“To summarize, all the studies we have discussed and many others support the notion that our physical health is intimately connected with our patterns of thinking and feeling about ourselves and also with the quality of our relationships with other people and the world. The evidence suggests that certain patterns of thinking and certain ways of relating to our feelings can predispose us to illness. Thoughts and beliefs that foster hopeless and helpless feelings, a sense of loss of control, hostility and cynicism towards others, a lack of commitment to meet life’s challenges, an inability to express one’s feelings, and social isolation all appear to be particularly toxic.”
“The Five Rules of Success”: Above and Beyond the Con Trying to go Straight
No doubt you have seen many movies about a convict on parole trying to go “straight”. They usually are linear and without any artistic creativity.
Well ”The Five Rules of Success” is not one of those Turner Classic Movies that are entirely linear but nonetheless interesting.
This film takes the genre into a whole different realm with artistic cinematography, cutting philosophical insights that takes one into what one might call an artsy film while artsy should not be taken as alienating to viewers.
X (Santiago Segura) is a con on parole determined to make a success of his newfound freedom. He is full of philosophical insights that seem Buddhist or Daoist and is an intellectual cut above the “usual con” out on parole.
What are his five rules of success?
- Aim High and Be Delusional
- Block All Negativity
- Manifest Goals Into Reality
- Prioritize Mental and Physical Health
- Never rely on Anything and Always Push for More
X adheres to these rules but sadly ends up a casualty. In his drive to open up a restaurant he needs cash which only criminality can provide in short order.
He starts at the bottom as Mr. Avakian (Jon Sklaroff), the owner of a Greek restaurant, gives him a break starting him off as a deliveryman and then a waiter. But Avakian’s son Danny is a wastrel, dope fiend and petty criminal who lures X into a few cash rich jobs to meet X’s desire to open his own restaurant.
X needs one more job to obtain the cash to open his restaurant and it is a nasty one but he gets the dough and opens a restaurant where the guests are treated as prison inmates and served slop by heavily tattooed and surly ex-cons. Only in Los Angeles!
X has tried to follow his rules and does indeed reach his dream of opening a restaurant despite a psychotic parole officer and a decadent off the rails Danny but his demise is all the more tragic because of it. As X says in the joint there are rules of conduct but in society there are none.
What might captivate you are the great cinematographic techniques of graininess, speed ups, blurriness, dream like sequences, comic book allegories and colourful L.A. backdrops. It is a combination of H &R Crumb and “Blade Runner”.
It is also a study on what an abusive childhood can turn a man into through no fault of his own.
Although thoroughly modern one wonders if this is a Shakespearean ending.
The film certainly improves on a second viewing.
“The Five Rules of Success” opened on Amazon and ITunes on July 30.
You can see the trailer here https://ambassadorfilmgroup.com/the-five-rules-of-success
The 83-minute film is written and directed by Orson Oblowitz.
RKS Wine: The Penniless Pensioner Falls for the Rating Game and the Label
PP wanted me to try, on my own nickel may I add, a Réserve de La Roncière Cuvée Traditionelle Côtes du Rhône. PP is excited as he saw a little seal on the bottle saying the esteemed James Suckling rated this $15.95 wine a robust 90 points. I pointed out to PP Suckling is a bit too generous in my books. Despite that his eyes glazed over at the label which on quick glance one might mistake for a much more expensive Châteauneuf de Pape. How wine savvy is PP? I thought he was all above this type of marketing. Obviously not.
Well no sense in dilly dallying about so why not give it a try. It is an oft encountered GSM blend you’ll encounter in the Rhône and in Australia. G is for Grenache. S is for Syrah. M is for Mourvèdre.
It has a luscious nose of big fat almost overly ripe strawberries, red plums, blackberries and black Washington State cherries. On the palate surprisingly gentle tannins. You get on the palate what you get on the nose with a definite licorice and peppery twist. This is one very well-made wine. As for it’s style there is a certain elegance to it despite its simplicity. I would say drink now or hold until the end of 2023.
As for food matches due to its complacency lamb seems to be calling it as well as beef. A few years ago in Paris I had a beautiful cut of beef in a peppercorn sauce and it’s softness and juiciness with perfectly prepared frites would welcome this wine. Avoid anything too spicy.
(Rèserve de la Roncière Cuvèe Traditionnelle 2018 Côtes du Rhône, AOP, SAS Lavau, Violés, France, $15.95, Liquor Control Board of Ontario # 19333, 750 mL, 15%, Robert K. Stephen A Little Birdie Told Me So Rating 89/100).
You may recall that PP winked about several Panamanian bank accounts with a dodgy Panamanian bank. So why is he hosting a small party for several Panamanian generals wanting to invest in Canadian Arctic diamonds? How can this destitute man be renting a suite in an exclusive hotel in downtown Toronto to entertain what he has told me are interested investors. He says they know nothing about wine so a bottle with a 90 Suckling rating with a fancy label may be a bit of a ruse for the generalissimos that know nothing about wine as they drink rum! PP it would seem wants to climb out of the Madoff criminal proceedings that established his innocence but drained his funds and caused a sell-off in his wine cellar.
RKS Wine: The Penniless Pensioner Wants a Portuguese Pinkie!
PP often waxes about the great wines of Portugal which for him means trophy table wines and Port from the Douro region. At one point, before his cellar was sold off to pay for his criminal trial defence in New York for being a co-conspirator with Bernie Madoff, he had over two hundred bottles of Vintage Port worth thousands of dollars. Now he has a budget not to exceed $16.95 for a bottle but he says he is enjoying “scraping the bottom”. He says after all, “I have hit rock bottom financially so why not hit rock bottom wines. Once a nightmare it is now a challenge.”
This Casa de Ventozela is from the Vinho Verde region in Northern Portugal. Vinho Verde whites are usually very light often with high acidity and well suited for grilled sardines, sea bass and sea bream. Vinho Verde reds can be wild beasts needing spicy meat dishes to quell their rage. Not being sure about a Vinho Verde Rosé we screw open the cap and hope for the best.
It is a moderately coloured pinkie. On the nose raspberry, strawberry, tangerine and red cherry. Very pleasing. On the palate neither acidic or wild like its white and red cousins. In a nutshell gentle and very pleasing with red cherry that gains in sweetness on the mid palate. The acidity ramps up as the wine proceeds from cold to cool. I’d like to pair this with a Mexican Red Snapper Veracruz. A good outdoor wine when chilled and kept in an ice bucket. Drink now. Made from the Espadeiro grape
(Casal de Ventozela 2020, Vinho Verde, Casa de Ventozela, Vila Verde, Portugal, $14.95, Liquor Control Board of Ontario # 450841, Robert K. Stephen A Little Birdie Told Me So Rating 88/100)
Reggie The Egyptian Rescue Dog: Time to Think About My Past! (A Children’s Story)
Hello. Let me introduce myself. My name is Reggie and I am the luckiest and happiest dog in the world. Please read my story and find out why I am saying this.
So here I am in Canada with my foster parents. I am finally starting to feel good about myself. I still have many bad dreams about how I was treated on the streets and how my master Anwar was taken away from me by the army and executed for simply being critical of the Egyptian government. But I can not change what has already happened. If I keep thinking about these things it will be like chasing my tail and running around in circles. Although I can accept what has happened to me I know always worrying about it and judging it will make me unhappy. Perhaps one day I can forgive those who harmed my life.
I have forgiven the Rottenwhiler who attacked and injured me in Cairo as I was the one trying to steal food from his bowl. But when you are as hungry as I was you can get desperate. Strangely if that big dog had not bitten me I never would have ended up in the pet hospital which made it possible to leave Egypt and come to Canada. Although I am still so frightened by the attack when I see a big dog I lose my temper and growl and bark at most big dogs. Anthony and Susan are not angered by my bad manners as they know my history. I am not really bad mannered but very frightened by this experience. After watching a BBC documentary with Anwar on Post Traumatic Stress Disorder of soldiers in the British army I think this is what is happening in my mind.
I am now starting to forgive the Egyptian people for how badly they treated me. They have little compassion for street dogs because they have no tradition of loving and caring for pets but do they have to poison and shoot street dogs? They are slaves to their feelings as for almost all they do not know the concept and joy of having a pet. I would hope that time and education will help them like dogs and treat them better.
From what I have seen in Canada is that people love and care for their dogs but I am sure not all pets are loved and cared for. I hear there are “puppy mills” where puppies are bred and kept in horrible conditions. At least I could run free in the streets.
So I find myself under the care and control of my foster parents and hope my luck has started to change for the better. I am in a strange country so I am a bit frightened as everything is so strange but I am an Egyptian street dog. I am tough and resilient and proud. I am going to show all these Canadians just how good Reggie the Egyptian street dog can be! I do this for myself, Anwar and all the street dogs in Egypt.
“Mutantism on the March” :Chapter 86 “Commotion at Toronto’s Malton Airport”
Montenez pieced the situation as he knew it and was appalled with these half baked idiots. Quite frankly the Quebecois had often received the rotten end of the stick. The Toronto-American Family Compact usually skimmed off the cream in Quebec. Perhaps he could help by doing something to stop these deranged jackals. He could slap down that Toronto arrogance which ruled and snubbed the rest of Canada. He could rush them with impunity due to his immortal status but a bullet or two piercing the fuselage could cause depressurization of the cabin with disastrous results. If he was going do anything it was when the airplane had landed. He sat back and waited for touchdown. One of the faces looked familiar as if he had seen it on the telescreen back on Zortixia but no that simply couldn’t be.
The airplane landed without incident at Malton. Montenez wondered how he would deal with these thugs. Knowing little about Canadian jurisprudence he thought if this had happened in Greece they would have been executed. The moment of confrontation arrived when the doors to the plane opened and the security forces greeted the hijackers with smiles and slaps on the back! But they quickly reversed their attitude when the press surged into the arrivals area awaiting the arrival of the hijackers. The hijackers realized they had a national audience and with a wink and nod from the Mountipee Intelligence Unit the hijackers spewed out their venom after the Mountipee’s had snuck out the back door of the plane.
Montenez seized the moment and with Greek Godlike speed he whizzed past the stunned passengers knocking the three hijackers out of the plane to the tarmac below. The Mountipees and the rest of the country were shocked to see Canadian unity receiving such a blow from most likely some foreigner. Just wait until that cheeky bastard tried to clear immigration and customs! Ontario passengers were furious and started to pummel Montenez. Quebec passengers stormed the Ontarians and pushed the lot of them around the hijackers out to the tarmac below. The stunned co-pilot, who had been watching this insane episode ran to the door and slammed it shut. It was time to get out of Hogtown so the plane roared down the runway heading to the safe haven of Montreal. After a 50-minute flight the plane landed at Dorval Airport to a huge throng of cheering spectators and Montenez was hoisted on the shoulders of some passengers as a new hero of Quebec even though he wasn’t a Quebecker. After many handshakes and kisses from beautiful girls he was whisked to the VIP Lounge for a brief address to the waiting media. Montenez spoke, “Ladies and Gentlemen my purpose of visiting this province was to visit a dear friend of mine. I suppose you are curious to hear my side of the story. I boarded the plane in Athens and all proceeded as normal until after dinner where a group of three men from Ontario hijacked the airplane and announced our destination was to be Toronto. These men weened with idiocy ruined a perfect flight except of course for the horrid chicken dinner. No one was hurt except a few Quebec ladies were subject to anti-French jokes. When the plane landed rather than being arrested by security forces the hijackers were greeted as heroes and were not prepared to take appropriate actions so I pushed them and their admirers off the plane. The remaining Ontario residents on the flight began pummelling me and I threw them off the plane with the help of the Quebec passengers. These men took great pains to insult the province of Quebec and were under the impression there was a mutant-Marxist cabal trying to take over Quebec. I know little about politics here although it seems by today’s events I am learning quickly, so I will leave you to digest what happened.”
“Mutantism on the March”: Chapter 85 “Montenez Heads to Montreal”
Montenez was basking in the hot summer sun of Samos, Greece. He contemplated his life on earth. He recalled having promised himself and the Greek Gods he would help the febrile human race however he had little to show for this. Surely he could do better. Of course things were not going particularly well in Greece as Yero Pornodopolus a colonel in the Greek military and his cronies held Greece under their iron fists. There were numerous beatings, torturing’s and “disappearances” but many Greeks feigned ignorance except for a handful of intellectuals who if criticizing the military dictatorship they ended up in military prisons in remote Aegean islands.
Montenez had joined them in the northern Greek city of Thessaloniki but the military had responded to them by gunning them down with machine guns supplied by the American government.
Montenez fled Samos, a virtual cesspool of political ignorance which would rather feed off the rickety old Dutch and German tourists than think about democracy. Montenez received a telegram from Dr. Zodiac that read,
“Dearest Will: Interesting chain of events happening in Montreal. Guardian of Bertie Foonbean, Squid, waging a mighty political struggle. Should meet him. Greeks here in potential big trouble. Do you remember the anti-Greek riots in Toronto in the 1950’s? Have reserved suite for you at the Ritz Marlton Hotel on Sherbrooke Street. Best Wishes. Dr. Zodiac.”:
Thank God finally a chance for some action Montenez thought. Montenez packed his bags and rushed off to catch the 14:27 flight from Samos to Athens and then connected to the Olympic Airways flight to Montreal. These Earthling transportation devices were so slow compared to the transportation devices in Zortixia. Well he sat in his first class seat sipping ouzo and munching octopus. He was looking forward to meeting this Squid..a man of action. He had heard of his exploits in Columbia and Nicaragua.
What a jolly chap this Squid must be! Dinner was served and despite being in first class the chicken was plastic and the carrots were wilted and soggy. It made one feel like sticking to the Japanese single malt whisky. After the culinary insult more Japanese whisky.
Then from nowhere three men jumped into the aisles brandishing Cuban Pepito pistols and Ugandan grenades loudly ordering everyone to stay where they were. Montenez thought they were Greeks protesting the military rule in Greece as dinner was bad but not enough to prompt violence. They informed several passengers they were hijacking the plane to Toronto. Just what these desperate men were doing was made explicit to the passengers when one of them spoke on the P.A. system, “Good day ladies and gentlemen. In case you haven’t guessed it this is a hijacking. Do not fear we are not Bader Meinhof or Red Brigade terrorists. We are protesting against certain distasteful events occurring in the Province of Quebec. It is not directed towards you but rather against the Canadian government who is doing nothing against the mutant-communist-revolutionary elements. Their goal is to rip asunder Canada and plant the hammer and sickle flag in Quebec. It is high time the Canadian government sent in troops to crush these dangerous fanatics. The federal government has pandered to these elements far too long. Enough is enough. We three are proud Ontario patriots dedicated to focusing national attention to the revolution in Quebec that is threatening Canada. These fanatics should be arrested and imprisoned for sedition. Long live Canada! Long live the Orange Lodge!”
Some Torontonian passengers clapped and cheered. The Quebecers were angry and the Greeks baffled.
Stag’s Hollow From Beautiful British Columbia; A Yappy Wine Writer Yaps Away!
I miss those fabulous Stag’s Hollow Reds! Not communists but red wine! British Columbia the land of Social Democrats, NDP’ers and Greens all escaping a Vancouver radio host Pat Burns past who greeted female callers with was it “Hello Doll!” And Ben Gitner’s Tartan Brewing in Prince George sticking his finger up at the big three breweries! British Columbia a land of contradictions and pioneers but there are no such contradictions with Stag’s Hollow wines. Consistently excellent in the last few years I have been trying them. So with such a good record they are due for a dud? Will a weak link be found with these wines? Hard to bear the unfathomable but as a wine writer I realize these things can happen but why am I focusing on the negative? Snap out of it!
Rosés in both Ontario and British Columbia can be excellent and can be considered a bright light in Canadian wine able to compete with the best in the world. So gushing with enthusiasm and optimism let us give Stag’s Hollow 2020 Syrah Rosé swill and a slurp.
A luminous mid pink colour indicative of a right-wing socialist. Aromas of cheerful raspberries, strawberry bug juice and White Spot gooseberry pie.
On the palate you gotta love that bite to it. Raspy and uncouth on the palate or more diplomatically said full of minerality reminding me of many wines from the Dão region in Portugal. I love that roughness as it gives character to the wine, a character many insipid Rosés lack of course making it ideal for food. OK back to taste rather than sensations a see saw between raspberries and red cherries on the palate. No cherry Kool-aid making this a juvenile flimsy wine. I’d say this is up there with a high quality Tavel Rosé from France. Vive la Colombie Brittanique!
Ooops……in mid palate a bit of charcoal infused sweetness. If there was a Mount Vesuvius in the Okanagan I’d be tempted to say the Syrah was grown in volcanic soils. Mid length finish. Being a gourmand of epic proportions I will notch down my modesty and say enjoy with a COSTCO garlic sausage topped with homemade tomato relish and fresh Italian buns served on Limoges China.
At 243 cases this is boutique winery wine that even non-cardiologists and neurosurgeons can afford. I would suggest serving cool as opposed to cold unless of course the humidex is at 45 and you are sitting outside I give you permission to put in an ice bucket. This wine writer should stop his yapping and repeat watch how the wine hits its stride mid palate i.e., halfway before it hits your throat to slide down the hatch.
There is 8% Viognier in this and now that is a big cause of the delightful raspiness to the wine. Being a Viognier lover how could I have missed this! Probably by not reading the technical notes until after I tasted the wine. Sheesh caught with my pants down so as to say! Brilliant blend!
(Stag’s Hollow 2020 Syrah Rosé , Okanagan Valley BC VQA, Stag’s Hollow Winery, Okanagan Falls, British Columbia, $ 24, 750 mL, 13%, Robert K. Stephen A Little Birdie Told Me So Rating 94/100).
Albariño in Canada? Rare but gotta give Stag’s Hollow a pat on the back for not riding with the pack on this one. You’ll see it in Spain and Portugal in abundance but in Canada no mucho Albariño! How is the 2020 vintage doing? With each vintage it seems to be improving.
On the nose this pale gold wine has loads of character with melon, guava, tangerine, vanilla wafer cookies with a bit of peach. A knockout! On the palate grippy minerality and this wine is virtually growling in its masculinity and revelling in its sophistication. On the palate you get what you get on the nose. A stunning wine leaving many of its Spanish and Portuguese counterparts on the sidelines with their mouths open and their faces blushing with envy.
This will hold well until 2026.
Sure you can match this wine with food but it is so good on its own one must be careful with their food selection. My choice would be zucchini flower pasta where the anchovies will enhance the sanctity of this wine. The winery suggests seafood, seafood pastas and risottos, light and creamy dishes, Vietnamese/Thai dishes which I will not disagree with. It also suggests sushi and sashimi and Caribbean/Cajun dishes which I respectfully disagree with.
The grapes were from the Shuttleworth Creek Vineyard which one day may be legendary for its quality grapes. Sadly only 403 cases were produced.
This is worth a case purchase.
Winemaker Kiera LeFranc has a great talent not for this wine only but the entire Stag’s Hollow portfolio.
(Stag’s Hollow 2020 Albariño, Okanagan Valley VQA, Stag’s Hollow Winery, Okanagan Falls, British Columbia, $24, 750 mL, 13%, Robert K. Stephen A Little Birdie Told Me So Rating 96/100).
RKS WINE: The Penniless Pensioner Wants to Relive His Croatian Memories
In his younger days as a student when he had lots of hair he visited Croatia which then was part of Yugoslavia before it became an independent country. Boy he loved the islands off its coast and Dubrovnik was a quaint old town. But he returned a few years ago for a vacation and was disgusted with how the cruise ships and thousands of passengers were quickly ruining Croatia and its Dalmatian Coast. There simply was no room in the old town to hold the hordes of passengers who spend little and scuttle back to their floating hotel for dinner which makes Dubrovnik on the road to ruin like Venice, Barcelona, Lisbon and Porto. Don’t mention cruises to PP as he goes into a tirade about the idiocy of the onboard entertainment and all you can eat midnight buffets.
This time he asked I review a Graševina from Croatia from a winery called Kutjevo. It comes in on a regular basis to the Liquor Control Board of Ontario (LCBO) and is $15.95 and within PP’s budget and hopefully it will take his mind off the ruinous fleets of these floating hotels.
It is pale gold in colour. On the nose apricot, pear, pineapple and lime all rather weak and not very assertive. On the palate I will be polite and call it a delicate wine or I could be direct and say it is just about tasteless. Yes, it is well made without any technical flaws but it lacks character. I just texted PP and said “Don’t buy. Wimpy!” Short finish.
I think I’d go somewhat with the label that says it is a good accompaniment to summer salads, poultry, seafood and Mediterranean cuisine although that is grossly simplistic as this type of food in some cases and depending on how the food is prepared would be totally unsuitable with this wine.
(Kutjevo Graševina 2020, Kutjevo Winery, Kutjevo, Croatia, $ 15.95, LCBO # 519074, 13%, 750 mL, Robert K. Stephen A Little Birdie Told Me So Rating 79/100).
Poetry Break: I Did Not Kill the Canada Goose
Birdslaughter has been heavy on my mind
golfing on a Monday I hit a goose
with a long nine iron shot that landed in a gaggle of Canada Geese on the third hole
bird down!
Convulsing
causing my guilt to go pulsating
but the fellow righted himself and looked a bit stunned
like gas in the United States I was a bit fracked
and with guilt racked
so I played through a bit rattled
hoping the witnesses would not tattle
but thrown for a loop when an old a massive dead goose was carted away on a Friday
but wait my hit on the bird was a Monday!
which I only realized was not the Friday death day
the bird police have no grounds to haul me away
as a result of this tragic day
I suppose then tonight I need not pray for forgiveness for a deed I did not commit
crudely said it is great not feeling like shit
Robert K. Stephen
A Bird's Eye View of Fashion, Food, Travel, Culture, Beverage and Curiosity 