The "Manhattan" List - Part I
From "Manhattan": (Six of the most meaningful lines ever recorded on film)
Isaac Davis as played by Woody Allen: "Why is life worth living? It's a very good question. Um... Well, There are certain things I guess that make it worthwhile. uh... Like what... okay... um... For me, uh... ooh... I would say... what, Groucho Marx, to name one thing... uh... um... and Wilie Mays... and um... the 2nd movement of the Jupiter Symphony... and um... Louis Armstrong, recording of Potato Head Blues... um... Swedish movies, naturally... Sentimental Education by Flaubert... uh... Marlon Brando, Frank Sinatra... um... those incredible Apples and Pears by Cezanne... uh... the crabs at Sam Wo's... uh... Tracy's face..."
=====================================
Our List?
Um...
(Possibly only of value to "'Pent Insiders." But heck, you're here anyway.)
block parties on Fairway Drive: volleyball. hot dogs. "this road closed" signs. dusk. school tomorrow... darn.
asking Dad for the Globe every night at six. (Did he buy it at night just so we'd pilfer it when he came home?)
the basket in the driveway was 9 foot 10, but plenty high for us. hundreds and hundreds of hours. the skin splitting on our fingertips in December; painful but worth it.
pets and more pets. ours and the neighbors.
the grey house down the street which housed two families that were such a treat.
middle school down the road a ways. a long ways. the "in between years."
teachers who remember your name years later. how is that possible?
Bruins vs. Edmonton with Dad...why is there smoke on the water/ice?...this place stinks...this place is awesome...kasper...gretzky. cherry on top of the bench, yelling at the refs. (or was that the forgotten "rockies"?)... the b's always win, it seems. long drive home, but Dad drives that Maxima at maximum.
first game. Rockets. is it possible? 14 and 10. a win. and they're off and running... the way it's supposed to be.
hitting a homer in gym class between the shortstop's legs. man, do we have game.
mowing the biggest freeking lawn in Amherst. 30X50 or so. why us?
"you buy too much milk."
Mr G caring, and laughing. his little tiny car, honking every night as it passed by. that whole damn family.
halloween. some years, anyway.
never knowing what to expect.
knowing exactly what to expect.
why does Milbury want that poor bastard's Florsheim so bad? And why can't McNab pick on somebody his si... Well, at least someone who doesn't fight a whole lot? "Peter McNab." As good as "Montana. Rice. Touchdown." to these ears. My goodness, do we miss that sound.
student council? student council? thanks, man, but we voted for the chick.
the troubled kid down the street our Dad liked so much, driving that van that we envied so much. (it was the '70s)
Cos
the Doobies. their name meant nothing to us, but the sound was very all right.
middle school "graduation." will you sign my yearbook? why are the teachers crying?
Isaac Davis as played by Woody Allen: "Why is life worth living? It's a very good question. Um... Well, There are certain things I guess that make it worthwhile. uh... Like what... okay... um... For me, uh... ooh... I would say... what, Groucho Marx, to name one thing... uh... um... and Wilie Mays... and um... the 2nd movement of the Jupiter Symphony... and um... Louis Armstrong, recording of Potato Head Blues... um... Swedish movies, naturally... Sentimental Education by Flaubert... uh... Marlon Brando, Frank Sinatra... um... those incredible Apples and Pears by Cezanne... uh... the crabs at Sam Wo's... uh... Tracy's face..."
=====================================
Our List?
Um...
(Possibly only of value to "'Pent Insiders." But heck, you're here anyway.)
block parties on Fairway Drive: volleyball. hot dogs. "this road closed" signs. dusk. school tomorrow... darn.
asking Dad for the Globe every night at six. (Did he buy it at night just so we'd pilfer it when he came home?)
the basket in the driveway was 9 foot 10, but plenty high for us. hundreds and hundreds of hours. the skin splitting on our fingertips in December; painful but worth it.
pets and more pets. ours and the neighbors.
the grey house down the street which housed two families that were such a treat.
middle school down the road a ways. a long ways. the "in between years."
teachers who remember your name years later. how is that possible?
Bruins vs. Edmonton with Dad...why is there smoke on the water/ice?...this place stinks...this place is awesome...kasper...gretzky. cherry on top of the bench, yelling at the refs. (or was that the forgotten "rockies"?)... the b's always win, it seems. long drive home, but Dad drives that Maxima at maximum.
first game. Rockets. is it possible? 14 and 10. a win. and they're off and running... the way it's supposed to be.
hitting a homer in gym class between the shortstop's legs. man, do we have game.
mowing the biggest freeking lawn in Amherst. 30X50 or so. why us?
"you buy too much milk."
Mr G caring, and laughing. his little tiny car, honking every night as it passed by. that whole damn family.
halloween. some years, anyway.
never knowing what to expect.
knowing exactly what to expect.
why does Milbury want that poor bastard's Florsheim so bad? And why can't McNab pick on somebody his si... Well, at least someone who doesn't fight a whole lot? "Peter McNab." As good as "Montana. Rice. Touchdown." to these ears. My goodness, do we miss that sound.
student council? student council? thanks, man, but we voted for the chick.
the troubled kid down the street our Dad liked so much, driving that van that we envied so much. (it was the '70s)
Cos
the Doobies. their name meant nothing to us, but the sound was very all right.
middle school "graduation." will you sign my yearbook? why are the teachers crying?
posted by joe sweeney at 8:30 PM
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