As of this writing, I haven’t seen several of the awards season predetermined favorites, but this should change between now and mid-January:
THE BANSHEES OF INISHERIN
PETIT MAMAN
HAPPENING
MEN
ARMAGEDDON TIME
NOPE
HATCHING
RESURRECTION
SPECTOR
SR.
THE DROP OUT
THE LAST MOVIE STARS
GLASS ONION: A KNIVES OUT MYSTERY
HONORABLE MENTION: TAR, THE FABELMANS, CRIMES OF THE FUTURE, ELVIS, BROS, WATCHER
Below is the measured account of Herschel Walker’s electoral defeat. But “soul searching” is wishful Grey Lady journalism: Republicans will wait until the spring of 2024 in hopes that Trump will be enough of a wounded mastodon before opting for either the odious Ron DeSantis or a return to Bush-era dog whistling to straddle both the moneyed don’t tax us establishment and the easily duped. knowledge-averse Trump base. And “tether itself” means “chain tightly in hopes of repeating the same playbook but praying for a different outcome.’
NYT: “Mr. Walker’s loss will almost certainly lead to soul-searching for a Republican Party that must decide heading into the 2024 election how firmly to tether itself to a former president who has now absorbed powerful political blows in three successive campaign cycles.”
they come easier at my age
don’t know if it’s from staring too long at a tablet
maybe it’s flashbacks from the irresolvable past
perhaps a reminder to enjoy and not dread the future
Mel dug a deep hole
so Kanye could dig it deeper
both using Jesus as a Holy Shield
>
Jesus voices his disapproval
but Mel still has a career
and Kanye keeps setting fires
>
people freeze in place
say can you believe this
think they’re insulated from danger
after the scythe cleared away too much staff
pivoting to Plan B with specious polling
allowing the worst to return or think about it
babbling about freedom, giving out wedgies
just like high school bullies spraying insecurity
using bandwidth to post pix of guns and diet soda
saying hey they’re talking about Twitter Bird again
as the wounded satellite crashes to Earth
creating a desert where information and connections
once united a fragmented world
before you spent your billions
to dent something you’ll never understand
when you insulted me on the high school stairs
I didn’t reply, hurried to the next class
of course, I conformed to the derisive, homophobic laughter of others
how dare you choose Frank Zappa over Kiss
don’t you know it’s weird to dye your hair that color
>
but I was shocked by your death from despair
knew how smart you were
thought you’d free yourself from our small town
and find people who would love you without judgments
>
so sorry for my cowardice
my stupid belief that your pain was a contagious virus
so glad to know that I have no problems down there
the last colonoscopy unearthed small precancerous polyps
three years and two plus months later, apparently nothing
I received the color colonic pictures, thought about UNCUT GEMS
waiting for the doctor’s official all clear letter
wanting to be here for the next one in five years
should I, I ask myself
will she think I’m bothering her?
embracing temptation, I walk towards
the table she sits at in the university library
saying hello, she smiles and says hello
small talk about school and studies
then I mention how it’s been almost a year
since we were Saturday acting classmates
it becomes quiet; neither of us know what to say
I throw a pebble into the silence
time for me to resume studying
take care, have a good rest of your weekend
she smiles and says you too in a warm voice
>
after returning to my table,
I open my high school English book
read e.e. cummings poem buffalo bill’s defunct
as my mind’s eye watches a balloon climb the sky
before disappearing
