Let's talk about movies!

I am a movie lover!

If you know me or are familiar with my blogging you will already know that about me. I love everything about movies and I often wish that I had the discipline to write about them more often. I entertained the idea of writing movie reviews/critiques for about 5 minutes and then realized that I would make a terrible movie critic because I enjoy too many movies. And I only want to write about the movies that inspire me to want to write about them which would only be a handful a year.

For me, the greatest thing a movie can do is to make me feel something; and the worst offense a movie can make is to be forgettable. Someone asked me what I had seen recently and for the life of me I couldn’t remember. I had seen something a week earlier and had no memory of what it was. While racking my brain to try and remember what movie it was, I thought to myself ‘Well it obviously wasn’t very good’.

I did finally remember - It was Admission. And here’s the thing, it wasn’t a bad movie at all. I was entertained while watching it but had completely forgotten about it by the time I drove home from the theatre. At least if it had been bad it would have been memorable. Sorry Tina Fey! You did your best with what you were given.

I once rented a movie 3 separate times because I didn’t remember seeing it. Even now I only remember not to watch it again because of that – I still don’t remember anything about the movie. (XX/XY is the movie just so you all know not to bother). When a movie is thought-provoking or inspiring there is nothing better than a good discussion with other movie lovers. And then, after talking all about it, I love reading reviews, essays, critiques, tweets… whatever – I can’t get enough! I downloaded a nasty virus on my computer in my quest for more on Cloud Atlas. (I was in the process of creating a chart for which character had the birthmark in which time frame. The chart never did get finished – damn virus.)

I don’t want to debate whether a movie is good or not. It’s arbitrary and subjective and we are likely going to have differing opinions and we should be able to respect each other’s differences. What I want to know is how did the movie make you feel? What did you notice? What did you like? What did you hate? What caught your attention?

As for a movie that is forgettable… well, I don’t think I could sustain a 5 minute conversation about Admission. But start up a conversation about a movie that got me thinking or feeling something and I could probably talk all day long.

Simple Pleasures revisited

I first posted this in Oct 2008. I stumbled across it today and thought that it was still relevant enough to post again today.

Someone asked me this weekend what my simplest pleasure is. It took me a while to come up with my answer. I could have given a list of responses. The shade of pink Cooper's nose turns when he is feeling playful, a square of 70% good quality dark chocolate, a perfect cup of tea, a delicious artigiano latte, taking a deep breath of fresh air, standing at the edge of the ocean and looking out at the horizon, the absolute softness of Cooper's paws, crawling into bed between clean, crisp, cool sheets, a hug from someone I love, a good song on the radio while I'm driving, a sunny, cool day, the view from my corner when the ocean is as smooth as glass, reading a good book, the silence of a snowy night. What I take from this is how blessed I am to have so many simple pleasures.

What I ended up picking as my absolute simplest pleasure was watching the rain fall. When there is a downpour, I love nothing more than shutting off my tv or computer, turning out all the lights and just sitting at an open window to take it all in. I love the smell of it, the sound of it and how it looks. I can very easily sit at a window and watch the rain fall for an extended period of time. It makes me feel peaceful and content. It is for this reason that my dream house has window seats. I need to be able to sit right in the window and be surrounded by the rain.

R.I.P. R.E

I found out about Roger Ebert’s death via twitter. I had, just hours earlier, read his blog post from the day before about his cancer recurrence and taking a ‘leave of presence’. So Diablo Cody’s tweet, ‘RIP Roger Ebert’ came as quite a shock. I wasn’t prepared for the news and I instantly felt the loss. The next tweet I read simply said “the balcony is closed”, and the one after that said “RIP Roger, see you at the movies”. It all made me a bit teary.

I am not normally affected so deeply by the loss of someone I’ve never met, but fresh off of reading his blog post about slowing down (which is still 99% busier than I am at my busiest) it just hit me right in the feels. In the 24 hours since then, I have read numerous posts and articles about Roger Ebert and it has become very clear that a lot of people are feeling deeply affected by his death. The topics are varied but all of them boil down to the same core themes – his strength and determination in fighting cancer, his positivity and joy at being able to do what he loved to do, and his passion for both watching movies and talking about them.

Many people have also written about his kindness, his adaptability (he transitioned seamlessly to new mediums – newspaper, tv, blogging, facebook, twitter) and his relatability. He was a champion for films he believed in and didn’t care if anybody agreed. He unabashedly liked what he liked.

What I remember about watching Siskel & Ebert is how unpretentious they were in their movie reviews. Ebert talked about movies in a way that made them accessible. He didn’t talk about movies the way that film students are trained to – by analyzing and dissecting; He talked about movies the way movie-lovers are naturally inclined to – by what they liked and didn’t like and how it made them feel, and that is what I loved about him.

After every movie we see, my sister seeks out Ebert’s review of that movie. Sometimes she forwards them to me and often she just tells me what he has to say. It never mattered if we agreed with his opinion, we still valued knowing it. I think for Stefanie, it wasn’t a complete movie-watching experience if she couldn’t top it off with reading Ebert’s review. I know she will miss that aspect of her movie-going experience.

So, Roger Ebert, you will be missed. See you at the movies, I’ll bring the popcorn.

The balcony is now closed.

WTH?

Well that's annoying. I used a lot of white space in my draft - I'm a fan of short paragraphs when blogging. Yet, when I published, it just shows up as one chunk of text. That's going to bug me!

*Update* I learned how to make paragraphs!

Hello 2013

I have just learned, in a very frustrating way, that blogging from my laptap is going to be annoying. I keep accidentally hitting things that make whatever I've written, disappear. Aaargh!

Twitter has killed blogging for me. There are few times that I wish I had more than 140 characters to say what I want to say. And even then I am usually just wishing for 15 more characters. I've lost the ability to sustain a topic beyond 140 characters - it's terrible! The only other time I wish I had more space for posting something is when I am making a list - I really do love lists!

I am in the process of making a life plan for myself and one of the things on my plan is to blog at least once a week. So that is the new deal. Though, while I figure out what I am going to use this space for, it may be a bit lame to read. In fact, unless you are my mom or my sister, I don't encourage you to watch this space. And if you are my mom or my sister - hi, thanks for reading!

The life plan is an investment plan. It was my chiropractor's idea and the timing was perfectly right for me to love the idea. The plan is to do the things now to invest in me that will pay out in my future (near or distant). I have started to draft what this plan will look like for me - so far I have come up with a fairly intensive but totally doable 6 month plan. Once I have it more concretely mapped out I will share it on here.

Til then, Happy Easter!

Enjoy the sunny long weekend

kt

My top ten movies of 2011

The title of this post is a big ol lie! This isn't a top ten list at all. It's a top twelve. When I combed through the list of movies I saw last year I starred the ones that entertained me the very most. Some wildly amused me (Bridesmaids), some kept me on the edge of my seat (Mission: Impossible), some charmed me completely (The Artist), and two fit every category of movie-going joy I know (Crazy Stupid Love and Drive). When all was said and done, my top ten was a top twelve.

This wasn't an entirely easy process for me. It never is. I am an easy person to entertain. As long as the movie isn't pure crap (I'm looking at you Bad Teacher!) I will probably find something redeeming and enjoyable about it. If for an hour and a half, a movie doesn't bore or offend me then I am likely pretty pleased to have seen it. For the record, the most offensive thing a movie can do is assume that the audience is made up of idiots. Because I am so easily entertained, I could have starred nearly every movie I saw last year. I tried to be more discerning, but I'm not gonna lie, I mean Footloose was really, really good!

My top 12 in a very loose (and not agonized over) top down order based on sheer entertainment value and enjoyment level:

#1. Bridesmaids
I loved this movie. It was funny, well written and fun from beginning to end. I giggled from the time it started until it ended. I had received free passes to see a preview of it and loved it so much that when it came out in wide release, I went back and paid full price to see it again. I have to add that my mom didn't like this movie and I cannot for the life of me understand why. Yeah it had some good crude bathroom humour but done in such a ridiculously fun and charming way. Yes, I believe I just referred to Melissa McCarthy defecating in a sink as fun and charming.

#2. Drive
Ryan Gosling, 80's sounding infectious pop music, hot pink titles, an intriguing story, creepy-cool visuals, car chases, shootouts, crazy unexpected bursts of violence, a scorpion jacket, and a sweet love story. This slow moving, character driven movie was compelling and thought-provoking. I wanted to see it again in the theatre but just never got around to it. It has been nominated for a BAFTA and I am hoping it gets an Oscar nod or two.

#3. Crazy Stupid Love
Again, Ryan Gosling, in all his shirtless wonder. As Emma Stone's character exclaims when she sees him shirtless, dude looks photoshopped. This movie is a triple threat, drama, comedy, and romance. A Dromancedy if you will! (I am more proud of that word than I probably should be). In terms of what I'm looking for in a movie that I wish I could experience for the first time over and over again, Crazy Stupid Love has it all!

#4. Footloose
Everybody cut, everybody cut, Footloose! Better than the original I dare say. Updated and less bleak than the original. And the dancing is just so damn fun to watch!

#5. 50/50
Aside from being a touching, heartwarming and ultimately uplifting film, this movie was enjoyable just to look at for a couple of reasons; it was filmed in Vancouver, so it was fun to see so much of our fair city (even if it was posing as Seattle), and it stars the adorable and talented Joseph Gordon-Levitt who is just a pleasure to watch do anything. This movie has the distinction of being the one movie this year to get me to do the ugly cry - twice!

#6. Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol
I'm not sure I took a single breath during the Dubai hotel sequence. Tom Cruise is crazy! My palms were actually sweating. It was interactive movie-viewing at its best! Without any 3-D tricks. I saw it on IMAX and I'm so glad I did. Also filmed in Vancouver (posing as ... everywhere!) it was fun to spot my neighbourhood! This was just good, clean, adrenaline-pumping fun!

#7. Hanna
The opening scene made me cringe and wonder what I'd gotten myself into. The next 109 minutes were thrilling and made me glad I was there. The story of a 16-year-old girl (the amazing Saoirse Ronan) who was raised by her father to be the perfect assassin, dispatched on a mission across Europe, tracked by a ruthless intelligence agent and her operatives.

#8. Moneyball
I didn't have much of a desire to see this movie. I'm not a big fan of Brad Pitt and it is a movie about baseb..zzzz. What? Oops, sorry did I drift off there?! Well, thankfully Moneyball is the least boring movie about baseball ever! I was enthralled and fully entertained! And Brad Pitt was, dare I say it, great! Jonah Hill ruled the movie and the side story about Billy Beane's relationship with his daughter captured my heart - so sweet!

#9. The Artist
I had to do a bit of smooth-talking to get my sister to go see The Artist with me. She didn't have much interest in seeing a black and white silent movie. As we sat among a sea of white-haired movie patrons waiting for the movie to start, I felt the pressure of having talked my sister into a movie that I knew nothing about, all based on one positive word-of-mouth review. What if the black and white silence is gimmicky? The movie began and, admittedly, it took about 10 minutes before I felt no longer aware of the 'gimmick' which wasn't gimmicky at all! It was charming and beautiful and entirely enjoyable.

#10. Midnight in Paris
I am a fan of the Woody Allen movies I end up seeing, which seems to be every other one or so. Apparently, I'm on the right track because I hear that every other Woody Allen movie is not very good. I somehow jumped on the right schedule! I am also an Owen Wilson fan, and a fan of Paris and charming time travel stories, especially when the time travel is into the character doing the traveling's favourite era.

#11. The Help
I struggled with putting this movie on my list. I read the book two weeks before seeing the movie and so it was nearly impossible not to make comparisons and see what was different. It's a mistake I will try to avoid in the future. Having said all that, I was fully entertained, if not a bit distracted by my brain. The cinematography was beautiful. I'm frustrated by two minor changes to the ending of the movie because when it comes down to it, they aren't really minor changes at all in how much they alter the message of the book.

#12. My week with Marilyn
Michelle Williams is a wonder! Having said that, I also struggled with putting this movie on my list. I enjoyed every part of MWWM, so I have no reason not to add it to my top movies. It's like the difference between an A and an A+ on a college paper; it did everything right, it just didn't go over and above for me. Other than Michelle Williams of course, she really is a wonder!

#13. Super 8
I didn't star this movie at all originally. I looked back over my list and wondered how on earth I could've missed it. Kids, aliens, Steven Spielberg, JJ Abrams. This movie was like the love child of Goonies, E.T, Stand By Me, Close Encounters of the Third Kind and Cloverfield - all great movies!

Ok, ok, so I snuck in a last minute 13th movie! Whaddaya gonna do?!

Movies 2011

I wasn't going to do it but I am such a movie person and such a list person that I can barely stop myself!

I was able to compile a list of all the movies I saw in 2011 by relying on lists made by my two movie buddies. I knew that the list was going to be shorter than years past but I didn't really know by how much. Turns out it was a fair amount. I saw only 31 new movies in the theatre in 2011.

Because I am me, and slightly O.C.D. with my list making, I categorized the list of 31 movies 7 different ways: chronological, how many per month, by days of the month, by days of the week, alphabetical, from favourite to least favourite, and then my top movies of the year.

I won't bore you with the statistics (though I probably really will at some point) and instead just jump into the full list. My top picks for the year will be in another post.

Movies I saw in 2011 in chronological order

No Strings Attached
Blue Valentine
Cedar Rapids
The Adjustment Bureau
Paul
The Lincoln Lawyer
Source Code
Bridesmaids
Hanna
Something Borrowed
Super 8
Midnight in Paris
Bad Teacher
Forks over Knives
Horrible Bosses
Friends with Benefits
Crazy Stupid Love
The Help
Our Idiot Brother
Drive
50/50
Ides of March
Footloose
Moneyball
Breaking Dawn
The Muppets
New Year's Eve
Young Adult
My Week with Marilyn
Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol
The Artist

I saw only one absolutely terrible movie this year and it was Bad Teacher. Awful movie!

There were so many other movies that I wanted to see: Martha Marcy May Marlene, Margin Call, Beginners, The Trip, The Tree of Life, Another Year. But for whatever reason I just didn't get out to the theatre as often in 2011. I would like to think that for 2012 I'll be back in the swing of regular theatre going, but it is Jan 20th today and I have yet to see a movie this year!

2012 - here we go!

Usually at this point in the year, I write blog posts about the year in review. I'd cover events, concerts and movies. I know of one person who actually uses my movie review list to help decide what movies to rent but that's it. This past year, I didn't keep track of any of the movies that I saw. I kept no running list throughout the year. In a way, I knew I could skip it because I knew that the two people I see movies with the most were both keeping their own lists and at the end of the year I could use their lists to compile my own - which I think I will do.

I have no interest in writing a year-in-review post. I have no desire to look over the past year and pick through the things that happened. It was a year like any other, with ups and downs, and I am happy to be putting it behind me and moving forward. I learned some valuable lessons and had some experiences. I spent a year of sowing (years of sowing actually) and I am optimistic that 2012 will be a year of reaping.

So to 2012!
Cheers to all of you!
May this be a year of blessing and reaping for you all!
kt

The power of a song

I'm trying something new. I have found with my schedule this semester that I don't make time for the coffee shop/writing lifestyle that I enjoy so much. So my plan is to get up early one weekend morning each week and fit it in then. It brings me joy, it makes me happy, it brings me peace; therefore, I must do it!

There is a website that I have been using sporadically for the past two years that lets you build a playlist of music that others can go listen to. My playlist isn't long, maybe 25 songs is all, but they are songs that inspire me to write. I have always plugged in headphones, added a new song and started writing while listening to my playlist.

It's been ages since I've been on that website and I am sad to report that most of my songs are now listed as 'unavailable' which means I've turned elsewhere for my musical inspiration.

A friend of mine had recommended a song for me to listen to and (as I do) I put off listening to it for a while. It might be because of why he wanted me to listen to it...

My high school sweetheart was a bit of a troubled soul. He'd had a rough childhood though when I met him in grade 8, you never would have suspected it. He was full of happy energy. We didn't really become friends until our grade 12 year when a new girl at our school ended up befriending both of us and bringing us together. He made me laugh and I found myself completely drawn to him.

We had a year-long, whirlwind, tumultuous relationship and I loved him deeply and painfully. The end came when he wanted to start experimenting with drugs and I wanted nothing to do with that kind of lifestyle. We split but stayed friends (also tumultuous and painful). I watched as he smoked pot, dropped acid, took ecstasy, drank heavily and dated a slough of other women. He got tattoos, piercings, brandings and even tried scarification in front of a live audience. He danced in a cage for money at a couple different clubs (gay and straight) and did a variety of other odd jobs.

We didn't see each other often but I was invited to his wedding. I had the flu at the time but didn't want to miss it. I think I must have fooled myself into thinking that we were truly friends. The truth probably being closer to me just being a glutton for punishment. I stayed for the ceremony and left. He was divorced within the year. We saw each other once or twice after that, the final time being a dinner out. Three of us went for dinner and he announced that he was moving to Toronto. Recognizing this as a opportunity, we hugged goodbye at the end of dinner and my friend and I watched him walk away. I never expected to hear from him, let alone see him, ever again.

Two years ago he found me on facebook. We wrote short, simple messages back and forth as a quick catch up. He was living in Australia, married and owned a tattoo shop. Two months ago he came to Vancouver to see his family and friends.

I saw him a few times while he was in town. It was an interesting experience. Emotions I weren't expecting, popped up. I didn't have any lingering feelings for him, it was more the trigger of the memories and a sadness for the passing of time. We are 20 years older than when we dated and 12 years older since the last time we saw each other. He has more tattoos, more scars, more lines on his face and more sadness behind his eyes. I never saw him without a drink or a cigarette in his hand and he very unabashedly told me about his life. I heard about his heavy drug use, his arrest, his divorce, remarriage, infidelity, money problems, business partner problems and family problems. He was dirty, stinky, unkempt and strangely carried a briefcase everywhere he went. He had a manic air about him. He moved constantly, never sitting still and his memory was full of holes. And yet, his overall attitude was positive. Life was going to keep on trucking and so was he.

While he was in town we arranged a bbq. He wanted to see some of his other friends that I am still friends with. Friends that I actually met through him when we dated. Friends that had stayed in touch with him well past the time that I had let go. One friend in particular was excited to see him and the feeling was mutual. They had been the closest in high school and through the following years had kept in touch as much as they could.

They ended up spending a fair bit of time together while he was in town and at the end of the visit my friends and I debriefed the visit. We'd all had a similar reaction to him. My friend who had spent the most time with him said to me

"Do you know Pearl Jam's song Off He Goes?"
I didn't.
"You HAVE TO listen to it. It is heartbreaking in how much it is Tim."

I listened to it this morning for the first time when my playlist on the other website came up as unavailable. Not only did it inspire this entire post but it did break my heart. It is Tim.

Here's the song

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hthj9KZrgpo

Here are the lyrics

I know a man, his face seems pulled and tense
like he's riding on a motorbike in the strongest winds
so i approach with tact
suggest that he should relax
but he's always moving much too fast
said he'll see me on the flipside
on this trip he's taken for a ride
he's been taking too much on
there he goes with his perfectly unkept clothes
there he goes...
he's yet to come back
but i've seen his picture
it doesn't look the same up on the rack
we go way back
i wonder about his insides
its like his thoughts are too big for his size
he's been taken... where, i don't know?
off he goes with his perfectly unkept hope
and there he goes...
and now i rub my eyes, for he has returned
seems my preconceptions are what should have been burned
for he still smiles...
and he's still strong
nothing's changed, but the surrounding bullshit that has grown
and now he's home
and we're laughing like we always did
my same old, same old friend
until a quarter-to-ten
i saw the strain creep in
he seems distracted and i know just what is gonna happen next
before his first step
he's off again

A whole-food lifesyle!

I am in the process of starting up a website dedicated to a whole-food, plant-strong lifestyle. One of the pages on my website is an 'about me' page. I have been writing (in longhand) what I will put on that page but I often find that I need to see it in typed and posted form to really be able to make the edits that I need. So this is my practice space. I am going to type up my about me and post it here and then revisit and rework it.

*update - I started typing this at least an hour ago and found myself rambling on. It will definitely need some editing and tweaking but will do for a jumping off point.*

Here goes....

June 15th, 2011 will go down in history; The Vancouver Canucks lost the Stanley Cup to the Boston Bruins in game 7 of an epic playoff series; Hoodlums and hooligans rioted on the streets of Vancouver, flipping cars, setting fires and looting stores; And I ate a smokie hot dog smothered in mustard.

June 16th, 2011 was a healing and reparative day. It was a lot quieter and received far less media attention than the day before; Vancouverites came out in droves and lovingly cleaned up the mess the rioters had left behind. Part of that clean-up included messages written on the wooden boards covering the holes where shop windows had been less than 24 hours earlier; And I made the choice that day to heal and repair my own body. I decided to clean up the mess I had left behind after years of neglect and poor food choices. I made the decision to stop eating meat and to begin the process of leaning into a plant-strong lifestyle. It would be my love letter to myself.

My love letter isn't written with a pen or a keyboard. It isn't written on paper or a computer screen. It is written with beautiful, colourful, natural, whole foods. It is written on me. On my senses; my eyes, my nose, my palette, my stomach, my heart, my body, and my soul.

What I didn't expect was that this love letter to myself turned out to also be a love letter to the world. A whole-food, plant-strong lifestyle is better for the earth, better for the people and better to the animals. It is a kinder lifestyle. And one that I never thought I would choose.

I have always loved meat. I tried being a vegetarian years ago and lasted about 9 months. I missed meat and I had no idea how to actually eat healthfully. I just avoided things with faces but stuck with cheese, dairy and processed foods to make up the bulk of my diet. At the end of 9 months I was tired, lethargic and hungry for something with substance.

This time around the things that I am cutting down on in my diet are those things that are processed, refined, or made from animals. I am instead eating whole, natural and real foods - fruits, veggies, nuts, grains, beans, lentils, brown rice, tofu, almond milk.

As I write this, I just passed the 6 week mark of my new lifestyle and by and large I feel pretty fantastic. There have been some bonuses that I expected and others that I had no idea would happen. For instance, my dishes are always easy to clean - no grease! I can`t help but think of what that animal fat was doing inside my body if just the residue of it was making my dishes that greasy. Another notable and unexpected side effect is that almost immediately after I stopped eating animal products, I felt lighter and happier. I think of the suffering animals that I am no longer ingesting and it seems like there is an obvious connection. Other benefits - my skin has never looked better or felt more smooth. I`ve lost weight. Food tastes better and is more colourful and appealing to me.

I should clarify that I am not a vegan. I am allowing some flexibility in my lifestyle. It isn't plant-based, it is plant-strong. My goal these days is to have a diet of 90% plant-based proteins with an allowance of up to 10% animal-based proteins. The numbers are somewhat arbitrary since I'm not figuring out the math on everything I eat but, I find that I rarely end up dipping into the 10%. When I do it is mostly when I am out and there are absolutely no vegan options - something will have an egg cooked in it or it has butter or cheese in it. If at some point I am desperately craving a chicken wing, a piece of bacon or a bite of steak, then I will weigh my craving carefully and make a decision in the present.

So why did I do it?

Seeing the documentary Forks Over Knives and reading The China Study were pretty major catalysts for changing my behaviour. Learning that there is a protein in animal products that acts as a fertilizer for the big 3 diseases in North America (heart disease, diabetes and cancer) let alone a legion of smaller (but no less devastating) ailments was perspective altering to say the least. I am a candidate for all of the big 3 as well as some of the other diseases like macular degeneration and arthritis. If I can take control of my health, my body and my future through my diet and lifestyle then take control I must. The timing was right for me. The information clicked in my brain. I knew it to be true and I knew that I had to get on board.

Since making the switch to a whole-food, plant-strong lifestyle I have discovered new foods, new recipes, new energy and a new passion! It is my goal to continue living this great lifestyle and through my energy, excitement, and improved health, I hope to inspire others to want to look into trying it out too.

Conundrum

I am having some kind of moral or existential crisis! It's almost like I have no idea how to behave. With everything that has happened around the world, I feel as though I should be focusing on the planet, and prayer, and what I can do to help or prepare in case something like this happens in Vancouver. And yet, life goes on and if I give into the fear of something happening here, I am likely to become paralyzed in that fear.

I finished work early today and headed out to Richmond Center. I have been in desperate need of a good spring coat for years now. I have winter coats and hoodies but nothing really classy or nice for a spring coat. I have been watching a lot of What Not to Wear lately and it makes me want to update my look and wardrobe with a few key pieces. I found a fantastic coat for a great price. I am thrilled and at the same time I feel somewhat shallow that that is important to me.

I know it's pointless to feel bad about it, since feeling bad never made anyone feel good. (except people who enjoy feeling bad - but if it makes them feel good then are they really feeling bad??) I want to focus on positive vibrations and on calling positive things into my life and the world.

So here is to positivity and focusing on good things for the world, for Japan, for all of humanity. And to looking good while we do it!

The downside to tweeting!

Twitter has ruined my capacity for writing paragraphs. I used to be able to write perfectly good blog posts and now I find myself thinking in 'tweets' of 140 characters or less. I think that I need to committ to writing blog posts on a regular basis just so I can practice writing longer ...things. Yikes! I didn't even have a better word than 'things' to describe what I meant. Not good for someone who likes to think of herself as a writer.

Second guessing!

I am second guessing my Oscar predictions. I am starting to think that The King's Speech might take the best picture win and that Hailee Steinfeld might take best Supporting Actress over Melissa Leo. And I've wavered on best original and adapted screenplay over to The King's Speech and The Social Network.

Sheesh!

Ok. I've officially changed my ballot for the two screenplays but have left them as is for best picture and supporting actress.

Committing my Oscar predictions to the interweb!

Here is my official list of predictions for the 83rd Academy Awards.
The hardest one for me to finally choose was best original screenplay. I was completely torn between Inception and The Kids are All Right. And as for Best picture, it was a tough call between The Social Network and The King's Speech,but I finally had to go with my gut. I'll update tomorrow with the actual winners and see how my predictions fared.

*update - I have made two changes to my predictions. Best original screenplay from Inception to The King's Speech and Best Adapted Screenplay from 127 Hours to The Social Network

*update #2 - I am adding the winners to the list now

Best Picture
The Social Network
winner - The King's Speech

Best Actor
Colin Firth

Best Actress
Natalie Portman

Best Supporting Actor
Christian Bale

Best Supporting Actress
Melissa Leo

Best Director
David Fincher
winner - Tom Hooper

Best Original Screenplay
The King's Speech

Best Adapted Screenplay
The Social Network

Best Animated Movie
Toy Story 3

Best Foreign Film
Biutiful
winner - Civilization

Best Cinematography
Black Swan
winner - Inception (obviously!)

Best Editing
127 Hours
winner - The Social Network

Best Art Direction
The King's Speech
winner - Alice in Wonderland

Best Costume Design
The King's Speech
winner - Alice in WOnderland

Best Makeup
The Way Back
winner - The Wolfman (obviously!)

Best Original Score
The Social Network

Best Original Song
Toy Story 3 "We Belong Together"

Best Sound Mixing
Inception

Best Sound Editing
Toy Story 3
winner - Inception

Best Visual Effects
Inception

Best Documentary Feature
Exit Through The Gift Shop
winner - Inside Job

Best Documentary Short
Strangers No More

Best Animated Short
Day & Night
winner - The Lost Thing

Best Live Action Short
God of Love

a fresh start

Tomorrow is my 37th birthday. I feel like I should probably feel far more mature than I do. But there I go arguing with what is again. I find myself doing this a lot lately - arguing with what is.

There's no point to it. It all is what it is and this post has very quickly gone from a post about my birthday to a post about something else entirely. This concept of accepting what is, is ancient. It isn't a new idea. I think it's probably been around since the beginning of time. It's just new to me and I am really really working on it.

There is this really fantastic section in the course (the entire course is fantastic but different parts jump out at me at different times) about accepting ourselves exactly as we are. It is in the section titled The Little Willingness and it says "The miracle of the holy instant lies in your willingness to let it be what it is. And in your willingness for this lies also your acceptance of yourself as you were meant to be".

It goes on to say that God lives within each of us and that He "did not create His dwelling place unworthy of Him".

My point in all of this is that I seem to be stretching and growing in ways that I am ready for but that are also brand new to me and a little (a lot) scary. Embarking on a relationship and opening my heart up, willing to be vulnerable and open - I'm treading on new ground and it's scary. But I am ready. I am as prepared as I can possibly be at this point. And for the past three months I just went for it.

The relationship didn't work out. I keep wanting to hold onto the details of it and why it didn't work but I can't, the details don't matter. If I can accept it for what it is and accept both he and I for who we are then I can let go and move forward. We both are exactly who we are meant to be and we will both be better matched with someone else out there.

I am sad about it though. It's still an ending and one I wasn't particularly ready for. The downhill began too soon and I held on for as long as I could because there had seemed to be potential for us. My breaking point happened in an instant and there wasn't any coming back from that. It was a moment of finally accepting that he is who he is and that it just wasn't going to work with who I am.

I am writing this post while I am feeling good. I could've written it yesterday and it would have been much less insightful and much more angry. Or I could've written it Saturday and it would have been sad. I am cycling through the typical emotions and I'm told this is normal and healthy, I still wonder how people do this as often as they do. I guess I'll find out because this has opened me up to really wanting a relationship and the only way to find one is to date.

So date I will.

The year in movies - 2010

I saw 45 movies in the theatre in 2010. This doesn't include the 26 that I rented and the 17 that I watched in my film courses. That's a lot of movies and fair number of good ones to boot!

I have a top ten and my breakdown here is going to be somewhat general. I have far too much trouble committing to an ordered list but I'll get as specific as I can with the top ten without making myself crazy.

Top ten
#1 The Social Network
#2 The Fighter
#3 The Kids Are All Right
#4 127 Hours
#5 Inception
#6 The King's Speech
#7 The Town
#8 A Single Man (technically this is a 2009 movie but I saw it in Jan)
#9 Shutter Island
#10 Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World

Really Really good movies that didn't break into the top ten
in chronological order of when I saw them
The Young Victoria
Avatar (loved it in the theatre but over time the love waned and I have no interest in ever seeing it again - also it's technically a 2009 movie too)
A Serious Man
The Ghost Writer
Kick Ass
Date Night
Get Him to the Greek
The Other Guys
Easy A
Nowhere Boy
It's Kind of a Funny Story
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
Black Swan

Good movies (also in chronological order of when I saw them)
Leap Year
Precious
2012
Law Abiding Citizen
Alice in Wonderful
Letters to Juliet
Twilight Eclipse
Eat Pray Love
The Switch
Flipped
Fair Game
Love and Other Drugs
How Do You Know

Alright movies (same order)
Step Up 3D
Burlesque
Going the Distance
Catfish

Almost terrible (no order)
Life as we Know it
Just Wright
Clash of the Titans

Fairly terrible (no order)
Sex & The City 2
Valentine's Day
Solitary Man

*Update - It has been pointed out to me that my memory might not be serving me entirely well when it comes to a couple of these movies. I received the following email today "Life as we know it - you thought it was fairly terrible? i thought we loved it! and solitary man was good? i thought we hated it!"

*Update #2 - Between A Single Man, A Serious Man and Solitary Man, I forgot which was which and rated Solitary Man far too high on the list. It actually needs to be in the fairly terrible category (which I am moving it to right now). It is definitely a contender for worst movie of the year.

1.1.11 and it's 1:11

Happy New Year! I have written that sentence in so many ways over the past 13 hours. I have handwritten it, texted it, facebooked it, tweeted it, blogged it...not to mention the countless times I have said it. And I'm not done yet. Over the rest of today and probably for the next week, I will write and say it many times more!

I told LDub earlier this week that I took the kindle to a coffee shop but ended up tweeting, blipping and blogging instead. We laughed and said that if 1992 me had heard me say that, she would have no idea what I was talking about.

Moving Pictures

I had planned on writing about movies but I left the list that I was going to be working from at home. I have seen 45 movies in the theatre this year and yesterday I started organizing them into categories. My categories are very general as of right now. They are pretty much 'loved it', 'liked it', 'it was ok', didn't like it' and 'hated it'. All I can remember off the top of my head right now is that my 'loved it' list had 9 movies on it. I figure I need a top ten list so I am going to go see The King's Speech tonight and hopefully that will round out the ten best. If not though, I am happy to have a top nine - it's original at least.

I always think that I am going to try and see 52 movies in a year just so I can say I have averaged one a week but I always seem to fall right around 45. I don't want to see crap just to fill a quota so I let the flicks fall where they may and see what I want to see. Usually without any regrets. I think the only 2 movies I have recently regretted paying to see were The Ugly Truth and Zack and Miri make a Porno - both terrible movies!

Prepping for the Year in Review

I started thinking about 'My Year in Review' this morning while I was in the shower - the shower seems to be a great thinking place for me. I had reread my YiR blog post for 2009 not too long ago and was thinking of that as a gauge for this year's YiR and I realized something fairly interesting.

2009 was a tough year but I had a long list of great things to write about too. It was a memorable year in that a lot happened both good and bad (although in hindsight is the bad ever really bad). 2010 was a lot more understated. There are big things...The Olympics, dating, school, holidays...but it still seems like less. I haven't finished compiling my list yet so I know I am missing some things. I should hopefully have the post up by the end of the week though so we'll see.

*Update - upon some reflection, I've decided that yes, sometimes the bad is actually just really bad.

Nearly didn't post this one...

I am tucked away right now, in the corner of a local cozy coffee shop. I chose this particular coffee shop today because of it's location and it's coffee. I often pick where I am going to go based on the clientele - more specifically, men. I like to go where the men hang out. As a single girl for the past *cough* years, I find it's a good thing to put yourself in situations where other singles may be hanging out.

So here's the thing with that plan - I'm not a single girl anymore. Old habits are hard to break though and I find myself still thinking like a single girl. So today when trying to decide where to go and write, the first places that came to mind are the men-centric places. Not that I ever met an available, age appropriate or straight guy at any of the places I frequent. When I remembered that my goal today was to write and not scope out available men, it narrowed my choices of where to go down to two. This one won out because it's got the best atmosphere.

*I have to interrupt my own writing to let you know that I am listening to a playlist while I write and Bad Bad Leroy Brown is playing and I am slightly rocking out.

So, back to me not being a single girl. This is new. Six weeks new...well, actually almost eight weeks but he's been away for the past two so they are harder to count. Since he's been gone, my life has mostly gone back to exactly what it was before we met and so it adds to the confusion of trying to remember not to think like a single girl. Before he left, he referred to himself as my boyfriend and when I talked to him today he talked about our 'relationship' so clearly I need to break the single girl thought process.

I had thought that when I started dating that I would blog about it, share the stories with everyone. Well, it turns out I am far more private than I expected. Even as I type this, I am contemplating deleting the whole post.

The single girl lifestyle has been mostly very good to me over the years. I went back to school, moved into the city, started a new career, found my passions (writing, painting, school, movies, God, my friends, myself), I have a rich and full social life, I have great friends and am rarely ever bored or lonely (and I've been lonelier while in relationships than I ever have been as a single girl - the loneliness is far more acute when you're not alone). But the single girl lifestyle also had a ceiling and it was fast approaching.

So, I don't know that I will be blogging about my adventures in dating as I had thought I would. Maybe as I get more comfortable with it, I will write more about it. As it stands right now though, this will have to be enough.