epic haiku

On being Anne

You're Anne of Green Gables!

by L.M. Montgomery

Bright, chipper, vivid, but with the emotional fortitude of cottage
cheese, you make quite an impression on everyone you meet. You're impulsive, rash,
honest, and probably don't have a great relationship with your parents. People hurt
your feelings constantly, but your brazen honestly doesn't exactly treat others with
kid gloves. Ultimately, though, you win the hearts and minds of everyone that matters.
You spell your name with an E and you want everyone to know about it.


Take the Book Quiz
at the Blue Pyramid.

My best friend from my childhood still refers to me as her "Anne of Green Gables" friend. She is just like Diana, which is funny since I have the wavy dark brown hair and she had the long red hair. ^_^ I actually do have the same MB personality type as Anne, ENFP.

poetic insomnia

Most of you know I have chronic insomnia. Well, I do. It's fascinating how something I so little understand is part of me and constantly forming the choices I make and the opportunities I have. This has been very true this week as being sick takes all the fight for a normal schedule out of me and I just have to succumb to my need to sleep and wake as my body commands.

I woke up today at 4pm and tried to make sense out of what is coming up in the week and what I had already slept through. About six Heather came in and asked me to join her on a study trip to Barnes and Noble, so I did. Books are healing beings. I got back about 12:30am and headed strait to the dark room to join Rae, already in progress with printmaking. I developed my prints and have given them time to dry. It's been a poetic evening despite being extremely sick still and not sleeping. God's a weirdo, and night's like tonight show me why I trust Him and makes me want to trust him more and more.

the bandwagon

Regardless of what should win, deserves to win, will win, this is what would make me happy if it did win. For the complete tally go here.

SOUND EDITING
FINDING NEMO

SOUND MIXING
THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RETURN OF THE KING

VISUAL EFFECTS
THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RETURN OF THE KING

WRITING (ADAPTED SCREENPLAY)
THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RETURN OF THE KING

WRITING (ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY)
LOST IN TRANSLATION

ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
FINDING NEMO

ART DIRECTION
THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RETURN OF THE KING

COSTUME DESIGN
THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RETURN OF THE KING

FILM EDITING
THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RETURN OF THE KING

MAKEUP
PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: THE CURSE OF THE BLACK PEARL

MUSIC (SCORE)
THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RETURN OF THE KING

MUSIC (SONG)
"Into the West" - THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RETURN OF THE KING

ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
Johnny Depp - PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: THE CURSE OF THE BLACK PEARL
or
Bill Murray - LOST IN TRANSLATION

ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Ken Watanabe - THE LAST SAMURAI

ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE
Keisha Castle-Hughes - WHALE RIDER

DIRECTING
LOST IN TRANSLATION

BEST PICTURE
THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RETURN OF THE KING

protecting hearts

This is something I wrote on a board some of my friends from high school and I frequent. The guys asked me about what it means to protect the hearts of their girlfriends, so I gave them my thoughts. It's sparking some good thinking, so I thought I would share here too.

Protecting a girls emotions is being ready to take the responsibility for every emotion you ask for from her. This means, you do not bring up marriage in a context of "us" unless you are ready for the consequences of the emotions that you will subsequently unleash. Telling a girl you love her is like removing a pin from a grenade, and baby, you better be ready for the shrapnel. There is no way as a human that you can COMPLETLY protect the women you pursue since so many emotions and expectations are conveyed non-verbally, but by creating boundaries and KEEPING them you have a better chance. That is the main difference between "typical" dating and "courting", the expectation and seriousness. In a courting situation the girls heart is in the forefront of the young man's mind, meaning he is interested in protecting it for her future husband, be it him or someone else. This does not just mean that he protects her from giving to much of her self away, but also from the ensuing disillusionment and “man hating” so common with girls who have given to much of themselves away and been crushed. When men don’t follow through with what they say they are going to do it lessons the respect a women has for him, which is tres bad bad bad. The goal in this is not to be naive, but ultimately to achieve true intimacy once married. Hope that clears it up at least a bit. I can elaborate more if you want.

no like

I watched two movies I didn't like last night. Winter Sleepers, the second film by one of my favorite directors, and Adaptation, which has been praised by many critics I admire. Winter Sleepers just sucked. The filming was amazing, but I didn't care about the characters at all and couldn't figure out why they did almost anything they did in the film (eating did make sense, since it important for survival and all.) Adaptation is trickier, especially since it is well done. Spike Jonze and Charlie Kaufman intrigue me and I know I will continue to see their movies in the future because they do have that sort of spark of brilliance. The film didn't sit right with me though because it's egocentric. I don't know of any other way they could have done it though, so I am just going to maintain that I just didn't like it. I did find this review helpful. What I am trying to poke at here is somehow summed up in the following excerpt from said review: "As the critic Robin Wood has said, himself apologizing for stating such a simple truth, "Literature is literature. Film is film." He goes on to say that there is no such thing as a faithful adaptation, since "the greatness of [great literature] resides in the writer's grasp of the potentialities of language" -- subtleties that can't be reproduced in film."

gathering

I think I actually may have sounded intelligent in my essays today for my Contemporary Philosophy exam!!!! As Jenni said earlier "clickage" the light bulb went on. This seems to be the semester for gathering momentum for whatever it is God will have me do with my life.

blech

I'm sick. I am achooing and everything. *sniff* I feel like I am three and I have to write a response paper on Moore's "Subject Matter of Ethics" as well as study for my logic test and contemporary test... three year olds are not able to grasp such theory!!!! So I am just going to cuddle up with Norman (my teddy) and wrap myself up in my little mermaid blanket. Blech. In the mean time, I will try not to breath on anyone.

weekends

This has been a weekend. Wow. Last year it was the opening weekend of Antigone and the beginning of the end with my ex… or at least the beginning of Dr. Davis’ nagging about how I needed to break up with him. This weekend was significantly better thanks to no false illusions about what I want or need. “Lady, you don’t need a boyfriend, you just need sleep!”- My favorite quote from the Twilight Zone marathon Friday night. It’s just so true. I am of the persuasion that one should not look for a significant other to pass the time, one should occasionally long for their soul mate to appear. This is my paradox: really not wanting a boyfriend, really wanting my soul mate. Weirder still, I am fine with that. Timing is so crucial and so much of last spring semester was spent listening to my then boyfriend wine about his carpet, or his drain, or something disgustingly domestic instead of actually trying to get to know me deeper. As Sabrina said, I don’t fear domestically, I fear being domesticated. I truly enjoyed watching the mush this weekend. It gives me hope for the possibility of that kind of honest caring in my future.

In the mean time, I watched Psycho for my Valentines celebration. I sat between Justin and Jose, who were both sick, didn’t tell me, and now I think I am getting sick… a touching gift. ^_~

We watching Psycho and Notorious back to back and I really thought I would like Notorious better, but I didn’t. Psycho is brilliant on more levels then I can adequately articulate now. I am becoming very happy with my diet of high quality cinema. Friday night I went with a group of Rivendell guys and their raffle dates to see Some Like it Hot at the Barking Legs Theatre. That was a lot of fun. The movie was a little awkward in the fact that Marilyn’s clothes didn’t clothe her, but the hilarity made up for it. It was a touch formulaic, and thus boring at moments, but over all I can recognize why it is on the AFI top twenty list.

I ended the weekend with really bad news. Two of the men at my church back home are in the process of leaving their wives for women they have been having affairs with. I am extremely disgusted at the lack of honor in this situation because, frankly, it scares the shit out of me. It really doesn’t surprise me though, which sad. These men have son’s my age who I did ministries with in high school. These men helped with those ministries. I just praise God that in spite of our fumblings His word does not return void.

Last weekend is also worthy of note as it was heaps of fun. I meant to write about it this week and didn’t. There was karaoke in third lobby (with the wonderful DJ styling of Mark Geib and Lael Garaldi), followed by a somewhat spontaneous trip to Greyfriers were there was much speed scrabble played. Can I just say that it doesn’t get much better then speed scrabble? After that Justin, Jose and I watched Breathless in the Forth Lobby bathroom. *ahem* This was my first experience with Justin and Jose in the Forth Lobby bathroom. I also want to say that I was pressured in to writing that by Linnea, Eb, Earl, Justin and Jose (my Netflix familia).

Thursday Dr. Barker met with my group for poetry. He likes my stuff. This is significant. God is slowly revealing more of his plans for me and I can’t even begin to contemplate how amazing it all is. I just keep praying for the fortitude to stay true to the path he has set before me.

Finally, on a musical note, I have been listening to a lot of Bright Eyes lately. I wanted to share the lyrics to the most played song in my room the last two weeks. It’s written by an idealist like myself who also gets down heartened by the games people play, but dude, still gets horny. This song sort of sums up my reaction to Lost in Translation (which I watched for the first time at Emily’s party. Thanks Emily.) I really liked the movie, but came away from it with this feeling of why get to know people? They just leave. I think about that sometimes, existentialist that I am. Anywho, for what it’s worth, enjoy.

I picked you out
Of a crowd and talked to you.
Said I liked your shoes,
You said, "Thanks, Can I follow you?"

You write such pretty words,
But life's no storybook.
Love's an excuse to get hurt.
And to hurt.
Do you like to hurt?
I do, I do.
Then hurt me,
Then hurt me,
Then hurt me...

dribbling thoughts at long last

I shut down socially when I am processing emotions. The last few weeks have taken all of my emotional energy, and so I have not been very extraverted of late. I have stayed in the familiar and known to compensate for all the unknown. Now, coming out of a lot of non-verbal emotional processing I eventually hit the thinking mode, which is very much so a social thing in me. I am beginning to hit the thinking mode, so get ready for some blogging folks. I have absorbed a lot since I’ve been back.

First observation for my forth semester at Covenant: I have to pay attention in class again. The only core class I am taking is Pauline Epistles with Dr. MacDougall, which is fascinating. Dr. MacDougall’s teaching method is very engaging.

My favorite class this semester is definitely going to be Poetry with Dr. Barker. I have been reading through the assigned material for that class which is a collection of Pulitzer Prize winning author Mary Oliver. She mentions Ohio a lot throughout her poetry which has endeared her to me. My mother was born in Ohio, as was her mother and her mother’s mother. The maternal side of my family has very thick roots in the north east side of Ohio, the beautiful seemingly less seen side of the state. Oliver uses it as a term of comfort and safety.

I moved to Michigan when I was three months shy of ten. None of my family wanted to leave our precious home on West Park Boulevard, but my father had been unemployed for about a year and a half and felt God was clearly calling him to start a new PCA church in Midland, Michigan. Many of the people at my new church made fun of me for referring to Ohio as home which alienated me from any real welcome they tried to convey. The distance is still there eleven and a half years later. We don’t even go to the same church now. Those whose welcome was so bitter originally turned out to be true betrayers of the help we tried to bring. We left the church under very bad circumstances and at the same time I was suffering from the worst of my Lymes Disease. Ohio, while becoming further developed in area’s, stayed the same. From the welcoming smells in the air to the hugs of my extended family, Ohio was my safe place, my home. I still have dreams where my family moves back to our house at 321 West Park Boulevard. I had one this week. I know it would not be this significant to me if I hadn’t moved, but it still was a magical place.

I love it here in Georgia because I chose this place. Michigan was forced on me and I have never forgiven her, but Georgia is like a friend that I am falling deeper and deeper in love with. I am going to stay here this summer and am looking forward to my time to explore the places I have not had time to see yet.

Favorite new activity for the semester is a movie club of sorts. It’s really more of a Netflix sort of family. We have watched what seems like tons of movies so far. Already my scope of filmdom has been transformed; I have fallen in love with Andrei Tarkovsky. I have only seen Solaris and The Mirror, but I have already decided he is one of my all time favorite directors. Go out and watch the Mirror, get really confused, and then go to this web site and try to figure it out. We also watched Heaven, by one of my other favorite directors Tom Tykwer. Heaven is worth watching just on the merits of it being the last screenplay by Krzysztof Kieslowski, the writer and director of the acclaimed Blue, White, and Red movies (an abstract cultural and political commentary on modern France). Heaven is good, but takes itself a bit too seriously by the end and gets silly; beautiful, but silly. We are going to watch Winter Sleepers at some point soon, and hopefully that will be a bit better.

Anywho, this is all I have for now.