And I say Part 1.5 because I don't have time to write a full-fledged article on the nature of sex and relationships - this is a follow-up to an earlier post ("On a gray day...") where I talked about how sex may not be a goal of a relationship. Well, guess what - read an article today (I forget where) about how men and women view sex and relationships differently. Basically, men apparently have sex as a goal in the relationship, i.e., in order to a relationship to be good, there must be good sex. Women, on the other hand, value the relationship side of it more, i.e., if the relationship is good, then there will be good sex.
Now, upon seeing this, it makes me wonder about the dynamics of gay people like myself. Obviously, there are some people who are like the males while others are the females. So, I suppose it's not really a nature-versus-nurture thing, seeing as this dynamic also exists among ourselves.
As I said, I'd write more, but I have a set of window blinds to put up. Perhaps more next time :)
Tuesday, April 25, 2006
Pellet Review - The Chronicles of Narnia (The Lion, The Witch...oh, you know which one!)
So continues the trend of really long movie titles ("Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" anyone? Of course there's always "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King"....Let me just give kudos to the upcoming remake of the "The Poseidon Adventure", now just called "Poseidon".)
Based on a children's book series, this first adaptation (of maybe seven) gets off to a promising start. Of course, there are parts of the plot where I can see a few things coming (what do you expect - it's a children's book!) but what I find fascinating is the maybe not-so-obvious parallels it is trying to draw between certain aspects of Christianity (namely Jesus and his sacrifice and subsequent resurrection). Granted, naming the eldest child (translated: first apostle) Peter kind of gets the message across, but I think when Alsan the Lion King (he he he) said "It is finished" I think the message gets delivered point blank.
Just out of curiosity, I did surf the 'net and sure enough, there are forums galore regarding this subject. Imagine that.
It's a fantastic movie to look at, though. The CGI animation is nothing short of amazing and it is truly leaps and bounds from the first CGI talking-animal flick I've ever seen ("Babe"). Sound-wise, though, I'm not sure if it's my settings or the actual audio mastering (or is it that Brit accent) but the dialogue seemed faint - I was afraid of turning it up for fear of having some big explosion scene coming up and thereby scaring my poor mom witless.
Recommended.
Based on a children's book series, this first adaptation (of maybe seven) gets off to a promising start. Of course, there are parts of the plot where I can see a few things coming (what do you expect - it's a children's book!) but what I find fascinating is the maybe not-so-obvious parallels it is trying to draw between certain aspects of Christianity (namely Jesus and his sacrifice and subsequent resurrection). Granted, naming the eldest child (translated: first apostle) Peter kind of gets the message across, but I think when Alsan the Lion King (he he he) said "It is finished" I think the message gets delivered point blank.
Just out of curiosity, I did surf the 'net and sure enough, there are forums galore regarding this subject. Imagine that.
It's a fantastic movie to look at, though. The CGI animation is nothing short of amazing and it is truly leaps and bounds from the first CGI talking-animal flick I've ever seen ("Babe"). Sound-wise, though, I'm not sure if it's my settings or the actual audio mastering (or is it that Brit accent) but the dialogue seemed faint - I was afraid of turning it up for fear of having some big explosion scene coming up and thereby scaring my poor mom witless.
Recommended.
Friday, April 21, 2006
Random Thoughts
Can I move within this silence and not disturb my sleeping heart?
The mind turns to the comfort of insignificant things,
Yet the spirit longs to be disturbed by those who know it.
Connect with me, then, through these hands that hold nothing
And free these stifled mumurs of a soul that seeks no bounds
As it declares to the world its intent to be discovered
By all, by one, but never by none.
I cannot move within this silence and not disturb
For truly there is no silence to be found here.
Then my eyes soak in the sight of you not unlike a thirst unquenched
Many years did this drought stay with me - or were they days or moments?
But like a mirage does everything else fade away
These mad world sounds around me turn to whispers.
And just as I strain to hear what they say, you touch me
The universe stands still
All is quiet, all at rest
Silence. Like a song that reached its end.
Finally, it is within this silence
That my sleeping heart awakes.
The mind turns to the comfort of insignificant things,
Yet the spirit longs to be disturbed by those who know it.
Connect with me, then, through these hands that hold nothing
And free these stifled mumurs of a soul that seeks no bounds
As it declares to the world its intent to be discovered
By all, by one, but never by none.
I cannot move within this silence and not disturb
For truly there is no silence to be found here.
Then my eyes soak in the sight of you not unlike a thirst unquenched
Many years did this drought stay with me - or were they days or moments?
But like a mirage does everything else fade away
These mad world sounds around me turn to whispers.
And just as I strain to hear what they say, you touch me
The universe stands still
All is quiet, all at rest
Silence. Like a song that reached its end.
Finally, it is within this silence
That my sleeping heart awakes.
Pellet Reviews (Combined): Mirrormask / The Island / A.I.
We still haven't gone to a "real" movie in a while - but I managed to get my hands on a "free" pass to Mission Impossible 3 so at least I know we'll be going in the next month (expiry date and all).
What we have watched here at home of late is "Mirrormask", "The Island", and "A.I.". Not really enough time to write individual reviews so here goes....
Mirrormask - Damn if this thing doesn't look good on the big screen. Really dazzling and creative visuals. But after watching it for a while, it does tend to get a bit tiring, meaning visual overload. Too much of a good thing perhaps. But the story is somewhat ordinary - teenage girl runs into a real-life crisis and retreats into dreamworld where things get (somewhat) resolved....although the narrative does not spell it out that way. But still a good showcase for home theatre. I remember one scene where giants fell out of the sky, and I swear I *felt* the air being displaced as they came down with a huge THUD.
The Island - Great concept, good action flick to watch. A great popcorn movie, therefore not genre-redefining. Another good one for the home theatre.
A.I. - As always with Steven Spielberg, this is a beauty to watch. A bit sad/bittersweet though. Not sure if the kiddies can appreciate this, but it does pull at the heartstrings as the story addresses a universal longing in all of us - the need to be loved by someone. And the affirmation of it. What it shows us is sometimes, what we think we want is not necessarily so. In the story, the main character thought what he wanted is to become a real boy so that he can be loved. What he learns in the end, well, I won't spoil the ending for those who haven't seen it. But I had to reach for a tissue. So there.
What we have watched here at home of late is "Mirrormask", "The Island", and "A.I.". Not really enough time to write individual reviews so here goes....
Mirrormask - Damn if this thing doesn't look good on the big screen. Really dazzling and creative visuals. But after watching it for a while, it does tend to get a bit tiring, meaning visual overload. Too much of a good thing perhaps. But the story is somewhat ordinary - teenage girl runs into a real-life crisis and retreats into dreamworld where things get (somewhat) resolved....although the narrative does not spell it out that way. But still a good showcase for home theatre. I remember one scene where giants fell out of the sky, and I swear I *felt* the air being displaced as they came down with a huge THUD.
The Island - Great concept, good action flick to watch. A great popcorn movie, therefore not genre-redefining. Another good one for the home theatre.
A.I. - As always with Steven Spielberg, this is a beauty to watch. A bit sad/bittersweet though. Not sure if the kiddies can appreciate this, but it does pull at the heartstrings as the story addresses a universal longing in all of us - the need to be loved by someone. And the affirmation of it. What it shows us is sometimes, what we think we want is not necessarily so. In the story, the main character thought what he wanted is to become a real boy so that he can be loved. What he learns in the end, well, I won't spoil the ending for those who haven't seen it. But I had to reach for a tissue. So there.
If I were a government employee....
...do I get a 10% discount off my tax owing this year? As a bank employee, I get really good benefits like discounted rates and all that. But I'm owing quite a bit of money this year to the government and the thought crossed my mind. Something like "government employees get a 50% discount if they pay their tax owing before April 1st".
Working from home today but I'm planning to step out to go to the bank to pay up. That's why this crossed my mind. Just really lucky that my bank is right around the corner - so convenient.
We finished painting the main floor of our house this week and I gotta say that it looks great (short of a few touch-ups here and there). I think we'll take a break from doing house work and do some fun stuff (like shopping for furniture). We're celebrating the hubby's birthday here with my family on May 13, so we're hoping to have the place in good shape for visitors by then.
Well, leaving in a few minutes. Then I better get some real work done.
Working from home today but I'm planning to step out to go to the bank to pay up. That's why this crossed my mind. Just really lucky that my bank is right around the corner - so convenient.
We finished painting the main floor of our house this week and I gotta say that it looks great (short of a few touch-ups here and there). I think we'll take a break from doing house work and do some fun stuff (like shopping for furniture). We're celebrating the hubby's birthday here with my family on May 13, so we're hoping to have the place in good shape for visitors by then.
Well, leaving in a few minutes. Then I better get some real work done.
Saturday, April 01, 2006
On a gray day.....
6:15 p.m.
Just waiting for my friends to show up. Tonight is card night and they are coming here to (hopefully) give me more money. Once again, the hubby is away on business, and I gotta say that it really sucks coming home knowing that I'll be going to bed alone again. That's why I keep myself busy, so that I'll be so tired that once I hit the sack I really won't notice that I'm sleeping alone.
Random thought: I don't mind pots calling kettles black, as long as the pots own up to being what they are.
I have meant to celebrate my 1000th hour on CPAP a couple of weeks ago. Celebrate you say? How can that be a celebration? Well, consider that 1000 hours = 142 nights of sound sleep (on an average of 7 hours of sleep a night). Now really, isn't that cause to be happy? For all you folks considering whether a CPAP machine is worth it, yes it is!! If I'm on the machine, I sleep straight through - no half-waking up at various times in the wee hours of the morning. I mean a straight, solid sleep. Plus, the hubby gets to sleep all the way thru too! None of that snoring anymore!
(Granted, spontaneity suffers a bit, but I think we've matured enough in our relationship to know how to plan around it. Besides, not everything is about *that*.)
So someone asked me before (who shall remain nameless and if you are reading this, you know who you are) if one can consider sex being the goal of a relationship. Personally, sex lends a lot to the growth of a relationship (especially in its early stages), but one will have to consider that in a life partnership, there will come a time when one or both will not be as - say - virile as they are in youth. So if sex was a huge, huge part of the foundation, then you can imagine that if that is taken out of the equation then you may find yourselves one day looking at each other with nothing to talk about.
I'm not saying that sex is not important. It is! But it is also important to establish a solid emotional and mental foundation so that you will have other things to connect with each other as time passes. And in a way, this internal connection is so much harder to work on than the physical part....and if you don't start on this earlier in the relationship, then really there is not a huge chance of the relationship surviving much later in life.
But that's just me. Now, for you lucky bastards who still have hot sex in their 70's without the assistance of Viagra, you will have to tell me your secret so I can start training. Yeah, right, like I know anyone in that age range who I would be familiar enough with to have that conversation.
See, this is what happens when you stay indoors on a gray day like today. I gotta get out more.
Just waiting for my friends to show up. Tonight is card night and they are coming here to (hopefully) give me more money. Once again, the hubby is away on business, and I gotta say that it really sucks coming home knowing that I'll be going to bed alone again. That's why I keep myself busy, so that I'll be so tired that once I hit the sack I really won't notice that I'm sleeping alone.
Random thought: I don't mind pots calling kettles black, as long as the pots own up to being what they are.
I have meant to celebrate my 1000th hour on CPAP a couple of weeks ago. Celebrate you say? How can that be a celebration? Well, consider that 1000 hours = 142 nights of sound sleep (on an average of 7 hours of sleep a night). Now really, isn't that cause to be happy? For all you folks considering whether a CPAP machine is worth it, yes it is!! If I'm on the machine, I sleep straight through - no half-waking up at various times in the wee hours of the morning. I mean a straight, solid sleep. Plus, the hubby gets to sleep all the way thru too! None of that snoring anymore!
(Granted, spontaneity suffers a bit, but I think we've matured enough in our relationship to know how to plan around it. Besides, not everything is about *that*.)
So someone asked me before (who shall remain nameless and if you are reading this, you know who you are) if one can consider sex being the goal of a relationship. Personally, sex lends a lot to the growth of a relationship (especially in its early stages), but one will have to consider that in a life partnership, there will come a time when one or both will not be as - say - virile as they are in youth. So if sex was a huge, huge part of the foundation, then you can imagine that if that is taken out of the equation then you may find yourselves one day looking at each other with nothing to talk about.
I'm not saying that sex is not important. It is! But it is also important to establish a solid emotional and mental foundation so that you will have other things to connect with each other as time passes. And in a way, this internal connection is so much harder to work on than the physical part....and if you don't start on this earlier in the relationship, then really there is not a huge chance of the relationship surviving much later in life.
But that's just me. Now, for you lucky bastards who still have hot sex in their 70's without the assistance of Viagra, you will have to tell me your secret so I can start training. Yeah, right, like I know anyone in that age range who I would be familiar enough with to have that conversation.
See, this is what happens when you stay indoors on a gray day like today. I gotta get out more.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)