Fat Tuesday - catching up before giving up

It's Fat Tuesday. Going to Mardi Gras/Carnivale (In New Orleans, Rio, and Venice - maybe in that order) would be on my bucket list if I made one. So would going to the Great Pyramid complex, Stonehenge, Machu Pichu, and etc. But all that is another story.

 



I haven't watched Black Orpheus for several years now; it's set during Carnivale in Rio. Here's the oddball trailer for the movie, which doesn't even mention the film's title:





Today I want to take a moment to wish klahanie a Happy Anniversary! It's 5 years since his blog was started. Congrats and Best Wishes!

Today is also Mother Language Day according to spam I just got from Cultural Survival. It's another do-gooder site. I don't know how they got my email, I didn't sign up for them as far as I can remember. I get a lot of these kinds of things. I also just got one from AARP-Vermont, also spam. I can't take many more of these kinds of emails and websites. They make me more depressed than I already am. If I wrote to my government representatives or signed a petition for every one of these I get, I wouldn't have any time in my day to do anything else. For some of these, I get interested but need to know more before I sign something. I just can't accept some of this stuff on face value. If I start to look up certain claims and statements of alleged fact, I'll never have time to sign the damn petitions or send a note to my government representatives. I fully expect a petition to come my way from the girl whose father unloaded several shots into her computer over a Facebook post. No, I'm not making that up. Here's the video, now seen by about 30 million people -but I warn you he uses adult language:



Doesn't that just restore your faith in people?

I also just got an email that my Comcast bill was ready for viewing. Say what? Sure enough, even though they disconnected me, they applied a bunch of credits I hadn't gotten - and billed me for next month!

I had intended to write a bit more about Showbiz Gospel, and wend that into the upcoming Academy Awards, but I just noticed the time. Where has the morning gone? I've been upset that I might not see this year's Oscarfest. I used to hold a "Dish the Oscars" party. I still have fond memories of Princess Wendy (returning to Brattleboro in a week's time) jumping up from her seat when Titanic won its first Tech award. She began performing the ritual of exorcism. By the time that movie won the final award of the evening (Best Picture) everyone there was jumping up to make the sign of the cross and chant "the power of Christ compels you - OUT". (Ego te absolvo in nomine Patris, et Filiii, et Spiritus Sancti. Amen.) Anyway, Laura lent me a usb plug in wireless thingy, which is how I'm able to connect to the internet. My how times have changed - I discovered the wireless signal's presence when I went to copy some old files. I had put in wireless when I was living out in the sticks, as my landlady had a signal I could use. In those days, the wireless modem was a plug in card, which required a bit of work to install in the computer's innards. So, she suggested that the Oscars might be streamed and that I should write them to ask. I used a form on the Oscar website (a mirror of the official AMPAS site) to ask. I got a form letter in reply that noted that they couldn't answer every comment made (even though I had carefully marked my form "information request" which was a check-off box). They referred me to ABC. I went to ABC (a division of Disney) and filled out another form, also checking the "information request" box. And got a form letter in reply. That one told me they couldn't respond to every comment and to go write ABC.

And I haven't even started yet on my TracFone exploits...

But never mind. I just got my 25th or so email invitation to join the National Association of Professional Women. It's warmed up outside to 30 degrees F. I think I'll go run a few errands. Who knows, maybe the streets downtown will be full of dancers celebrating.