So , yeah ...this is my blog . What are we going to talk about here?  Bunch of random stuff.  Art , Books , art shows , museums that are cool to go check out, what ever.  Anything and everything I find interesting and/or amusing. Occasionally you might find a rant or two, about my kids,  my never ending search for a job, school, what ever.
     To get started I LOVE LOTR. Not just LOTR but all of Tolkien's work. I have read all of his work multiple times . The Simarillion, Farmer Giles of Ham, The Unfinished Tales of Numenor and MIddle-Earth.  I could talk endlessly about the architectural significance of the White Tower of Minas Tirith, as opposed to the structure of Minas Morgul. Or discuss ad nauseum the genealogy of the bloodlines of the Kings of Rohan.  Probably will end up doing some of that too, eventually.  There are many fine authors whose work is based on Tolkien and the world/feeling /genre  he created for us.  He is damn near a god, in my book; and I joyfully live/work/ dream in Middle-Earth. At least in my head.
     We could talk about art too , if you like .  I personally prefer the works of Monet over Manet , and think Jackson Pollack was lame but Andy Warhol was a genius.  I think that Turner had a fine eye for color , but was under appreciated for his atmospheric underpinning. We can examine the works of John Everett Millais. who is mostly known for his dramatic oil interpretation of Hamlet's Ophelia, but whose watercolor interpretation of the Eye of St. Agnes is both powerful and moving , for all that it is a monochromatic examination of a Victorian lady's bedchamber. Jaques Le Moyne des Morgues is an amazing Victorian era horticulturist , botanist , and watercolor artist.  I prefer his work over that of Audubon, though Audubon's birds are outstanding.  I like Ben Nicholson over Piet Mondrian , although both artists'  work is similar in both structure and intent.
    I think that the local art scene  in San Francisco is amazing, and so sometimes we will explore  the art and music and writers of San Francisco, and all the fascinating and scandalous history of the town I love so well.  I will tout works by Sumiko Saulson, local science fiction/ horror writer, whose works Warmth and Agrippa both scared me spitless and occasionally made me cry.  We can explore together the endless rounds and reverberations of the Haight-Ashbury/ Golden Gate Park  Drum Circle and all the many and august musicians who have sat in on sessions there.  Dives , coffee shops, hole in the wall diners , they are all there for our amusement and edification.