Parched (2015)

IMDB

Parched (2015): Four women in rural India deal with a patriarchal culture and asshole men. Strong female characters. Bollywood feminism. B-

POTD: "Got Drunk, Fell Down"

From 2016 09 05 Halifax

Today's photo-of-the-day is from the waterfront boardwalk at Halifax harbor. The three lamp posts are part of an art installation by Chris Hanson and Hendrika Sonnenberg.

POTD: Peggy's Point Light

From 2016 09 05 Halifax

Today's photo-of-the-day is of the Peggy's Cove Lighthouse in Nova Scotia. At least one tour guide goes so far as to say it's the most photographed building in Canada. Wikipedia will only say that it's "one of the most-photographed structures in Atlantic Canada." Russ Rowlett of the University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill says: "This is a genuine star: one of the world's most visited and most photographed lighthouses." I'll accept that.

P.S. The tourist photo-bombing the lighthouse is the most photographed tourist in all our travels. Definitely. And picturesque herself.

Why She Lost

There's blame enough to go around. But you have to start with the candidate herself. Hillary Clinton was a historically unpopular candidate. Democrats lulled themselves with a comparison to the even more unpopular Donald Trump. They gambled that her unpopularity wouldn't matter. It did.

POTD: Peggy's Cove

From 2016 09 05 Halifax

Today's photo-of-the-day was taken in Peggy's Cove, Nova Scotia, a picturesque little fishing village. That description doesn't do the place justice. Not even the tour buses and crowds can take the charm away from this place. To give an idea of how popular this village is, it's even been recreated halfway around the world at a resort in Thailand. I know...WTF?

Sky Ladder (2016)

IMDB

Sky Ladder (2016): The fireworks art of Cai Guo-Qiang. Remember 2008 Beijing Olympics fireworks? Same guy. Dedication and results. B-

Rod Dreher, Troll

Tomorrow is election day. So, let's give a little space to national politics. Or rather, to Rod Dreher's view of the election campaign. Or rather, to Dreher's postscript to his analysis. It earns him today's award for unintended irony.

OTBR: A Swamp in Estonia

Latitude: N 59° 06.336
Longitude: E 024° 45.342

A child on a road trip with his family asks, "Where are we?" and the father answers, "Let's check the map. We're off the blue roads [the Interstate Highways marked in blue on the road atlas]. We're off the red roads [the US and state highways]. We're off the black roads [the county highways]. I think we're off the map altogether." It was always my dream to be off the map altogether.

After the jump, a few of the random places (and I mean random literally) that I visited vicariously last month that are "off the blue roads".

POTD: Died April 15, 1912

From 2016 09 05 Halifax

Today's photo-of-the-day is from Fairview Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia, where 121 victims of the Titanic sinking are buried. It's eerie to see rows of tombstones all etched with the identical death date: April 15, 1912.

Bonus photo after the jump.

45 Years (2015)

IMDB

45 Years (2015): Long-dead girlfriend's body interferes with a couple's 45-year anniversary. Quiet, touching movie. Two strong leads. B-