The work has been done on the Bilco door to the basement, and it works: the work was finsihed yeaterday, and last night, there were thunderstorms. And there were no leaks! The doors are solid, and the sealant which was applied yesterday really has worked. But (of course) it's the first day. We'll see how it holds up in a few months.

We've been getting estimates for the roof work. The gutters need to be replaced, but the stuff blocking the gutters (two whiffle balls, one baseball, and a little toy plastic plate... how did those get on the roof?) has been removed. And so the leaks from the roof have been alleviated. But we're still looking into getting the whole roof and gutters replaced.

So i didn't really see anything in the last two days. On Sunday, it was the end of "Celebrity Fit Club". We didn't watch it every week, but it was the most bizarre show yet. Some of the people this season were practically certifiable.

The last press screening i went to was the doc "Manufactured Landscapes", which will have a run at Film Forum, but was also part of the Human Rights Watch Film Festival. There are some amazing shots in that film, with long tracking shots surveying various foctories, industruial sites, etc.

On George Robinson's website, he talks about some recent releases, and it bodes well, because (as i've mentioned) this is already an amazing year. He also talks about some films which i didn't get to see (a film about Primo Levi in the Open Roads: New Italian Cinema series). At this point, a lot of times, festivals will target reviewers, and provide screeners (in George's case, screeners of films which will be of interest to his Jewish Weekly readers). If filmgoing and television-watching are splintering into niche audiences, now everything is evolving into these niche groups. But George has some interesting comments on "Lights in the Dusk" and "Belle Toujours". (www.cine-journal.blogspot.com)

On Dave Kehr's blog, he announces a really significant upcoming set: 20th Century Fox will be releasing a huge John Ford boxset at the end of the year. It will include the extant silent films which ahve been restored (The Film Foundation restored John Ford's films about a decade ago, with the films deposited in the archives at UCLA.) This is major news, and people are encouraged to find out more. (www.davekehr.com)

Rushing to a screening... but last night, after all was done, i watched "Ladies in Retirement" on TCM (part of the Ida Lupino series). Very enjoyable.