SummerCamp3 at some empty building disturbingly close to where I work. A Thanksgiving Eve party with a purpose: to send 100 girls from Bay View/Hunter's Point to camp next summer. I took a four hour nap beforehand with the intention of staying up all night, but my plan backfired because I was never quite able to shake the nap grog. Thank Christ Galen was spinning when I got there, so I got my dancing in early and then wandered around in a stupor for another hour or two. Every now and then I crossed paths with globules of my friends as well as very inebriated individuals who weren't my friends who wanted to paw at me in the line to the port-a-potties. It was the type of party where I was driving home afterward and I noticed that my hand was sticky and I instantly tried not to wonder why my hand was sticky.

Singin' in the Rain at the Castro. What a delightful way to spend an evening after consuming a cubic yard of food on Thanksgiving. Brent and Heather agreed. In this new print every frame was saturated with glorious color, and the dance sequences had me grinning from ear to ear through the haze of tryptophan. Gene Kelly and Debbie Reynolds are great, but it's Donald O'Connor who steals the show with his gymnastics during "Make 'Em Laugh." Look for a sassy Rita Moreno in a small role, and try not to get bored with the Broadway sequence, otherwise known as the excuse for Cyd Charisse to undulate gracefully around Kelly for a few moments.

The Castle of Cagliostro. Classic anime from Hayao Miyazaki, though it will bring to mind Cowboy Bebop rather than Totoro. There's our hero the thief, his abusive sidekick, a police chief, a beautiful princess, an evil count, and an ancient castle. Pretty damn great, and even downright silly in places.

Sanjuro. Once again, Toshiro Mifune's samurai proves himself smarter and better with a sword than a dozen simple villagers. I love this shit.

The Coup at Slim's. Brent and I couldn't help but notice that it was a mostly white crowd that turned out to see Boots Riley and Pam tha Funkstress Friday night; I wonder if the demographics would have been different if they played in Oakland. No matter, they still threw down an awe-inspiring show with a full live band accompanying everything from ass-shakers to biting polical commentary to the wonderful "Wear Clean Draws." Me, I just don't think I could ever get tired of watching Pam scratch.

Wayne Thiebaud at the Paul Thiebaud Gallery. I shepherded my family to North Beach to see the elder Thiebaud's fantastic paintings at his son's gallery. There were six huge riverscapes, each one absorbing in its use of color and perspective. Thiebaud is very good at placing unexpected swaths of paint on the canvas and thus encouraging my brain to slowly try to put details in place while my eye is merely dazzled. These recent "landscapes" are directly connected to his earlier rows of cakes and pies as well as his figurative work and his cityscapes in how he lays the paint on the canvas, with thick strokes and delicate details cohabiting delectably. "Brown River" was my favorite.

Castro Theatre
The Coup
Paul Thiebaud Gallery