Quote 278

[The internet] is designed to coax all of your neural pathways open and then, while they are in a state of ecstatic receptivity, to dump horrible things into them.

- Sam Anderson

Quote 277

Even though you feel like a pebble, you're leaving ripples, and you don't know where those ripples will go.

- Lana Wood

Outreach

I recently discovered the term "the drawing room". What a curious, descriptive marvel! It meant the living room. But why?

"Drawing" was short for "withdrawing". The drawing room was where you would go to withdraw from the hustle and bustle of the world. That's bloody brilliant!

Modern day "withdrawal" has a negative connotation. If you are not social, something is wrong with you. Being an introvert still carries its stigma. Introverts are still very much misunderstood.

And so it gives me great comfort to learn that, not only was withdrawal OK in olden-day England, there was a room for it!

I've thought for a long time, after years of going to open houses, if I were ever to purchase a house, it must have a den. A den with ample natural light where you can sit right by the bay window and lean on the glass and read, or gaze out, or both. But still shielded away from peeping eyes by tall trees. When the wind blows, you bathe in dancing shadows. And all is still, and yet lively.

That's where I would go to withdraw.

Reeling 3

I saw a movie today called Change in the Air. I am starting to feel freer about making these viewing choices (as opposed to feeling like a dreadful commitment, and the pressure of picking something that is not "a waste of time").

Well earlier I did see one that was a complete waste of time, called Love Wedding Repeat. I love weddings. I know, it's such a cliché for women. But weddings have always filled me with hope - not hope that I, too, could be hitched someday, during my most jaded days, but hope, that, humans are capable of love, such depths of love that is the one redeeming quality of humankind. That maybe we are not, as a species, destined for doom.

But this movie, seemingly promising at first, with beautiful people including Olivia Munn, whom I love, had no redeeming quality. It was stupid. Period. Sadly, concluding this half way through, I still needed to know how it ended. Thank goodness for the fast forward button. Trust me when I say the integrity of the film was not lost.

Back to Change in the Air, though. It was a bit slow-paced at first, but there were enough twists to pique one's curiosity. In the end I was pleasantly surprised. It is one of those art house productions that are subject to interpretation. It could be spiritual, religious, paranormal... a little bit of each? Use your imagination. Is it a fairy tale? Does it defy labeling? There will not be one finite answer, but it is thought-provoking and uplifting in a refreshing, non-Hollywood way.

We watched films like this in art school. We were encouraged to discuss our personal take. I loved those assignments. I could easily write an essay (and get an A, too) while others struggle. Symbolism was my cup of tea. I could guess what the writer was thinking and feeling. I could get in character, be those characters, feel the interaction and emotions. To feel abundantly is both a blessing and a curse.

Incidentally, the person who wrote the screenplay of  Change in the Air also directed. What's with writers who feel the need to direct? I guess no other candidate could share their vision quite so.

Mostly I am turning to movies these days, I suppose, to be reminded of what life used to be, when it was "normal". When people could go outside without fearing for their lives. When we weren't all confined in our homes so that we wouldn't kill each other with the simple act of breathing.

My therapist used to say when we use entertainment or a hobby as an escape, even if it is something seemingly innocuous and "healthy" as reading a novel, it can become a crutch. And we are not dealing with the real issue. Well, to that I say, "Pick your battle!" There are worse crutches. Bite me.

Reeling 2

Saw a movie this afternoon that was quite moving, called The Perks of Being a Wallflower. Usually I see "coming of age" in the synopsis and I cringe and run, but Paul Rudd was in it, and I fucking love Paul Rudd, so I went for it.

Really was quite good. Managed to surprise me, which is not easy these days. So kudos to the writer, who had based the screenplay on a book, which he had also written. Oh, and he directed the film, too. Overachieve much? (Ha!)

I like that the characters were believable. The acting was subtle and genuinely connected. My favorite line, of course, was the quote: "You get the love you believe you deserve." SO true. Many of us learned it the hard way.

And my favorite scene, not for the scene itself, but the sentiment, was when the doctor, played by Joan Cusack, assesses the protagonist, and he tells her, "There is so much pain." Not about him, but, "All around."

Being able to observe and feel pain ALL AROUND, in everybody. Relate.

BTW, notice my first line? "A movie that was quite moving". Ha.

That's what a good movie does. It reels you in, and moves you, when you least expect it. (I'm just glad I'm not dead inside.)