1. Dreamed that, there's a man threatening me. I decide to fight back. I have doubts that I'll be strong enough to even scare him, but it turns out I have strength. To my surprise, my fight move ends up beheading him.
I leave the scene of the crime and go outside. I'm in a neighborhood with big houses, somewhere in Australian. I see big Australian flowers and bearded dragons. I'm surprised to see the bearded dragons in this area of Australia.
I think the guy I beheaded was a twin, maybe? And I think he had some connection to Packed to the Rafters.
I'm not sure. Maybe I thought he looked like one of the Packed to the Rafters actors?
I don't remember exactly. I think there was something about a horror movie and sequels, though. It could have been about watching one, or maybe we were experiencing one.
2. Started watching an episode of Home and Away.
3. Thought that Billie (Tessa de Josselin) is annoying and pathetic.
She keeps pushing herself on Kyle (Nick Westaway). He repeatedly tries to reject her, and she pushes even more.
I'm not sure if she's clueless and desperate or if she's playing mind games with him.
4. Started watching Sleeping Beauty.
5. Thought the first scene was hard to watch.
Lucy (Emily Browning) has some kind of medical tube put down her throat. She gags repeatedly through the whole thing.
6. Confused by the movie.
The movie is about Lucy being paid to sleep while men have sex with her.
I'm about fifteen minutes into the film, and I'm at the scene where Lucy is being interviewed for the job.
I'm wondering, then, what was the medical procedure at the beginning? I thought it had something to do with getting her ready for the sedatives. Was it? Maybe the first scene was a flashback? Or not? Maybe it was related to something else all together?
It could be that Lucy was involved in yet another strange way to make money. Maybe she was being paid to participate in a science experiment.
7. Learned that Lucy will NOT be having sex with the men. They're not allowed to touch her vagina.
I guess they play with her hair or something? Pick her nose? Do "This Little Piggy" with her toes?
8. Thought about sexism while watching the movie.
Sleeping Beauty shows women being used as objects. They're paid to be used as objects.
The thing is, many men do see women as objects. If women sometimes allow themselves to be objects, I think that's fine...especially if they're paid for it.
What's important, though, is that women not see themselves as objects. Just because someone sees us as an object, that doesn't mean we have to see ourselves that way as well.
9. Continued to think the movie is confusing.
I feel lost.
I don't understand what the characters are thinking or planning.
The movie makes me feel like an outsider.
10. Felt also that Lucy is a hard character to like.
There's something cold about her.
11. Saw that Emily Browning was one of the stars of A Series of Unfortunate Events.
12. Saw that Emily Browning was recently in a crime drama called Legend. One of her co-stars was the ninth doctor, Christopher Eccleston.
Tom Hardy was in the movie as well.
I wonder if it was any good.
13. Watched some of the trailer.
It might be good, but it's not my kind of thing. It reminds me of Underbelly.
14. Watched a very long monologue in Sleeping Beauty.
I think it was too long, personally.
Some of it made sense to me. Most of it went over my head.
15. Saw the man cherishing the sleeping body of Lucy. It's kind of pathetic, because he just talked about failing to cherish his wife, friends, and children.
Does he need someone to be asleep and quiet in order for him to appreciate them?
16. Felt I was being unfair.
Maybe he did fail to cherish his wife, children, and friends, but that was in the past. At least he knows what he's done wrong.
Maybe he's learned to cherish people that are awake. Just because he has a thing for sleeping young women, it doesn't mean he doesn't appreciate other people.
17. Finished watching the movie for today. I'll watch more tomorrow, probably.
18. Went to the Tropfest website.
Today I'm going to watch a 2010 finalist film called "Awakening".
It's about a robot.
I don't expect to like it.
But maybe I'll be surprised.
19. Started watching the film.
I like the title font. I think it's an Art Nouveau kind of thing. I'm not sure why I like it, since I'm not the biggest fan of Art Nouveau. Maybe despite not liking the architecture, I do like the font style.
20. Wanted to admit that I'm not even sure the font style IS Art Nouveau.
21. Decided to get a screenshot.
Is that Art Nouveau?
Or not?
22. Finished watching the film.
I didn't love it. Nor did I hate it.
The theme of the film reminds me a bit of the one I watched recently with Michael Dorman and Morgana Davies—"Breath". Both that film and this one involve someone sacrificing their own life to give life, or extend the life, of someone else. In "Breath" a man donates part of his lungs to his daughters. In "Awakening" a robot sacrifices some of his own battery life, so he can bring a dancing robot to life.
23. Googled Liam Newton, the creator of "Awakening" and saw he has a website.
Unfortunately, it's not working.
I'm not sure if it's permanently down, or it's a temporary problem.
24. Found a short biography of Newton.
He was born in Canberra.
He's a fan of Spielberg and Lucas stuff.
He's inspired by Pixar.
Jack's a big fan of Pixar.
I like it too—although I sometimes get confused about which movies are Pixar and which are plain Disney.
25. Looked at the cast of Ready Player One, while exploring the career of Steven Spielberg and saw that Ben Mendelsohn is going to be in the movie.
The cast has only three people so far, and Mendelsohn is one of them. He plays Nolan Sorrento. I'm not sure who that is. I forget. But I'm betting it's a villain.
Or maybe not.
I probably just assume he's a villain, because I'm used to seeing Mendelsohn as an asshole.
Well, actually I saw him being a total asshole only in Tangle. In Love My Way, he wasn't so bad—just kind of annoying.
He was sweet in Spotswood.
26. Consulted Lord Wiki about the characters in Ready Player One. He reminded me about who Nolan Sorrento is.
I'm not going to say, because I can't remember if it's a spoiler or not.
Yeah. I know. I often have spoilers. But this is one of those cases where I feel it would be especially wrong.
27. Read more of Kendall Talbot's Lost in Kakadu.
I like the book, but there was a conversation I didn't like.
Mackenzie, the male protagonist, gives Abigail, the female protagonist, a hard time about her not having a money-making job. In his eyes, since she doesn't make money, she doesn't do any work.
I hope that's the sentiment of the character and not the author.
Though if it is the sentiment of the author, that's fine. I have many opinions on my blog that I'm sure aren't loved by everyone.
28. Wanted to say that, personally, I define work as something that keeps us busy and benefits other people.
Well, I suppose work that benefits ourself can sometimes count as well. For example, if you live alone and vacuum your living room, that would still be work.
I think, though, that I put a higher value on work that's also going to benefit other people.
29. Looked up the definition of work. The first definition is, exertion or effort directed to produce or accomplish something; labor; toil.
I think a lot of things could be covered under that definition.
29. Remembered that the conversation in the book began with Mackenzie asking Abigail what she does.
I once read somewhere that instead of asking people what they do, we should ask what they like to do.
I think often we ask the wrong questions.
For example, at the Bat Mitzvah recently, I asked a few people if they were Democrats or Republicans, and/or who they planned to vote for. Later I thought about it and wished I had asked something more thoughtful, such as what issues are the most important to them. I think that tells us more about a person than whether they're a Trump fan or not.
As for asking what someone likes to do, some people might talk about liking their job. For other people, their job might be just a way to pay the mortgage, and their hobbies are where their real passion is.
30. Went to Kendall Talbot's website.
Lost in Kakadu was her first novel.
It looks like she has two other novels—one doesn't seem to be Australia-related. Then there's Double Take, which involves The Melbourne Cup.
31. Started to read Kendall Talbot's biography page.
She likes wild adventures and doesn't like laziness.
She travels a lot.
She likes junky jewelry and expensive perfume.
She doesn't much like TV, but she does like going to movies.
She thinks potatoes are a waste of tummy space. I wonder if she's referring to nutrition. Or is she just not a big fan of potatoes?
I like potatoes, but I probably have the waste-of-tummy-space feeling about potato chips/crisps. I like the chips that we call fries. I love those, actually. But when it comes to plain potato chips, well, I think they're kind of boring.
32. Saw that Talbot has a list of all her adventure excursions and a list of where's she's traveled and when.
I think travel is one of her pride and joys.
33. Saw that Talbot climbed Sydney Harbour Bridge.
I did that too!
34. Amused that Talbot listed gambling in a Las Vegas casino as one of her adventures.
I suppose that would count.
Hey, if that counts, then I think I can count the roller coasters I've gone on at Disney World. I'm proud of myself for some of them...well, especially Expedition Everest. At one time, I didn't imagine my family to be the type of people who would ride that thing. But we've now gone on it several times.
35. Saw that Talbot went scuba diving with whale sharks at Christmas Island.
I think that's very cool. I wonder if she saw the crabs there.
36. Saw that Talbot was born in England.
37. Saw that Talbot has been to the US seven times.
I wonder if she's ever been to Texas.
And has she been to Disney World?
I wonder if she's one of those people who thinks Disney is crap.
38. Went to Kendall Talbot's Twitter.
She has a recent Tweet, from just a few hours ago. It includes a quote. Be happy in front of people
who don't like you. It kills them.
Now when I see someone I don't like, and they're looking happy, I might suspect they're doing it just to annoy me.
39. Wondered if I'd be bothered to see someone I dislike being happy.
I don't think so.
What would bother me is seeing someone I dislike doing what would make ME happy. For example, I would not like someone I dislike going to Australia. Or I might like someone, but let's say I'm mad at them. I don't want them going to Australia.
I also wouldn't want someone I dislike getting their novel turned into a TV show. That's something I want for me. I don't want it for them.
But if someone I dislike is happy about something I don't want, I don't think I'd care.
I'm a very envious and jealous person, but I don't think I get envious and jealous over happiness.
40. Saw that Talbot was considering drunk-writing four hours ago.
I wonder if she went through with that plan. She says the trick is to write drunk and then edit sober.
41. Wondered if any of Lost in Kakadu was the result of drunk-writing.
I leave the scene of the crime and go outside. I'm in a neighborhood with big houses, somewhere in Australian. I see big Australian flowers and bearded dragons. I'm surprised to see the bearded dragons in this area of Australia.
I think the guy I beheaded was a twin, maybe? And I think he had some connection to Packed to the Rafters.
I'm not sure. Maybe I thought he looked like one of the Packed to the Rafters actors?
I don't remember exactly. I think there was something about a horror movie and sequels, though. It could have been about watching one, or maybe we were experiencing one.
2. Started watching an episode of Home and Away.
3. Thought that Billie (Tessa de Josselin) is annoying and pathetic.
She keeps pushing herself on Kyle (Nick Westaway). He repeatedly tries to reject her, and she pushes even more.
I'm not sure if she's clueless and desperate or if she's playing mind games with him.
4. Started watching Sleeping Beauty.
5. Thought the first scene was hard to watch.
Lucy (Emily Browning) has some kind of medical tube put down her throat. She gags repeatedly through the whole thing.
6. Confused by the movie.
The movie is about Lucy being paid to sleep while men have sex with her.
I'm about fifteen minutes into the film, and I'm at the scene where Lucy is being interviewed for the job.
I'm wondering, then, what was the medical procedure at the beginning? I thought it had something to do with getting her ready for the sedatives. Was it? Maybe the first scene was a flashback? Or not? Maybe it was related to something else all together?
It could be that Lucy was involved in yet another strange way to make money. Maybe she was being paid to participate in a science experiment.
7. Learned that Lucy will NOT be having sex with the men. They're not allowed to touch her vagina.
I guess they play with her hair or something? Pick her nose? Do "This Little Piggy" with her toes?
8. Thought about sexism while watching the movie.
Sleeping Beauty shows women being used as objects. They're paid to be used as objects.
The thing is, many men do see women as objects. If women sometimes allow themselves to be objects, I think that's fine...especially if they're paid for it.
What's important, though, is that women not see themselves as objects. Just because someone sees us as an object, that doesn't mean we have to see ourselves that way as well.
9. Continued to think the movie is confusing.
I feel lost.
I don't understand what the characters are thinking or planning.
The movie makes me feel like an outsider.
10. Felt also that Lucy is a hard character to like.
There's something cold about her.
11. Saw that Emily Browning was one of the stars of A Series of Unfortunate Events.
12. Saw that Emily Browning was recently in a crime drama called Legend. One of her co-stars was the ninth doctor, Christopher Eccleston.
Tom Hardy was in the movie as well.
I wonder if it was any good.
13. Watched some of the trailer.
It might be good, but it's not my kind of thing. It reminds me of Underbelly.
14. Watched a very long monologue in Sleeping Beauty.
I think it was too long, personally.
Some of it made sense to me. Most of it went over my head.
15. Saw the man cherishing the sleeping body of Lucy. It's kind of pathetic, because he just talked about failing to cherish his wife, friends, and children.
Does he need someone to be asleep and quiet in order for him to appreciate them?
16. Felt I was being unfair.
Maybe he did fail to cherish his wife, children, and friends, but that was in the past. At least he knows what he's done wrong.
Maybe he's learned to cherish people that are awake. Just because he has a thing for sleeping young women, it doesn't mean he doesn't appreciate other people.
17. Finished watching the movie for today. I'll watch more tomorrow, probably.
18. Went to the Tropfest website.
Today I'm going to watch a 2010 finalist film called "Awakening".
It's about a robot.
I don't expect to like it.
But maybe I'll be surprised.
19. Started watching the film.
I like the title font. I think it's an Art Nouveau kind of thing. I'm not sure why I like it, since I'm not the biggest fan of Art Nouveau. Maybe despite not liking the architecture, I do like the font style.
20. Wanted to admit that I'm not even sure the font style IS Art Nouveau.
21. Decided to get a screenshot.
Is that Art Nouveau?
Or not?
22. Finished watching the film.
I didn't love it. Nor did I hate it.
The theme of the film reminds me a bit of the one I watched recently with Michael Dorman and Morgana Davies—"Breath". Both that film and this one involve someone sacrificing their own life to give life, or extend the life, of someone else. In "Breath" a man donates part of his lungs to his daughters. In "Awakening" a robot sacrifices some of his own battery life, so he can bring a dancing robot to life.
23. Googled Liam Newton, the creator of "Awakening" and saw he has a website.
Unfortunately, it's not working.
I'm not sure if it's permanently down, or it's a temporary problem.
24. Found a short biography of Newton.
He was born in Canberra.
He's a fan of Spielberg and Lucas stuff.
He's inspired by Pixar.
Jack's a big fan of Pixar.
I like it too—although I sometimes get confused about which movies are Pixar and which are plain Disney.
25. Looked at the cast of Ready Player One, while exploring the career of Steven Spielberg and saw that Ben Mendelsohn is going to be in the movie.
The cast has only three people so far, and Mendelsohn is one of them. He plays Nolan Sorrento. I'm not sure who that is. I forget. But I'm betting it's a villain.
Or maybe not.
I probably just assume he's a villain, because I'm used to seeing Mendelsohn as an asshole.
Well, actually I saw him being a total asshole only in Tangle. In Love My Way, he wasn't so bad—just kind of annoying.
He was sweet in Spotswood.
26. Consulted Lord Wiki about the characters in Ready Player One. He reminded me about who Nolan Sorrento is.
I'm not going to say, because I can't remember if it's a spoiler or not.
Yeah. I know. I often have spoilers. But this is one of those cases where I feel it would be especially wrong.
27. Read more of Kendall Talbot's Lost in Kakadu.
I like the book, but there was a conversation I didn't like.
Mackenzie, the male protagonist, gives Abigail, the female protagonist, a hard time about her not having a money-making job. In his eyes, since she doesn't make money, she doesn't do any work.
I hope that's the sentiment of the character and not the author.
Though if it is the sentiment of the author, that's fine. I have many opinions on my blog that I'm sure aren't loved by everyone.
28. Wanted to say that, personally, I define work as something that keeps us busy and benefits other people.
Well, I suppose work that benefits ourself can sometimes count as well. For example, if you live alone and vacuum your living room, that would still be work.
I think, though, that I put a higher value on work that's also going to benefit other people.
29. Looked up the definition of work. The first definition is, exertion or effort directed to produce or accomplish something; labor; toil.
I think a lot of things could be covered under that definition.
29. Remembered that the conversation in the book began with Mackenzie asking Abigail what she does.
I once read somewhere that instead of asking people what they do, we should ask what they like to do.
I think often we ask the wrong questions.
For example, at the Bat Mitzvah recently, I asked a few people if they were Democrats or Republicans, and/or who they planned to vote for. Later I thought about it and wished I had asked something more thoughtful, such as what issues are the most important to them. I think that tells us more about a person than whether they're a Trump fan or not.
As for asking what someone likes to do, some people might talk about liking their job. For other people, their job might be just a way to pay the mortgage, and their hobbies are where their real passion is.
30. Went to Kendall Talbot's website.
Lost in Kakadu was her first novel.
It looks like she has two other novels—one doesn't seem to be Australia-related. Then there's Double Take, which involves The Melbourne Cup.
31. Started to read Kendall Talbot's biography page.
She likes wild adventures and doesn't like laziness.
She travels a lot.
She likes junky jewelry and expensive perfume.
She doesn't much like TV, but she does like going to movies.
She thinks potatoes are a waste of tummy space. I wonder if she's referring to nutrition. Or is she just not a big fan of potatoes?
I like potatoes, but I probably have the waste-of-tummy-space feeling about potato chips/crisps. I like the chips that we call fries. I love those, actually. But when it comes to plain potato chips, well, I think they're kind of boring.
32. Saw that Talbot has a list of all her adventure excursions and a list of where's she's traveled and when.
I think travel is one of her pride and joys.
33. Saw that Talbot climbed Sydney Harbour Bridge.
I did that too!
34. Amused that Talbot listed gambling in a Las Vegas casino as one of her adventures.
I suppose that would count.
Hey, if that counts, then I think I can count the roller coasters I've gone on at Disney World. I'm proud of myself for some of them...well, especially Expedition Everest. At one time, I didn't imagine my family to be the type of people who would ride that thing. But we've now gone on it several times.
35. Saw that Talbot went scuba diving with whale sharks at Christmas Island.
I think that's very cool. I wonder if she saw the crabs there.
36. Saw that Talbot was born in England.
37. Saw that Talbot has been to the US seven times.
I wonder if she's ever been to Texas.
And has she been to Disney World?
I wonder if she's one of those people who thinks Disney is crap.
38. Went to Kendall Talbot's Twitter.
She has a recent Tweet, from just a few hours ago. It includes a quote. Be happy in front of people
who don't like you. It kills them.
Now when I see someone I don't like, and they're looking happy, I might suspect they're doing it just to annoy me.
39. Wondered if I'd be bothered to see someone I dislike being happy.
I don't think so.
What would bother me is seeing someone I dislike doing what would make ME happy. For example, I would not like someone I dislike going to Australia. Or I might like someone, but let's say I'm mad at them. I don't want them going to Australia.
I also wouldn't want someone I dislike getting their novel turned into a TV show. That's something I want for me. I don't want it for them.
But if someone I dislike is happy about something I don't want, I don't think I'd care.
I'm a very envious and jealous person, but I don't think I get envious and jealous over happiness.
40. Saw that Talbot was considering drunk-writing four hours ago.
I wonder if she went through with that plan. She says the trick is to write drunk and then edit sober.
41. Wondered if any of Lost in Kakadu was the result of drunk-writing.