The fall season, apples, and the beginning of school all go hand in hand. I remember back when I was a young kid actually looking forward to the first day of school to start, realizing only around middle school that I didn't enjoy school and did not want to go. These days, I'm back to looking forward to the first days of school to begin, but find that there is an added amount of pressure and stress now that I'm approaching things from the other side of the desk. In order to alleviate that stress, I look towards other fall activities to take my mind off of school.
This past weekend I went to pick drops in an apple orchard that members of my family own. For the uninitiated, picking drops is exactly as it sounds: You pick up apples that have dropped on the ground. These are used for cider and other sorts of things. The first time I picked drops was last year with my wife, and it proved to be difficult work. I was incredibly sore after each day and vowed that I would not go back again. Yet, after all of the pain and time spent working last fall, I decided that it would be a great idea to return to the orchard this year.
My wife was unavailable to work with me this time around, so my brother and I went out to the apple orchard and picked drops. The entire time I was picking drops, I didn't have a lot to think about, but the Robert Frost poem “After Apple Picking,” kept coming to mind. Not that I'm a huge fan of poetry, or this poem in particular, and I could only think of a few lines, but I thought about how I taught it every year. For some reason, this poem stick with me. I'm not sure if it's because I have experience (little experience) in an apple orchard, or just because a lot of students like it, but either way it has stayed with me. I kept thinking, while picking drops, about how clever it would be to name a blog post after that, though it would have little to do with the actual poem.
In the end, this is the blog post that I thought of. It certainly isn't much, and not nearly as clever as I was hoping, but it does show that we're always making connections to literature and art. Even minor ones.
Monday, September 26, 2011
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Personal Writing
Whenever I write a piece, I find it incredibly stressful to know that somebody will read it. This blog I find a great deal less stressful because I feel like the community that this class has created is welcoming and is overall, nice. For other pieces though, I'm always hesitant when I hit that “post” or, in some cases, “send” button. Reviews are one of those things.
This past weekend I saw the film “Senna,” a documentary that I found to be refreshing and it is, in my opinion, one of the best films I have seen this year (I'll make a top ten list towards the end of the year for those interested). After walking out of the movie (after it had finished, I re-read that and thought it looked funny), I knew that it was a film that I wanted to review on my brother's site. I immediately called him up to talk about writing one. He told me to go for it, but when I started writing, I began to think of the people who were going to read it. It made me nervous thinking about the audience I was writing for.
As a fan of Formula One racing, but not a fanatic, I knew that there would be people who knew more about the sport than myself. I used some of what I knew about the sport in the piece, but ultimately, would the “experts” make comments about my lack of knowledge? And then what of the film aspect? I suddenly realized that there were two groups, if not more, that I was aiming to please.
After three days of writing I finally finished the review. The piece was not my favorite work that I have done, but I was relatively pleased with it and if somebody read it and disliked it, I knew that I would still be proud of it. So I sent it off to my brother, who then posted it, and the waiting began. I usually don't receive comments about my work, so I wasn't expecting anything, but late this afternoon I found that a Formula One racing site had picked up my review and was linking to it. I know my review wasn't perfect, but I take this as a sign that I did something right.
As a writer, it's a relief to feel that acceptance when I finish a piece. Oftentimes, with most of my reviews, they just sit on the website and receive absolutely no positive or negative feedback. To see my brother post about that site picking up my review absolutely made my day and encourages me to continue writing. We all need positive feedback once in awhile. It feels good.
This past weekend I saw the film “Senna,” a documentary that I found to be refreshing and it is, in my opinion, one of the best films I have seen this year (I'll make a top ten list towards the end of the year for those interested). After walking out of the movie (after it had finished, I re-read that and thought it looked funny), I knew that it was a film that I wanted to review on my brother's site. I immediately called him up to talk about writing one. He told me to go for it, but when I started writing, I began to think of the people who were going to read it. It made me nervous thinking about the audience I was writing for.
As a fan of Formula One racing, but not a fanatic, I knew that there would be people who knew more about the sport than myself. I used some of what I knew about the sport in the piece, but ultimately, would the “experts” make comments about my lack of knowledge? And then what of the film aspect? I suddenly realized that there were two groups, if not more, that I was aiming to please.
After three days of writing I finally finished the review. The piece was not my favorite work that I have done, but I was relatively pleased with it and if somebody read it and disliked it, I knew that I would still be proud of it. So I sent it off to my brother, who then posted it, and the waiting began. I usually don't receive comments about my work, so I wasn't expecting anything, but late this afternoon I found that a Formula One racing site had picked up my review and was linking to it. I know my review wasn't perfect, but I take this as a sign that I did something right.
As a writer, it's a relief to feel that acceptance when I finish a piece. Oftentimes, with most of my reviews, they just sit on the website and receive absolutely no positive or negative feedback. To see my brother post about that site picking up my review absolutely made my day and encourages me to continue writing. We all need positive feedback once in awhile. It feels good.
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Blogs I Follow
The following are blogs that I follow:
www.onemominmaine.com - This is from a colleague who is a mom in Maine.
www.katecrabtreephotography.com - This is cheating. My wife does photography, and I follow her blog. Feel free to follow her blog and book her for a wedding.
www.joeltalksmovies.com - It's my brother. He writes reviews for movies.
venturelli-dwellinpossibility.blogspot.com - A great blog from another colleague. Her husband also has a blog and is hilarious. That, I will not share.
darkandstormyblovel.blogspot.com - Another colleague who enjoys dark and stormy novels as well as blovels.
Follow those links and hopefully you enjoy them!
www.onemominmaine.com - This is from a colleague who is a mom in Maine.
www.katecrabtreephotography.com - This is cheating. My wife does photography, and I follow her blog. Feel free to follow her blog and book her for a wedding.
www.joeltalksmovies.com - It's my brother. He writes reviews for movies.
venturelli-dwellinpossibility.blogspot.com - A great blog from another colleague. Her husband also has a blog and is hilarious. That, I will not share.
darkandstormyblovel.blogspot.com - Another colleague who enjoys dark and stormy novels as well as blovels.
Follow those links and hopefully you enjoy them!
Monday, September 12, 2011
Angry Writing
Generally speaking, I'm not one who gets upset or angry easily. I have a fairly calm demeanor for the most part, but I do have my moments. Usually, they are over minor things. Or what most people would view as minor things. The projectionist at a theater makes a mistake with projecting the film improperly. Who goes to tell the projectionist without missing any of the film? The sound cuts out during a movie. You leave your seat to complain. The sound comes back and cuts out again. You complain again. This continues until you receive a refund or some sort of comparable compensation. Needless to say, when something happens at the cinema, I'm used to complaining.
Today, I had one of those moments, but not at the movies. As soon as I got back home from school, I sat down in front of my TV and turned on my local CBS affiliate, waiting for the US Open. I watched the rest of “Let's Make a Deal,” and waited. Then Ellen came on the TV with her talk show. At this point, I figured that there had been a rain delay or something of that nature and that they would join the match once it began. I waited and waited. Finally, I just gave up, assuming that it had been delayed until later in the night, or that our local CBS affiliate just decided to not show it live, but in prime time tonight.
I was a ball of rage when I found out what had actually occurred. The US Open finals were going on. WABI, our local affiliate, chose to show local programming instead of the US Open finals match. Considering that this was the only network that could show the final match in the US Open, I figured I had to let them know that I was upset. I e-mailed them with the following complaint:
Hi,
You really thought local programming was more important than the US Open final? Really? Thanks!
-Tony
A rude e-mail, I do admit. Understand though, that I was really upset. A few things to note about this e-mail and writing e-mails in general. Generally, I try to keep e-mails where I have a complaint fairly civil, courteous, and as polite as possible. I teach my students to do this and tell them to approach everything in a mature and proper manner. This time, I clearly was not courteous and did not approach things in a mature fashion.
In this case, I don't regret the way I approached WABI and can't say that I would have done anything differently. If we, as passionate tennis fans, watch all of the US Open on the same affiliate, and then are denied watching the final because someone decides local programming is more important, then I view that as a sign of disrespect. I can't help but view this in any other way. Clearly, the local CBS does not care about me as a viewer and so my opinion of them automatically changes. While I try to teach my students to approach things in a civil manner, even if it is something that is minor in the grand scheme of things (like missing the first two sets of the US Open finale), it's hard to maintain a cool head at all times. As a teacher and as a human being, I understand that.
Today, I had one of those moments, but not at the movies. As soon as I got back home from school, I sat down in front of my TV and turned on my local CBS affiliate, waiting for the US Open. I watched the rest of “Let's Make a Deal,” and waited. Then Ellen came on the TV with her talk show. At this point, I figured that there had been a rain delay or something of that nature and that they would join the match once it began. I waited and waited. Finally, I just gave up, assuming that it had been delayed until later in the night, or that our local CBS affiliate just decided to not show it live, but in prime time tonight.
I was a ball of rage when I found out what had actually occurred. The US Open finals were going on. WABI, our local affiliate, chose to show local programming instead of the US Open finals match. Considering that this was the only network that could show the final match in the US Open, I figured I had to let them know that I was upset. I e-mailed them with the following complaint:
Hi,
You really thought local programming was more important than the US Open final? Really? Thanks!
-Tony
A rude e-mail, I do admit. Understand though, that I was really upset. A few things to note about this e-mail and writing e-mails in general. Generally, I try to keep e-mails where I have a complaint fairly civil, courteous, and as polite as possible. I teach my students to do this and tell them to approach everything in a mature and proper manner. This time, I clearly was not courteous and did not approach things in a mature fashion.
In this case, I don't regret the way I approached WABI and can't say that I would have done anything differently. If we, as passionate tennis fans, watch all of the US Open on the same affiliate, and then are denied watching the final because someone decides local programming is more important, then I view that as a sign of disrespect. I can't help but view this in any other way. Clearly, the local CBS does not care about me as a viewer and so my opinion of them automatically changes. While I try to teach my students to approach things in a civil manner, even if it is something that is minor in the grand scheme of things (like missing the first two sets of the US Open finale), it's hard to maintain a cool head at all times. As a teacher and as a human being, I understand that.
Saturday, September 10, 2011
Unfinished Reads
An issue of Film Comment arrived in the mail yesterday. I ended my subscription to the magazine about four months ago because I find it a pain to have to wait to read certain articles because the movies that are being written about have not made their way up here yet (and sometimes never do). I wait until I've seen the film, but usually by the time I have seen it, another issue has arrived and my thoughts are diverted to different articles and waiting for different films so that I can read THOSE articles. Though I do dislike this never ending circle, it is an excellent magazine and I found myself forced to resubscribe.
My wife, on the other hand, will have a magazine arrive and will not touch anything else until that magazine is complete. She won't read any books until it is done. She won't read any short stories. The bottom line is, she is dedicated to her current reading and waits until that is done to start something else. She would never read a few articles, put the magazine down, and return to it next month. Whether it be a book, an anthology, or as discussed earlier, a magazine, she reads it to completion before going on to another work.
This thought brought about a list of books that I began reading and to this day have not finished. I made a list in hopes that I could get to revisit and finish some of these books, but came to the realization that I probably will not finish all of them. The books are...
Horns by Joe Hill
The Spy Who Came In from the Cold by John le Carre
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Trainspotting by Irvine Welsh
The Complete Chronicles of Conan by Robert E. Howard
The Wizard and the Glass by Stephen King
The list may not seem long to some, but there are others I'm positive I have missed. These are just from the past two years.
One of the difficulties that I have when reading is that my mind wanders. The books on the above list span different genres and authors, and ultimately it's the reason I have not finished these books yet. I plan to, but in order to completely enjoy a novel I have to be in the right mood. I read to enjoy, and if I'm not in the mood to enjoy, say, a science fiction novel, then what's the point in reading it at that moment? Or, in the case of Film Comment, if I haven't seen the films in discussion, then what is the point of reading it if I can't fully enjoy it?
My wife, on the other hand, will have a magazine arrive and will not touch anything else until that magazine is complete. She won't read any books until it is done. She won't read any short stories. The bottom line is, she is dedicated to her current reading and waits until that is done to start something else. She would never read a few articles, put the magazine down, and return to it next month. Whether it be a book, an anthology, or as discussed earlier, a magazine, she reads it to completion before going on to another work.
This thought brought about a list of books that I began reading and to this day have not finished. I made a list in hopes that I could get to revisit and finish some of these books, but came to the realization that I probably will not finish all of them. The books are...
Horns by Joe Hill
The Spy Who Came In from the Cold by John le Carre
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Trainspotting by Irvine Welsh
The Complete Chronicles of Conan by Robert E. Howard
The Wizard and the Glass by Stephen King
The list may not seem long to some, but there are others I'm positive I have missed. These are just from the past two years.
One of the difficulties that I have when reading is that my mind wanders. The books on the above list span different genres and authors, and ultimately it's the reason I have not finished these books yet. I plan to, but in order to completely enjoy a novel I have to be in the right mood. I read to enjoy, and if I'm not in the mood to enjoy, say, a science fiction novel, then what's the point in reading it at that moment? Or, in the case of Film Comment, if I haven't seen the films in discussion, then what is the point of reading it if I can't fully enjoy it?
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
New(er) Review
This past Friday Indomina released a film called “Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame” theatrically. The title (a mouthful) is probably not one that most have heard of, but for Hong Kong film fans it was something to get excited about. Tsui Hark, director of many acclaimed films and many debacles, always creates work that is of interest. I had ordered the foreign DVD from a seller in Hong Kong back in April, and reviewed the title for my brother's site shortly after. At the time, I absolutely did not like the film. I thought that it was dull and slow paced for a Hong Kong fantasy film, and was completely surprised at the talent involved. It felt like it was a waste.
Flash forward to this past Friday. Reviews for “Detective Dee” coming in from professional critics and pretty much every major film critic gave the film high marks. I read their reviews. I looked back at my review. I found myself hating every word of it. I have never felt more like an amateur in my life. Discussing the major differences between my perspective and the perspective of other critics with my brother, I finally told him that I wanted to revisit the film. I wanted to watch the film over again and give it a completely fresh review.
Upon second viewing I saw the film in a completely different way. The fight scenes that I previously had called boring, I now saw as slow paced, yet entertaining. The plot, which first seemed convoluted and unnecessarily confusing, now seemed simple. I have never had to re-write a review before and take back negative comments I had made, but now I had to. I did not mind this at all and actually felt like it was a liberating experience.
As a writer, reader, and viewer, I have to accept that certain things will change. Films that I despise could grow on me. Novels that I once hated could become favorites. In giving these works another chance, we open ourselves to create new, positive experiences where negative ones previously lived. Having an open mind when it comes to different works is crucial to our ability to teach. I may not completely understand the popularity of Sarah Dessin books now, but like with “Detective Dee,” my opinion and understanding of it could change. Given a year or two, I could be completely crazy about Sarah Dessin books. This is unlikely, but it could happen.
Flash forward to this past Friday. Reviews for “Detective Dee” coming in from professional critics and pretty much every major film critic gave the film high marks. I read their reviews. I looked back at my review. I found myself hating every word of it. I have never felt more like an amateur in my life. Discussing the major differences between my perspective and the perspective of other critics with my brother, I finally told him that I wanted to revisit the film. I wanted to watch the film over again and give it a completely fresh review.
Upon second viewing I saw the film in a completely different way. The fight scenes that I previously had called boring, I now saw as slow paced, yet entertaining. The plot, which first seemed convoluted and unnecessarily confusing, now seemed simple. I have never had to re-write a review before and take back negative comments I had made, but now I had to. I did not mind this at all and actually felt like it was a liberating experience.
As a writer, reader, and viewer, I have to accept that certain things will change. Films that I despise could grow on me. Novels that I once hated could become favorites. In giving these works another chance, we open ourselves to create new, positive experiences where negative ones previously lived. Having an open mind when it comes to different works is crucial to our ability to teach. I may not completely understand the popularity of Sarah Dessin books now, but like with “Detective Dee,” my opinion and understanding of it could change. Given a year or two, I could be completely crazy about Sarah Dessin books. This is unlikely, but it could happen.
Purpose
The last time I started a blog it seemed as though it had no purpose. I would come on and write a film review every once in awhile. Two weeks later I might come on and write another one. The funny thing is, the films I found myself reviewing weren't even ones that I was passionate about. They were just random films that I had seen recently that I thought I could write about in a humorous or lighthearted manner.
Film has always been important to me and I have always written and discussed it. Intelligent film discussion is hard to come by these days, and unfortunately I can't say that my blog really added anything special to the world of film criticism. Most blogs about film have a clever name that relates to something only genuine cinephiles would understand. My previous blog was called “Corn Rigs and Barley Rigs,” named after a song from “The Wicker Man.” Even this blog, which I don't intend to use as a platform for discussing film, is a play on the film title “Righting Wrongs” from Hong Kong.
Then my brother started a blog. He was also writing film reviews. From my perspective, it made more sense to stop writing on “Corn Rigs and Barley Rigs” and begin writing on his blog. It was an easy decision to make and I do not regret it, but blogging (on my own) was always something that I wanted to get back to. With this class, I knew that I had to create a blog, but considering I still write film reviews for his blog, what else was there?
My blog needed a purpose. My immediate thoughts were to write about my writing of a film review. I may do some of this as I do like to examine the process of writing reviews. Writing a review can be surprisingly difficult, and it is a completely different form of writing that most are not used to. Then I thought about focusing on comic books? I enjoy reading them, and feel that there is little discussion of them past a certain age. The reading of comic books, and most of all what comic books are important to read, is something that I will also cover from time to time. And then there is always television, the new underrated art form. How many people honestly write critically about television beyond “Breaking Bad” and “Mad Men?”
Essentially, what this boils down to is the fact that my blog will focus on texts and art that I deem important. It will focus on how I analyze and write about different mediums, and will occasionally have a review of a particular text. This is my goal and hopefully it will be enjoyable for you to read and for me to write.
Film has always been important to me and I have always written and discussed it. Intelligent film discussion is hard to come by these days, and unfortunately I can't say that my blog really added anything special to the world of film criticism. Most blogs about film have a clever name that relates to something only genuine cinephiles would understand. My previous blog was called “Corn Rigs and Barley Rigs,” named after a song from “The Wicker Man.” Even this blog, which I don't intend to use as a platform for discussing film, is a play on the film title “Righting Wrongs” from Hong Kong.
Then my brother started a blog. He was also writing film reviews. From my perspective, it made more sense to stop writing on “Corn Rigs and Barley Rigs” and begin writing on his blog. It was an easy decision to make and I do not regret it, but blogging (on my own) was always something that I wanted to get back to. With this class, I knew that I had to create a blog, but considering I still write film reviews for his blog, what else was there?
My blog needed a purpose. My immediate thoughts were to write about my writing of a film review. I may do some of this as I do like to examine the process of writing reviews. Writing a review can be surprisingly difficult, and it is a completely different form of writing that most are not used to. Then I thought about focusing on comic books? I enjoy reading them, and feel that there is little discussion of them past a certain age. The reading of comic books, and most of all what comic books are important to read, is something that I will also cover from time to time. And then there is always television, the new underrated art form. How many people honestly write critically about television beyond “Breaking Bad” and “Mad Men?”
Essentially, what this boils down to is the fact that my blog will focus on texts and art that I deem important. It will focus on how I analyze and write about different mediums, and will occasionally have a review of a particular text. This is my goal and hopefully it will be enjoyable for you to read and for me to write.
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