It's a Three Topic Post: Oscar Schmoscar, Where the Glory Goes and a Book Recommendation

Past Lives Director Celine Song, Where's the Outrage?

A lot of people are upset that Greta Gerwig did not get an Oscar nomination as best director for Barbie and that Margot Robbie did not get a best actress nod for the same film.

Take a breath.

Let’s get this clear at the start: It’s a fucking awards show. This should be very low on the list of things a person gets upset about. Have you seen the state of the world? Ever hear any reference to Gaza? Are you aware that Donald Trump still walks the Earth? Last I heard global warming had not been eradicated. Roe v. Wade has been struck down by a racist, sexist Supreme Court. Famine and disease and totalitarian regimes still exist. The list of things to get riled about goes on and Oscar snubs is low on them. Sometimes we need perspective.

Another thing: why the selective outrage? People are upset at Gerwig not being nominated. How about Kelly Reichardt who directed Showing Up? She’s been a director for far longer than Gerwig and has never gotten a nomination. Or how about Celine Song who directed the highly-acclaimed Past Lives which was, like Barbie, nominated for best picture? Gerwig made millions of bucks on Barbie. Reichardt and Song not so much. Reichardt is a lesbian and Song an Asian-American. But people are just angry about the straight white multi-millionaire not having a chance to win a bobble? 

Here’s another thought: maybe voters didn’t think Gerwig’s direction was worthy of a top five spot and thus not good enough to warrant a nomination. I didn’t think it was. And I didn’t think Robbie’s performance, good as it was, merited a nomination. 

If you have a year in which no female is nominated for best director or no African-American is nominated for best actor, we are not necessarily seeing the consequence of institutionalized sexism and racism. If women and Blacks are repeatedly being ignored then you surely DO have evidence of those sins. As we have most certainly seen in the past. The academy is much better than it used to be though still not good enough at recognizing diverse voices. However that doesn't mean Barbie's failure to get more nominations is reflective of sexism in the industry. 

Still believe that Gerwig and Robbie were deserving? Welcome to the Oscars. Do you how many great films and great performances have been ignored by the Academy? Do you know how much mediocrity has been rewarded over the years? If you do, why are bothering worrying about what they did or did not nominate this year? It’s not worth it.

This is an organization that I believe is guiltier of incompetence than racism and sexism (and they have indeed been guilty of racism and sexism). Check these out for best picture winners: How Green Was My Valley, Gigi, Cavalcade, Around the World in 80 Days, Oliver!, Crash (vomit), The King’s Speech, Green Book, Slumdog Millionaire, The English Patient and whatever the hell won last year (CODA?). Contrast those with some of the pictures that DIDN'T win: Citizen Kane, Chinatown, Taxi Driver, The Searchers, The Third Man, Bonnie and Clyde, Raging Bull, Goodfellas, Reds, Double Indemnity, It’s A Wonderful Life, City Lights . And that’s not to mention foreign films that should have won but weren’t even nominated.

No, the Oscars are nothing to take seriously and nothing to get upset about regardless of what they do. 

If I were to get worked up about this year’s nominations I’d wonder how All of Us Strangers didn’t warrant a best picture nod and a raving mediocrity (that word comes up a lot when discussing the Oscars) like Maestro did. I’d also be livid that Finnish director Aki Kauriskmak’s Fallen Leaves didn’t get a best foreign language nomination or for that matter that Christian Petzold’s Afire was ignored in the same category. I’d also wonder at May December’s exclusion from the best film nominees. But I’ve learned not get into a lather at anything the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences does. They’re a bunch of idiots.

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Speaking of idiots….I heard another athlete after a big victory give “all the glory to God,” after his team's victory. Imagine not giving “all the glory” to God. Wouldn’t he be pissed? God must have a fragile ego. He needs to be “worshipped” at “worship services" on a day set aside for him. And don’t you dare use his name in vain, Goddamn it. Quick question: what if you gave most  of the glory to God, say eighty per cent, and kept a little for yourself? Would that be so bad? By the way, what does one do with the glory? For that matter, what does God do with it?

Maybe I should pray about it. This reminds me of when the Daily Show showed an ad from Glenn Beck’s TV show in which the conservative nutcase was shilling — I believe it was gold coins (solid investment) —  in an ad. He ended by suggesting to viewers that they “pray about it.” Yes, God is all about guiding people as they ponder their financial investments. What could be more important for the almighty? 

A former student of mine recently lost his son to cancer. The child died on Christmas Day which was one day before his sixth birthday. God was too busy getting “all the glory” and helping people figure out the best way to make bank to save the little boy. Priorities. 

(By the way, I've used the masculine pronoun for God because only a male would have such a fragile ego.)

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I’d like to plug a book that I didn’t write: Prequel An American Fight Against Fascism by Rachel Maddow. It’s the story of the sundry Nazi and other far right groups that proliferated in the U.S. in the 1930s and right up to Pearl Harbor. I knew a fair amount about this from the research I did for my second novel, Threat of Night but after reading Maddow’s book I know one helluva lot more. There were Nazi sympathizers scattered all over the country including within the halls of Congress. And anti-semitism was rampant (not that its eradicated today) and people weren't shy about expressing it. Perilous times and credit goes to a lot of heroes — well documented by Maddow — who exposed them. Not that it always did any good. Many who should have been locked up for sedition were given a pass. Sequel is an absolute delight because the author paints such vivid pictures of the characters and the times. She also employs a ready wit. I like her much better as a writer than I do as a TV commentator where I find her speaking style unappealing. Sequel is one of the best non fiction books I’ve read in many moons. The fact that there are parallels to today is a sad commentary on this country. 

My Revised 2023 Top Ten Films

The Zone of Interest, just added to my top ten

I made a mistake last month. Before I go further I'd like to acknowledge that this was not the first instance of me erring and I very much doubt it will be the last. Simply put I was premature in releasing my yearly top ten. Somehow I ignored the fact that there were two more much-anticipated releases that I still wanted to see. Well folks I've seen them over the course of the last two weeks and, as both pictures warranted a spot on my top ten, have revised the list accordingly. As it happens they take the numbers four and five spots. In my earlier iteration of this list I mentioned what a great year it's been in films. Having now seen All of Us Strangers and The Zone of Interest I can attest it is even greater than great, whatever the deuce that is. I vow to be more patient next year. 

1. Fallen Leaves (Kaurismäki)

2. Godland (Pálmason)

3. Oppenheimer (Nolan) 

4. All of Us Strangers (Haigh)

5. The Zone of Interest (Glazer) 

6. May December (Haynes)

7. Afire (Petzold)

8. Poor Things (Lanthimos)

9. Fair Play (Domont)

10. The Holdovers (Payne)

Honorable Mention: Showing Up (Reichardt), Asteroid City (Anderson), Bottoms (Seligman),  Past Lives (Song), Barbie (Gerwig), Anatomy of a Fall (Triet). 

Best Actor: Colman Domingo (Rustin) Runners Up — Alden Ehrenreich (Fair Play), Cillian Murphy (Oppenheimer) and Paul Giamatti (Holdovers).

Best Actress: Carey Mulligan (Maestro) Runners up - Lily Gladstone (Killers of the Flower Moon), Alma Pöysti (Fallen Leaves) and Natalie Portman (May December).

Best Supporting Actor: Robert Downey Jr. (Oppenheimer). Runners Up — Mark Ruffalo (Poor Things) and Ingvar Sigurdsson (Godland)

Best Supporting Actress: Da’Vine Joy Randolph (The Holdovers) Runners Up — Juliane Moore (May December) and Jodie Foster (Nyad) 

War, Trousseau Models, Celebrity Trials, Gabardine Suits and More in this Look Back to 80 Years Ago Today

Have you been wondering what was going on 80 years ago today? Neither have I. But let’s have a look anyway. I’ve taken a peak at a newspaper (the San Francisco Examiner) from January 18, 1943 (thank you newspapers.com). I’m here providing a few headlines from that day as well as ads and the like. I’m also providing my own commentary to help provide context. Enjoy.

New RAF Raid Rips Berlin, City Afire!

This was the top  front page headline. The RAF is Great Britain’s Royal Air Force, which by then was regularly pummeling Germany’s capital (I’m assuming that you recall that 1943 was in the middle of a spot of bother later called World War II). Another headline below — Hitler Planes Bomb London in Retaliation — shows that it was a two-way street in those awful days. Other war-related headlines of the day include stories about Germans losing ground in North Africa and the USSR. Also five Japanese ships were battered off New Britain, an island off Papua New Guinea. Another front page story was about Chile’s plans to break diplomatic ties with the Axis (Germany, Italy and Japan) aka the bad guys. That would leave Argentina as the only South American country maintaining cordial ties with the evil empires. Indeed many Nazi war criminals fled there in the immediate aftermath of the German surrender in May, 1945.

Yank Bombers Batter Jap Burma Convoy

This is one of three articles on page two that refers to “Japs” there are more on other pages. Today that term would be considered racist. One can argue it was merely used as shorthand but it came loaded with bigoted connotations perhaps best symbolized by the caricatures of the day with the bucktoothed, bespectacled Japanese soldier. This was at a time that Japanese-Americans, many born in the U.S. virtually all without criminal records, were being held in interment camps. Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley recently averred that the U.S. has never been a racist country. She’s an idiot.

Noted Trousseau Model a Bride

Readers were informed that Miss Virginia Parker “who for years has been considered Chicago’s best model of trousseau gowns” is heading west on her honeymoon. The lucky groom was one Malcolm Ross Byron. If you share my confusion about trousseaus, here’s what the good folks at Merriam-Webster have to say: "the clothes, household linen, and other belongings collected by a bride for her marriage." I googled Virginia Parker trousseau model and — this is weird — found a different woman by that name who on at least one occasion modeled a trousseau in 1961. Any Virginia Parkers out there who don’t model trousseaus?

Housewife Given Tips on Bread Slicing Art

The headline suggest that an individual woman was being given tips but the article is about official government advice on how to slice your homemade bread. Due to wartime rationing, people were encouraged to bake their own bread (and as the article points out, bake their own beans, not get them out of a can). Indeed sliced bread was no longer available. There were many such deprivations in the U.S. during the war. Relative to what many Europeans were dealing with these were minor inconveniences. By the way, housewives were told not to “bear down on your knife — use a gentle sawing motion.”

Seeks Entry of Mexican Women

There’s an attention-getting headline. What, pray tell could this be about? Well, folks it seems that Inter-American Forum of San Francisco was promoting legislation that would permit Mexican, Central and South American women to enter the U.S. temporarily for work as nursemaids and domestics. There was a “critical shortage” of women to fill these positions while “large numbers of women from Latin countries are available.” Imagine a time when Americans were welcoming our southern neighbors.

Ad for Avenue Royal Gaberdine Suits (“quality and price unchanged”) for $41.75 exclusively at Pawson & Co. located at Kearny and Sutter. The suits were advertised as “100% pure virgin wool” with “beautiful shades” of blue, brown and tan.

There were three letters-to-the-editor. One writer quoted a letter from his son who was in the military. He was bitching about people back home who had the gall to strike or even just complain for better pay or reasonable hours while soldiers are making huge sacrifices up to and including the supreme one. A second letter whined about the government — “those horse and buggy politicians in Washington” — encouraging people to drive less and use public transportation to save rubber. The writer claimed that there was plenty of rubber just sitting around all over the country and that on top of that Russia had plenty that they could send us (???). I could make neither heads nor tails of the other letter after several readings. It began: "we have no way of computing the material value of this country and its physical efforts." It gets more confusing from there but the Examiner printed it just the same. 

Errol Flynn Trial Jurors Face Grilling

The famous actor was facing two charges of statutory rape in a Los Angeles courtroom. The jurors were accused of gaining their seats on the jury through deception. It was alleged that one was “out to get” Flynn while the other wanted to see him acquitted the evidence be damned. The jurors would face serious questioning. It has been alleged that Flynn engaged in sex with underage females for decades. This was the only occasion in which he was brought to trial. Flynn was found innocent though his reputation was tarnished. The swashbuckling star also had a reputation of hard drinking, drug use and womanizing. The ultimate cad. Sadly this trial went on to be more of an attack on the two teenaged accusers than Flynn. Not unusual in those pre #metoo times.

Howard Hughes Will Premier ‘The Outlaw’ at Geary Theater

The Outlaw starred Jane Russell and her breasts. Now hold on, I’m being serious here. Hughes designed a bra specifically to emphasize Ms. Russell’s cleavage. Not surprisingly this was evident to all and the source of  controversy. The Outlaw was actually finished two years earlier but Hughes had a deuce of a time getting approved from the reprobates at the Hollywood Production Code office. Hughes reluctantly removed about thirty seconds worth of the film that were particularly revealing. Still the studio didn’t want to release the film. According to Wikipedia: “Facing the loss of millions of dollars, Hughes sought to create a public outcry for his film to be banned. Hughes had his managers call ministers, women's clubs and housewives, informing them about the purportedly lewd film soon to be released. This caused the public protests and calls to ban the film for which Hughes had hoped in order to establish a demand for the film's release.” But the film was finally released at the Geary in San Francisco as noted in the headline. There is much more to the story of The Outlaw and it’s checkered history including more cuts, bans, releases, huge crowds, ownership changes. Maybe worth a blog post of its own.

Tomato Juice Refreshing For Lunch

This piece was written by Prudence Penny — pseudonym alert. It suggested that in addition to a “hearty sandwich” and vegetables a good boxed lunch should include tomato juice. “It quenches thirst and is a pick up.” But there’s more: it “helps keep bones and teeth strong, puts a shine in your hair, a gleam in your eye, bounce and cheerfulness in your disposition.” But what did it do for your sex drive, Prudence?

From the Classified Ads. Under Household Help Wanted. “Woman, White, Part Time…….” 

“Girl, Refined, White to assist care of 1 1/2 yr. Child….”

“Housework, part time, white preferred.”

In 1943 it was okay to specify that you wanted to hire a white person. Though I saw no such ads on this day, I’ve also seen ads from those days specifying that the employer wanted to hire a “colored” maid or cook. Also women seeking domestic positions would often specify that they were white or "colored." Also there were one helluva lot more people — middle class, mind you — who had live-in maids.

A large ad for Camel Cigarettes featuring “Red” Hulse who’s identified as a “veteran navy fighter pilot and test pilot of the Navy’s new Curtiss Dive Bomber.” According to Red, “there’s just one cigarette for me — Camel — they suit my throat and taste to a T.” Camel advertised itself as “First in the Service.” I should think that it was also pretty high up there in causing lung cancer.

Groovy Commuting, Words No Longer Used, The Godfather and College Football All in One Far Out Post

Pacino and Brando in The Godfather

I’m commuting into San Francisco again. Monday, Wednesday and Friday I have an early morning class so have to leave the house at seven AM to catch the commuter bus. It’s a mellow ride that beats regular commute hours by half an hour (or so). I get into the City and have a twenty-minute (or so) walk to school. I’m done before noon and home around 12:45 (in the afternoon — of course). Tuesdays and Thursdays I have an afternoon class so don’t leave the house until 11:30 AM (or so). After work comes the tricky part of my commute week as I leave just as the evening commute is heating up: 4:30 (or so). This is only day three so I can’t say too much about the overall commute. There’ll be bad days and a horrific experience or two but for the most part it’ll be fairly groovy.

I like that, “fairly groovy.” The word groovy is of a time more so than most slang. It’s very Sixties. It was pretty much gone by the mid if not the early seventies. “Right on” is very Sixties too but has had a longer shelf life and still pops up now and again. “Far out” was also totally a Sixties saying that was already being mocked by the seventies. Ya know what else was around in the sixties? Referring to your boy/girl friend (usually one you lived with) as your “old man” or “old lady.” Never hear it anymore. I wasn’t crazy about it but think it preferable to today’s “partner” which sounds so antiseptic. Also in the Sixties there were “hassles” or someone was “hassling” you. So it was a verb and a noun. Often it was the police — or pigs — who were doing the hassling. People had roommate “hassles” back then. This could “put you through changes.” No one gets “put through changes” anymore. More’s the pity. It seems like “bummer” has stuck around. People still get “bummed out” but I don’t believe they have “bum trips” anymore. Also people don’t watch either the “boob tube” or “idiot box” anymore. I blame the advent of the computer age.

Here’s a question: how much Sixties slang did I use “back in the day”? Not much. I was, especially growing up in Berkeley, very much attuned to the times. I protested against the war in Vietnam, I listened to rock, I smoked “grass” aka “weed” or “bush” and grew my hair long but I generally eschewed slang. I suppose I’ve always been fairly erudite. 

Speaking of words….People never have quarrels anymore. The British have rows but Americans just have arguments. No one gets cross anymore either. They do get angry or pissed. Some folks get mad though the British generally use mad for crazy. Speaking of piss, in England they take the piss but we don’t do that here in the states. Also in England you can tell someone to piss off but in the states you are pissed off. I don’t remember the last time I heard someone described as bashful, everyone is shy. Is it my imagination or are we cutting down on our vocabulary?

Without segue I’ll mention that last weekend I watched The Godfather (1972) Coppola and The Godfather Part II (1974) Coppola. I’ve no idea how many times I’ve watched these two films but I’d say it’s somewhere in the neighborhood of a lot. With each viewing I become increasingly impressed with Al Pacino’s turn as Michael Corleone. The transformation in the first movie from the boyish soldier back from the war bringing his girlfriend home to a wedding to the cold-blooded Mafia Don is one of the great performances in cinema. In the sequel he remains true to the character with only barely controlled rage to indicate that warm blood courses through his veins. The Godfather films are as close to perfectly made as you can get. Tick off the boxes, directing, editing, costumes, set design, acting, the score. I recently saw a discussion in which most participants said they preferred the sequel. Not me. (Although it is really splitting hairs to say you prefer one to the other.) I like the first more because of the aforementioned Michael transition and also for the presence of Vito (Marlon Brando) and Sonny (James Caan). That said the scenes ins Part II with Robert DeNiro as the young Vito in Little Italy are some of the best ever committed to celluloid. 

College football died after Michigan defeated Washington for the national championship on Monday (Go Blue!). Next season will be a travesty of what the sport once was. My own beloved University of California Golden Bears along with their arch rivals, Stanfurd will be in the Atlantic Coast Conference. From Cal’s Memorial Stadium you can look over the west rim of the stadium and see the Pacific Coast. Nonetheless…..Meanwhile the Pacific Coast Conference will be no more. Traditional rivalries have been going by the way side for years now and more will be ended. In lieu of many geographically logical conferences there will be huge mega conferences. All this at the behest of TV networks and in the name of the almighty dollar. Lastly there will now be a 12 team post season tournament to determine the national champions as greed gives way to common sense. Like professional sports, college football will now offer the opportunity to second place finishers to claim titles. To quote a song: don't it always seem to go that you don’t know what you’ve got ‘till it’s gone.

Novel Number Three is Ready, Anyone Interested? I'm Hoping for a Yes!

The National Guard in Berkeley 1969

I finished novel number three on New Year’s Eve day. It was the third (and I swear) final time I’ve finished the book, which is called “The Blood of Love: A Love Story of Berkeley in the Sixties.” The first time I finished the book it was 195,997 words. I realized that no one was going to look at a book from a first-time author (my two self-published novels don’t count) that was that long. So I went about trimming it. I soon realized that trimming wasn’t enough. I was using a hedge clipper when an axe was required. I took out characters and chapters and sections that I dearly loved and had worked hard on. It hurt but was necessary. When done my second iteration was a still healthy 128,444 words. Agents and publishers don’t really want to look at anything over 100,000 words but I reasoned that there was nothing more to cut and I wasn’t going to compromise on my artistic vision (big talk). I started sending out query letters which of course included the word count. The silence was deafening — aside from a few “thanks but no thanks.” 

I got wise. More cutting. Boy did that hurt. Version number three was a tidy 97, 545, slightly less than half the original length. Blood of Love is lean, mean and hopefully will start getting a second glance from prospective agents. 

The truth was the book was too damn long the first time. I mean it was fine if I were preparing it as a mini-series but for a debut novel — or any other kind, for that matter — it was too much. Too many digressions and ancillary stories and superfluous characters and scenes that didn’t move the central story along.

I’m proud of what I’ve got now after three years of work (three years and one month to be precise). Wednesday I started contacting prospective agents again.

I hate trying to sell things, even if it is of my own creation. I hate the kind of work involved in trying to find just the right publisher or agent. I’m an artist not a salesman. But sometimes in life you have to grit your teeth and do the unpleasant but absolutely necessary. Otherwise how would toilets get cleaned?

In case your interested (and if you’ve read this far I reckon you are). Here’s the template for my query letter which is re-fashioned each time its sent out.

Dear, I am currently seeking representation for my novel, “The Blood of Love, a Love Story of Berkeley in the Sixties.” Given your interest in    I thought it might be a good fit for you.

The Blood of Love is the story of David Trentwood, from ages thirteen to twenty-one, and his great love, Cordelia McKenzie It is set against the backdrop of massive social change and political unrest in Berkeley during the 1960s. It is both literary and historical fiction.

It is a kaleidoscopic look at the Sixties, the demonstrations, the counter culture, sex, drugs and rock and roll. The Blood of Love invokes the spirit and passion of the time as characters explore new found freedoms and take to the streets to protest the Vietnam War. David is at once a witness and a participant. The story is told in his voice which is fresh, irreverent yet sophisticated. David’s story is told as it happened, unfolding for the reader as it did for him. As David says in the book’s preface: “This will be my story but it will also be about those times. Most of the eight years described took place within the crucible of Berkeley, California, then an epicenter of the student movement, a place where the cultural sea changes were always evident.”  

David and Cordelia meet as thirteen-year-olds and fall deeply in love. Tragically, they are separated the following summer. We jump ahead to the Summer of Love, though still apart the couple correspond regularly. David is no longer an innocent having lost his virginity and developed a fondness for getting high. The couple are finally re-united when Cordelia joins David as a student at the University of California in 1969 where he is already a veteran of the protest movement.

David and Cordelia seem the perfect couple but tensions arise as Cordelia fights a war with inner demons resulting from the deaths of her parents when she was young. Also the couple clash over tactics as David extolls non-violence while Cordelia embraces the more extreme Weather Underground. We also meet their great friend and mentor, Steven, who is flamboyant, brilliant, and tragic. 

Having waited for decades to read such a book, I finally decided to write it myself. I realized that I was uniquely qualified having grown up in the Berkeley in the Sixties and having read copiously about the times. I relied on both personal memories and research to make Blood of Love as true to its time as possible.

I believe this story will appeal to a wide variety of readers, particularly those across different generations with an interest in the Sixties. Its love story is timeless and the political issues raised will resonate with readers of today.

I am a semi-retired teacher who has self-published two novels, Lesson Plan, A Novel and Threat of Night (Yon Uhka).

The Blood of Love is complete at 97, 546 words. The manuscript is available, in part or in full, upon request. Thank you for your time and consideration.

Sincerely,

Richard Hourula

Not bad, eh? Wouldn’t you want to read the book?

All I can do now is research agents and fashion my letters to them based on their specific desires and publishing history. I will be persistent. I will find an agent. They will help me find a publisher. My novel will be published. It’s the only attitude I can have.

My First Post of 2024 Deals With Words that "Hit Different" are "Cool" or Don't Make Sense or are Out of Use

Florence Pugh -- because it's her birthday

People talk about how such and such “hits different” but you never hear about anything that “hits the same.” Why is that? I want an answer to this and other questions in 2024. That’s a weird one, twenty twenty-four. My goodness 2014 sounds so futuristic and that was ten frickin’ years ago. For that matter 2004 sounds like science fiction and that was 20 years ago. Twenty. People turning 21 this year were born in 2003. That’s ridiculous. I’m still getting used to the early 1990s. My god that’s ancient history. Virtually no one was on the internet in the early nineties. People weren’t walking around staring at their phones. In fact anyone staring at a phone in 1994 would have been certifiable. (Does anyone say certifiable anymore? I mean, I just did but does anyone else?)

People don’t get “bent out of shape” anymore. I’m glad. I found it disconcerting to see people bent over in such a fashion that they simultaneously were out of shape.

I almost started the preceding sentence as follows: “Personally, I found it…” I’m a good enough editor to have caught that. Most people don’t. You often see or hear people write or say, “personally I…” What’s the point of the “personally”? It serves no purpose. It’s like announcements on public transportation that tell you to check for your “personal belongings.” In other words, the heck with your impersonal belongings. Screw anything you’ve brought from work that isn’t yours, just look for that personal stuff. 

Just. Talk about overused words. Example: “I just want to say.” How about “I want to say”?  Another example: “I’ll just have coffee.” It’s okay to say: “I’ll have coffee.” The added just makes it sound like you’re apologizing for only having coffee. Just say what you mean. Er, say what you mean. 

In sports you often hear that “there’s no love lost” between two opponents.” Fair enough. But why do we never hear that there is indeed love lost? And what the hell does it mean? 

By the way I can do without being told someone is “a class act.” Or even worse that someone is “good people.” A “good person” would be acceptable.

This part of the year is less stressful in greeting acquaintances. You don’t have to worry about whether they celebrate Christmas, Hanukah, Kwanzaa or the Winter Solstice. You can abandon the wishy washy Happy Holidays and say: Happy New Year. No one is offended by being wished a happy new year. Are they? Goodness maybe that’s off limits for some people like those who use other calendars like the Bengali, the Discordian, Babylonian or the Ethiopian. Gadzooks!

Today if you’re say you’re sore it’s likely that there’s an area of the body that hurts a bit, maybe the result of vigorous exercise or doing some unexpected heavy lifting. But in days of yore being sore could mean you were angry about something. You hear it in old movies and even some TV shows of the past. It had pretty much faded away by the time I was a kid. But I was asked once if I was sore (as in angry) and this was when I was twenty-two years old. The person who posed the question must have been a time traveler from the forties (they had time machines then that were discontinued and we somehow don’t know about?). I didn’t know him well at all and strongly suspect I never saw him again. As it turns out I wasn’t “sore.”

Also no longer in use is “shove off.” Similarly people rarely “take off.” I don’t think that people “split” much anymore. We just to “leave” or “go.” 

Do parents or tell kids to “pipe down” anymore? Probably not. They will say, “listen up.” This raises a question: what the heck is the word "up" doing? Can’t you just ask someone to “listen”? I would think so. 

Today in sports players are “coached up.” Don’t get that one either. When I played we were simply “coached.”

This has been a blast — hold on, does anyone describe fun experiences as being “a blast” anymore? Maybe not. I know that "keen" is gone. (Although in England you can be "keen" on something -- but that's different). Keen ended around the time I started high school along with “boss.” Cool has persisted. It’s nearly been 100 years now that it has been used as a slang term for something very good or different in a positive way. That’s pretty cool.