Visit to the DeYoung

Rick and I went up, meeting up with some of the Pen Posse. I saw the Musée d'Orsay exhibit, then went on to photograph other areas of the museum. My favorite picture, of a statue made from cast glass:



Other photos here.

Water Flowing Together

Got a chance to watch Water Flowing Together tonight, a movie about Jock Soto, who was the principle dancer of the New York City Ballet for many years. He was one of the last dancers trained by Balanchine.

In addition to talking about ballet, it covers a lot of other subjects: being teased as a gay kid, growing up Puerto Rican and Navajo, and the process of transitioning from a poor family to an international star.

He talks about the tension between his views of living on a reservation as a child vs. his views going back after his retirement from the ballet.

Worth watching.

In Spite of All the Danger

Remake from the film Nowhere Boy:

Even though I knew Aaron Johnson (who plays John Lennon as lead singer above) was in Kick Ass earlier this year, I couldn't keep the two roles together in my head. There are some common elements between the characters, but Lennon was the much more nuanced role.

Homophobia and Finnish State Churches

Interesting consequences of a politician's expression of homophobia in Finland.

Religious freedom is relatively new in Finland; members pay taxes to their faith. There is also an opt-out by declaring one's self atheist. That's per what I understood when I was there but isn't apparently accurate.