out of the blue

Joan Baez was interviewed for Martin Scorsese's Bob Dylan documentary. She also played Dylan's song "Love Is Just a Four-Letter Word".

The best parts are at 0:59 and 2:41, when Baez lapses into a playful Dylan impression. That touch of amusement that surfaces here and there. And her expression at the end, the raised eyebrows and grin. It's lovely.

Here's the surrounding commentary, composed of present-day interviews with Dylan and Baez, and old clips from a 1967 documentary by D. A. Pennebaker called "Don't Look Back":

Dylan: You know, it was probably a stupid thing to do, not letting her play, but you can't be wise and in love at the same time, so I hoped she'd see the light sooner or later on that.

Baez: Bob is one of the most complex human beings I've ever met. I think at first I really, "try to figure this guy out". Phh, I gave it up, so I don't know. I don't know what he thought about. I only know what he gave us.

[interlude: "Percy's Song", Baez on guitar and Dylan on the typewriter]

Baez: The poetry, it tumbles out. And I've watched him write on a typewriter or writing — it's done.

[documentary clip]

1967 Dylan: I never finished that song, did I, huh? No, I never finished it.

1967 Baez: Oh, God…. You finished it about eight different ways.

[/documentary clip]

Baez: I stole four-letter word. I took that and disappeared with it. And sang it, and I think the next Bob knew about it he heard it on the radio. I was with him when he heard it on the radio and he was listening, he said, "That's a great song…. That's a great song." He didn't remember he had written it. I said, "You wrote it, you dope."

It's kinda difficult to render relaxed, conversational speech into text. I stayed pretty close to a literal transcription, so I hope it's understandable. This way you get the cadence of their speech patterns and everything.

I just finished watching Martin Scorsese's Dylan documentary, No Direction Home. It would suck immensely to be that popular. I don't know how someone can survive being turned inside out like that, but Dylan seems to have done relatively well.

I absolutely love Dylan. His acoustic, electric, his ragged voice and Guthrie twang. It wasn't a honey voice, but it was as sincere as you could hope.

I have a hard time picking favorite songs. I have to say that my favorite Dylan (at the moment) is "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue", "Desolation Row", and "Tangled Up in Blue". The organ in "Like a Rolling Stone" is amazing, too.

Random Guy: Mr. Dylan, I know you dislike labels and probably rightly so, but for those of us who are well over thirty, could you label yourself and perhaps tell us what your role is?

Dylan: Well, uh, I sorta label myself as well under thirty. And my role is to, you know, to just stay here as long as I can.

Okay, I appreciate the photography. The format is brilliant. The writing is pretty good. But in general, the content of A Softer World just hits me as over-the-top emo. Apologies to those people to whom it speaks and is meaningful — nothing wrong with that — I just can't palate it most of the time.

That said, there are a few that are brilliant. I just went back through the archives and found them:

• 226 - escape
• 175 - bank robber
• 194 - homeland security
• 026 - dreamer

But it's telling that the best one is actually from xkcd: 144 - robot kill!

Charles Stross asks: What would you do for the cost of the Iraq war? Colonize Mars? Meet Kyoto single-handed?

The classic economic reminder. That number, 500 – 6000 billion dollars (depending on how you count it and how conservative you are), isn't the point. It's the opportunities we've lost.

It's a windy, drizzle-rainy day. My window is spattered with raindrops. The trees shake the water briskly from their leaves, but they can't get dry. If I were outside, I would be wetter than the trees; I'm more absorbent.

Okay, Neil Gaiman has posted a brilliant video about Hobos, by John Hodgman. I'm pretty convinced that PBS didn't run it (I can't find it in the episode lists on Wikipedia/IMDB). Decide for yourself:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1JIa5r5nkE

I decided not to go to Paris. It would be more hectic than it's worth (to me, right now). The Norfolk hike would be more intimate. I wouldn't otherwise get to the seaside, or explore the Broads much. That would be rather a shame, living in Norwich. I'll get plenty of exciting continental travel fever when my family comes to visit. Thanks for your input; it seems most of my friends would prefer the hike (at least when living vicariously through me) even though my parents clearly favor Paris.

So far I've managed to avoid getting ridiculously sick over here. But last night I had a headache, which I never get, and a sore throat. I hope this doesn't mean I'm coming down with something. Luckily, the weather is windy and cloudy.

My feet are somewhat cold. I should get some tea to fight off both afflictions.

Thank goodness. It's overcast and windy and cool again. Current temperature: 57. Much more reasonable. While I don't mind nice sunny 75-degree days every once in a while, a long run of them overwhelms quickly. What's more, Thursday and Friday have 30% and 20% chances of rain. I will have to head downtown tomorrow while the cool spell lasts.

Night before last I had a good Skype call with my parents. They tried to browbeat me into visiting Paris for a week or so while I'm over here. It's an appealing idea to spend a week there. But I have an exam in three weeks, and I have to study for it quite a bit. For six days in Paris, it would be at least 240 dollars for hostels. The plane tickets would be 200 dollars. Tickets to get to the airport from Norwich would probably work out to 50 - 80 dollars. Then food, probably an additional 150 (including a meal out). All in all a little over 600 dollars, which I would have to pay back eventually. Plus a lot of hectic travel.

It would also mean that it would be harder for me to make it to the coast. I've been wanting to take a 35 mile hike (plus 5 to get to where it starts, plus another 2 at the end to reach a hotel) to Great Yarmouth one of these days. The path goes through the Norfolk Broads, a lovely region of interconnected rivers, lakes and wetlands. I'd find a bed and breakfast to stay at in Great Yarmouth, and walk on the beach in the sun.

I have to decide today, or the plane ticket prices will rise again.

It's been hitting 70-80 every day here for a few days. It hasn't rained in a week. I already miss it. The forecast doesn't call for rain in the next week, but hopefully we'll get a thunderstorm or something to make up for this dry spell.

Because I am in danger of only talking about the weather (another "tendency" the British are famous for, whether or not it is true), here's some more news. I found a subletter for June - August, which means I probably won't be living in Spokane for the summer. Still looking for a job in Portland, though. If anyone knows of something tech-related (especially web design or programing), feel free to point me at it. I will be your grateful slave for at least five minutes.

The skin between my thumb and forefinger on my right hand is dry and cracked and flaking. Tonight, more than most nights, I need to immerse myself in music. Desolation Row and Tangled Up in Blue; Sitting and 18th Avenue; Vienna and Piano Man. It's only the pieces that fall apart, you know? I'll be fine tomorrow.