Perks of Living in This Area

I didn’t know this, but the documentary film maker, Ken Burns, lives in New Hampshire, not too far from here. In fact, we’ve played hockey and track near his town. I think he was a Dartmouth alum, and is involved with the university and keeps ties with the art department. The reason I’m mentioning this is because I just learned that he previews his films at Dartmouth before he releases them to the public, and just recently, the R and the kids got to go.

His latest project is on the Dust Bowl, and the other night, he was screening the first half of it at the Hop. R wanted to go, and since I had a hockey game, she was going to take the kids along. We had some reservations about them sitting through a heavy documentary, but they’ve sat through operas, and if you can survive that, you can survive anything. After swimming at their friend’s house, R took them to supper in the big city, and then to the film. She had scored tickets that morning, and she must have been just in time, because the event was sold out, and there were people outside the box office hoping to get tickets. I’m glad R prepared, because they would have otherwise been left out in the cold.

The film was about two hours, followed by a discussion with Ken Burns about the film. R and the kids really liked it, though I think R had a greater appreciation for the subject matter. A true American tragedy, and R worried a little that the story was a little too depressing for the kids. They were fine, however, and did a fabulous job of being patient and sitting quietly through the film. R even said N wanted to stick around for the Q&A session, but it was late.

I think it’s cool that they got to see the film before anyone else, and I’m bummed I missed it, though I do think it’s cool that these sort of opportunities exist in this area. The perks of living near an Ivy League college. Besides, there’s always the next time.

Until then, thanks for reading, and thanks to nick step for the pic.