Art requires a significant investment on the part of the observer.
To appreciate literature, one must apply oneself to think about what one has read, and one must also have some practice in the interpretation of metaphor and symbolic language and such.
To appreciate classical music, (I should say Western because I know little to nothing about other classical musics,) one must understand the harmonic tradition behind it.
I don't appreciate theatre: I have very rarely seen any, and I don't really understand it. I expect that if I watched the Tonies they would bore me.
Kraj, when you say "Boring, useless, and I hadn't even seen any nominated movies and didn't care," it's clear that the reason you found the ceremony boring is the second half of the sentence. But when you call the whole thing boring (rather than saying something like "I found it boring" or leaving it simply at you weren't interested) it makes me feel like you don't respect my opinions.
For the point that they are useless I will counter in simpler terms: movies, and not just blockbusters, and under heavy influence of market forces, and the Oscars play a big role in shaping of those forces. Not just do sales of movies with Oscars go up, but more similar movies are more likely to be produced. This is why it was especially sad when Brokeback Mountain didn't get its Best Picture: the Academy was saying America is not ready to buy this sort of movie, and, whether or not the academy was right, we haven't seen one since.
So the producer who accepted the award for No Country for Old Men ended his speech with "And I'd like to thank my partner John [something], without you honey I'd never have gotten through this."
In other gay Oscar news, the most passionate speech was made for the acceptance of the short documentary award for Freeheld, the subject being the prosecution of same sex couples' transfering of pension benefits on death. It was quite amazing to see so much empathy come out of a married woman, who visibly shook as she accepted the award.
And it was nice to see the supporting actress award received without the actress crying. As a rule of thumb, the actress awards always get tears. Helen Mirren didn't cry last year though, so maybe it's just the British ladies who are excepted.
It depends, for instance, on whether or not the people you're dating know.
Also, the Oscars are tomorrow!
The idea of getting excited by the Oscars tickles me, but really I don't have much respect for the academy of random people, prefering (FOR INSTANCE) the Independent Spirit Awards or certain critics' associations.
Still though, the Oscars are powerful, if wrong, and fun to watch.
My Oscar wish is that Michael Clayton get a few carrots.
I like to think sexy men are gay, but I'm not sure why. It helps that I find gayness sexy.
Like the least believable part of 27 Dresses was the scene where Katherine Heigl tries on all of them while he watches and makes snide remarks and takes photos. That is, least believable unless he's gay of course, in which case it makes perfect sense.
I saw 27 Dresses yesterday; it was the most fabulous movie I've seen in a while. Hey hey don't get me wrong I've seen better movies recently, but the last time I saw a movie as fabulous was probably when I saw My Best Friend's Wedding a few months ago. I like sappy romances and I'm slowly getting better at tearing up at the ends.
Oh it's so sad. Some of my girlfriends wore black today. I wore black today but that was a coincidence, honest.
On a shallower note, also too bad, that Heath Ledger and Brokeback Mountain didn't win those Oscars they deserved. I lost all hope in the Oscars some time ago by the way, when I looked at a list for the Independent Spirit Awards or something and thinking my these choices are all much better.
No really, I've never lost a limbo competition.
It started when I was five and the family was in Mexico, we were on the beach, toga partying. I won that limbo competition, but they wouldn't give me the bottle of tequila.
My greatest limbo-related accomplishment would be winning the limbo competition at my high school prom two years ago, where I went down to just above my knee, which I measured as about forty-five centimetres off the floor.
Flexibility has played a part in my getting laid precisely once. That was a fun game of twister.
I actually think it's Whoopi Goldberg who shines in the clip. Her comments are the most perspicacious.
Whoopie Goldberg seems to me to be the best-spoken, the most in-line with my personal beliefs, and frankly the smartest of the hosts (though that may be just my arrogant response to her agreeing with my beliefs).
There was a recent fiasco about one of the hosts making some stupid comment about history; apparently she thinks that the year zero was the beginning of time and not closer to the middle, as most evangelical Christians believe, or basically the end (present day, relatively), as most people believe.
And Whoopi Goldberg and Joy somethingsomething were the only people who seemed to know who Epicurus was or whether or not Greeks existed before Christianity.
S'why I can't play the piano cuz the hands can't do two different things
More probably you can't play the piano because you haven't spent years practicing (if you have then I apologize profusely).
Very few people are born being able to do multiple things equally well with both hands. Most pianists are not ambidextrous. But with practice, independence of fingers comes.
I type well, but I have seen people who can't play the piano type better. The important thing I think is practice, combined with some sort of clock to give you a sense of urgency. Start slowly making sure to use the finger for each key that you are supposed to, and you will get faster. Play a game like Typing of the Dead.
When you improve, you can start doing tricky things like making large-ish jumps accurately with your fingers and using multiple fingers to hit repeated keys. An important part of typing (and piano) is that you push off the keyboard with each finger which allows you to push down on the next with maximal speed. This is why it is so much easier for a pianist to play a fast trill with his second and third fingers than it is for him to play a single repeated note with just one of them. But this sort of thing is not to be thought about, it just will come naturally if you are pushed gradually.
To elaborate its pretty much the classic story. Meet guy, guy and you seem to hit it off well, guy leads you on for a few weeks, guy ends up dumping you off for your ex friend with benefits whom you despise. Guy acts all apologetic but keeps going on in his blog about how everything is so amazing with his new found f***.
I'm sorry to say, but as evidence for the generalisation you made, this is exceedingly weak. It seems you have had one or a few bad experiences with one or a few sucky men. The moral is to be into BDSM so that you can bend your lovers to your eternal will.
The best picture of Zvi I've seen was the one for his mtg.com column. I guess I shouldn't be talking because I'm not a fan.
I prefer Katsuhiro Mori or Tomoharu Saito and their exciting clothes.
And it's nice to see Fujita in semi-traditional garb at the ceremony.
I watched quite a bit of the top eight today, and it was very good viewing. The highlight was definitely game four of the Gabrielle Nassif versus Patrick Chapin mirror match. Tensest thing I've ever seen in a game of magic. The commentators were comparing it to the "ten-thousand dollar Lightning Helix" that Craig Jones pulled off at Honolulu (I think it was). I prefer this moment because the Helix all happened so fast. Go watch it!
Of course I was rooting for Mori (in cases where it doesn't matter at all, I always root for whoever I think is best looking) but it was nice to see Uri Peleg, from such a tiny country!, pull it off.
To appreciate literature, one must apply oneself to think about what one has read, and one must also have some practice in the interpretation of metaphor and symbolic language and such.
To appreciate classical music, (I should say Western because I know little to nothing about other classical musics,) one must understand the harmonic tradition behind it.
I don't appreciate theatre: I have very rarely seen any, and I don't really understand it. I expect that if I watched the Tonies they would bore me.
Kraj, when you say "Boring, useless, and I hadn't even seen any nominated movies and didn't care," it's clear that the reason you found the ceremony boring is the second half of the sentence. But when you call the whole thing boring (rather than saying something like "I found it boring" or leaving it simply at you weren't interested) it makes me feel like you don't respect my opinions.
For the point that they are useless I will counter in simpler terms: movies, and not just blockbusters, and under heavy influence of market forces, and the Oscars play a big role in shaping of those forces. Not just do sales of movies with Oscars go up, but more similar movies are more likely to be produced. This is why it was especially sad when Brokeback Mountain didn't get its Best Picture: the Academy was saying America is not ready to buy this sort of movie, and, whether or not the academy was right, we haven't seen one since.
In other gay Oscar news, the most passionate speech was made for the acceptance of the short documentary award for Freeheld, the subject being the prosecution of same sex couples' transfering of pension benefits on death. It was quite amazing to see so much empathy come out of a married woman, who visibly shook as she accepted the award.
And it was nice to see the supporting actress award received without the actress crying. As a rule of thumb, the actress awards always get tears. Helen Mirren didn't cry last year though, so maybe it's just the British ladies who are excepted.
Also, the Oscars are tomorrow!
The idea of getting excited by the Oscars tickles me, but really I don't have much respect for the academy of random people, prefering (FOR INSTANCE) the Independent Spirit Awards or certain critics' associations.
Still though, the Oscars are powerful, if wrong, and fun to watch.
My Oscar wish is that Michael Clayton get a few carrots.
Like the least believable part of 27 Dresses was the scene where Katherine Heigl tries on all of them while he watches and makes snide remarks and takes photos. That is, least believable unless he's gay of course, in which case it makes perfect sense.
So: James Marsden: thoughts?
On a shallower note, also too bad, that Heath Ledger and Brokeback Mountain didn't win those Oscars they deserved. I lost all hope in the Oscars some time ago by the way, when I looked at a list for the Independent Spirit Awards or something and thinking my these choices are all much better.
No really, I've never lost a limbo competition.
It started when I was five and the family was in Mexico, we were on the beach, toga partying. I won that limbo competition, but they wouldn't give me the bottle of tequila.
My greatest limbo-related accomplishment would be winning the limbo competition at my high school prom two years ago, where I went down to just above my knee, which I measured as about forty-five centimetres off the floor.
Flexibility has played a part in my getting laid precisely once. That was a fun game of twister.
There was a recent fiasco about one of the hosts making some stupid comment about history; apparently she thinks that the year zero was the beginning of time and not closer to the middle, as most evangelical Christians believe, or basically the end (present day, relatively), as most people believe.
And Whoopi Goldberg and Joy somethingsomething were the only people who seemed to know who Epicurus was or whether or not Greeks existed before Christianity.
Very few people are born being able to do multiple things equally well with both hands. Most pianists are not ambidextrous. But with practice, independence of fingers comes.
I type well, but I have seen people who can't play the piano type better. The important thing I think is practice, combined with some sort of clock to give you a sense of urgency. Start slowly making sure to use the finger for each key that you are supposed to, and you will get faster. Play a game like Typing of the Dead.
When you improve, you can start doing tricky things like making large-ish jumps accurately with your fingers and using multiple fingers to hit repeated keys. An important part of typing (and piano) is that you push off the keyboard with each finger which allows you to push down on the next with maximal speed. This is why it is so much easier for a pianist to play a fast trill with his second and third fingers than it is for him to play a single repeated note with just one of them. But this sort of thing is not to be thought about, it just will come naturally if you are pushed gradually.
The best picture of Zvi I've seen was the one for his mtg.com column. I guess I shouldn't be talking because I'm not a fan.
I prefer Katsuhiro Mori or Tomoharu Saito and their exciting clothes.
And it's nice to see Fujita in semi-traditional garb at the ceremony.
I watched quite a bit of the top eight today, and it was very good viewing. The highlight was definitely game four of the Gabrielle Nassif versus Patrick Chapin mirror match. Tensest thing I've ever seen in a game of magic. The commentators were comparing it to the "ten-thousand dollar Lightning Helix" that Craig Jones pulled off at Honolulu (I think it was). I prefer this moment because the Helix all happened so fast. Go watch it!
Of course I was rooting for Mori (in cases where it doesn't matter at all, I always root for whoever I think is best looking) but it was nice to see Uri Peleg, from such a tiny country!, pull it off.