nick cave wrote a screenplay & I celebrated my third anniversary with david sedaris

I heard on public radio that The Proposition will be playing at the NuArt in Santa Monica (or is that West L.A. but on Santa Monica?) - opening May 5th. I saw this the other night and liked it quite a lot. Intense. Violent. A rape scene which wasn't too graphic, but still rape & hard to watch. A period piece western that takes place in Australia. Nick Cave wrote the screenplay. Guy Pierce plays the lead & was on hand for a question & answer deal after the movie. I was impressed and surprised by the questions being asked (yes some dopes, but mostly decent questions). I left feeling lucky to have been able to be a part of it (er, to watch the movie & listen in on the Q & A - I kept my mouth shut).

It was a busy week all around. The night after the movie I hit my third annual David Sedaris reading (& another Q & A) at Royce Hall / UCLA. Each year it gets better which seems impossible. Now that I have seen him three years running, I feel like I can compare the shows. This years Q & A seemed almost like we were all at a dinner party with David Sedaris as our guest. And that perhaps our guest had tied on a few because he seemed especially loose, meant in a very complimentary way I promise. Just loose enough. Each year he suggests a book (and has many recommendations posted on his website: http://www.barclayagency.com/sedaris.html - I tried inserting a link but each time I tried publishing the post it lost everything so I am irritated, and you get to copy and paste - my apologies). I haven't read this years suggestion so I can't comment on that book, but I really liked last years suggestion, 'Random Family'. I especially love when he explains why he wants us all to read whatever book he brings to share. He is so humble as he talks about the other book & author. One of those moments in life when there is sincerity and sincere flattery and humility.

I leave his shows feeling so good. Which is the exact opposite way I feel when I shop at a bookstore. I feel sad and overwhelmed by all the books I won't ever read. Books I won't read because I don't know about them or there isn't time (I mean right now I have so many in the rotation: I just finished Beware of God Stories, I am in the middle of a George Jones autobiography, still reading 'The Kangchenjunga Adventure' - that one is so good that I am reading it as slowly as possible because I will miss it so much when it ends. And there are others that I am in the midst of & so many more begging to be started.

So, happy anniversary David Sedaris, your gift of sharing books you love couldn't be any sweeter.