Soto Becomes Soto Mayor

The German poet Rainer Maria Rilke once wrote, "The cunning enmity of fame, later, which makes you innocuous by scattering you all around." I reflected on these words shortly after learning of the mega 15-year $765 million contract that Juan Soto signed with the New York Mets. The super-talented outfielder was already well-regarded for his skillset, but this new deal catapulted him into the stratosphere of dollar signs and lofty expectations. Naturally, everyone is buzzing about this. Today, after leaving the gym, I stopped by a Tim Horton's and discussed the contract with two workers there. They also couldn't believe it. 

How does $765 million break down? 

Sportskeeda was kind enough to provide this information! 

Juan Soto will earn the following: 

$51 million per year 

$8.5 million per month

$314, 815 per game 

$133, 396 per hour

$2,018 per minute

$34 per second 

This is truly staggering and naturally, everyone is talking about this contract, loyalty, the need for a salary cap, etc. As a New York Yankees fan, I was disappointed, but Soto now embarks on a new adventure; on a contract that could eventually become, in the words of Ezra Pound, "golden chains of loveliness". At what age will his production begin to diminish? 34? 35? Time will tell. But I certainly do not wish him any ill will, I just hope that with all the social media-driven hype around this contract, he does not become innocuous by being everywhere. 

Source: msn.com 

In today's episode of Pardon the Interruption, co-host Tony Kornheiser whimsically asked whether Soto's agent, Scott Boras, might be the Devil or not. Such was the surprise that Soto did not stay with the Yankees. The agent has a reputation for extracting astronomical contracts for his players and this latest announcement ensures that his villainy among baseball owners and general managers, will not lose any of its "luster". 

2025 should prove to be a very interesting year!

Anima Sola, by Ezra Pound

Believe it or not, there are some items you cannot find on the Internet. I am reading "Collected Early Poems of Ezra Pound" and I came across a wonderful poem titled "Anima Sola". Surprisingly, it is nowhere to be found on the Internet. So I post it here. Enjoy!

Anima Sola

"Then neither is the bright orb of the sun greeted nor yes either the shaggy might of earth or sea, thus then, in the firm vessel of harmony is fixed God, a sphere, round, rejoicing in complete solitude."

                                                                                                                   Empedokles

Exquisite loneliness

Bound of mine own caprice

I fly on the wings of an unknown chord

            That ye hear not, 

            Can not discern

My music is weird and untamed

Barbarous, wild, extreme, 

I fly on the note that ye hear not

On the chord that ye can not dream. 

And lo, your out-worn harmonies are behind me

            As ashes and mouldy bread, 

I die in the tears of the morning

            I kiss the wail of the dead.

My joy is the wind of heaven, 

            My drink is the gall of night, 

My love is the light of meteors;

            The autumn leaves in flight. 

I pendant sit in the vale of fate

    I twine the Maenad strands

And lo, the three Eumenides

            Take justice at my hands.

For I fly in the gale of an unknown chord.

The blood of light is God's delight

And I am the life blood's ward. 

O Loneliness, O Loneliness, 

Thou boon of the fires blown

From heaven to hell and back again

Thou cup of the God-man's own!

For I am a weird untamed 

That eat of no man's meat

My house is the rain ye wail against

            My drink is the wine of sleet. 

My music is your disharmony

            Intangible, most mad, 

For the clang of a thousand cymbals

Where the sphinx smiles o'er the sand, 

            And viol strings that out-sing kings

Are the least of my command. 

Exquisite, alone, untrammeled

I kiss the nameless sign

And the laws of my inmost being

            Chant to the nameless shrine. 

I flee on the wing of a note ye know not, 

My music disowns your law, 

Ye can not tread the road I wed

And lo! I refuse your bidding. 

I will not bow to the expectation that ye have. 

Lo! I am gone as a red flame into the mist, 

My chord is unresolved by your counter-harmonies.

Source: art.com 

When Performance Overcomes Historical Importance

"Cinemas form memories and memories form history," observed Ukrainian film director Mstyslav Chernov during his acceptance speech for winning the Oscar for Best Documentary at Sunday's Academy Awards show. His powerful condemnation of Russia's invasion of Ukraine resonated throughout the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles. 

But for me it also touched on how some cinemas or the subjects they attempt to portray can fade from memory and history if the discerning and capricious spotlight shown on them from the Academy and the audience is affected or shifted in any way, no matter how slight. 

Everyone acclaims the value of the recognition of receiving the prestigious Oscar award, but there are layers of reasons why it is important and how it is important. Also, for whom is it important.

For many actors, it is the ultimate acknowledgment of their ability as an actor, director, producer, etc. But for others, like me, it is an opportunity to recognize something historical; a moment in time or a movement; something that is spoken for by the actor/actress nominated for the award. In an era where the importance of history seems to recede further into the shadows of time, events like winning an Oscar award can do much to solidify one's standing in the always-shifting sands of public sentiment and recollection. 

Lily Gladstone, proudly assumed the role of being the first Blackfeet Indian (Niitsitapie) and Nez Pearce (Nimíipuu) to be nominated for an Oscar award for Best Actress for her brilliant, human, bilingual, and nuanced depiction of Mollie Burkhart, the Osage Indiana who was the victim of a horrendous serious of murders in Oklahoma in 1929. Her role in Martin Scorcese's masterful film "Killers of the Flower Moon" exposes the Reign of Terror that had been hidden in the dustbins of American history for years. 

Had she won for Best Actress award, or if the film had won any award, it would have helped cement the tragedy of the Reign of Terror in the collective conscience of the American persona. For many, this was not just about the best physical performance before a camera, but rather the portrayal of a voice echoing quietly from the past that needed to be heard and understood. The eventual winner, Emma Stone, received the award for her technical prowess in bringing to life Bella, a modern-day re-imagining of Frankenstein, In short, the Academy needed to decide between awarding historical relevance and skilled performance and they chose the safer option. No one, of course, can demean Stone's performance, but for me, Gladstone's effort had more cultural value and historical flavor and was meant to serve as an anchor to avoid the Osage historical tragedy from being swept away by the currents of history. As James LaRue, noted librarian and consultant observed, "cancellation can happen by distraction." And while we cannot say that the Academy hoped to cancel the luminous importance of "Killers of the Flower Moon", they drastically dimmed the light that Mr. Scorcese, Ms. Gladstone, and the team of the film so effectively displayed on this historical moment. The over-extended "rivalry" between "Oppenheimer" and "Barbie" did not help either. But I do hope that down the road, people will still remember this film and its subject. If not, future directors may have to hire Emma Stone to play a Native American Indian. Maybe that will work! 😊

Sadly, the Academy is not ready yet to award an Oscar to a Native American Indian; they have much work to do. But at the very least they allowed Osage musicians and singers to peform on stage during the ceremony.