Time to Blog

It's time to blog again. But as I write this blog, I wonder, is blogging worth the time?

Oh, well. Let's get to it.

I purchased my first books for grad school today. That's kind of a big step I think, in a small way. I'm excited about them, which is, admittedly, a bit dorky, but oh well. I think if by now I haven't realized I'm a dork, I shouldn't be going off to school again...

A movie recommendation: Knocked Up. Yeah, so a lot of people, especially my more conservative, religious friends have been put off by its title. But, I think it's just down right hilarious. I can't say it's never crude for the sake of being crude, but I think it's saying a lot about marriage, relationships, and gender-relations, and gender stereotypes. And believe it or not, I think it's actually pretty wholesome. It's Judd Apatow after all who gave us 40-Year-Old Virgin, which applauds its main character, despite poking some fun at his naivete, although clearly criticizing his sex-obsessed co-workers, who remains sexually abstinent until he marries at the end. If you liked 40-Year-Old Virgin, you'll like this, although I think that the humor and writing in this movie are sharper and the critiques of contemporary culture deeper.

I recently attempted to read British author Ian McEwan's Saturday. After about a hundred pages, I put it down. It just didn't keep my attention. I thought the style was drab and the story, which was kind of interesting got bogged down with a lot of seeming pointless scenes--or at the very least, they were scenes that didn't engage me at all. I only wanted to rush through them to get to what I hoped to be a more interesting part.

Now I have picked up Ralph Ellison's only novel, Invisible Man, a classic, and am enjoying it thoroughly.

I watched The Prestige with my brother and sister last night and was pleasantly surprised by it. It's not the greatest movie ever or anything, but it is a solid, enjoyable film that's a cut above you're average Hollywood drivel, even if it's not going to go on my favorite's list on Facebook.

Oh, and I've recently discovered Google Reader, which is very awesome, but time consuming. So here's a link to my public page.

That's all for now. Tune in next time.

A Long Time Coming

I know it's been awhile, but I've been busy. Even with only three classes, life hasn't been a breeze. I've started working at a child activity center that my neighbor runs and I am co-editor of our college's literary magazine which actually takes up quite a bit of time.

That being said, it's Spring Break, and I think I might be going to grad school in the Fall. One school's response is quite puzzling and frustrating at the same time, but I've been pleasantly surprised by some other responses I've received. Right now, I think I'm leaning one way, but I don't want to say, because I'm still waiting to hear from a couple of other institutions, and I also want to talk to some other people I trust to get their opinions on the matter. Ultimately it's my decision, but I'm not so naive as to think I've thought of all the pros and cons.

My friend e-mailed me this link and no matter what your political leaning is, it's pretty funny. Of course it's more than funny--it's a pretty good picture of the image the U.S. has in Latin America. And besides that, I was there!!!

Oh! I finished up Kurt Vonegut's Slaughterhouse V yesterday. It's quite good and I would recommend it. I guess it's sci-fi, but it doesn't feel like it to me. It's definitely a protest novel, its topic being war, its specific subject being the firebombing of Dresden. Vonegut is just a really good writer and although I've read one of his short stories, I can't say I'm otherwise very familiar with his work; however, I'm glad I ordered this book using the Barnes and Noble gift card my brother and sister gave me for my birthday. : ) It's not a particularly hard read in terms of style and he handles the subject great along with all the other things that are attached to war--life, death, time, what it means to be human. (All the things that your high school English teacher tried to pull out of you, if he/she was any good.) And Vonegut treats these topics deftly with the complexity that they deserve. Oh, and I just love the style. So go snag a copy--you can probably find it at your local or college library.

Could it be? Another post?

I have no idea who reads this, but you've been in for a real treat these past few days.

And I think things are going to get messier, because I don't have time to journal, due to Christmas shopping and other holiday related activties, the large amounts of grad school application stuff I must do before January 2nd, and the preparation I must do before I leave for Guatemala January 2nd.

So very quickly...

I saw Little Miss Sunshine on Monday and it's a quirky little comedy that I'd highly recommend. It's smartly written, funny, tragic, and hopeful. It's "sweet" in that it certainly has a moral to it, but the characters are complex enough and storyline inventive enough not to be insulting. I also liked the soundtrack quite a bit too, and not just

because there's a Sufjan song in it (which I found to be a bit jolting actually, which may have been simply because of the fact that I recognized it, and hence, noticed the editing, and then didn't like the editing, because I though it was sloppy, but it probably wasn't, etc., etc...). Oh yeah, it also has Steve Correll in it, and he does a superb job, although, really, the entire cast is great.

For my trip, I'm supposed to read a book, and so I picked up a book by Jared Diamond called Guns, Germs and Steel which is about why Europeans have dominated everyone else and not the other way around. He chalks it up to environmental differences and the resultant subsequent societal developments...and as of right now, I think I buy his argument. It's at least, so far, a very interesting read.

And look! New Jersey joins Connecticut and Vermont!

...And is it just me, or does this reek of the separate but equal laws that prevaled for way too long in the last century?