I don’t think this type of show is for everyone. I would even bet most people will hate it. But for those of us who often see life through bland colored glasses, I think it makes some sense, teaches a few things, and even offers hope.

The movie was sometimes sweet, sometimes sad, often sardonic. At times it seemed to drag on way too long. Caden spends so much of his time trying to understand himself and figure out “why,” that he forgets to live. His efforts to make sense of his life are so extreme (he stages a grand play to reenact his entire life in an attempt to understand it) that it robs him of new experiences. He lives life by looking in the rear view mirror, searching for meaning and answers. And the answers are dismal; we are alone, there isn’t a higher purpose, and there isn’t rhyme or reason to our existence. But what else would you expect from this type of movie? The irony, however, is that these particular answers exist only because he wants more from life than living. When living isn’t enough, it’s a bitter road. Wanting more is either an insatiable and disappointing quest or a delusional existence.

(The next section has spoilers and harsh language in the movie quote)

In one scene, Caden’s  grown daughter wants an apology from him for something he did not do. She’s dying so he plays along. He confesses to her and apologizes for the things he never did. But she can’t accept his apology. This theme comes out multiple times, things we want (or think we want because we crave for them all our lives) won’t give us what we expect. We search for what we think will fix us…but the searching is the real problem, evidence of our insecurity and denial. There are no magic words to soothe our torment. If we can’t open our eyes and live in the now, we live in pain and sadness trying to make sense of the confusion that is our past. Perhaps if Caden could have celebrated his existentialist mindset and embraced the lack of answers even while he searched for them, things could have been different. Maybe in the end he accomplishes this (we faded to white instead of black). But how sad to find it at the very end of an existence.

I have never seen a movie with so many references to feces. Multiple scenes related to taking a dump, actual wiping of the arse, toilets. Life can be shit. His certainly was. I suppose I shouldn’t expect anything different from one of the best presentations on existentialism I have ever seen. It really captures that mindset. The payoff is the speech given by the preacher, which hit my gut like a cannonball.

Everything is more complicated than you think. You only see a tenth of what is true. There are a million little strings attached to every choice you make; you can destroy your life any time you choose. But maybe you won’t know for twenty years. And you’ll never ever trace it to its source. And you only get one chance to play it out. Just try and figure out your own divorce. And they say there is no fate, but there is: it’s what you create. Even though the world goes on for eons and eons, you are here for a fraction of a fraction of a second. Most of your time is spent being dead or not yet born. But while alive, you wait in vain, wasting years, for a phone call or a letter or a look from someone or something to make it all right. And it never comes or it seems to but doesn’t really. And so you spend your time in vague regret or vaguer hope for something good to come along. Something to make you feel connected, to make you feel whole, to make you feel loved. And the truth is I’m so angry and the truth is I’m so fucking sad, and the truth is I’ve been so fucking hurt for so fucking long and for just as long have been pretending I’m ok, just to get along, just for, I don’t know why, maybe because no one wants to hear about my misery, because they have their own, and their own is too overwhelming to allow them to listen to or care about mine. Well, fuck everybody. Amen.

I consider myself a pretty dark person, my view of the world tends to be depressing. But I fall short of the preachers (Caden’s) extreme view. Lop off that last sentence and it resonates better with me, which I find comforting. That last sentence sums up Caden’s miserly, his downfall. It is him living in the past, not embracing the present and not reaching out to the people around him. I do better than Caden in that area, but I still fall way short of where I ought to be.

It had a surreal feeling feeling to me. A drab world. Short camera shots that capture simple everyday events and string them together to paint a depressing meaningless place. Our hero, in an attempt to escape the void, signs up to test an experimental drug and gains special powers.

As his life takes on new meaning and he strives to use his powers for good, we watch his antics play out in the same old boring world the movie opened with. As a result, I found myself laughing without smiling. There is both humor and tragedy buried in every scene that seem to blend like a sweet and sour sauce. The end result is confusingly interesting, thought provoking, and highly entertaining.

The show ended and I realized I felt empty, but in a good way. Everything that had been on my mind earlier in the day had been drained away and I just sat on the couch feeling free and peaceful. I like it when shows do that to me.

I’m sure my take on it is far from objective, I mean, I have been working with this idea for over a year now. Although there are a lot of similarities, my book is different enough that I think maybe there is still a chance I can get a publisher to pick it up.

I started reading “A Story Like the Wind” and was hooked me with the tale of a fourteen year old boy growing up in the early 1900’s on his family farm in the heart of wild South Africa. The savage unsettled land is filled with wildlife, African folklore, and an earthy spirituality that carried me far away from traffic, work, and paved streets. But I sensed more than just a story and felt that there was something to this author. The spirituality of the African veld, the intimate details of people and animals, and the compassion of his characters suggested to me that Laurens was more than just a South African who, himself, had grown up in the early 1900’s in rural South Africa.

The wiki entry for Laurens secured his spot in my eyes as one of my heroes;  author, farmer, war hero, journalist, humanitarian, philosopher, explorer, conservationist, prisoner of war, and one of Carl Jung’s closest friends. He fought for equality. He searched for truth. He won the hearts of British Royalty (not that I think that’s any more important than the hearts of the rest of us…but it sounds impressive to put on paper). None of this surprised me, his writing voice had already told me as much. After researching his life, it sounds like he struggled in his romantic relationships and may have made several poor choices in that area. I like my heroes to be stalwart, loyal, and dedicated to their partners but it’s hard to know the circumstances and details of his life and impossible to judge. His good works are plentiful and I am keeping him on my hero list.

This book fueled my imagination, tapped into my own dreams, and helped stir my sleeping (and often skeptical) spirituality. He has several more books I look forward to reading, including his personal account of the life, beliefs, and methods of a tribe of African Bushmen he was privileged to live among for a while.

Catinca Untaru, a six year-old girl from Romania, steals the show. Children are, generally, inherently cute but poor directing, filming, or lame attempts to exploit our tender emotions for kids can make me hate a movie. I read that in many scenes of The Fall cameras were hidden to help Cantinca feel spontaneous. Many of the scenes diverted from the script but the filming continued. The result is dialogue that reveals innocent misunderstandings, child-like questions, and some of the sweetest humor I have ever seen. The story is wonderfully creative, bizarre at times, and full of color and dreamlike scenes.

What started as a sweet fairy tale become heavy and an emotional roller coaster. I wish I could cry around my wife and kids, but instead I try and control my breathing, swallow a lot, and inconspicuously dab my eyes. Dark themes are addressed in ways that twisted my stomach and made hiding my emotions nearly impossible.

I picked it up because it reminded me of Pan’s Labyrinth, one of my favorites. Children, imagination, and the dark side of humanity always make for interesting combinations. I believe we all have active imaginations at times…when it comes to dealing with some of life’s hard realities. But when children experience true horror, the power of stories, magic, and make-believe sometimes seem like the best and only way through them (Life is Beautiful is another example). This movie isn’t as dark as Life is Beautiful or Pan’s Labyrinth, but it does create a sense of anguish to watch how pain and confusion in adults infects the young and innocent.

The style of animation is really cool, artistic and different. It’s worth watching for that reason alone, but not why I recommend it. Watch this show for the insight it offers into the difficulties people have faced in Iran over the past 30 years. Before I lose most of you, let me add that the story is wrapped around a girl whose teenage adolescence/coming of age experiences are touching and heart wrenching. Not only does she struggle with issues faced by any typical teenage girl, she must also deal with the fact that her country is fighting a war and a radically changing government regime. I was fascinated by the peek into the Iranian world.

Here is where I found my thoughts wandering while I tried unsuccessfully to sleep as I stared at my bedroom ceiling for several hours after the show.

At one point in the show, she’s talking with her friends and becomes angry when one suggests that life is meaningless and, basically, the only reason we do anything (like start wars) is to cure boredom. I can sympathize with her friend and yet I envy her passionate response, and thus, the meaning she holds in her life. Fighting for your country and for equal rights is certainly something I’d call meaningful. But yet, in some ways it gives substance to her friends argument. I think there are people so desperate for meaning they create lies, start fights, and lobby for this or that simply to escape boredom or protect their fragile ideals.

Meaning is certainly a struggle in my life. I grew up believing life was a test and all my struggles and trials were meaningful because one day I would live in a wonderful place with all my loved ones. Over time, my beliefs changed and I lost that foundation. It’s was scary to even think about ripping away such a wonderful and concretely defined ideal, but I decided I couldn’t hold on to it just because I wanted it to be true. I had to face what I felt was reality, which for me meant letting go of that crutch.

It has been a long difficult process for me to replace that divine purpose. I was living my life for the afterlife and when that was taken away, it left me wondering why I was enduring the test with no reward at the end. I was working the job without a paycheck. Whatever you believe will come after this life, stop and think for a minute how you would change if you were told the deal was off. Maybe how you live your life wouldn’t change too much, mine didn’t. But it ripped me apart inside and completely changed how I see the world. If you can really pull this off, it’s a scary exercise.

Is this the core of an extremist? Somebody so desperate to hide from a reality that might threaten core beliefs they will put on blinders and allow racism, genocide, violence, or oppression to protect themselves? I consider myself agnostic and still open to the possibility that their is a God. But I reject a God who would condone violence, genocide, and labeling mass groups of people as inferior just because of their beliefs. Therefore, I can’t believe for a minute that God is really on the side of the extremist Muslim (or similar extreme, controlling mindset). So what happened in Iran is driven by men who are afraid to consider anything that threatens that crutch they hold so tightly.

Now, going back to the original argument, meaning. Why was that crutch created in the first place? Was it boredom? Was it out of a desperate need to create meaning where it is horribly difficult to find? I promise, it’s a lot easier to find meaning in an extremist world than an agnostic one. Even religion offers incredible meaning. Wars offer meaning. A cause offers meaning…would the world go mentally insane if we didn’t have wars and constant causes to battle? How could we ever survive without villains and evil-doers? Fighting hunger, poverty, and illiteracy don’t seem to have the same draw as fighting evil. I think people want evil…because they want to fight it. And I think when we don’t have it, we create it…for boredom and to silence our search for true meaning.

So I agree and disagree with her friend. It’s not that there is no meaning, it’s just that it is really hard to find and it’s not nearly as exciting as battling evil. I’m also not against religion and I certainly don’t think everyone who believes in a divine power is running from boredom and fear. An extremist, perhaps. But I recognize that many religions serve mankind well. It’s just too bad there are so many horrible things done by some in the name of God.

The Twilight craze has spread like an unstoppable virus. Spread either by airborne sound waves or by computer, where countless blogs and chat rooms buzz with an addicting blend of romance and fantasy. The power of these stories astounds me. Nearly every woman in my life (wife, daughters, sisters, sister-in-laws, mother, friends, niece’s…) has been pricked by its allure (the teenagers especially). I was curious as a writer and a parent. So far I’ve read two of them.

I rolled my eyes a lot…too many references to “dreamy eyes” and “perfect skin” for my level of testosterone. But, I kept reading. Stephenie weaves a good tale and I found myself intrigued, although I would have been happy with a less oogling. But, I know that’s part of what the females love about it. I’m not quite the demographic.

I’ve read many books on writing, studied the rules, and tried to learn the craft of writing. In fact, I rewrote my book to fix a particular “problem” that I was surprised to find plastered on every page of the two of hers I have read. Based on what I have learned about writing, the books (word by word) are not written well. But before you all flame me for saying that, let me qualify that statement with this: I’m an unpublished author that can’t get signed and she’s a multi-millionaire superstar author. I thought they could have been better written, but I’m going against millions and millions of readers. Obviously I’m the one off base. So it makes me wonder, why have I spent all this time trying to learn the rules? Who made them and why? In the end, they obviously don’t matter and maybe by focusing on the mechanics I have lost a connection with my muse. I did think the storyline was well done. The events, characters, the tension…no complaints there.

Stephenie was named one of the most 100 influential people of the year by Time Magazine. The important question is, how is she changing people? What are people, primarily teenage girls, learning from her stories? A passion for reading? Yes, and that is excellent. A fuel for imagination? Yes, another good thing. Books are a staple for growth, especially books like this that have controversy and generate passion. But at the same time I have seen the extreme obsession that teenage girls show for Bella and Edward and I have a few concerns. Not necessarily huge concerns, but for girls who read the book and don’t analyze and discuss certain issues, I think the influence could be harmful. Those who examine themselves and the reasons the books are so captivating, I believe come out wiser and stronger.

Orson Scott Card, in the Time magazine article, makes an excellent point.

“You really want your teenage daughter to live inside the story of a girl who lies to her parents, invites a boy to sleep in her bed and trusts him not to take advantage of her?”

If this statement makes you angry, maybe you are just the type of person I’m concerned about. I think we have a book with adult themes but targeted for young girls. Girls who read, enjoy the story, and can point out mistakes made by Bella have quite likely grown and become stronger. Stephenie has influenced them for the better. But what of the teenagers who read a statement like this and become defensive and angry? Does that mean they condone such actions? Would they trust a potentially dangerous person in real life? Would it make them more susceptible to indulge in dangerous activities or to seek out the same thrills and adventures that Bella encountered? Things worked out for Bella, but in the real world these activities will more often lead to disaster. Girls need to realize this, think about it, and remember that it is fantasy. Just like my son needs conversations about the violence in the video games that he plays, my daughters also need a frank discussion. This is a romance novel. It’s pretend. Have fun reading it.

Romance novels present extremes. We have a classic fairytale, damsel in distress rescued by knight in shining armor. Bella spares nothing when it comes to describing Edward’s beauty. Not even a perfect man, he’s beyond that. He’s superhuman and immortal. He has powers way beyond anything Bella has ever imagined and she is quickly sucked into a whirlwind of adventure and romance that exceeds what a teenage girl will ever experience. But do our teenage girls realize this? Most probably, but even then, it effects them. Not only is Edward beyond the reach of any competing mortal, the other boy after her affection also possesses superhero strength and abilities. Even number two exceeds reality. With that as a standard, how could Bella ever be happy with Mike, a normal boy at school? Is it possible that some of the passionate young readers of this book could have altered expectations that might make future relationships troublesome? How can any real person compete with the excitement and romance offered by the world of Twilight? For girls who are mentally and emotionally stuck in that world, I think it could have an impact on their real world relationships. It could influence them to make poor choices.

Young readers should be encouraged to talk about how aspects of the story are far-fetched fantasy, and I don’t mean the vampires. Media taints our view of relationships all the time, this is nothing new. But what is new is the level of passion this trilogy has generated in young readers. If this book is used as a tool to spark conversation and discussion, it can have a very positive effect. My concern is for the girls so enthralled that these ideas are met with anger, rationalization, and a quick defense. And from my experience, knocking anything Twilight is like handling plutonium. Get ready for the explosion.

Bottom line, the books are excellent, obviously. Use them as tools to explore the reality of relationships and sexuality. If your kids are sucked into this world, I suggest you read the books too. And don’t try and keep the books from them, no need for that. They are going to read them anyways reglardless…and if you fight them, you’ll lose. Besides, they’ve been exposed to the power of media all their lives and it isn’t ever going to stop. This can be a powerful lesson for them on how something that stirs passion and desire, borderline obsession, can be riddled with lessons that don’t apply to real life…lessons that can be damaging in real life. And then have them round out their reading with literature well grounded in reality. With discussion and exploration, I believe Stephenie Myer influences for the better. Her infecting saga of romance and fantasy can help our girls explore the power of media and its impact on reality. I’m proud at how open my girls have been in discussing these issues with me. I know they get frustrated sometimes, but they have been willing to explore and consider how they have been changed by one of Time Magazines “Top 100 Influential people of the year.”

The title comes from Jonathan Swift: “When a true genius appears in the world, you may know him by this sign, that the dunces are all in confederacy against him.” I really didn’t know what I was getting when I started the audio version (I listen to books during my daily commute), but after that first morning drive I was hooked. Barrett Whitener does a fantastic job of reading, so much so that I’m going to seek him out for future audio books. I’d like to point out, Stephen King (in “On Writing”) says that listening to a book is the best way to experience it and he used to pay his kids a nickel per page to record audio books for him.

I rarely actually laugh out loud, it’s one of my flaws. I know I’d be a happier person if I could belt it out more often so this book probably added a few years to my life. It is hilarious. The main character, poverty stricken Ignatius J. Reilly, is simultaneously a genius and a dunce. He’s a 30-year old loser who lives with his mom and doesn’t work, yet has a command of the English language that rivals a university professor. An early scene in the book where he severely tongue lashes an unsuspecting policeman made my mouth drop open. Who does this guy think he is? He uses words in ways I’d never imagined to berate and humiliate others into leaving him alone. It’s worth reading just to hear Ignatius string together words you would never think could be used to insult a person. If he was on my case, I wouldn’t know whether to laugh or cry! I honestly think I would sit there encouraging him to keep on me just to hear what might come out of his mouth next!

To him, life is a sham and people are idiots. He spends his days writing his own profound thoughts in notebooks that pile up in bedroom so trashed you’d probably catch an STD just by walking through the door. The action begins when he is forced to go out and find a job and he begins to interact with the other characters of the book. It’s one unbelievable catastrophe after another. Here, Ignatius describes his life efforts…

“I dust a bit…in addition, I am at the moment writing a lengthy indictment against our century. When my brain begins to reel from my literary labors, I make an occasional cheese dip.”

~ Ignatius J. Reilly

Will Ferell was slated to star in a movie based on this novel, but as of yet they have been unable to obtain the rights to do it. That is one show I would LOVE to see.

Chris gave away his $24,000 trust fund to charity, turned down a new car from his parents, burned his money, and wandered around the western United States meeting people and experiencing the land. His final adventure was living in the wilds of Alaska for several months. It’s not spoiling the ending to tell what happened, it was all over the news. When I say it was his final adventure, I mean it literally. He left behind journals, pictures, and friends to help tell his story.

“Rather than love, than money, than faith, than fame, than fairness…give me truth.”

That quote from the movie sums me up. I don’t think most people really want truth, but maybe I’m wrong. Not that I claim to even have a clue about truth. Think about your most dear relationship or belief. If it is false, would you want to know? Many people I have talked to openly admit that if they could live out their life without having to face their darkness, they would prefer avoid the pain. And I see nothing wrong with that. In fact, it’s the happier life and we need most of us to stay happy. In studies, pessimistic individuals are more depressed, big surprise there. But they also recount a more accurate portrayal of reality. Happy people tend to understate the bad and overstate the good. Thank God for happy people, I have no qualm with that. But it’s not for me. I don’t care the price, I want truth. I’ve battled depression all my life and have learned some skills to ease the bite, but I know it’ll follow me to the grave because I’d rather live a sad lonely life with truth than a happy disillusioned one. The bad news is that I’ll never know real truth. The good news is that my life is really quite good. But when it comes down to it, I want truth over happiness. I know how to survive living lonely and sad and I can get through those times. Please don’t ever “protect” me with lies.

I read the book and saw the movie and loved both. I expected I would enjoy them, but I also thought I’d find myself running a critical dialogue and arguing back with Jon Krakauer, the author. But this was not the case. He presented what I felt were objective arguments and won me over. Initially I thought Chris was a complete nut and the whole story was an over-sensationalized account of nothing. But Sandi liked the book so I gave it a chance. It’s the first book of his I’ve read and I’ll read more. I’m jealous of his writing ability. Dang I wish I could write that well. I also want to express my thanks to the family Chris left behind. They worked with Jon and exposed their demons so this story could be told truthfully. It takes character to face it like they did and I am thankful and respect them for this honestly.

The girls perform superb. The documentary on the DVD about the making of this movie and history behind the story it as intriguing as the movie itself. The young actresses were picked from rural Australia and faced their own personal struggles as the movie was filmed. They are charming girls and if you follow-up the movie with the documentary you be that much more touched.

The images are beautiful, the story sweet, and the characters moving. It’s another good movie that inspires me to try and do a little more with my life.

This movie sparked several pages of journal writing for me. It touched on teenage issues, the inhumanity of poverty, and the whole Carpe Diem philosophy: what the hell am I doing with my life…wake up Warren! I enjoyed this show and it left me feeling flustered with some of the evils in the world but thankful for the life that I enjoy. I’d have to say watching this show helped make me a better person…or at least wanting to be a better person. Shows that can do that are certainly worth watching.