13 Conversations About One Thing
No, not sex--"happiness." Is life fair? Is there such a thing as luck? Or is fortune a point of view? Alan Arkin, Amy Irving Reviews

Wings of Desire
One of my all-time faves--I've watched it a dozen times. Perfect portrayal of spirit having a human experience. Understanding the balance that ensues when identifying with the senses might be the key to enjoying this movie.

Far Away, So Close
Follow-up to Wings of Desire. Peter Falk as a Fallen Angel (!) speaks English, but mostly in German with subtitles.

City of Angels
The American version of Wings of Desire--but not the typical American ending-- rather--the inevitable.  Angelic presence everywhere... and hardly anyone notices. Stunning scenes around L.A., at the beach, in the library. Meg Ryan, Nicholas Cage. Fabulous music.
From John B: I just finished watching City of Angels. I hope to keep this smile. It was a kick in the heart. ... I definitely see your take on the movie but as I was moving toward Seth "falling" I had a version of the end in mind that went like this: Seth takes his leap, but time being what it is not in that dimension, the doctors marry and are pregnant when Seth arrives in the delivery room as an infant, unaware of his exercise of free will but in the loving warm arms of his mother and welcoming father. Whether Seth will ever awaken from his "choice" is in his hands as it is for all of us. [You can usually find John B. in the Coffee Shop.]

Recommendation by a friend: "Have you seen the USA summer TV series entitled Monk now in its second season? Monk is a disabled ex-cop who assists investigators in a mechanized bumbling manner. He's obsessive-compulsive and does all sorts of quirky things frustrating to all but his `nurse' sidekick Shaina, who takes it all pretty much in stride. Funny watching someone asleep. Monk always gets his man, so he's not always asleep. Exaggerations of truth we keep kidden is the hallmark of comedy. I doubt if the series will climax with Monk waking up, but we could all learn from Shaina's understanding of Monk's `condition.'"

If you relish the lampooning of pompous institutions as much as I do, you will enjoy The Daily Show on Comedy Central. Some of it's junk, some of it is priceless and laugh-out-loud funny.

Sanity Islanders are role-players, knowing that humans are not specialized and can act out any role they choose. Countless roles are available to anyone--son, daughter, mother, neighbor, musician, spouse, student, countless more, including victim and tyrant. Victim is an unconscious role, and the most likely one that people who don't consciously choose roles will fall into. There is a delightful show, Faking It (BBC America and TLC) where, for instance, an exotic dancer trains for just four weeks to do equestrian jumping; a cello player is trained to play a hip DJ, a young woman from "the sticks" is trained to play a debutante. It's such fun (and a joy) watching these young people tackle their challenges, fearful, wanting to quit but hanging in there, and the confidence they exude when at last it's accomplished. Highly recommended.

Fun site! Listen to the "sounds" of the universe, see great graphics of the planets and more at SpaceSounds.

For kids and kids at heart, great paper toys at Marilyn Scott Waters' ToyMaker