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February 22, 2006
Secrets kept shrouded in who we are
Fair warning: I’m going to go a bit philosopher.Ok, a friend and I were talking and this sort of came about. Isn’t this interesting? Everybody is who they are because of who they are, and everybody is nobody if they’re not somebody. Ok, explanation. I am who I am because of the things that make me different from everybody else. Because without those things everybody is like a clone and nobody is anybody. Here’s the really interesting part; the everyone is different than everyone else; providing a global secret in that no one really knows anyone else. We are all separate from others. No one can truly know the thoughts and intentions of others. God made each of us as secrets to each other, but known in plain to Him. Amazing isn’t it? Alright, I’ll admit it, this came about thanks to Dickens’ Tale of Two Cities. I know your probably bored stiff hearing about me and my lame literary achievements.
In other news, some strange going’s on are happening at Splurge on Fudge. It seems that Ruth has big plans to conquer the world or something. Harrison and I have vowed not to let her, so the world can rest at ease. Now, as to the pending Marxist revolution that will enslave the world, Harrison and I are chipping away at the foundation over at Briefly Put. Either way, the world always manages to get itself into an unrecoverable state of, well, shall we say, “imminent danger”.
Posted by Addison at 07:46 PM
February 19, 2006
I'm Mr. Beaver!
You scored as Mr. Beaver.
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Posted by Addison at 08:51 PM
February 18, 2006
Dr G.
Dr. Guimon
In 2002 I went on a mission trip with my church to Uganda Africa. To read my journal of the trip see the "writings" section of my site. The missionary that we went to help was Dr. Guimon. If you read Briefly Put, you already know this. He died. Yesterday I had the privilege and honor to attend his funeral, the likes of which I have never been to before. It was befitting the man. Dr. Guimon was an awesome man. I have yet in my life to meet someone closer to God than Dr. G. While it was the best funeral I’ve ever been to, it was emotionally taxing. I miss him.
The most amazing part of his life to me is this: He had a Ph.D. in Nuclear Chemistry. He was helping NASA design nuclear weapons. For the life of me I really can’t think of a cooler job to have on this earth. But he gave it up to go be a missionary to Uganda, Africa. Amazing. His life radiated an intimate relationship with his Lord and Savior.
My good friend Jonathan was at his funeral too. This guy is an amazing guy. I noticed that, while grieving in his own way, he comforted others that were grieving as well. One day he’s going to be the best pastor ever. When I’m with this guy, and talk to him, and really talk about things that mean a lot to both of us, it’s really a blessing. I feel as if I could evangelize the whole world side by side with him.
Valentine’s Day
This should have been posted back on Valentine’s, but oh well. Here’s the thing. As I see it, there is not much of a reason for the holiday to exist. Think about it. Those that are happily married should express their love to one another in a variety of ways all year round. See the next paragraph for more on that. Those that aren’t married have no need for the holiday. So, as I see it, the only reason for the holiday to exist is so guys can have a definite deadline to propose.
Also, about love/relationships in general, I’ve been thinking. I believe I have hit on something really interesting in terms of relationships of men and women. Keep ‘em guessing. I’ll explain. If your wife... Wait, I guess I should say, I’m talking to guys here. I’m a guy, so my train of thought on this followed a guy’s train of thought. At least, I hope it did. So, if your wife is at home, you’re at work, you come home, give her a kiss, tell her “I love you”, you know, all the right things. Think about this. Your wife needs to be wondering in her mind, “let’s see, is he going to bring me flowers, or maybe, a new pair of shoes, or chocolates, or he’s going to surprise me and take me out to a nice dinner, etc, etc.” You see, her interest in you, and her love will be heightened by this process. Obviously bringing something home every day is not the idea. You don’t want her to get spoiled. You just want your love for her to be evident in how you treat her. The same line of thought applies in filmmaking. Audiences want to be kept guessing. Whodunit? How? Why? Etc, etc. I really think I’ve got something here, but maybe you think I’m way off base. Let me know by commenting.
Posted by Addison at 08:17 PM
February 16, 2006
Misc. Updates
The ConcordeThe Concorde was such a cool plane. I’ve never actually flown on it, but it was truly awesome. It was an amazing bird. It was a supersonic transport plane. It was beautiful. It was a community. It was too darn expensive for everyone, but it sure was a cool plane.
Why all this talk about the Concorde? Well, I dug through some old VHS tapes and played one that’s a PBS documentary about it. It’s too bad they discontinued it. Sure was cool while it was around. 9/11 killed it. About 40 of the most frequent flyers of Concorde were killed in the WTC attacks.
The War of The Worlds
In other news; In my recent literary excursions, I have finished H.G. Wells’ famed novel about alien invasions from Mars, The War of The Worlds. Now, the commentary. At first it seems like timing really is everything. I started it when I started reading Tale of Two Cities. When I started War of The Worlds, it seemed like a rather hard read. A good read, but nonetheless a hard one. So, as time progressed, I sort of stretched my literary ability on Tale of Two Cities. Due to schoolwork (and mainly laziness) I had set down The War Of The World’s for a decent amount of time. Then I got the War Of The Worlds DVD from the library. (The old one) It was a really good movie. So, seeing that got me wanting to read the rest of the book. So I did, and due to reading Tale of Two Cities, it seemed like a lot more of an easy read than it did in the beginning. It was really interesting. The first person style of writing is very convincing. One feels as if they are actually conversing with an eyewitness to the Martian invasion. At the start of the book, H. G. Wells emphasizes the character’s experiences following the Martian landing near his house. On the other side of the halfway mark, Wells winds up taking on this philosophical look into life and how it pertains to the recent Martian occupation of the world. Some of his conclusions and ideas are a bit muddled in terms of real Truth, but they are very interesting nonetheless. This is quite possibly the book’s coolest quote: “I felt the first inkling of a thing that presently grew quite clear in my mind, that oppressed me for many days, a sense of dethronement, a persuasion that I was no longer master, but an animal among the animals, under the Martian heel. With us it would be as with them, to lurk and watch, to run and hide; the fear and empire of man had passed away.” Awesome.
Blog update
I hope this blog is not turning into being wholly about my literary experiences. My truest apologies, I will try and post about something different.
Posted by Addison at 06:30 PM
February 09, 2006
Tale of Two Cities Part 2
It could be argued that the length descriptions are necessary for character development. Although, it would seem, that a character would develop more fully by allowing them to speak. Obviously I’m not saying to cut everything but dialogue, that would kill any story. But, consider Dickens’s reference to a character as “The Jackal” or “The Lion”. Rather than to describe someone as a Jackal or a Lion, why not let the dialogue prove them as such? The main idea here is this; it seems that with A Tale of Two Cities that the dialogue is empty and meaningless and serves only to entertain, while the descriptions of thoughts and feelings interspersed throughout is where the meat of the story is. I feel that a story is better woven through engaging dialogue and action than built upon ideas expressed only as existing and not shown directly. Am I totally crazy? Or does what I say have the slightest truth to it? Stay tuned, as there may very well be a part three or even a part four.Posted by Addison at 08:16 PM
February 04, 2006
Cooking Shows & Super Bowl
CookingI watched about three cooking shows in a row on PBS this morning. I’m still wondering why I did it. Cooking shows are ok, they’re clean, but they’re not very entertaining. Plus, who needs a show when you’re as a good a cook as I am? The cinematography of cooking shows is kind of interesting. It’s a very need-based style. Meaning that the style is based on the given need, more than it is based on aesthetics. Also, what is Charles Dickens’s book Bleak House about? I’ve seen a promo for a Masterpiece theatre rendition of it that’ll be airing on Sunday night. It might be worth watching, but it’s bound to fall through the cracks due to the Super Bowl. Although it might just serve as an altogether necessary diversion from the tasteless halftime junk, depending on timing. I’d be rather surprised if another incident like Janet Jackson’s infamous performance happens again. CBS got nailed for that. Ironic, though. It hasn’t seemed to have hurt their ratings at all. My personal theory is that it’s Jerry Bruckheimer’s hit shows that even keep them afloat.
Ok, I’m rambling. But, isn’t that what the heart and soul of blogging really is?
Super Bowl
The Super Bowl is this Sunday. My personal leaning is on the Pittsburgh Steelers. I’ve been to Pittsburgh, and I haven’t been to Seattle. Also, wouldn’t you rather be Steeler (whatever that is) than a Sea Hawk? Whatever. That sounded really korny. However, my mom informs me that she has relatives in Seattle so it my be an even split among my family. Go Steelers!
Posted by Addison at 08:32 PM
February 01, 2006
Tale of Two Cities Part 1
As some of you know, I’m reading Charles Dickens’s book, A Tale of Two Cities for Literature this year. Ok, it was only a matter of time before I said this. That book is the hardest book in the world! Seriously. I didn’t think I would have that much trouble with it because I’m a good reader, I enjoy reading, even what most people would consider “hard”. Like Louis L’Amour, G. A. Henty and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. But Dickens? No. Dickens, (to me) doesn’t seem to follow the logical trail of the Human Mind. For example. Earlier, I said I was reading Prophet. In a book like that, it is good when the reader is kept guessing. It’s a challenge as a writer to keep the reader guessing, but not clueless or disinterested to the point where he wants to put down the book. In Prophet, Peretti keeps the reader guessing, but not clueless or lost in the story. When the mind has a question about another character in the story, Peretti does an excellent job of answering the questions by switching back and forth between different characters and settings. Dickens however stays on one event or character for too long it seems. Don’t get me wrong. I don’t hate dickens. I’m just making some observations. Also, Dickens has this way of losing the reader, (or at least me) in the process of lengthy descriptions.Posted by Addison at 08:45 PM
