I just wanted to say a few short words on movies. They're great in that you don't have to watch a whole 30+ episodes to have consumed the media work in its entirety (vs. TV shows). But like my cousin, I too have recently found myself losing the attention span for even movies. For example, everyone has pretty much only said good things about Interstellar. I get that it might in actuality be a great movie, but I have no interest in watching it. Something about the duration and the fact that it's a "space" movie--"but it's such a GOOOOOD movie"--I get that yet I still somehow can't bring myself to care about seeing it.
Anyway I'm going off on a long-winded tangent as usual...back on track I just wanted to say that it's a pretty common thing for people to come up with lists of their favourite movies or maybe just a few all-time favourites (usually because it's a common small talk topic: "so what's your favourite movie?...What kind of movies do you like to watch?", etc, etc.). I feel like people actually have two lists of "favourite movies".
The first list is the one that is socially acceptable. This is the one more commonly divulged, and it is usually comprised of movies that were popular at some point or another...tending to be some timeless classic or of the more recent variety. The second list only ever comes out if the person feels immune to your judgement. This is the list of movies that person actually enjoys but for whatever reason can't admit to liking to just anyone. I guess if someone admits to having weird movie favourites, you should consider yourself lucky. You're likely in their good books and they're comfortable opening up to you a little.
Showing posts with label arts. Show all posts
Showing posts with label arts. Show all posts
Friday, July 17, 2015
Wednesday, January 9, 2013
Vertically challenged and full of C6H12O6
Does it say something about us if...
Gangnam style can break into the North American market through some ridiculous Youtube video (of which most people don't even know/care about the true meaning), while other half-decent, hardworking international artists have to struggle for it. I'm thinking Wonder Girls and Boa but I'm certain there are tons more.
Extreme lack of talent (e.g. Rebecca Black) can become more popular than slightly above-average talent through a general eagerness to criticize and troll.
Professionals (e.g doctors, teachers, athletes - namely HOCKEY PLAYERS) are fighting tooth and nail to maintain their (in some cases, ridiculously high) pay while there are many recent graduates and aspiring professionals eager to get even their toe in the door. We need professionals who are actually going to contribute to the profession positively instead of worrying about how much they're paid and throwing around their weight with overestimated self-importance. Here is my concerning question: does that happen to all of us once we get into that cushy position?
Gangnam style can break into the North American market through some ridiculous Youtube video (of which most people don't even know/care about the true meaning), while other half-decent, hardworking international artists have to struggle for it. I'm thinking Wonder Girls and Boa but I'm certain there are tons more.
Extreme lack of talent (e.g. Rebecca Black) can become more popular than slightly above-average talent through a general eagerness to criticize and troll.
Professionals (e.g doctors, teachers, athletes - namely HOCKEY PLAYERS) are fighting tooth and nail to maintain their (in some cases, ridiculously high) pay while there are many recent graduates and aspiring professionals eager to get even their toe in the door. We need professionals who are actually going to contribute to the profession positively instead of worrying about how much they're paid and throwing around their weight with overestimated self-importance. Here is my concerning question: does that happen to all of us once we get into that cushy position?
Sunday, October 21, 2012
Taylor Oh-So-Slow
Yes, I'm still hating on Taylor Swift. Her lyrics have always aggravated me. I do have to (regretfully) admit that I have 2 of her songs on my iPod because the tunes are pretty catchy. Other than that, I would not consider myself a fan in any regard.
Recent minor aggravation #1: her most recent (I think?) song - We will never ever ever get back together (or whatever it's called). To start with, that's a horrible song title. Second, how did that song even make it to #1 anywhere ever? It sounds like it can't decide whether it's going to be slow or an upbeat song they would play at a club. There's a reason that type of song hasn't been done before. No, it doesn't make you unique, Taylor; it plain sounds bad. Third, the video was pointless and super been-there-done-that--particularly by a REAL MUSICIAN (i.e. Avril Lavigne). The black "nerdy" glasses and the walking around with attitude thing has been done in her Girlfriend video. Try coming up with something original for a change. Now THAT would be something original for her.
#2: The worn-out facade she tries to paint over herself in her lyrics and videos.
"But she wears short skirts I wear t-shirts...
She wears high heels; I wear sneakers
She's cheer captain and I'm on the bleachers"
Most of her videos portray her as the plain overlooked girl stuck in the friend zone. As much as I hate the girl, I have to admit she's above average looking--after all she IS a celebrity. Anyway, the point is she can't really identify with that type of girl. Why is she pretending to? Two words describe this perfectly for me: Marketing ploy. That's how Taylor became big. She pretended to empathize with the majority of the female population's problems. I don't find her voice outstanding or anything, and she has a pretty annoying personality as shown in interviews and in the movie Valentines Day (where I'm pretty sure she's not acting).
#3: Pretty much a continuation of #2. Her recent scandal as shown on the front page of celebrity gossip magazines, she was dating some guy and was caught cheating on him with his cousin. How classy, Taylor, but so unsurprising.
Something is seriously wrong with me because I really enjoy writing posts like these. Hate rant over.
Recent minor aggravation #1: her most recent (I think?) song - We will never ever ever get back together (or whatever it's called). To start with, that's a horrible song title. Second, how did that song even make it to #1 anywhere ever? It sounds like it can't decide whether it's going to be slow or an upbeat song they would play at a club. There's a reason that type of song hasn't been done before. No, it doesn't make you unique, Taylor; it plain sounds bad. Third, the video was pointless and super been-there-done-that--particularly by a REAL MUSICIAN (i.e. Avril Lavigne). The black "nerdy" glasses and the walking around with attitude thing has been done in her Girlfriend video. Try coming up with something original for a change. Now THAT would be something original for her.
#2: The worn-out facade she tries to paint over herself in her lyrics and videos.
"But she wears short skirts I wear t-shirts...
She wears high heels; I wear sneakers
She's cheer captain and I'm on the bleachers"
Most of her videos portray her as the plain overlooked girl stuck in the friend zone. As much as I hate the girl, I have to admit she's above average looking--after all she IS a celebrity. Anyway, the point is she can't really identify with that type of girl. Why is she pretending to? Two words describe this perfectly for me: Marketing ploy. That's how Taylor became big. She pretended to empathize with the majority of the female population's problems. I don't find her voice outstanding or anything, and she has a pretty annoying personality as shown in interviews and in the movie Valentines Day (where I'm pretty sure she's not acting).
#3: Pretty much a continuation of #2. Her recent scandal as shown on the front page of celebrity gossip magazines, she was dating some guy and was caught cheating on him with his cousin. How classy, Taylor, but so unsurprising.
Something is seriously wrong with me because I really enjoy writing posts like these. Hate rant over.
Saturday, December 10, 2011
Hollywood Recycles
When I'm stressed or tired, I find comfort in watching an easy movie, as I just did with Mean Girls 2. As expected, they recycled the plot--and, seemingly, the actresses too, but maybe that's just me. Once I have seen an actor/actress, I tend to compare all the (vaguely) similar looking actors/actresses that I see later on to my original model of that "type". Such was the case for this movie.
Meaghan Martin (left) as the main character: tomboy Jo. Loved her character! Throughout the movie, I thought she looked and talked like Natalie Portman (right) but teenager version. Unfortunately, when I looked her up on IMDB, she was all made up and looked nothing like Natalie Portman, but to get what I'm talking about you'd have to see the movie yourself. Yes, that means sitting through ~106 mins of high school girl drama.
Note: the resemblance is a little clearer in this photo from the actual movie.
Jennifer Stone (left) as the protagonist's side-kick (i.e. bestie) kinda looks like Emma Stone (right). Mostly because of the red hair and freckles I guess. And when I saw that they shared the same last name, I had to double-check they weren't related. What a coincidence!
Anyway, although neither pair is truly THAT similar, I just thought this was a recent, and thus, relevant example of my "recognition bias" (if you will) that I have while watching movies.
Meaghan Martin (left) as the main character: tomboy Jo. Loved her character! Throughout the movie, I thought she looked and talked like Natalie Portman (right) but teenager version. Unfortunately, when I looked her up on IMDB, she was all made up and looked nothing like Natalie Portman, but to get what I'm talking about you'd have to see the movie yourself. Yes, that means sitting through ~106 mins of high school girl drama.
Note: the resemblance is a little clearer in this photo from the actual movie.
Jennifer Stone (left) as the protagonist's side-kick (i.e. bestie) kinda looks like Emma Stone (right). Mostly because of the red hair and freckles I guess. And when I saw that they shared the same last name, I had to double-check they weren't related. What a coincidence!
Anyway, although neither pair is truly THAT similar, I just thought this was a recent, and thus, relevant example of my "recognition bias" (if you will) that I have while watching movies.
A Double Standard of Morals
I am a Justin Bieber hater hater. Yes, two hates. First of all, why do we have to hate him? Has he done anything evil? Certainly, criticism and subconscious jealousy always cause us to judge celebrities on the harsher side. But the Justin Bieber hate seems to be particularly strong even before he hit puberty (i.e. he was still young enough to be considered a "kid"). If people only stopped to view him objectively, they would realize he actually has some talent. He may not be the best singer in the world, but are ANY of the other celebrities really ALL that they're worked up to be?
Another thing, people make fun of his adherence to cheesiness and "trying too hard". I don't understand why we point and laugh at this because the things that celebrities resort to are a direct result of what we, as an audience, support. Those stupid, trendy things he does are simply a show of him catering to what WE have made popular. And yes, most of our "trends" ARE completely stupid; is it fair to blame all of it on this one kid? He's not only the scapegoat. He's a blatant sign of what ridiculous fads we endorse today and we refuse to acknowledge it.
And all those quips about his "girly", pre-pubertal voice are hateful and rude. In case we've forgotten, decades ago, young boys used to undergo the horrible castration process to preserve such a pure, clear vocal range. Similarly, those individuals were often mocked and seen as unmanly. Clearly our race hasn't evolved or matured very much at all.
What also bothers me is how strongly people are advocating LGBT rights (hopefully that's the right order...)--and some of these very same people are also hating on Justin Bieber. I'm all for equality and eliminating the hate, but clearly we're not sincerely into our own messages if we're hating on a kid who happened to get a lucky break into the celeb world. Like charity, eliminating the hate starts at home (i.e. from our basic, underlying principles). In fact, the underlying causes of hate come from not being able to understand or appreciate another individual's position, which is exactly what is going on here. From what I see on Youtube, on Facebook, the general Internet, there is so much hate and judgement on Justin Bieber (but not just limited to him, of course)...I doubt openness and equality will be achieved anytime soon. Of course, it's not a perfect analogy because he hasn't faced nearly the same level and duration of persecution as members of the LGBT community, but do we really need to let something get that far before we finally realize we've done something wrong?
We're a pathetic species with a superficial double standard of morals. I am disgusted and ashamed.
Another thing, people make fun of his adherence to cheesiness and "trying too hard". I don't understand why we point and laugh at this because the things that celebrities resort to are a direct result of what we, as an audience, support. Those stupid, trendy things he does are simply a show of him catering to what WE have made popular. And yes, most of our "trends" ARE completely stupid; is it fair to blame all of it on this one kid? He's not only the scapegoat. He's a blatant sign of what ridiculous fads we endorse today and we refuse to acknowledge it.
And all those quips about his "girly", pre-pubertal voice are hateful and rude. In case we've forgotten, decades ago, young boys used to undergo the horrible castration process to preserve such a pure, clear vocal range. Similarly, those individuals were often mocked and seen as unmanly. Clearly our race hasn't evolved or matured very much at all.
What also bothers me is how strongly people are advocating LGBT rights (hopefully that's the right order...)--and some of these very same people are also hating on Justin Bieber. I'm all for equality and eliminating the hate, but clearly we're not sincerely into our own messages if we're hating on a kid who happened to get a lucky break into the celeb world. Like charity, eliminating the hate starts at home (i.e. from our basic, underlying principles). In fact, the underlying causes of hate come from not being able to understand or appreciate another individual's position, which is exactly what is going on here. From what I see on Youtube, on Facebook, the general Internet, there is so much hate and judgement on Justin Bieber (but not just limited to him, of course)...I doubt openness and equality will be achieved anytime soon. Of course, it's not a perfect analogy because he hasn't faced nearly the same level and duration of persecution as members of the LGBT community, but do we really need to let something get that far before we finally realize we've done something wrong?
We're a pathetic species with a superficial double standard of morals. I am disgusted and ashamed.
Monday, June 13, 2011
My Herbaceous Sprouts
Not sure if I mentioned it in my past food flings post, but I love herbs. In pasta, in salads, or simply by themselves--they're yummy. :)
Let me back up for a second...
Last Friday, I went to see X-men: First Class--if you've seen it and you have EYES (at the least), you probably already know that it's an awesome movie. For those who haven't WISELY taken the time to see the movie yet, there's a scene in it where the young X-men recruits are discussing their code names. This is when I realized their names are unique and pretty cool. Anyway, seeing the new movie inspired me to rewatch all the movies in chronological order, so I started with the first X-men movie on Saturday night--and I realized that Rogue and Storm are pretty cool names too (Jean not so much--does she even have a code name...?).
And we're back where we started...
One day when I was bored (sitting on the toilet, if you're one for details), a strange thought came to me: herbs have elegant, unique names. I think I'd seriously consider naming my child an herb. Probably one of my favourites: Oregano or Basil (if it's a guy) and Parsley or Mint (if it's a girl). Although it's my nemesis in the world of herbs, I have to admit that Coriander is a pretty sexy name for a girl too. Anyway, I think you get the point: my child will have a crazy superhero name or that of a herb. I understand if you feel sorry for my offspring--stuck between a superhero complex and a leafy green place.
But seriously, people have named their children worse things, right?
Let me back up for a second...
Last Friday, I went to see X-men: First Class--if you've seen it and you have EYES (at the least), you probably already know that it's an awesome movie. For those who haven't WISELY taken the time to see the movie yet, there's a scene in it where the young X-men recruits are discussing their code names. This is when I realized their names are unique and pretty cool. Anyway, seeing the new movie inspired me to rewatch all the movies in chronological order, so I started with the first X-men movie on Saturday night--and I realized that Rogue and Storm are pretty cool names too (Jean not so much--does she even have a code name...?).
And we're back where we started...
One day when I was bored (sitting on the toilet, if you're one for details), a strange thought came to me: herbs have elegant, unique names. I think I'd seriously consider naming my child an herb. Probably one of my favourites: Oregano or Basil (if it's a guy) and Parsley or Mint (if it's a girl). Although it's my nemesis in the world of herbs, I have to admit that Coriander is a pretty sexy name for a girl too. Anyway, I think you get the point: my child will have a crazy superhero name or that of a herb. I understand if you feel sorry for my offspring--stuck between a superhero complex and a leafy green place.
But seriously, people have named their children worse things, right?
Monday, May 9, 2011
I'm...unenchanted
So I (finally) just watched the movie Enchanted with my friend John before he left for a lovely two-week vacation in Korea (JEALOUS, btw!). It was okay for a time killer/break from schoolwork/summary of Disney movies. Basically, yeah, it wasn't original at all...combined all the traditional fairytale movies that Disney (?) has already covered.
Upsides:
-The original concept of juxtaposing reality with fantasy was sort of a new idea (if there was any originality at all)
-Patrick Dempsey has a cute face
-There was a bit of magic
-Some of the songs were cute :)
Downsides:
-It just doesn't seem fair to take the credit away from Classic Disney moves and mush it into one big copycat later on
i.e. Enchanted = Snow White + Sleeping Beauty +...more?
-Amy Adams and that guy who plays Cyclops (always forget his name!!) were annoying at times
-The whole moral that the movie was trying to convey was shot down almost immediately after it was established.
--In case you're not sure what I'm talking about, here's what I mean. The main point of the movie was to provide a realistic outlook on life in an optimistic way. A naive, fantasy-crazy damsel in distress, Giselle, awaits her prince's rescue, but eventually learns the importance of being realistic about love and finding it through dating and getting to know someone that you can love "forever". Bad stepmom shows up, kills her, kiss of TRUE love revives her, she awakens, defeats the dragon with her chipmunk friend's help, and lives happily ever after with the REALISTIC love of her life. MEANWHILE, her "true love's" former supposed fiancee who he had been dating for 5 years was dropped just like that and she ran off to lalaland to marry the fairytale prince, who had hardly spoken 3 sentences to her. I really hope children don't watch this. Describing the moral value of this movie in the words of love, I would say Disney is sending "mixed signals".
Since I haven't seen a Disney movie in a LOOOONNNNNG time, I was enjoying the silly humour, funky (though archetypal) characters, and remembering a precious part of my childhood throughout the movie--UNTIL it got to this horrible ending. I'm sorry, but the title of this blog post (spin-off from the popular teen saying, "I'm unimpressed", in case you didn't get it...) summarizes my feelings towards this movie.
P.S. If this movie isn't Disney, I apologize. Just swap all the times I used Disney with words like fairytales, or childhood stories.
Upsides:
-The original concept of juxtaposing reality with fantasy was sort of a new idea (if there was any originality at all)
-Patrick Dempsey has a cute face
-There was a bit of magic
-Some of the songs were cute :)
Downsides:
-It just doesn't seem fair to take the credit away from Classic Disney moves and mush it into one big copycat later on
i.e. Enchanted = Snow White + Sleeping Beauty +...more?
-Amy Adams and that guy who plays Cyclops (always forget his name!!) were annoying at times
-The whole moral that the movie was trying to convey was shot down almost immediately after it was established.
--In case you're not sure what I'm talking about, here's what I mean. The main point of the movie was to provide a realistic outlook on life in an optimistic way. A naive, fantasy-crazy damsel in distress, Giselle, awaits her prince's rescue, but eventually learns the importance of being realistic about love and finding it through dating and getting to know someone that you can love "forever". Bad stepmom shows up, kills her, kiss of TRUE love revives her, she awakens, defeats the dragon with her chipmunk friend's help, and lives happily ever after with the REALISTIC love of her life. MEANWHILE, her "true love's" former supposed fiancee who he had been dating for 5 years was dropped just like that and she ran off to lalaland to marry the fairytale prince, who had hardly spoken 3 sentences to her. I really hope children don't watch this. Describing the moral value of this movie in the words of love, I would say Disney is sending "mixed signals".
Since I haven't seen a Disney movie in a LOOOONNNNNG time, I was enjoying the silly humour, funky (though archetypal) characters, and remembering a precious part of my childhood throughout the movie--UNTIL it got to this horrible ending. I'm sorry, but the title of this blog post (spin-off from the popular teen saying, "I'm unimpressed", in case you didn't get it...) summarizes my feelings towards this movie.
P.S. If this movie isn't Disney, I apologize. Just swap all the times I used Disney with words like fairytales, or childhood stories.
Sunday, February 13, 2011
WHAT THE HEAVEN
Sooo, I decided to update my itunes with a few new songs that I've heard on the radio. In the process of searching them up on mediafire, I found a couple Avril songs that I HAVEN'T OBTAINED A COPY OF YET!!! WHATTT??? Obviously, I had to remedy this serious problem immediately, and I loved them as soon as I heard em. Brings so many memories about the music I used to listen to in my "rebellious" preteen days. -_-" Plus it makes me feel really old now! =S
Unlike most of the other artists I USED to listen to, I can still enjoy Avril--and regardless of what the trend-following masses say, Avril is "the original" that Taylor Swift bases her video and song ideas from, and originals tend to be 239487293847298347 times better than copycats. Avril is no exception. :)
Except from new song "What the Hell":
All my life I've been good but now, woah, I'm thinking what the hell
All I want is to mess around and I don't really care about
If you love me, if you hate me, you can't save me, baby, baby
All my life I've been good but now, whoa, what the hell
You never fail to un-complicate my life, Avril ;)
Unlike most of the other artists I USED to listen to, I can still enjoy Avril--and regardless of what the trend-following masses say, Avril is "the original" that Taylor Swift bases her video and song ideas from, and originals tend to be 239487293847298347 times better than copycats. Avril is no exception. :)
Except from new song "What the Hell":
All my life I've been good but now, woah, I'm thinking what the hell
All I want is to mess around and I don't really care about
If you love me, if you hate me, you can't save me, baby, baby
All my life I've been good but now, whoa, what the hell
You never fail to un-complicate my life, Avril ;)
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
The Magic of Music
Although the music is quite pop-ish and the musical performance that I saw from years ago was a little disappointing, I just remembered what I like most about Wicked. Other than the magic-oriented setting, I love the lyrics and agree with the life philosophies it presents. Hopefully this makes it clear why Dancing through Life and For Good are my favourite songs:
From Dancing through Life:
Life is fraughtless
When you're thoughtless
Those who don't try
Never look foolish
Woes are fleeting
Blows are glancing
When you're dancing through life
Nothing matters
But knowing nothing matters
From For Good:
I've heard it said
That people come into our lives for a reason
Bringing something we must learn
And we are led
To those who help us most to grow
If we let them
And we help them in return
Well, I don't know if I believe that's true
But I know I'm who I am today
Because I knew you...
Like a comet pulled from orbit
As it passes a sun
Like a stream that meets a boulder
Halfway through the wood
Who can say if I've been changed for the better?
But because I knew you
I have been changed for good
It well may be
That we will never meet again
In this lifetime
So let me say before we part
So much of me
Is made of what I learned from you
You'll be with me
Like a handprint on my heart
And now whatever way our stories end
I know you have re-written mine
By being my friend...
Like a ship blown from its mooring
By a wind off the sea
Like a seed dropped by a skybird
In a distant wood
Who can say if I've been changed for the better?
But because I knew you
I have been changed for good
From Dancing through Life:
Life is fraughtless
When you're thoughtless
Those who don't try
Never look foolish
Woes are fleeting
Blows are glancing
When you're dancing through life
Nothing matters
But knowing nothing matters
From For Good:
I've heard it said
That people come into our lives for a reason
Bringing something we must learn
And we are led
To those who help us most to grow
If we let them
And we help them in return
Well, I don't know if I believe that's true
But I know I'm who I am today
Because I knew you...
Like a comet pulled from orbit
As it passes a sun
Like a stream that meets a boulder
Halfway through the wood
Who can say if I've been changed for the better?
But because I knew you
I have been changed for good
It well may be
That we will never meet again
In this lifetime
So let me say before we part
So much of me
Is made of what I learned from you
You'll be with me
Like a handprint on my heart
And now whatever way our stories end
I know you have re-written mine
By being my friend...
Like a ship blown from its mooring
By a wind off the sea
Like a seed dropped by a skybird
In a distant wood
Who can say if I've been changed for the better?
But because I knew you
I have been changed for good
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
I don't want to know how you met my mother
After hearing so much talk about this show, plus its famous highlight Barney, I felt a sudden urge to watch the first episode. Like most trends, it didn't fail to disappoint me. I understood everything that was going on, but I can't really understand why I didn't laugh at all. Perhaps my EQ is lower than I thought.
Friday, July 2, 2010
A Thirst for Power
Today I spent Canada Day in Waterloo. Most of the day was unfortunately wasted away in sleep. In the evening I decided to visit my buddy John's place, and we shared food, good times, and an entertaining movie: Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief.
The main reason why I wanted to watch this movie is that I've read about half of the book, I'm in it (PERSEPHONE!), and most importantly...It has powers.
Before I go into the last reason, let me clarify why persephone = me. For those who didn't know, it's my middle name--and well, I gotta say, I really like the middle name that my parents have chosen for me. Not to be maliciously offensive or anything, but that's just the way I am: I dislike the usual middle names that girls take on (i.e. Elizabeth, Sarah, Michelle, Anna[optional: -mari(a/e)], or just plain Maria, etc. --you get the point). Plus, if I didn't have Persephone as my middle name, I'd just have my lame Korean name Mee-young. This supposedly means source of beauty. HAHAHAHA, SO unfitting--but Persephone, on the other hand, is the goddess of spring. I suppose it fits well enough because I was born sort of near the beginning of spring, and I could TOTALLY see myself marrying the god of the underworld/dead/evil(?), can't you?
Anyways, I vaguely recall people saying that this was a crappy movie, don't see it, etc, etc...then again people think HP is amazing, AND I have lost my faith in people long ago, so why should I care or even trust what they think anyway? I actually enjoyed it. Okay, so the acting was pretty crappy, there were some major plot holes, and the girl wasn't that pretty. On the bright side, I'm heterosexual (surprise!), and the guy was pretty darn cute; I'd definitely do--I mean date him. I was also surprised to see many big actor/actress names in the opening credits: Uma Thurman (as Medusa), Pierce Brosnan (as random person--forget the name), and Rosario Dawson (as ME!). Note: I've gotta say, the scene with Uma Thurman as Medusa was pretty hilarious, as the setting and characterization of her role eerily resembled her Batman-seducing identity as Poison Ivy.
Hold on...since when did famous actors and cute boys make a movie for me? Never...and that's where my last point comes in: POWERS!
I LOVE Powers.
Doesn't it all make a little more sense now? I mean think about it...
1. My favourite TV show is Charmed.
2. My 2nd favourite TV show, as of late, is True Blood.
3. My favourite book genre is fantasy/science fiction.
4. When I'm in a tough spot in dreams, I tend to give myself ____--you got it, powers.
+more...
As I realized when discussing the movie with a friend shortly after watching it, I really enjoy magic, superheroes, and supernatural powers because it provides an escape from life. Life is stressful, and I'm not saying this in a whiny Asian way or even in self-pity. Life IS hard for everyone equally, but that doesn't make it not hard period...I'm not sure if I'm making sense but bear with me anyway. People find their own ways with coping with hardships, using other outlets, channeling this energy for good, etc. Me? I depend on powers.
By imagining myself with powers, everything seems a little more conquerable, people a little less frightening, and challenges a little less intimidating. All of this is possible when you have a supernatural ability to fall back on whenever all else fails. I know this makes me ridiculously immature, but I acknowledge and admire those who have found the maturity and strength to actually channel the negativity from their hardships to fuel the positives. I look forward to the day when I can finally outgrow the safe haven I have built up in the mythical worlds of fantasy and magic to tackle life's challenges purely on my own strength and courage. Until then, I will continue to improve my ability to freeze time and blow up objects. ;)
The main reason why I wanted to watch this movie is that I've read about half of the book, I'm in it (PERSEPHONE!), and most importantly...It has powers.
Before I go into the last reason, let me clarify why persephone = me. For those who didn't know, it's my middle name--and well, I gotta say, I really like the middle name that my parents have chosen for me. Not to be maliciously offensive or anything, but that's just the way I am: I dislike the usual middle names that girls take on (i.e. Elizabeth, Sarah, Michelle, Anna[optional: -mari(a/e)], or just plain Maria, etc. --you get the point). Plus, if I didn't have Persephone as my middle name, I'd just have my lame Korean name Mee-young. This supposedly means source of beauty. HAHAHAHA, SO unfitting--but Persephone, on the other hand, is the goddess of spring. I suppose it fits well enough because I was born sort of near the beginning of spring, and I could TOTALLY see myself marrying the god of the underworld/dead/evil(?), can't you?
Anyways, I vaguely recall people saying that this was a crappy movie, don't see it, etc, etc...then again people think HP is amazing, AND I have lost my faith in people long ago, so why should I care or even trust what they think anyway? I actually enjoyed it. Okay, so the acting was pretty crappy, there were some major plot holes, and the girl wasn't that pretty. On the bright side, I'm heterosexual (surprise!), and the guy was pretty darn cute; I'd definitely do--I mean date him. I was also surprised to see many big actor/actress names in the opening credits: Uma Thurman (as Medusa), Pierce Brosnan (as random person--forget the name), and Rosario Dawson (as ME!). Note: I've gotta say, the scene with Uma Thurman as Medusa was pretty hilarious, as the setting and characterization of her role eerily resembled her Batman-seducing identity as Poison Ivy.
Hold on...since when did famous actors and cute boys make a movie for me? Never...and that's where my last point comes in: POWERS!
I LOVE Powers.
Doesn't it all make a little more sense now? I mean think about it...
1. My favourite TV show is Charmed.
2. My 2nd favourite TV show, as of late, is True Blood.
3. My favourite book genre is fantasy/science fiction.
4. When I'm in a tough spot in dreams, I tend to give myself ____--you got it, powers.
+more...
As I realized when discussing the movie with a friend shortly after watching it, I really enjoy magic, superheroes, and supernatural powers because it provides an escape from life. Life is stressful, and I'm not saying this in a whiny Asian way or even in self-pity. Life IS hard for everyone equally, but that doesn't make it not hard period...I'm not sure if I'm making sense but bear with me anyway. People find their own ways with coping with hardships, using other outlets, channeling this energy for good, etc. Me? I depend on powers.
By imagining myself with powers, everything seems a little more conquerable, people a little less frightening, and challenges a little less intimidating. All of this is possible when you have a supernatural ability to fall back on whenever all else fails. I know this makes me ridiculously immature, but I acknowledge and admire those who have found the maturity and strength to actually channel the negativity from their hardships to fuel the positives. I look forward to the day when I can finally outgrow the safe haven I have built up in the mythical worlds of fantasy and magic to tackle life's challenges purely on my own strength and courage. Until then, I will continue to improve my ability to freeze time and blow up objects. ;)
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Monday, June 7, 2010
Fifth Business - by Robertson Davies
As mentioned before, this is the title of one of the novels I'm reading for my ENGL 108M course this term. The literal and figurative meaning of the life moral "Never judge a book by its cover" has been hammered into my head, God knows how many times, and yet I instinctively judge books by the exterior packaging even today. When I first purchased this book from the book store, I was reluctant to start it, but I knew I had to get it over with sometime or later...and now? Well, things have surprisingly turned out for the better!
For those who have known me well before university and maybe even high school, I haven't always been the cynical/critical person I am today. I don't really know what happened along the way. I don't really know if this is a positive or negative change. I have just accepted that it's happened. I suppose it's been a combination of the people I've known, my life experiences, and my natural disposition to judge and analyze from the sidelines before taking the initiative to devise a plan of ACTION to induce desired CHANGE. Basically, a combination of the good old nature/nurture principle.
The Christie's Notes version of the book:
Dunstan Ramsay is unable to escape the guilt of a critical incident in his childhood, thereby affecting his outlook on his peers, ambitions, family, love, and life.
Anyways, the reason why this book really touched me was that I was able to identify really strongly with the main character who narrated the entire book from his perspective. In an attempt to illustrate my point, I've pulled a few passages from the book:
Liesl Vitzliputzli to Dunstan, "I beg your pardon. That is your privilege, you pseudo-cynical old pussy-cat, watching life from the sidelines and knowing where all the players go wrong. Life is a spectator sport to you. Now you have taken a tumble and found yourself in the middle of the fight, and you are whimpering because it is rough."
Again Liesl to Dunstan, "Why don't you shake hands with your devil, Ramsay, and change this foolish life of yours? Why don't you, just for once, do something inexplicable, irrational, at the devil's bidding, and just for the hell of it? You would be a different man...
Listen Ramsay, for the past three weeks you have been telling me the story of your life, with great emotional detail, and certainly it sounds as if you did not think you were human. You make yourself responsible for other people's troubles. It is your hobby...And you are secret and stiff-rumped about it all, and never admit it is damned good of you. That is not very human. You are a decent chap to everybody, except one special somebody, and that is Dunstan Ramsay. How can you be really good to anybody if you are not good to yourself?...
Even Calvinism can be endured, if you will make some compromise with yourself. But you--there is a whole great piece of your life that is unlived, denied, set aside. That is why at fifty you can't bear it any longer and fly all to pieces and pour out your heart to the first really intelligent woman you have met--met, that's to say--and get into a schoolboy yearning for a girl who is as far from you as if she lived on the moon. This is the revenge of the unlived life, Ramsay. Suddenly, it makes a fool of you."
Padre Blazon to Ramsay, "God is subtle, but he is not cruel...Try to understand the subtlety, and stop whimpering about the cruelty. Maybe God wants you for something special. Maybe so much that you are worth a woman's sanity.
Forgive yourself for being a human creature, Ramezay. That is the beginning of wisdom; that is part of what is meant by the fear of God; and for you it is the only way to save your sanity. Begin now or you will end up with your saint in the madhouse."
Dunstan himself, "...they all seemed to accept me as a genuine hero, and I did my best to behave decently, neither believing in it too obviously, not yet protesting that I was just a simple chap who had done his duty when he saw it--a pose that has always disgusted me. Ever since, I have tried to think charitably of people in prominent positions of one kind or another; we cast them in roles, and it is only right consider them as players, without trying to discredit them with knowledge of their off-stage life--unless they drag it into the middle of the stage themselves."
Since the course is Youth and Adolescence, the novel obviously relates to at least one of the two concepts. Our teacher also revealed the relation well before we delved into its pages: how incidences in childhood can affect one's growth and outlook all throughout the rest of one's life. Something I particularly enjoyed about the book was Dunstan's character. He seemed to be a really critical, grumpy, and realistic character. I like that in a narrator--none of that romantic, hopeful gibberish that female narrators are too often characterized by.
So why is this novel titled Fifth Business? It has nothing to do with business really. Again, I can't put it anymore eloquently than Davies has brilliantly done already,
"Who are you? Where do you fit into poetry and myth? Do you know who I think you are, Ramsay? I think you are Fifth Business. You don't know what that is?
Well, in opera in a permanent company of the kind we keep up in Europe you must have a prima donna--always a soprano, always the heroine, often a fool; and a tenor who always plays the lover to her; and then you must have a contralto, who is a rival to the soprano, or a sorceress or something; and a basso, who is the villain or the rival or whatever threatens the tenor.
So far, so good. But you cannot make a plot work without another man, and he is usually a baritone, and he is called in the profession Fifth Business, because he is the odd man out, the person who has no opposite of the other sex. And you must have Fifth Business because he is the one who knows the secret of the hero's birth, or comes to the assistance of the heroine when she thinks all is lost, or keeps the hermitess in her cell, or may even be the cause of somebody's death if that is part of the plot.
The prima donna and the tenor, the contralto and the basso, get all the best music and do all the spectacular things, but you cannot manage the plot without Fifth Business! It is not spectacular, but it is a good line of work, I can tell you, and those who play it sometimes have a career that outlasts the golden voices.
Are you Fifth Business? You had better find out."
LOVE THIS BOOK.
For those who have known me well before university and maybe even high school, I haven't always been the cynical/critical person I am today. I don't really know what happened along the way. I don't really know if this is a positive or negative change. I have just accepted that it's happened. I suppose it's been a combination of the people I've known, my life experiences, and my natural disposition to judge and analyze from the sidelines before taking the initiative to devise a plan of ACTION to induce desired CHANGE. Basically, a combination of the good old nature/nurture principle.
The Christie's Notes version of the book:
Dunstan Ramsay is unable to escape the guilt of a critical incident in his childhood, thereby affecting his outlook on his peers, ambitions, family, love, and life.
Anyways, the reason why this book really touched me was that I was able to identify really strongly with the main character who narrated the entire book from his perspective. In an attempt to illustrate my point, I've pulled a few passages from the book:
Liesl Vitzliputzli to Dunstan, "I beg your pardon. That is your privilege, you pseudo-cynical old pussy-cat, watching life from the sidelines and knowing where all the players go wrong. Life is a spectator sport to you. Now you have taken a tumble and found yourself in the middle of the fight, and you are whimpering because it is rough."
Again Liesl to Dunstan, "Why don't you shake hands with your devil, Ramsay, and change this foolish life of yours? Why don't you, just for once, do something inexplicable, irrational, at the devil's bidding, and just for the hell of it? You would be a different man...
Listen Ramsay, for the past three weeks you have been telling me the story of your life, with great emotional detail, and certainly it sounds as if you did not think you were human. You make yourself responsible for other people's troubles. It is your hobby...And you are secret and stiff-rumped about it all, and never admit it is damned good of you. That is not very human. You are a decent chap to everybody, except one special somebody, and that is Dunstan Ramsay. How can you be really good to anybody if you are not good to yourself?...
Even Calvinism can be endured, if you will make some compromise with yourself. But you--there is a whole great piece of your life that is unlived, denied, set aside. That is why at fifty you can't bear it any longer and fly all to pieces and pour out your heart to the first really intelligent woman you have met--met, that's to say--and get into a schoolboy yearning for a girl who is as far from you as if she lived on the moon. This is the revenge of the unlived life, Ramsay. Suddenly, it makes a fool of you."
Padre Blazon to Ramsay, "God is subtle, but he is not cruel...Try to understand the subtlety, and stop whimpering about the cruelty. Maybe God wants you for something special. Maybe so much that you are worth a woman's sanity.
Forgive yourself for being a human creature, Ramezay. That is the beginning of wisdom; that is part of what is meant by the fear of God; and for you it is the only way to save your sanity. Begin now or you will end up with your saint in the madhouse."
Dunstan himself, "...they all seemed to accept me as a genuine hero, and I did my best to behave decently, neither believing in it too obviously, not yet protesting that I was just a simple chap who had done his duty when he saw it--a pose that has always disgusted me. Ever since, I have tried to think charitably of people in prominent positions of one kind or another; we cast them in roles, and it is only right consider them as players, without trying to discredit them with knowledge of their off-stage life--unless they drag it into the middle of the stage themselves."
Since the course is Youth and Adolescence, the novel obviously relates to at least one of the two concepts. Our teacher also revealed the relation well before we delved into its pages: how incidences in childhood can affect one's growth and outlook all throughout the rest of one's life. Something I particularly enjoyed about the book was Dunstan's character. He seemed to be a really critical, grumpy, and realistic character. I like that in a narrator--none of that romantic, hopeful gibberish that female narrators are too often characterized by.
So why is this novel titled Fifth Business? It has nothing to do with business really. Again, I can't put it anymore eloquently than Davies has brilliantly done already,
"Who are you? Where do you fit into poetry and myth? Do you know who I think you are, Ramsay? I think you are Fifth Business. You don't know what that is?
Well, in opera in a permanent company of the kind we keep up in Europe you must have a prima donna--always a soprano, always the heroine, often a fool; and a tenor who always plays the lover to her; and then you must have a contralto, who is a rival to the soprano, or a sorceress or something; and a basso, who is the villain or the rival or whatever threatens the tenor.
So far, so good. But you cannot make a plot work without another man, and he is usually a baritone, and he is called in the profession Fifth Business, because he is the odd man out, the person who has no opposite of the other sex. And you must have Fifth Business because he is the one who knows the secret of the hero's birth, or comes to the assistance of the heroine when she thinks all is lost, or keeps the hermitess in her cell, or may even be the cause of somebody's death if that is part of the plot.
The prima donna and the tenor, the contralto and the basso, get all the best music and do all the spectacular things, but you cannot manage the plot without Fifth Business! It is not spectacular, but it is a good line of work, I can tell you, and those who play it sometimes have a career that outlasts the golden voices.
Are you Fifth Business? You had better find out."
LOVE THIS BOOK.
Monday, March 22, 2010
Boys Go to Jupiter to Get More Stupider
If you knew what I was about to write about, you would understand the irony of me being in the DC library and writing on my blog instead of tackling my horrendous workload. Ah well, in a mindless, endless, fruitless effort to keep my posts short, lets get to the point.
This weekend I went home again--HOLY CRAP, the world must really be ending in 2012--and had a relaxing weekend with my parents. Oddly enough, the euchre addiction gene seems to run in my family, as Yahoo Euchre was kind enough to babysit Robert for the duration of a peaceful weekend. I had a chance to enjoy lots of nice meals, conversations with my parents, and of course...MOVIES! What did you think we were going to watch--TV? So my parents buy tons of pirated movies from the local Chinese malls, and whenever I come home, I am obligated to get through that pile. So I started with a random one called An Education.
Synopsis pulled from the Internet: Jenny (Carey Mulligan) a very bright girl on the cusp of her 17th birthday, finds herself in a whirlwind romance with the much older David ( Peter Sarsgaard). Prior to meeting him, Jenny was working hard at secondary school to ensure getting to Oxford University. When she sees the lifestyle David can provide, one she never imagined could be hers, she's hooked and thoughts of Oxford are forgotten. Then, when things are looking pretty good for Jenny with the dashing (yet a little too smooth) David, the truth hits her like a ton of bricks. Jenny goes from being a bright eyed school girl and a sophisticated young lady, all the way back to questioning if she really knows who she is at all. 'An Education' won the Audience Choice award and the Cinematography award at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival.
Out of all the random new movies I could have chosen to watch, I was strangely drawn to this one. Can you see why? If the most you know about me is what you read from my blogs, I'm not sure if I have ever emphasized my wide-eyed, deer-in-the-headlights outlook on life. I basically have no idea what I am meant to do or if there is a place for me in life--particularly when it comes to a career. Especially at this point in my life when I have recently turned the blessed age of 19, I am more confused than ever. A HUGE part of me wants to ditch all my schoolwork, stock up on party clothes, and live the life I have stuffed under my bed for so long. Yet size is not always strength, I suppose; my tinier, vaguely obedient self longs to make anything that was ever invested in me worth something someday--especially for my parents' sake. Like Jenny, I reallllllllllllllly want to get out there and have fun, for once, but something keeps me shackled to the prospect of, what I guess you could call, a slower suicide. Sometimes I wonder if this makes me a weaker person--and not necessarily obedient. We all want to have fun. I just want to take the safer route, stay far inside the edge, and find some shallow comfort in the idea of "long term prosperity". Especially since Jenny actually had a goal and I don't, I feel I have even more reason to let loose and party...but I know realistically, if I let myself step any further into that kind of freedom and actual LIFE, I might never come back.
I'm gonna stop the post here because I feel so guilty for postponing my work again despite in-your-face looming deadlines--and the shackle is dragged along another few steps before stopping at the end of the slack.
This weekend I went home again--HOLY CRAP, the world must really be ending in 2012--and had a relaxing weekend with my parents. Oddly enough, the euchre addiction gene seems to run in my family, as Yahoo Euchre was kind enough to babysit Robert for the duration of a peaceful weekend. I had a chance to enjoy lots of nice meals, conversations with my parents, and of course...MOVIES! What did you think we were going to watch--TV? So my parents buy tons of pirated movies from the local Chinese malls, and whenever I come home, I am obligated to get through that pile. So I started with a random one called An Education.
Synopsis pulled from the Internet: Jenny (Carey Mulligan) a very bright girl on the cusp of her 17th birthday, finds herself in a whirlwind romance with the much older David ( Peter Sarsgaard). Prior to meeting him, Jenny was working hard at secondary school to ensure getting to Oxford University. When she sees the lifestyle David can provide, one she never imagined could be hers, she's hooked and thoughts of Oxford are forgotten. Then, when things are looking pretty good for Jenny with the dashing (yet a little too smooth) David, the truth hits her like a ton of bricks. Jenny goes from being a bright eyed school girl and a sophisticated young lady, all the way back to questioning if she really knows who she is at all. 'An Education' won the Audience Choice award and the Cinematography award at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival.
Out of all the random new movies I could have chosen to watch, I was strangely drawn to this one. Can you see why? If the most you know about me is what you read from my blogs, I'm not sure if I have ever emphasized my wide-eyed, deer-in-the-headlights outlook on life. I basically have no idea what I am meant to do or if there is a place for me in life--particularly when it comes to a career. Especially at this point in my life when I have recently turned the blessed age of 19, I am more confused than ever. A HUGE part of me wants to ditch all my schoolwork, stock up on party clothes, and live the life I have stuffed under my bed for so long. Yet size is not always strength, I suppose; my tinier, vaguely obedient self longs to make anything that was ever invested in me worth something someday--especially for my parents' sake. Like Jenny, I reallllllllllllllly want to get out there and have fun, for once, but something keeps me shackled to the prospect of, what I guess you could call, a slower suicide. Sometimes I wonder if this makes me a weaker person--and not necessarily obedient. We all want to have fun. I just want to take the safer route, stay far inside the edge, and find some shallow comfort in the idea of "long term prosperity". Especially since Jenny actually had a goal and I don't, I feel I have even more reason to let loose and party...but I know realistically, if I let myself step any further into that kind of freedom and actual LIFE, I might never come back.
I'm gonna stop the post here because I feel so guilty for postponing my work again despite in-your-face looming deadlines--and the shackle is dragged along another few steps before stopping at the end of the slack.
Friday, October 2, 2009
What's the secret password?
Just to make the topic of this post clearer...
Club: a group of persons organized for a social, literary, athletic, political, or other purpose; an organization that offers its subscribers certain benefits, as discounts, bonuses, or interest, in return for regular purchases or payments
All my life, I've never really been much of a club person, other than the time my cousin and I set up a little clubhouse in her old van to plays cards and keep random thingamajigs in. I suppose this has something to do with my introverted personality and reluctance to meet new people. In fact, I have a reluctance to get involved with anything new or outside of my regular routine, but that's a post for another day.
For some reason, I just can't ignore this haunting scenario of me standing awkwardly in the corner while everyone is socializing and engaging in intelligent conversation. I am horrible at just MAKING conversation. IN FACT, this scenario is very much like my situation when I was in the UW Euchre club in the fall term of last year. I made one friend, and she was the only one that I felt brave enough to talk to because everyone seemed to know each other and have different favoured topics of discussion and interests from myself--and yet I still went because I just love euchre that much -_-" . The rest of the time, I felt awkward and out of place because everyone seemed to know each other pretty well, they have similar interests to discuss, and I didn't feel like I had anything useful to contribute to the discussions, other than "pass" or "spades, going alone". Again, my lack of conversational skills relates to my being out of touch with the world, a big part of which I will blame on the absence of cable in my house.
Throughout elementary school, high school, and even my first year of university, I always heard about clubs being advertised and all sorts of announcements for general meetings, but I never seriously considered joining any of them. I always found some excuse or other not to join whether I supported their goals or not. For some reason, I felt they were a waste of time because they were student-run. I thought, what could you possibly learn from other students in a club that you couldn't learn on your own? Besides, I can talk to most of these people in any of my classes. Only until this year did I even start to realize the importance of joining clubs.
To be honest, elementary and high school clubs are not so much a big deal. They are pretty closely monitored by teachers, and they hardly benefit society on a bigger scale. Yeah, I know, if everyone does a little, it becomes a lot--just like litter--but for the sake of this post lets separate theory from practice.
Side Note: an interesting thing my AFM prof said in class a few weeks ago, "In theory, theory is practice, but in practice it's not." Something about quotes, which use a few words repetitively yet succinctly, appeals to me.
Since I never really joined any clubs, I can only share my impressions of the responsibilities that the "execs" of these kinds of clubs have. As usual, feel free to express your utter outrage and disappointment in my opinions, minus the profanities please. So yeah, it seemed like these execs mainly collected money, took attendance, or announced dates of events--simple errands that my elementary school teachers would often select random volunteers to do. So how many skills or qualifications does it really take?
Back to secondary school clubs and earlier, the real value in joining them is to gain what I'd like to call "resume experience" for university clubs. "Resume experience" is basically when you hold a position or participate in something that doesn't really develop either your soft or technical skills, but on paper, the job title or tasks sound more significant than they really are. Really, you're just killing another inch of a tree trunk. Anyways, the point of filling up your resume with a bunch of elementary and high school experience is to make yourself LOOK more prepared than your peers when you enter university. When you enter university, the meaning of a club is a whole new story.
1. Networking
As much as I HATE this concept, it is sadly one of the keys to being successful in life. Yes, that also means suckups will rule the world (but this doesn't mean you can't still hate them ;) ). In university, you pretty much get scared into joining clubs because it's difficult to fill up your resume with actual work experience that will relate to co-op job requirements. Plus, you have to make sure the execs at least know you exist, in case you need reference letters or something. When I say networking, I don't just mean for academic or professional work purposes, but also social. By joining clubs or extracurricular groups, I made some interesting friends and witnessed a diversity of students that I would never have noticed otherwise. University or college is SO big that you don't really get a chance to meet everyone or at least see what they're like. Uni clubs are a great opportunity for this.
2. Exec positions
Unlike clubs in the earlier stages of education, clubs are actually FULLY student run, and students are always busy people. Thus, the responsibilities of the club are pretty well organized to fairly distribute various "housekeeping" tasks for the club amongst several members--much like the organizational structure of a company. I actually find this very interesting and useful for application in real life when you're out in the workplace. Having actually gotten involved in a club this year (first time in my life), I realize it's a lot of work and responsibility. To be honest, responsibility and real-life applicable things scare the hell out of me. I AM NOT READY TO GROW UP!! Thus, my natural coping mechanism is to pretend I'm playing house, store, or some kind of make-believe life game. That's basically how I dealt with my grade 11 accounting course, learning how to drive, cooking for myself, and being an Internal Relations Coordinator for the UW English Tutors. Btw, this reminds me of the good old elementary school days when I would feed my friends grass salad. Mm-mmm.
3. Fun
A lot of the clubs at UW are pretty random and obviously based on sincere interest in something (e.g. photography, swing dance, hip hop, ballroom dancing, and I believe I saw some sort of cheese tasting club Yummmmyy...). In high school and elementary school, I don't really remember a club being based on a random interest, except for anime club, but I refuse to count it! I guess since the school's population is smaller there is a lower probability that enough people will have similar interests in the same thing to establish a substantial member base for that club.
IF YOU'RE TOO LAZY TO READ THE WHOLE POST START HERE:
Clubs are important for filling up your resume and developing practical skills for living life. Believe me, if you plan on going anywhere in life, force yourself to join at least one club, and you may even be lucky enough to enjoy it.
Club: a group of persons organized for a social, literary, athletic, political, or other purpose; an organization that offers its subscribers certain benefits, as discounts, bonuses, or interest, in return for regular purchases or payments
All my life, I've never really been much of a club person, other than the time my cousin and I set up a little clubhouse in her old van to plays cards and keep random thingamajigs in. I suppose this has something to do with my introverted personality and reluctance to meet new people. In fact, I have a reluctance to get involved with anything new or outside of my regular routine, but that's a post for another day.
For some reason, I just can't ignore this haunting scenario of me standing awkwardly in the corner while everyone is socializing and engaging in intelligent conversation. I am horrible at just MAKING conversation. IN FACT, this scenario is very much like my situation when I was in the UW Euchre club in the fall term of last year. I made one friend, and she was the only one that I felt brave enough to talk to because everyone seemed to know each other and have different favoured topics of discussion and interests from myself--and yet I still went because I just love euchre that much -_-" . The rest of the time, I felt awkward and out of place because everyone seemed to know each other pretty well, they have similar interests to discuss, and I didn't feel like I had anything useful to contribute to the discussions, other than "pass" or "spades, going alone". Again, my lack of conversational skills relates to my being out of touch with the world, a big part of which I will blame on the absence of cable in my house.
Throughout elementary school, high school, and even my first year of university, I always heard about clubs being advertised and all sorts of announcements for general meetings, but I never seriously considered joining any of them. I always found some excuse or other not to join whether I supported their goals or not. For some reason, I felt they were a waste of time because they were student-run. I thought, what could you possibly learn from other students in a club that you couldn't learn on your own? Besides, I can talk to most of these people in any of my classes. Only until this year did I even start to realize the importance of joining clubs.
To be honest, elementary and high school clubs are not so much a big deal. They are pretty closely monitored by teachers, and they hardly benefit society on a bigger scale. Yeah, I know, if everyone does a little, it becomes a lot--just like litter--but for the sake of this post lets separate theory from practice.
Side Note: an interesting thing my AFM prof said in class a few weeks ago, "In theory, theory is practice, but in practice it's not." Something about quotes, which use a few words repetitively yet succinctly, appeals to me.
Since I never really joined any clubs, I can only share my impressions of the responsibilities that the "execs" of these kinds of clubs have. As usual, feel free to express your utter outrage and disappointment in my opinions, minus the profanities please. So yeah, it seemed like these execs mainly collected money, took attendance, or announced dates of events--simple errands that my elementary school teachers would often select random volunteers to do. So how many skills or qualifications does it really take?
Back to secondary school clubs and earlier, the real value in joining them is to gain what I'd like to call "resume experience" for university clubs. "Resume experience" is basically when you hold a position or participate in something that doesn't really develop either your soft or technical skills, but on paper, the job title or tasks sound more significant than they really are. Really, you're just killing another inch of a tree trunk. Anyways, the point of filling up your resume with a bunch of elementary and high school experience is to make yourself LOOK more prepared than your peers when you enter university. When you enter university, the meaning of a club is a whole new story.
1. Networking
As much as I HATE this concept, it is sadly one of the keys to being successful in life. Yes, that also means suckups will rule the world (but this doesn't mean you can't still hate them ;) ). In university, you pretty much get scared into joining clubs because it's difficult to fill up your resume with actual work experience that will relate to co-op job requirements. Plus, you have to make sure the execs at least know you exist, in case you need reference letters or something. When I say networking, I don't just mean for academic or professional work purposes, but also social. By joining clubs or extracurricular groups, I made some interesting friends and witnessed a diversity of students that I would never have noticed otherwise. University or college is SO big that you don't really get a chance to meet everyone or at least see what they're like. Uni clubs are a great opportunity for this.
2. Exec positions
Unlike clubs in the earlier stages of education, clubs are actually FULLY student run, and students are always busy people. Thus, the responsibilities of the club are pretty well organized to fairly distribute various "housekeeping" tasks for the club amongst several members--much like the organizational structure of a company. I actually find this very interesting and useful for application in real life when you're out in the workplace. Having actually gotten involved in a club this year (first time in my life), I realize it's a lot of work and responsibility. To be honest, responsibility and real-life applicable things scare the hell out of me. I AM NOT READY TO GROW UP!! Thus, my natural coping mechanism is to pretend I'm playing house, store, or some kind of make-believe life game. That's basically how I dealt with my grade 11 accounting course, learning how to drive, cooking for myself, and being an Internal Relations Coordinator for the UW English Tutors. Btw, this reminds me of the good old elementary school days when I would feed my friends grass salad. Mm-mmm.
3. Fun
A lot of the clubs at UW are pretty random and obviously based on sincere interest in something (e.g. photography, swing dance, hip hop, ballroom dancing, and I believe I saw some sort of cheese tasting club Yummmmyy...). In high school and elementary school, I don't really remember a club being based on a random interest, except for anime club, but I refuse to count it! I guess since the school's population is smaller there is a lower probability that enough people will have similar interests in the same thing to establish a substantial member base for that club.
IF YOU'RE TOO LAZY TO READ THE WHOLE POST START HERE:
Clubs are important for filling up your resume and developing practical skills for living life. Believe me, if you plan on going anywhere in life, force yourself to join at least one club, and you may even be lucky enough to enjoy it.
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder...a Gift?--or a Curse?
One of my favourite shows is Monk. It's about an OCD detective, Adrian Monk, whose condition is a result of the traumatizing death of his beloved wife. He can't stand to shake people's hands, his house is all symmetrically organized and dust-free, he can't stand walking in the mud or getting his clothes dirty, and he wears the same straight-laced shirt and jacket outfit for every day of his life. He is also a former cop and a brilliant detective. Since he has a multitude of phobias and odd habits, he always has an assistant to give him a sanitary wipe whenever he touches something likely infected with bacteria or to do his literally "dirty work". His disorder is so comically severe that he was discharged from his position as a police officer and just works as a "private consultant". At the end of each case, he says "here's what happened..." Pretty epic. :)
The show has, I believe, finished, and my family owns roughly up to the 7th season. Some of the humour is a bit corny, and Adrian Monk probably doesn't win any appreciation from hormonal girls, but I still find the cases to be pretty clever...definitely more thought-inducing than that soap opera-like garbage in the OC (I still have no idea why that was so popular--or House...) Each episode is a mystery where Monk works with his friends in the police department to solve unsolvable cases. This seems to be the obvious common thread with all the detective-y stories: Sherlock Holmes, Agatha Christie, The Mentalist, House, etc. I actually find the Monk cases pretty interesting because it really causes you to think outside of the box. Another element about the show that makes it extra enjoyable is the fact that the show has a modern setting, the story is understandable to the common public, and they present all the clues so it's possible for audiences to ACTUALLY guess the criminal before they're revealed. After watching about 6 seasons of Monk, I find that I'm getting more used to the style and am often able to guess the endings, but the show still has not lost its appeal just yet.
Another interesting thing that the show has brought to my personal attention is that I have a lot of habits that parallel the OCD symptoms.
1. When I'm nervous or kind of spaced out (e.g. during a movie) I tend to type words that I hear. WEIRD, I know!
2. Sometimes when I'm walking up stairs or between sidewalk slabs, I count the number of steps I took and make sure it is an even number.
3. When I'm eating a dish with multiple things in it, I make sure that I have a mix of all the different tastes in my mouth at once. Perhaps this contributes to my somewhat speedy eating speed. I also leave a little bit of my favourite thing to eat last. I guess this habit tends to linger more on the normal end of the spectrum.
4. I generally like symmetry and taking even numbers of things (e.g. adding ice cubes, cooking ingredients even if it's slightly more than what the recipe calls for).
5. Whenever I add skill points to my character in a game (e.g. Mafia Wars), I like to make my levels all even numbers or multiples of 5/10.
Anyways, just wanted to share a little bit more about my strange habits and a bit of info about one of the few shows that I am interested in. If you do decide to check out an episode or something, don't be outraged if you don't take to it for a few episodes. :)
The show has, I believe, finished, and my family owns roughly up to the 7th season. Some of the humour is a bit corny, and Adrian Monk probably doesn't win any appreciation from hormonal girls, but I still find the cases to be pretty clever...definitely more thought-inducing than that soap opera-like garbage in the OC (I still have no idea why that was so popular--or House...) Each episode is a mystery where Monk works with his friends in the police department to solve unsolvable cases. This seems to be the obvious common thread with all the detective-y stories: Sherlock Holmes, Agatha Christie, The Mentalist, House, etc. I actually find the Monk cases pretty interesting because it really causes you to think outside of the box. Another element about the show that makes it extra enjoyable is the fact that the show has a modern setting, the story is understandable to the common public, and they present all the clues so it's possible for audiences to ACTUALLY guess the criminal before they're revealed. After watching about 6 seasons of Monk, I find that I'm getting more used to the style and am often able to guess the endings, but the show still has not lost its appeal just yet.
Another interesting thing that the show has brought to my personal attention is that I have a lot of habits that parallel the OCD symptoms.
1. When I'm nervous or kind of spaced out (e.g. during a movie) I tend to type words that I hear. WEIRD, I know!
2. Sometimes when I'm walking up stairs or between sidewalk slabs, I count the number of steps I took and make sure it is an even number.
3. When I'm eating a dish with multiple things in it, I make sure that I have a mix of all the different tastes in my mouth at once. Perhaps this contributes to my somewhat speedy eating speed. I also leave a little bit of my favourite thing to eat last. I guess this habit tends to linger more on the normal end of the spectrum.
4. I generally like symmetry and taking even numbers of things (e.g. adding ice cubes, cooking ingredients even if it's slightly more than what the recipe calls for).
5. Whenever I add skill points to my character in a game (e.g. Mafia Wars), I like to make my levels all even numbers or multiples of 5/10.
Anyways, just wanted to share a little bit more about my strange habits and a bit of info about one of the few shows that I am interested in. If you do decide to check out an episode or something, don't be outraged if you don't take to it for a few episodes. :)
Saturday, August 8, 2009
Nothing More to Say, No More Ace to Play
That, my friends, is a line from Mamma Mia. I believe it's from Knowing Me, Knowing You.
I don't really know when it started, but I'll just blame it on Katie...I love musicals :) I've seen a lot of them live in Toronto, and I've seen a few in movies. For me, the people involved in the actual presentation of these productions are like the Renaissance people of music, meaning they are painstakingly talented. Admittedly, I'm jealous. Imagine if you had the opportunity to sing, dance, and act all day, my jealousy is understandable right? Unfortunately, showbiz is unarguably one of those things where you need both talent and connections, neither of which I have :( Don't worry I'm the realistic one, and I never considered that as a potential career path, but what's stopping me from admiring from afar?
Pretty much all the musicals I've seen live were thanks to Katie. What can I say, she makes my life worth living. This humble list includes: Mamma Mia, Wicked, Phantom of the Opera, and Cats. I enjoyed every single one. Oh and I also like the costumes and makeup. There's just something about going to a musical in a big theatre. It makes me feel really special, possibly because I feel like those old fashioned women in a Jane Austen society going out to a high class opera or something. In fact, the tickets are pretty expensive. Other musicals that I've watched as a movie include: Phantom of the Opera, Chicago, The Producers, Grease, Dirty Dancing, Rent, and The Sound of Music.
Speaking of music, I have been told it's difficult to diagnose my music taste. You never really know if I'll like a song until I hear it. Of course the beat and actual music are important, but the lyrics also make/break a song for me. To be honest, although it's not like I ever lie on my blog, I'm kind of tired of all the mushy love songs, and I don't like rap because it's full of profanity, sexual content, and basically unnecessary drama (e.g. money, relationships, affairs, women, etc.). Another zone I avoid is country music because it feels too "stringy" and hmm...well old fashioned. I'd rather listen to actual old fashioned music like Carlie Simon or Don McLean if I was ever in that kind of mood. Techno is a rather grey area, as I can have any reaction ranging from being obsessed with a single song or getting a headache. It can be overly repetitive, but it's really "danceable" music, hehe. Too bad I'm not that big of a dancer. Rock. This musical genre holds great memories from my elementary school days. It was the only music I would ever listen to. I suspect this is mainly because the radical, rebellious lyrical content of the majority of songs appealed to a rough maturation phase I was experiencing at the time. My childhood rebellion days are a story for another time. ;)
As you probably predicted, I pretty much completely avoid metal or any other form of hardcore music...including all that Satanic stuff (e.g. Marilyn Manson). Just not my thing. R&B probably started appealing to me in grade...10? Sometime around the time when I drove down to the States with Katie's family, and we played the same songs over and over on her iPod. You could say, I acquired the taste and opened up to more songs of that genre. One of the early appealing characteristics of that music was that many songs had funny, entertaining lyrics that I never thought someone would write a song about. Sure I'd heard of the Milkshake song, but the songs that pulled me in were "My Humps", "Beep", "Touch my Body", etc. Btw, if I am confusing songs with genres, I am sorry. I just kind of mix everything I like into the "Christie genre" because I like songs randomly out of the blue. Eventually, I was able to appreciate some of the more normally lyricized songs for other reasons.
Most recently, I have been tragically drawn into kPop. My first year university roommate was a proud Chinese girl from my high school. Btw, I had no problems living with her, and I have a feeling she cannot say the same for me...again, other stories, which I hope never to divulge. Well yeah, she knew I was pretty out of touch with my cultural roots, so she, my other friend Sandra, John, and Ryan all kind of tried to "Azn-ize" me. Sadly, I have to admit it worked. Now I have Rain, Jewelry, Namolla Family, Lee Hyori, Wonder Girls, 2NE1 (NOT LOLLIPOP) + more permanently living in my iPod playlist. Too bad it's busted; yeah the buttons stopped working, so I have to listen to the iPod in order, all the way through from the beginning. Yeah, I know, life sucks, especially since all my Korean music is at the end of the list. You're right, I can't understand it, but I like the music and overall attitude of Korean music.
Btw, all the music I like is not based on bands or whatever. People have their ups and downs, so I just randomly like songs that I've heard or have had recommended to me. I don't really understand why people develop loyalty to certain bands. It kind of puts pressure on them to overproduce songs, and the quality just goes downhill from there. Also, I do not care much about their statistics or current love life status. I'm just interested in their music.
Well yeah, exam in...4 hours. Hopefully my mom knows how to get there. Oh and I just realized that on this "exam outline" thing my prof sent out, he recommends studying lectures, course notes, and the textbook. I have studied the lectures, the textbook, and my own notes (which I just wrote up from the lectures). It would be hilarious if my life got screwed up because I didn't buy the full version of some random course notes. Pray for me...4 hours...
I don't really know when it started, but I'll just blame it on Katie...I love musicals :) I've seen a lot of them live in Toronto, and I've seen a few in movies. For me, the people involved in the actual presentation of these productions are like the Renaissance people of music, meaning they are painstakingly talented. Admittedly, I'm jealous. Imagine if you had the opportunity to sing, dance, and act all day, my jealousy is understandable right? Unfortunately, showbiz is unarguably one of those things where you need both talent and connections, neither of which I have :( Don't worry I'm the realistic one, and I never considered that as a potential career path, but what's stopping me from admiring from afar?
Pretty much all the musicals I've seen live were thanks to Katie. What can I say, she makes my life worth living. This humble list includes: Mamma Mia, Wicked, Phantom of the Opera, and Cats. I enjoyed every single one. Oh and I also like the costumes and makeup. There's just something about going to a musical in a big theatre. It makes me feel really special, possibly because I feel like those old fashioned women in a Jane Austen society going out to a high class opera or something. In fact, the tickets are pretty expensive. Other musicals that I've watched as a movie include: Phantom of the Opera, Chicago, The Producers, Grease, Dirty Dancing, Rent, and The Sound of Music.
Speaking of music, I have been told it's difficult to diagnose my music taste. You never really know if I'll like a song until I hear it. Of course the beat and actual music are important, but the lyrics also make/break a song for me. To be honest, although it's not like I ever lie on my blog, I'm kind of tired of all the mushy love songs, and I don't like rap because it's full of profanity, sexual content, and basically unnecessary drama (e.g. money, relationships, affairs, women, etc.). Another zone I avoid is country music because it feels too "stringy" and hmm...well old fashioned. I'd rather listen to actual old fashioned music like Carlie Simon or Don McLean if I was ever in that kind of mood. Techno is a rather grey area, as I can have any reaction ranging from being obsessed with a single song or getting a headache. It can be overly repetitive, but it's really "danceable" music, hehe. Too bad I'm not that big of a dancer. Rock. This musical genre holds great memories from my elementary school days. It was the only music I would ever listen to. I suspect this is mainly because the radical, rebellious lyrical content of the majority of songs appealed to a rough maturation phase I was experiencing at the time. My childhood rebellion days are a story for another time. ;)
As you probably predicted, I pretty much completely avoid metal or any other form of hardcore music...including all that Satanic stuff (e.g. Marilyn Manson). Just not my thing. R&B probably started appealing to me in grade...10? Sometime around the time when I drove down to the States with Katie's family, and we played the same songs over and over on her iPod. You could say, I acquired the taste and opened up to more songs of that genre. One of the early appealing characteristics of that music was that many songs had funny, entertaining lyrics that I never thought someone would write a song about. Sure I'd heard of the Milkshake song, but the songs that pulled me in were "My Humps", "Beep", "Touch my Body", etc. Btw, if I am confusing songs with genres, I am sorry. I just kind of mix everything I like into the "Christie genre" because I like songs randomly out of the blue. Eventually, I was able to appreciate some of the more normally lyricized songs for other reasons.
Most recently, I have been tragically drawn into kPop. My first year university roommate was a proud Chinese girl from my high school. Btw, I had no problems living with her, and I have a feeling she cannot say the same for me...again, other stories, which I hope never to divulge. Well yeah, she knew I was pretty out of touch with my cultural roots, so she, my other friend Sandra, John, and Ryan all kind of tried to "Azn-ize" me. Sadly, I have to admit it worked. Now I have Rain, Jewelry, Namolla Family, Lee Hyori, Wonder Girls, 2NE1 (NOT LOLLIPOP) + more permanently living in my iPod playlist. Too bad it's busted; yeah the buttons stopped working, so I have to listen to the iPod in order, all the way through from the beginning. Yeah, I know, life sucks, especially since all my Korean music is at the end of the list. You're right, I can't understand it, but I like the music and overall attitude of Korean music.
Btw, all the music I like is not based on bands or whatever. People have their ups and downs, so I just randomly like songs that I've heard or have had recommended to me. I don't really understand why people develop loyalty to certain bands. It kind of puts pressure on them to overproduce songs, and the quality just goes downhill from there. Also, I do not care much about their statistics or current love life status. I'm just interested in their music.
Well yeah, exam in...4 hours. Hopefully my mom knows how to get there. Oh and I just realized that on this "exam outline" thing my prof sent out, he recommends studying lectures, course notes, and the textbook. I have studied the lectures, the textbook, and my own notes (which I just wrote up from the lectures). It would be hilarious if my life got screwed up because I didn't buy the full version of some random course notes. Pray for me...4 hours...
Friday, August 7, 2009
As NOT seen on TV.
Just to restate the obvious--or not so obvious to my acquaintances--I have never had cable TV in my house since I was born. Well, actually, that is a minor lie. I have seen family videos of me as a baby sitting with my parents in the living room with a cartoon on. However, I have no recollection of a single episode or character, too bad.
Back on track...you're probably wondering, DON'T YOU GET BORED? Then I would answer, "It's okay, my mom sometimes connects the Internet for me...when she's in a good mood..." Then you would say, "YOUR PARENTS CUT YOUR INTERNET? HOW ARE YOU ALIVE?" And that, my friends, I don't really know. I guess it runs along the same lines as me going on 9 vacations in my whole life that I can remember-- Caribbean Cruise (taken by cousin, NOT even my own family), Turks&Caicos resort (Caribbean), two soccer tournaments to the states, and about 5 trips to Ontario resorts or cottages up north for the summer--I have no clue what I'm missing out on, so I manage to move on contently with my life. Essentially, I am pretty much trapped on this boring continent with no cable, and the rare spurts of Internet time. ALTHOUGH, I have been getting more time to work on academic material...heh...heh...
So yeah, I keep going off topic...ANYWAYS. What I wanted to preach today really was that there have been both benefits and lost opportunities due to my cableless upbringing. Lets start with the positives because that makes people happy (and it's probably shorter -_-"). Not having cable has helped me in the following ways:
-Watching fewer commercials has significantly helped me to avoid materialistic temptations.
-I am more tolerant of and don't mind boring situations in life (e.g. doing puzzles, reading, sitting around, awkward silences)
-I don't have to schedule my life around my favourite showtimes.
-My deteriorating eyesight can be narrowed down to other causes such as reading too close to the page, computer, or bad lighting.
ON THE OTHER HAND, Not having cable has disadvantaged me in the following ways:
-A major social handicap when it comes to talking about the latest episodes and the suspenseful wait between episodes. Since movies, music, and TV are key points of discussion in the typical teenager's life, I have shied away from public conversation and limited myself to the stereotypical Asian constraints of academic topics.
-lack of awareness about the latest trends and an unfamiliarity with the typical prices of things (e.g. music players, laptops, new restaurant dishes)
-I don't get to lazily absorb information, as provided on the Discovery Channel or Cooking shows.
-I am generally less knowledgeable about what's going on in the world--admit it, it's more fun/convenient to see the news instead of hearing it on the radio or reading it online because you don't have to be focused the entire time to be alerted of significant events around the world.
-Instead of taking advantage of all the movies playing on satellite or whatever, I have to find other..."cleverer" ways to watch movies (*coughchinesemalls).
But yeah, parents just blindly say TV is bad. Really, I think it's an important way for people to connect with the world and be informed of what's going on. It depends on what kind of shows you're watching, how long you're spending in front of the tube, and how much it hinders other aspects of your life. Like anything, doses of television, when taken in moderation, can be beneficial.
P.S. Yay for a short post.
Back on track...you're probably wondering, DON'T YOU GET BORED? Then I would answer, "It's okay, my mom sometimes connects the Internet for me...when she's in a good mood..." Then you would say, "YOUR PARENTS CUT YOUR INTERNET? HOW ARE YOU ALIVE?" And that, my friends, I don't really know. I guess it runs along the same lines as me going on 9 vacations in my whole life that I can remember-- Caribbean Cruise (taken by cousin, NOT even my own family), Turks&Caicos resort (Caribbean), two soccer tournaments to the states, and about 5 trips to Ontario resorts or cottages up north for the summer--I have no clue what I'm missing out on, so I manage to move on contently with my life. Essentially, I am pretty much trapped on this boring continent with no cable, and the rare spurts of Internet time. ALTHOUGH, I have been getting more time to work on academic material...heh...heh...
So yeah, I keep going off topic...ANYWAYS. What I wanted to preach today really was that there have been both benefits and lost opportunities due to my cableless upbringing. Lets start with the positives because that makes people happy (and it's probably shorter -_-"). Not having cable has helped me in the following ways:
-Watching fewer commercials has significantly helped me to avoid materialistic temptations.
-I am more tolerant of and don't mind boring situations in life (e.g. doing puzzles, reading, sitting around, awkward silences)
-I don't have to schedule my life around my favourite showtimes.
-My deteriorating eyesight can be narrowed down to other causes such as reading too close to the page, computer, or bad lighting.
ON THE OTHER HAND, Not having cable has disadvantaged me in the following ways:
-A major social handicap when it comes to talking about the latest episodes and the suspenseful wait between episodes. Since movies, music, and TV are key points of discussion in the typical teenager's life, I have shied away from public conversation and limited myself to the stereotypical Asian constraints of academic topics.
-lack of awareness about the latest trends and an unfamiliarity with the typical prices of things (e.g. music players, laptops, new restaurant dishes)
-I don't get to lazily absorb information, as provided on the Discovery Channel or Cooking shows.
-I am generally less knowledgeable about what's going on in the world--admit it, it's more fun/convenient to see the news instead of hearing it on the radio or reading it online because you don't have to be focused the entire time to be alerted of significant events around the world.
-Instead of taking advantage of all the movies playing on satellite or whatever, I have to find other..."cleverer" ways to watch movies (*coughchinesemalls).
But yeah, parents just blindly say TV is bad. Really, I think it's an important way for people to connect with the world and be informed of what's going on. It depends on what kind of shows you're watching, how long you're spending in front of the tube, and how much it hinders other aspects of your life. Like anything, doses of television, when taken in moderation, can be beneficial.
P.S. Yay for a short post.
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