Breaking

I am taking a few days of break.  I'm still on break, and I'll be running around like mad until I get back onto campus, so I'm taking a short hiatus.

m.

I pray we would be good stewards of our free will.

Birds Without Wings

Since I'm on break, I've been reading far more than usual.  In three days, I've read about 250 pages (once upon a time before college, that was normal for me) of Louis de Bernieres' wonderful book, Birds without Wings.  I haven't finished yet, but I think it's safe to say I love it.

It takes place in a small village in Anatolia before the founding of the Turkish Republic, so the characters  are Greek and Turkish and Christian and Muslim and are all good friends despite calling the others infidels.  It also takes into account the political situation, so interspersed with the stories of this small village, he also tells the (condensed) history of Ataturk.

m.

Book.

wishes

I think this is a wonderful comic.  All about wishes, and wishing for wishes.  But not in the traditional way.

m.

Sliced Bread

I think Nerd Boyfriend is one of the coolest things since sliced bread.  Boys, this is the way to dress.  Kind of like my opinion of Buddy Holly glasses.

m.

Photo from nerdboyfriend.com.  Link above.

Exit

I love love love this photograph from The Sartorialist.

The shadow, the silhouette, the shadows on the model's shoulder blades, the dress, the door, the framing....

m.

And...

I'M ON SPRING BREAK.

About a week after my brain decided I was on break, too.

So, guess what I want to do with my life?

"Only intensity of life has intensity of form."
-Mies van der Rohe

m.

WANT

I'm sorry, but it's been a long time since I've wanted something like I want this Pucci dress.

I generally don't like much that comes down the runway...I'm much more of an Audrey girl.

But...but...

The color is so beautifully intense, and the beading and cameo-inspired belt soften the military look (which I happen to be in love with at the moment).

m.

Lust-inducing dress/photograph courtesy of The Sartorialist, and the dress is Pucci.

Obsessions

I love people who are unashamed of their obsessions.

Adam Savage's obsessions | Video on TED.com

m.

Worthy of a king

As my roommates can attest, last night was a good night for me.  I typically don't agree with the Academy when it comes to awards, except for the categories very few people care about, like original and adapted screenplays, cinematography, sound editing...that kind of thing.
However, last night, I agreed with all of the top four categories (and some of the lesser ones, too).  The one that surprised me the most was Best Picture.  I was sure it was a toss-up between Black Swan and Inception.  I was rooting for The King's Speech.

In general, I have an affinity for Colin Firth (Mr. Darcy!  Lord Henry!)--I think he chooses solid, interesting movies, brings a humanity to all of his characters (if you've ever read The Picture of Dorian Gray, you know how impressive that is.  Lord Henry.  That's all I'm saying.), dominates every bloody scene he's in--even if he's not dripping wet--and is a fantastic actor to boot.
Yes, I agree with his win for best actor.
The King's Speech is just as impressive (if slightly less romantic than Pride & Prejudice and nowhere near as creepy as Dorian Gray) as his other movies.  I think it's pretty accurate (don't quote me), but more than that, it's a wonderful portrait of a man who was stronger than the circumstances he was confronted with.

m.

The only thing that made me mad about the movie was the stupid MPAA rating.  It got an R for excessive language, but there's so much meaning.  Lionel realizes that George doesn't stutter when he swears, so he has him swear nonstop for about thirty seconds.  Yes, that's a lot of language, but hasn't the MPAA ever heard of "context?"  Not to mention the fact that lost of very violent movies don't get an R.  Violence...language...disembowelment...four letter words to overcome a stammer....

Poster source; can I have one for my wall?

Yeah, I do think that history repeats itself.

The Movie Title Stills Collection is just what it sounds like--a collection of stills from movies of their titles, dating back to the 1920s.
I thought it was cool when I first heard the concept, but after having sat down and perused it for a couple of hours, it's even cooler.  I think I pulled about 100 to show you, but then decided it might be a good idea to scale that number down.  They're pretty dang awesome in their own right, and I love seeing the different shots from remakes (there's a movie called Inglorious Bastards that predates Tarantino's by a couple of decades; you learn something new everyday).

But I think what I love most is watching how they changed over time, and how old some of the ideas are, and how it seems Hollywood has gotten maybe something right for generations that sometimes simple is best.

m.