Fearless Girls, Wise Women, and Beloved Sisters
Destiny's Child, "Little Drummer Boy"
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Cranberries Or, anything from my wish list.
Things I really want that aren't from Amazon.com ... and also, two movie reviews. Post Date: 12/17/04
Original Journal Date: Various: 12/15/04 Dear Santa, You know, I made this really easy for you by making that list at Amazon.com. There's some good stuff on it. Seriously. You should consider. That said, if you want to go off the list, I have some things I'd really like stuffed in my stocking this Christmas morning. I'd like for this car-theft fiasco to be over. I know, I know. The car got recovered, and other than the stench of pot and cigarettes in the interior, it was in pretty good condition. I even got a mostly paid-for trip to San Francisco out of the deal, which kind of compensates for the whole weeks and months of stress and fear that resulted from the thing. But did I mention that this thing refuses to go away? Yep. A couple of weeks ago, I found out that the towing company where my car was impounded while I was waiting to go into San Francisco and get it had put a lien on my car because they claimed I never paid the $700 in impound fees that accumulated on my car. I know, I know. This was months ago and they would not have released my car had I not paid those fees, and also I have the receipt and the credit card receipt from that. However, nonetheless, the lien has been filed on my card and what seemed like an easy process to get it fixed is turning out to be not so easy. So, please, Santa, for Christmas can we get this whole car fiasco wrapped up and put away for the new year? I'm really burnt out on dealing with it. It's just a car! How much trouble can one car cause? I would also like to slow down the hair-graying rate. Can we do that? I swear I'm finding a new one every time the hair-dye starts to wear off. I am going to be fully grey before the birthday-that-shall-not-be-named at that rate. Nobody likes this look on me. It takes away from the whole "I'm still pretending I'm seventeen" thing I'm trying to get away with. We don't have to get rid of the ones that are there, but could we just slow down the process? If it's not asking too much, maybe we can include on my wish list the discovery of a mascara that does not run into my eyes by the end of the day. You know, a real working girl's mascara. That's not asking too much. Another new Prince album this year. That would be good, too. Some creative inspiration. It's been lacking for the last couple of months. Some more patience. Mine's been short the last couple of months. A trip to Mexico to watch the Final Four by the beach. A Steelers' Super Bowl victory. Yeah, that last one for sure. Clarity. But I ask for that every year. Okay, I think that's probably about it. But that's enough, yeah? I mean, that's just enough to keep a few elves busy, but not the whole bunch, right? Don't miss my chimney this year. I haven't been perfect, but I've been pretty good. Seriously. I'll leave cookies, and not just the crappy left over kind. I'll bake them fresh that night. Love,
Jocelyn And Also? Two movie reviews. Actually, three. And two book reviews. I am MEDIA WOMAN. Movies
Sideways: I know a girl in her early twenties who saw this movie and was all like, "eh," about it. It's a better movie for people who are a little older. So, firstly, please don't think I'm bandwagoning just because every critic and awards panel on earth has been honoring this film. Because it really is that good of a film. A nice, subtle exploration of relationship building and personal evolution and personal weakness. I wanted more when it ended. I wanted to know what happened when he walked through the door, except that I didn't really want to know that because the chances are so great that what happened would be less than fairytale. In fact, it wouldn't be fairytale at all because that's the point ? there are no fairytales. There are trailers and good wines and divorces and bad one night stands and the search for satisfaction. Yeah. I dug the movie. Tarnation: My favorite of these three. Have you read about this? It's the life story of a gay man who was raised with a crazy mother who had been given electric shock treatments as a girl, which may or may not be the reason she ended up crazy. The entire movie is mostly told in collage format with still photos and clips from home movies until the end where the footage becomes more documentary style and involves a lot of planned shots and interviews. It's a really amazing look not only of the growth of a man but also of the growth of a man into an artist and then his view of how himself as an artist integrates into his view of his life. So, you know, artistically it's not perfect but, well, you know, in a lot of ways this movie is more like a painting than a film. Be warned that some of the home footage of both the man (as a boy) and his mother when they are in their fits of crazy are unsettling. I had a hard time watching it, you know, because it's a movie based around the story of a family with mental disorders, which could lead to a whole discussion about how my father never wanted to be a bad person. But let's skip that for now. The Machinist: I so wanted to like this movie, like, a lot. Christian Bale? Awesome performance. Pure craft and artistry of the movie? Fairly awesome in a lot of instances. Meandering art fuck level? Too high for my comfort zone. I get it. It's artistic. It's deep. It's overdone. But I hear that's mostly just me who feels that way. Books
Fearless Girls, Wise Women and Beloved Sisters.: A compilation of fairy tales, all of which have women and girls as the central characters, the heroines. So refreshing. I mean, it's not high literature, but it's a nice, feel-good read if you're a woman. The Pugilist at Rest: I hadn't read this for about a decade. Still such a good collection of short stories. Real. Very real. An exploration of the limitations of humans and their ability to find a strain of art within that context.