Oh my god. I could've died. No, these words are not the start of a fictional, poetic piece of writing I'm conjuring up. Instead, they are a literal interpretation of this evening's jaw-dropping turn of events. Seeing the miracle that I do remain in flesh and bone, I do look back on tonight's previous whereabouts with contentment. I had a splendid time with a few friends of mine – we went to see the live action interpretation of The Jungle Book (which I may elaborate on in a future blogpost), grabbed a bite to eat (with some additional ice cream, of course), and soon began to make our way home thereafter. However, driving cautiously in the black of night didn’t seem to prevent the inevitable deer that leaped in front of my friend’s vehicle without forewarning. Being in the front passenger seat, I had a painstakingly surreal view of the moment at hand – the impact completely smashed one of the headlights to shame, resulting in the hood to significantly dent on the same side. Thankfully, not a single one of us got injured, and despite the car being damaged, I’m undoubtedly grateful that it happened in the manner in which it did. If my friend were to have swerved ever so slightly to try and miss the deer, god only knows what would have happened. I feel horrible for the financial consequences that need to be taken care of, no matter how minor they may be; and the driver has no need to feel guilty, as it was a faultless accident. I’ve been complaining to myself recently about how uneventful and dull my everyday life has become, yet tonight I got quite the eye-opening experience. I somewhat feel indebted to this incident in the sense that it has now forced me to reflect upon my current life. There’s so much that passes me by every day that I tend to take for granted. Just by sitting here and writing about it has helped me to realize that I need to embrace and celebrate as many moments of my life as possible. Because, who knows? There may or may not be a tomorrow.
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The creative, imaginative, and artistic elements of filmmaking and how it’s consumed has a significant impact worldwide, as cinematic content and narrations have been proven to influence nearly every aspect of culture, identity, theory, and individual enlightenment. Audience members become an integral part of the stories they witness on screen, and the manner in which they enthusiastically react to the content at hand help to adapt and reestablish the world around them. I think the reason why audiences flock to such fantastical elements is simply because it helps to fill the void of the missing inspirations not prevalent in everyday life’s routine. It tends to make up situations far more glamorous than that of ordinary life, yet does so in a tasteful manner by evolving and adapting along with its viewers who partake in the merriment of the stories.
What is one of your most memorable happenings from your childhood? Ever since I was a young girl, I could never say I had the luxury of taking a quaint visit to my grandparent’s house, nor could I brag to my friends that they couldn’t have a taste of a fresh batch of my grandmother’s straight-out-of-the-oven gingerbread cookies. However, I did not let this missing factor taint the lavish, magical escapism of my cherished childhood any less. Particularly as a six-year-old kindergartener, it was difficult for me to both comprehend and fathom the reality that I did not have one single surviving grandparent. Nevertheless, what I could say was that I had a great-aunt who loved and pampered me just as any grandmother would her granddaughter; if you ask me, her cordial hospitality and kind nature were all the magic I ever truly yearned for.
As I would listen to the echoes of the doorbell sounding throughout the white-painted house before me, I patiently awaited yet another day’s welcome into the humble home of my great-aunt. Even now I can still recall the numerous times I’d anticipate her warm smile to gesture me inside as she opened the door to her towering, expansive entryway. Doris, who could almost always be found donning vibrant colors and a spunky pair of porcelain white tennis shoes, never ceased to compliment my long locks of hair that flowed down beyond my waist. She didn’t even make myself feel guilty for devouring a small ice cream sandwich before departing to go to dinner. From losing myself in the ceaseless labyrinth of decorative Snow White merchandise that accommodated nearly every expanse of her living room, to indulging myself in her rich, homemade, one-of-a-kind strawberry jam, one could say I was an extremely lucky child to behold such wondrous delicacies; but the greatest delight of them all was to be in the company of such a remarkably loving individual. If you were to tell me a year ago that within a week or so of uploading a video to my YouTube channel it would have over 3,000 views, I wouldn't have believed you. This makes me laugh – because even though 3,000 may not seem like anything at all for a YouTube upload, it is a significantly higher number for my channel in particular. Honestly, one of my videos from last year still maintains a grand view count of 63. I'm ecstatic that a sample of my editing work is finally getting recognized, and I'm looking forward to how it will be received in the coming weeks. Maybe all of that procrastinating on homework by means of video editing has began to pay off. After all, it is what I want to pursue as a potential career in the future; and film editors say both experimenting and experience are the best teachers.
“By spontaneously shouting out responses to onscreen dialogue, audience members construct a parallel dialogue, which elaborates the meaning of the film or may incorporate an engagement with the actor that is in between the frame of the narrative and filmmaking.” Films with scripts and plot lines than explore aspects of both fantasy and realism provide a more vibrant interpretation of common, everyday life. Consumers who "flock to fantasy may be depicted as emotionally and cognitively underdeveloped, while those who prefer realism are presented as more mature" – While this is certainly a valid point to make, it is a very generalized statement as well. So, in other words, if I enjoy watching films with fantasy escapism, I’m automatically considered immature and “cognately underdeveloped”? I believe that films with scripts and plotlines than explore aspects of both fantasy and realism merely provide a more vibrant interpretation of common, everyday life. The creative elements of film and how it’s culturally consumed impact and inspire, as an audience member truly becomes a part of the story he/she witnesses on screen.
“Women are shown as peripheral, maternally or romantically linked characters that are adventure-seeking and both rescue and require rescuing.” This was a quote I came across regarding the over all role, purpose, and at times limited significance of women in films, particularly those of Hollywood. While I must agree that this is, in fact, how women are typically represented, I do hope there is to be more diversity and versatility in female characters in the near future. Yet, one also has to consider and admire the increased role of women as rescuers (not damsels in distress) in 1980s Hollywood films, as it was a huge step toward bridging the huge gap between masculine and feminine role stereotypes. While there are many expectations and perceived qualities about women’s roles on a worldwide basis, the specific qualities do vary from culture to culture. Hollywood is renowned and has worldwide appeal. With that said, the industry likes to establish their own perceived norms of beauty – even though it may not apply directly to other foreign industries.
Do you recall reading a post of mine last week where I rambled on and on about how unprepared and anxious I was about my school's annual solo & ensemble music contest? Well, I can now assure you that I did not, in fact, die on that stress-inducing day. I have come to acknowledge this issue of procrastination many times before (and most likely will again on future occasions) – but what I've really come to realize these past few days is that, when managed just right, procrastination is a good thing. Yes, I am aware of how incredibly odd that sounds, but bear with me here. From my experience, the stress of knowing a certain deadline is approaching very soon gives my brain an instant wave of shock and horror; but by using that sense of fear to my advantage, I find myself working ten times as efficiently than before. For instance, when I'm working on an assignment that requires heavy amounts of writing, I find myself organizing large chunks of concepts and ideas together that I can easily go back and refine later. The whole irony of this unconventional method occurred to me last Saturday’s contest, as I did significantly better on the events I felt a bit weary about, yet somehow managed to do inferior on what I had been confidently practicing for months. Call it contrary luck, if you so want, but I like to see it as strategy. Sometimes overthinking (over-practicing, over-studying, etc.) will do more harm than good. Sometimes procrastination can be your best friend – just don’t let him overstay his welcome or things could get a bit ugly.
As some would agree, I can be quite the procrastinator and this can be further proved through my lack of preparation for my school's annual solo & ensemble contest, which just so happens to be tomorrow. However, I don't feel completely lost about my four events - both band and choir – but I do wish I would've started practicing a bit sooner (rather than just a couple of weeks prior). I've drained myself out this week because of it. Hopefully tomorrow's proceedings won't be too much of a train wreck; the last thing I want to do is to over-practice the night before. I will forever count the days until I learn to manage my time more efficiently. Nah, who am I kidding? I'll worry about that tomorrow. (ノ∀\*)
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— Initially, this page was where I documented my daily prompts for a writing class in high school, but I'll continue to post my thoughts here every once in a while. I might also post some dissertations / research I've done here in college. categories:archives:
April 2018
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