Robyn is a genuine sweetheart. Next time I'll invest in a tie clip.
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Thursday, May 27, 2010
You Can Count On Me
This past week, I finally watched Kenneth Lonergan's film after years of vacillation and leap frogging by other media. I knew it is a well regarded and reviewed film, winning the Sundance Jury Prize and the adulation of several of my friends and friends' friends. The past few years, I had been playing catch up with films like You Can Count On Me. I had made sure to see classics that have otherwise eluded me: Cool Hand Luke, The Piano, Blue Velvet, My Own Private Idaho. These flicks are rather disparate in any sense of thematic qualities, but they all somehow stuck in my head as "affecting" pieces of art, things that would move me. Of course I "should" see these films, but the promise of possibly being changed by something was somewhat daunting.
But You Can Count On Me stuck out as a movie that I was almost scared of. It might, I thought, actually upset me. There might be something there that could shake me and open me up in uncomfortably traumatic ways. I came to think of it as a disturbing movie before I had even seen it. This opinion had mostly been shaped by two of my good friends' conversations about the movie. My one friend told the story about the first time he had seen it, after which he determined he must break up with his current girlfriend, because he realized, "she couldn't count on me." What the hell did that mean? I almost didn't want to know for fear of the truth being too much for me to bear. Therefore, I was reluctant to actually watch the movie. It took on a mythically tragic quality that snowballed into an untouchable piece of art. In many ways, it might as well have been Dancer In The Dark (which I'm still to much of a wuss to attempt). I was especially reluctant to watch the movie with own my girlfriend, Jackie.
Thankfully, there is a happy ending to my story of watching this film, because it is, actually, and undeniably, so damn wonderful. There are some rough moments in the film, but nothing that will haunt your subconscious. And after five days of reflecting on You Can Count On Me, I've come to the conclusion that it's actually one of the best movies I've seen in a long time. The characters are vivid and compelling with exquisite portrayals by Linney, Ruffalo, Broderick, and Culkin. The dialog is honest and, at times, even evocative. I was astounded by the sheer mimesis of contemporary American angst and by my own compassion for Terry's humane maliase.
Terry: So how are ya?
Sammy: I'm fine, Terry.
Terry: So um... um, how's Rudy?
Sammy: We're fine, Terry.
[beat]
Sammy: How are you?
Terry: Uhhh, yeaahhh...
The priest foil turns out to be an especially spiritual and philosophical intersection in the story that left me holding a very clear mirror up to thoughts of my own life. Yet it is a story that succumbs to the truth while not reaching for morality or tidiness. And Lonergan should be applauded for that alone, because he shows us that fine films and stories don't need to end with sunsets. Of course, the Jury has already applied that appropriate applause.
I encourage and frankly insist people see this movie. It is and will be a relevant film for its literary frankness and its complete charm. I want to see it again. Now. Too bad I hadn't known how much I would love it, or at least I could have not been so intimidated by it. Maybe I would have done that sinful act of actually buying a movie like an album, and owning it before I had known it. Ultimately, I was scared to love this film for no good reason. Lesson learned.
But You Can Count On Me stuck out as a movie that I was almost scared of. It might, I thought, actually upset me. There might be something there that could shake me and open me up in uncomfortably traumatic ways. I came to think of it as a disturbing movie before I had even seen it. This opinion had mostly been shaped by two of my good friends' conversations about the movie. My one friend told the story about the first time he had seen it, after which he determined he must break up with his current girlfriend, because he realized, "she couldn't count on me." What the hell did that mean? I almost didn't want to know for fear of the truth being too much for me to bear. Therefore, I was reluctant to actually watch the movie. It took on a mythically tragic quality that snowballed into an untouchable piece of art. In many ways, it might as well have been Dancer In The Dark (which I'm still to much of a wuss to attempt). I was especially reluctant to watch the movie with own my girlfriend, Jackie.
Thankfully, there is a happy ending to my story of watching this film, because it is, actually, and undeniably, so damn wonderful. There are some rough moments in the film, but nothing that will haunt your subconscious. And after five days of reflecting on You Can Count On Me, I've come to the conclusion that it's actually one of the best movies I've seen in a long time. The characters are vivid and compelling with exquisite portrayals by Linney, Ruffalo, Broderick, and Culkin. The dialog is honest and, at times, even evocative. I was astounded by the sheer mimesis of contemporary American angst and by my own compassion for Terry's humane maliase.
Terry: So how are ya?
Sammy: I'm fine, Terry.
Terry: So um... um, how's Rudy?
Sammy: We're fine, Terry.
[beat]
Sammy: How are you?
Terry: Uhhh, yeaahhh...
The priest foil turns out to be an especially spiritual and philosophical intersection in the story that left me holding a very clear mirror up to thoughts of my own life. Yet it is a story that succumbs to the truth while not reaching for morality or tidiness. And Lonergan should be applauded for that alone, because he shows us that fine films and stories don't need to end with sunsets. Of course, the Jury has already applied that appropriate applause.
I encourage and frankly insist people see this movie. It is and will be a relevant film for its literary frankness and its complete charm. I want to see it again. Now. Too bad I hadn't known how much I would love it, or at least I could have not been so intimidated by it. Maybe I would have done that sinful act of actually buying a movie like an album, and owning it before I had known it. Ultimately, I was scared to love this film for no good reason. Lesson learned.
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Hello
interj. Used to greet someone, answer the telephone, or express surprise.
n. pl. hel·los
A calling or greeting of "hello."
intr.v. hel·loed, hel·lo·ing, hel·loes
To call "hello."
[Alteration of hallo, alteration of obsolete holla, stop!, perhaps from Old French hola : ho, ho! + la, there (from Latin illāc, that way).]
I once read somewhere of an illiterate man with no education who taught himself to read with a basic dictionary. He ended up completing the entire text and learning everything he needed to know. The novelty of this has stuck with me for quite some time. I wonder about the unadulterated and unencumbered experience of "knowing" a language versus "learning" a language through experience and application. Of course, I end up taking a pessimistic approach.
In our modern day, we often misuse, overuse, and abuse language, often down to a single word. I have noticed this in my own life, losing with myself when I get lazy or habitual with language and communication. Words like "amazing," "totally," "huge" have lost their luster and literal meaning for me. So a desire arose to closely examine individual words, how they are used, where they came from, and what they actually means. The best way to optimize this exploration and challenging of language, I figured, would be to document it.
I have decided to examine definitions and, as appropriate, research famous uses of the word in literature, media, folklore. Words I love, words I hate, misinterpreted words, misused words, unique words, rare words. Every word has its own story & place in the world and I'd like to write what I love about how some words sound and what they mean to me. On occasion, I'll delve into memories I have associated with an individual word, and everything it conjures for me. I want an honest exploration into how - and possibly why - we communicate. There will be wonderful connections between disparate words and the variety that is our language. My compass is the English language, and maybe even others.
Another piece of my agenda, is a bit anecdotal. I want to encourage myself, and maybe others, to stop ignoring words they don't know or pretending they do know them and move on. This has grown from a "pet peeve" into a saddening disappointment in daily discourse. What's the harm in admitting ignorance and learning something new. Don't ever be afraid to look something up!
So, back to "hello." It makes me think of babies' parents shaking their hands, using a musical lilt to say the word while the baby has a bewildered look on its face, and then later, when the child learns what it means and how to say it, she smiles like crazy and does it to every stranger in the grocery store. Years later we use it every day. Is any word more common to strangers, mothers, teachers, friends, buskers, cashiers, bartenders, lovers, grandchildren, neighbors, lost friends, enemies, street vendors, plumbers - I could go on. I am going on. Because this word goes on. It's a damn good word. And it's a damn shame it gets over used. Personally, I like the history of it above, the Old French, and Latin, and Spanish "hola," "ho! la." "That way," "you there." See me. I see you.
Being seen can go unnoticed and unacknowledged. Every day I see people without greeting them. Must you be acquainted to greet? I try to greet people I don't even know by asking them their name. Just last week I went to a movie theater with my girlfriend and asked the cashier who sold me a juice what her name was. She said, "Courtney," and then paused, before continuing with: "No customer has ever asked me my name before." And we're in New York City, friends! Hundreds of customers must have bought popcorn, Twizzlers, Pepsi from Courtney without ever truly greeting her. Let's look up "greeting":
greet·ing (grē'tĭng)
n. A word or gesture of welcome or salutation.
And "welcome":
wel·come (wěl'kəm)
adj.
1. Received with pleasure and hospitality into one's company or home: a welcome guest.
2. Giving pleasure or satisfaction; agreeable or gratifying: a welcome respite from hard work.
3. Cordially or willingly permitted or invited: You are welcome to join us.
4. Used in the expression you're welcome to acknowledge an expression of gratitude.
n.
1. A cordial greeting or hospitable reception given to an arriving person.
2. A reception upon arrival: gave the stranger an unfriendly welcome.
3. The state of being welcome: Don't overstay your welcome.
tr.v. wel·comed, wel·com·ing, wel·comes
1. To greet, receive, or entertain (another or others) cordially or hospitably.
2. To receive or accept gladly: would welcome a little privacy.
interj. Used to greet cordially a visitor or recent arrival.
[Middle English, alteration (influenced by wel, well) of Old English wilcuma, welcome guest, welcome; see gwā- in Indo-European roots.]
wel'come·ly adv., wel'come·ness n., wel'com·er n.
And salutation:
sal·u·ta·tion (sāl'yə-tā'shən)
n.
1.
1. A polite expression of greeting or goodwill.
2. salutations Greetings indicating respect and affection; regards.
2. A gesture of greeting, such as a bow or kiss.
3. A word or phrase of greeting used to begin a letter or message.
sal'u·ta'tion·al adj.
Perhaps Courtney had never worked too hard to ever receive a proper welcome. Or maybe she had worked so hard that no one ever acknowledged it and she had been waiting since her first day on the job for someone to utilize the full meaning of the word "hello." Had no one ever given her a salutation, a salute. Had no one ever given her respect enough to ask her name? Don't we all, even those who hate their jobs and are in service of others, deserve respect and regard?
Regard:
re⋅gard
/rɪˈgɑrd/ Show Spelled Pronunciation [ri-gahrd] Show IPA
Use regard in a Sentence
–verb (used with object)
1. to look upon or think of with a particular feeling: to regard a person with favor.
2. to have or show respect or concern for.
3. to think highly of; esteem.
4. to take into account; consider.
5. to look at; observe: She regarded him with amusement.
6. to relate to; concern: The news does not regard the explosion.
7. to see, look at, or conceive of in a particular way; judge (usually fol. by as): I regard every assignment as a challenge. They regarded his behavior as childish.
–verb (used without object)
8. to pay attention.
9. to look or gaze.
–noun
10. reference; relation: to err with regard to facts.
11. an aspect, point, or particular: quite satisfactory in this regard.
12. thought; attention; concern.
13. look; gaze.
14. respect, esteem, or deference: a high regard for scholarship.
15. kindly feeling; liking.
16. regards, sentiments of esteem or affection: Give them my regards.
Synonyms:
3. respect, honor, revere, value. 5. notice, note, see, remark, mark.
Perhaps we simply do not pay attention to anything in this world but ourselves. I don't mean to make this sound cynical or cast a spell of reprehension on my readers. It is a message of simple acknowledgment of others. I am exposing my thoughts to the world and I hope you can respect them. I am Courtney. Every day popping popcorn and cleaning toilets and changing your hard earned money and handing you your juice.
n. pl. hel·los
A calling or greeting of "hello."
intr.v. hel·loed, hel·lo·ing, hel·loes
To call "hello."
[Alteration of hallo, alteration of obsolete holla, stop!, perhaps from Old French hola : ho, ho! + la, there (from Latin illāc, that way).]
I once read somewhere of an illiterate man with no education who taught himself to read with a basic dictionary. He ended up completing the entire text and learning everything he needed to know. The novelty of this has stuck with me for quite some time. I wonder about the unadulterated and unencumbered experience of "knowing" a language versus "learning" a language through experience and application. Of course, I end up taking a pessimistic approach.
In our modern day, we often misuse, overuse, and abuse language, often down to a single word. I have noticed this in my own life, losing with myself when I get lazy or habitual with language and communication. Words like "amazing," "totally," "huge" have lost their luster and literal meaning for me. So a desire arose to closely examine individual words, how they are used, where they came from, and what they actually means. The best way to optimize this exploration and challenging of language, I figured, would be to document it.
I have decided to examine definitions and, as appropriate, research famous uses of the word in literature, media, folklore. Words I love, words I hate, misinterpreted words, misused words, unique words, rare words. Every word has its own story & place in the world and I'd like to write what I love about how some words sound and what they mean to me. On occasion, I'll delve into memories I have associated with an individual word, and everything it conjures for me. I want an honest exploration into how - and possibly why - we communicate. There will be wonderful connections between disparate words and the variety that is our language. My compass is the English language, and maybe even others.
Another piece of my agenda, is a bit anecdotal. I want to encourage myself, and maybe others, to stop ignoring words they don't know or pretending they do know them and move on. This has grown from a "pet peeve" into a saddening disappointment in daily discourse. What's the harm in admitting ignorance and learning something new. Don't ever be afraid to look something up!
So, back to "hello." It makes me think of babies' parents shaking their hands, using a musical lilt to say the word while the baby has a bewildered look on its face, and then later, when the child learns what it means and how to say it, she smiles like crazy and does it to every stranger in the grocery store. Years later we use it every day. Is any word more common to strangers, mothers, teachers, friends, buskers, cashiers, bartenders, lovers, grandchildren, neighbors, lost friends, enemies, street vendors, plumbers - I could go on. I am going on. Because this word goes on. It's a damn good word. And it's a damn shame it gets over used. Personally, I like the history of it above, the Old French, and Latin, and Spanish "hola," "ho! la." "That way," "you there." See me. I see you.
Being seen can go unnoticed and unacknowledged. Every day I see people without greeting them. Must you be acquainted to greet? I try to greet people I don't even know by asking them their name. Just last week I went to a movie theater with my girlfriend and asked the cashier who sold me a juice what her name was. She said, "Courtney," and then paused, before continuing with: "No customer has ever asked me my name before." And we're in New York City, friends! Hundreds of customers must have bought popcorn, Twizzlers, Pepsi from Courtney without ever truly greeting her. Let's look up "greeting":
greet·ing (grē'tĭng)
n. A word or gesture of welcome or salutation.
And "welcome":
wel·come (wěl'kəm)
adj.
1. Received with pleasure and hospitality into one's company or home: a welcome guest.
2. Giving pleasure or satisfaction; agreeable or gratifying: a welcome respite from hard work.
3. Cordially or willingly permitted or invited: You are welcome to join us.
4. Used in the expression you're welcome to acknowledge an expression of gratitude.
n.
1. A cordial greeting or hospitable reception given to an arriving person.
2. A reception upon arrival: gave the stranger an unfriendly welcome.
3. The state of being welcome: Don't overstay your welcome.
tr.v. wel·comed, wel·com·ing, wel·comes
1. To greet, receive, or entertain (another or others) cordially or hospitably.
2. To receive or accept gladly: would welcome a little privacy.
interj. Used to greet cordially a visitor or recent arrival.
[Middle English, alteration (influenced by wel, well) of Old English wilcuma, welcome guest, welcome; see gwā- in Indo-European roots.]
wel'come·ly adv., wel'come·ness n., wel'com·er n.
And salutation:
sal·u·ta·tion (sāl'yə-tā'shən)
n.
1.
1. A polite expression of greeting or goodwill.
2. salutations Greetings indicating respect and affection; regards.
2. A gesture of greeting, such as a bow or kiss.
3. A word or phrase of greeting used to begin a letter or message.
sal'u·ta'tion·al adj.
Perhaps Courtney had never worked too hard to ever receive a proper welcome. Or maybe she had worked so hard that no one ever acknowledged it and she had been waiting since her first day on the job for someone to utilize the full meaning of the word "hello." Had no one ever given her a salutation, a salute. Had no one ever given her respect enough to ask her name? Don't we all, even those who hate their jobs and are in service of others, deserve respect and regard?
Regard:
re⋅gard
/rɪˈgɑrd/ Show Spelled Pronunciation [ri-gahrd] Show IPA
Use regard in a Sentence
–verb (used with object)
1. to look upon or think of with a particular feeling: to regard a person with favor.
2. to have or show respect or concern for.
3. to think highly of; esteem.
4. to take into account; consider.
5. to look at; observe: She regarded him with amusement.
6. to relate to; concern: The news does not regard the explosion.
7. to see, look at, or conceive of in a particular way; judge (usually fol. by as): I regard every assignment as a challenge. They regarded his behavior as childish.
–verb (used without object)
8. to pay attention.
9. to look or gaze.
–noun
10. reference; relation: to err with regard to facts.
11. an aspect, point, or particular: quite satisfactory in this regard.
12. thought; attention; concern.
13. look; gaze.
14. respect, esteem, or deference: a high regard for scholarship.
15. kindly feeling; liking.
16. regards, sentiments of esteem or affection: Give them my regards.
Synonyms:
3. respect, honor, revere, value. 5. notice, note, see, remark, mark.
Perhaps we simply do not pay attention to anything in this world but ourselves. I don't mean to make this sound cynical or cast a spell of reprehension on my readers. It is a message of simple acknowledgment of others. I am exposing my thoughts to the world and I hope you can respect them. I am Courtney. Every day popping popcorn and cleaning toilets and changing your hard earned money and handing you your juice.
Thursday, December 21, 2006
Coca-Cola's Egregious Misinformation
Not to kill the holiday mood of gluttonous consumption and gift wrapping pollution, but I need to take up an issue with the Coca-Cola Corporation that has vexed me for over a year now. This holiday season few can doubt the ubiquity of Coke's saccharine polar bear/penguin ads. Aside from television spots and movie theater pre-trailer commericals, The Cola Powers That Be are even releasing a line of plush toys ranging in size from 4.5 to 20 inches to get their agenda across. Yet while many relish the debatably artistic animations, I have yet to hear a single dissenting voice challenging the plausibility of such an unnatural pairing of species. Let us leave alone the predatory instincts of the vicious polar bear and the misrepresented mobility of penguins on ice. I will reluctantly consent to the merchandising and marketing aspects of these luminous cartoon ads and the fact that a severed penguin head would not appeal to most markets outside of Bangladesh.
However I cannot - and will not - stand for the severe geographic fraudulence perpetrated by the Coca-Cola Corporation – namely, that these two species share the same polar environs. While we are aware that both the polar bear and the seemingly infinite variety of penguin abide in harshly frigid habitats, we are rarely taught – especially by the media – of these animals' strikingly different native regions. However, upon receiving actual truthful information, the layperson would be baffled by the sheer number of penguin species. Amazingly, every single Sphenisciformes (Latin for penguin) resides in the southern hemisphere. You'd think that even one kind of penguin would find its way North. But you'd be wrong. They're only ever found in the ANTartic, dummy. And I won't insult your intelligence about the sea bear (more commonly known as the polar bear), because we all know they only live in and around the Artic. Duh!
Of course, I present all of this information with a bit of hesitancy due to its revelatory nature. All of this might be hard for some of you to handle, almost as hard to handle as the fact that Santa Claus isn't – oh wait, never mind. I do not wish to ruin anyone's genuine enjoyment of corporate media manipulation this holiday season. I merely wanted to provide everyone with an authentic gift this holiday season: accurate information.
Happy Holidays!
best,
Chris
p.s. Have a Pepsi today!
However I cannot - and will not - stand for the severe geographic fraudulence perpetrated by the Coca-Cola Corporation – namely, that these two species share the same polar environs. While we are aware that both the polar bear and the seemingly infinite variety of penguin abide in harshly frigid habitats, we are rarely taught – especially by the media – of these animals' strikingly different native regions. However, upon receiving actual truthful information, the layperson would be baffled by the sheer number of penguin species. Amazingly, every single Sphenisciformes (Latin for penguin) resides in the southern hemisphere. You'd think that even one kind of penguin would find its way North. But you'd be wrong. They're only ever found in the ANTartic, dummy. And I won't insult your intelligence about the sea bear (more commonly known as the polar bear), because we all know they only live in and around the Artic. Duh!
Of course, I present all of this information with a bit of hesitancy due to its revelatory nature. All of this might be hard for some of you to handle, almost as hard to handle as the fact that Santa Claus isn't – oh wait, never mind. I do not wish to ruin anyone's genuine enjoyment of corporate media manipulation this holiday season. I merely wanted to provide everyone with an authentic gift this holiday season: accurate information.
Happy Holidays!
best,
Chris
p.s. Have a Pepsi today!
Sunday, December 11, 2005
How I'd Really Really Like to Live
first, you must check this out: www.solardyne.com. granted, it's a weak, commercialized way of getting my point across. so here's my real point: everything we need the earth already provides and i can't wait until i don't have to rely on petroleum or electricity. the earth's pure natural resources (not oil, but wind, sun and water) contain enough energy for us to not only survive, but to thrive. it's absurd that we have reached a point where technology makes it possible for us to live directly off the land without polluting it, but we draw ourselves closer and closer to lifestyles that damage the only thing we've got - our environment. it's absurd, but not surprising. first world countries have become obsessed with working so hard for a lifestyle they can't fully appreciate, because they're working too hard to understand what they've got! like i said, it's not surprising. what's absurd is that we have an opportunity to reverse the damage we've done, to live proactive, organic lives. we need to wake up and realize that a close connection to our planet will give us that much more gratitude for and satisfaction in what we enjoy and how we enjoy it.
as for me, in addition to building my house off the grid, i'm going to live in a warm climate right near the ocean where earth, water and wind all converge in a savage, primordial nexus of natural forces. i'll surf every day, travel locally by bicycle or horse, fish the ocean and rivers for my protein, cook my food with a wood burning stove, refrigerate my food in an icebox, stove-heat my water for baths, tend my own organic garden of soy for me and hay for my horse, and write the great modern novel on... a typewriter! the only electricity i'll need, as far as i see it, will be to light my house at night when my bohemian friends as we gather to drink home-brewed beer, play ping-pong and board games while listening to vinyl on a hand-cranked phonograph. come to think of it, we could do that stuff outside... on the beach... around a bonfire! but what if it rains? yeah, i guess we'll need to go inside then and have to use stupid electricity. no! we'll celebrate the rain. we'll dance and cavort in it all night. we'll pound our chests in the glory of being alive. nothing will be spoiled. everything will be relished. and our lives will be our finest creation!
sorry if i'm invoking thoreau too much, or if it sounds like i'm on something. i promise i'm not. well, okay... i did drink A LOT of coffee. so i hope i don't sound too crazy. but anyway, who's with me? i know marty is. that's a given, we've talked about this sort of thing and he's into every bit of it. he'll be making small miracles of neuroscience happen in a laboratory nearby. anyone else? adam can be the town's resident musician who rises to critical acclaim and success and later retires to give music lessons to the locals. justin can start a local acting company and maybe run a theater with a summer shakespeare festival that features his famous acting buddies from all over the world. sam, i'm not sure there will be many murders in our community that would need forensic investigation and psychoanalysis, but you could start your own private practice and serve the mental health of our community, does that sound good? and maybe i can stir up a few homicides for you, just to keep things interesting. i've got to admit, though, that the real challenge will be finding the women of our dreams who will embrace this life with us. do you guys know of any contenders? i'll wait to hear back from you.
as for me, in addition to building my house off the grid, i'm going to live in a warm climate right near the ocean where earth, water and wind all converge in a savage, primordial nexus of natural forces. i'll surf every day, travel locally by bicycle or horse, fish the ocean and rivers for my protein, cook my food with a wood burning stove, refrigerate my food in an icebox, stove-heat my water for baths, tend my own organic garden of soy for me and hay for my horse, and write the great modern novel on... a typewriter! the only electricity i'll need, as far as i see it, will be to light my house at night when my bohemian friends as we gather to drink home-brewed beer, play ping-pong and board games while listening to vinyl on a hand-cranked phonograph. come to think of it, we could do that stuff outside... on the beach... around a bonfire! but what if it rains? yeah, i guess we'll need to go inside then and have to use stupid electricity. no! we'll celebrate the rain. we'll dance and cavort in it all night. we'll pound our chests in the glory of being alive. nothing will be spoiled. everything will be relished. and our lives will be our finest creation!
sorry if i'm invoking thoreau too much, or if it sounds like i'm on something. i promise i'm not. well, okay... i did drink A LOT of coffee. so i hope i don't sound too crazy. but anyway, who's with me? i know marty is. that's a given, we've talked about this sort of thing and he's into every bit of it. he'll be making small miracles of neuroscience happen in a laboratory nearby. anyone else? adam can be the town's resident musician who rises to critical acclaim and success and later retires to give music lessons to the locals. justin can start a local acting company and maybe run a theater with a summer shakespeare festival that features his famous acting buddies from all over the world. sam, i'm not sure there will be many murders in our community that would need forensic investigation and psychoanalysis, but you could start your own private practice and serve the mental health of our community, does that sound good? and maybe i can stir up a few homicides for you, just to keep things interesting. i've got to admit, though, that the real challenge will be finding the women of our dreams who will embrace this life with us. do you guys know of any contenders? i'll wait to hear back from you.
Monday, October 17, 2005
Chocolatears
my brother, matt and sister-in-law, amy just got back from orlando and visiting disney world. it was a pretty big trip considering they were there for only three or four days. they went down with my two year old twin nephews, amy's parents, sister and sister's boyfriend, so it was quite the undertaking. i had the pleasure of watching the three dogs of the traveling party, one of which urinates immediately upon contact with me. and only me. so while they were basking in the humid, sun drenched floridian climate, i was watching two spastic dogs and one spastic and chronically urinating dog. i'm exaggerating. it wasn't that bad, considering they were nice enough to pay me for it all.
anyway, i'm digressing. when they got back yesterday, they got me a two small gifts (which was nice of them), a rice krispie treat shaped like mickey's head with chocolate coated ears and a bag of chocolate covered pretzels. the pretzels are in the shape of what else mickey's head and written on the bag is the word, "chocolatears." at first, i read it as "chocolate tears" and thought "god, how awful. why would they make such a sad confection aimed at young children?" of course it only took me a second to realize that it was meant to read as "chocolate ears." but i couldn't get over my own reading to appreciate the neat pun those in ye olde disney candy shoppe had achieved.
my brother presented the sad little gift to me after he told me a story about their visit in orlando with my nephews. for the past two weeks or so, matt and amy have been sufficiently exciting my nephews, ryan and liam about the trip. they've shown them pictures of mickey, minnie, donald duck, and goofy and told them "we're going to visit mickey, et al. you're going to see them all." this would elicit an confused yet excited reaction from my nephews, thus engendering them with an understanding of 'seeing' mickey and the gang. they did a similar thing before i arrived home from new zealand. matt would show ryan my picture over and over again, and say something like, "uncle chris is coming home soon." the ultimate effect was that ryan was able to point at my picture and get a reaction from surrounding adults by saying "un-ca, un-ca." matt told me that he was planting the seed for my return, so i got excited that my nephews would probably be excited for my return. when i finally arrived home, though, ryan and liam were incredibly confused and almost scared. the "un-ca" from the picture had come alive somehow and was now standing, moving, and talking before them. he was picking them up and startling them with his presence. what had happened? so when matt and amy escorted them through the photo op area of the magic kingdom (apparently the disney characters were too frequently accosted by disney patrons and are now safely on display in a sort of professional photo studio) the tension was palpable. the family turned the corner and suddenly there they were! and not only were they there, but they were huge, seven, eight feet tall, giants of cartoon reality. the reaction wasn't exactly the same, as matt told me. apparently they were happy to see everyone (liam was especially happy to see goofy), but not just happy, amazed, and in tears of joy. "g-goofy!" liam mumbled through his tears. he couldn't contain his emotion. he was shuttering with amazement. apparently, matt and amy couldn't even get them close enough for a photograph.
it's amazing that something meant to bring such joy for young children, can over achieve like that. it got me thinking about how much our minds, emotions and moods are a result of the exterior world. we like to think that emotions are "ours." that we can control them totally somehow. but even if we do sort of control them, we do it by putting on a favorite song, thinking about a particular image, or relishing a chocolate covered pretzel. we summon things other than us. when it comes down to it, even the emotions are a result of serotonin, etc. chemicals are responsible for how we feel. what, then, do we have control over is not our emotions? our lives are too rooted in the physical world of media, family, friends, for us to make our lives entirely our own. i guess there's a beauty there, though. there's so much that can affect us. at least we still have a choice what can affect us, what we let into our lives.
anyway, i'm digressing. when they got back yesterday, they got me a two small gifts (which was nice of them), a rice krispie treat shaped like mickey's head with chocolate coated ears and a bag of chocolate covered pretzels. the pretzels are in the shape of what else mickey's head and written on the bag is the word, "chocolatears." at first, i read it as "chocolate tears" and thought "god, how awful. why would they make such a sad confection aimed at young children?" of course it only took me a second to realize that it was meant to read as "chocolate ears." but i couldn't get over my own reading to appreciate the neat pun those in ye olde disney candy shoppe had achieved.
my brother presented the sad little gift to me after he told me a story about their visit in orlando with my nephews. for the past two weeks or so, matt and amy have been sufficiently exciting my nephews, ryan and liam about the trip. they've shown them pictures of mickey, minnie, donald duck, and goofy and told them "we're going to visit mickey, et al. you're going to see them all." this would elicit an confused yet excited reaction from my nephews, thus engendering them with an understanding of 'seeing' mickey and the gang. they did a similar thing before i arrived home from new zealand. matt would show ryan my picture over and over again, and say something like, "uncle chris is coming home soon." the ultimate effect was that ryan was able to point at my picture and get a reaction from surrounding adults by saying "un-ca, un-ca." matt told me that he was planting the seed for my return, so i got excited that my nephews would probably be excited for my return. when i finally arrived home, though, ryan and liam were incredibly confused and almost scared. the "un-ca" from the picture had come alive somehow and was now standing, moving, and talking before them. he was picking them up and startling them with his presence. what had happened? so when matt and amy escorted them through the photo op area of the magic kingdom (apparently the disney characters were too frequently accosted by disney patrons and are now safely on display in a sort of professional photo studio) the tension was palpable. the family turned the corner and suddenly there they were! and not only were they there, but they were huge, seven, eight feet tall, giants of cartoon reality. the reaction wasn't exactly the same, as matt told me. apparently they were happy to see everyone (liam was especially happy to see goofy), but not just happy, amazed, and in tears of joy. "g-goofy!" liam mumbled through his tears. he couldn't contain his emotion. he was shuttering with amazement. apparently, matt and amy couldn't even get them close enough for a photograph.
it's amazing that something meant to bring such joy for young children, can over achieve like that. it got me thinking about how much our minds, emotions and moods are a result of the exterior world. we like to think that emotions are "ours." that we can control them totally somehow. but even if we do sort of control them, we do it by putting on a favorite song, thinking about a particular image, or relishing a chocolate covered pretzel. we summon things other than us. when it comes down to it, even the emotions are a result of serotonin, etc. chemicals are responsible for how we feel. what, then, do we have control over is not our emotions? our lives are too rooted in the physical world of media, family, friends, for us to make our lives entirely our own. i guess there's a beauty there, though. there's so much that can affect us. at least we still have a choice what can affect us, what we let into our lives.
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