01 Monday Dec 2014
Posted in Escapes and Pleasures
Tags
"National Gallery", "The Theory of Everything", "WhipLash", Damien Chazelle, Documenatries, Eddie Redmayne, Felicity Jones, Films, Frederick Wiseman, J.K. Simmons, Jane Wilde, Miles Teller, Movies, Stephen Hawkings, West End Cinema
This holiday weekend allowed for one of my (many) favorite ‘escapes and pleasures’ – movies. Here are three I saw and thoroughly enjoyed.
28 Friday Nov 2014
Posted in Escapes and Pleasures
Tags
"Books Most Enjoyed By MillersTime Readers", Books, Favorite Books of "MillersTime" Readers, Favorite Reads
“A Best Friend Is Someone Who Gives Me a Book I’ve Never Read”- A. Lincoln
As many of you know, each year I ask MillersTime readers to take some time and send me your Favorite Reads of the past year. I then compile the list and post it so that you can see what others have read and most enjoyed over the past 12 months.
If you have participated in the past, please do so again this year. If you are new to this part of MillersTime, please consider taking the time to add to the list for 2014.
Here are a few guidelines that may help in drawing your list and in making my compilation easy:
* When I ask for your Favorite Reads of 2014, I’m seeking fiction and/or nonfiction books that stood out for you above all you’ve read in the past year. What have been the most enjoyable, the most important, the most thought provoking, the best written, the ones you may go back and read again, the ones you reread this year, and/or the ones you have suggested others read?
* You are welcome to send just one title or up to a half dozen or so.
* List the title, the author, and indicate whether it is fiction (F) or nonfiction (NF).
* If you are willing, please write a sentence or two about why each particular book made it to your list for this year. If you prefer not to add this, no problem, but I’ve found readers enjoy the comments and use them in choosing books to read for the coming year.
* Don’t be concerned about whether others will have the same book(s) on their lists. If we get a number of similar titles, that’s just an indication of the power of a particular book/author.
* Your books do not have to be ones that were written and/or published in 2014, just ones that you read over the past year.
* Send me your list in an email (Samesty84@gmail.com) by Dec. 20, 2014 so I will be able to post the entire list at the end of the year.
To see last year’s list, click on this link: The Books Most Enjoyed by MillersTime Readers in 2013.
PS – Dec. 9 – After a discussion with an avid reader and a faithful contributor to this list, one additional guideline: If any of the books you read fit into a category of “must reads” (i.e., “put down everything else and read this book now”), please so indicate by putting a star after the title. Said friend is looking for such a read.
07 Friday Nov 2014
Posted in Articles & Books of Interest, The Outer Loop
Tags
"Rolling Stone", "The $9 Billion Witness: Meet JP Morgan Chase's Worst Nightmare", "Why the Democratic Party Acts the Way It Does", Matt Stoller, Matt Taibbi, “The New Democrats and the Return to Power”
Readers of this website probably know that I am as passionate about US politics and international affairs as I am about baseball, family, travel, and various other ‘escapes and pleasures.’
However, I have largely chosen not to make MillersTime a forum for my views on politics and international affairs. While I have not specifically tried to hide my views on these two subjects (I did write Walking. Knocking. Talking, about spending a week on a ‘get out the vote’ campaign for Obama in Ohio in 2012, for example), I only occasionally post in The Outer Loop and Articles of Interest sections of this website. And when I do post a comment, or a link to an article, it is because I think there is something of value that transcends the usual partisan politics.
06 Thursday Nov 2014
Posted in Escapes and Pleasures
As we cannot attend, we have two free tickets to the Sunday, Nov. 16th showing of a film at the DC Cinema Club.
05 Wednesday Nov 2014
Posted in Family and Friends
The best baby-sitters, of course, are the baby’s grandparents. You feel comfortable entrusting your baby to them for long periods, which is why most grandparents flee to Florida. – Dave Barry
Telling us some story about having their ‘floors’ redone and having to move out of their house for ‘at the most’ two weeks, our daughter, son-in-law and their three kids (it felt like at least a dozen) moved into our quiet, “retirement home” in mid-October. They just left to return to their own house, and I sure hope they like their ‘redone floors.’
For those of you who largely use MillersTime as a way to keep up with the grandkinder, here are some pictures from the last two and half weeks, mostly taken with Ellen’s iPhone.
05 Wednesday Nov 2014
Posted in Go Sox
Tags
2014 Baseball Predictions, 2014 MillersTime Baseball Contest Winners, 2014 MillersTime Baseball Contests
With the closing of the ‘polls’ at 7:23 PM Tuesday night, a winner has been chosen for Contest #1: Make a prediction about the 2014 MLB season.
04 Tuesday Nov 2014
Two very good documentaries, one just released and the second soon to be released, worthy of your attention:
03 Monday Nov 2014
Posted in Go Sox
Contest #1: Make a prediction about the 2014 MLB season:
Below you will find all of the predictions the MillersTime contestants made prior to Opening Day that came true (or, in a couple of cases, almost true.).
01 Saturday Nov 2014
Posted in Escapes and Pleasures
31 Friday Oct 2014
Posted in Family and Friends, The Outer Loop
Tags
"The American Prospect", "Tom Paine", Campaign for America's Future, Center for Responsive Politics, Ellen Miller, Pike Permanent Select Comittee on Intelligence, Public Campaign, Ralph Nader, retirement, Sen. Abraham Ribicoff, Sen. Committee on Governmental Affairs, The Sunlight Foundation
Today mark’s the final day of public service (1968-2014) for Ellen Miller.
Ellen’s first work in Washington was with Ralph Nader at his Center for Responsive Law and at his Center for Auto Safety. She then worked with Sen. Abraham Ribicoff at his Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs and also with the Pike House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.
Following her government service, Ellen worked for two journalistic enterprises, Tom Paine and The American Prospect and also directed the “Project for an Accountable Congress” at the Campaign for America’s Future.
Most of Ellen’s work, however, was invested in the three organizations she created and lead, The Center for Responsive Politics, Public Campaign, and The Sunlight Foundation. All three groups have been focused in different ways on the issues of money and politics, on how our elections are funded, and on accountability and transparency in government. All three organizations continue to exist.
Ellen told a gathering of friends and co-workers last week, “It’s been an incredible run…I’ve been extraordinarily lucky…and I’ve had a lot of fun.” She also said she is “not one bit wistful” as she happily looks towards her retirement and has no plans other than some extended travel, lots of photography, and spending time with her three grandchildren.
PS – For a bit more on Ellen’s retirement, see her Time to Pass the Baton.
30 Thursday Oct 2014
Posted in Go Sox
It’s ‘every’ boy’s dream to be at bat in the bottom of the 9th with the chance to win the game and the World Series.
Alas, for Royals’ fans, the result last night disappointed.
But what a season it was for the Royals.
And it was a wonderful playoff season for all of MLB, from the wild card games, which resulted in both wild card winners making it to the World Series, thorough the Division Series and including the Championship Series.
As for the World Series, it’s always better when it goes seven games. This time either team could have won. The Giants, thanks primarily to Madison Bumgarner’s outstanding pitching, prevailed, 3-2 (for the third time in five years). But it could have easily been the Royals.
The biggest winner?
The fans.
20 Monday Oct 2014
Posted in Escapes and Pleasures
Tags
"Birdman", "Breathe", "Clouds of Sils Maria", "Cracks in Concrete", "GETT, "Girlhood", "Glass Chin", "Manos Sucias", "Mommy", "St. Vincent", "The Imitation Game", "Two Days - One Night", 23rd Philadelphia Film Festival, Film Festival, Films, The Trial of Viviane Ansalem"
I can’t wait to do this again.
With the encouragement from friends in Philadelphia who have been doing this for years, my wife and I spent three days last weekend at the 23rd Philadelphia Film Festival.
From Thursday evening through Sunday afternoon, we saw 11 films. The opening evening we saw two, the next day four, then three, and finally two before we had to head home.
We saw big films, small ones, foreign films, US films, well known actors, first time ones, small stories and big ones, and a few with similar themes. The two or three times a director, producer, or actor spoke and answered questions following a film, we enjoyed that and learned something about what we had just seen. The length of the films varied from 82-134 minutes, plus we saw one short (21 minutes); so I guess that actually makes 12 films in all.
We bought a weekend pass which gave us first entry into any film we wanted to see, and therefore we had no problem getting into any of the films we chose. Generally, there were five time slots a day, with three different films in each time slot. The printed program pretty accurately described each film, and as a result, and in concert with our friends, we chose the 11 listed below, which I have rated and mini-reviewed.
20 Monday Oct 2014
Posted in Escapes and Pleasures
The New Yorker cover for it’s Oct. 20 Fall Library issue reminds me (gives me an excuse) to remind MillersTime readers that in December I look forward to your sending the titles of the books you’ve most enjoyed reading in 2014.
As in the past, here are a few guidelines that may help in drawing your list and in making my compilation easy:
* When I ask for your Favorite Reads of 2014, I’m seeking fiction and/or nonfiction books that stood out for you above all you’ve read in the past year. What have been the most enjoyable, the most important, the most thought provoking, the best written, the ones you may go back and read again, the ones you reread this year, and/or the ones you have suggested others read?
* You are welcome to send just one title or up to a half dozen or so.
* List the title, the author, and indicate whether it is fiction (F) or nonfiction (NF).
* If you are willing, please write a sentence or two about why each particular book made it to your list for this year. If you prefer not to add this, no problem, but I’ve found readers enjoy the comments and use them in choosing books to read for the coming year.
* Don’t be concerned about whether others will have the same book(s) on their lists. If we get a number of similar titles, that’s just an indication of the power of a particular book/author.
* Your books do not have to be ones that were written and/or published in 2014, just ones that you read over the past year.
* Send me your list in an email (Samesty84@gmail.com) by Dec. 20 so I will be able to post the entire list at the end of the year.
To see last year’s list, click on this link: The Books Most Enjoyed by MillersTime Readers in 2013.
14 Tuesday Oct 2014
Posted in Escapes and Pleasures
The Good Lie *** (out of *****)
I’ve long followed the harrowing journey of “The Lost Boys of Sudan” and their lives subsequent to their 1,000 mile walk to safety. Maybe one of the most powerful books I’ve read, and certainly one of my favorite reads a few years ago, was What Is the What, by Dave Eggers. It’s a novel that reads like a true story. Actually, it’s based on the real life story of a Sudanese refugee, a young boy separated from his family during the Sudanese Civil War. (If you’ve never read it, add it to your ‘to read’ list.)
When I heard about the film The Good Lie, I knew I would see it. Then I learned that it was not a documentary but a Hollywood film starring Reese Witherspoon. Still, early reviews said it was true to what occurred in Sudan and what happens when some of these refugees are brought to the US.
09 Thursday Oct 2014
Posted in Go Sox
Tags
"Managers Are Playing Less Small Ball Than Ever", "The Dead Ball Century", 2014 Baseball Contests, Brian Curtis, Deadspin, Grantland, Ross Benes, Washington Nationals
2014 MillersTime Baseball Contest #3: What will the Washington Nationals’ record be this year? Tie Breakers: Will they make the playoffs, and how far will they go?
Six contestants were close — Ed Scholl, Peter Shimm, Tiffany Lopez, Nick Nyhart, Steve Begleiter, and Nelson Romerez — missing the Nats’ regular season record by one game. Not bad.
However, four contestants got the season record, 96-66, exactly: Dan Fischer, Elizabeth Tilis, Nick Fels, and Bill Trost.
Dan said they’d lose in the NLCS. Elizabeth said they’d lose in the 1st round. Nick said they’d lose in the World Series. Bill said the Nats would lose to the Dodgers.
So, Elizabeth Tilis (that’s a ‘familiar’ name, someone, no doubt, who benefited from good parenting) wins and gets two tickets to a 2015 Nats’ game of her choice.
For the other two contests, we will have to await the conclusion of the World Series.
** ** ** ** ** **
Meanwhile, two more terrific articles to draw to your attention, particularly for those of you whose teams are no longer in the WS chase. MillersTime readers tipped me off to these articles:
The Dead Ball Century: Why Is Baseball Always Dying? – by Brian Curtis, Grantland/The Triangle, Oct. 7, 2014 (Thanx MWK)
Managers Are Playing Less Small Ball Than Ever – by Ross Benes, Deadspin/Regressing, Oct. 6, 2015 (Thanx BT)