you don't throw oranges on an escalator!

Robert Altman died today. He was 81. You might know him as the director of such films as NASHVILLE, THE LONG GOODBYE, MCCABE AND MRS. MILLER, THE PLAYER, or SHORT CUTS, to name just five masterpieces.

Tonight Jonny and I cracked a bottle of red in his honor and watched CALIFORNIA SPLIT, which I had never seen before and is unequivocally a sixth. It's a deceptively light piece about two compulsive gamblers who team up, and the deftness with which Altman lets the plot and characters unravel is really astonishing. Plus, it has the line which is the title of this blog, which would automatically mean it was a pretty good movie.

I tried the lentil recipe that Scout posted in a comment below. It did not work well. I mean, it seemed good in theory, and tastes good bar the lentils, but the lentils were not cooked enough and husky. I think the problem is that brown lentils that come into this country are heat-treated, which I think screws with any attempt to cook them normally. And/or, perhaps, my oven is not accurate.

But I will not be experimenting a third time with brown lentils in this country. Unless I find some indigenous, non-heat treated ones.