Ciao, Cactus Eater
This past summer I was fortunate enough to catch my friend Yen Tan’s new movie, Ciao, at the Castro Theater during the San Francisco Gay and Lesbian Film Festival. And though I had rock-star seats, sitting with the director, Jeff, and the Manly Fireplug in the center of the packed house, we later lost Yen to the adoring crowd of film fans and media, for good reason.
It’s a wonderfully funny and bittersweet story, and if you’re in San Francisco or Berkeley you can catch the movie again during its theatrical release. Screening times and locations here, along with a listing of upcoming cities.
And as long as I’m whoring out one friend, let me do another. My buddy Dan White, who went through the Columbia MFA program with me, and with whom I had a couple of workshops, had his amazingly funny and poignant book, The Cactus Eaters: How I Lost My Mind and Almost Found Myself on the Pacific Crest Trail published recently, to much acclaim. And all of it is deserved. Imagine if Woody Allen and a reluctant Diane Keaton got lost hiking, and you’ll get close to the exuberant, neurotic energy of the book. I always looked forward to reading Dan’s workshop submissions, which should tell you something, considering all of the submissions we had to read during those two years.
He’ll be appearing at the Mission Bay Branch of the SF Public Library tomorrow, December 10th, 6:30 pm.
Actually, CACTUS EATERS sounds like it might wind up in our son-in-law’s stocking this Christmas. And just incidentally, has anyone remarked yet on the mildly ironic nature of your having a fellow toiler in the fields and kindred spirit named Dan White?
December 10th, 2008 at 6:29 amoh! i love that book!!!1!
obvs. :/
December 10th, 2008 at 6:59 amOMG that is so funny, I never connected the dots, and I just saw MILK over the weekend. Hmm. Maybe I need to be careful with him?
December 10th, 2008 at 10:27 am