Persiflage returns to bestow upon you culture and taste. And to smack any possessing the gall to disagree with her pronouncements.
Persiflage is...
Reading: A.S. Byatt's The Virgin in the Garden. Reading Byatt is akin to having a conversation with Persiflage's mother. Neither has quite mastered the intricacies of flipping the "off" switch to the monologue. Both A.S. and Persiflage's Mom often offer interesting and provocative contributions, yet the recipient quickly becomes wary of the abstruse and seemingly incessant verbal flux. The Virgin in the Garden left Persiflage irritated and weary. Also stiff and tense, since whilst reading she unconsciously adopted the defensive tactic most frequently employed during maternal interactions: holding as still as possible in the hopes that, by feigning death, her conversational partner would at last recognize the futility in continued onslaught.
Listening: To all Wolf Parade, all the time. Apologies to the Queen Mary is a record collection must-have. "Apologies" is an album you feel, an album of silken raggedness with insightful lyrics and complex instrumental meshings and arrangements. Buy it. Now.
Attending: A performance of Handel's Messiah, the first concert Persiflage has attended in several years where she ran no risk of returning home with beer-drenched socks. This, in itself, left her feeling swank and self-congratulatory in the eclecticism of her taste. Persiflage, who was raised by Sesame Street to expect constant sound-bite entertainment, was impressed that the performance managed to command her attention for three full hours. The obvious highlight of the afternoon was the Hallelujah Chorus, but the final Air, performed by the soprano and first violinist, was full, haunting, dramatic, and memorable.
Watching: Miranda July's performance-piece-cum-film, Me and You and Everyone We Know, which reminded Persiflage of a digital-age Free To Be You and Me. July's film, carrying a heavy-handed message on the prevalence of disconnection in contemporary society, is rife with those prickly, awkward, embarrassed-for-the-character moments which made Persiflage desperately yen for a breath of fresh air. This effect Persiflage did not appreciate, since she inhabits a land of frozen arctic tundra and did not particularly wish to venture out of doors. This film had its moments, particularly those when the viewer was allowed to contemplate the gorgeous cinematography, but Persiflage found it ultimately trite and unsatisfying, with cartoonish characters and a halting plot.
Reading: W. G. Sebald's Austerlitz, a delicate and moderate gift to Persiflage's brain after the excesses of Byatt. Sebald's last work winds and twists as the reader follows the digressive conversation between the two main characters, but Sebald was a master of his craft and never allows the reader's interest to wane. Sebald's scholastic digressions are in stark contrast to Byatt's, as they always augment, however subtly, the line of plot and story. Austerlitz is a dark and gorgeous contemplation of memory and history, with sparse tinges of hope which are all the more exquisite in their subtlety.
Persiflage's Game of the Week: The Indianapolis Colts continue their pursuit of a rare undefeated regular season when they take on the 8-5 San Diego Chargers, perhaps the best mediocre team in football. The Chargers can't afford another loss as they attempt to stake their claim on an AFC wildcard berth, but the Colts are chasing history, and Persiflage feels that the hackneyed phrase, "team of destiny" may not be a misnomer in this instance.
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