Saw a movie on Netflix last night with my father, as we do every Friday night. Tonight it was Another Earth.
Short review: it sucked.
Here's my telling of it.
Summary: A girl, called Roda or something? She finds out she got a scholarship to a University. She celebrates, goes to a party. Gets drunk. Drives drunk. Hits a family - a mother, father, son. The mother and son die, the father goes into a coma. She goes to jail for four years. When she comes out, it turns out that they've discovered a second earth in our solar system - they're creatively calling it "Earth 2". You can write an essay and win a trip to Earth 2. Roda, who's always had a fascination with outer space, writes in and tries. Meanwhile, she finds out about the guy she hit those four years ago. He lives alone. She tries to ring his bell to apologize, chickens out, and tells him that she's from some sort of cleaning service. The guy buys it and actually gets her to clean his house. They bond, and eventually they have sex, even though that's kind of disgusting. NASA or whatever, they make contact with Earth 2. There are people living on it, and not only that - they're exact replicas of the people living on Earth 1. With the same names, birthdates, memories and occupations. Roda wins the trip to Earth 2. She tells the guy. They celebrate for her, then he stops pretending and begs her not to go. She tells him that she was the one that killed his entire family. He tells her to get out. She comes back, he tries to strangle her, she says stuff, and somehow or other she ends up giving her free trip to Earth 2 to him. Then as she's walking home, she sees a replica of herself - the her from Earth 2 came to Earth 1.
Now, as my father keeps saying, it told a decent story. And sure, I agree. But the telling of the story was really bad, and I'll tell you why.
First of all, we are not made to care about what happens to these characters. All we know about the girl is she's into space, and she got drunk once. All we know about the guy is his family tragedy. There is never any attempt to make us like these characters, or care what happens to them. Maybe if we saw any of the characters show emotion besides sadness, that maybe would have helped. Roda is a Bella (as in from Twilight. That bad). She's a shell. She shows no emotion besides vague sadness, and doesn't bother to interact with anyone. We didn't care. And as for the guy.... he was alright. He was alright because he actually showed a metamorphosis through the movie, as protagonists generally do. He started out very sad and directionless, then when he likes her he starts to be happy with himself again. Then, when he finds out her true identity (since "the one who killed your family" is really the only identity given her) he starts out sad, goes angry, and goes devastated. He doesn't want to hurt her. And then happy again as he goes to Earth 2. The point is, he changes through the story. And that's what a good story wants, quite often.
Second of all, the story moved SO. SLOWLY. Dad fell asleep through half of it and missed nothing significant at all. If you cut out all the stuff that doesn't move the plot at all, you'd have four minutes of movie left (okay I'm exaggerating.... but you see my point).
But here's my biggest issue; the movie focused so much on being weird, artistic and shocking that it really did sacrifice all those elements that a movie NEEDS in order to be good. The cutting in weird places and weirdly angled close-ups were quite artistic, sure, and all the rest of it. But it was focused so much on being memorably weird that it paid no attention whatsoever to more important things - things like characterization, plot development, theme. Movies should begin with a story. Stories should begin with an idea. Ideas should begin with an emotion. That's the chain as it should be. And maybe the story did have an idea, or a feeling in it. But that got completely lost when they decided that this movie should always keep you completely offbalance, and lets always have the camera cutting as if it's some kind of documentary, and let's do this over here and do that over here. It didn't need that, and frankly crumbled whatever hope I had for the movie.
Don't get me wrong, I'm fine with artistic movies. I find them fascinating. But not every movie can pull it off. Not every movie can do the whole artsy-fartsy bit and still be enjoyable. That's the problem.
But, on the other hand, there were some okay bits in this movie. Some parts of this movie were actually legitimately good. For instance, when the guy is playing the saw with a violin bow. It sounds ridiculous, but that's what happened. It was weird, but strangely drawing, and strangely pretty. And to see the Earth 2 hanging in the sky next to the moon, that was quite good. Some shots were quite striking - when Roda finds out she won, and on the dock. I very much liked that. And the story she tells the guy about the Russian astronaut and the ticking sound was something to bring shivers down your spine. But if not for these things, the movie would be nothing.
So, in general, sometimes the movie succeeded in the poetry it was obviously trying to convey - but most of the time, it was just boring and annoying. Wholly unsatisfying. Attempting to be thought provoking and really not succeeding at all.
0.5/5 stars.
Saturday, December 15, 2012
Sunday, December 9, 2012
Community: General Review
So, lately I've gotten really into a show. That show is called Community.
Maybe you've heard of it. Maybe you haven't. But I suggest you watch a few episodes. You'll probably like it.
Or....
Well, some people start out liking it and then get tired of it. I was the opposite. I started out not really thinking much of it, and then loving it.
Basic concept:
Seven very different people meet up at a crappy community college. They're all taking spanish, so they form a study group. And that study group becomes a kind of family.
The writing in this show is good, but what I really really love about it is that the characters all have their very own, very distinct identity:
Jeff: He was a bigshot lawyer before he got kicked out of his law firm for not having the proper papers for being a legitimate lawyer. He knew he didn't have the proper papers - Jeff is very used to scamming his way through life. So, in order to get back easy, he went to a crappy community college to get the easiest way back into being a real lawyer. Jeff is a master at manipulating people, and he will if he feels it will help him gain something. He seems to think - or at least tells people that he thinks - that he is the most deserving person on earth. He very rarely likes to admit he cares about something - he prefers to be extremely non-chalant and cool toward people. He's the one who starts the study group in the first place, but not for the proper reason - he did it so that he could get in Britta's bed.
What I like about this character is that he starts out, as you can probably tell, as a huge D-bag. But he does have a kind of evolution through the series, as does every character. He uses his "powers" to bring the group together. He starts thinking about other people - sometimes over himself. He starts to show that he does care about some things. But you need to be following the series to see this - if you start an episode without knowing what's going on, then he's just going to look like a D-bag.
Britta: She's what you would call a modern hippie. A rebel without a cause - or as the show once described her, the "needlessly defiant". She talks about being all for female empowerment, charity, organicness and naturality, to the point of being annoying to the others. She's attractive - she knows it, and uses it. She can be very immature - she has what one could call a brother/sisterly rivalry with Jeff, and they're often bickering and making fun of each other - but she can also be very mature. She and Jeff act as the mother and father figures of the study group, respectively. What Britta most cares about is putting others before herself, and helping others - even if some other people accidentally get hurt in the process. But she's also very defiant by nature, and if someone offends her, then she will do what she can to shove it back in their face.
Annie: A nineteen year old girl, very driven, very smart, very determined. She probably could have gone to a better college, but in high school she got addicted to pills and had a nervous breakdown. She had to go to rehab. Her mother didn't support her in rehab, and as a result they've turned their backs on each other and Annie now lives in an apartment by herself in a dangerous neighbourhood. You wouldn't be able to tell she ever had that problem now. She's quite by-the-book, though she does have the ability to adapt and be resourceful. She had a crush on Troy, and now appears to have a crushy thing on Jeff. She, like me, analyzes everything, though as a result she reads too far into things and ends up expecting more than people actually offered. She's an adult by her actions, but childlike by her morals - her distinction between right and wrong is very bold, and if someone lies or is disrespectful then she will be the one to "tell on them". Her friends are a top priority for her. She wants the best for the people around her, but her judgement of what's best may not be the same as others.
Troy: He and Annie went to high school together. He was the jock in high school, and was very popular then. Now he goes to Greendale...... for some reason. Troy is a believer in passion, and a believer in fun over work. His brotha-from-anotha-motha is Abed.... who I will get to. Troy is not smart.... in the traditional sense. He's not smart intellectually/academically, or particularly street smart..... but he knows instinct, and he knows motivation. And every once in a while he dazzles them with a good idea. Troy is a little bit like Jeff in some ways..... being the popular jock in high school left him under the impression that he was a little more entitled than the rest. But he also has a very dutiful sense of right and wrong, and he always corrects himself if he offends someone, and will tell someone if he thinks they're doing something wrong. He's a little childish - in fact, he's quite childish, but he knows when to be mature.
Shirley: She's a born again christian woman, single mother - her husband cheated on her, so she kicked him out, and then when he came back she forgave him because of her christian values. She fancies herself the perfect christian - she forgives everyone (or says she does) and works hard to always be considerate and nice to people. She responds to good news with an "oh, that's nice," in a very super sweet way and responds to bad news with questions about why that would happen. Shirley.... has thinly veiled anger issues hidden shallowly beneath the surface. If someone offends her, or someone she cares about, then forgiveness and turning the other cheek sort of goes out the window - she knows how to kick ass. She believes in perfection - she strives for it, and can't understand why other people wouldn't. I mean..... she accepts people for their imperfections, but she strives to make sure that nothing that would make people unhappy happens, and can't understand when other people let that happen. She's had some darkness.... she used to be an alcoholic. Which is probably one of the reasons she tries so hard to keep that kind of darkness out.
Pierce: Pretty much Community's equivalent of a crazy old man. Ah, wait, scratch that - that would be Leonard. Pierce is older than the others (like in his sixties) and has very... outdated points of view. That is, he's pretty much racist and homophobic. He thinks he can rule other people's worlds with his money and riches. He likes to manipulate people that way - he's not dependent on people, but he's dependent on people being dependent on him. He demands respect in spite of the fact that it's very hard to. At least in the second season, he was pretty selfish and self-centered, but he was mostly playing the antagonist in the second season, so........ What he wants is to be accepted somewhere, to be liked. He makes it hard for himself though, because if he has any negative feelings toward anyone he tends to blow it out of proportion and just make things worse. He's been married seven times, divorced every single one. When he meets someone he likes, he tests their boundaries. Pushes them. That's why most of them don't last very long. But he gives respect where he can see that respect is due.
Abed: Last but not least. Certainly not least. He's my ultimate favourite out of this show. He's just made of awesome.
Abed is undiagnosable. Jeff's said Aspergers, but that's not the point. The point is Abed is..... weird. He doesn't know how to act around people, he doesn't understand people. He doesn't understand emotion, and he seldom ever really shows any emotion through any facial expression - the only emotion he shows is through cliches from TV that he happens to find relatable at that point in time. He likes TV more than he likes life - he understands TV more. To him, TV has more structure than life, and so because of this he's developed a kind of obsession with television. He's always making references to TV, slipping into blatantly obvious stereotypes or characters from TV and movies, because to him it just makes more sense to apply it that way. Abed does not understand people at all, and he does not know how anything he does will affect anyone, so Abed learns by observation. He observes how people talk to each other, and he usually makes the connections of their psychologies/personalities........ but he doesn't have the natural instinct for it that "normal" people do. He needs to work hard to act accordingly around people. Abed is used to not being understood, and though his facial expression never shows SIGNIFICANT change, one can tell when he's been hurt or doesn't understand something. The most enthusiasm Abed usually shows is a slight twitch at the corner of the mouth and a "Cool. Cool cool cool." People often think that Abed is incompetent because of this.... "disability", and then discover they're sadly mistaken when Abed swiftly and unexpectedly proves his point and make everyone rethink everything. Abed knows the difference between right and wrong, and though you wouldn't know it sometimes, he knows the difference between TV and real life. But Abed has difficulty expressing his emotions. Observations and thoughts, no problem. But emotions are hard for him. That's why he makes movies. People understand movies. They make sense to everyone. So Abed is working to become a filmmaker. He's also Troy's brotha-from-anotha-motha - they have lots of fun doing ridiculous things together.
Those are my summaries of the characters. I know I was supposed to be reviewing the show, but this is pretty much the Community rant I've been wanting to have. But, all in all, the show is wacky, fun, light-hearted, ridiculous at times, great if you like spoofs (courtesy of Abed) and hilarious. It's also great for analyzers like myself, because those wonderful writers are constantly adding dimensions to the characters.
There's always conflict, but it's usually light-hearted nonetheless. It's always wacky, but never nonsensical. It's ingeniusly balanced.
If you like to think, it's a fun show. If you just watch a show for the sake of watching it, then it's fine then too - it will provide you with the laughter you seek. All in all, it's a great show to watch, and you should all watch at least a few episodes.
5/5 stars.
P.S Did I mention that Abed is the best? Because Abed is like the best character. He's awesome.
Maybe you've heard of it. Maybe you haven't. But I suggest you watch a few episodes. You'll probably like it.
Or....
Well, some people start out liking it and then get tired of it. I was the opposite. I started out not really thinking much of it, and then loving it.
Basic concept:
Seven very different people meet up at a crappy community college. They're all taking spanish, so they form a study group. And that study group becomes a kind of family.
The writing in this show is good, but what I really really love about it is that the characters all have their very own, very distinct identity:
Jeff: He was a bigshot lawyer before he got kicked out of his law firm for not having the proper papers for being a legitimate lawyer. He knew he didn't have the proper papers - Jeff is very used to scamming his way through life. So, in order to get back easy, he went to a crappy community college to get the easiest way back into being a real lawyer. Jeff is a master at manipulating people, and he will if he feels it will help him gain something. He seems to think - or at least tells people that he thinks - that he is the most deserving person on earth. He very rarely likes to admit he cares about something - he prefers to be extremely non-chalant and cool toward people. He's the one who starts the study group in the first place, but not for the proper reason - he did it so that he could get in Britta's bed.
What I like about this character is that he starts out, as you can probably tell, as a huge D-bag. But he does have a kind of evolution through the series, as does every character. He uses his "powers" to bring the group together. He starts thinking about other people - sometimes over himself. He starts to show that he does care about some things. But you need to be following the series to see this - if you start an episode without knowing what's going on, then he's just going to look like a D-bag.
Britta: She's what you would call a modern hippie. A rebel without a cause - or as the show once described her, the "needlessly defiant". She talks about being all for female empowerment, charity, organicness and naturality, to the point of being annoying to the others. She's attractive - she knows it, and uses it. She can be very immature - she has what one could call a brother/sisterly rivalry with Jeff, and they're often bickering and making fun of each other - but she can also be very mature. She and Jeff act as the mother and father figures of the study group, respectively. What Britta most cares about is putting others before herself, and helping others - even if some other people accidentally get hurt in the process. But she's also very defiant by nature, and if someone offends her, then she will do what she can to shove it back in their face.
Annie: A nineteen year old girl, very driven, very smart, very determined. She probably could have gone to a better college, but in high school she got addicted to pills and had a nervous breakdown. She had to go to rehab. Her mother didn't support her in rehab, and as a result they've turned their backs on each other and Annie now lives in an apartment by herself in a dangerous neighbourhood. You wouldn't be able to tell she ever had that problem now. She's quite by-the-book, though she does have the ability to adapt and be resourceful. She had a crush on Troy, and now appears to have a crushy thing on Jeff. She, like me, analyzes everything, though as a result she reads too far into things and ends up expecting more than people actually offered. She's an adult by her actions, but childlike by her morals - her distinction between right and wrong is very bold, and if someone lies or is disrespectful then she will be the one to "tell on them". Her friends are a top priority for her. She wants the best for the people around her, but her judgement of what's best may not be the same as others.
Troy: He and Annie went to high school together. He was the jock in high school, and was very popular then. Now he goes to Greendale...... for some reason. Troy is a believer in passion, and a believer in fun over work. His brotha-from-anotha-motha is Abed.... who I will get to. Troy is not smart.... in the traditional sense. He's not smart intellectually/academically, or particularly street smart..... but he knows instinct, and he knows motivation. And every once in a while he dazzles them with a good idea. Troy is a little bit like Jeff in some ways..... being the popular jock in high school left him under the impression that he was a little more entitled than the rest. But he also has a very dutiful sense of right and wrong, and he always corrects himself if he offends someone, and will tell someone if he thinks they're doing something wrong. He's a little childish - in fact, he's quite childish, but he knows when to be mature.
Shirley: She's a born again christian woman, single mother - her husband cheated on her, so she kicked him out, and then when he came back she forgave him because of her christian values. She fancies herself the perfect christian - she forgives everyone (or says she does) and works hard to always be considerate and nice to people. She responds to good news with an "oh, that's nice," in a very super sweet way and responds to bad news with questions about why that would happen. Shirley.... has thinly veiled anger issues hidden shallowly beneath the surface. If someone offends her, or someone she cares about, then forgiveness and turning the other cheek sort of goes out the window - she knows how to kick ass. She believes in perfection - she strives for it, and can't understand why other people wouldn't. I mean..... she accepts people for their imperfections, but she strives to make sure that nothing that would make people unhappy happens, and can't understand when other people let that happen. She's had some darkness.... she used to be an alcoholic. Which is probably one of the reasons she tries so hard to keep that kind of darkness out.
Pierce: Pretty much Community's equivalent of a crazy old man. Ah, wait, scratch that - that would be Leonard. Pierce is older than the others (like in his sixties) and has very... outdated points of view. That is, he's pretty much racist and homophobic. He thinks he can rule other people's worlds with his money and riches. He likes to manipulate people that way - he's not dependent on people, but he's dependent on people being dependent on him. He demands respect in spite of the fact that it's very hard to. At least in the second season, he was pretty selfish and self-centered, but he was mostly playing the antagonist in the second season, so........ What he wants is to be accepted somewhere, to be liked. He makes it hard for himself though, because if he has any negative feelings toward anyone he tends to blow it out of proportion and just make things worse. He's been married seven times, divorced every single one. When he meets someone he likes, he tests their boundaries. Pushes them. That's why most of them don't last very long. But he gives respect where he can see that respect is due.
Abed: Last but not least. Certainly not least. He's my ultimate favourite out of this show. He's just made of awesome.
Abed is undiagnosable. Jeff's said Aspergers, but that's not the point. The point is Abed is..... weird. He doesn't know how to act around people, he doesn't understand people. He doesn't understand emotion, and he seldom ever really shows any emotion through any facial expression - the only emotion he shows is through cliches from TV that he happens to find relatable at that point in time. He likes TV more than he likes life - he understands TV more. To him, TV has more structure than life, and so because of this he's developed a kind of obsession with television. He's always making references to TV, slipping into blatantly obvious stereotypes or characters from TV and movies, because to him it just makes more sense to apply it that way. Abed does not understand people at all, and he does not know how anything he does will affect anyone, so Abed learns by observation. He observes how people talk to each other, and he usually makes the connections of their psychologies/personalities........ but he doesn't have the natural instinct for it that "normal" people do. He needs to work hard to act accordingly around people. Abed is used to not being understood, and though his facial expression never shows SIGNIFICANT change, one can tell when he's been hurt or doesn't understand something. The most enthusiasm Abed usually shows is a slight twitch at the corner of the mouth and a "Cool. Cool cool cool." People often think that Abed is incompetent because of this.... "disability", and then discover they're sadly mistaken when Abed swiftly and unexpectedly proves his point and make everyone rethink everything. Abed knows the difference between right and wrong, and though you wouldn't know it sometimes, he knows the difference between TV and real life. But Abed has difficulty expressing his emotions. Observations and thoughts, no problem. But emotions are hard for him. That's why he makes movies. People understand movies. They make sense to everyone. So Abed is working to become a filmmaker. He's also Troy's brotha-from-anotha-motha - they have lots of fun doing ridiculous things together.
Those are my summaries of the characters. I know I was supposed to be reviewing the show, but this is pretty much the Community rant I've been wanting to have. But, all in all, the show is wacky, fun, light-hearted, ridiculous at times, great if you like spoofs (courtesy of Abed) and hilarious. It's also great for analyzers like myself, because those wonderful writers are constantly adding dimensions to the characters.
There's always conflict, but it's usually light-hearted nonetheless. It's always wacky, but never nonsensical. It's ingeniusly balanced.
If you like to think, it's a fun show. If you just watch a show for the sake of watching it, then it's fine then too - it will provide you with the laughter you seek. All in all, it's a great show to watch, and you should all watch at least a few episodes.
5/5 stars.
P.S Did I mention that Abed is the best? Because Abed is like the best character. He's awesome.
Saturday, December 1, 2012
We Never Talk Anymore
So, lately I've been feeling really down on myself about... well, just about everything (except my looks... I'm not narcississtic, I just don't even think about it. My looks are something I've long since accepted). Obsessiveness is not something I'm proud of anymore. I'm ashamed to share my trivia knowledge about Whose Line. I'm ashamed to even bring it up anymore. I keep to myself because somehow I've gotten the thought that people don't care when I speak. At acting class, I do my best to not do anything, because when the attention's on me I always feel like I fail - I was never good at improv, and since the people at acting neither know me nor try to, I get the feeling they think I'm incompetent. I never speak up in class, because I'm always going to be wrong somehow. And I don't watch Whose Line to feel better because I'm ashamed and afraid of obsessiveness now.
The point is that my self esteem, just lately, has been absolutely rock bottom. The thing is, I've found, is that this starts with me thinking a lot about stuff, and then out of consideration for other people who will probably not be interested, I don't express those thoughts. And then I think more. And it goes into this whole thing of thinking too much and doing too little, and I end up feeling useless and alone and just all around bad about myself.
Now I've said time and time again that me and my mind can be friends for hours and hours before we finally get sick of each other. Hell, that's what the weekend is for - I very seldom ever hang out with friends on the weekend. But if me and my mind spend too much time together without taking a break, it just wreaks havoc on both of us.
And I've traced this affect back to its source - the feeling that I don't talk about things that are on my mind.
Now VERY VERY often the things I want to share are trivial, useless things that I've analyzed and that I find fascinating because if you analyze anything it'll end up being fascinating. I've learned from experience that people aren't interested in things like this, and that they may in fact get annoyed if I talk about it because it appears uninteresting, so I usually keep these things to myself.
But what I really desperately need is someone that I can just tell all my thoughts to. Well, maybe not all of them, but someone that will forgive me for boring them with tidbits that I for some unknown reason find unbelievably fascinating. But even more than that, more than someone who will listen, is someone who cares. And even more than THAT, is someone who will go the step further and DISCUSS it with me. I wouldn't say things if I didn't want to discuss it. I want to hear other people's thoughts. I want to take it into consideration. I want to DEBATE with someone about things. Debates are what I LIVE for. Not heated arguments, mind you. Spirited debates. We can get significantly excited about expressing our opinion, and listening to others and then working to prove your own point, and then be friends about it. I LOVE that.
The problem is that I don't analyze things enough to spark a debate - at least, not things that people would know or care about. Whose Line? Plenty of analysis involved, believe it or not. I would love nothing more than to debate with someone about Colin's style of improvising - I myself think he plays the straight man most of the time, but I know some people would disagree with me. THAT IS WHAT I WANT. I WANT someone to know enough about it to disagree with me.
But I also know that no one in my immediate vicinity will. So I keep it to myself. I crave debates, but I have nothing about which to debate. And thus it begins.
I really wish I had a whoser friend - I have a few friends who enjoy Whose Line, and know enough about it, but real genuine whosers like myself, who follow the cast members and know the scenes by their fan-given titles and actually spend time THINKING about it? That's a different story.
I just really wish there was someone who I could discuss things with. Some people can be fine without expressing every thought they have. I am not one of those people. And it's a problem.
I'm grateful for the friends I have, don't get me wrong. They always know how to cheer me up, and how to start a conversation I will listen to and get involved in. I just wish there was someone who I could discuss all my thoughts with. Every single obsessive one.
But there's not. *sigh*
P.S
I made a Wordle out of this post. In a strange way, it really speaks to me about how I'm feeling.
The point is that my self esteem, just lately, has been absolutely rock bottom. The thing is, I've found, is that this starts with me thinking a lot about stuff, and then out of consideration for other people who will probably not be interested, I don't express those thoughts. And then I think more. And it goes into this whole thing of thinking too much and doing too little, and I end up feeling useless and alone and just all around bad about myself.
Now I've said time and time again that me and my mind can be friends for hours and hours before we finally get sick of each other. Hell, that's what the weekend is for - I very seldom ever hang out with friends on the weekend. But if me and my mind spend too much time together without taking a break, it just wreaks havoc on both of us.
And I've traced this affect back to its source - the feeling that I don't talk about things that are on my mind.
Now VERY VERY often the things I want to share are trivial, useless things that I've analyzed and that I find fascinating because if you analyze anything it'll end up being fascinating. I've learned from experience that people aren't interested in things like this, and that they may in fact get annoyed if I talk about it because it appears uninteresting, so I usually keep these things to myself.
But what I really desperately need is someone that I can just tell all my thoughts to. Well, maybe not all of them, but someone that will forgive me for boring them with tidbits that I for some unknown reason find unbelievably fascinating. But even more than that, more than someone who will listen, is someone who cares. And even more than THAT, is someone who will go the step further and DISCUSS it with me. I wouldn't say things if I didn't want to discuss it. I want to hear other people's thoughts. I want to take it into consideration. I want to DEBATE with someone about things. Debates are what I LIVE for. Not heated arguments, mind you. Spirited debates. We can get significantly excited about expressing our opinion, and listening to others and then working to prove your own point, and then be friends about it. I LOVE that.
The problem is that I don't analyze things enough to spark a debate - at least, not things that people would know or care about. Whose Line? Plenty of analysis involved, believe it or not. I would love nothing more than to debate with someone about Colin's style of improvising - I myself think he plays the straight man most of the time, but I know some people would disagree with me. THAT IS WHAT I WANT. I WANT someone to know enough about it to disagree with me.
But I also know that no one in my immediate vicinity will. So I keep it to myself. I crave debates, but I have nothing about which to debate. And thus it begins.
I really wish I had a whoser friend - I have a few friends who enjoy Whose Line, and know enough about it, but real genuine whosers like myself, who follow the cast members and know the scenes by their fan-given titles and actually spend time THINKING about it? That's a different story.
I just really wish there was someone who I could discuss things with. Some people can be fine without expressing every thought they have. I am not one of those people. And it's a problem.
I'm grateful for the friends I have, don't get me wrong. They always know how to cheer me up, and how to start a conversation I will listen to and get involved in. I just wish there was someone who I could discuss all my thoughts with. Every single obsessive one.
But there's not. *sigh*
P.S
I made a Wordle out of this post. In a strange way, it really speaks to me about how I'm feeling.
Because I Commit to Appreciation.
So, today way Colin Mochrie's birthday. He turned fifty-five. Yep, he's an entire decade older than my dad. I still very much appreciate this man.
Let me please take a moment to appreciate him:
This man never fails to make me laugh. Even in the most boring parts in shows (I'm thinking of She's the Mayor - Scott the by-the-book clean-freak) he finds a way to make me laugh. This is because he is not only hilarious, he's intelligent. And the fact that he is so shy and quiet in real life, and that he goes on stage and doesn't care is inspirational to me (especially since I'm in an improv class and am the misfit of the group).
He (and Whose Line) helped me realize that a, though temporary, no less effective cure for my problems was just to be able to laugh. And since that is a major part of my entire life philosophy right now, I'd say that qualifies as actually changing my life.
I never even thought of it that way, but it makes sense, right? Yes. And this is why I love Colin Mochrie, and this is why I am taking time out of my day to wish him a happy fifty-fifth birthday.
Now that would be alright, okay, but as usual, I just don't know when to stop.
Today, since it was a pro-D day and I had nothing better to do (what a joke! I conveniently forget about that english project due on Monday, and that I'm way behind on my English assignments, and to work on my paper for French......) I made a cake.
Yep.
And after hours of slaving over a hot oven, and a chocolate bowl and the mixer-thingy, I managed to make a chocolate layer cake, made from scratch, with frosting, made from scratch.
I'm pretty darn proud of myself.
This was the result of my hours of toil:
My original plan was to make the cake recipe from Colin Mochrie's website, but that would have taken far too much work (irony). So, I made this. And there were complications. For instance, the original icing recipe I was using wouldn't thicken - in hindsight, it was probably because it was missing a vital ingredient, like icing sugar. Also, the first layer of the cake was very indecisive - it was feeling pretty fifty/fifty about leaving the pan and moving on to the plate. That is to say, half of it stuck the pan and the other half jumped to the plate. But, it resolved its issues, faced its fears, pulled itself together (that is to say, I put the pieces together) and you wouldn't even be able to tell anymore.
So, in conclusion, it's Colin Mochrie's birthday, and I made a cake. As you can probably guess (though I conveniently forget to mention this to my parents) it's dedicated to him. For his birthday.
Obsessive? Me? Naw.......
P.S Let's all appreciate Colin Mochrie, okay! I don't care if you've never even heard of the man (though if you're reading this blog, you probably have at least an idea of who he is) we should all just spend time appreciating him! (I swear to god, it'll also be therapeutic for you - I told you, he's hilarious, and laughing makes everything better for the time being).
Do you have any idea how many "Best Of" videos of him there are?! I'm being fairly gentle here!
Also, did you notice how it's also a "Colin Through the Ages" tribute, the way I set the post up? Yeah. It's pretty awesome.
P.S.S
Happy Birthday, Colin Mochrie.
This is your birthday song,
It isn't very long.
I wish him a long and fruitful life, full of love and laughter and happiness.
Let me please take a moment to appreciate him:
This man never fails to make me laugh. Even in the most boring parts in shows (I'm thinking of She's the Mayor - Scott the by-the-book clean-freak) he finds a way to make me laugh. This is because he is not only hilarious, he's intelligent. And the fact that he is so shy and quiet in real life, and that he goes on stage and doesn't care is inspirational to me (especially since I'm in an improv class and am the misfit of the group).
He (and Whose Line) helped me realize that a, though temporary, no less effective cure for my problems was just to be able to laugh. And since that is a major part of my entire life philosophy right now, I'd say that qualifies as actually changing my life.
I never even thought of it that way, but it makes sense, right? Yes. And this is why I love Colin Mochrie, and this is why I am taking time out of my day to wish him a happy fifty-fifth birthday.
Now that would be alright, okay, but as usual, I just don't know when to stop.
Today, since it was a pro-D day and I had nothing better to do (what a joke! I conveniently forget about that english project due on Monday, and that I'm way behind on my English assignments, and to work on my paper for French......) I made a cake.
Yep.
 |
| I'm looking dramatically into the distance. "I... I hear the sounds of baking in need!" |
 |
| Yeah, once in a blue moon, I can take a sincere picture. Usually I try to look like a demonic Doc Brown. |
I'm pretty darn proud of myself.
This was the result of my hours of toil:
 |
| Okay, it's not the prettiest cake you will ever see, but it's darn tasty, alright? |
So, in conclusion, it's Colin Mochrie's birthday, and I made a cake. As you can probably guess (though I conveniently forget to mention this to my parents) it's dedicated to him. For his birthday.
Obsessive? Me? Naw.......
P.S Let's all appreciate Colin Mochrie, okay! I don't care if you've never even heard of the man (though if you're reading this blog, you probably have at least an idea of who he is) we should all just spend time appreciating him! (I swear to god, it'll also be therapeutic for you - I told you, he's hilarious, and laughing makes everything better for the time being).
Do you have any idea how many "Best Of" videos of him there are?! I'm being fairly gentle here!
Also, did you notice how it's also a "Colin Through the Ages" tribute, the way I set the post up? Yeah. It's pretty awesome.
P.S.S
 |
| Approval |
 |
| Annnnnnd, he's asleep. |
 |
| Evil grin. Silent "Mwahahahs". |
 |
| Four out of six of these pictures are so adorable that my adorableness capacity is going to just downright freaking explode. The other two are epic in their own ways. |
This is your birthday song,
It isn't very long.
I wish him a long and fruitful life, full of love and laughter and happiness.
Sunday, November 18, 2012
Because On the Weekend, I Can Wear Whatever the Heck I Want.
I decided that this Sunday's fashion statement would be to wear as much denim as humanly possible.
I think I succeeded.
Because usually it's a lot fun to be silly in just about everything you do. Heed those words, kids. This time, Megan is speaking the truth. As she usually does. I don't know why I said this time. Now it seems like I'm getting all defensive.
I'm just going to stop now.
Happy Denim Day.
I think I succeeded.
 |
| Skinny jeans underneath a dark denim dress with a jean jacket on top and a denim hat. I WIN. |
I'm just going to stop now.
Happy Denim Day.
Saturday, November 10, 2012
I Want This To Be Real So Gosh Darn Badly
Everyone remembers that show The Magic School Bus, right?
Someone made this fan made trailer type thing for a sequel sort of thing.
It looks pretty awesome and I would watch the hell out of it.
You'll get that joke once you see it. :)
It's just incredibly awesome just that someone made this. I want to see this movie. Really really badly.
Someone made this fan made trailer type thing for a sequel sort of thing.
It looks pretty awesome and I would watch the hell out of it.
You'll get that joke once you see it. :)
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
We Interrupt This Program To Bring You Information on the Coming Election
Of course, I'm canadian, but I care about american politics. Yes, it's influenced by the need to understand Jon Stewart's/Stephen Colbert's jokes. But it's also because America's politics has impact on our own government and I care about that.
I have come to this conclusion:
If Mitt Romney wins the election
I will lose all faith in the human race.
No joke.
Maybe Obama hasn't been doing a fantastic job, but it wasn't really like he had a lot to work with, thanks to George Bush screwing everything up. Rome wasn't built in a day, and in the same way, you can't rebuild a country in a day. So shut up, people who think Obama's doing an awful job. He's actually not doing half bad, and he's doing better than Romney could ever do. I have hope in Obama. I have nothing but contempt for Romney.
He's so damn rich, how can he possibly think he relates to the common man? What, cause he eats southern food? Good god.
He's a freaking sexist. One cannot have a sexist person as president. A president should represent what the country's citizens wants, and what ALL the country's citizens wants.
He was asked what he would do to help the women of America (or something like that).
He replied that he would make sure women got home in time to cook supper.
Thanks, Romney. Thank you for putting in your input about women's rights, thereby turning it into a fifties stereotype. That's not insulting at all.
He's also homophobic. And you already know my thoughts about that. Again, I say, the president should try to represent what ALL the country's citizens wants. As Greg Proops continuously says, we don't need or want all the rich, stuck up white males deciding things for people they cannot, and will not relate to or understand, such as gay marriage or whether or not abortion should be legal. If someone thinks abortion is unethical, they won't use it for god's sakes. But some people need it, like, I don't know, a fourteen year old girl who was raped. Let the stuck up corporation owners of god do their grumbling, but there is always benefit to things that people will often find unethical. Like a man getting to marry a person he loves who just happens to also be a man. I mean, Jesus Christ. Those guys need to shut up and listen to the citizens, not their own warped moral compass (even if some citizens have their own warped moral compass).
It's just...... god. Where is the appeal in Romney? There is none, he is stupid, in the debates he would not answer any of the questions, he was very redundant, and he just rambled for ten minutes on about absolutely nothing, things that people already know.
And Obama wasn't much better in that respect. But I have hope in him. He's not homophobic, and he's not sexist, and I like his vision of America a lot more than I like Romney's.
I just had to throw that out there.
And just to make light of it all, an Epic Rap Battle of History - about politics.
I have come to this conclusion:
If Mitt Romney wins the election
I will lose all faith in the human race.
No joke.
Maybe Obama hasn't been doing a fantastic job, but it wasn't really like he had a lot to work with, thanks to George Bush screwing everything up. Rome wasn't built in a day, and in the same way, you can't rebuild a country in a day. So shut up, people who think Obama's doing an awful job. He's actually not doing half bad, and he's doing better than Romney could ever do. I have hope in Obama. I have nothing but contempt for Romney.
He's so damn rich, how can he possibly think he relates to the common man? What, cause he eats southern food? Good god.
He's a freaking sexist. One cannot have a sexist person as president. A president should represent what the country's citizens wants, and what ALL the country's citizens wants.
He was asked what he would do to help the women of America (or something like that).
He replied that he would make sure women got home in time to cook supper.
Thanks, Romney. Thank you for putting in your input about women's rights, thereby turning it into a fifties stereotype. That's not insulting at all.
He's also homophobic. And you already know my thoughts about that. Again, I say, the president should try to represent what ALL the country's citizens wants. As Greg Proops continuously says, we don't need or want all the rich, stuck up white males deciding things for people they cannot, and will not relate to or understand, such as gay marriage or whether or not abortion should be legal. If someone thinks abortion is unethical, they won't use it for god's sakes. But some people need it, like, I don't know, a fourteen year old girl who was raped. Let the stuck up corporation owners of god do their grumbling, but there is always benefit to things that people will often find unethical. Like a man getting to marry a person he loves who just happens to also be a man. I mean, Jesus Christ. Those guys need to shut up and listen to the citizens, not their own warped moral compass (even if some citizens have their own warped moral compass).
It's just...... god. Where is the appeal in Romney? There is none, he is stupid, in the debates he would not answer any of the questions, he was very redundant, and he just rambled for ten minutes on about absolutely nothing, things that people already know.
And Obama wasn't much better in that respect. But I have hope in him. He's not homophobic, and he's not sexist, and I like his vision of America a lot more than I like Romney's.
I just had to throw that out there.
And just to make light of it all, an Epic Rap Battle of History - about politics.
UPDATED:
Obama won the election. Thank. God. Or, how about, thank the people of America. Even though I don't believe God is with Romney in what he stands for, it still sounds better to not say it. I believe Obama, now that he's in his second term and has nothing to lose, can really make a difference now. I have faith that that will happen.
It just feels good to breathe again... I was so relieved, I swear to you.
And a message to anyone who's upset about how this turned out:
P.S
A bunch of states have officially legalized gay marriage as well. We were way ahead of you, America, but congratulations for that anyways. Good job guys. We're proud of you. Keep it up.
P.S.S
This could be the sweetest thing I've ever seen. I teared up. I bet you will too.
WE NOW RETURN TO OUR REGULAR PROGRAMMING:
Enjoy the rest of your life. *breathes out all the worry I had before*
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