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Fifth Anniversary

Cindy Bruchman

Woah! WordPress notified me that today my blog is five years old. Thank you, friends, for liking and commenting over the years. You make me happy, and I appreciate the time you’ve taken to comment and share your thoughts. This marker made me wonder–what was my first post on November 25, 2012?

Illinois Slag Pile

Hail to the Litvak, the Pole, and the Italian.

I started looking through the gallery of posts, almost 500, varying from film to photography and other cultural topics like art, books, and music and thought I’d share several that meant something to me for varying reasons.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

1. I spent many seasons hiking around this Virginia lake before moving to Arizona.

Hiking Around Lake Laura. Virginia

 

Vivien Leigh
Cate Blanchett

2. I enjoyed connecting a pair of films and placing them side by side for analysis. I fell away from doing that; it was an activity that attracted traffic and encouraged fun conversations.

Blue Jasmine vs. A Streetcar Named Desire

3. I enjoy sharing my favorite music. The musicianship from these three favorites never grows old. Here’s a preview — start at 3:00 for the Tony Banks solo.

YES, RUSH, GENESIS

4. When I started the Lucky 13 Film Club 3 years ago–yes, three–this entry wins for the most thought-provoking conversation with 123 comments.

L13FC: The Revenant

5. I spent time creating this pairing between the film and the book with hopes it would be intellectually interesting to those who appreciate history.

In the Heart of the Sea

6. I was in the right place at the right time when the desert cacti exploded into magnificence.

Five Shots: Cacti Blooming

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7. Greece. It’s hard to take a bad picture in a beautiful place.

Rhodes

8. Creative Writing–The research behind the writing was fun to post.

Saloons and Theaters in Jerome, Arizona

Two dogs leaped out of a canoe and flipped the boat, and the lady went flying. We thought that funny.

9. “In My Opinion” posts are personal. I’d like my children and grandchildren to get to know me through these posts one day.

Time Passes

 

Looking forward to 2018. Thanks, everyone! 

Published by Cindy Bruchman

AZ educator, writer, traveler, movie buff

75 thoughts on “Fifth Anniversary”

    1. Fraggle, since I’m over here in the Southwest, your posts with water and greenery make my day. I get a kick out of your adventures and enjoy your blog a lot. I’m glad I “found” you!

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  8. Like you, I started blogging in 2012, in the late summer.
    Sine we met online, (I don’t recall where or when, like the song…) I have treasured our exchanges, your comments on my posts, our collaboration on the L13FC, and seeing your photos of a country I have never visited. When you take you blogging breaks, I genuinely miss your presence, and anticipate your return. That says it all, really.
    Best wishes as always, Pete. x

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    1. That’s comforting. Strange I’ve been conversing with you for years and we’ve never met! Virtual friendships. What an interesting part of our culture. WordPress began in 2003.
      Here’s to us for the next decade. Cheers, GP.

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  12. Yes, always interesting to look back on these occasions for posts that meant a lot, resonated in some way, or inspired others. I like to mix my posts up, which can sometimes lead to confusion or lack of response, but I sling to the original idea for starting one: to share things of interest to me. Music, movies, travels, books, food and yes, cult cinema in all of its forms…thanks for sharing so much of your life and passion with us!

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    1. Thanks for the good wishes, John! I have enjoyed getting to know your quirky posts and appreciate your regular commenting. My blog is like yours, posting what interests me with hopes others will share their thoughts with me. Cheers!

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  16. Time sure flies. I’ve enjoyed your site over the last few years, especially your beautiful photographs of Arizona and your Lucky 13 posts, although I do miss Bill White’s contributions. Here’s to 2018!

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    1. I carried on chatting to Bill via email for quite a while, and he sent me links to his short stories. It’s a long time since I heard from him, and you have reminded me to try to get back in touch.

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          1. I just heard from him. Ask and you shall recieve, ha! He is well and is focusing his energy on music. He is out of the blogosphere, he says, but I hope he returns to chime in on a future post. I was happy to hear from him.

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    1. I’ve always valued your intellect and dark comedic style. Thanks for commenting! Let’s do another L13FC.
      I hear DeNiro’s recent portrayal in Wizard of Lies was compelling!

      And Dustin Hoffman did a superb job in Meyerwitz Stories. We could call it The Kings’ Comeback. Just a thought and a shameless way to work with you again. 😉

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      1. My intellect and dark comedic style? Why, thank you, Cindy. That’s quite the compliment. 🙂

        I haven’t seen Wizard of Lies yet but, needless to say, it’s in my list to get to.

        I’d be happy to get involved in another L13 and something with Bob always appeals to me. That said, I’d create a little distance from Dustin at the moment due to the recent allegation against him post Weinstein-gate. The allegation wasn’t as bad as others, of course, but it still disappointed me when I heard it. I’ve always loved Hoffman.

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        1. Men have been behaving badly for centuries. I’m not shocked. However, I’m not condoning it and glad things are changing. Make me think of Polanski debate–I love him as a director even though he’s morally deplorable.
          Anyway, I just watched Wizard of Lies last night–awesome! What surprised me was how perfect Michelle Pfeiffer was.

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          1. Yeah, Polanski and Woody Allen always spring to mind. Two great directors but I struggle to watch their films now.

            Wizard of Lies holds up then? Good stuff. I’ll get on that as soon as I can. I’ll also have a wee think of a possible DeNiro/L13 project. 🙂

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  20. Well this was a blast from the past. How the heck did you get so many comments about The Revenant?! Oh that reminds me, I really should get around to watching that film. I enjoyed looking back at some familiar and some unfamiliar posts Cindy. Hope you are well. Regards Lloyd.

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    1. Thanks for taking the time to explore the posts and comment. Are you kidding about The Revenant? You were half of them ;). I’ve always appreciated your heartfelt enthusiasm about the movies and your willingness to share your thoughts. Cheers, friend.

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  21. Congratulations on your anniversary. I love the idea of personal blogs being a way for people to get to know us when we are gone. I think that is why I keep going. It’s like evidence that I existed and thought and felt and had opinions and ideas.

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  24. HAAAAPPY (belated) ANNIVERSARY! I remember around the time you first started (said in my best crusty old man voice). No really, congrats Cindy. It has been such a joy reading and sharing thoughts with you! Here’s to five more!

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