Dean and I saw Milk last night at Columbia City Cinema. Sean Penn was pitch perfect in the role. He portrays Harvey Milk not as merely a martyr/saint, but as a three-dimensional character with flaws like any of us (married to his work, a bit of a megalomaniac). I also loved the blending-in of actual archival footage. Very well done. And poor Josh Brolin: first he plays the idiot George W Bush, and now he has to play the goat Dan White. He deserves hazard pay.

It was heartening to see that a largely straight and multi-ethnic and multi-generational audience was drawn to see the movie (rather than just a bunch of old queens like us). Really: it was a mix of everybody from the neighborhood, including kids and grandparents. I think the story of Milk's fight against injustice and prejudice is universal now, and not just a gay story.

The mural above is from the apartment above Castro Camera in SF where Milk lived, and activists would meet. Apparently it is a kind of gay shrine/museum now. I love the quote that is shooting out from the gun: zoom in to read it.

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This afternoon a large gray hawk landed on the birch tree right outside our kitchen window. Dean and I watched it for several minutes before it fanned open its beautiful wings and wheeled away. It was amazing: like a visitation.

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We went to the Seattle Home show this weekend. Had a great chair massage, scouted out more bathroom tile, and looked at some solar panel companies. We may actually do it: install an array on our roof (the cost is $15-20K, and seems to be going down each year), especially if we can actually get paid by the power company for the excess we'll be producing.

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Donald Hall is reading for Seattle Arts and Lectures this coming week. Unfortunately I have to be working late that night. I would like to hear him.

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