Under a Red Roof

Inspirational Men

October 2, 2009 in Inspiring, Spotlighting, Watching by Colleen | 1 comment

Two great movies for you today, gems received via our Netflix queue. Oh heavens, please don’t you ever go away Netflix. What on earth would these two Portland film addicts do without you?

Let’s start with fashion and the man who works magic with red, Valentino Garavani. Forty-five years of gorgeous gowns with equally gorgeous women donning them. While I hardly have enough moolah to be able to purchase a couture gown such as these (nor an occasion to which I’d wear it), it was a sheer delight to observe a bit of the process that brings them to life. A dream in a man’s head, a sketch, and a klatch of women with talents I can only aspire to. No sewing machines, no fancy equipment, just divine talent with a needle and thread.

Follow bits of Valentino’s life since launching his career in the 1960s: the bankruptcy, the huge success, the sale of his company in the 90s, the dresses (oh the dresses!), the pugs, the houses, and one very sweet, loving, and patient man with my favorite name in the Italian language, Giancarlo, Valentino’s partner for more than fifty years.

It is a love story about style, fabric, and men who share the same exquisite passion to make women feel a bit more beautiful and, of course, glamorous. There are lots of surprises, and I shed a few tears, inspired by the drive and success of these lively and talented Italians.

And now for a little something from Italy’s neighbor, France. It is quite a different story, yet it rings of the same truths, that passion, dedication, and perseverance bring sublime rewards.

It’s a story that begins in a dimly lit dentist’s waiting room, when a young man with an aching tooth spies, in a magazine, an advertisement for the yet to be built Twin Towers. A tight rope walker, he decides, then and there, that he will walk between the towers, drawing, rather symbolically, a crisp line between the buildings. Thus, he sets forth on a plan that will take him thousands of miles and hundreds of feet above New York city.

Though the fact that he walks the tightrope is a foregone conclusion, it is a delightful journey to follow the route to his achievement. There’s footage of the preparations, including his victories over Notre Dame and the Sydney Harbor Bridge. As well, we meet his accomplices, friends and protectors, eager and willing to pay the high price to accomplish one man’s dream. Another joy to watch such determination and dedication to a particular and quite electrifying goal.

Tags: Documentaries, Movies

Guest Blogger Gregory: “Colleen, My favorite topic”

July 22, 2009 in Admiring, Inspiring, Loving, Watching by Colleen | 5 comments

A smile like that after a 6 hour surgery. Inspiring!

For a rather verbose start as guest blogger here “Under a Red Roof”, until Colleen is back at the helm, I will just post some status on Colleen as she is easily my favorite topic. I love her very much and am certainly inspired by her love of life. As you can read from previous posts, Tuesday was a day of surgery for my wife Colleen.

The surgery started out as a laparoscopic procedure that would last about 3 hours or less. As the Dr. was working it became apparent that there was going to be more to do and Colleen had to be opened up. I believe it became a laparotomic procedure with a single horizontal incision, but I can only play doctor so please forgive the terminology. It ended up being quite a long day with a surgery from about 10:00 am to 4:30 pm and then recovery until about 6:00 pm or so. Her doctor said that the reason a transfusion wasn’t necessary in surgery was, in large part, due to the good care Colleen has taken of her blood (which isn’t easy with the heavy monthly blood loss).

I am grateful that my best friend in the world was sleeping through this ordeal! I am also very grateful that the most excellent doctors took their time and patience to really do things correctly and safely.

Today, the day after the surgery, was a good day. Colleen is in a good deal of pain but her vitals are good and her body is healthy. Fluids are passing normally, lungs are clear, and there isn’t any blood loss. Naturally I wish she was feeling better, but I am happy her body is working well!

Legacy Emanuel hospital in Portland Oregon has been absolutely wonderful. The doctors are first class and the nurses are very capable and helpful.

I would like to also apologize if you feel slighted for not having been notified more personally. Please feel free to give me a call or send an email as I’m trying to connect Colleen with the outside world as much as possible. I think Colleen is remembering more than I am right now and I don’t even have any Dilaudid in me! (The morphine didn’t do much for her.)

For those of you who aren’t familiar with Dilaudid or Drugstore Cowboy here’s a lighter view of the drug… Much lighter:

What is Dilaudid? (Warning: Rated R perhaps, take with grain of salt)

(PG-13 (PG-13 perhaps)perhaps)

Tags: Endometriosis

For Iran and the World

June 20, 2009 in Inspiring, Quoting by Colleen | 1 comment

We shall find peace. We shall hear angels. We shall see the sky sparkling with diamonds.

Anton Checkov

Inspired

May 20, 2009 in Cooking + Baking, Drinking, Eating, Inspiring by Colleen | Permalink

A couple of weeks ago, the G-Man and I went out with our good friends Bridget and Eric, something we’d been wanting to do for ages, but every time we tried, it didn’t work out. Wouldn’t you know that this was one of those last minute arrangements that comes together perfectly? I love when life places all the little ducks in a row and I benefit from it.

Our first stop was Bridget’s mighty fine choice, the Gilt Club, where we enjoyed stellar service from an uber cute and funny waitress and a super fine happy hour menu (I love adjectives!): A Moscow Mule (kapow!) served in the copper cup and an Appletini (made with real apple, no frightening neon green concoctions) were the beverage highlights. We also got some delicious salads, cute mini burgers with drippy gruyere cheese and yummy fries, and manchego cheese fritters that I insisted on calling cheese balls. “Come on Eric, taste the balls, they’re delicious.” I know, sometimes I’m beyond silly and bordering on impossible. It’s my way.

After that, we walked two short blocks to the Augen Gallery where we enjoyed Morgan Walker’s exhibition Rodeo Combinations. Here’s where I struggle a little bit to describe it: Not quite whimsical, but there is certainly great humor in it (I laughed!). I like how many of the paintings are a story for which the viewer chooses the length. Gaze for a moment at the title and the composition and receive the Cliff’s Notes version. Stand a bit longer and the the tale grows longer, more textured, and complex. Speaking of texture, that’s something else I like about the paintings, I think he must load his brush with a lot of paint and then make very small brush strokes because the canvasses are not at all flat, but very much the topographical versions of the stories he’s telling. Yet it’s not too much either. There’s a subtlety to it.

One of the highlights, I might add, wasn’t even a painting, but a blueprint of thought. Morgan, over a period of a year and a half, wrote down connections between philosophy and surfing that included Arnold Schwarzenegger, Ronald Reagan, Wittgenstein, and, of course, Gidget. To say I was inspired is putting it mildly. I love getting glimpses into people’s minds.

Finally, speaking of inspired, these are salads I made after the one that I had at the Gilt Club. Their version didn’t have steak on it, but I needed some protein. It is a mouth watering combination of baby greens, watercress, peas, shaved fennel, grapefruit, and pine nuts, tossed in a simple balsamic vinaigrette. The post card is from Morgan’s show, and since it is called Rodeo Combinations, I’ve got to say, “Giddy-up!”

A Moment of Forever

September 5, 2008 in Inspiring, Listening, Spotlighting, Watching by Colleen | 4 comments

Sometimes it is really difficult for me to put my feelings into words because they feel so inadequate or they just seem silly, and in this case, both. I do not tend to get starry eyed about celebrities. Yes, I do find them interesting, as I do all people, and occasionally get the gossip via magazines, but I know that, ultimately we are all human in the end. We all eat, sleep, and go to the bathroom every day.

One exception to this rule is this fella here. Good golly, Gregory and I were so darned excited to see him last week at the Oregon State Fair. I mean, the guy’s done so much – Farm Aid, Bio-Fuel, and all that singing! When we first arrived and perused the various sites, we’d look at each other and ask, “Do you think he’s here?” Then, after we’d seen the Honeysuckle Rose and knew he was, indeed, at the Fair, we wondered aloud, “What do you think he’s doing now?” And then, when we finally got to take our seats and his roadie brought out Trigger, we just about burst. “Willie Nelson is back stage and he’s gonna sing – for us!”

Well, my friends, he did not disappoint. The man, who is seventy-five, played for an hour and forty-five minutes without stopping. When the band played “Bloody Mary Morning,” I thought old Trigger might break at the seams. Willie was strumming so wildly, and me, right there with him, whoopin’ and hollerin’, hands drumming on my thighs, feet stomping to the pulsing beat. Hot damn, he is good! Sometimes, he didn’t even finish a song before starting the melody for another. The man was on fire.

He played old favorites, like “Whiskey River,” “Crazy, ” and “On the Road Again,” and new songs, like “You Don’t Think I’m Funny Anymore,” and “Over You Again.” Of course he played “Georgia,” and of course, I cried, but sweetly, because the night was so magical there in Salem. Big clouds threatened us and a cool breeze blew, but the sky turned starry, and the people were so kind, happy as clams to be in the presence of this sweet, generous, and funny man. Oh Willie, it was a delight to spend a “Moment of Forever” with you.