Opening the Box

Saturday 02/18/2006 3:04 AM

A quick call to Candy at work confirmed the spot in the yard where she thought it was best for the lotus. I dragged everything out to the little bare patch of ground and went to work.

I was dying to see the tuber. The lotus tuber is extremely delicate and must be packed carefully to make sure it survives the trip from North Carolina.

After slicing the package open with a razor blade, I opened up the cardboard flaps like a boring, box-shaped flower with only four petals spreading to reveal the heart of its blossom.

Crumpled newspaper. Folded paper (my receipt and some flyers for other garden stuff). So far so good.

I pulled out the stuff on top and there was a clear plastic garbage bag bulging with finely shredded paper.

The tuber awaits. But did it survive the trip?

Tune in next time, loyal friends and fans.

Saw Munich. Not great. Not recommended.

Saw The New World. Not great. Not recommended.

Saw David Chappelle on Inside the Actor's Studio. INCREDIBLE. I try very hard to keep this blog family friendly, but we are all adults (or at least aspire to be), so I do occasionally discuss some mature themes or reference adult material (no not that kind of adult material — get your mind out of the gutter). There is a lot of profanity in this program, but I gotta tell ya... James Lipton's interview with David Chappelle is amazing on so many different levels it made my head spin.

First of all, Chappelle is a riot — naturally. But more than that, he is unpretentiously human. If you are familiar with Lipton's schtick, you will be amazed at what he does during this interview. Would you believe they have a dance off? Would you believe Lipton shakes down Chappelle for money with explicit profanity? Would you believe Lipton makes graphic reference to bodily fluids?

Like Chappelle says at some point, where he is sitting there stunned, "I can't believe I'm sitting here listening to James Lipton say these things." Or something like that.

And Chappelle is in the zone and, no, I don't mean comedically. He has been in the belly of the beast and has returned remarkably unscarred. His efforts to remain connected to all that is true and honest and loyal in his life in the face of what he's gone through is truly admirable.

Don't get me wrong though. He is no mighty Zen master. He is still struggling to figure things out. It's not that he has all the answers, but he has a much better grasp on what the questions are than most of us.

All through the interview, he seemed to be struggling to communicate to the audience what was inside his head, and I found myself slightly frustrated from time to time as he seemed to be teasing us with revelation (when in fact he was struggling just as much to say what we wanted to hear). I won't ruin the punchline for you, but suffice it to say the editors found the perfect way to conclude the two hour interview. It doesn't wrap everything in a pretty bow, but it was enough to make me smile and feel a chill run down my spine as his final words sunk in.

Highly recommended.

File Under: Lotus Flower; Movies; Television
Music: Cliff Martinez "Solaris Soundtrack"

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