Sometimes Cheesy Isn't So Bad
... particularly on pizza. Wait. Sorry... Guess I'm hungry. :)
This is a bit long, so please click to .
I'm gonna' say this right out: I'm smart. I don't think I'm the smartest person I've ever known, but I'm no dummy, either. Particularly in the area of psychology and marketing and manipulation of emotions. I mean, I'm human, so I still have reactions, but I'm darn good at identifying the intentions of an author or screenwriter. The thing is, I don't mind having my emotions manipulated; in fact, I rather enjoy it most of the time; I choose what movie to watch because I know it'll make me feel a certain way. BUT, I don't like it when the writer/author arrogantly thinks I don't know that they're doing it. One of the worst examples I've seen lately are those State Farm commercials where Capt. Smiley talks about how people are inherently nice to each other (you know, by doing uber-generous things like giving you your change). He reminds me of a really bad politician - making noises like he wants to see you happy, but the sneer shows a little too clearly through the fakeness. Blech! :P Patooey! That kind of stuff just makes me mad.
Anyway, another example is supposed "girly" movies where the whole world knows that it'll be rough and have a feel-good ending. I can go both ways on those, since I am (at last check) a female, so I get into the sappy stuff occasionally. But, some movies just scream "WATCH ME! YOU'LL BE SHOCKED BY HOW GREAT YOU'LL FEEL! EVERYBODY'S DOING IT! YOU'RE NOT A WOMAN UNLESS YOU WATCH THIS AND CRY!" Those irritate me, too. And... we get to my actual subject today. Have any of you seen the Julia Roberts movie "Eat. Pray. Love."? (<-- Did you see how I did that, Katie E.? :) ) I have actually been AVOIDING it because of its obviousness. I was surprised by "Under the Tuscan Sun" with Diane Lane and really enjoyed it, but I thought E.P.L. was a touch too in-your-face, smug, female happy time. I mean, gag me. Really. Until... my counselor recommended I watch it, and when I did, I found I got more out of it than I would've thought. Hmmm.
Basically, I have a habit of putting other people's priorities first in my life. I act like I'm treating myself, but really I'm just going through the motions until that next thing I need to do for somebody else. She (my counselor) wanted me to focus on "doing for me" and what that meant.
Well, as expected, the movie was about a woman who needs to discover herself and finds she's not what she thought and finds friends and gets a little sumpin' along the way and discovers she's a great gal. Okay, yeah, you get that from the preview. But, when you dig a little deeper and skip over the obvious stuff, it really does kind of make you think. What do *I* want? How do I get it? What am I doing to get it? Should I change my course? It was really kind of cool. I watched the movie once just to watch it, then I watched it again and jotted down a few things I wanted to think about more deeply, then I explored those thoughts and wrote about them. My counselor would say that I, as usual, went a bit overboard and that she just intended me to enjoy the movie, but... as usual, it actually did me a lot of good to write through it. And...
I thought I'd share a few of my thoughts and find out what YOU would answer, too. Don't worry, I'm only sharing the not-so-deep ones. I'd love to hear your answers to them, too. So, here's what I asked and discovered as a result of "Eat. Pray. Love."
1. What would be in my box? (Imagine a box under your bed where you gather bits and pieces of what you want in life.)
My answer: Pics of stylish clothes with pretty colors and shine, classic with a twist. Antiquey, detailed, delicate but strong and fun jewelry and accessories. Bold, beautiful shoes. Grand and classic but simpler-lined home decor. Motivational quotes in sweet and fun designs. Beautiful nature destinations in the country and elsewhere - not specific places, but they have to be striking in their beauty. Lots of happy photos of Tom and me. Lots of meaningful and happy photos of family. Girly, smell-good stuff.
2. I was present in the creation of this life. Do I see myself in it?
My answer: Some, yes. Simple-lined decorations. Lots of pics and "moments", though I need more moment ones. Attempts at "a place for everything & everything in its place" though Tom and I differ in this, so it's a constant striving. Cleanliness. Some smell-good stuff. Thoughtful placement of things, practical but nice to look at.
3. Story about a poor man who keeps praying to his god "Please let me win the lottery" over and over again, and finally, the god replies, "Please buy a ticket". What would qualify as a ticket for me?
My answer: Identifying myself as a "professional" and an authority and in charge of something. I'm done with the med trans program, but I'm still having a hard time accepting that I'm "qualified" to do it. I need to accept this, accept that doing it in real life because I'm prepared and trained and qualified is okay and right and real.
4. What is my word? Am I a woman in search of her word, or do I know it?
My answer: "Finding"
I'm actually really happy with this. I think it speaks to my love of learning and exploring and teaching and being positive. It defines me as always striving to be better and "looking" at the world, not just settling or being complacent and also not focusing only on the negative.
So. That's all I've answered so far. What do you think? How would you answer these questions? I really am interested. TGIF, folks! :) Have a great weekend!
Happier,
Cristy
This is a bit long, so please click to .
I'm gonna' say this right out: I'm smart. I don't think I'm the smartest person I've ever known, but I'm no dummy, either. Particularly in the area of psychology and marketing and manipulation of emotions. I mean, I'm human, so I still have reactions, but I'm darn good at identifying the intentions of an author or screenwriter. The thing is, I don't mind having my emotions manipulated; in fact, I rather enjoy it most of the time; I choose what movie to watch because I know it'll make me feel a certain way. BUT, I don't like it when the writer/author arrogantly thinks I don't know that they're doing it. One of the worst examples I've seen lately are those State Farm commercials where Capt. Smiley talks about how people are inherently nice to each other (you know, by doing uber-generous things like giving you your change). He reminds me of a really bad politician - making noises like he wants to see you happy, but the sneer shows a little too clearly through the fakeness. Blech! :P Patooey! That kind of stuff just makes me mad.
Anyway, another example is supposed "girly" movies where the whole world knows that it'll be rough and have a feel-good ending. I can go both ways on those, since I am (at last check) a female, so I get into the sappy stuff occasionally. But, some movies just scream "WATCH ME! YOU'LL BE SHOCKED BY HOW GREAT YOU'LL FEEL! EVERYBODY'S DOING IT! YOU'RE NOT A WOMAN UNLESS YOU WATCH THIS AND CRY!" Those irritate me, too. And... we get to my actual subject today. Have any of you seen the Julia Roberts movie "Eat. Pray. Love."? (<-- Did you see how I did that, Katie E.? :) ) I have actually been AVOIDING it because of its obviousness. I was surprised by "Under the Tuscan Sun" with Diane Lane and really enjoyed it, but I thought E.P.L. was a touch too in-your-face, smug, female happy time. I mean, gag me. Really. Until... my counselor recommended I watch it, and when I did, I found I got more out of it than I would've thought. Hmmm.
Basically, I have a habit of putting other people's priorities first in my life. I act like I'm treating myself, but really I'm just going through the motions until that next thing I need to do for somebody else. She (my counselor) wanted me to focus on "doing for me" and what that meant.
Well, as expected, the movie was about a woman who needs to discover herself and finds she's not what she thought and finds friends and gets a little sumpin' along the way and discovers she's a great gal. Okay, yeah, you get that from the preview. But, when you dig a little deeper and skip over the obvious stuff, it really does kind of make you think. What do *I* want? How do I get it? What am I doing to get it? Should I change my course? It was really kind of cool. I watched the movie once just to watch it, then I watched it again and jotted down a few things I wanted to think about more deeply, then I explored those thoughts and wrote about them. My counselor would say that I, as usual, went a bit overboard and that she just intended me to enjoy the movie, but... as usual, it actually did me a lot of good to write through it. And...
I thought I'd share a few of my thoughts and find out what YOU would answer, too. Don't worry, I'm only sharing the not-so-deep ones. I'd love to hear your answers to them, too. So, here's what I asked and discovered as a result of "Eat. Pray. Love."
1. What would be in my box? (Imagine a box under your bed where you gather bits and pieces of what you want in life.)
My answer: Pics of stylish clothes with pretty colors and shine, classic with a twist. Antiquey, detailed, delicate but strong and fun jewelry and accessories. Bold, beautiful shoes. Grand and classic but simpler-lined home decor. Motivational quotes in sweet and fun designs. Beautiful nature destinations in the country and elsewhere - not specific places, but they have to be striking in their beauty. Lots of happy photos of Tom and me. Lots of meaningful and happy photos of family. Girly, smell-good stuff.
2. I was present in the creation of this life. Do I see myself in it?
My answer: Some, yes. Simple-lined decorations. Lots of pics and "moments", though I need more moment ones. Attempts at "a place for everything & everything in its place" though Tom and I differ in this, so it's a constant striving. Cleanliness. Some smell-good stuff. Thoughtful placement of things, practical but nice to look at.
3. Story about a poor man who keeps praying to his god "Please let me win the lottery" over and over again, and finally, the god replies, "Please buy a ticket". What would qualify as a ticket for me?
My answer: Identifying myself as a "professional" and an authority and in charge of something. I'm done with the med trans program, but I'm still having a hard time accepting that I'm "qualified" to do it. I need to accept this, accept that doing it in real life because I'm prepared and trained and qualified is okay and right and real.
4. What is my word? Am I a woman in search of her word, or do I know it?
My answer: "Finding"
I'm actually really happy with this. I think it speaks to my love of learning and exploring and teaching and being positive. It defines me as always striving to be better and "looking" at the world, not just settling or being complacent and also not focusing only on the negative.
So. That's all I've answered so far. What do you think? How would you answer these questions? I really am interested. TGIF, folks! :) Have a great weekend!
Happier,
Cristy