One of the more bizarre constructions of the Twilight series is the matter of imprinting. Having everything in your life that might have mattered fade into obscurity once you catch sight of your true life's mate sounds suspiciously like too much testosterone (or estrogen for that matter) at work to me.
I can remember (barely) what those first hormonal crushes were like and frankly I can't picture myself still being with any one of the previous objects of my obsession right here and now. I know where most of them are today, but for one. She was the first that was more than just a passing dalliance and it ended disastrously for both of us. Her family whisked her off to Europe hoping to put as much distance between us as possible and had I not spent 5 weeks in the hospital recovering, I might have followed.
I like to think of her somewhere in Italy on a farm, fat and haggard with the years, surrounded by insufferable children and grandchildren catering to the whims of a man who beats her regularly. Why? Because if our paths crossed today and time had been kinder and my memories weren't so bitter I fear my obsession with her would be as strong today as it was the day we were forced apart. Actually I fear that despite time being unkind and my bitter memories, I would still follow her through the gates of hell...
What's your obsession?
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Sunday, November 30, 2008
I finally saw it
I thought they did a good job getting the important points across. What did you think?
Saturday, November 22, 2008
Shape-shifters Anonymous
The idea of the animal called man being able to transform into some other form of animal has been around since the dawn of time. Ever since cave men first scratched out depictions of the hunt, man's mind has striven to inhabit the mind of the creatures he pursues, whether those creatures be real, imagined, or even extinct.
The animal of choice for me has varied over the course of my life. The marine biologist phase was obviously going to be dolphins (owing to a heavy dose of Flipper on TV). The teenage years saw the horse phase because everyone knows a girl's best friend is her horse. My brief flirtation with veterinary medicine would have seen me as a cat.
Today I'd have to be a friend of Jacob. I have so become a dog person due to sharing my house and life with the two best dogs in the world. Of course I'd sincerely hope that I wouldn't pick up all of my dogs habits. Apparently one of them thinks there's nothing quite like rolling in turkey shit.
So what animal would you shift to?
The animal of choice for me has varied over the course of my life. The marine biologist phase was obviously going to be dolphins (owing to a heavy dose of Flipper on TV). The teenage years saw the horse phase because everyone knows a girl's best friend is her horse. My brief flirtation with veterinary medicine would have seen me as a cat.
Today I'd have to be a friend of Jacob. I have so become a dog person due to sharing my house and life with the two best dogs in the world. Of course I'd sincerely hope that I wouldn't pick up all of my dogs habits. Apparently one of them thinks there's nothing quite like rolling in turkey shit.
So what animal would you shift to?
Sunday, November 16, 2008
The other power of the mind
A close cousin of being able to read thoughts in a one-way fashion, there's the pack mentality of being able to read the thoughts of all your pack-mates.
How creepy would that be if it was a familial trait? Parents would always know what sneaky things the kids were up to and might even be able to prevent some of the stupider actions. The kids would know that Dad cheats on his taxes and Mom lusts after the husband of the neighbor two doors down. Serious blackmail material for the kids...but then dark-hearted me would focus on the nasty consequences of such a world.
On the flip side, you'd always know when something was amiss and what it was you could do to make it better.
If this was the way things were, do you think it would be a good thing or a bad thing?
How creepy would that be if it was a familial trait? Parents would always know what sneaky things the kids were up to and might even be able to prevent some of the stupider actions. The kids would know that Dad cheats on his taxes and Mom lusts after the husband of the neighbor two doors down. Serious blackmail material for the kids...but then dark-hearted me would focus on the nasty consequences of such a world.
On the flip side, you'd always know when something was amiss and what it was you could do to make it better.
If this was the way things were, do you think it would be a good thing or a bad thing?
Sunday, November 9, 2008
The power of the mind...
When I was younger, I wished I could be a mind reader. I dreamed I could read minds. You'd think that would be a pretty spectacular talent to possess, wouldn't you? Not in my world...
Can you be honest with yourself? Forget about being honest with the people around you for a moment. Are you honest enough—no, brave enough—to admit how selfish you really are? Look at the world around you with a critical eye. How many truly selfless actions do you see committed every day by your fellow man? What are the core reasons behind the decisions we all make day in and day out? Even those actions that could be deemed, on the surface, to be beneficial—deep down isn't there always some thing in it for self and self alone?
As an adult looking back over those dreams, that desire to know the minds of the people around me, I thank my lucky stars that it's nothing I was gifted with. Had I known the thoughts of several of the people that passed in and out of my life, I should be like Alice; firmly committed in some sort of institution. I've known some very dark people, had some very dark experiences. Now I can only guess at the malicious intents of some I've loosely called friend in the past. Were I to know the true depths of the darkness in their hearts and minds, I can't imagine being able to hold onto my sanity. There's not enough good in the world to counter the poison that runs through some.
Don't think I hold myself above a deep and abiding self-interest. I state quite clearly that if you, dear reader, could see my thoughts and know my heart, you would run screaming from me in terror. There surely is more dark side to me than light. I just know how to hide it better than others. If you had a sixth sense, what would it be?
Can you be honest with yourself? Forget about being honest with the people around you for a moment. Are you honest enough—no, brave enough—to admit how selfish you really are? Look at the world around you with a critical eye. How many truly selfless actions do you see committed every day by your fellow man? What are the core reasons behind the decisions we all make day in and day out? Even those actions that could be deemed, on the surface, to be beneficial—deep down isn't there always some thing in it for self and self alone?
As an adult looking back over those dreams, that desire to know the minds of the people around me, I thank my lucky stars that it's nothing I was gifted with. Had I known the thoughts of several of the people that passed in and out of my life, I should be like Alice; firmly committed in some sort of institution. I've known some very dark people, had some very dark experiences. Now I can only guess at the malicious intents of some I've loosely called friend in the past. Were I to know the true depths of the darkness in their hearts and minds, I can't imagine being able to hold onto my sanity. There's not enough good in the world to counter the poison that runs through some.
Don't think I hold myself above a deep and abiding self-interest. I state quite clearly that if you, dear reader, could see my thoughts and know my heart, you would run screaming from me in terror. There surely is more dark side to me than light. I just know how to hide it better than others. If you had a sixth sense, what would it be?
Sunday, November 2, 2008
And then there was light...
Who knows what God was thinking when God set upon creating our sphere? Lord knows this is the biggest science project I could possibly imagine and not a task I'd take up for myself. I have enough trouble exerting any sort of control over my own sphere within the sphere.
So you've got this ball covered with earth, wind, water, and fire; a self sustaining environment. What creatures will you populate it with? Do you make them all at the same time? Is it a process of trial and error? How long do you let an experiment with one form or another continue before you deem it a success or a failure? What's your criteria for success? For failure? Are you striking for some sort of balance or do you just let the chips fall where they may and leave each form to fend for itself and determine it's own fate? Can you bear to destroy that which you've taken the time to create should you deem it a failure? Can you picture God as the ultimate abortionist?
So you've got this ball covered with earth, wind, water, and fire; a self sustaining environment. What creatures will you populate it with? Do you make them all at the same time? Is it a process of trial and error? How long do you let an experiment with one form or another continue before you deem it a success or a failure? What's your criteria for success? For failure? Are you striking for some sort of balance or do you just let the chips fall where they may and leave each form to fend for itself and determine it's own fate? Can you bear to destroy that which you've taken the time to create should you deem it a failure? Can you picture God as the ultimate abortionist?
Monday, October 27, 2008
About this place...
If you're looking for a fan site devoted to the Twilight series of books or their beloved characters this is not that site.
The current theme is Twilight, the books and the upcoming movie. But it's not what you think. If I'd started this 5 years ago, the theme would have been Harry Potter based. Basically what I'm doing here is a "what if it was real" thing, hence the name at the top of the page. Let's apply realities to the myth.
Who knows what the theme will be later. Probably my next obsession.
So today I'll embarrass myself by telling you how I applied the wrong definition of a word to a sentence in the book. Carlisle is explaining to Bella how Edward came to be a vampire. In describing Edward's dying mother, he attributes some of her failing health to having tried to nurse her son from her sickbed. This had me doing a double-take as I was under the impression that Edward became a vampire at the age of seventeen. See, I didn't read Florence-Nightingale-sort-of-nurse, I read, breast-feed-her-infant-son-sort-of-nurse. It got me to thinking...
How exactly do you bottle-feed an infant vampire?
The current theme is Twilight, the books and the upcoming movie. But it's not what you think. If I'd started this 5 years ago, the theme would have been Harry Potter based. Basically what I'm doing here is a "what if it was real" thing, hence the name at the top of the page. Let's apply realities to the myth.
Who knows what the theme will be later. Probably my next obsession.
So today I'll embarrass myself by telling you how I applied the wrong definition of a word to a sentence in the book. Carlisle is explaining to Bella how Edward came to be a vampire. In describing Edward's dying mother, he attributes some of her failing health to having tried to nurse her son from her sickbed. This had me doing a double-take as I was under the impression that Edward became a vampire at the age of seventeen. See, I didn't read Florence-Nightingale-sort-of-nurse, I read, breast-feed-her-infant-son-sort-of-nurse. It got me to thinking...
How exactly do you bottle-feed an infant vampire?
Ready to Start AGAIN
I've missed blogging so much. It's time to start doing what I love again, to hell with everyone else.
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Books versus Movies
I've read all the books in the Twilight series now, even the first bit of the unfinished Midnight Sun on Ms. Meyers website. Fascinating.
I cringe at the thought of the upcoming movie. Well, that's not precise. I cringe at the thought of the audience reaction to the upcoming movie. I can already hear the murmurs in the theater: "That's not how it happened!", That never happened!", "What were they thinking!!!!" Almost makes me wish for a bootleg DVD so I didn't have to submerge myself in the miasma of disappointment that is sure to taint the cinema's air supply.
I grew up immersed in the film industry. Hard not to when you live in LA surrounded by the people that get worshipped. Worked it too so I know the logistics. It's difficult, really impossible to distill even the shortest novel into a movie that people are willing to shell out their money on. Rare is the 3+ hour cinematic marvel that people are willing to sit still for. Rarer still something longer. The fanatical amongst us must wait for director's cuts and extended/unrated versions to arrive on DVD. It's just not practical to transcribe verbatim from one media to the other.
Think about how long it took you to read the novel. If you're an average reader, translate that into the running time of a movie. Are you willing to devote that much time to sitting still and silent in a chilly room full of strangers? Normal people aren't.
So the script writer and the director and the producer all work together to bring the spirit of the piece to the screen. What that means is that characters are going to be left out; the actor/actress that you thought would be perfect to play so-and-so was in rehab and therefore unavailable; and that momentous exchange of dialog in chapter 8 now takes place in a bathroom instead of over an intimate dinner or worse—ended up on the cutting room floor (I'm trying not to do spoilers here...). You can't please all the people all the time so you don't bother trying you just work on finessing the essence of the piece.
When you plunk down your $8.50 to see the movie, please try to remember that. Try to remember that everyone's vision is unique and what you pictured in your head is not what's going to end up on the screen. Enjoy the film for itself, not what you think it should be. Be happy with what you have, instead of mourning for what you want.
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