Pain, Pleasure, Large Quantities of Donuts

My second week of school is going well. The busy-ness has settled into a steady hum, the PRC is moving along, and I got to see seals the other day with the kids and Herc and Sarah! We stopped by the park after eating our way through a stack of donuts, and there were actual frolicking seals in the Sound! They seemed to be frolicking, at least, they were a ways out in the water.

The one thing that's getting to me is my health. As I enjoy my donuts and coffee, I'm beginning to feel as though their days are numbered. Or mine are. I've had this recurring issue of numbness and tingling, or paresthesia as Jaime likes to call it, for awhile now. It's associated with chest pain and a few other symptoms, which sounds kinda bad. So, I'm finally getting going on dealing with it. I've been to a few doctors, but I always get confused looks, due to the oddity of the symptoms. They make me feel as though I'm either a hypochondriac or a ninety year old man. But I am getting tired of the symptoms, and the worry it's causing Jaime. The last straw was me dropping my bag of chocolate chips due to having a weak grip. When my chocolate is threatened, I act.

(If the problems force me to give up sugar, the irony will not be lost on me.)

And speaking of irony. While enjoying some awesome cinema with the aforementioned Herc and Sarah, I was annoyed to find a person sporting ironic pink headgear in front of me. This person had two different pink hats, one on top of another. I really don't get this wave of ironic clothing that has swept the nation. I mean I understand, it's Kaliyuga and all, things are gonna get nuts. But wearing stupid clothing just to be stupid? Maybe he really liked the look, in which case, okay. Insanity is a medical condition, treatable and comprehensible. What is the pleasure in wearing clothing that you think is ridiculous to make a funny statement? I've worn some goofy clothes. But I wore it because I liked it, I thought it was fun. Ironically mocking yourself is just an odd pastime.

On the plus side, a big screen version of Rashomon was great fun. The movie was as great as I remember, dark and gorgeously shot. I had forgotten the amazing Ozu-style shots that Kurosawa did in this one. Brilliant.

A lot of attention goes to Toshiro Mifune in this, but I am always struck by Takashi Shimura, who plays the woodcutter. He was in a ton of great movies, a few of Kurosawa's. (and a kaiju flick imdb.com tells me. Awesome!)

His best that I've seen is Ikiru. If I ever regret learning Japanese, reminding myself of the ability to watch this movie without subtitles sets me straight. It's an amazing, beautiful film. Along with Dodeskaden, (is this one available in English? I can't find an English title) Ikiru is one the most watchable Kurosawa movies for me. Unlike the intensity of Red Beard or Rashomon, these are deep films but not so shocking. (maybe it's the parent in me, but the scene at the end of Rashomon with the baby feels like a punch in the gut)

(Boy, a lot of parenthetical remarks today.)

(It's been a long day. Be thankful there aren't more sentence fragments.)

If donuts and Kurosawa movies and seals cure my health issue, I think I'll be on to the most fun treatment regimen ever devised. I'll patent it. Maybe I can call it Samurai Donut Seal!

(If that isn't already a cartoon. Sounds like it is.)