You know, I love that song. More and more over the years. I think first when I heard that the grandfather of modern Islamic terrorism and all-around killjoy Sayed Qutb pointed to it as a symbol of Western decadence.
There is a real richness, though, to the song, and it brings to mind (in its own 1950s way) the seduction poetry of the Renaissance.
But I digress. As much as I like the song, I look at Freeman Hunt's pix of her fallen tree and reflexively think, "Is that a movie set? People don't actually live places like that, do they? Good Lord, places like that don't actually exist, do they?"
I'm only partly kidding. (One of my first jobs was on the lot at Warner Bros. when they were filming the second "Batman" movie which--as wintry and snowy as it looked--was entirely on a sound stage wth massive air conditioners, while it was So Cal hot all around.)
When I was a child we had a cabin in Lake Arrowhead which we would visit. I have some fond childhood memories of playing in the snow. Getting there was dangerous and nauseating, as my father was wont to take the Rim of the World drive at 50 mph. But it was a little like Disneyland or something because we'd go up Friday afternoon and be back by Sunday night. (I don't think we ever missed school/work.)
So, in a very real way, snow is a toy or a prop, something you visit, not some place you live. (More recently I was in Philadelphia for the biggest snowstorm of 30 years and managed to drive in it, though I can't say I enjoyed that.)
I think about it because I think California is pretty much doomed. And I suspect the rest of the sunshine belt is next. Moving some place cold and even desolate may be a necessary step to trying to preserve freedom.
Which sucks because it's really, really nice here.
I remember watching a nature show on Pompeii, and they interview the people, and ask them, "Hey, that thing could go off at any minute, why do you stay?" When they respond, "Well, the weather is great and the wine is great and, after all, everyone has to die sometime," I have to say I understand the sentiment.
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The snow fell last night in Brooklyn but it turned into freezing rain in the morning commute. Not so romantic let me tell you.
ReplyDeleteJust a big mess.
Dean Martin did the definitive cover of "Baby it's cold Outside" in my humble opinion.
ReplyDeleteYeah, the Dean Martin one is good. I actually don't like the Ricardo Montalban/Esther Williams one musically, though it's cute enough in the movie.
ReplyDeleteIf you thought that picture was bad, check the update on my blog. Now it's really bad. The yard is basically ruined. Really, the town is basically ruined. Oh well. What can you do?
ReplyDeleteI have seen it!
ReplyDeleteYowza!
This doesn't help. I'm sitting here trying to decide what state to move to when the time comes...and they're all FREAKING COLD!
Heh. Well, it's generally not too cold here, but we do get all of the seasons with temperatures ranging from 0 to 110 throughout the year. Mostly though, we spend our winters above freezing and our summers in the 80s. Not too bad. (But that only applies to the northwest corner of the state.)
ReplyDeleteSo, you're not usually driven out of your home in the winter?
ReplyDeleteThat's a plus.
(Lawdy.)
At least when we get smacked by an earthquake, it just means we get to lie out under the newly-visible-due-to-the-lack-of-urban-glow stars.
So, you're not usually driven out of your home in the winter?
ReplyDeleteHeh. No. In fact, when I heard that power might be out for a week, I said, "That's crazy talk. I've never had the power go out for more than an hour or so while living here. No way will the power be out even for a day." I sit here now in this hotel, and I eat those words.
Heheh.
ReplyDeleteWhat approximate area are you living in? (If you don't mind posting, that is.) I was looking at Fort Smith and seemed a little crime-y.
Northwest Arkansas. I live in Springdale, but I would recommend moving to Fayetteville or the nice part of Rogers if re-locating. Fayetteville is particularly nice and often named as one of those Best Cities to live in. The only drawback to Fayetteville is that you could also call it The People's Republic of Fayetteville, but if you're in SoCal now, I doubt that will phase you.
ReplyDeleteDo not move to Ft. Smith which is about 45 minutes south of here. Definitely crime-y. Northwest Arkansas (Bentonville, Rogers, Springdale, Fayetteville; These towns all run together.) not crime-y.
Oh! And definitely not anywhere else in Arkansas like Little Rock. Talk about crime-y...
ReplyDeleteWell, that was what made me double-take. Little Rock, I've always heard, was a cesspool. Even before anyone outside of AR knew who Clinton was.
ReplyDeleteI like to browse realtor.com for potential relocation sites but you can get a skewed view if you don't know the neighborhoods. (In Detroit, e.g., you can get houses for $50. But the taxes will cost you tens of thousands, and you're living in a wasteland.)
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I do like the 18-bed/15-bath "single family household" on ten acres. (We don't have a lot of those here.) Talk about multiple wives....