1) Finding my library card again.
2) Having my Russian midterm unexpectedly pushed back yet AGAIN.
3) Watching Buster Keaton and Laurel and Hardy with my English 337 professor.
4) Desmond. Faraday. 'Nuff said.
5) Writing some more novel.
6) SEEING A GUY IN THE COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCE ADVISING CENTER WITH HIS FEET TATTOOED TO LOOK LIKE HE'S WEARING THE WINGED SANDALS OF MERCURY. That, my friends, is just awesome.
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Whew . . .
Gotta do Russian studying. Now. And I have a headache.
Anyway, I was all set to enjoy the long-awaited Desmond-centric episode tonight when it got cut off at a crucial moment by a flash flood advisory. So. Annoying. It marred the whole episode, which is a huge shame. Anyway, I ended up liking the episode, but also being very, very confused. I need to watch it again. On Hulu, where no flood advisories will get in the way.
And there's no worries about flooding where I am, so that's why I sound so nonchalant about the whole advisory thing. It just broke the mood of the episode for me at a crucial point, which made the episode less engrossing than it should have been!!!
Although . . . Daniel and Desmond and Charlie all in one episode together? That already gets a happy dance by default. Emotional-scene-that-was-ruined-by-flood-advisory would have been epic, I know. SO, I will empty my mind, rewatch the episode, and not only like it, but love it like I should have the first time. Hopefully. I was loving it until the beeping and recorded voice cut across everything! >:(
I bought tickets to watch the Hawaii premiere of "The Secret of Kells" on Friday night, which I'm super excited about. I've been wanting to watch this film for a long time, thank goodness it's finally here on the island!
And I'm going to fail my Russian midterm tomorrow. But I can retake it. So I will retake it and do better.
I also have not managed to find my mysterious vanishing library card, so I guess I'll just shell out the fifteen dollars or whatever needed to buy a new one. What a pain.
Any last notes? Um . . . I watched Laurel and Hardy's "The Music Box" at an Honors English Program meeting today. That was fun. And I'm almost done with S is for Space. It's an interesting group of stories.
Also, after a vote in class today my Western lit classmates voted to read excerpts from Plato's Republic for next classtime instead of my choice, excerpts from Herodotus' The Histories. I've read both books before multiple times, so I don't really care I suppose, considering that after the real thing I'm always disappointed in excerpts anyway, but I'm not going to bother reading Plato. I know that blasted Analogy of the Cave by heart and back-to-front by now, thank you very much--I've only had to study it every single year of my life since I was thirteen!!! And role-play about it in class last semester, no less!! Sigh.
I like Plato's writings, they are interesting, and the Analogy is very compelling. It would just . . . have been nice to have been able to reread about Xerxes attempting to punish a river by throwing hot branding irons and chains into it for a change. I don't want to have to sit through yet another explanation of the Cave while most of my fellow students are introduced to it for the first time. Thursday will be a slooooooow day.
Anyway, I was all set to enjoy the long-awaited Desmond-centric episode tonight when it got cut off at a crucial moment by a flash flood advisory. So. Annoying. It marred the whole episode, which is a huge shame. Anyway, I ended up liking the episode, but also being very, very confused. I need to watch it again. On Hulu, where no flood advisories will get in the way.
And there's no worries about flooding where I am, so that's why I sound so nonchalant about the whole advisory thing. It just broke the mood of the episode for me at a crucial point, which made the episode less engrossing than it should have been!!!
Although . . . Daniel and Desmond and Charlie all in one episode together? That already gets a happy dance by default. Emotional-scene-that-was-ruined-by-flood-advisory would have been epic, I know. SO, I will empty my mind, rewatch the episode, and not only like it, but love it like I should have the first time. Hopefully. I was loving it until the beeping and recorded voice cut across everything! >:(
I bought tickets to watch the Hawaii premiere of "The Secret of Kells" on Friday night, which I'm super excited about. I've been wanting to watch this film for a long time, thank goodness it's finally here on the island!
And I'm going to fail my Russian midterm tomorrow. But I can retake it. So I will retake it and do better.
I also have not managed to find my mysterious vanishing library card, so I guess I'll just shell out the fifteen dollars or whatever needed to buy a new one. What a pain.
Any last notes? Um . . . I watched Laurel and Hardy's "The Music Box" at an Honors English Program meeting today. That was fun. And I'm almost done with S is for Space. It's an interesting group of stories.
Also, after a vote in class today my Western lit classmates voted to read excerpts from Plato's Republic for next classtime instead of my choice, excerpts from Herodotus' The Histories. I've read both books before multiple times, so I don't really care I suppose, considering that after the real thing I'm always disappointed in excerpts anyway, but I'm not going to bother reading Plato. I know that blasted Analogy of the Cave by heart and back-to-front by now, thank you very much--I've only had to study it every single year of my life since I was thirteen!!! And role-play about it in class last semester, no less!! Sigh.
I like Plato's writings, they are interesting, and the Analogy is very compelling. It would just . . . have been nice to have been able to reread about Xerxes attempting to punish a river by throwing hot branding irons and chains into it for a change. I don't want to have to sit through yet another explanation of the Cave while most of my fellow students are introduced to it for the first time. Thursday will be a slooooooow day.
Monday, April 5, 2010
I've Lost My Library Card!
I don't know how it happened! I really don't! But I went to the public library to return books today, and picked up three more, and then was suddenly struck with the awful revelation:
My library card is not in my wallet. Nor is it in my jeans pocket. Nor is it in my school backpack. It is GONE.
The library will hold my books for me for three days. I have to find my library card in three days. This is extremely annoying. My library card is like an extension of myself; it's as though I was just about to get a manicure when suddenly I realize my hand has disappeared. Except I never get manicures, ever. But whatever.
I'm going to poke around my sock drawer and bookshelves and empty all my coat pockets. Hopefully that card turns up. If not . . . ugh, that doesn't bear thinking about! :(
My library card is not in my wallet. Nor is it in my jeans pocket. Nor is it in my school backpack. It is GONE.
The library will hold my books for me for three days. I have to find my library card in three days. This is extremely annoying. My library card is like an extension of myself; it's as though I was just about to get a manicure when suddenly I realize my hand has disappeared. Except I never get manicures, ever. But whatever.
I'm going to poke around my sock drawer and bookshelves and empty all my coat pockets. Hopefully that card turns up. If not . . . ugh, that doesn't bear thinking about! :(
Sunday, April 4, 2010
"The Eleventh Hour"--Welcome, Matt Smith!!
If you have not yet watched "The Eleventh Hour", please go watch it. It's available on Youtube now (HERE is one link), so many thanks to our friends across the pond for not making us wait two more weeks!
Okay, so I'm too tired (it's late at night here) to write a full review, and anyways I don't see what the point of that would be. So to sum up: "The Eleventh Hour" is fantastic. The alien spaceship was pretty cheap and not very impressive, but I didn't care because of the following:
1) The Doctor. Matt Smith is BRILLIANT, as I had expected and hoped him to be, but it's still a relief that he WAS. He is already joining my favorite Doctors pantheon (that means he's joining 2, 5, and 10, in case you were wondering, haha), and it's only his first outing. I thought the episode would, at least on some level, be sad to watch. But to be quite honest . . . I did not miss Tennant. Which is a relief. I was afraid that I'd watch scenes and wonder how he would have played them, but Smith plays them so well, I simply relax and enjoy his performance and don't think about other things. So huzzah for the Eleventh Doctor, and I can't wait until next Saturday!
2) Amy Pond. Another Scottish accent! Anyway, I loved her character too; she's very real but very entertaining to watch, and her character is fleshed out and has depth already, even though it's only the first episode! She also works very well with Smith; their interactions were great. This is definitely a winning TARDIS team, and a companion who's story and welfare I can care about.
3) The music. It's different, but I really enjoy it. Apart from the opening theme, which I'm not so keen on . . . it's not horrible, really, but it's not good. The new opening visuals however are much more enjoyable than I had anticipated.
4) The story. It was not an amazing story, but was elevated by the quality of the actors' performances. The time travel plot within the story (without giving too much away) added the depth to the story that was needed, so the aliens were really only background to me against which I could watch and judge my first impressions of the Eleventh Doctor and Amy. And the story wasn't bad anyway--it was clever, and had satisfying moments of creepiness.
5) Nods to previous Doctors/episodes. Nothing really blatant. But they were there, subtlely enough to be entertaining for Classic Who fans. At the moment when video footage showing brief glimpses of each past Doctor flashed on the screen, that in combination with the awesome music and the context literally made me jump up and cheer, which was pretty much my reaction to the whole episode. I had the somewhat surreal experience of watching "The Waters of Mars" right after I finished watching "The Eleventh Hour" (there was a "Doctor Who" marathon showing all the DT specials on the telly); it's one of my favorite "Doctor Who" episodes. It was interesting; watching it I instantly identify with Ten, but coming back to Eleven, I instantly recognize Eleven as the Doctor too. Not a continuation of Ten, but a continuation of the Doctor. Smith's portrayal is natural, not an aping of Ten, for which I am relieved. It shows that the character is still in good hands, evolving and yet staying the same for yet another regeneration.
6) Script. There were some madly funny moments, some powerful moments, some poignant moments, and even some shivers-down-your-spine moments. So that's all in good hands.
The verdict: I am thoroughly pleased with this new era of "Who" as based upon what I saw in this one episode. The Doctor and Amy Pond are just about perfect. So go run off and watch it if you have not already, and then let me know what you think!
And so much for writing only a short review. Oops.
Okay, so I'm too tired (it's late at night here) to write a full review, and anyways I don't see what the point of that would be. So to sum up: "The Eleventh Hour" is fantastic. The alien spaceship was pretty cheap and not very impressive, but I didn't care because of the following:
1) The Doctor. Matt Smith is BRILLIANT, as I had expected and hoped him to be, but it's still a relief that he WAS. He is already joining my favorite Doctors pantheon (that means he's joining 2, 5, and 10, in case you were wondering, haha), and it's only his first outing. I thought the episode would, at least on some level, be sad to watch. But to be quite honest . . . I did not miss Tennant. Which is a relief. I was afraid that I'd watch scenes and wonder how he would have played them, but Smith plays them so well, I simply relax and enjoy his performance and don't think about other things. So huzzah for the Eleventh Doctor, and I can't wait until next Saturday!
2) Amy Pond. Another Scottish accent! Anyway, I loved her character too; she's very real but very entertaining to watch, and her character is fleshed out and has depth already, even though it's only the first episode! She also works very well with Smith; their interactions were great. This is definitely a winning TARDIS team, and a companion who's story and welfare I can care about.
3) The music. It's different, but I really enjoy it. Apart from the opening theme, which I'm not so keen on . . . it's not horrible, really, but it's not good. The new opening visuals however are much more enjoyable than I had anticipated.
4) The story. It was not an amazing story, but was elevated by the quality of the actors' performances. The time travel plot within the story (without giving too much away) added the depth to the story that was needed, so the aliens were really only background to me against which I could watch and judge my first impressions of the Eleventh Doctor and Amy. And the story wasn't bad anyway--it was clever, and had satisfying moments of creepiness.
5) Nods to previous Doctors/episodes. Nothing really blatant. But they were there, subtlely enough to be entertaining for Classic Who fans. At the moment when video footage showing brief glimpses of each past Doctor flashed on the screen, that in combination with the awesome music and the context literally made me jump up and cheer, which was pretty much my reaction to the whole episode. I had the somewhat surreal experience of watching "The Waters of Mars" right after I finished watching "The Eleventh Hour" (there was a "Doctor Who" marathon showing all the DT specials on the telly); it's one of my favorite "Doctor Who" episodes. It was interesting; watching it I instantly identify with Ten, but coming back to Eleven, I instantly recognize Eleven as the Doctor too. Not a continuation of Ten, but a continuation of the Doctor. Smith's portrayal is natural, not an aping of Ten, for which I am relieved. It shows that the character is still in good hands, evolving and yet staying the same for yet another regeneration.
6) Script. There were some madly funny moments, some powerful moments, some poignant moments, and even some shivers-down-your-spine moments. So that's all in good hands.
The verdict: I am thoroughly pleased with this new era of "Who" as based upon what I saw in this one episode. The Doctor and Amy Pond are just about perfect. So go run off and watch it if you have not already, and then let me know what you think!
And so much for writing only a short review. Oops.
Friday, April 2, 2010
"How To Train Your Dragon"
Blessed Good Friday to you!
I went to the movies with my grandmother today, because she's been wanting to watch "How To Train Your Dragon" for a long time. I would not have gone on my own, because I wasn't sure if I was interested in the film or not; I've never liked anything by Dreamworks before, and the trailers looked only so-so to me.
Well, after watching it, I have to urge you to watch the film. It was very, very good. It managed to get past the somewhat trite plot that is in just about every kid's movie (kid doesn't fit in; kid is therefore a disappointment to his father; kid decides to secretly do his own thing; kid is found out; kid is in trouble; kid manages to become a hero and save the day) by fleshing it out and adding an emotional depth to it that I have not seen in many computer animated movies beyond Pixar's, and certainly not in any previous Dreamworks film. The animation is gorgeous; the scenery is beautiful and the characters are great fun. Yeah, I'm gushing a bit, but honestly, I really loved this movie, and loved it all the more because I wasn't expecting to love it. Therefore this is an honest, unbiased reaction. I walked out of the theatre wanting to go back and watch it again, which didn't happen for "Alice in Wonderland", for example. Please go watch it and support it! My grandmother cried at the ending, and though I didn't, I was grinning for the entire film, and yeah . . . I did get a bit emotional at times, and no film since "Up" has done that to me (although "Up" did get me to actually shed tears). "Dragon" was so good, I'm wondering how "Toy Story 3" can possibly top it. And I'm a complete Pixar fan too. "Dragon" isn't "Ratatouille", but it is extremely good nonetheless.
Speaking of "Up", there are a few silent montage scenes in "Dragon" that reminded me strongly of the opening of "Up": The emotion and time progression being conveyed through only the visuals and beautiful music. Very different in mood to "Up"s amazing scene, but still very effective. I wonder if Dreamworks was inspired by that Pixar movie in making those montages, and I hope that such minimal animation is used in future films, because I find it very artistic.
By the way: I watched it in 3D, and it's definitely designed to be fully experienced in 3D, as there's plenty of beautiful flying sequences and stuff (and a part that looks like ashes are floating right past your head, haha), but it's not slavish to the 3D format, so I think it would be beautiful in 2D too. I say this because I know 3D is way more expensive than 2D, and we're all pennypinching these days, aren't we?
Oh, and I found out afterwards that David Tennant voiced one of the Vikings, an unnamed minor character, but still. He's getting everywhere. And that's not a bad thing :)
A large part of why the film was so wonderful, to me, was the music. I'm posting a Youtube video below that contains main themes from the film, so you can have a listen. This is now one of my favorite soundtracks ever; the Celtic-ness of it all of course plays to my Irish dancer nature anyway, but it's absolutely beautiful and emotive as well, and pairs perfectly to the film itself. It should definitely be nominated for awards this year. Give it a listen.
Anyway, I'm done jabbering for now. I'll try later today to post a medieval poem I discovered yesterday which I think is very suitable for Good Friday. Have a wonderful Easter weekend!
PS: I am aware that "How To Train Your Dragon" is originally a book. I am also aware that this film is supposedly completely different from the book apart from sharing the title and some character names. I haven't read the book, so I can't really say which is better, but I think this is a case of "Howl's Moving Castle": The book may be excellent, and the film may be very different from the book, but the film is excellent too, in its own right.
I went to the movies with my grandmother today, because she's been wanting to watch "How To Train Your Dragon" for a long time. I would not have gone on my own, because I wasn't sure if I was interested in the film or not; I've never liked anything by Dreamworks before, and the trailers looked only so-so to me.
Well, after watching it, I have to urge you to watch the film. It was very, very good. It managed to get past the somewhat trite plot that is in just about every kid's movie (kid doesn't fit in; kid is therefore a disappointment to his father; kid decides to secretly do his own thing; kid is found out; kid is in trouble; kid manages to become a hero and save the day) by fleshing it out and adding an emotional depth to it that I have not seen in many computer animated movies beyond Pixar's, and certainly not in any previous Dreamworks film. The animation is gorgeous; the scenery is beautiful and the characters are great fun. Yeah, I'm gushing a bit, but honestly, I really loved this movie, and loved it all the more because I wasn't expecting to love it. Therefore this is an honest, unbiased reaction. I walked out of the theatre wanting to go back and watch it again, which didn't happen for "Alice in Wonderland", for example. Please go watch it and support it! My grandmother cried at the ending, and though I didn't, I was grinning for the entire film, and yeah . . . I did get a bit emotional at times, and no film since "Up" has done that to me (although "Up" did get me to actually shed tears). "Dragon" was so good, I'm wondering how "Toy Story 3" can possibly top it. And I'm a complete Pixar fan too. "Dragon" isn't "Ratatouille", but it is extremely good nonetheless.
Speaking of "Up", there are a few silent montage scenes in "Dragon" that reminded me strongly of the opening of "Up": The emotion and time progression being conveyed through only the visuals and beautiful music. Very different in mood to "Up"s amazing scene, but still very effective. I wonder if Dreamworks was inspired by that Pixar movie in making those montages, and I hope that such minimal animation is used in future films, because I find it very artistic.
By the way: I watched it in 3D, and it's definitely designed to be fully experienced in 3D, as there's plenty of beautiful flying sequences and stuff (and a part that looks like ashes are floating right past your head, haha), but it's not slavish to the 3D format, so I think it would be beautiful in 2D too. I say this because I know 3D is way more expensive than 2D, and we're all pennypinching these days, aren't we?
Oh, and I found out afterwards that David Tennant voiced one of the Vikings, an unnamed minor character, but still. He's getting everywhere. And that's not a bad thing :)
A large part of why the film was so wonderful, to me, was the music. I'm posting a Youtube video below that contains main themes from the film, so you can have a listen. This is now one of my favorite soundtracks ever; the Celtic-ness of it all of course plays to my Irish dancer nature anyway, but it's absolutely beautiful and emotive as well, and pairs perfectly to the film itself. It should definitely be nominated for awards this year. Give it a listen.
Anyway, I'm done jabbering for now. I'll try later today to post a medieval poem I discovered yesterday which I think is very suitable for Good Friday. Have a wonderful Easter weekend!
PS: I am aware that "How To Train Your Dragon" is originally a book. I am also aware that this film is supposedly completely different from the book apart from sharing the title and some character names. I haven't read the book, so I can't really say which is better, but I think this is a case of "Howl's Moving Castle": The book may be excellent, and the film may be very different from the book, but the film is excellent too, in its own right.
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