Mud Season is Here

Leap Day and then the first day of meteorological spring passed without too much trouble, and in fact things warmed up some during the day on March 1, with large puddles then refreezing for dramatic effect by night. Today, Texas Independence Day, was a lot warmer, maybe 50° F, and even now it's well above freezing. Large patches of ground will be visible tomorrow, and there might be rain. Mud season is here.

Letters from Iwo Jima came in the mail on the heels of Flags of Our Fathers, so we watched that on Saturday. Structurally it was a better movie, and interesting for portraying the other side of the battle. There were some stretchers, though, such as having Baron Nishi read a letter -- out loud and in Japanese for his men to hear, one that he found on an American who was captured but then died of his wounds -- a letter that happened to be from the boy's mother. Demonstrating to his men that even Americans had mothers who cared for them. It was a Hollywood moment.

After those two movies, I needed something lighter, and chanced on a showing of Airplane! on TV this afternoon. Just the thing. I saw it when it was new, in a movie theater -- I was 19 -- and again on tape 15 years ago or so. It holds remarkably well as a one-gag-after-another movie, or for any movie made in 1980 that matter. By "holding up," that is, it still made me laugh, and Lilly got a kick out of it too, though of course a good number of the jokes were beyond her.

But not running ones like this:

Rumack: (To Elaine) You'd better tell the captain we've got to land as soon as possible, we've got to get them to the hospital...

Elaine: A hospital -- what is it?

Rumack: It's a big building with patients, but that's not important right now. Tell the captain I must speak to him.