Last night while half asleep I had one of those brainwaves that just hits you out of nowhere when you aren't even thinking of something related to the topic. While thinking about totally random stuff, I suddenly realized,
"Holy shit! In The Silver Chair with the third sign, C.S. Lewis pretty much tells kids not to worry about context and just think about how a message makes them feel at the moment. That's a terrible lesson for kids! Why did I never see this before?
The basic plot of the story is that the characters have to follow these four signs from Aslan to find a lost prince. One sign has to do with following directions written in stone. Aslan literally takes one of the characters, Jill, in a nightmare and shows her the correct writing to follow: the words "Under me," which Jill correctly interprets to mean they should start searching under the ground beneath the words.
Later a different character tells them that the words were part of a longer poem to honor a dead giant king. "Though under earth and throneless now I be/ Yet, while I lived, all earth was under me." It's an awkward moment, but Puddleglum reassures the children by pretty much telling them, who cares if we got the context wrong? It was in the right place at the right time, so it must be part of the plan.
On the one hand, of course Aslan would never do anything as douchey as show the characters a message and have it turn out to be something totally irrelevant and misleading. He knew there were some appropriate stone carvings lying around, so he used what he had.
On the other hand...What are we supposed to take from this? It's not necessarily true that all the signs in the story are meant to represent the Bible, even though Aslan's warning at the beginning echoes Deuteronomy. Outside of superstition, there's not really a real world context where certain portents mean you're on the right or wrong path.
But in any context, blindly following clues is not a good way to make major life decisions. I can't believe someone like C.S. Lewis would be so anti-intellectual. We all know the person who says, "I didn't know what to do, and then Jesus gave me this Bible verse, so I made my decision based on that!" But while we say "Isn't that nice?" out of politeness, on the inside we're thinking, "You read a thousand random paragraphs that day and probably dozens of Bible verses. The only one you noticed was the one telling you what you wanted to hear." Living by intuition has its merits, but let's call it what it is. It ain't divine. It's just our brains making sense out of a stream of information.
Or then there's the person who says, "This verse shows how special God thinks I am and how he's going to protect me!" and you think, "Yeah...that was a promise to Israel...which God broke...and it's followed by verses about how awesome it would be to smash Babylonian babies."
When you see a sign or message, should you investigate the whys and the wherefores, or should you just assume it was meant for you and charge ahead? In the story, the children could have exercised more caution, especially with Harfang, but is the message that caution is good for everything except matters of faith? When I think about it, whenever the characters are cautious and hold back in the matter of the signs, that turns out to be the wrong decision. Pretty much every one of the signs involves taking risks, not observing.
Maybe I'm way over analyzing. In real life talking lions don't give you vague directions either. (Would it really have killed him to say, "Btw, Caspian's the old dude"?) But then if there's no relevance at all behind the story, that takes out any merit the characters might have earned by following the signs. They had to because of the weird context of the story, but there's no relatability because no one in real life is in a similar situation.
Bottom line: if someone tells you to analyze everything except their own precepts, run for the hills. Context matters. Decide for yourself what the optimal decision is, while entertaining a healthy suspicion about other people's motives. Don't trust talking lions. They prevaricate.
Sunday, August 30, 2015
Saturday, July 18, 2015
Inside Out Is All About Parents
So far I've seen Inside Out twice in theaters, and I think it's probably my favorite movie of this summer. It's so nice to see Pixar doing a new story, not a sequel, and doing something kind of outside their normal story set of "nerdy guy goes on journey and learns lesson about self."
I think the parts of the movie that work the best are the ones that focus on the emotions of parents. Maybe it was totally accidental, or maybe they were trying to get that subtext in there. Anyway, the emotions in Riley's head somehow seem more like parents than her even actual ones.
For example, the imaginary friend Bing Bong seems a lot like a dad who realizes his little girl has grown up and all the fun things he did with her when she was little, he'll never get the chance to do again. It's very nostalgic. And like all the characters, he has to eventually learn to let go.
Joy also seems a lot like a mother to me. She refers to Riley as "our girl," which is something a parent might do. She takes a lot of pride in Riley. Like Bing Bong, she gets nostalgic when she remembers how Riley was as a little girl, saying, "I could listen to her stories for hours on end."
Also like a lot of parents, she's very invested in Riley being happy, to the point of being micro-managing. Joy is willing to alter dreams and push unwanted negative thoughts (Sadness) out of the forefront of Riley's so that Riley can keep her happy state of mind.
In this way, Joy mirrors Riley's actual Mom, who at one point encourages Riley to keep up a happy face when things are going wrong. The advice is well-intentioned, but leads to trouble later because Riley can't be honest with her parents about how sad she is. We don't even really see her considering going to her parents for advice or support when she has a bad day at school or flubs hockey try-outs. Pent-up emotion leads to resentment and desperation, and Riley goes into a downward spiral which is only reversed by Sadness intervening.
Another thing we learn about Joy (and Joy learns about herself) is that she has a selective memory. For example, she remembers one day as a happy memory, while Sadness remembers it as a sad day. When Joy replays the memory from the beginning, she sees that the memory was both happy and sad. In fact, Riley had to go through a painful time before she could be reassured by her friends and family and be happy again.
I don't know if this was intentional--whether one thing we can get from this is that the nostalgia goggles are strong in parents and they remember children's young lives as being idyllic when in fact life is always more of a jumble of emotions. In the movie Joy stops trying to force Riley into the childhood state of "primarily happy all the time with a few blips of other emotions" and acknowledges that for a more adult life Riley needs to have the tools of a variety of emotions to help her process tougher situations. But I also wonder what would happen if Joy had replayed more memories. Would she find other things she had missed? You could almost make the argument that not only is Joy trying to stifle a child's growth, but that she's trying to preserve something that never really existed in the first place.
In the end, I think you could see Joy as a primarily nurturing character who learns to give up her micromanaging and occasionally dick-ish behavior. And the message for parents is about letting go, while the message to kids is about acknowledging that you have a range of emotions but are still in charge of your actions.
I think the parts of the movie that work the best are the ones that focus on the emotions of parents. Maybe it was totally accidental, or maybe they were trying to get that subtext in there. Anyway, the emotions in Riley's head somehow seem more like parents than her even actual ones.
For example, the imaginary friend Bing Bong seems a lot like a dad who realizes his little girl has grown up and all the fun things he did with her when she was little, he'll never get the chance to do again. It's very nostalgic. And like all the characters, he has to eventually learn to let go.
Joy also seems a lot like a mother to me. She refers to Riley as "our girl," which is something a parent might do. She takes a lot of pride in Riley. Like Bing Bong, she gets nostalgic when she remembers how Riley was as a little girl, saying, "I could listen to her stories for hours on end."
Also like a lot of parents, she's very invested in Riley being happy, to the point of being micro-managing. Joy is willing to alter dreams and push unwanted negative thoughts (Sadness) out of the forefront of Riley's so that Riley can keep her happy state of mind.
In this way, Joy mirrors Riley's actual Mom, who at one point encourages Riley to keep up a happy face when things are going wrong. The advice is well-intentioned, but leads to trouble later because Riley can't be honest with her parents about how sad she is. We don't even really see her considering going to her parents for advice or support when she has a bad day at school or flubs hockey try-outs. Pent-up emotion leads to resentment and desperation, and Riley goes into a downward spiral which is only reversed by Sadness intervening.
Another thing we learn about Joy (and Joy learns about herself) is that she has a selective memory. For example, she remembers one day as a happy memory, while Sadness remembers it as a sad day. When Joy replays the memory from the beginning, she sees that the memory was both happy and sad. In fact, Riley had to go through a painful time before she could be reassured by her friends and family and be happy again.
I don't know if this was intentional--whether one thing we can get from this is that the nostalgia goggles are strong in parents and they remember children's young lives as being idyllic when in fact life is always more of a jumble of emotions. In the movie Joy stops trying to force Riley into the childhood state of "primarily happy all the time with a few blips of other emotions" and acknowledges that for a more adult life Riley needs to have the tools of a variety of emotions to help her process tougher situations. But I also wonder what would happen if Joy had replayed more memories. Would she find other things she had missed? You could almost make the argument that not only is Joy trying to stifle a child's growth, but that she's trying to preserve something that never really existed in the first place.
In the end, I think you could see Joy as a primarily nurturing character who learns to give up her micromanaging and occasionally dick-ish behavior. And the message for parents is about letting go, while the message to kids is about acknowledging that you have a range of emotions but are still in charge of your actions.
Friday, July 10, 2015
Customers You Meet at Kohls (1)
Working retail, you meet a lot of interesting people. Some you see over and over again....
One type is Asian Coupon Lady. Unlike your average bargain scrounger, the Asian Coupon Lady does not harass you or try to get more deals through force of annoyance alone. No, the Asian Coupon Lady does not need to use arguments. That's because she KNOWS the deals. She has her shit together.
As soon as you start ringing up the Asian Coupon Lady's purchases, she brings the coupons out of her purse. The are all active. They all apply correctly to her purchases. The Asian Coupon Lady does not complain that her coupons have expired, because she plays fairly. She also checks them carefully before she goes to the store.
All of the Asian Coupon Lady's purchases are on clearance. She does not shop in any other section. Moreover, they all come up as clearance, when other people's items often come up as a different price from what they expected. Somehow the Asian Coupon Lady is not fooled by the items that mysteriously wander into clearance on their own.
After the Asian Coupon Lady has checked all her items and presented all her coupons, her total will come up to less than ten dollars. Sometimes, it will come up to less than five. The Asian Coupon Lady will pay in cash, in exact change. If she does have the Kohl's card she will often pay it off directly after purchasing. However, she is more fond of the point card.
As customers go, The Asian Coupon Lady is by far not the worst you can get. She doesn't get angry and abuse you. If the line is longer, it can be a bit tedious to go through her elaborate dance of coupons and gift cards, but the line will always be with you, and there will always be someone who is slow for whatever reason.
One type is Asian Coupon Lady. Unlike your average bargain scrounger, the Asian Coupon Lady does not harass you or try to get more deals through force of annoyance alone. No, the Asian Coupon Lady does not need to use arguments. That's because she KNOWS the deals. She has her shit together.
As soon as you start ringing up the Asian Coupon Lady's purchases, she brings the coupons out of her purse. The are all active. They all apply correctly to her purchases. The Asian Coupon Lady does not complain that her coupons have expired, because she plays fairly. She also checks them carefully before she goes to the store.
All of the Asian Coupon Lady's purchases are on clearance. She does not shop in any other section. Moreover, they all come up as clearance, when other people's items often come up as a different price from what they expected. Somehow the Asian Coupon Lady is not fooled by the items that mysteriously wander into clearance on their own.
After the Asian Coupon Lady has checked all her items and presented all her coupons, her total will come up to less than ten dollars. Sometimes, it will come up to less than five. The Asian Coupon Lady will pay in cash, in exact change. If she does have the Kohl's card she will often pay it off directly after purchasing. However, she is more fond of the point card.
As customers go, The Asian Coupon Lady is by far not the worst you can get. She doesn't get angry and abuse you. If the line is longer, it can be a bit tedious to go through her elaborate dance of coupons and gift cards, but the line will always be with you, and there will always be someone who is slow for whatever reason.
Thursday, June 18, 2015
Part Time Job
So after nearly two months of being back and trolling Craig's List every week, I finally got a job! I'm a Sales Associate at Kohl's. I pretty much got the job because my friend Cassie is a manager there and put in a good word for me. But meh...I have no shame. At least half the jobs I've ever gotten have been because of knowing someone.
I started training last week and doing the registers myself this week. I've made plenty of bloopers because I'm not exactly quick at catching on. But I also got a lot of work done and helped a lot of people check out. One lady even signed up for a Kohl's charge card randomly. Haha. I don't even have any "asking people to sign up technique" or anything.
My next shift is on Friday, when I'll actually be covering a busy shift. I'm sure that's going to be way more stressful...
Tuesday, June 9, 2015
Archery Class
Last night I took my first archery class in ages! It was really low-key, which I liked. The instructor kind of reminded me of my coach in college.
Since this was the intermediate class, after a brief introduction we divided into a first line and second line and shot at about 9 yards. So when the other line was shooting, I was resting. Which seems like it would be boring, but personally I have zero energy so if I shoot continuously for an hour I get tired. So worked for me.
No targets yet so we just worked on the anchor and posture. I found it very relaxing to shoot blank bale and just try to get my hand in the same position each time. I've been in a rut lately with this bow, so I liked having some one on one instruction.
The best part is, they shop let me store my bow there in between lessons! Now I won't have to assemble it before class every time.
Since this was the intermediate class, after a brief introduction we divided into a first line and second line and shot at about 9 yards. So when the other line was shooting, I was resting. Which seems like it would be boring, but personally I have zero energy so if I shoot continuously for an hour I get tired. So worked for me.
No targets yet so we just worked on the anchor and posture. I found it very relaxing to shoot blank bale and just try to get my hand in the same position each time. I've been in a rut lately with this bow, so I liked having some one on one instruction.
The best part is, they shop let me store my bow there in between lessons! Now I won't have to assemble it before class every time.
Tuesday, May 26, 2015
Japanese Market Mitsuwa
On the weekend I went to my first Japanese shopping center in America! I realize now I should have taken pictures of stuff besides the food I ate. >.< Silly me. When you're there it looks like any supermarket that has Japanese brands.
I was pleased to see not only lots of snacks and seasonings and pastries, but also Japanese brands of shampoo and makeup. Looks like I will be able to buy my old favorite brand of shampoo/conditioner after all! When I was living in Hiroshima, Lux was like the best thing ever and I thought for sure I couldn't get it over here.
I also saw my favorite Japanese eyeliner pens, so I'll be able to stock up on those when the ones I'm using run out. However, the people behind me in line were looking at those at the same time and asked "What's this??" When I said it was eyeliner they scoffed "Eighteen dollars for eyeliner? No thanks!" :( Well, it's only about ten dollars in Japan. And it's way better quality than a pencil.
While I didn't buy any makeup, I did buy some moisturizer masks because 90% of the "masks" over here come in a tube and are meant to treat acne. Ummmm not really what I need right now, thanks. More like, Moisturize Me!!!!!
The line for ramen was suuuuper long, so I pushed for eating okonomiyaki instead. I was with my friend Anthony, and we had already tried okonomiyaki at this Japanese izakaya in Mountain View, but Mitsuwa had a special thing this week where an actual okonomiyaki chef ran a food boot, so this was much more authentic. Unfortunately, it was Kansai style instead of Hiroshima style, but you can't have everything. Anyway it was AMAZING, way better than the weird pseudo-Japanese cooking at the izakaya, and Anthony said he liked Kansai style better. I told him to wait until he tried both in Japan before he made a final judgement because then one we had before was NOT authentic washoku.
When we were getting the food (in true Japan style, we had to pay cash), I asked the server in Japanese if there was a place to sit down eating, and apparently he had heard that a lot because he answered me in Japanese right away. But Anthony was pretty impressed and called me out on wanting to show off my Japanese abilities.
All in all it was a successful trip, and I think I will be able to make yaki-soba with the ingredients I bought there. I will definitely go back in the future next time I run out of shampoo or want to buy some Japanese item.
I was pleased to see not only lots of snacks and seasonings and pastries, but also Japanese brands of shampoo and makeup. Looks like I will be able to buy my old favorite brand of shampoo/conditioner after all! When I was living in Hiroshima, Lux was like the best thing ever and I thought for sure I couldn't get it over here.
I also saw my favorite Japanese eyeliner pens, so I'll be able to stock up on those when the ones I'm using run out. However, the people behind me in line were looking at those at the same time and asked "What's this??" When I said it was eyeliner they scoffed "Eighteen dollars for eyeliner? No thanks!" :( Well, it's only about ten dollars in Japan. And it's way better quality than a pencil.
While I didn't buy any makeup, I did buy some moisturizer masks because 90% of the "masks" over here come in a tube and are meant to treat acne. Ummmm not really what I need right now, thanks. More like, Moisturize Me!!!!!
The line for ramen was suuuuper long, so I pushed for eating okonomiyaki instead. I was with my friend Anthony, and we had already tried okonomiyaki at this Japanese izakaya in Mountain View, but Mitsuwa had a special thing this week where an actual okonomiyaki chef ran a food boot, so this was much more authentic. Unfortunately, it was Kansai style instead of Hiroshima style, but you can't have everything. Anyway it was AMAZING, way better than the weird pseudo-Japanese cooking at the izakaya, and Anthony said he liked Kansai style better. I told him to wait until he tried both in Japan before he made a final judgement because then one we had before was NOT authentic washoku.
 |
| The okonomiyaki of awesomeness! |
All in all it was a successful trip, and I think I will be able to make yaki-soba with the ingredients I bought there. I will definitely go back in the future next time I run out of shampoo or want to buy some Japanese item.
Friday, May 22, 2015
Tomorrowland
Today I ended up seeing Tomorrowland with my family because it was bland enough for everyone to agree on. I liked it overall but for a movie called "Tomorrowland" they sure didn't seem to spend much time in Tomorrowland. Actually, the only time we got to see it was in the very beginning, and the rest of the time it was just a commercial, and then a distopian version without all the cool stuff. I wanted to see our protagonists have some kick ass adventures in this futuristic world and navigate some really weird technology while discovering secrets and saving the day. There was a lot of weird technology, but it mostly happened in the regular world as the protagonists were running from robots.
I liked the Athena character a lot. I thought she got some of the best lines and scenes. Seeing this history she has with her one-time protegee Frank was pretty deep. Also, she is the only character who actually changes the future in the story. Everyone sees projected versions of the future (a few seconds ahead) which they end up fulfilling. At one point she sees a projection and acts quickly enough to change it. That's cool.
For a pretty straightforward feel-good sci-fi adventure, the movie also made a good point. Naive idealism is bad, but so is uncaring cynicism. Sometimes it's easier to focus on a dismal future than to imagine a bright one, because if the world is going to end anyway, there's no point in trying to make things better. Trying to fix things is really hard, and you can't fix everything, but there's a lot good being done in the world by people who don't give up. I felt inspired to go out and make a positive difference too.
I liked the Athena character a lot. I thought she got some of the best lines and scenes. Seeing this history she has with her one-time protegee Frank was pretty deep. Also, she is the only character who actually changes the future in the story. Everyone sees projected versions of the future (a few seconds ahead) which they end up fulfilling. At one point she sees a projection and acts quickly enough to change it. That's cool.
For a pretty straightforward feel-good sci-fi adventure, the movie also made a good point. Naive idealism is bad, but so is uncaring cynicism. Sometimes it's easier to focus on a dismal future than to imagine a bright one, because if the world is going to end anyway, there's no point in trying to make things better. Trying to fix things is really hard, and you can't fix everything, but there's a lot good being done in the world by people who don't give up. I felt inspired to go out and make a positive difference too.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)