You might have heard that the Orange Fascist repeatedly announced there would be a “bloodbath” and a “civil war” if he loses the upcoming presidential election, and that—in 1933 fashion—you wouldn’t have to vote ever again if he wins. Yes, he said that before—but this time, people noticed. And yes, quiet parts are a thing of the past—everything is said out loud now. However, for the first time, he’s meeting vigorous counter pressure on a daily basis, and the reason is Kamala. (I call her by her first name now because that’s how she explicitly wants to be addressed, and that’s how she brands herself for her campaign. Others did that too, notably “Bernie” and “Hillary.”) Now, originally, I was against Biden’s withdrawal for various reasons, prominently among them the traditional ineptitude of the Democratic Party apparatus. Also, when Biden won the primaries back in 2020 against Harris and Warren, I was thoroughly dispirited, but the Biden administration has turned out to be way more progressive than I, or anyone, could or would have predicted. Thus, the past few weeks were a real nail-biter, and the way in which the terrible New York Times in particular and the equally terrible Washington Post ran relentlessly dishonest smear campaigns on Biden’s age against the backdrop of actual looming fascism was beyond infuriating. (Not that the German news media around here handled it better.) But then, everything took a surprising turn. Not only did the Democratic Party not bungle the transition but pulled it off brilliantly; in the primaries, also, I had rooted for Team Harris in the first place. And, boy, does she kick ass from the get-go! For the moment, I gotta say, I’m comprehensively happy about how this passing of the baton has turned out.

As I was extremely busy after my return from Tōkyō earlier this month, there are no new albums on Flickr, only my daily vintage travel squaries on Pixelfed. “Extremely busy,” however, included a lot of entertainment! A dedicated movie weekend with friends (students and alumni) in Essen, and the week after a monumental weekend garden party around a Bobby Car race organized by a group of friends in Stuttgart, where I put a lot of energy in keeping the bar in good shape and well-stocked for three days. Then, I attended the CGL Graduation Ceremony 2024 and cheered on freshly baked BAs and MAs dear to me who graduated this year; had delightful chats with colleagues equally dear to me; and played games at the subsequent Open Lab term project fair. That was so much fun! Also, I watched Francis Ford Coppola’s 1979/2019 Apocalypse Now: Final Cut, remastered for 4K laser projector and Dolby Surround (holy shit! in every respect), and Lee Isaac Chung’s 2024 Twisters (thoroughly entertaining with solid performances, a competent if often predictable screenplay, and enough of Oklahoma’s lovely landscape and its equally lovely mix of Midwestern and Southern speech to hold me spellbound). Finally, I watched the 6 hours+ (intermissions included, review pending) Tristan and Isolde live broadcast from Bayreuth at the Atelier movie theater in Düsseldorf. An exhausting but awesome experience!

As for the Sunday Funnies, this time I have a little story of my own to tell!

Enjoy!
J.