The Cinematic Melancholy of St. Joan Didion
Eighty-three today, Joan Didion is inarguably old. But even in photos of the writer as a much younger woman, you can see something ancient and knowing that juxtaposes sharply with the youth culture of mid-twentieth century America. It’s a quality that distinguishes her work as much as her uncluttered, unflappable prose, and it makes her, to date, cinema’s most untapped natural resource.
It’s surprising that more of Didion’s books haven’t been adapted to screen, especially since she has worked many times as a screenwriter, usually with her husband, the late author and journalist John Gregory Dunne. All in all, Didion and Dunne co-wrote at least eight screenplays – more, if you count the ones they reportedly massaged without credit. In 1972, they adapted her own book, Play It as It Lays, though she has said in interviews she wishes the resulting film were better. (Few disagree.) There also was the 1971’s druggie romance “Panic in Needle Park”; the extremely furry 1976 reboot of 1954’s “Star Is Born” (itself a reboot of a 1937 classic); and the 1996 Robert Redford-Michelle Pheiffer journalist romance “Up Close & Personal,” loosely based on the life and death of TV reporter Jessica Savitch. What’s most surprising is this filmography’s soapiness. With few exceptions, the story arcs go along the lines of: Couple falls in love, life caves in on couple. Continue Reading →
Space Crone Vs. the Mercury Retrograde MTA
I was racing to the subway and forgot my headphones because it’d been a while since I had to block out my immediate surroundings, which is to say I’d been blissfully living in the country. So I got on the L and immediately felt like weeping because I was bombarded with vocal frye club prattle. Then a boy danced onto my car and announced he was selling a pair of iPhone headphones for $10. Well, you just knew they were used and nasty but it gave me an idea so I bought them (for $5, there’s no wet behind my ears) and before heading to my destination scooted over to the Apple Store to trade them in for ones that worked. I mean, in all my years in this city no one’s ever sold headphones on a car I’ve been on before so what are the odds it happened today? But that’s the NYC shuffle, isn’t it? Everything’s a struggle but there’s magic thrown in to lighten your load. I just wish I still was as sure I was as a young woman that this hard-won magic is worth it.
Wacky High Jinks and Shenanigans Ensue
The last Mercury retrograde of 2017 begins today, and it’s a doozy. Taking place in wild and crazy Sagittarius, this one is not just about technology and communication going awry. It is about loose lips and sunk ships, because Sagittarius has a tendency to shoot her mouth off and pitch fits in addition to triple axel jumps. As a lady with five planets in Sagittarius, I know of what I speak, but also know we rarely bullshit anyone and are the most entertaining court jesters at every rally. Add in tomorrow’s full moon and Venus, the planet of love and grace, entering Sagittarius, and this weekend is arriving with a bang (and I do mean bang).
During this period, we can learn to express our rage effectively, how to hold counsel, and how to have a blast while everything goes up in flames. Drink a lot of water, go on head-clearing walks, breathe before uttering a word, dance your ya-yas out, and schedule a Ruby Intuition reading 
when the astral kitchen gets too hot. Because, rest assured, especially if you have Sagittarius, Capricorn, Gemini, or Virgo prominently in your natal chart, that kitchen is going to be on fire this month.
Bottom line: You can back up your electronics, but you can’t back up your heart. It’s best to stand on your head, let those apron strings fly, and accept this ride is going to be all nutty buddies and wacky pageantry. The good news? We’re all in this mermaid parade together. Sending love and somersaults.
when the astral kitchen gets too hot. Because, rest assured, especially if you have Sagittarius, Capricorn, Gemini, or Virgo prominently in your natal chart, that kitchen is going to be on fire this month.