Tale of Tales

Scene from Tale of Tales (1979), by Yuri Norstein

I left work half an hour early yesterday to meet Kevin, Natalia and Kevin's Finnish friend Osmo at the Curzon Cinema. We sat at the back; the cinema quickly filled up; an art type announced that A.S. Byatt and a woman who wrote a book about Tale of Tales would discuss it afterwards with the audience.

Tale of Tales is considered by some to be the best animated film of all times. It was certainly beautiful -- with it's haunting ghost soldiers, children who share apples with crows, babies kidnapped by wolves, and dancing white sheets. DVDs and books were being sold afterwards (with autographs by A.S. Byatt and the other lady) but I couldn't afford them. As we walked past the merchandise table, I saw people in the crowd lifting the DVD above their heads as if it were a priceless purchase.

Although Norstein was, until recently, fairly unknown, he won an Oscar a few years ago for the short animated film The Old Man and The Sea. I actually remember watching that Oscar night and thinking, when they showed a brief clip of the film, that I would like to see it one day. In fact, I'd just like to see more animated features (but not the Disney kind); there seems to be alot of interesting stuff being done at the moment which you can only catch in one-offs like last night. It's a matter of keeping our eyes open and our savings intact for future expeditions.

Afterwards, we found a pub in Soho, ate chips and drank ale. We talked about animated films (like Kevin's short The Rubbish Composer), Russia, Finland and story-telling.

When I got home, I witnessed some horrible behaviour on Celebrity Big Brother. I love "high art" but I can't get away from kitsch and trash. If Milan Kundera knew me, he would despair.

The Evil Rave in my Head

For the past month I've been hearing this weird pulse in my head, close to my right ear. I thought at first that I was finally able to hear my heartbeat without relying on my fingers. Then I got concerned when it appeared to be so irregular: I thought I was on the verge of an aneurism.

I went to see the NT's nurse on my lunch break and she said I probably have tinnitus. I've made an appointment to see my GP Monday morning.

I've gone through the list of potential causes for this but I can't explain its appearance. I'm thinking it could be related to the swimming pool, or maybe because I swallow Nurofen like candy. I'm hoping -- everyone cross your fingers and paws for me -- that it's only earwax buildup. I don't even want to think of hearing loss (which I already have because of being a stupid teenager that listened a lot to his walkman).

I'm no longer in the mood for going to Lady Luck Club tonight.

Gonzo the Whale

A whale has swum up the Thames river and, by the looks of my friends' journals, is causing a sensation. There's even a blog dedicated to Gonzo (as he's being called.)

Go Gonzo! You can make it back to sea!