11 14 pm pst   [ out and about ]

I've just returned from a screening of Quills with Karina. The writer and Geoffery Rush came to speak afterwards. When I got home I called Matthew to let him know I didn't think he would like it.

The film is incredibly funny -- for the first three quarters. Geoffery Rush delivers his sexually laden lines so deliciously that you want to lick them off his lips. I was really floored. Of course, the Marquis de Sade is a fascinating character. [I was amused to notice the standard disclaimer at the end of the film that it was not intended to resemble any real people, living or dead. Of course the Marquis de Sade was meant to resemble the Marquis de Sade. Those Hollywood types!]

Unfortunately, the film appears to end a half-dozen times, and thus gives one the feeling that it dragged on and on. Plus, I am really not a fan of the brutalization of women. There's just too much of it in real life for me to want to watch even a minute of it fictionalized.

After karina and I had our moments of analysis, I made the mistake of trying to drive home on Sunset Strip on a Friday night. I was considering driving to a store to get some sake, but decided I would satiate myself with hot chocolate and last night's libations.

We went to the swanky Sushi Roku because it was the only place we knew would be open so late. We were meeting after Charles' band practice, which has become a bit of a ritual for us. On our way out the door, I grabbed my digital camera. When we were seated in the restaurant, I enjoyed unwinding. The mood was set with the single candle placed before us. I needed a little simplicity just then.

When I finally brought out my camera, I fell into a fit of giggles because I took a picture of Charles taking a picture of me. I knew the flash might bother the other customers, but I thought it was much less intrusive than their cell phones, which kept ringing.

I had left home with a splitting head ache and foul mood (probably just from being very tired), but both conditions quickly melted away. Our service was lousy, but the conversation was excellent.

I told Charles the he'd like the pictures I took because they were all framed off-center, but he protested anyway. I can't wait to see how his came out.

We were supposed to just be going out for drinks, but we just can't go to a Japanese restaurant without getting edamame and a few other goodies.

I really needed the excursion. It was delightful.

I didn't stop taking pictures when we left the restaurant, nor when we got in the car.

I need to learn how to drive a stick. I've added that to my to do list. To be really honest, I've always considered my diary to be a bit of a disappointment in some regards. I don't feel that my writing has improved as I had hoped it would and my pictures of myself never look like me. But recently I have had the good fortune to look at some of my pages and actually admire the diction and design. This is a new and rare feeling for me, and one which I worked hard to express to Charles last night. He said I had just needed some time to get perspective. It's so nice to be able to discuss my diary a fellow chronicler.