I am very excited to announce that I have finished reading the Twilight Series, I finished reading Breaking Dawn late last night. Although I did not love the books, or care too much for the way Stephanie Meyers writes, I really enjoyed some of the characters she created. After all, she gave a vampire the same name as me! Siobhan!
As you may notice, it is not spelled the same, but Siobhan is the Gaelic version of my name (or Irish version if you prefer). The vampire named Siobhan was pretty cool, the leader of the Irish coven and had the suspected power of things turning out the way she thinks they should. Very unique.
Reading this name made me think of the last time someone brought this Gaelic spelling to my attention. Of all places to hear about alternate spellings, I last heard about it at my last belt test in October. Yeah, that's right, my brown belt test! The big test I had been practicing months for, the test where sparring is included, and the test where I would have to work with students going for higher level belts than mine. This was one of the big tests that happen twice a year at Aurora Martial Arts. Once you become an advanced student (promoting to brown belt and above), you can only move on to the next belt rank at one of these tests. The other important aspect of this kind of test, is that my instructor, Mr. Donadio, not only has his black belt instructors at the test, but invites other high ranking black belts to oversee the test. Most always this includes Mr. John Sepulveda, a highly revered 9th degree black belt in American Kenpo.
So it was this last October, and I got through the much anticipated belt test still in one piece. The class was lined up to bow out and end the test, but Mr. Sepulveda gave us some closing words about how the test went. After he got through the aspects he wished to discuss about our test, he started to turn us over to Mr. Donadio to bow us out, but right before he did, he remembered he had one more thing to say. He looked at me in the back line and asked, "Shavonne, do know where your name originates from? If you are interested in the Gaelic spelling of your name, you should email me and I'll let you know." After that we were dismissed. Talk about a weird place to learn about your name!
So if you see the spelling of Siobhan, you now know how to pronounce it:)
Friday, December 26, 2008
Monday, December 15, 2008
Twilight Movie Review
One of my least creative titles. As predicted, this is a review for the movie Twilight. This review will talk about any surprises it holds for those who have not seen it, and will also discuss some differences found in the book.
So, my overall opinion of this movie is: pretty good. I read the book first, like the weekend before seeing the movie, and when I first saw it, all I could do was compare it to the book (even though I tried so hard not to) and feel a little disappointed in the depiction of Edward. I have since seen the movie a second time, and that viewing was a whole lot more enjoyable. I noticed things I hadn't noticed before, small details that make a good movie great.
First, I should tell you, that I did not love the book Twilight. I loved the idea of it (a love story that includes a vampire, what's not to love?) and I also really loved the first half of the book. The second half wasn't as exciting, I didn't like the way Edward and Bella had "playful" squabbles. It was annoying. Bella got really annoying.
But this review is about the movie, not the book. I will start with the things I did not like about the movie. First, I have to talk about Edward. I knew that the Edward that Hollywood would create could never equal the one created in my head. After all, he's supposed to be my dream guy, and who knows what he looks like? Aside from that, I didn't really like the make-up for Edward during most of the first half of the movie. It made him look really scary and not really beautiful and colorless. It made me think that the actor wasn't that good-looking, but as the movie progressed and there was less make-up, he really is good-looking, and makes a very good Edward.
My other gripe about Edward is that he seemed more shy in the movie than elegant. In the book he was described as being from another time, he was overly polite and spoke in a more old-fashioned way. He didn't really seem that way in the movie, just sort of shy and afraid of what was happening.
Since I am on the topic of looks, the evil vampires were not quite as evil as I imagined. Then again, my mind has more power to make something scary than Hollywood does. James looked like a good-looking punk, not really the ruffian killer I had imagined. The evil vampires were alright, just not as menacing as I was hoping for.
Another downer on this movie was some very cheesy lines, and not all the fault of the movie, some were taken straight from the book. I especially hated when Edward was describing what Bella's blood was like to him. In the book he used a few analogies before he got to the ridiculous "You're like my own personal brand of Heroine." If they were going to take just one analogy, my pick would have been the alcoholic with the scotch, not the heroine. The description of the alcoholic was much more elegant, which probably helped me think that the movie version of Edward was not so elegant.
Along with some cheesy lines, I have to poke some fun at his running scenes. It looked funny. It wasn't as bad as it could have been, but I definitely think it could have been better. Also the scene where the Cullens were killing James, that part was pretty ridiculous too. Just strange. Not elegant. Not my version of a vampire.
Now on to the things I liked about the movie. I really, really liked Bella. I can't describe how much I don't like her in the book. In the movie, she was a klutz but not so much that it made you get annoyed with her. She has a much stronger character in the movie, which is very conflicting in the book. She was prettier in the movie too, and that's got to be a plus.
Because of this good Bella, I like her relationship with Edward better. It seemed more real, like they could actually have a relationship, like he might actually be attracted to someone like her. Bella has a strong character, and that made her a little bit closer to having an equal relationship with Edward. So the silly squabbles, weren't squabbles, they were legitimate. I think you get the point.
I also really liked how some of the characters changed. Take Eric, for example. He was just some nerd in the book that I didn't really care about. In the movie, he was funny and some of the needed comic relief for such a serious romantic story. The same goes with Bella's dad, Charlie. I liked him better too. He seemed to act more like a dad and also add to the humor.
Another interesting thing I liked, was that there was a ethnic diversity to the cast. I imagined everyone white, as would be easy to do, this story takes place in a small town in Washington which is not far from here, where most people probably are white European decedents. It was nice to see a good variety in the cast.
Did anyone else notice Edward catch the apple in his hands, just like the cover of the book? That picture has absolutely no significance in the book, I thought it was really awesome that it was incorporated into the movie. Very artistic.
The last couple of things I'll mention don't really have much to do with regular movie topics, but I still enjoyed them! First, the music. I was very excited to hear a song from Muse for the baseball game scene. (That also reminds me, I loved how Alice pitched, so pretty!) The other thing, an OSU graduate helped work on the set design, and part of the movie was filmed in Oregon. I bet you saw Multnomah Falls.
All in all, I enjoyed this movie, and wouldn't be opposed to seeing it again. Please feel free to give comments on your thoughts about this movie, or my opinions of it!
So, my overall opinion of this movie is: pretty good. I read the book first, like the weekend before seeing the movie, and when I first saw it, all I could do was compare it to the book (even though I tried so hard not to) and feel a little disappointed in the depiction of Edward. I have since seen the movie a second time, and that viewing was a whole lot more enjoyable. I noticed things I hadn't noticed before, small details that make a good movie great.
First, I should tell you, that I did not love the book Twilight. I loved the idea of it (a love story that includes a vampire, what's not to love?) and I also really loved the first half of the book. The second half wasn't as exciting, I didn't like the way Edward and Bella had "playful" squabbles. It was annoying. Bella got really annoying.
But this review is about the movie, not the book. I will start with the things I did not like about the movie. First, I have to talk about Edward. I knew that the Edward that Hollywood would create could never equal the one created in my head. After all, he's supposed to be my dream guy, and who knows what he looks like? Aside from that, I didn't really like the make-up for Edward during most of the first half of the movie. It made him look really scary and not really beautiful and colorless. It made me think that the actor wasn't that good-looking, but as the movie progressed and there was less make-up, he really is good-looking, and makes a very good Edward.
My other gripe about Edward is that he seemed more shy in the movie than elegant. In the book he was described as being from another time, he was overly polite and spoke in a more old-fashioned way. He didn't really seem that way in the movie, just sort of shy and afraid of what was happening.
Since I am on the topic of looks, the evil vampires were not quite as evil as I imagined. Then again, my mind has more power to make something scary than Hollywood does. James looked like a good-looking punk, not really the ruffian killer I had imagined. The evil vampires were alright, just not as menacing as I was hoping for.
Another downer on this movie was some very cheesy lines, and not all the fault of the movie, some were taken straight from the book. I especially hated when Edward was describing what Bella's blood was like to him. In the book he used a few analogies before he got to the ridiculous "You're like my own personal brand of Heroine." If they were going to take just one analogy, my pick would have been the alcoholic with the scotch, not the heroine. The description of the alcoholic was much more elegant, which probably helped me think that the movie version of Edward was not so elegant.
Along with some cheesy lines, I have to poke some fun at his running scenes. It looked funny. It wasn't as bad as it could have been, but I definitely think it could have been better. Also the scene where the Cullens were killing James, that part was pretty ridiculous too. Just strange. Not elegant. Not my version of a vampire.
Now on to the things I liked about the movie. I really, really liked Bella. I can't describe how much I don't like her in the book. In the movie, she was a klutz but not so much that it made you get annoyed with her. She has a much stronger character in the movie, which is very conflicting in the book. She was prettier in the movie too, and that's got to be a plus.
Because of this good Bella, I like her relationship with Edward better. It seemed more real, like they could actually have a relationship, like he might actually be attracted to someone like her. Bella has a strong character, and that made her a little bit closer to having an equal relationship with Edward. So the silly squabbles, weren't squabbles, they were legitimate. I think you get the point.
I also really liked how some of the characters changed. Take Eric, for example. He was just some nerd in the book that I didn't really care about. In the movie, he was funny and some of the needed comic relief for such a serious romantic story. The same goes with Bella's dad, Charlie. I liked him better too. He seemed to act more like a dad and also add to the humor.
Another interesting thing I liked, was that there was a ethnic diversity to the cast. I imagined everyone white, as would be easy to do, this story takes place in a small town in Washington which is not far from here, where most people probably are white European decedents. It was nice to see a good variety in the cast.
Did anyone else notice Edward catch the apple in his hands, just like the cover of the book? That picture has absolutely no significance in the book, I thought it was really awesome that it was incorporated into the movie. Very artistic.
The last couple of things I'll mention don't really have much to do with regular movie topics, but I still enjoyed them! First, the music. I was very excited to hear a song from Muse for the baseball game scene. (That also reminds me, I loved how Alice pitched, so pretty!) The other thing, an OSU graduate helped work on the set design, and part of the movie was filmed in Oregon. I bet you saw Multnomah Falls.
All in all, I enjoyed this movie, and wouldn't be opposed to seeing it again. Please feel free to give comments on your thoughts about this movie, or my opinions of it!
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
One Disc Therapy
Last week, Wednesday I believe it was, I knew I would have a lot of free time and decided to make plans to play a round of disc golf (you know, wear the appropriate clothing, bring discs, etc.). I'm not sure what set my mood off that day, but I was in a really irritating mood. One of those where you're mad at everything and don't want to do anything else but sit there and be miserable.
I drove around a bit, made a stop at the Co-op and browsed through their discs and finally found myself at Willamette Park. I sat in my car for a while just staring at the expanse in front of me, contemplating whether I really felt like playing or not.
I got out of my car, and grabbed one disc from my trunk: my cool-colored star Eagle that hasn't been thrown much. I threw the disc a couple of times in the grassy area that is not the the disc golf course, kind of "practicing" my mid-range throw. I decided I did want to play some of the course, maybe not a whole round, and so I proceeded to tee pad 1 (still with just my Eagle).
The first few holes were awful as far as scoring goes, and I remember thinking "I probably should stop throwing right now, I'm only going to create bad habits," but I kept playing. It felt really good to release some of that bad energy I was storing up inside me.
Somewhere around hole 4 or 5 I started feeling happier and thus playing a little better. It is also at about this point in the course where some of the switch-backing begins and the fairways mesh between holes. I threw a drive on 5 with my lovely Eagle, not a great drive, but not a terrible drive either. The guy playing in front of me with his bag full of discs (he didn't have quad straps, so I guess not that hard core) complimented my good form. I'm pretty sure he thought he was just complimenting a newbie-one-discer, but it could have had to do with me being female. I suppose he could have just been complimenting my good form because it was good form.
A couple of holes after that a group of 3 were waiting at the tee to let me play through. They were all pretty inexperienced, (or just didn't throw far) and were just out for an enjoyable time with each other.
I teed off in front of them, secretly wanting to be impressive, and I threw a good drive. They joked around about trying to make me nervous and how it seemed to have no effect. I guess I did impress them.
The rest of the round went ok, I had some really great holes, and some not-so-great. By the end of the round I was happy and thinking about my disc golf game, not what was annoying me before.
I finished my one disc round and grabbed my putters so I could keep goofing around. A group of about 4 college-aged boys (probably freshman, I mistook them for high schoolers) were getting ready to tee off on 1. They asked me I was going to play alone and invited me to join them and offer any tips because they are all new. I wasn't about to attempt a round with my 2 putters, so I went and got my bag - that really impressed them!
I played an enjoyable few holes with them, they were really easy to impress. They thought it was cool that I even knew someone who has over 200 discs or that I knew someone who has thrown an ace.
So what started out as an outlet for me to get into a better mood, turned out to be a sneaky way to fish for compliments and feel really good about something. If you ever see me in a bad mood, tell me to try one disc therapy.
I drove around a bit, made a stop at the Co-op and browsed through their discs and finally found myself at Willamette Park. I sat in my car for a while just staring at the expanse in front of me, contemplating whether I really felt like playing or not.
I got out of my car, and grabbed one disc from my trunk: my cool-colored star Eagle that hasn't been thrown much. I threw the disc a couple of times in the grassy area that is not the the disc golf course, kind of "practicing" my mid-range throw. I decided I did want to play some of the course, maybe not a whole round, and so I proceeded to tee pad 1 (still with just my Eagle).
The first few holes were awful as far as scoring goes, and I remember thinking "I probably should stop throwing right now, I'm only going to create bad habits," but I kept playing. It felt really good to release some of that bad energy I was storing up inside me.
Somewhere around hole 4 or 5 I started feeling happier and thus playing a little better. It is also at about this point in the course where some of the switch-backing begins and the fairways mesh between holes. I threw a drive on 5 with my lovely Eagle, not a great drive, but not a terrible drive either. The guy playing in front of me with his bag full of discs (he didn't have quad straps, so I guess not that hard core) complimented my good form. I'm pretty sure he thought he was just complimenting a newbie-one-discer, but it could have had to do with me being female. I suppose he could have just been complimenting my good form because it was good form.
A couple of holes after that a group of 3 were waiting at the tee to let me play through. They were all pretty inexperienced, (or just didn't throw far) and were just out for an enjoyable time with each other.
I teed off in front of them, secretly wanting to be impressive, and I threw a good drive. They joked around about trying to make me nervous and how it seemed to have no effect. I guess I did impress them.
The rest of the round went ok, I had some really great holes, and some not-so-great. By the end of the round I was happy and thinking about my disc golf game, not what was annoying me before.
I finished my one disc round and grabbed my putters so I could keep goofing around. A group of about 4 college-aged boys (probably freshman, I mistook them for high schoolers) were getting ready to tee off on 1. They asked me I was going to play alone and invited me to join them and offer any tips because they are all new. I wasn't about to attempt a round with my 2 putters, so I went and got my bag - that really impressed them!
I played an enjoyable few holes with them, they were really easy to impress. They thought it was cool that I even knew someone who has over 200 discs or that I knew someone who has thrown an ace.
So what started out as an outlet for me to get into a better mood, turned out to be a sneaky way to fish for compliments and feel really good about something. If you ever see me in a bad mood, tell me to try one disc therapy.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)