Radio, Television, Social Media: How Technology Shapes the News

How Technology Affects the Response to Major Global Events & How Said Events Affect the Growth and Development of Technology, with a Focus on Social Media

Seventy years ago, the news spread via radio broadcast that Pearl Harbor had been attacked.  News reports at the time were vague, due to the limited abilities of contemporary radio news techniques. Even President Franklin Delano Roosevelt initially received vague reports. It wasn’t until the next day, when Roosevelt addressed Congress and delivered that famous quote, “Yesterday, December 7, a date which will live in infamy, the United States was suddenly and deliberately attacked,” that the American public discovered the full scale of the assault.

On the 70th anniversary of Pearl Harbor, we couldn’t help but wonder what role social media would have played had it existed in the 1940s. How would the news of the event have unfolded differently if social media had been part of the equation? I posed the question on all the social media sites on which I’m active to see what the response would be.

The first response actually referenced 9/11, which I thought was interesting because, well, social media as we know it today didn’t exist at the time.  It is hard to believe because social media is so ingrained with our normal lives today, but out of the leading social media and networking sites, only MySpace existed. MySpace was still in its infancy, and lacked status updates, the concept of a News Feed, and the ability to share items at the click of a button -- all of which are so common place today that it’s difficult to imagine a world (or Internet) without them.

But it is definitely apropos to mention 9/11, because in the context of technological history and the history of the Internet, it is still very important.  According to Amit Singhal, when 9/11 happened, people went to Google to find updates.  Back then, there was no Google News.  Google directed users to various news sites and back to their televisions.  The lesson in all of this was that Google needed a way to provide relevant search results for the news.  And thus -- Google News was born.

This brought up a number of other questions: how would any major historical event have been different with social media?  How have those events affected social media?  How have technological advancements in general affected major historical events and the way that they are broadcast to the public?  How would historical eras as controversial as the Vietnam War have been different with social media? (Yeah, perhaps it’s apt to mention that I recently visited the Newseum in Washington D.C.) 

Thus, the next train of thought was, “what major historical events were marked by the means in which they were broadcast?”  The bf and I brainstormed a short list (‘cause that’s what we like to do in our spare time... Go ahead, call us crazy).  It begins with the radio, so the effects of newspaper, print and photography are missing, mainly because we compiled this off the top of our heads.  But the Newseum had a whole exhibit about the development of print, which included copies of the first journals and newspapers to be published and what major events they covered.

Date	Event	Medium
December 7, 1941	World War II/Pearl Harbor	Start of radio, end of golden age newspapers, radio is way to get news right away
November 22, 1963	Kennedy Assassination	Network Television (black & white) – ABC, CBS, NBC. Beginning.
February 27, 1968	Vietnam -- “We are mired in stalemate” broadcast by Walter Cronkite	Color network television. First war that was broadcast on TV in full color. Role of color – you can see the blood
July 20, 1969	Landing on the Moon	Satellite provides live worldwide coverage. “One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” People could hear the voice of and see video of a man who is on the moon
December 30, 2006	Saddam’s death	YouTube, “Social Media 1.0”
June 25, 2009	Michael Jackson’s death	Google Search (link to Google’s blog post)
May 2, 2011	Osama bin Laden’s death	Social media, Twitter in particular

A mere two years, when Michael Jackson died, users, experts and even the creators still did not comprehend the full implications and power of social media. The Wonder Boys of Google received so much search traffic that they thought it was a spam attack, and Google learned for the first time the network effect that social media could have. It shut down Google search, nearly bringing down the Internet and forcing Google to change all their algorithms to account for the power of social media’s network effect.  Two years later, after the leaking of Osama bin Laden’s death on Twitter people were prompted to gather and rally in public places like Times Square, the White House, and the pentagon, not by the noise of a Breaking News bulletin, but by the chirp of a tweet, demonstrating how news can spread faster than television networks or news websites can disperse it.

With that in mind, I had to ask: what would such an effect have on people’s perceptions of world events and movements throughout history?  In other words, if word-of-mouth news could be spread on sites like Twitter and Facebook, how would that have changed how people felt about, say, the US entrance into World War I?  Would people have been as eager to join the army if they were getting tweets, pictures and updates from European soldiers already entrenched in the war?  What about World War II? How would mothers have felt about their sons storming the beaches of the Normandy or suffering the swamps of Guadalcanal?

Yet, perhaps, we are overestimating the role of social media.  Going back to that original question posted on Facebook, it is necessary to mention that many responses conveyed the fact that they didn’t find out about Osama bin Laden on Twitter, and it wasn’t until the news came on later that evening that they learned what had happened.  It forces us to ask the question: are we so immersed in social media that we are biased about what it can do? In all honesty, how frequently does an average user utilize sites like Twitter, Facebook, Google+ or even Tumblr?  Do we perhaps overestimate the reach that is has?

Two thirds of Americans are on Facebook, but how frequently do they actually use it?  Few of my close friends really use Facebook at all, finding it more appealing to communicate via text or email.  Yes, they are all on Facebook, but most don’t use it definitely don’t have Twitter accounts. Maybe my circle of friends is odd, sure.  But some responses that I got hinted that yes, they did notice that some big event was taking place based on Facebook or Twitter status updates, but often these updates were vague.  For example, one friend said that, in response to the July 2011 bombing in Mumbai, she saw many status updates along the lines of “not again,” but few were descriptive or clear as to what had occurred, and it wasn’t until later, when she opened up a news site, that she discovered what exactly had happened.

Regardless, I strongly feel that social media’s full potential has not yet been realized.  It’s clear to me that social media has an effect on our social consciousness.  It certainly aids in gathering and organizing movements like the Arab Spring that brought down Mubarak or the Occupy Wall Street. At the time of World War II, more people were proud to join the army and fight for their country in a foreign land; however, in a post-Vietnam age, after millions of TV viewers saw the atrocity of war displayed right before their eyes, you just don’t see as many people lining to fight for Uncle Sam. With our HD TVs, war is even more graphic -- just look to the videos of Saddam’s death. 

Furthermore, self-publishing decreases censorship and undermines any attempt of control of a news story.  For example, Mubarak tried to contain the story of the growing dissatisfaction with his regime, and went as far as turning the Internet off. None of this was successful.  In the end, the power of the people networked online and was able to produce a revolution offline.  (They were able to find ways around Mubarak’s attempt to shut down the Internet.)

It’s clear that social media is shaping how news is conveyed, and in turn, the way that people think about the news and the way they react to it. However, it is yet in its infancy, and the full effects of it are yet to come.  As more people feel comfortable with the technology, it will be interesting to see where this takes us as far as content creation and reporting go.  We must not forget, either, that the news and global events also shape the growth and development of these technologies.  What will the next Social Revolution be?

This post was a collaboration between myself and my boyfriend, whose encyclopedic knowledge was a valuable resource during the writing of the post.

Review: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

In my last post, I spoke of my initial hesitation to read The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and my regret that I had not picked up the book sooner.

Background and Synopsis

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is a mystery novel by Swedish writer Stieg Larsson, who unfortunately met his untimely death shortly before the publication of his first book.  The first novel in the trilogy follows financial journalist Mikael Blomkvist as he investigates a cold case committed on an island -- essentially, a "locked room mystery."  The death of Harriet Vanger fifty years prior has haunted her uncle, Henrik Vanger, who hires Blomkvist to write a history on the Vanger family while attempting to solve the murder case.  Meanwhile, the novel also follows Lisbeth Salander, a young outcast who works for a security company and did the background check on Blomkvist for Vanger prior to his hiring.

Review

After finishing part one, I jotted down a few notes.  My main impression was that the opening was slow and deliberate as the author worked to create the setting and introduce the characters.  It's worth it if you have the patience, and the reveal of the catalyst that sets the plot in motion and establishes the driving force of the novel (namely, Harriet's disappearance and Henrik Vanger's desire for Blomkvist to solve the mystery) is accomplished in an appealingly dramatic way.  I loved the pacing of that conversation -- well done.

One aspect of the writing that I really loved was the use of cliffhangers and a "bait and switch" technique.  By establishing two storylines -- that of Blomkvist and that of Salander -- Larsson always had somewhere else to jump to if he wanted to create a cliffhanger.  So essentially, what he would do is set up a scene that would lead to a reveal, but switch to the other character's story line right before or after that reveal.  So you are left with a "What's going to happen?" or a "OMG" moment.  He led the reader to keep reading.  I thought it worked well.  (This was something I thought was also well done in Susanne Collins' The Hunger Games. Although that story is drastically different, the successful use of the cliffhanger to propel the story forward is similar in each.)

Initially, I read a few chapters each night, but today I spent the majority of the day reading the second half of the novel.  I couldn't put it down.  This was due to that cliffhanger technique, and also of course to the mystery aspect of the novel -- I had to know what happened.  That said, I can't say the novel was necessarily the best thing I've ever read. Undoubtedly, the characters are interesting, and the plot is interesting, but the writing style didn't blow me away.  Yes, I fully realize it was translated, so I concede that it might read better in the original Swedish. Unfortunately, I don't know Swedish.

I was disappointed by the ending, too.  While the solution to the mystery probably came a good hundred pages before the end of the novel, the ending still somehow felt abrupt. Larrson concentrated in tying up all loose ends with the financial intrigue that Blomkvist wrote about (which, by the way, bored me to bits because I don't understand anything about economics and financial matters of large corporations).  And yet, the story with Salander seems to leave off suddenly, with no closure.  No doubt this was intentional, considering there is a sequel.  But it was still disconcerting for me.

Overall, I enjoyed the book, and look forward to seeing the movie soon.

How to Choose the Next Book to Read

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo did not appeal to me at first.  Despite being a #1 NY Times Bestseller, it failed to attract my attention.  Admittedly, initially my interest was piqued because the word 'dragon' in the title brought to mind fantasy associations which led me to speculate (foolishly) that it was of the fantasy genre, but when a synopsis put that theory to rest I lost interest and moved on to other things.  Modern, crime fiction is not well represented on my bookshelf.

What a mistake that was.

Best sellers don't necessarily make great books, as I learned with The Da Vinci Code, which--don't get me wrong--was certainly a page turner, but by no means something I would consider to be "great literature."  So I don't put much stock in a book just because it's sold a lot of copies.  (In all honesty, I was hesitant to read Harry Potter too for this very reason, but of course that turned out to be a worthy read.)

A recent trip to the movies allowed me to realize the mistake I made when I saw the trailer for the movie version.  First of all, I love Daniel Craig (most will recognize him as the recent incarnation of Bond, but personally I will think of him as Lord Asriel from The Golden Compass).  Second of all, the trailer looked amazing, and absolutely instilled a desire to see the movie and, consequently, the book.  I'd hate to be one of those people that saw the movie first, you know?

So, even before I started reading the book (which was last night), I started thinking--would it be at all worth it to have commercials for books?  I see them from time to time, but they're not like movie trailers.  Because the trailer for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo was really compelling and really sparked my curiosity about the book, in a way that previous encounters had failed.

The next piece of the puzzle was to decide if I was going to continue to follow the adventures of swashbuckling swordsman D'Artagnan, and read Twenty Years After, or interrupt that trilogy in order to read The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo before the movie came out.  After much debate, Lisbeth Salander beat D'Artagnan (or at least, the deadline of a movie release date beat D'Artagnan). Although I was excited to see the next chapter in the life of D'Artagnan, I wanted to read The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo before seeing the movie.

In comparison, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is probably equally as long as The Three Musketeers, or at least close, but that is where the comparisons will end.  It will be refreshing to read a novel with a protagonist like Lisbeth Salander, who already finds herself "different" from today's society and would be even more out of place in a Dumas novel.  (Yes, I'm still bitter about the poor representation of women in The Three Musketeers.)

What all this proves is that you never know where exactly your interests will take you--proved by the drastic change from a nineteenth-century novel about the seventeenth century to a modern crime tale.  Also, more importantly, is that it's important not to judge a book by its cover, genre or even plot synopsis.  What I learned from a movie trailer was much more compelling that the short blurb I probably read on Amazon a year ago.  I'm intrigued as to what effect "book" trailers might have on selling a novel.  People like video.  They could probably be compelled to watch a three minute video, which could be an opportunity to sell a book. But I suspect that I'm a unique person and probably the only one who finds this thought intriguing.

Another thought is that online video is a pretty good marketing technique for other types of companies. I don't know if it would work for the book industry, but video can go viral and help raise awareness about a book's existence.

I guess the other strategy to sell a book is to make a movie out of it.  I find that thought amusing because my screenwriting professor once advised the class that if we wanted to see our story come to life on screen, we'd have better luck writing a novel and having it get adapted into a movie.

Post-Reading Stupor

Whenever I read a book, especially a really long one, I find myself completely absorbed and engaged.  The world around me fades away, and all that exists are the words on the page.  Occasionally I'll emerge, aware of the people talking around me, but my mind still occupied with the events of that faraway world that only exists in my--and the author's--imagination.  But always I'll return, and read late into the night--repeating the mantra "just one more chapter" until my eyelids refuse to stay open.  Nothing can take me away from my goal.  I must finish.  I must find out what happens.  And eventually, I'll reach the final page, where the words don't reach the bottom and the blank space takes me by surprise.  And I finally emerge, bleary-eyed, and look up at the world around me with a listless feeling.  What now? I wonder.  The next day, at my usual reading time, I sit down on the couch, ready to reach towards the coffee table to pick up what has been my most recent companion for the last week, only to remember that there's no more to read.  It is finished.

For awhile, I'm not ready to start the next one, as the after-images of the last novel are still fading around me.  The mystery and wonder of whatever world the author created has left an imprint on my mind, and I'm not yet ready to move on to a new place.

But eventually, the urge will come again.  Something must be read.  And a return to the library begins the process anew.

The Three Musketeers Does Not Need Explosions

A review of the novel and comparison of movie and book.

The 2011 film adaptation of The Three Musketeers begins with an exciting adventure in Venice during which the three Musketeers and Milady steal blueprints for an airship.  There's lots of sneaking and bullet dodging, and it's absolutely ridiculous.  Aside from the fact that a corset does not exactly allow for the flexibility Milady displays, there is no reason that The Three Musketeers needs this extra over-dramatization because the plot is exciting enough on its own.

I was finally persuaded to pick up the novel after seeing this most recent film adaptation of Dumas swashbuckling novel.  The movie, ridiculous as it was, inspired me to read the book mainly to see just how off base it might be, although several people had recommended the book to me in the past.

Admittedly, it took a long time to read.  It is 700 pages long, after all, which is no Count of Monte Cristo but still fairly formidable.  Despite the length of time it took, it is undoubtedly a page turner and I spent many a night staying up past my bed time just to read "one more chapter" (which often turned into two, three, maybe even four...).

About The Three Musketeers
Dumas' popular swashbuckling tale was originally published in a serial format in 1844 from March to July. It is set in seventeenth century France and features many prominent historical figures, including King Louis XIII, his wife Anne of Austria, Cardinal Richelieu and the English Duke of Buckingham.

As a writer, I find it important to ask certain questions about novels which I love. The main one here is--what makes The Three Musketeers such a page turner, even centuries after which it has been written? The core of the answer is the plot, but having interesting characters is also an integral part of the recipe. For myself, I would also add that the language, or the narrative style with which the book is written, is also a key ingredient, but that may simply be due to my own personal partiality towards classical literature, which might not be found in today's common reader. These three components--plot, character, and language--are those which I find necessary in any truly good novel.

Plot

The book is fast paced, despite the length, and full of intrigue and mystery that practically turns the pages for you.  Anyone familiar with any Musketeer movie will recognize the general plot set up: D'Artagnan, young and ambitious, heads from his home to Paris to become a Musketeer, and adventure ensues.  In Paris, he runs into Athos, Porthos and Aramis by accident and, having offended each of them, challenges them to successive duels.  Impressed by his swordsmanship, the three ended up taking D'Artagan in as one of their own, acting as mentors and friends.  Meanwhile Cardinal Richelieu plots a scandal to dishonor the Queen, which the Musketeers attempt to foil.  As enemies of the Cardinal and as members of the King's musketeers, there is always enough adventure to be found.

The plot has fencing, romance, intrigue, mystery, betrayal and even historical elements (which actually feature prominently as major plot points).  I was surprised how brief the fencing scenes actually were.  They were pretty much a one and done kind of deal, although this is probably much more realistic than long, drawn out sword fights.  Any fan of history and any fan of action adventure will find themselves readily absorbed into the novel.

Characters

The characters are interesting, something I always look for in a novel, movie, or TV show.  D'Artagnan, who apparently is typically made out to be more of a lucky, bumbling hero (a la Harry Potter?) is actually quite clever and quite the strategist--necessary attributes for one who wishes to compete with Milady and live.  Well, he would have to be, as he is based on the real lieutenant of the Musketeers.

Athos is additionally smart, reserved, and has that quiet mysterious air that always makes for an interesting character.  Actually, apparently many people like Athos the most of the four protagonists.

On the other hand, Dumas' representation of women is rather disappointing.  Milady, while very intelligent, is conniving, evil and deadly.  There are even a few scenes where Dumas suggests she has a man's soul in a woman's frail body.  When her temper flairs, it is on the excuse that she is a woman, after all.  Meanwhile, Madame Bonacieux, while giving somewhat of the impression that she is smart in the beginning of the novel, becomes incredibly, frustratingly stupid by the end.

Language

Even translated, the narration was beautiful and compelling (and of course, makes me want to read more classic novels.  The way they wrote back then was like art).  Actually, I plan to touch more on the language in another post.  I happened to have picked up several copies of The Three Musketeers, so I got to choose which translation I liked best, which made me realize how important it is to find a good translation.

Movie vs Book

Of course, there is still one very important thing left to consider, my whole reason for reading the novel in the first place.  Was the 2011 adaptation loyal to the book?

There are obvious parts of the movie that require one to answer "No" to this question -- liking the flying airship. No, Dumas did not include a flying airship or a booby trapped library, and Milady was on no accounts supposed to be athletic and agile.  However, I was surprised by how many things were close to the book.  The movie actually only covers about a third of the novel, making me wonder if they have sequels planned.

They did substantially alter Milady and Athos' back story, which apparently seems to be a frequent thing to do and is rather frustrating.  I don't understand the need to de-villify Milady's character.  For example, in the book, she is forced by Athos to hand over the Cardinal's slip of paper that gives her the ability to do whatever she needs to do.  In the movie, she hands it over to him freely, for no apparent reason that I could discern.

Also the movie removed the affair between the Queen and the Duke of Buckingham, and instead made the relationship between the King and Queen more like two bumbling teenagers hesitant of the other's emotions. As someone who hadn't read the books, I did actually like that subplot, although it is not really true to the novel.

The final thing to be said is that The Three Musketeers is fun enough already and does not need Hollywood's over dramatizations, like flying air ships and booby trapped libraries. It doesn't need extravagant action scenes with large explosions. Hollywood would do better to stay true to the novel.

Notes: Because The Three Musketeers is a classic novel and the copyright has run out, you can usually download it for free on an ebook reader.  You can also find The Three Musketeers at Project Gutenberg.

Bones' Season Seven Kicks Off to Fantastic Start

The verdict is in: the wait was worth it. Bones' season seven opener, The Memories in the Shallow Grave, was awesome.

Fans have waited for over five months since the season six finale, when Bones announced she was pregnant with Booth's baby.  The season cliffhanger was probably the biggest in Bones history, and also happened to precede the longest wait between seasons in Bones history.

During the episode, fans tweeted their favorite quotes and moments, some of which include:

• "I'm not normal, I'm extraordinary." Bones
• "She is having that baby so the next generation have someone to make them feel dumb."- Wendell
• "I love you." Bones to Booth!

And of course, fans loved seeing Hodgins and Angela with their baby.

But enough about the fans -- IMHO, tonight's episode of Bones was awesome, and reminded me exactly why I love the series. Last year, I felt the series kind of floundered a bit, with a poor opening to season six and a mixed-up attempt to launch a spin-off series.  Getting a strong opening like this couldn't have been more pleasing.

Bones and Booth were adorable, especially in the beginning of the episode, when they were making breakfast at Booth's.  Their subsequent fight about moving in together fits in with Bones' character, and was a necessary tool to demonstrate her character development.  She's come a long way since Season 1.  Once upon a time she said she could never commit to a relationship, and yet here she is, saying, "I love you," and shopping for houses.

I will be honest, I can name some negatives.  As far as the murder plot line goes, the show has becoming aggravatingly formulaic (I suppose all crime scene investigation shows do).  I will admit that last season there was an episode or two that got outside the formula, but for the most part, every episode opens with an average citizen who stumbles upon a body.  How often does that happen in real life?  It would be pretty scarring.  Then, we are introduced to two people who were close to the victim.  Given their close relationship, they are questioned, but not seriously considered as suspects (or if they are, they are quickly dismissed).  One of those two people is ultimately the killer.  Obviously due to the one-hour time constraint, there's a limited plot structure.  It would be silly to reveal who the murderer was too early.  But it does get a little boring when you can predict who it was from the beginning.

Some fans also expressed confusion about the quickness with which Bones and Booth got together.  Admittedly, it was subtle and fast.  There was no dramatic realization and rush to kiss type of scene.  Maybe this is disappointing to some, but I like it.  It's Good. Let's break the formula.

Season Seven Predictions

It's going to be interesting to see how the writers navigate Booth and Bones' relationship as the season progresses.  It's unusual for the main couple to get together before the end of a series.  I love that they've done that in Bones.  Not just because it's pleasant to see one of my favorite fictional couples get together, but because it's different from the typical TV show formula, and that's good.  Mixing things up is good.  Maybe the individual episode structure is formulaic, but the overall series structure is stepping away from the traditional way of TV story telling.  Huzzah.

Plus, it allows the writers to explore different areas of tension in a relationship.  Typically, the series would end with the couple getting together.  And then what?  Fans never get to see them being happy together. The pre-relationship tension is interesting, but so is actually making the relationship work.  And this time, we get to see that.  Because Bones isn't just going to be like "yay, Booth and I are together, now I will completely change and be a happy housewife."  She's still Bones, there's still going to be conflict, and it's still going to be interesting.

I still predict that Hannah will return - Booth & Hannah's relationship was too serious and ended too abruptly.  I think she'll be back.

Overall, it was a great return to the series, and has me excited to see where this season will take us.

Explosions, Plot holes Abound in The Three Musketeers... but it's kind of okay

Last Friday, The Three Musketeers premiered in movie theaters around the country.  This is the twenty-first live action film adaptation of Alexander Dumas' action adventure novel and takes a steam punk approach to the story.  So far, reception has been less than enthusiastic, with a Rotten Tomatoes rating of 27%.  Yikes.

I knew when I decided to go see The Three Musketeers that it wasn't going to be a masterpiece.  I fully expected it to be absolutely ridiculous, silly, and full of explosions.  (And as my friends from high school liked to say, the number of plot holes in a film is directly proportional to the number of explosions, a theory we created after seeing The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen).

If you are capable of accepting this from the beginning, then the movie will be pretty enjoyable.  First of all, you've got plenty of eye candy, including Matthew Macfayden, who played the dreamy Mr. Darcy is the 2005 remake of Pride & Prejudice.  Unfortunately, Orlando Bloom is less than attractive with his pompadour hair do and dangling earring.  Such a shame.  (I still think he's drool-worthy as Will Turner, so sue me).  There is also Luke Evans, who is not actually Orlando Bloom, as I believed for the entirety of the film.  (Seriously, the whole film I sat there thinking, "What is the significance of the fact that Bloom is playing two characters? Are they supposed to be related?  Is this some sort of Man in the Iron Mask subplot type of thing?")

If you're not into guys, then of course there's Milla Jovovich (The Fifth Element).  Oh, and for younger audiences, the guy from Percy Jackson plays D'Artagnan.

There's also a lot of sword play, much of it absolutely ridiculous, unrealistic and capable of making any fencer cringe. Did I mention the explosions?  And air ships -- which explode.  Sadly, the airships are not as awesome as the one in Stardust, but it'd be pretty difficult to upstage a flying ship that catches electricity.

The subplot about the King and the Queen struggling to display their mutual affections for each other was actually kind of adorable.

What were the plot holes, you ask?  Watch out, we're sailing into Spoiler Territory here.  You may want to turn back if you haven't seen the movie yet.

Is it okay to use "they" when referring to one person?

For as long as I've been writing, the answer has been, "No."  English teachers would mark up essays, saying my pronouns didn't agree.  When editing copy, it's always been an important thing to catch - and something I'd catch frequently (even in my own work).  It's also always been very frustrating to fix.

"His or her" sounds so incredibly awkward and clumsy, especially if you need to use it more than once in a paragraph, or even in a sentence.  It trips up the flow of the language.  Other alternatives, like "one," sound equally awkward and overly formal.

"They" was never satisfying to use, glaring on the page (or screen) just waiting to be circled by my teachers' red pens.  But hey - I start sentences with "but," and dangle prepositions, so really, what's the harm in using 'they'?

Apparently nothing, according to Merriam-Webster Associate Editor Emily Brewster in this video about "The Awkward Case of His or Her."

Now that we've got that cleared up, can we talk about punctuation rules for quotation marks and how they make no sense?

Modern Day Fairy Tale Adventure

At this time, three years ago, I was sleeping peacefully at the youth hostel after a long day of touring castles.  (Because it would have been 2:46 am).  That day just might have been my favorite day ever.  Although it's tough to decide, all those days at Wroxton were pretty awesome.

Linderhof *

With crisp fall air and clear blue skies, the morning of 19 Oktober 2008 began extra-awesome, despite how early we had to get up.  We climbed aboard a bus for a two hour journey to the edge of the Alps, to our first stop: Schloss Linderhof (Linderhof Palace). This castle was built by Ludwig II, commonly known as the "Marchenkonig," or "Fairytale King," due to his construction project Neuschwannstein Castle... but we'll get there in a moment.  The bus dropped us off in by a quaint little shop, and we hiked a short path through the tall, thin alpine trees, a mix of fall oranges against the rising mountain backdrop (which would inspire the setting for my senior writing project).

Finally, we reached the castle, and snapped a few pictures of the beautiful courtyard and fountain.  It sounds almost silly to say, but there really was this majestic, regal quality to the place.  Sure, you would expect a castle to be "regal," but there was something a little more to it in this one.  Perhaps it was the detail on the columns, or the gold balustrade on the balcony.  Inside, the tour took us through rooms with the most intricate ceiling designs I have ever seen, some even incorporating relief artwork on the walls.  In the gift shop, I bought a notebook for the sole reason that I had to take notes about the inspiring atmosphere.

Look at me clinging for my life on
the Marienbrucke *

Our next stop was the small town Oberammergau, famous for their Passion Play.  I had just enough time to buy some wood carving souvenirs for my family before we all climbed back into the bus for our final road stop: Schloss Neuschwannstein.

Some backstory: I took German in high school, and we actually learned about Neuschwanstein in class and read about the mysterious death of King Ludwig II.  I can't remember if I actually remembered this at the time -- I think it all sounded familiar, and when they started talking about King Ludwig II, everything clicked.  Neuschwanstein is a very well known castle and inspired Disneyland's Sleeping Beauty Castle and Disneyworld's Cinderella Castle.

Neuschwanstein Castle just might be my favorite place in the entire world.  The bus dropped us off at the bottom of the mountain, close to Hohenschwangau, the yellow castle at the bottom notable for its swan figurehead.  After passing Bavaria's trademark maypole, we began our long hike up the mountain.  Neuschwanstein sits perched on the top of a rugged hill, and sections of the walls are even carved into the stone on the mountain. Tours of the castle are scheduled, and we arrived a little bit too early, so we continued up the path towards the Marienbrucke (Marie's Bridge).

The Perilous Cliffs of the Marienbrucke
(picture by böhringer friedrich)

Now, anyone knows me knows I am terrified of heights.  The Marienbrucke is ridiculously, perilously high.  Beyond nosebleed high.  And another thing - you can see through the floor.  Yep.  That said, the view of Neuschwanstein from the bridge is absolutely breathtaking.  As terrifying as it was, I'm glad that I went.  (Plus, the Marienbrucke was a major inspiration for a key plot device in my senior writing project, which I have continued to work on since graduating.)

The castle itself was actually incomplete on the inside - King Ludwig II died before it could be finished.  The rooms that were finished were, naturally, of a beauty you would expect to find in any fairy tale fantasy.  The "Marchenkonig" mainly designed his last castle based as an homage to Richard Wagner.  To capture the fairy tale, medieval element, Neuschwanstein was built in the Romanesque Style.

If you're going to southern Germany, definitely take a trip to see these castles.  In fact, if you're planning on going to Germany at all, plan to go to Bavaria so you can see these castles.  One day, when I actually have money, I'm going back.

*Unless otherwise specified, pictures were taken by my travel partner.

Catch Up

Wow.  It's really been more than a month?  Absolutely crazy.  During that time, I've been adjusting to my new job, searching for and then leasing an apartment, and furnishing said apartment.  That last part is still a work in progress.

There's a lot of stuff you need to take care of when you move to a new state, and I actually have been putting it off for too long.  For example, I need to get a new license, change my plates, get a library card, register my dog, and a whole slew of other things that I can't remember off the top of my head.  I better start a checklist.

As busy as I've been, there's simply been no time for fun travel trips, unless you count a million trips to Ikea as travel.  I have driven back and forth between Jersey and Virginia, taking trips back to Jersey about every two weeks.  This will be the first weekend that I'm finally breaking that pattern (having last gone to Jersey two weeks ago).  I feel far too acquainted with I-95, particularly 495, on which I spent over an hour on my last trip just to cover a mere 10 miles.  I don't know why, but DC traffic is just absolutely terrible.

I've been slowly acquainting myself with the area, and hopefully once my boyfriend joins me (in about a week), I'll start having time to go out, and maybe even go into the city!   I'm very excited about this, although I heard recently that the Brickskeller Inn actually closed... I was really looking forward to returning there after our trip last year.  Oh well.

Tonight's TAR Episode is Less than Legendary

Another disappointing episode of The Amazing Race aired tonight.  Overall, I've found season 19 to be a bit of a yawn.  The show has fallen into a formulaic rut that's just been kind of boring.  There's no drama between teams - although we have seem a lot of alliances and helping, especially this past episode (Snowboarders & Adventurers, and then a lot of teams offered help to the twins who were struggling with the Beach Preparation task.)

Everything has just seemed very formulaic so far.  Get clue.  Go to air port.  Every one is put on the same playing field. Nothing exciting happens at airport.  Arrive at destination. Read clue.  Go through the motions.  Yawn.

Plus, this is Leg 4, and we still haven't left that Oceania - Indochina region.  I just checked The Amazing Race page on wikipedia and discovered we'll be in Thailand for the next two legs.  Great.  I feel like the past few seasons of TAR have spent a lot of time in that area.  It's getting old.  Admittedly, I am not exactly interested in that area of the world (more interested in Europe, Mediterranean, Africa areas) so these episodes don't exactly draw me in in the first place.

Hopefully it will start to pick up soon.

And I still insist that Neil Patrick Harris needs to go on the show.  Because it would be Legendary.

Reflections on "Mirror Mirror"

I have just finished Mirror Mirror, finally, after starting it more than a month ago.  Most of it I finished in a couple of days.  Such is the nature of Gregory Maguire's books - one cannot put them down.  This I knew when I first started, and thus dragged my feet in truly delving into it, for I knew that it would be a serious book that would require more thinking than the average entertainment (such is also the nature of Maguire's books).

To say that I enjoy fairy tale retellings would be an understatement.  The fractured fairy tale imbues a fascination I cannot avoid, which has themed many of my works, including my senior thesis (loosely based on Little Red Riding Hood). For one, I was raised on Disney movies, and however corny, sappy, and unrealistic one might find them, nonetheless they are beautiful works of art, if we are going to be truly honest.

Maguire's works are also pieces of art, although in a much different sense.  First of all, his gift of writing, of knowing how to arrange words in such a poignant and beautiful way, is completely unique from all other writers of today.  He captures that mystical, fantasy voice.  Mirror Mirror goes on in a sort of beautiful, yet vague, way, much like the mist described in the mirror when Lucrezia and Bianca see each other within it for the first time.  I had forgotten how beautiful Maguire's language could be.

I had also forgotten how vulgar his stories could be.  There are some parts of Wicked and Mirror Mirror that are disturbing and grotesque.  Such is understandable when using the Borgias as character inspiration.  With finishing the book, I feel like Bianca awakening to the world again, after a long, confusing dream.  But in a good way.

Summary of Mirror Mirror

Mirror Mirror is a retelling of Snow White, as one might guess from the title.  It is written by Gregory Maguire, writer of Wicked.  Maquire sets the story in northern Italy, where Bianca lives with her widowed father, Vicente. Bianca is the Snow White character.  Aristocrats Lucrezia Borgia and her brother Cesare arrive and pressure Vicente into a quest to obtain the legendary branch of the Tree of Eden.  In his absence, Lucrezia takes charge of his small castle and soon grows jealous of Bianca, and thus of course the story continues in its traditional sense.

The book features multiple perspectives; in fact, it even switches between first person and third person.  It's a little confusing at first, but I got used to it.  Interestingly, it manages to do first person, and then also third person omniscient, all in one book.  The writing itself is pure poetry.  I feel as though I would have to reread it a couple of times - it's one of those books.

The two obvious important objects of the book - the fruit of the Tree of Eden and the mirror - both bring about self-awareness.  I found this particularly fascinating as I studied Jacques Lacan senior year of high school, and though I remember little I do remember something about mirrors and infants learning self awareness by looking at themselves.  Also there is a scene in Paradise Lost when Eve happens to look at her reflection to admire it; at the time I thought it strangely vain.  I can't remember the exact wording of the passage, nor whether she had eaten from the tree yet.

Also noteworthy is the inclusion of real life characters from sixteenth century Italy, the Borgias.  The Borgias are well known for their incestuous, corrupt, murderous ways.  To be honest, I knew nothing about them until I started reading.  The two Borgias that are prominent in the story, Cesare and Lucrezia, are children of Pope Alexander VI and one of his many mistresses, Vannozza dei Cattanei.

As disgusting as some parts of the novel can be, I do respect the way that Maguire gets back to the roots of fairy tale stories like these.  It rang truer to the Grimm version, and it's nice to break away from the Disney-ified versions.  Those only familiar with Disney's Snow White might not recognize the tricks that the evil stepmother character uses to dispatch of Bianca (such as the comb and bodice).  Although Lucrezia's eventual punishment is different from the original Grimm tale as well.

Some have criticized Mirror Mirror for being rather slow.  This seems like a fair criticism, if you're not one for pretty language and substantial plot development.  I can understand that desire.  It does move a little slowly at the beginning, but for me, the writing was beautiful enough for me to have patience with the novel's pace.

Overall, I would recommend the novel if you are already a fan of Gregory Maguire and can appreciate his narrative style.  If you haven't read anything of his, I would recommend picking up Wicked first, and seeing if you like that.  Because he is so unique, and also pretty intense, I'm not sure if everyone would like the story. But it's definitely good for fairy-tale lovers.

HIMYM Season 7 Loses Momentum in Third Episode

How I Met Your Mother season seven premiered last week.  I should have done a post last week, but I was busy reading.  I enjoyed the double episodes that aired last week; they were funny and hinted at the possibility of Robin and Barney getting back together, which I think would be legen-wait for it...dary.

In this episode, the major plot points of the first two episodes took to the sidelines to make way for flat, not funny jokes about Lily's pregnancy breasts and a recap of Ted's encounter with his first flame (of the series): Victoria.

Victoria... Surely everyone remembers Season One's biggest minor character, the cupcake baking sweetheart that seemed maybe a little bit too much like Ted.  Their combined corniness and sappiness made even me cringe, but in a sense, I still always felt like they were a good match.  The Robin-Ted-Victoria triangle is probably one of Ted's biggest mistakes, and I know a few fans who dislike Ted because of his actions there.  Maybe last night's episode will have changed their minds and allow them to forgive Ted as Victoria has.

The Victoria encounter was a much needed closure to their relationship, which ended badly and tensely and never seemed quite resolved, as Ted quickly moved into a relationship with Robin and didn't seem to dwell on his mistakes with Victoria for too long.  To be honest, I would be happy with Victoria ultimately being "the one," but I think the series has pretty clearly established that she is not.  So I definitely enjoyed this segment of the episode.

With that said, I thought the second part of the episode - the subplot between Lily, Marshall and Barney - to not only be flat and juvenile, but also a step back from Barney's character development in the previous two episodes.   It felt cliche and strange, considering that he is trying to be serious with Nora, and I doubt she'd be happy about his actions during this episode.  She seems to be completely forgotten in this episode.  I know that Barney's sexual tendencies define his character, but maybe they shouldn't.  After all, they seem to be trying to change his character (something rare for sitcoms) - he is getting married by the end of the season, after all.  Plus, the 'male friend wanting to see platonic female friends breasts' has been done before, I'm sure by many sitcoms, but off the top of my head I can just think of Kelso wanting to see Donna's breasts in That 70's Show.

Furthermore, the transitions between the two plots also seemed forced.  Robin kept asking Ted what happened, and no one else appeared to be interested.  Why Robin? Why should Robin be the catalyst to move Ted's plot along?  Was it because she was the only character left after Marshall, Lily and Barney got side tracked?  Was it something to do with the direction the series seems to be taking?

In the final moments of last night's episode, a major bomb was dropped in the form of Victoria's analysis of Ted's relationship failures.  Robin.  Is she just bitter?  Possibly, but it seems like a serious analysis of Ted's character that the writers will be referencing and using to influence the events in the rest of the season.

I'm not so sure that Victoria's analysis is accurate.  Yes, Robin was a problem for Stella, but only because Stella was projecting her own fears about her ex-fiance onto Ted.  With Zoey, I don't recall Robin ever being a major catalyst to their relationship failure.  No, it was the fact that Zoey opposed Ted's major project and passion, so far as to completely risk ruining Ted's reputation and therefore sacrificing any chance at reconciliation in order to preserve a building that, in all honesty, was a health and safety risk.

Does Robin stand in between Ted and his romantic success?  There haven't been many indicators of that in previous seasons.  Robin obviously still has feelings for Barney, however, and I would expect Robin to be a bigger obstacle for Barney (in the future) than for Ted.  To be honest, as someone who maintains friendships with previous boyfriends, I am skeptical of the "they can't be friends" plot.  It's possible to be friends with exes, and it's annoying when writers and people in general promote the opposite.

As for Barney and Robin: While Robin's feelings for Barney were also shoved aside for this episode, the end seemed once more to hint at a possible change in dynamic, not only for Ted and Robin, but also for Robin and Barney.  In the last shot, when Ted foreshadows the upcoming changes, Lily and Marshall have left.  Robin and Barney sit across from each other, and Ted sits facing us and facing them.  It is as if he is on the sidelines, observing them.  It seems, to me, to be foreshadowing a potential relationship there.

I would love for this to happen, and I would be disappointed if Barney ended up with Nora. I always thought that the end of Robin and Barney's relationship was kind of a cop out.  I would love it if the reason for that ended up being something like, "Wow they really are good together - we will have to save this for the ending."  I'd much rather him end up with Robin than Nora... but it seems weird that they would have Barney get married at all... 

With that said, apparently Season 8 will be the last season of How I Met Your Mother.  What could happen between Barney getting married and the end? 

Overall, I felt it was an awkward episode, but definitely important for setting up the developing story line.  It's going to be an interesting season.  As much as it sucks to hear that the group dynamic is going to be changing, as implied by Ted's final lines, it was probably pretty clear that would happen when Lily found out she was pregnant.  As we have already learned in the series with Robin and her best friend, Jessica Glitter, pregnancies (apparently) largely alter friendships (I have no experience in this department).

Where will the season go from here?  We'll just have to wait and find out. 

The Future of Books

Interesting post from TechCrunch regarding the future of books and publishing: "The Future of Books:  A Dystopian Timeline"

As a lover of books, and someone who will always love the feel of an actual book in hand, I find the article somewhat depressing.  It is offered as a 'dystopian' future.  But I can't really disagree with the general progression he describes here.  Maybe not necessarily at that pace... in less than two years, he thinks that ebook sales will surpass sales of regular books.  Maybe they will, I haven't looked at any figures.  But the way I buy books, I don't know if that's true.

I definitely see books becoming what records are today - relics of the past that nerds and hipster use to adorn their bookshelves.  I certainly will be one of those people.  Even if I do get an eReader soon, which I have been considering, I will not dispose of my current collection.

I think humans are materialistic creatures, and we like to show off our possessions.  Book collections are like that.  I like being able to hold certain books in my hand.  I read Mockingjay on my Droid, but I still have a desire to go out and purchase an actual copy.

I would be surprised, though, if my future children ever had such a desire.  Proud, of course.  But who knows - maybe in thirty years people will wonder why we wasted so much paper printing books.

We definitely live in an interesting time.

First Thoughts on "First Meetings"

Just finished reading First Meetings by Orson Scott Card, a compilation of 4 short stories set in the Enderverse.  Technically, I skipped "Ender's Game" (the novella) because I've read it before.

I really enjoyed the first two stories, about Ender's father and mother.  I would actually love to read more about them, especially from their point of view from the period right before Ender's Game, when they get married and start having children.  I think this might have been addressed in some of the Bean books (is that called the Shadowverse, maybe?), but it would be interesting to hear thoughts about Peter, how much they knew about what he did, etc.

In "The Polish Boy," Ender's father, John Paul, the seventh son of "noncompliant" Polish parents (who have gone against the "two children only" rule), attracts the attention of Battle School teacher Colonel Graff.  Graff and John Paul then proceed in a chess game to see who can get what they want.

John Paul is on the verge of being maybe a little too precocious - and he reminds me, interestingly, more of Peter or of Bean than of Ender.  He just seems to have a little too strong of a grasp on what's going on around him.  As smart as Ender was, it didn't seem like he had that level of insight when he was the same age.  But I guess that was supposed to be the point about Ender.  Smart, but innocent, to a degree.  Insightful, able to evaluate the other children's abilities, but not quite questioning enough, critical enough, or curious enough as Bean, who figures out a vast amount of information that Graff never wanted the children to know.

I think what I enjoyed most about "The Polish Boy," actually, was witnessing the meeting of Graff and John Paul.  I don't know if it was ever alluded to within the Ender books - if it was, I never realized it - but it added a nice touch that Graff and John Paul's relationship goes back that far.  I did have trouble suspending disbelief about Graff's Rumpelstiltskin plan, but what was helpful there was that Card has done a pretty consistent job of showing just how good of a "chess" player Graff can be.  Had I only read Ender's Game and then "The Polish Boy," I'm not sure I would have bought that plot point.

Story wise, it was alright.  Sometimes I think character development is Card's strength, but (see below) other times I disagree with myself.  There was a lot of dialogue, not much description at all, and a lot of inner thought.  But it flowed well and was a fast read.

The same goes for the second story of the collection, "Teacher's Pest".  (Ohh, I see what they did there.  Pet. Pest. Ha.)  This story covers the meeting of John Paul and Theresa, and I just ate this story up.  The premise is John Paul is attending college and annoyingly gets put into a section of a class that "wasn't even his third choice."  Guess who's teaching the class!  You bet - Ender's future mother, Theresa.

I loved the dynamic between the two.  The "guy falls in love with girl and has to convince her to love him" plot is one that I often find contrived, and yet difficult to resist anyways (I still enjoy it).  Like I said, John Paul's arrogance makes him more likable as a character because it gives him a flaw, and well, flaws make more interesting characters.  Maybe part of me just also likes a touch of arrogance, for no discernible reason, in male characters.  As long as they are smart, charming, and ultimately a nice guy.  I probably watched too many smart-girl-gets-the-popular-boy movies as a teenager.  It's damaged my judgment.

Thus, I found the story incredibly entertaining, and would have gladly read more about them.  Did you hear that, Card?  (Of course not.)  I want more John Paul and Theresa stories!

I have to say the opposite for "Investment Counselor", the story about Ender.  I don't really know why, but I've disliked every story about Ender during his post adolescent years. As a character, I thought he was great in Ender's Game, but once he grows up, he becomes annoying.  I blame Card's writing.  I think Ender becomes too much of a know-it-all Gary Stu.  What makes his father interesting in "Teacher's Pest" is his attitude.  He's blatantly arrogant, it's his weakness and that makes him more likable.  Ender just is always calm and smart and knows the right answer and has the patience to manipulate people in a "nice" way that's for their own "good" and it just gets annoying.

Plus, I hated Novinha and thought Ender could do better.  I don't remember why I disliked her - it's been about 6 years at least since I read the books - but I remember being frustrated.

Maybe the problem is that I sense a certain lack of interest in Ender's character?  In Ender in Exile, nothing really happens, he walks around a spaceship meeting people and being the target of a marriage plot put together by an ambitious class climber.  In "Investment Counselor," Ender doesn't really do much at all.  He's not really a character with agency.  He screwed up and didn't figure out his taxes while on his journey; the only thing he did was convince the guy to let him go through customs.  Jane is the hero of the story, and yet she is not really the protagonist.  What would have been more interesting was when Jane reveals to Ender what she is exactly.  Not in replace of this story - the conversations between Ender and Jane are interesting - but as an addition to it.

How I would have pictured Benedetto,
if there weren't illustrated pictures

My real dislike for this story was the writing, actually.  It was mainly a summary, "Ender did this and then he did this and then Jane rescued him the end."  Furthermore, the development of the "villain," Benedetto, is non-existant.  He is a flat, scheming villain and as far as that class of character goes, all he is missing is the thin greasy mustache to tweak and a maniacal laugh.  Then, at the end, we are supposed to believe, "Oh well he is a good guy after all, he cared about providing for his family because he had nothing growing up."  That sort of ending is only believable if there are some hints to it earlier throughout the story.  We get a very close third person narrator for Benedetto, and yet we never get a glimpse that he's going to such illegal, extravagant means of obtaining money because he's worried about his family.  No, all we ever are hinted at is that this man is, plain and simple, greedy.  In fact he is greedy enough to rival Hoggish Greedly.

This was a story that Card clearly could have written better.

So while I didn't read "Ender's Game" (novella) this time around, I have read it.  Although it was several years ago, I remember enjoying it well enough.  I prefer the novel, but my dad said he liked the novella better, so I guess it's a toss up depending on your preferences in a story.  I like the additional character development in the novel, but my dad likes the more straightforward focus of the novella.

Obviously the theme in this collection is how important characters met each other.  With "The Polish Boy," it's how Graff met John Paul Wiggin.  With "Teacher's Pest," it's how John Paul met Theresa (Ender's parents).  With "Investment Counselor," it's how Ender met Jane.  A great idea for a short story collection, but I wish that it had more stories in it. Overall, First Meetings comes out ahead as a good read, although it does leave you with a bad taste in your mouth, since the worst story of the four is at the end.

2012 "Doomsday" and Isaac Asimov's Nightfall

As 2012 approaches, it's hard to avoid hearing news about how doomsday is upon us.  I ignore it most of the time, but today I happened to think of Isaac Asimov's Nightfall.

Nightfall is a science fiction short story about a planet that orbits six stars, and therefore never experiences pure darkness.  Because of this, the concept of darkness is truly terrifying; adventurous, daredevil folk will risk exposure to darkness by going through a thrill ride tunnel encased in darkness, but if I recall correctly this only lasts a few seconds or minutes.

As the story progresses, several scientists make discoveries about the nature of their planet and civilization.  First, a psychologist studies the effects of darkness exposure; second, an archaeologist discovers evidence of multiple civilization collapses; and third, an astronomer discovers irregularities in their orbit pattern.  Also referenced throughout the story is a cult that expects doomsday to occur soon.¹ Warning: Spoiler Alert! Ultimately these discoveries lead to the final epiphany: the irregular orbit is caused by a satellite, that will block out the only sun appearing in the sky, and the world will be enveloped in darkness.  However brief, the psychologist believes it will be enough to drive society mad, and, as the archaeologist's discoveries suggest, bring about the collapse of modern civilization.  Turns out, the crazy cultists were right!

Because of that cult, when I hear doomsday predictions, I think of Asimov's short story.  I don't put much stock in doomsday sayers, but it's still there, tugging at the corner of my brain.  What if? 


Disclaimer: I may be misremembering things, so I definitely recommend you check out Nightfall. It was one of my favorites of the short stories we read in my Science Fiction class in college.  Apparently it is also a novel, so I will have to check that out soon too.

1 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nightfall_(Asimov_short_story)

Are there negatives effects of "positive thinking"? Book Review

So I haven't had much opportunity to read Mirror, Mirror as I just moved to Virginia, and have been busy doing moving-related stuff and also playing Pottermore.  However, while in the local library today, I happened to glance at Bright-Sided: How the Relentless Promotion of Positive Thinking Has Undermined America by Barbara Ehrenreich.  Generally I'm not attracted to non-fiction, but we were actually talking about positive thinking a few weeks ago at my previous job, so I guess it was sort of good timing.

I picked up the book just to kill time while my friend contemplating getting Outliers, and got completely enveloped in the first chapter.  Thus it was decided - this book had to come home with me.

I just finished the first 44 pages, and it is definitely a fascinating look into the (ironic) negative affects of positive thinking.  I suppose it sounds rather cynical and depressing to talk about.  I don't think the book by any means is trying to say "People should be sad!"  But it is important to recognize that putting on a false face of cheer definitely can have negative side effects.

So far, the author has talked about her experience with breast cancer and the "think positive" message that perpetuates breast cancer support groups.  She discusses (very thoroughly) how pervasive this theme is within not only help groups but the general breast cancer populace as a whole.  In fact, she mentions, there is even a common sentiment among breast cancer "battlers" (as they never use the word victim or patient - and integral part of the positive thinking vocabulary) and survivors that being diagnosed was a good thing that happened because it enabled them to discover what was really important in life and how to stop worrying needlessly about pointless things and focus on the things that matter (such as family).

Eventually, with about three pages left in the chapter, she gets to the point that the "thinking positively" is not scientifically proven to be at all effect, but can even have a negative impact when people feel forced to put on a smiling face while suppressing their urges to be angry and upset about the ultimate changes their life will take.  This can cause further stress.  Plus, while the power of positive thinking can make "battlers" feel like they actually have some control and gives them something to "do", it can also cause feelings of failure when the positive thinking does not actually succeed in preventing them from getting better.

This is all only in the Introduction and Chapter 1, I have much more to read, but I'm exciting to continue.  I do think there is some merit in thinking of positively.  First of all, if you're positive that means you're happier, right?  Isn't that what positive means?  And if you think positively, such as "I can do a good job," then you'll believe in yourself and try harder.  If you think negatively, that you won't do a good job, then that can make you give up sooner (why bother? I'll suck anyways), and then ultimately you won't do better.  It's a self fulfilling prophecy, and as my fencing instructor would constantly tell me, my biggest weakness as a fencer was mental -- I thought I would lose, so I did lose.  "Self fulling prophecy," as he always said.

Of course it seems completely logical and obvious that if you are forcing yourself to think positively, when inside you feel horrible, there's going to be a dissonance there that causes stress.

As far as the writing style goes, Ehrenreich is very conversational, easy to understand, and a pleasure to read.  Which is exactly the kind of non-fiction that I like.  Her anecdotes are interesting and add to the story, and the many examples she provides, while somewhat tedious at times, support her arguments well.

Anyways, I'm going to have to get back to this book so I can keep learning!

Bones Fall Preview Leaves Me Wishing It Were November

Just saw this preview for Bones on Facebook and had to share it!  I'm super excited and already wishing it's November (okay, in all honesty I've been wishing it were November since the season finale...).

I love Bones and Booth's interaction and it's going to be exciting to see how the baby changes things.  On a total side note, I love Hodgins' little smile as he overhears Booth and Bones bantering.

I read that the season will start with Bones in her third trimester, meaning that she will be delivering it partway through the season.  At first I thought this a little odd, as many shows seem to drag out the pregnancy over the length of the season.  However, I realized two reasons why it's a good thing they're doing it this way:

1. It will be different from last season, where Angela's pregnancy was drawn out (why repeat the same format two consecutive seasons?)
2. It will give us a chance to see how Bones & Booth interact after the baby is born 

Reason Number 2 is what I'm really excited about.  That's really the interesting part, right?  So I think it's actually a really good thing they're not stretching out that storyline.

Another thing I'm curious about is Hannah.  It was implied she'd be returning.  I fully expect her to, but in what context?  Will she realize she was an idiot for not saying yes to Booth?  Honestly, I didn't like her - there was an awkward smugness to her, I always thought - but how could you say no to Booth?  Crazy girl. 

I am totally bummed that there will be less episodes this season.  Is this supposed to be Bones' last season?  I hope not, but it sort of has that feeling of impending closure.  With Bones and Booth getting together and having a child, it just seems like the series is nearing its end.  

Traffic and Travel: Lessons Virginia Taught Me

So it's my first week in Virginia, and something that has stuck out to me is the Traffic.  Yes, Traffic with a capital "T".  Everyone blames New Jersey for having bad drivers, but in my experience I've found both Boston and DC to be much worse.

The traffic rules in DC don't help. There is a road in DC that has six lanes.  The two center lanes can change direction, depending on the hour (it's based on rush hour).  The outside two lanes can turn into parking.  It's very strange and confusing (no wonder the drivers aren't good).

My friends in Boston told stories about how people would run red lights, but the funny thing about it was that they would run them just before they turned green, rather than running a yellow/red light.  Very odd.

So what's the big deal in Virginia?  It's hard to pinpoint exactly what the difference is between Jersey roads and Virginia roads that make the traffic so much worse.  But here's what was running through my head on my way back from work:

Jersey's Jug Handles

In Jersey, these are all over the place. My boyfriend, who is from Ohio, has said you won't find them anywhere else and he considers them rather odd.  I was trying to decide what was better: Jug handles or left turn lanes.  Obviously on a busy road, you need some special way to help those people trying to cross traffic.  I still want to put some thought into this, but for some reason I am actually preferring jug handles.  It seemed to help with the flow of traffic.  Maybe I'll try to find a civil engineer to discuss this with (my cousin got his MA in Civil and Architectural Engineering so I'll see what his thoughts are).

Finding Flow

Maybe it's just my particular route to work, but there seems to be much more stop and go rather than smooth flow.  Granted there is a toll road that I could take that does not have traffic lights, but, well, it is a toll road, and I wouldn't be on it long enough, and I'm afraid that traffic will still be bad.

What's up with the Weather?

It's been rather rainy here so maybe that has something to do with it.  People keep saying "Virginians don't know how to drive in the rain", but I hear people from all over the country say things like that.  What I think it ultimately comes down to is that different regions just drive differently.  I have no statistical data to prove this, just experience.  With different road designs you have different traffic patterns, which I can imagine would create a different "driving mindset".

Putting it All Together: How Traffic Analysis Helps Your Travel Plans

What does any of this have to do with travel?  Well, if you're driving or planning on renting a car, it probably isn't a bad idea to do some research on the traffic rules in that area and try to get a feel for what traffic will be like.  Sites like Google Maps and Traffic.com can show you what the general flow of traffic might look like (green is for fast, yellow for medium, red for very slow). Don't stress too much, but do a Google search and see if anything comes up.  I just did a Google search for "What is traffic like in Washington DC" and the first result (click the previous link) says "in a word, terrible".  Also try "worst drivers" and see if your destination city is on the list. (Apparently Washington, DC tops the list of worst drivers)

Also think about: what time of the year is it?  If you are visiting a place in September, keep in mind that the new school year could cause some back ups as people adjust to the additional cars on the road.  If you are vacationing in the winter, be aware of any weather conditions, like snow or ice on the road.

It never hurts to be prepared and understand what you're getting into.  Stay safe!

Labor Day Weekend Journeys - Eating Out While On the Road

After much back and forth across the state of Maryland, and countless added miles to my car, I have finally settled in Virginia! ...at a friend's apartment, of course.  I still have yet to find my own place, but hopefully I will find one soon and then begins the next stage of my life.  Exciting.

Over the past three days, I have driven from central Jersey to upstate Delaware (Friday), then from Delaware to northern Virginia and back again (Saturday), then from Delaware to Laurel, Maryland (Sunday), and finally, at last, from Laurel back to northern Virginia, where I will be for the rest of the week.

So I'm becoming quite familiar with the highways down here.

Moving on... Noteworthy News from the Journey...

We Discovered Local Restaurant in Laurel, MD: Pasta Plus

Yesterday for dinner, my boyfriend and I had to make the grand decision of Where do we eat dinner? I was craving pasta, as I haven't had it in awhile and its a comfort food, so the choices were: Olive Garden or Pasta Plus.  We decided to try the local place, Pasta Plus.  Situated in the middle of Route 1 (ugh), it was a little bit difficult to get to, and the restaurant's exterior was nothing to be excited about.  Just a plain sign in a strip mall, and you couldn't even see in the windows to get a feel for the place.  I got a little nervous, but we went in and it was a whole new atmosphere.  Elegant decor, even a little faux tiled roof by the kitchen, helped this place suddenly feel homely and charming.  I ordered the Gnocchi Tomato - mmm delicious, the sauce had a little kick to it, but then maybe that was just me as I often find things spicy that other people think are plain.

It just goes to show that it's worth it to try local places when you're traveling to a new town.  As someone who is hesitant to try new places and who loves just sticking to what I know, I totally understand that when you're far from home, sometimes you just need what's familiar and that's OK.  I hate it when people look down on me for just craving a dish that I already know.  But with that in mind, it is nice to try a new place when you can, because you never know what gems you'll find on the way.