2024-06-11 02:42
Had words with a homeless guy today. That's never fun, but this guy really needs to be slapped around a little — where's Jimmy Cagney and Joan Blondell when you need 'em?I'm usually ni… Read More
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Mostly Words Blog
itsdougholland.com
It's personal. I write about whatever interests me — classic movies, bad neighbors, my cat, my gout, etc. It's very random.
2024-06-09 23:46
MONDAY — A day at the office, and then a night at the movies — The Hatchet Man (1932) and The Public Enemy (1931), more pre-Code dramas at the Roxie.Hatchet is notable mostly for… Read More
2024-06-09 17:04
Good Will Hunting (1997)It's not about thrifting at Goodwill. Will Hunting is the main character's name. He's a troubled and occasionally violent janitor at MIT, who solves a heady math prob… Read More
2024-06-08 06:52
Worst possible news at my temp job on Friday: They like me, and have asked me to work longer than my original two-week assignment."Oh," I said, and not in an excited tone of voice. Then I re… Read More
2024-06-07 00:25
My mother-in-law, my late wife's mother, has died. Her health faded
quickly, and in the course of a year or so, she went from her vibrant,
wiseacre self to shuffling off a mortal hospice… Read More
2024-06-05 23:53
SATURDAY — BARTed to the Mission, had Chinese food for lunch, and then walked to the Roxie for a pre-Code triple feature.I Am A Fugitive from a Chain Gang is a movie with a good reputa… Read More
2024-06-05 01:53
The Good Girl (2002)Justine is a 30-ish worker at a grocery store, stuck in a boring marriage with a stoner husband who paints houses for a living. She doesn't know it yet, but she's itching… Read More
2024-06-04 01:58
Do I have to write something every damned day? Is that the way a diary works?
OK, well, have I mentioned that I'm mad about movies? Especially old
movies, not because the old movies were n… Read More
2024-06-03 00:36
It was a day like any other day. I work, eat, sleep, shower, and
brush my teeth, except on weekends. And such is my life. What more could
a man want?
Well, it would be nice to have sex as… Read More
2024-06-02 22:21
My most enthusiastic recommendation today is The Golden Gate Murders, a cornball made-for-TV mystery from the 1970s. The real mystery is why I liked it so much, and the answer is in the star… Read More
![Happy Birthday To Me [Pathetic Life]](https://cdn.blogarama.com/images/posts_thumbs_site_id/13818/1381806-2996750241.w320.jpg "Happy Birthday To Me [Pathetic Life]")
2024-06-02 00:27
In San Francisco in the mid-1990s, I wrote a zine called "Pathetic Life: Diary of a Fat Slob." Recently I found my copies of it in a mildewed box in the basement, so one
entry at a time I'm… Read More
2024-06-01 21:36
Sometimes my mom wonders to me, why I'm generally unwilling to talk about myself and what little is going on in my life. "It's like pulling teeth to get information out of you," she says.And… Read More
2024-06-01 04:12
As you might guess, Seattle Sprocket & Flange makes sprockets and flanges, but they also make barbed wire, bedsprings, corrugated boxes, etc.I'm temping there, but in an office, not on t… Read More
2024-05-28 13:36
NEVERENDINGFILM FESTIVAL#297 [archive]MAY 28, 2024If you like or can stand musicals, the winner in this batch has to be Gold Diggers of 1933.If you're allergic to musicals, or just in… Read More
2024-05-28 00:48
At the height of the Cold War, America's fear of communism and the Soviet Union was so great that American politicians could reliably score publicity points by suggesting that opponents had… Read More
2024-05-27 03:01
When the bus stopped in downtown Seattle on Sunday, I stepped off and into a crowd of about twenty men, all black, and wearing colorful matching outfits. Black Hebrew Israelites, said their… Read More
2024-05-26 20:14
Godzilla (1954)a/k/a Gojira Streaming free at Internet ArchiveThis is the original Godzilla. Accept no substitutes.If you've only seen the Americanized version (below), with Raymond Burr, yo… Read More
2024-05-26 02:05
My legs felt weak and tired after a short walk a few days ago, so I'm trying to walk more often. Exercise, and all that.Friday's walk took me past an elementary school on recess. There were… Read More
2024-05-25 05:36
The Goalie's Anxiety at the Penalty Kick (1972)a/k/a The Goalkeeper's Anxiety at the Penalty KickThis is one of Wim Wenders' earliest features, very subdued but fascinating. Josef Bloch is a… Read More
2024-05-24 00:11
Go (1999)Streaming free at Internet ArchiveRanna (Sarah Polley) is behind on her rent, on the verge of eviction, but she might be able to score some cash with a quick one-time deal selling t… Read More
2024-05-23 06:27
My mom knows exactly how to put me in a bad mood, and often does. She disapproves of every decision I've made in life, from dropping out of high school to living ten miles from her now, inst… Read More
2024-05-23 05:46
Glastonbury Fayre (2018) Available on DVD from your local libraryThe Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts is held annually near Somerset, England. It's such a big deal that e… Read More
2024-05-22 17:09
by Bruce Anderson,Anderson Valley Advertiser"Is this that political-type paper," a tentative female voice asked when I picked up the phone."I suppose," I answered, forever not knowing what m… Read More
2024-05-21 17:53
I'd contributed in the past, but it's more a blessing to receive than to give, so yesterday was my first visit to a food bank.I was expecting a bureaucracy, with forms to be filed, ID and ci… Read More
2024-05-20 23:53
For my first day on the sales floor, Walgreens posted me at the beauty counter — yes, the fat, gray man at the lone cash register in front of the Maybelline and mascara, lip gloss and… Read More
2024-05-20 16:55
You might remember that in 2020, after cops killed yet another black man for nothing, there were protests.CRANKYOLD FART#423 [archive]MAY 20, 2024Daniel Perry was angry — not abo… Read More
2024-05-19 17:51
Yesterday was my third and final day of what passes for 'training' at CVS — sitting in front of a computer in a busy basement hallway, clicking through text and videos that explain the… Read More
2024-05-19 17:22
NEVERENDINGFILM FESTIVAL#292 [archive]MAY 19, 2024In a hurry? Skip to the last review, of The Glass Wall. It's definitely the best movie in this week's batch.♦ ♦ ♦The… Read More
2024-05-18 17:41
Yesterday's entry was way too long, sorry. Today I pledge to keep it briefer, if only because my bus to work is coming in 45 minutes.The tedious training continues at CVS, where Friday's onl… Read More
2024-05-18 04:16
It's a short walk to a long bus ride, and then a short walk to CVS. An easy commute, or it would be in they'd pave the streets downtown. There are ten thousand bouncy divets and bumps in eve… Read More
2024-05-16 16:34
Had a conversation with my flatmate Dean on the back porch a few days ago, the strangest and easiest talkin' we've ever had.He didn't tell me about un-salted butter, didn't talk about what h… Read More
2024-05-16 16:21
1st season 2nd season3rd season 4th season5th seasonFor this fifth season of Doctor Who, showrunner Russell T Davies retired, and one of the show's best… Read More
2024-05-15 15:39
Girls on the Loose (1958)Streaming free at Internet ArchiveBaddies wearing masks overpower everyone else, grab the money, and get away in a laundry truck. Inside the truck as it rolls, they… Read More
2024-05-14 23:34
Well, here's some good news. I've passed CVS's background check, and an email tells me I'm hired. Yippee, I get to stock shelves and run the cash register and tell people the wrong aisle to… Read More
2024-05-14 23:34
Live report from the terrifying occupation of the lawn at University of Michigan Excerpt: "…
I really don't feel terrorized or threatened yet. Let's walk through… Read More
2024-05-13 18:57
There's no knowing why, but from Saturday night to Sunday morning, I slept 16 hours straight. Or at least, 'straight' by my definition, which means waking up every 45-90 minutes, and then fa… Read More
2024-05-13 15:40
Girl Asleep (2015)Streaming free at TubiGreta is the new kid in a new school, where enemies are easier to find than friends. She's 14, unsure of herself and others, and her only friend is an… Read More
2024-05-13 02:00
[For full effect, play the music now.]Jack Horkheimer's father owned a printing shop, and served more than two decades as the mayor of Randolph, Wisconsin, where baby Jack was born.He was a… Read More
2024-05-11 21:03
1st season 3rd season2nd season 4th seasonSo there's this guy, Kimble. He comes home one night, and finds his wife's been murdered. They had a… Read More
2024-05-11 15:22
Giant (1956)Streaming free at Internet ArchiveAlmost 3½ hours long, Technicolor, and big as Texas, Giant is indeed large. I'd seen it many years ago, and remembered it as a spra… Read More
2024-05-10 23:01
Most of the jobs I've applied for do not exist, I'm convinced.
For whatever reasons, someone's been told to run job listings, but they're not
actually hiring.Applying for these phantom job… Read More
2024-05-10 18:57
Something Blue (conclusion)[Part 1] [Part 2] [Part 3] [Part 4]Agnes sipped wine from her plastic cup, with her pinky extended. I… Read More
2024-05-10 00:40
CRANKYOLD FART'SBROWSERHISTORY#421 [archive]MAY 9, 2024Many climate scientists predict a "semi-dystopian" future, with famines, conflicts and mass migration, driven by heatwaves, wildf… Read More
2024-05-09 16:30
Something Blue, part 4[Part 1] [Part 2] [Part 3]Agnes had gone down the hall to fetch her super-secret whatsit, and
Raoul was clearing dishes… Read More
2024-05-08 20:06
The Ghost and Mr Chicken (1966)Streaming free at Internet Archive"It was terrible. It was just terrible. I'll never get over it as long as I live."C'mon, it's not that bad.Everything in this… Read More
2024-05-08 15:52
Something Blue, part 3[Part 1] [Part 2]For some people, meeting a stranger for dinner at their house might
be enjoyable, but I'm not 'some people'. I was nervous, an… Read More
2024-05-07 14:05
Something Blue, part 2[Previously]It was early afternoon, autumn in Wisconsin, which means wearing
layers, gloves, and something fuzzy on your head. There was no snow on
the ground but ple… Read More
2024-05-07 02:41
Gertie the Dinosaur (1914)Streaming free at YouTubeNEVERENDINGFILM FESTIVAL#287 [archive]MAY 6, 2024Here's a story, possibly true, wherein several prominent men are joyriding on one of… Read More
2024-05-06 23:43
Something Blue, part 1Power on. New file. ... And now I've been looking at a blank screen
for several minutes, with no idea how to make anything make sense, but
I'm going to type it anyway… Read More
2024-05-06 06:00
Dear diary,I spent Sunday afternoon at the home of my brother Clay and his wife Karen, with my brother Dick and his wife Young-sook, and with Leon, who's a lifelong friend to me and both my… Read More
2024-05-05 15:05
Geneviève (1964)Streaming free at YouTubeNEVERENDINGFILM FESTIVAL#286 [archive]MAY 5, 2024This short subject fooled me — right up until the closing credits, I thought it w… Read More
2024-05-04 23:37
CRANKYOLD FART'SBROWSERHISTORY#420 [archive]MAY 4, 2024Biden's top economic advisor rambles incoherently when asked a simple question Economics is about 88% bullshit… Read More
2024-05-03 21:22
Gates of Heaven (1978)Streaming free at Internet ArchiveThis is a delightful documentary about a depressing topic: dead pets.Errol Morris interviews Floyd McClure, who dreamed of creating a… Read More
2024-05-03 02:37
The Fugitive (1963-67)Streaming free at Internet Archive"The Fugitive — a Quinn Martin production — starring David Janssen as Dr Richard Kimble, an innocent victim of blind justi… Read More
2024-05-01 23:50
A job listing came up that I'm qualified for, even overqualified — office work, asking for 2 years of experience when I have 30. The job is with the public defenders' office, and I str… Read More
2024-05-01 23:38
CRANKYOLD FART'SBROWSERHISTORY#419 [archive]MAY 1, 2024 Something's happening here, but what it is ain't exactly clear. There are protests on campuses all across the… Read More
2024-04-30 21:17
Gandahar (1987)a/k/a Light Years (but not really)Available on DVD from your local library Gandahar is from French animator René Laloux, who made the trippy whispered sci-fi cartoon Fa… Read More
2024-04-29 21:49
I'm skeptical that this will be of interest to anyone, but my pledge to you is always, If it happened I'll write about it.Had a job interview near SouthCenter at 9:30 this morning, so being… Read More
2024-04-29 14:16
Once
daily, I take a walk around the neighborhood. Just a few blocks, no
great distance or excess exercise, and my wife always walks with me.
We walked this neighborhood many, many times… Read More
2024-04-29 00:26
Gabby Goes Fishing (1941)Streaming free at Internet ArchiveNEVERENDINGFILM FESTIVAL#283 [archive]APR. 28, 2024A kid goes fishing off a pier, and seems to be doing fine, catching plenty… Read More
2024-04-28 20:08
Most of the people at my work aren't at my work any more. We're
working remotely during the Great Pandemic of 2020, so this story takes place "at
work," but work is my living room.My work is… Read More
2024-04-28 02:01
"When I was young, I didn't know what I wanted to do."Is that a quote from someone wise? Absolutely. It's a snippet of conversation overheard, from the guy stocking Bisquick at Grocery Outle… Read More
2024-04-27 16:50
Like
a lot of cheap apartment buildings, this place has thin walls. Often
I hear my neighbors. Drywall and hollow space is the only separation between units.
One night a while back, I wok… Read More
2024-04-26 15:33
Furries: An Inside Look (2010)Streaming free at VimeoUnsurprisingly, Republicans and other people who are afraid of EVERYTHING are afraid of furries — folks who dress up as animals. Th… Read More
2024-04-25 20:41
We
were eating at Stephanie's favorite Italian restaurant — window
table, best seat in the house. Steph was seated facing outside, so
other than my face, her view must've been pictu… Read More
2024-04-25 07:08
CRANKYOLD FART'SBROWSERHISTORY#418 [archive]APR. 25, 2024New Orleans judge In priestly rape case demands paper trail from Catholic archbishop all the way to the Vatican &nb&hell…Read More
2024-04-24 19:44
by Paul ModicWhat matters more in life than sex or deathhow much will you get before your last breathYes the orgasm is the height of sensationthen you feel how life's a vacationDo these word… Read More
2024-04-24 19:40
Full Fathom Five (1952)Streaming free at Internet ArchiveNEVERENDINGFILM FESTIVAL#281 [archive]APR. 24, 2024Rub-a-dub-dub, it's men in a tub. This is all about US military submarines… Read More
2024-04-23 21:00
To
break the boredom of perpetual lockdown, I walk around the neighborhood
once daily, unless it snows. I'm not adventurous; it's the same walk every time: six blocks north, one block west… Read More
2024-04-22 18:37
The Front Page (1931)Streaming free at Internet ArchiveThis is based on the play by Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur, the same source material that became His Girl Friday nine years later. Th… Read More
2024-04-22 03:46
CRANKYOLD FART'SBROWSERHISTORY#417 [archive]APR. 21, 2024A great silence is spreading over the natural world even as the sound of man is becoming deafening Study suggests young me… Read More
2024-04-21 16:52
This was originally several separate posts, which I've whittled down and sewn together into one long entry. It's too many words, sorry, but I love my cat and couldn't shut up. March 22, 2020… Read More
2024-04-20 20:20
The Fugitive (1963-67)Streaming free at Internet ArchiveThe 1993 movie with Harrison Ford, The Fugitive, was fun and it's on my rewatch list, but it wasn't as complex, thoughtful, or just pl… Read More
2024-04-19 23:58
The Frightening (2002)A new kid in a new town goes to his first day at Hallows End High School, where there's been a murder, but the principal won't cancel classes even for a day. A teacher… Read More
2024-04-19 21:00
There are many things I'd do different, smarter, if I
could do it all again. There are jobs I should have quit sooner, people I
lost contact with, a few people I should've contacted with a… Read More
2024-04-19 04:20
Again as most days, I remain horizontal in the recliner, sometimes searching the internet for employment, but only for a short while before frustration and boredom pull me back to watching o… Read More
2024-04-18 13:55
We were in our early 20s, me and a friend who'd become a flatmate, and one memorable night we stood on our apartment's balcony, and looked at the freeway
traffic in the distance.What we saw… Read More
2024-04-18 04:42
Freewheelin' (1976)Streaming free at TubiI wonder sometimes what I missed, beyond sprained ankles, from never
learning to skateboard. This is a mellow mostly-documentary about skateboarding… Read More
2024-04-17 04:35
CRANKYOLD FART'SBROWSERHISTORY#416 [archive]APR. 16, 202420 years later, Abu Ghraib detainees get their day in US court
When they're done prosecuting Donald Trump fo… Read More
2024-04-16 18:17
The
doorbell rang, which meant my delivery of groceries was here. Nobody rings my doorbell except professionally.I slipped a mask over
my face, and stepped out onto the porch, where the de… Read More
2024-04-16 06:51
Frank Film (1973)Streaming free at Internet ArchiveNEVERENDINGFILM FESTIVAL#277 [archive]APR. 15, 2024Filmmaker Frank Mouris explains what you're seeing as images are flashed on the sc… Read More
2024-04-14 22:13
Four Lions (2010)Streaming free at Tubi"Do you have any Islamic arguments, brother? I only listen to Islamic arguments."This is a ballsy satire, hyping all the stereotypes of Muslim radicals… Read More
2024-04-14 16:19
Procrastination is my only achievement in life, where "one of these days" I'll send a short story to The New Yorker, and "one of these days" I'll take out the trash, which is currently stack… Read More
2024-04-14 01:21
George Washington Carver is best known as the inventor of peanut butter. And I love peanut butter. There are always two jars on my shelf, ensuring I never run out, but it seems a fairly obvi… Read More
2024-04-13 02:38
CRANKYOLD FART'SBROWSERHISTORY#415 [archive]APR. 12, 2024The non-profit States Newsroom now has a full-time presence in all fifty states States Newsroom first impres… Read More
2024-04-13 02:37
Foul Play (1978)Streaming free at Internet Archive A recently-divorced librarian (Goldie Hawn) picks up a hitchhiker, which unwittingly brings her into an assassination plot involving a… Read More
2024-04-11 18:56
An
old acquaintance reached out to me recently, and I'm fairly well hidden so
that took some work and some luck.Maybe it's a thing these days, that
when people get older they reach into t… Read More
2024-04-11 00:57
Force of Evil (1948)Streaming free at Internet ArchiveJoe Morse (John Garfield) is the lawyer for some gangster-guy who's in the numbers racket. Joe's brother Leo (Thomas Gomez) is in the nu… Read More
2024-04-10 20:24
"You can stay as long as you pay," she said."Daily, weekly, monthly." I grew up in Seattle, but I'd had enough of living the expected life. My girlfriend had dumped me, and I hated my job. I… Read More
2024-04-09 21:46
A fat white schmuck walks to the dumpster, on a gray
morning as winter approaches. You wouldn't notice me if you
saw me, but if you did you'd assume I'm grumpy.Everyone assumes it. Grumpy… Read More
2024-04-09 04:23
A Fool There Was (1915)Streaming free at Tubi NEVERENDINGFILM FESTIVAL#273 [archive]APR. 8, 2024She was a scamp, a camp, and a bit of a tramp, she was a V*A*M*P — vamp! This… Read More
2024-04-08 17:11
You know the cliché about taking the road less traveled? It's said so often it sounds stupid or pretentious, and usually said by people who don't mean it.It's from a great poem, thoug… Read More
2024-04-08 15:05
CRANKYOLD FART'SBROWSERHISTORY#414 [archive]APR. 7, 2024 Life and the news make me more and more cynical, so let's open with some sour thoughts. For… Read More
2024-04-07 17:00
When we were kids, my brother and I were closer than most friends, and I've never had many friends so that meant a lot to me. We went to ball games, we joked around, skipped church together… Read More
2024-04-06 21:22
The Fly (1958)Streaming free at Internet ArchiveIt starts with bloody murder — Mrs Delambre has killed her husband, squished him in a hydraulic press to make sure that he's dead. It's… Read More
2024-04-06 17:42
The email to all employees was very upbeat, and used a week's worth of exclamation points: "Our newly-remodeled
snack-room is now open! Stop by on your break!" It ended with: "A vendor rep… Read More
2024-04-06 01:51
Numerous bus routes begin or end at the Burien Transit Center (BTC), and often I step off one bus there and onto another. It's my transfer point to go downtown, or to the diner, or to visit… Read More
2024-04-05 21:11
It was a crap like any other crap. Two small pieces, and
one longer but not extraordinary piece. I rinsed my butt with the
bidet, flushed, and walked away. Can't remember whether I washed… Read More
2024-04-04 22:49
Flesh Gordon (1974)Streaming free at Internet Archive I don't usually cover the porno beat, but this is something special. It opens with a long and sincere dedication to the creators of… Read More
2024-04-04 19:22
What follows is the whole story, in excruciating detail nobody asked for. It was cathartic to write it, and I hope someone somewhere finds it helpful.For those who'd rather avoid all the bed… Read More
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