our country's finest poets.

I found this beautiful meditation in “Poetry of Presence: An Anthology of Mindfulness Poems,” published by Grayson Books of West Hartford, CT.

Ms. Hirshfield's most recent book of poetry is the newly-published Ledger: Poems from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.

Meeting the Light Completely

Even the long-beloved
was once
an unrecognized stranger.

Just so,
the chipped lip
of a blue-glazed cup,
blown field
of a yellow curtain,
might also,
flooding and falling,
ruin your heart.

A table painted with roses.
An empty clothesline.

Each time,
the found world surprises—
that is its nature.

And then
what is said by all lovers:
"What fools we were, not to have seen."


American Life in Poetry does not accept unsolicited manuscripts. It is made possible by The Poetry Foundation, publisher of Poetry magazine. It is also supported by the Department of English at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln. Poem copyright ©1994 by Jane Hirshfield, "Meeting the Light Completely," from Poetry of Presence: An Anthology of Mindfulness Poems, (Grayson Books, 2017). Poem reprinted by permission of Jane Hirshfield and the publisher. Introduction copyright @2020 by The Poetry Foundation. The introduction’s author, Ted Kooser, served as United States Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 2004-2006.
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Ted Kooser. Photo credit: UNL Publications and Photography.

Karen Head lives in Georgia, and possums seem to live everywhere.

You may drive past a dead one on a roadside somewhere today.

Here's a poem in which the poet chooses to keep a safe distance from wildness.

Head's most recent book is Lost on Purpose, published by Iris Press in Oak Ridge, Tennessee.

Proximity

The young possum foraging
outside my office window
seems unconcerned by my presence—
after all, I'm the one who's trapped.
I snack on almonds, watch
it nibble whatever it can find,
and though I am inclined to share,
I know that opening the window
will change the world.


American Life in Poetry does not accept unsolicited manuscripts. It is made possible by The Poetry Foundation, publisher of Poetry magazine. It is also supported by the Department of English at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln. Poem copyright ©2019 by Karen Head, "Proximity," from Lost on Purpose, (Iris Press, 2019). Poem reprinted by permission of Karen Head and the publisher. Introduction copyright @2020 by The Poetry Foundation. The introduction’s author, Ted Kooser, served as United States Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 2004-2006.
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LAKEPORT, Calif. – Due to COVID-19 concerns, the Lake County Symphony Association has announced the cancellation of this year’s Mother’s Day Concert.

LCSA President Ed Bublitz said the action was necessary in order to comply with current health regulations in California.

The Soper Reese Theatre has recently canceled several events for the same reason.

Letters will be sent to LCSA members and others who purchased tickets to inform them about replacement options for the canceled concert, including a direct refund.

Remaining concerts scheduled for this year – August Baroque Concert, November Fall Concert and December Holiday Concert – are expected to take place as usual.

Planning for the LCSA Home Wine and Beer Makers’ Festival, scheduled for Saturday, June 20, at Library Park in Lakeport, is currently underway.

“This is our biggest yearly fundraiser for the Lake County Symphony, and we are hopeful things will be more back to normal by June,” said Bublitz.

Home wine and beer makers, crafters and food vendors are needed and are urged to contact Bublitz at 707-413-3798 to reserve a booth.
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‘TOM CLANCY’S JACK RYAN’ ON AMAZON PRIME VIDEO

As a prolific American novelist, Tom Clancy became very popular for churning out numerous books centered on espionage thrillers and military subjects, several of which became the source material for box office hits.

Amazon Prime Video is now streaming the entire second season of “Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan,” based on characters created by the noted author, and John Krasinski returns in the titular role.

While Season 1 had Ryan globetrotting to the volatile Middle East and elsewhere, Season 2 introduces us to a new look for Clancy’s CIA analyst hero. Clean-shaved the first go around, now he’s got a full beard and working on Capitol Hill for Senator Jim Moreno (Benito Martinez).

To be sure, Jack Ryan started out in the first season as a desk-bound financial analyst for the CIA who uncovered a terrorist plot while working under the cantankerous James Greer (Wendell Pierce) before getting into the rough-and-tumble of espionage.

With Season 2, it’s no surprise that Ryan won’t linger for long in the stuffy hallways of Congress after he tracks a potentially suspicious shipment of illegal arms in the Venezuelan jungle.

Venezuela has been in the news plenty over recent years, having much to do with a succession of corrupt, tyrannical leaders, each one as odious as the other for decimating their country. Here’s looking at you, now deceased Hugo Chavez and Nicolas Maduro.

The latest “Jack Ryan” seems very topical in many ways. Itching to get back into the fray, Ryan and his Senator boss head down to Venezuela for a “diplomatic” mission that does not go well.

The president of this South American country is Nicolas Reyes (Jordi Molla), who is so patently slippery and deceitful that he’s equally cartoonish and viciously thuggish. The wonderful Andy Garcia would have also been a great choice for this role.

Greer gets back in the picture when he gets sidelined from his new post in Moscow and ends up in Venezuela with Ryan just at the time President Reyes is facing a re-election campaign.

Reyes has an unexpected formidable opponent in Gloria Bonalde (Crisina Umana), a real contender whose husband, a former government Minister, has suspiciously been missing for more than a year.

On a covert mission with U.S. special forces, Ryan’s intel leads them up the Orinoco River to a compound deep in the jungle that is guarded by a bunch of mercenaries where contraband is located.

Before being relieved of duty in Venezuela, Ryan gets involved with mysterious Harriet “Harry” Baumann (Noomi Rapace), who might be a rogue agent but certainly knows about German hitman Max Schenkel (Tom Wlaschiha) who killed Ryan’s friend.

Ryan talks his superiors into letting him chase a lead in London to track down a shadowy figure behind the financing of arms deals, but it affords a chance for a cat-and-mouse game with the assassin Schenkel.

Then it is back to Venezuela for daring missions and political intrigue that makes “Jack Ryan” Season 2 worthy of binge-watching, especially now that we can’t leave home except for groceries and medicine.

An unanswered question is where will the next season take us on another thrilling adventure. Season 2 ends with a hint that there could be more corruption to be uncovered either at home or in connection with what was left behind in Venezuela.

BROADWAY ON YOUTUBE

Just like any other entertainment venue that would draw a crowd, New York’s Broadway theatres are closed for business at least until the middle of April but probably longer given the Big Apple’s notoriety as the nation’s current hotspot for the coronavirus pandemic.

Good news comes in the form of theater-loving audiences having another way to enjoy a show from home while theatres remain dark. London’s National Theatre will stream live productions for free on its YouTube channel.

Beginning on April 2nd, the inaugural broadcast will be Richard Bean’s hilarious slapstick comedy “One Man, Two Guvnors,” starring James Corden, who took home a Tony Award when the show transferred from London to Broadway.

“One Man, Two Guvnors,” similar to other productions to follow, will screen every Thursday at 11 a.m. Pacific Daylight Time and then remain available for seven days. The Playbill website provided this helpful link: www.youtube.com/user/ntdiscovertheatre

Here in the United States, James Corden is probably best known for taking over from Craig Ferguson a late-night television talk show that is now titled “The Late Late Show with James Corden” on CBS.

Eight years ago, I was fortunate to have been in New York and caught “One Man, Two Guvnors,” which is without any doubt one of the wildest, gut-busting hilarious comedy productions ever produced on Broadway, and I say this as a fan of the genre with no hesitation.

Nothing really beats seeing this type of production live on stage in front of an appreciative audience. Not sure how it will play out on television, but it is definitely worth giving a try, and I will hope to relive the joy once experienced in person.

Tim Riley writes film and television reviews for Lake County News.
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‘REPUBLIC OF DOYLE’ ON NETFLIX

To say that we are living in crazy times gets even weirder when you ponder that the origin of the novel coronavirus pandemic has been identified by experts to have originated in bats sold at “wet markets” in Wuhan.

The coronavirus is a zoonotic disease that jumps from animals to humans. Some researchers say that bats may have passed the virus to pangolins, which then passed it to humans. Civets might also be involved. What are pangolins and civets anyway?

Whatever the case may be with this virus that is grinding our country, and especially California, to a virtual halt, movie theaters are closed and the studios have delayed their releases. James Bond won’t even show up in his new film until November.

Now that we have all become shut-ins, what to do for some entertainment besides reading and playing video games? It’s time to check out television and cable shows and subscribe to Netflix or other streaming services.

On the recommendation of a friend, I tuned into the Canadian crime series “Republic of Doyle” on Netflix. Granted it’s not new; the six-season series got its start a decade ago, but it’s not dated by any topical references to current events or the latest gossip from Hollywood.

To its credit, “Republic of Doyle,” more than a detective show procedural, thrives on the comedic undertones of a dysfunctional father-son team running a family private eye business.

As the patriarch of the enterprise, Sean McGinley’s Malachy Doyle is a former police officer in St. John’s, Newfoundland and his son Jake Doyle (Allan Hawco) has had an abbreviated law enforcement career for reasons not explained at least in the first season.

With a roving eye for every pretty woman that crosses his path, Jake is in the throes of a volatile dissolution from his soon-to-be ex-wife Nikki (Rachel Wilson), a doctor at the local hospital who often treats one of the Doyle family members for on-the-job injuries.

The relationship between Jake and his father is often fraught with comic tension, as they both express their emotions and personality quirks through a combination of disdain, annoyance and crankiness.

For the widower Malachy, his irascibility flows partially from the frustration of having the separated Jake bunking in at his house when he’s in a relationship with his live-in new love Rose (Lynda Boyd), a strong-willed partner who helps out the detective business.

Thinking of a similar father-son dynamic for a television series brings to mind the one-season Netflix series “The Good Cop” in which Tony Danza’s former rogue NYPD cop lives with his straight-laced NYPD detective son (Josh Groban) and offers him street-wise advice.

Luck often seems to elude Jake, whether he’s about to have a romantic fling or facing violent conflict with a criminal. At one point, Malachy exclaims “why is it every time we do anything you take a beating?”

In the very first episode, Jake is in hot pursuit of tagger Des (Mark O’Brien) who believes his graffiti is a work of art. Jake thinks otherwise when Des retaliates by spray painting his classic 1968 Pontiac GTO.

Before long, Des ends up working for the Doyle family business as an apprentice, showing aptitude for the work even though a lot of the time he’s as jumpy as a cat on a hot tin roof.

Another great dynamic in this series is Jake’s infatuation with the pretty Constable Leslie Bennett (Krystin Pellerin), soon to be a Sergeant, that turns into an on-again, off-again relationship that depends on how Jake flubs a rendezvous or trips up a police investigation.

Aside from the fact that Jake seems to get punched in the face or kicked in sensitive places about every five minutes, the best parts are the verbal lashings he endures from angry Nikki, exasperated Leslie and his annoyed father.

The verbal jabs from Malachy are often priceless. On one occasion, the father unleashes by telling Jake “you are an accident waiting to happen. You are an emotional train wreck with behavioral disorders.”

One of the fascinating aspects of “Republic of Doyle” is the setting of St. John’s, Newfoundland, where the eye-catching, multi-colored houses and the arresting visuals of the scenic seaside vistas are a gift to the city’s tourism bureau.

It’s not just the scenery of the remote eastern part of Canada that is terrific. Most of the talented primary actors, including show co-creator Allan Hawco, are from Newfoundland. That Sean McGinley is of Irish heritage makes him an outlier to all-Canadian cast.

The combination of clever plots, gifted actors, beautiful scenery and crisp, witty dialogue makes “Republic of Doyle” an enjoyable romp that offers plenty enough fun that alleviates the mind from thinking too much about the dire straits we are in at the moment.

Tim Riley writes film and television reviews for Lake County News.
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‘THE HUNT’ Rated R

The premise of “The Hunt,” which has champagne-sipping liberal elites hunting “deplorables” for sport, garnered such a great deal of controversy last summer in the wake of mass shootings in Dayton and El Paso that Universal shelved the film’s release until now.

It is curious that in a presidential election year that exposes the left-right political divide between blue-state and red-state partisans should even be considered no less controversial at this very moment in time.

The one thing that might dampen any meaningful discussion about “The Hunt” would be our fixation on the coronavirus’ threat to our collective well-being. We’re in panic mode over a real menace and too busy trying to find a store with toilet paper on the shelves.

The “deplorables” in question turn out to be about a dozen citizens mostly from flyover-country who are drugged and dumped in a field near a crate filled with an assortment of weapons.

Despite the available arms, the majority of the hunted are quickly terminated by guns and arrows from a hilltop bunker as well as landmines and Viet Cong-style lethal spike traps.

A couple of them manage to escape from what is known in conspiracy theory circles as Manorgate, only to end up seeking refuge in what for all appearances is a mom-and-pop convenience store and gas station in rural Arkansas.

The ordinary-looking senior citizen proprietors turn out to be hunters as well, killing the survivors with shotguns while imparting the final words that “for the record, climate change is real.”

Unfortunately for the hunters, they didn’t count on a bleach blonde car rental clerk from Mississippi to be a cunning, lethal adversary. That would be Crystal (Betty Gilpin), a proficient Army veteran of the Afghanistan war.

In rather short order, Crystal proves to be a lot smarter than the elitists who seriously underestimate her combat skills, as she knows the fine art of evasion on the battlefield and the ability to dispatch enemies with hard-nosed competence.

For Crystal, the mission is to find the mastermind behind the jet-setting crowd’s fantasy of moral authority, and that turns out to be the well-heeled Athena (Hilary Swank), a corporate globalist with a warped sense of supremacy.

“The Hunt” is fraught with gruesome violence, but the real kicker is the climactic hand-to-hand smackdown between Crystal and Athena at the latter’s hideaway with plenty of broken glass and furniture.



‘SPENSER CONFIDENTIAL’ ON NETFLIX

With the dreaded coronavirus spreading and the assembly of crowds discouraged or outright banned, major film studios are delaying so many releases that it appears viewing choices at theaters are dwindling down to independent films.

The situation is not any better with TV networks and cable channels now halting or delaying production. For now, Netflix is a decent option for home entertainment and “Spenser Confidential” is worth a look for a bit of fun during a gloomy time.

Mark Wahlberg stars as Spenser, a former Boston police officer that is first seen on his last day of a five-year stint in Walpole prison for beating up police captain John Boylan (Michael Gaston), a crooked cop and wife-beater to boot.

After being picked up by his old friend Henry (Alan Arkin), Spenser is eager to get out of Boston by moving to Arizona, but first he wants to get his trucking license. To no one’s surprise, Spenser is unable to escape Beantown and the bunch of dirty cops that want his scalp.

Another good reason to skip down is that his on-again, off-again crazy girlfriend Cissy (Iliza Shlesinger) may or may not want him back in her life, but she hurls so many funny insults his way that one can’t be sure how this relationship will play out.

Captain Boylan gets murdered by a gang of machete-wielding thugs, and while Spenser would be the prime suspect, the blame falls on one of his old colleagues, a good guy and family man who’s found dead of an apparent suicide with a stash of drugs in his car.

Despite the fact he’s an ex-con, Spenser operates from a moral code that eludes many of the officers he once worked with, and with a decent cop falsely accused, he decides to investigate the case that the Boston police seem disinterested in solving.

Joining Spenser as his sidekick is wannabe MMA fighter Hawk (Winston Duke), a hulking figure who knows how to fight, but Spenser is the one ending up a punching bag when dealing with rogue cops and Irish mobsters, leading Hawk to observe “Man, you get beat up a lot.”

Before too long, Spenser is on the trail of a South Boston thug named Tracksuit Charlie (James DuMont) who was doing dirty work for Captain Boylan and is working with mobsters on a crooked land development deal involving an abandoned dog-racing track.

Proving to be one of the good guys, Spenser’s quest to root out police corruption and take down gangsters turns “Spenser Confidential” into an entertaining, watchable crime procedural that seems destined for sequels.

Tim Riley writes film and television reviews for Lake County News.

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