At the Ballet, at the Movies, on the Sofa
and unfortunately, on the Concrete too. Happy New Year, folks!
It took only one incident for me to finally empathize with the “I-prefer-summer” community. Dusk, negative 14 degrees Celsius. One step outside my apartment building and… swoosh! swoosh! splat!
As it happens, I slipped; all in a flash’s work. It’s quite unfortunate that on that particular day at that particular hour, I headed out the door in my Sunday best. The “incident” left my favorite pair of pants — the L.L. Bean ones I mentioned in my last letter — torn on the knee. But I’m happy to report that I can conclude, from extensive first-hand testing, that those pair of pants are not fall-proof. In all seriousness, I’m grateful that I remain with only a few scrapes. I’ll be alright. It’s a shame no artist was present at the scene though; I can imagine the “incident” in painting, Roy Lichtenstein style.
But now, I was headed out that evening en route to the grocery store for fresh produce; to make some carrot-and-potato soup, again (I did not make soup that night). A few days prior, I was craving some nice hot soup so I looked up recipes on the web (all of which looked very yum, but a tad bit complicated). Ultimately, I decided to make one from scratch, omitting many of the ingredients listed. The result is a stew (carrots, potatoes, spring onions, dash of milk, salt, pepper, extra virgin olive oil) that I find delicious, perfect for the cold weather.
Anyhow, to slide away not-so-smoothly from all this talk, Good Evening everyone. I hope you had a great start to the new year and a restful holiday! It’s very much chilly here up north. Last week, I was in a boutique-style bookstore called Maktaba in the Old Port and picked up a postcard.
The bookstore hosts a unique curation of fiction and non-fiction with an emphasis on Middle Eastern and North African literature. Looking forward to revisit after I finish reading the books I have at hand.
In this newsletter, I wrote about my first time at the ballet, words I’ve been reading, and seeing Marty Supreme in theater, among other things. Enjoy, enjoy!
An Afternoon at the Ballet
On a grey afternoon one Saturday in December, I was sat on the second-floor balcony of a 3000-seat theater getting ready to see The Nutcracker; a ballet in two acts, broken up with a half-hour intermission. In the last month of each year, Place Des Arts — Montreal’s performing arts center — puts on the Nutcracker performance. The afternoon show was packed in all directions I looked: seniors, families, families with children — all taking a seat in the hall.
My first time seeing The Nutcracker and a ballet in general. No expectations.
All settled in my seat and waiting for the start, I looked at the stage. Depicted is an ambient scene: a village among pine trees covered in snow, snow gently falling, a full moon shining. I wondered if it was a digital screen. Only after the lights dimmed into darkness and the layers of sheets started to lift one by one, that I realized it was all part of the intricate set design. For the next hours, we were entertained and captivated; the memories, quite blurred.
Between Act I and Act II, a half-hour break saw the space outside the theater flooded with spectators. My friend J. and I walked around as we debriefed. J. made a remark that I too thought of: there was no dialogue throughout the performance. As I watched the ballet dancers move their graceful gestures, I thought of how beautiful it was that any observer can appreciate the art just as much as the next person; regardless of the language one speaks, the beliefs one holds, or the culture one grew up with. It is almost impossible to not feel the weight of the performance paired with the orchestra; to find oneself teary-eyed from the triumphant sounds of Pas De Deux or to feel goosebumps from the motions that these ballerinas performed: tossed, spun, glide — all in a beautifully orchestrated and refined manner.
Some people are in line for drinks, others bathroom, some taking photos by the Christmas tree, and others checking out the merchandise booth. Again, my friend J. made a note that I too thought of: about half of the ensemble (particularly in Act I) were made of younger cast members. I found myself wondering what it was like for one to find passion and nurture that passion at such a young age, to be precocious and talented, and performing for thousands at a time, each night. (Of course, it’s easier to assume the positive).
At every completed routine, a round of applause would follow. By the end, a standing ovation. The performance was worth the price, my friend said. I agree. An afternoon well spent.
Readings
And back in my apartment, I spent quite a bit of time on the sofa, where I finished reading The Age of Innocence on Christmas Eve. It was a bittersweet ending and I do think the last chapter tied the entire story together well. A story of regrets and blind conformity, and how some things that feel important in the moment are only trivial in the future. Retrospection can be both beautiful and painful. Overall, Innocence is a nice smooth read, in contrast to my next novel of choice: Ulysses.
Ulysses. By Irish writer James Joyce; published in 1922; at some point banned in the United States for obscenity until overruled1. The novel is considered a masterpiece in the literary canon. So far three “chapters” in, the text has been thick with references to Homer and Shakespeare, religious allusions, and Latin excerpts; all of which are quite foreign to me.
Chapter One was a fine read; Chapter Two became slightly more ambiguous as the stream-of-consciousness writing took hold; Chapter Three did not register in my head at all. So I wouldn’t consider this novel a leisure read; lots of work has to be put into understanding the context of every other sentence.
There’s a website called The Joyce Project that has thorough annotations of the text and has been helpful (you can read the full text there too); I read the Sparknotes summary for each “chapter” I finished to confirm and solidify my understanding; I also learned that there is an annotated edition of Ulysses in print, one that I wish I’d known about earlier.
It’s very unlikely that I will understand every reference, every detail that Joyce weaved into the novel; not on the first read. But for now, I’ll try to free myself of the need to understand all and just enjoy how the text forms itself in my head.
Regardless of the difficulty, there are things I appreciate in my reading thus far. There is this technique that Joyce uses: the merging of words together. You can find these conjoining words early on: in the opening paragraph, dressing gown is written as dressinggown. Then later, nose rag as noserag. At one point, contransmagnificandjewbangtantiality. I love it. When I think of great works, I have this (untrue) assumption that they have to be serious to be taken seriously. But Ulysses throw those conventions out the window.
Books aside, I also read an article about the rise in prenups among Millennials and Gen-Z (and how tech is changing that industry) and skimmed through a profile of Godard.
Pictures
2 p.m., Dec 26. Lobby of a Cineplex downtown. Waiting for a friend after getting tickets at the box office to see Marty Supreme, fifteen minutes before showtime. Third row from the screen.
Three hours later, fresh out the theater. My friend M. and I shared some thoughts: Chalamet’s acting in Marty precedes his work in Unknown; M. remarked how there were so many close-up shots, a detail I missed; the visual graphics in the opening credits was unexpected, but quite amusing; there was enough bizarre happenings throughout the film to keep one entertained for two-and-a-half hours in this comedy-infused, action-packed film, but one action in particular gave us quite a scare.
All-in-all, the film was not bad, pas mal. I thought the costume and colors of the film were well done. I liked Marty’s button down, his suit set (pastel blue tie, off-white shirt, and burgundy-brown suit) and the thin gold-rim glasses.
Music
A selection of music for January:
Lorde - 400 Lux / Tame Impala - Eventually; Yes I’m Changing / Cameron Winter - Love Takes Miles / Taylor Swift - cowboy like me / Bon Iver - Everything Is Peaceful Love / The 1975 - The Sound / Joni Mitchell - California / Lana Del Rey - Get Free.
General Objects of Interest
Note: None of the links are affiliate.
L’Occitane Hand Cream (150ml, $32 USD): My hands get dry in the winter and this hand cream’s great in keeping them moisturized without feeling all sticky and oily. Made with 20% Shea Butter and smells like baby powder.
Smathers & Branson FOB Key Chain ($35 USD): The ring holding my keys broke a while back and I’ve been carrying loose keys in my pocket since. I came across the Smathers & Branson brand that makes nice-looking needlepoint keychains in a variety of design collections: NHL teams, collegiate institutions, dogs, fishing, personalized monograms, etc. My selection of choice: Stars and Stripes, as linked above.
That is all. I hope you enjoyed the read! Sending my best for a good year ahead. — C. S. Indoors.