Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Fourteen Estimates

I am . . .
1.A blank, immovable wall cemented in wait for inspiration to splatter its techtonic plate-moving potential over every centimeter
2.The friend everyone can cry to but is shoulder-to-cry-on-less
3.The understated participant of a many-playered game
4.A weak-looking flame waiting on the sidelines, contained in a glass lantern, unable to obtain its chance at engulfing an idea
5.A shirt worn during a paint fight, catching the slopped hues that will create its own color wheel
6.A gullible fool willing to be pulled by a tractor-pulled sled through hardened, crusty Jell-O
7.A piece of paper, used to scribble homework, then lost in the depths of objects in some artist’s portfolio
8.A French fry dipped and eaten with an ounce of chocolate frosty and gulped down with a carbonated, ice-cold Pepsi
9.A Swiss army knife - just when you think that’s it, there’s another layer of gadgets
10.A bulletproof vest with imperceptible holes small enough for words to seep through
11.The lone pianist in a sea of violins
12.A warm air pocket caught in the center of an Antarctic ice storm
13.A freelance thinker in a foggy room chalk full of political auctioneers
14.In a room of shouting, power-hungry, ignorant world leaders, I am my own opinionated voice in need of a microphone

Thursday, May 19, 2011

Film Analysis --- Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

Ordinary World: Harry is an ordinary 11 year old boy, orphaned, living with his only living relatives.
Call: Harry begins recieving letters. Letters sent directly to him 'To Mr. Harry Potter, Number Four Privet Drive, Surrey; The Cupboard Under the Stairs'. His Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon know who they're from, but don't want him to know. Another Call could be when Rubeus Hagrid, the groundkeeper at Hogwarts, School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, comes to collect Harry from his relatives and bring him to the school that's chosen him, telling him that Harry is a wizard. Hagrid says, 'A ruddy good one at that, I'd wager', which leads to a bigger concluson and question about who he is.
Refusal: When Hagrid tells Harry what he is and how his parents really died, Harry tells him it's impossible. 'I c-can't be a w-wizard. I'm - just Harry. Just Harry.'
Mentor: Hagrid goes on to tell him 'Have you ever made anything happ'n? Anythin' you couldn' explain when you were angry, or - or scared?' He reassures him that's how all great witches and wizards start out.
Threshold: When Harry and Hagrid journey to Diagon Alley, he begins to believe and wonder about who he is, how is parents died and why he became so famous when he didn't know he was. He then hears about people calling him the 'Boy Who Lived'.
Tests, Allies, Enemies: Hagrid ends up telling Harry about Lord Voldemort, the most powerful, Dark Lord ever to live in the wizarding world. He tells him how his parents died, how Harry recieved the lightning bolt scar on his forehead from Voldemort and how he was destroyed. But, rumor has it that he didn't just die. That he is still alive. But only just. He meets his soon-to-be best friends, Ronald Weasley and Hermione Granger, two friends who we would never expect him to gain and keep in his next adventures. He also meets Draco Malfoy, a pureblood whose father is well-known to be rich and powerful. He all but orders Harry to be his friend 'You don't want to get involved with the wrong sort. I can help you there'. He meets Professor Dumbledore, the Headmaster of Hogwarts, his future mentor and best teacher and tutor. Professor Snape, whom Harry already begins to hate with a burning passion, emerges, along with Professor Quirrell, a stammering, confused, worrisome man who teaches DADA (Defense Against the Dark Arts).
Approach: They arrive at Hogwarts on the Hogwarts Express from Platform Nine and Three-Quarters. The first years, Harry, Ron, Hermione, Neville and the rest are sorted into Houses (Slytherin, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Gryffindor), have their beginning of Term feast in the Great Hall and begin with their first classes, learning spells and potions.
Ordeal: Harry, Ron and Hermione together find their way to discover that the Philosopher's Stone - a stone of unimaginable power, the ability to keep you alive for the rest of eternity - is going to be stolen by Professor Snape, who turns out to be Quirrell instead. The trio fights their way through a series of challenges and trials, including a giant, intense game of Wizard's Chess and a nasty infestation of Devil's Snare. Harry finds Quirrell, who turns out to be Voldemort in disguise.
Reward: They fight, Harry wins, barely making it out alive. He protects the Stone from Voldemort and destroys him (partially), sending him out of the school.
The Road Back: The students are on their ways back home on the Hogwarts Express.
Resurrection: Harry, Ron and Hermione all return from the Hospital Wing, recovered and well from their expedition and triumph against Voldemort.
Return with the Elixir: Going onto the train, Harry realizes where he belongs. 'I'm not going home. Not really'.

Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Monotonous

Unloved. Unappreciated. Unwanted. Uncared for. Unusual. Monotone. Neglected. That's what my ordinary world is. When I think over what I do, I even bore myself. Nothing. I write my book. I have a great family. Alright friends. No significant other, but hoping for one. I have so-called beautiful art skills. But, what exactly can I do with the talents I have? Publish the book, cherish my fam, appreciate my friendships, find someone who 'completes me', use my artsy-fartsy skills to do what? I dunno. Improve someone's mood? Perhaps. What would my extraordinary, extravagent, incredible, exceptional world be? To be loved. Noticed. Praised. Appreciated. Recognized. That people would ask my opinion and actually give a crap. That my parents would treat me like an adult sometimes, but know when to treat me like their kid. That I would find my significant other, we'd meet in some romantic place or another, love at first sight (which I personally do not believe in), fall in love, happily ever after. If it was that simple, it would be a dream come true and a weight lifted from my chest...

Tuesday, May 3, 2011

WhiteOut

This is for those without a sense of humor. For those who have one, but don't know how or just plain don't use it. For the special people out there searching for the light. This is for those who can sing, or those who can't but do anyway. Use the WhiteOut. This is for the downhearted with no way to turn. This is for the quirks and mistakes. For the originals who don't think twice. Use the WhiteOut.This is for the romance, action and comedy novel readers who wish something like that would happen to them, but don't plan to do any work. For the warm-fuzzy feeling people. For the protective fathers and patient mothers. This is for the sun-baked sidewalks with cravings for popsicles. Use the WhiteOut. For the unpredictable fairytale endings. For the rainy days spent with a significant other. This is for all the nights wasted on meaningless exercise. Use the WhiteOut. For the dog huggers, the bird owners and the messed up cat lovers. This is for the nature enthusiasts. For the smoking addicts. For the 'Wish I hadn't's. For the 'Regretting it forever's. This is for those people. Use the WhiteOut. Always use the WhiteOut.