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Delicious soul food without lard or a dripping infusion of ham hock? Yes! I don't know how they figured it out, but the folks at Spiral Diner in Fort Worth, Texas, (and over in Oak Cliff, Dallas) make very satisfying, tasty vegan soul food, featured now at the Fort Worth location as a Blue Plate Special. You can pick and choose, and so far I've tried (more than once) the Soul Foods Side Plate: black-eyed peas "stewed with just the right herbs, molasses and a spicy kick;" coleslaw "creamy and sweet with a superb tangy balance;" collard greens "tender stewed . . . with the perfect hint of smoke and spice;" vegan mac'n'cheese; and cornbread. The perfect soul food meal for $9.75. I haven't tried the vegan soul food brisket, but I'm guessing it's damned good, too.
Spiral Diner shows that delicious vegan soul food is not only possible, it can be amazingly good, too.
Today's Rune: Harvest. Quotations from Blue Plate menu.
Franny Armstrong's The Age of Stupid (2009) does a great service: in a pithy, entertaining way, it is conciousness-raising. How does it work? Several stories are interwoven in a way that draws the viewer in, from multiple perspectives: a world archivist in the year 2055 (played by Pete Postlethwaite, who died earlier this year), dudes from post-Katrina New Orleans, from Mumbai and France; Iraqi refugee kids living in Jordan; an English family that is trying to establish wind power in their area; and Layefa Malemi, a woman living in rural Nigeria. This approach most definitely personalizes the film, an interesting mix of documentary (present or near past) and fiction (the near future).
Much more to discuss with The Age of Stupid, which was released in that relatively brief period between Hurricane Katrina (2005) and the Deepwater Horizon disaster in the Gulf of Mexico (2010). It also happens to tie in perfectly with the "Arab Spring," "Occupy Wall Street" and other happenings of 2011 by showing how power structures and resource exploitation are more or less the same around the world -- and tied together.
Today's Rune: Opening.
Next, we move from one global innovator (Genghis Khan) to another, Coco Chanel (Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel, 1883-1971), as portrayed efficiently by Audrey Tautou in Anne Fontaine's Coco avant Chanel / Coco Before Chanel (2009).
It's a great story, following Chanel, along with her sister Adrienne, from their stint as orphans (actually, their father had sent them there and then departed from their lives) under guidance of Catholic nuns at the Aubazine monastery in south central France, to their lives among the gentry and, finally, in Paris. We see Coco expanding her repertoire as opportunties arise. Chanel's actual life story is so epic that director Fontaine wisely focuses on key points and themes, telescoping as necessary. It works -- I thoroughly enjoyed Coco avant Chanel.
Chanel's impact on clothing through couture was revolutionary. She moved avant elements of the mainstream away from heavy, restrictive (and extraordinarily ugly) Victorian garb into crisp-looking, more comfortable (and sometimes androgynous) styles that are as impressive in 2011 as they were in 1921 or 1931. Her use of black was genius -- but also reflected (originally) a mourning time in the wake of the massive losses of the Great War of 1914-1918 and the Great Influenza Epidemic of 1918-1919 or also, as Coco avant Chanel suggests, after the death of Boy Capel, her flame. The little black dress made its formal appearance in the 1920s and has remained in play ever since.
Today's Rune: Harvest.
The Genghis Khan Exhibition peforms conciousness-raising service. Beyond interpretive texts and videos, there are enough material artifacts to blow your mind. Things ranging from weaponry to a princess mummy, from shaman paraphernalia to the colorful interior of a ger, or yurt.
Aside from the spread of ideas and culture, a lot of specific things related to the Mongol Empire are of current relevance. One is the concept of religious tolerance and respect for diversity. Another is conservation of natural resources: freshwater sources, nature preserves and rules of use. The yurt or ger ("home" in Mongolian) is highly adaptable; in contemporary times, they are fitted for solar power and the internet.
The exhibition's dazzling array of artifacts includes passport medalions and related items. "By order of the Khan: Permit me to pass or die." That would cause one to take pause, certainly. In the West, the idea of being overrun by "Mongol hordes" still strikes primal fear in the imagination, many hundreds of years later. Bottom line: do not mess with the Great Khan, even in your mind. But there's more to it than that, a whole lot more.
Today's Rune: Movement. I saw the exhibition on its last day at the Irving Arts Center in Irving, Texas. It will open in Raleigh, North Carolina, next month.
Every picture tells a story, don't it? If so, what's the story here?
Today's Rune: Protection.
Za za zoom, Blondie lit up the stage Saturday night following Nico Vega in the Granada Theatre, Dallas. I loved it. The band has a fuller sound than on thin vinyl -- more bass, more clangy electric guitars, more drums and keyboards, more Debbie Harry. This was loud enough and fast enough to satisfy rockers of all stripes, and the singer is as cool in person as her mediated persona suggests. I dig! This was like a little part of Heaven on Earth.
Set list. They added in a dose of ZZ Top toward the end as a Texas treat. Some of the songs are from the new album, Panic of Girls (2011) -- they're good.
Today's Rune: Wholeness.
Blondie (1976). Blondie live in Dallas, Texas, USA, October 1, 2011 at the Granada Theatre. Nico Vega opens. I am thrilled!
Today's Rune: The Mystery Rune.
