Pope Benedict, Sinner

I have given the Pope's recent troubles a lot of thought in the past few days. Though the news cycle has spun on some, it was hard to miss.

Now my religious past is so checkered if Benedict were a blog reader (which I seriously doubt) even he'd probably say, "Please Sam, stay off my side" but I'd like to offer the following, not as a defense of his sins (because I believe this is more than boneheadedness) but as a possible explanation. Hopefully we aren't so far gone that we can't discuss the hows and whys-illumination is a good thing, especially when you're talking about religion.

1) The dude never wanted to be pope. Obviously I'm an American girl so I'm not exactly down with the inner workings of the Vatican but I do know this. Benedict, back when he was Joseph Ratzinger, was a theologian. He was an academic, never served as a priest in any other way. He never had a parish, he never served the people. He was one of John Paul II's closest advisors on matters of theology (we're talking angels on the head of a pin here people) which was his ticket to the other side of the velvet rope at Vatican City. I think this is significant because it explains the way his mind works-he included the offensive text because he doesn't get out much. For all his flaws, John Paul II did. Prior to being pope he was a parish priest, an actor, a poet-the guy was a total people person. An academic might be reluctant to edit something, even something that might upset people, when it proves their point so perfectly while a people person is primarily concerned with just that, people. Benedict was told using those passages might ruffle a few feathers but he wanted to be right more than he wanted to do the right thing. A very human flaw but a very expensive one in a world leader. That was his first sin, pride.

2) Going along with sin #1 was another sin, this one a classic sin of omission a la Cat Stevens. You may remember when Stevens, in his new Muslim guise, was asked about the fatwah issued on Salman Rushdie for his Satanic Verses he said, "Yes, that has traditionally been the punishment." Notice he didn't offer an opinion on whether that was right or wrong, just offered up the fact. Same thing with the Pope, just offered the quote with little or no indication of how he felt. I'm sure in the text what he was saying made perfect sense but you're running with the big dogs now, you've got to think of these things. A little disclaimer can go long way in the sound bite age.

3) Then, when all the shit hit the fan and horrible things were being said and done, we were back to sin #1 , to the prickly academic with his back up because the class didn't get what he was saying. Benedict, here's the sword-start falling. When people's lives are at stake you don't pussyfoot around with the semantics of your apology. I don't believe you wanted to start something but after you've thrown a lit match on a tinderbox you can't say it was just cause people didn't get you. That ain't gonna do it. You can't work for the Prince of Peace and cause violence, even accidentally, without doing everything, and I do mean everything, to make it right.

All in all it was a very costly error in a job with a super steep learning curve. But I forgive the Pope because I think I get the reasons why it happened and because my faith instructs me to forgive as I seek forgiveness. A wise leader learns from his mistakes though and it seems it's Benedict's turn for some schooling.

Welcome Back Jackie Earl!

As a huge fan of his, and of character actors in general, (I once proposed an award just for them called the Ritters after the great Thelma Ritter) I am pleased to say welcome back Jackie Earl Haley.

Don't know the name? Well, what if I said, as I once heard him described, the ugly guy from "Breaking Away"? Got him placed now? Or how about the same description from the original "Bad News Bears"? He was also in "Losin It" and one of the most terrifying movies from my childhood, "Damnation Alley" (I ran out of that one crying).

I'm not sure what he's been doing in the interim-I assume something law abiding and upstanding or else we would have heard about it-but I am pleased to see he's in both the new "All the King's Men" and "Little Children" and getting good notices for both. I say good for you Jackie Earl!

Cheery News for Hard Times

I am certainly no "Chicken Soup for the Soul" girl but like most folks I am always looking for some uplift in these dark times. (I know I am just the latest in a long line of humans to think that, existance has always been a bit of a challenge.) There was some uplift in the NYT today. In the National section there was a story about the Maine Troop Greeters. These folks work out of the Bangor International Airport which apparently is where all the troop planes stop because of its easternmost locale and really long runways. This group, organized in 1991, greets the troops on their way to war, trying to say thank you and make the layover pleasant with free food and prepaid cell phones so soldiers can call home one last time. I loved this story because it is an example of hands on volunteerism that makes a personal difference.

It reminded me of another story I read a few weeks back about a high school trumpet player who, when she found out that local troops receiving military funerals only had a recorded version of "Taps", taught herself the song and proceeded to volunteer to play live at every local funeral. At the time of the article she had played at over 50 within a 100 mile radius. I wished I had saved the article info so I could cite her specifically.

To these folks I say "good on ya" and "thanks".

Rock Docs

My boyfriend added a couple of documentaries to our Netflix queue that I highly recommend if you're in the mood to rock.

"We Jam Econo
The Story of the Minutemen"

I was a little late in my appreciation of this seminal punk band so I was surprised how much I enjoyed this low tech tribute. With such a rough and ready subject I guess I was expecting something else but it can only really be described as heartwarming. The surviving members, friends and lots of famous fans are all interviewed and have nothing but good things to say about the band, especially founding frontman D Boon. I loved the story of how Boon and fellow band member, Mike Watt, met. Boon was playing army and dropped out of a tree onto Watt, who he mistakenly thought was also enlisted. (If that's not the boy equivalent of "meeting cute" I don't know what is.) A family friend also described how other parents gave Mrs Boon a hard time about her son's musical pursuits. Her answer was a mom classic, "As long as I hear that noise I know where my son is." The same friend was almost in tears as she described how broken up the whole band was when Mrs Boon, their earliest champion, died unexpectedly.

This is a documentary about a punk band remember.

But our favorite part was where Flea, of Red Hot Chili Pepper fame, was describing how rudimentary the Minutemen's musical understanding was when they started. They apparently didn't get any lessons at all so on the subject of tuning they were completely ignorant, they just thought it was a preference thing-some people liked their strings loose, some liked them tight. (That's now worked its way into our household vernacular, anytime there's a "to each his own moment".) "We Jam Econo" gets our highest marks.



"Let's Rock Again"

This one features the late great Joe Strummer post Clash. It's interesting because Strummer is (I forgotten how darn cute he was). My favorite part, which had me shaking my head in disbelief, was shot while Strummer was on tour in the US and during the day was making cold calls at radio stations and not getting in. It's Joe Strummer for god's sake. Crazy. The performance footage in this one shows why Strummer was a star.

save Lascaux

66 years ago today 3 French teenagers on the Northern slopes of the Pyrenees, outside of the village of Montignac made an amazing discovery. They slipped into a hole under an uprooted tree and discovered the most spectacular of the Palaeolithic caves, Lascaux. Somewhere between 15 and 17,000 years old, Lascaux has breathtaking cave paintings that extend for miles. Its importance to both the art and historical worlds cannot be overstated.

So I was dismayed to read in Time magazine a few weeks back that the cave has been infested with micro organisms and bacteria that are causing a mold that is endangering the paintings. The invaders' arrival coincided with the installation of new climatic equipment 5 years ago. The new equipment, which was drastically different from anything used before, caused a fungal infection. To combat the infection persons entering the cave had to wash their feet in formaldehyde, the formaldehyde upset the ecological balance of cave causing the mold to grow. Judging by the article in Time it sounds like the French don't know what to do. The cave is administered by the Research Laboratory of Historical Monuments (LRHM) but of course, as with any bureaucracy, there's lots of cooks in this kitchen, none of whom have any cave climate control experience.

I suggest that an American team go over to see if they can lend a hand, Carlsbad Caverns and Mammoth Caves seem to be doing just fine. I also suggest that the world sit up and take notice as this treasure is the history of all of us on this planet, not just the French.

I am concerned about this for selfish reasons as well. My second tattoo is the red "Chinese mare" from The Painted Gallery of Lascaux. I got it not just cause it's beautiful and I love horses-it's also about interconnectedness (as I said to a former friend at the the time, "I AM the goddamn Circle of Life"). I have always had a fantasy that when I make it to France someday I'll show up at Lascaux and be denied entrance (visitors are strictly limited) until I reveal the tattoo. Then I will be ushered in with a flourish. And unless Daddy Warbucks is reading this blog it might be awhile before I get there so Lascaux must be protected.


**You can take a virtual tour of Lascaux at www.culture.fr/arenat/lascax/en**

Rock n Roll Hall of Fame II

In business you don't complain without offering some plan or suggestion for improvement so in response to my last blog here are some suggestions for the powers that be in Cleveland.

*Personalized Museum Tours*

You'd have to have the right kind of guide for these of course (I suggest my friend Les) but since the museum doesn't open until 10 am you could offer early morning or after hours tours. The visitors would need to fill out a questionnaire to help the guide highlight what they might most like to see. It couldn't be exhaustive but it would make for a more singular experience, one I think people would be willing to pay extra for.

*Themed Self Guided Tours*

For the overwhelmed have a rack near the front of the museum with little fliers that highlight a particular theme, especially ones that would group things that might not be displayed near each other. Themes could be serious ("Great African American Female Rockers") or cheeky ("Choked to Death on Vomit") but they'd provide some structure at little or no additional expense. You could even have some psuedo passport to check them all off.

*Quiz Show*

Though there were listening stations throughout to hear famous radio people or albums there wasn't really anything to test your knowledge. I think lots of museum visitors would enjoy quizzing themselves. But please make them quiet machines, the place is loud enough already.

*New Music*

Nowhere in the whole place did I see any mention of new music. I get that it's all about achievement but an industry under fire as much as the music one is now can't waste any opportunity to get exposure for the faces of tomorrow. You'd have to change it regularly and yeah, at some point some Milli Vanilli one hit wonder type would get picked sure, but it'd be worth it if some worthy struggling acts got some attention.

If none of the above are possible just clearing the whole place out next time I want to visit would also work.

Rock n' Roll Hall of Fame

Well, I finally made my pilgrimage. After years of saying I wanted to go I finally made it to Cleveland to visit the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum.

My review?

Well, it would have to be mixed. It was simultaneously over and underwhelming. Overwhelming because it is so large and there is so much stuff and underwhelming because it seemed, in large part, so haphazard. I believe a modern museum (those that have been around forever and have just grown willy nilly belong in a different category) should lead you, through their architecture and design and have a strong, clear statement to make.

The best example of this I have visited is the Civil Rights Museum in Memphis. The museum is built in the former Lorraine Motel, where Martin Luther King Jr was assassinated. The tour starts in the basement with the importation of blacks to this country-the visitor works their way up, through time and history, until you end at the room and balcony where King was killed. It is a thoughtful design that packs an emotional wallop.

Not so in Cleveland. There is one small (and easily missed-I didn't see it until I was doubling back for the bathroom) display on rock's forebears to start you off then your senses are overwhelmed with display after display packed full of stuff. And why I.M. Pei chose a pyramid design escapes me still, which points to a bit of a failure-if a design truly works it should seem to the visitor like there could be no other. Granted, the glass walls might have been nicer if it had not been so nasty smoggy when we were there. With little or no lake visibility all we saw was the trash that had collected right next to the dock-not so pretty.

To be fair I have to say it was a Saturday in August so it was very crowded which can obviously color your experience. Because of the crowd we did not go to see "Mystery Train", the audio-visual presentation, which may have added some structure to our visit.

The other issue interfering with our enjoyment were our fellow guests which I guess no museum can control. For every sweet moment we witnessed (like the dad attempting to explain 45s to his dubious son) there were at least double the number of scary ones ("Otis Redding? Who's that?"). As I said to my boyfriend as my disappointment grew there should be a way to CLEP out of Rock 101 so they could have a seperate musuem for true music fans.

Despite all these reservations there were some parts I really liked. The special Bob Dylan exhibit was stellar with loads of great video and photos. (One bonus to the pyramid structure is that the special exhibit ends up in its own special spot up high.) There were some great paper items that could be very eye opening like Tom Petty's first Pre-Heartbreakers contract which showed after sales of 740 units of his first record he owed the record company a grand total of $101,000. (As I've said here before that's the reason you have to go see people live-you have to buy the record so the label will want them to make another but you have to go see the show because that's how they make their nut.) And of course some of the items (the fuselage from the Otis Redding crash, the bass guitar smashed on the front of The Clash's "London Calling") spoke volumes even in the midst of chaos.

To those who would say what could represent this particular art form better than a crowded, loud, overstimulating space I say maybe, if it was intentional. My advice would be to skip it and use the money you would have spent buying some CDs from the artists contained in it that you don't already have in your collection. What could be more rock and roll than that?

Happy Anniversary to Me

As of September 7th the Hoyden is one year old. Thanks to my regular readers and anybody else who just stopped by-I do like to see the counter go up. When I started I wasn't sure if I'd like this blogging thing but I do. The idea of my words hanging out there in cyberspace pleases me. It's a great bargain and another (free) way to keep in touch.

Thanks everybody!

I Give Up

Three times in the last month I have attempted to plan surprise birthday parties for people and three times they have ended in abortive failures. Well, it doesn't take a brick to fall on my head (just three abortive failures apparently) I am officially out of the surprise business.

I'm not mad, people should get what they want for their special day even if that is, well...nothing. It's hard to be upset at people for ruining plans they didn't know anything about (though in every case I gave it the old college try) but I must say I don't really get it. What could be better than a bunch of people you love scheming and planning for you to demonstrate their regard? And if there's cake and presents thrown in so much the better right?

I want to go on the record right now and say I love surprises. Anybody who wants to throw me a party is welcome to at any time. Just tell me where to show up and I'll be there with bells on. Or a party hat, I'm totally flexiable.

My Brush with the Law Part 2

Last Thursday I awoke to find a police car parked in front of the building. Even though I had done nothing to garner attention from the police I was a little jumpy (The whole "they found me!" thing.) I kept peeking out the window to watch. The plot thickened when two detectives showed up and proceeded to get suited up "CSI" style (unlike those TV detectives though these guys were dressed like high school vice principals, pocket protectors and all) and examined the car parked next to mine. When they moved on to my car, Eudora, (yeah my car has a name, so does my blender what of it?) I had to go check it out. Turns out the neighbor downstairs had his car broken into. Actually, the detectives informed me with no small amount of scorn, the car was unlocked so I guess maybe it's not really breaking in per say. There was dusting for prints and photographs and it was all very interesting because I wasn't in trouble, kinda like sitting in the ambulance when you're not really sick. I'm not sure it was my locking my car so much as the thieves peeking in and seeing cassettes in the front seat but I was happy to bask in my good citizenship and do my part.

What a Way to Go

A stingray to the heart?

Damn.

Talk about going how you lived.

Please No

In dismaying news I found out recently that there is yet another Nancy Drew movie in the works, this one starring Emma Roberts (Julia's niece, star of "Aquamarine"). There are so many things wrong with this it's hard to know where to start so I'll just dive right in.

First, Nancy has never been captured on film well. The original celluloid Nancy, Bonita Granville, ("Nancy Drew, Reporter", "Nancy Drew, Detective" ,"Nancy Drew, Troubleshooter" and "Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase" ) had the right period look but Granville lacked Nancy's inner core of steel and seemed way too young-Nancy needs to be 18 going on 40.

The television versions of the intrepid teen detective have not fared much better. Pamela Sue Martin in the 70s "Nancy Drew Mysteries" was too modern (it was hard to get past Nancy's feathered brunette hair) and not smart enough (Martin was better suited to her scheming "Dallas" role). There was apparently also a Canadian TV series in 1995 which never caught on enough for me to actually see it.

Second, Emma Roberts? I know, I know, the thing with casting is no matter how bad it is it could always be worse (Paris Hilton anyone?) but Emma Roberts? Really?

So, why go there? There's so much baggage with this character (she has been around since 1930 after all) so many people grew up with Nancy and feel they know her as a friend you're almost certain to set yourself up for failure. Why not come up with a new detective, in the spirit of Nancy Drew, who could carry on the tradition but be totally modern?

Well, I'm happy to say this has already happened. Kristen Bell, TV's Veronica Mars, is the new century's Nancy Drew. Think about it:


-a missing mother, which allows her unlimited and mostly unsupervised detecting time
-a close relationship with her father, a prominent local figure who works in law enforcement
-2 close friends who help her solve her mysteries
-a devoted boyfriend who she cares about but not enough for him to be more important than her mysteries (Veronica has actually had a couple of these)
-Veronica is smart, brave, pretty, blonde, can talk to anyone and is never at a loss no matter what the situation

Yep, sounds like Nancy alright.

As for Miss Roberts? Well, they haven't made a Trixie Belden movie yet...


**The first two seasons of "Veronica Mars" are now available on DVD**