"Twilight" 2008

"Twilight" (2008)

There are those who said this movie was horrible and there are those who absolutely loved it. I'm one of those who are in the middle. There are slow parts in it and there are parts where it moves so fast you can barely register what's going on. I personally think those two different parts could've been blended together a little better, but the variation in styles actually matches life rather well.

All the actors are great for their specific parts, although I admit Edward didn't need so much eye makeup and Bella could've had more voice variation (I thought it was a slight monotone, although maybe it was supposed to be that way; I'm not the director so I have no idea how it's supposed to be). Overall though, I thought the parts were picked out nicely, even if I didn't picture them exactly that way.

What can I say? I liked the movie.

"Eats, Shoots & Leaves" by Lynne Truss

Yesterday, I finished reading Eats, Shoots & Leaves by the British Lynne Truss. It's brilliant! Don't let the fact that it's a book about punctuation put you off; it's funny and actually rather helpful.

People seem to take punctuation for granted nowadays, and very few seem to realize how important it actually is. Take this sentence for example (taken from the book):

"Woman, without her man, is nothing."

This sentence implies that a woman needs a man to make her a person and satisfy her life. Now watch what happens with a simple shift of the comma:

"Woman: without her, man is nothing."

Now the meaning has changed to imply that men need women in order to function properly whereas women do not necessarily need men. If a misplaced comma can completely invert the meaning of one unimportant sentence, imagine what would happen if a comma were misplaced in a strategic paragraph in an important political dossier given to the United Nations.

With the growth of technology and text-messaging, punctuation is also disappearing. The semicolon and colon have become practically extinct, putting ever more pressure on poor, thankless comma.

Whether you're truly looking to improve your grammar or you just want something light and slightly humorous to read, I highly recommend this book. Kudos to you, Lynne Truss!

"Take The Lead" 2006

Take the Lead (2006)

I literally just finished watching this on TNT about half an hour ago and I thought it was AMAZING!

This movie is based on the true story of a teacher who taught ballroom dancing to the detention kids of the inner-city. Yes, this is basically one of those movies where there are a bunch of delinquents, a caring adult comes and actually cares about them, and they turn around and become amazing. But you know what I thought was cool? A lot of the things Mr. Dulaine (the main character) said made sense.

Admittedly, almost all inspirational movies seem impossible because we're just that insecure or we think it's cool to be cynical like that. But you know what? This is actually a true story, and that made me think: maybe this actually applies to my life. Maybe I can actually get inspiration from this instead of just watching a good movie and feeling safe for a couple of hours, then waking up to the "real world" again.

Although this movie is agonizingly slow-paced in some parts and so fast in others that you can barely keep up, I think this just helps it relate more to life because life is slow sometimes and life is fast sometimes. Because this is a story about the life of inner-city students, there are many things that non-inner-city residents wouldn't understand, such as drug and gang problems, an extra hatred for racism, etc. If you look past that, though, and accept it as something that all cultures have in one form or another, it's possible to see how the inner-city-students-ballroom-dancing metaphor can connect to breaking out of stereotypes in other cultures.

So yes, I love this movie.

Alyssa Bernal & Kris Mark

Duet: "Lucky" by Jason Mraz and Colbie Callait

Alyssa Bernal is the 18-year-old version of Vanessa Hudgens. Her voice is has a wide range and sounds sweet yet strong. Kris Mark is a 20-year-old friend of hers, another singer. He's got a good range as well and has a Lifehouse-style voice, in my opinion.

Basically, Kris shot his side of the video at his place and sent it over to Alyssa. She then played it and sang on top of it. This video was then sent back to Kris, who synced the videos together to make it into the video now on YouTube. If you only listen to it, though, it sounds like they're doing the duet while in the same room, not as if they were separated by a thousand miles.

In case anyone's interested, this is the actual version of the song:
"Lucky" by Jason Mraz ft. Colbie Callait

Alyssa Bernal & Kris Mark

"Michelle Obama's Election Night Dress" - A-Line

Michelle Obama's Election Night Dress - posted by Rebecca Detken

"Last night, Barack Obama made history when he was elected the 44th president of the United States! Obama was joined onstage in Chicago's Grant Park by his wife, Michelle, and their two daughters, Sasha and Malia, as he addressed an estimated crowd of 240,000 people.

While Obama's eloquent victory speech moved me to tears, unfortunately so did Michelle's dress. Barack looked sharp as can be in a dark navy suit, which was custom made by Hart Schaffner Marx, but I just wasn't feeling Michelle's splotchy red and black Narciso Rodriguez frock.

It might seem a little shallow to be discussing fashion the day after such a big moment in America's history, but I'm not the only one buzzing about Mrs. Obama's election night attire. Yahoo! users are searching like crazy for info on her dress, while critics are weighing in on whether it was a hit or miss.

Like me, LA Times blogger Elizabeth Snead was not a fan of the frock, calling it "disastrous." Of course, not everyone agrees. BlackBookmag.com's Alisa Gould-Simon found the dress to be shocking, but notes that it was "unexpected, uncoventional, and right on trend." InStyle.com also applauded our First Lady-elect's bold decision to wear something modern instead of a classic Oscar de La Renta number like many of the First Ladies before her. "Michelle Obama made fashion history last night," writes InStyle's Katrina Szish. "America, get ready to see what a true modern style icon is all about."

I guess I have to give Michelle props for daring to be different!"

Although I personally dislike Michelle Obama's choice of dress for Election Night, I have to admire her courage and confidence for appearing in something so modern and deviating from history. Furthermore, the colors she uses ties together her entire family as a red-and-black theme, presenting a unified front where they all complement and balance each other, a comforting idea for a country in sore need of balance.

I also admire Michelle for putting herself out there and showing her personal tastes, even knowing that she might be attacked for it. She refused to follow previous traditions simply because they were traditional and instead went with what she believed felt right. To me, this is yet another sign that this presidential term is full of new changes, although whether for the better or the worse, it is yet to be determined.

"P.S. I Love You" by Cecilia Ahern

The past few days, I've been reading P.S. I Love You by Cecilia Ahern. Yes, it seems like a girly book, but don't let the cover throw you off. It's sweet, sentimental, and sappy but some things that seem horribly cliche at first soon reveal themselves to be true and good advice.

Holly Kennedy's husband, Gerry, passed away in February from a brain tumor. This book tracks her progress as she learns to keep living even after his death. Before his death, she, Gerry, and their friends used to joke about The List, which was a list of commandments that Gerry would write in his will to his wife to make her life easier. After Gerry's death, Holly learns that he sent a package to her parents' house with ten envelopes inside--one for each month from March to December. Holly follows this List religiously as she recovers from Gerry's death and learns to live her life without him.

Admittedly, it deals with a difficult topic, but one that everybody can relate to. On the other hand, the advice it gives--find a good job, rely on your friends, have fun--are certain things that only the upper middle class could manage. What if you didn't have such good friends like Sharon and Denise? What if you couldn't find another job? What if you had to support kids? What if your family wasn't so supportive? What if you didn't have enough money to loll around trying to get over your loved one's death? Above all, what if your loved one didn't leave you instructions like Gerry did? How would you cope with the death on your own, without people to support you and kick-start you into continuing your life, having to be strong for others?

This is a book surrounding a girl with an ideal status--no one else to support, supportive family, trustworthy friends, great job, people who love you... Don't get me wrong; I love this book. It's also a good book to read if you're suffering through loss, because it might just give you the kick you need to get on with your life. However, if you don't have the opportunity and status Holly has, it might be tough to follow in her footsteps.

"Boston" by Augustana

"Boston" by Augustana

I think my friend showed this to me a year ago or so. I would love to find the piano sheet music for this because I love the beginning chords. This song touches on what all of us have felt at one time or another: the feeling that we don't belong here and that we need to get away and start a new life where we belong. The lyrics talk about change and fulfilling your dreams.

I was especially intrigued by the part where he sings "You don't wear my chains". It's as though he's walking along a road and each time he sees a stranger, he's thinking, "You don't know me and you don't care about me. You don't know what kind of trouble I'm going through, and you just couldn't care less." Who hasn't had that thought, or an inkling of that?

LYRICS (c) AZLyrics

In the light of the sun,
Is there anyone?
Oh it has begun.
Oh dear you look so lost,
Eyes are red and tears are shed,
This world you must have crossed.

And you said....

"You don't know me
You don't even care
Oh yeah..."
She said
"You don't know me
You don't wear my chains
Oh yeah..."

Essential yet appealed
Carry all your thoughts
Across an open field
When flowers gaze at you
They're not the only ones who cry
When they see you

You said....

"You don't know me
You don't even care
Oh yeah..."
She said
"You don't know me
You don't wear my chains
Oh yeah..."

She said, "I think I'll go to Boston
I think I'll start a new life
I think I'll start it over
Where no one knows my name
I'll get out of California
I'm tired of the weather
I think I'll get a lover
And fly him out to Spain
Oh yeah I think I'll go to Boston
I think that I'm just tired
I think I need a new town
To leave this all behind
I think I need a sunrise
I'm tired of the sunset
I hear it's nice in the summer
Some snow would be nice
Oh yeah...

You don't know me
You don't even care
Oh yeah...

Boston
Where no one knows my name
Where no one knows my name
Where no one knows my name
Yeah...

Boston
Where no one knows my name...