10086 Sunset Boulevard

One of the few movies I will break my if-I-have-the-DVD-I-won't-watch-it-on-tv-rule is on TCM tonight. Sunset Boulevard. Directed by Billy Wilder, starring Gloria Swanson and William Holden. 1950. Hold on, I'll be right back. It's almost over. Norma just shot Joe. Splash. If you haven't seen this movie, I just ruined it for you. Not that Joe is dead, because you find that out in the very first shot of the film, but how he wound up that way. Floating face down in a pool.

"The stars are ageless, aren't they?"

"Back at that pool again. The one I always wanted."

"Life, which can be strangely merciful, had taken pity on Norma Desmond."

"You see this is my life, and always will be. Just us, and the cameras, and all those wonderful people out there in the dark. Alright Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my close up."

One of the best last lines in a movie ever.

Now that it's over, you have my full attention. So the cable is already not working. I have it hooked up to the tv again, low tech style. I have a cable guy coming out on Tuesday morning to try to fix it. It was working fine Thursday after I hooked it up. I set it to record a couple movies while I was at work on Friday, but when I came home that night, nada. It's like it crashed. I called in to get it auto reset/rebooted but it was still unresponsive. The DVR won't turn on. Like it's not plugged in and getting power. This is not off to a good start.

I read a book today called A Certain Slant of Light. It's YA novel, but I swear there is nothing YA about it. It could have easily been published by an adult division. Very good story. It's about a woman ghost who has been dead since before the Civil War. She has floated, or haunted if you like, in the living world since her death by attaching herself to a living being who has no idea she's there. The book takes place in present day and she suddenly meets a human who can see her. It goes on from there in a quite compelling way mixing love, religion, acceptance, and mystery. It's a sort of mix of The Lovely Bones, Ghost, and a Jane Austen novel.

I think I'll finish Jasper Fforde's The Big Over Easy tomorrow. Big plans.