What I've been doing for the past four days...

I've been sick since Sunday. I have what I can only refer to as "an attack of the face". My sinuses have decided to stuff up and stay stuffed up making it impossible for me to breathe. No medicine works. My head feels puffy and full of snot. Sorry to be so graphic but that's how I feel. I cough all night making sleep impossible. I am miserable. I tried to go to work on Monday and left within one hour and have been home ever since. Daytime TV sucks. So, here's what I've been doing for the past four days.

I thank Netflix for the amazingly interesting array of documentaries they offer to be streamed right on my iPad. Some of the best are these...

1. Theatre of War - now some of you know I am an actress, or at least used to be, and this documentary is amazing. It is about the Public Theatre's production of Brecht's Mother Courage starring Meryl Streep. The production was done as the US entered into war in the middle east and this glimpse into Meryl Streep's process of creating a character is priceless. Amazing woman, even more amazing actress.

2. Brother's Keeper - Wow... this was intense. It's the story of the Ward brothers in upstate New York. They are quiet, unassuming farmers living life as they always have - uneducated, possibly mentally retarded - when one of them dies and another is accused of murder. The story of this rag tag band of brothers who've always lived on the fringe of their community and who are now embraced by that community in a show of solidarity and support is truly heartfelt. They were never really welcomed before, more like tolerated, but once they are threatened the whole town comes to their support and changes their lives forever.

3. Vernon, FL. - this is a really strange little film. It's a series of interviews with the quirky little bunch of folks that live in Vernon, Florida. There's a guy who hunts turkeys. He doesn't just hunt them, he LIVES to hunt them. There's a guy who is enamored of the swamp areas and what might be out there. There's the guy who works in a mill but who's true calling is to be a preacher. Interesting, quirky and fun!

4.Strictly Background - this is a film that follows those hardest working actors of all time - the extras. Those folks who stand around for days, bring their own lunch, do anything for just a few minutes of screen time. When I was in Chicago, I had friends who worked as extras in the filming of "The Untouchables" starring Robert Deniro and Kevin Costner. I remember one friend, Larry, who laid in a pool of stage blood for three days straight. You can see him in the movie - when they take the elevator down and find the cop laying in the alley. That's Larry!

So, I'm home again today. Still sick and getting ready to fire up the iPad. There are more great films out there for me to see. It makes being sick easier to take. Check out these films if you can. Very well worth it.

Reading and watching and thinking...

So, lately I've been reading articles posted on the internet that have been about a variety of topics. I was doing this to get some idea of what might be acceptable writing practices if ever I wanted to try to submit something to a website. All I can say is...sheesh! Some of what I've read - no, make that MOST of what I've read has been just so much fluff with little to no researched background. For example, I just read something that was on MSN about the "10 Worst Wedding Mishaps". Now, when I saw that title I thought this was going to be actually about personal stories of things that have happened to real people. Instead, it was a made up list of only slightly embarrassing events that might happen at some time. For example, #5 was "The best man breaks down during his speech and refuses to give up the mic." Really? Is this something that is common? The entire list read as though it was made up 5 minutes before it was due to the editor.

Over on Yahoo I read about the top ten ways being frugal can hurt your health. Okay, sounded interesting. Let's see, first up...buying cheap snacks from a vending machine. The article goes on to inform me that the snacks aren't healthy and over time the cost adds up. REALLY? Who knew!!? Oh, and then it says, buying in bulk can be unhealthy too. Why? Because you buy too much of things that can be bad for you. NO WAY!! REALLY??

I'm astounded that this crap is passing as publishable articles. Even by internet standards these are shoddy, quickly written garbage.

So, I've also been watching. I have two or three TV shows I'm pretty dedicated to but what I've been watching are the amazing documentaries that are streaming on Netflix. This weekend I watched:

Young at Heart - This was a great, cheerful, heartfelt documentary about a choir director and his group of senior citizens who perform some very unlikely music. They're not singing "You are my Sunshine" here. No, they are performing James Brown, Sonic Youth, Coldplay and Radiohead. The film shows the dedication these oldsters have to their music, each other and their lives. They lose two members during the filming of this. A point not lost on the group who's average age is at least 85. And there is a version of Coldplay's "Fix You" performed that will leave you in tears. Loved this film. So very much.

The Loss of Nameless Things - Back in the early 80's there was a hot shot playwright named Oakley Hall III who was being hailed as the person who was going to revive the American theatre. At a time when Broadway was failing, he and his group of uber-talented actors were doing exciting and innovative theatre in a barn in upstate New York. They caught the attention of the New York Council for the Arts which came to see a performance of "Frankenstein" and immediately offered them a bundle of money in arts council funding. Of course, this troupe, led by the radiant genius Oakley Hall, lived together at the farm, commune style, with all the free sexuality and drugs that lifestyle had to offer. Then there was a mysterious tragedy. Oakley Hall fell off a bridge or might have been thrown off a bridge, no one know, and sustained a serious head injury which took his face, his memory, his IQ and his talent. He became a shell of his former self and was no longer able to write. He wandered on the fringe of artistic society in a vain attempt to remember what it was he used to be and do. It wasn't until many years later that he came to terms with his injury and the irreparable damage to his brain, his ego and his self esteem. He survives triumphant with a new production of his most lauded play and, even though he is never the same, he is content with who he has become. Amazing piece of work.

If you have Netflix you can stream both of these films and I highly recommend you do. I am never disappointed in a good documentary! Enjoy!