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FAILED BLOG DIFFERENT THAN A FAILED MOVIE

BoomerPdx is a failed blog. (Does that make me a failed blogger? Uh oh)
After a Portland run to the art museum I came home and reviewed the evening.
You know what they say about writers?
We get to live things twice: Once in real life, once on the page.
Except I got sidetracked on Facebook.
How does that happen?
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FAILED MOVIES FIND FACEBOOK LIFE

How many times on a Facebook scroll do you find posts on failed movies, usually movies I haven’t seen to know if they failed, or how they failed, with a caption like: “Ignored and pulled from screens just after release has aged like fine wine.”
Or, “while considered a failure on it’s first release it has proven to be ahead of it’s time and grown into a cult classic.”
I’m happy to see people are watching old movies from the 80’s and 90’s, the 1980’s and 1990’s, not 1880’s and 1890’s, and finding renewed value in the work from that era.
I’m not watching them to get in on the buzz and post a review, but I will recommend Harold and Maude from 1971:

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THE LAST NUCLEAR BLAST

The last nuclear blast ended WWII?
Japan had a hard time deciding what to do, surrender unconditionally, or what.
The ‘or what’ began with Hiroshima and ended with Nagasaki, skipping Kokura twice.
I visited the two men in charge of the new nuclear bomb. They were quiet.
So was I.
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SAM QUINONES ON IMPORTANT WRITING

What’s better than a writer hyping important writing, the importance of writing, and at the same time telling us about their favorite writing book from a dead writer?
If that’s not writing advice, I don’t know what is. Good writing advice is hard to come by.
Will it make you a better writer, you ask?
Only if you write, only if you use it as intended.
Such as:

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CHEESECAKE FACTORY v ST. PAUL’S CATHEDRAL: A STUDY

Timeless design.
Classic vision.
Tasteful architecture.
What more could anyone want from the Cheesecake Factory?
Or, St. Paul’s Cathedral?

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toughen up

CANCER ESSAY GIVES DIRECTIONS TO ‘CANCERLAND’ AND BACK

    The ties that bind us are few and far between. Instead of vines like Tarzan’s jungle swing time, they’re more like rope climb in junior high gym class.   You get to the top and back down and collect your honor: another chance to climb to the rope top and touch the roof […]

FUKUSHIMA FEVER OR BEER

That red line aiming for Oregon hit me with a wave of Fukushima Fever. If you don’t live on the Oregon coast, you drive to the Oregon coast. That’s how it works. If you don’t like the drive, you move there. I grew up on the Oregon coast so every time I go to the […]

AUTHORITARIAN PARENT? WHAT OTHER KIND IS THERE

    A scene from the movie Vision Quest shows Louden Swain’s buddy Kuch at home with his dad. Instead of a bonding moment of shared struggle, the dad slaps Kuch around, telling him he’ll never be nothing.   Nothing. Wrestling might make him feel like a big shot, but he’ll still be nothing.   […]

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boomer years

INTERPRETING AARP’S TOP TEN BABY BOOMER ALBUMS

A Top Ten list never includes everyone’s picks, but who doesn’t trust AARP? They’ve got their finger on the public pulse, especially the public with silver threads running through their hair paint like mine. It’s a nice list with a few omissions which I’ll add toward the end of this Portland baby boomer take. For younger readers I’ll list […]

BABY BOOMER LOVE: AFTER THE FIRE

Don’t Burn Baby Boomer Love Letters, Review Them On BoomerPdx. From The BoomerPdx Archive: “I think at the age 27-29 is when you first really feel a ‘generation gap’ or are actually aware of the one’s below you. Naturally that means the ones above you are pushed into another level also. Do me a favor. […]

BABY BOOMER MUSEUM

The take away from a Baby Boomer Museum is awareness. A visit to a big museum should make you ask, “How do they decide what to keep?” It’s the same question you’ll ask later, wondering why you bought anything in the gift store. Unless you say, “I needed another tea towel,” you need a better […]

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buckle up

PORTLAND FEVER CHILL TONIC

What Would Tom McCall do about Portland Fever? Portland, Oregon, more than a map point, destination, or cultural reference, is an infection. And it’s spreading. Once you catch Portland Fever, you see Portland everywhere. Pop a craft beer in the middle of no where and it’s The Portland of No Where. People who’ve never been […]

TRAVEL BUG KEEPS BITING FACEBOOK

Travel Idea Look around your place and imagine the changes you’d make, then find a place that’s already made the changes. It’s like buying a new guitar. Play the expensive ones, find the right sound, adjust your wallet accordingly. Go to the place with the changes you want to see. How were they done and […]

Air Oregon My Oregon Paradise West Of Cascades

      For a moment let’s skip the romanticized view of the state. The brown patches across these images are clear cut lumber sections, replanted with more trees. Why are they brown? It’s not because of brown trees. Air Oregon shows too much.   Oregon, My Oregon via Oregon Blue Book, music by Henry […]

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