LOST

Ok, so there's seriously way too much to write about. If you could hear me talk about Lost in real life, you would see that I'm completely obsessed. In fact, when the final season was airing on TV, I dropped a night class, because it interfered with the air time. Seriously.

Anyway, I'll simply list the reasons why I love Lost, and why everyone who has ever lived should watch it:

1. It has THE most incredible character development. Ever.

2. I'm convinced it revolutionized TV and made it incredibly better.

3. Hawaii is beautiful.

4. The cliffhangers are THE BEST!

5. The writing is amazing.

6. There's action and love stories and comedy and...oh, yeah, awesome characters. Sci-fi, too. And explosions. And polar bears.

7. The music is phenomenal. 

8. It's so horribly sad sometimes.

9.  The series was planned out from episode one.

10. It's like 100+ amazing movies with the same characters.

And for all of you that have never seen Lost, I'll tell you that you need to set aside a few months of your life for it, because it's like a drug, and when you start watching it, you can't.stop.

But if there's one reason for you ever to watch the series, it's this: the season 3 finale, "Through the Looking Glass," is the best thing-- movie or TV episode-- that I have ever seen.

Olympics

There are so many reasons why I love the Olympics. I love summer Olympics and winter Olympics. I love them all equally, and each time they're going on, I decide I like the one that's on better than the other one. But the truth is, I can't decide.

But I love all of the Olympics for multiple reasons.

First, most Olympic athletes aren't making $10 million a year. They're doing this because they love it. They've dedicated their lives to training and competing for this moment, every 4 years. And that is absolutely incredible.

I love watching people do something they're passionate about and living their dreams. I love when they cry or fall down after their event because they're so incredibly excited. I just love it. Sometimes I even want to cry. Sometimes I almost do.

The second reason why I love the Olympics is because people are amazing. This year, there is a double amputee running. He raced in th semi-final for the men's 400m. There was another guy racing from the U.S. who was caught in a random shotgun crossfire a few years ago and just had the last fragments removed a year ago. The gymnast who began gymnastics as part of a free inner-city program and dreams of winning a medal to move his family out of the ghetto.

The commentators always talk about the Olympic spirit, and it's so true. These people are amazing.

Another reason the Olympics are awesome is that there are all these incredible sports that never get the attention they deserve. I, for one, think swimming and gymnastics are much more exciting than golf or basketball or baseball, but you don't see them aired on TV every week. And some things that you would never think are exciting actually are, like crew and archery.

They seem a little boring, but I find myself cheering for the athletes anyway, no matter what country.

Which brings me to another reason why the Olympics rock. Because every 4 years (actually every 2, since there's summer and winter), the world competes in sports against each other. The entire world!

The whole world works together and competes together and hugs each other and congratulates each other and gets excited together and has these awesome ceremonies together and roots for one another. 

And that, to me, is incredibly amazing.

It's a shame the world can't get along that well any other time. But that's another story.

And I can't leave this blog post without talking about one other thing that makes the Olympic Games awesome. Actually, I could go on forever, but I'll have to contain myself.

The final things I'll mention are the Visa Go World commercials.

I know they're commercials advertising a corporation and all that, but they make me cry. Seriously.

To gear up for the 2012 London Games, I sat in my room and watched Go World commercials on YouTube. And I cried.

The Michael Phelps one from Beijing when he won more golds than anyone ever!

The Derek Redmond one where his father helps him finish the race!

The Nadia Comaneci one!

They're all so inspiring and amazing. I love them. Triumph of the human spirit, indeed.

Oh, and one more thing before I go. I love that the Olympics are everywhere around the world and you get to see all these different locations and different cultures. I dream of going to the Olympic games one day. Hopefully that will happen.

Wildflowers

I'm not a big flower person.

I think they're pretty and everything, but they cost way too much money and die right away.

But wildflowers. Now those are amazing.

They're cheap, and much prettier than any rose or carnation in a flower shop. 

There's just something about hiking in the woods an coming across a patch of wild daisies or little purple flowers or unidentifiable pink ones. 

It's like a little colorful break in a sea of green grass and moss and leaves, and it's so beautiful.

They have character, wildflowers. And they're like couches for fat little bumblebees.

I went to the Smokey Mountains once, and I had never seen so many wildflowers (or bumblebees!) in my life. The flowers were beautiful, all different colors, stretching across such a huge surface.

Like I said, I'm not huge on flowers. I don't plant them and I don't buy them and I don't have a million fake ones around my house. But if I see one flower in the wild, I'm all over that. I pull out my camera and take half a  dozen pictures of this little, lone, flower. 

Because they're just there. No one planted them and no one takes care of them. They just live. 

And they're beautiful.

 

Flowers everywhere!

Sunshine

I know it sounds pretty dumb, because who doesn't like sunshine, right? 

But I never realized how much I love sunshine until this year. I've always lived in Michigan, where it's winter half the year, and I was used to it. But this year, I lived in Georgia for most of the fall, and when I came back to Michigan, it was late-November.

And late-November in my part of Michigan is gloomy. And so is December, and January, and February, and March, and even most of April.

So, I'd come from Georgia, where it was sunny all the time, back to Michigan, where it was dark every day. And it was only then that I realized how incredibly amazing sunshine is.

Because it's only sunny a few months of the year, I have to take advantage of it when I can. I have this thing where I can't possibly sit inside when it's sunny out. I have to be outside. It drives me crazy if I'm inside. 

So even when there's the slightest hint of sun, I'm outside reading or writing or walking or playing yard games. Anything to get out there.

I used to get rashes and headaches from the sun, so I had to wear this really geeky visor around to protect myself. But I still went out in the sun, because it's impossible for me not to.

Now, I've realized that if I wear sunscreen, I don't get rashes, and if I wear sunglasses I don't have to squint to see, and I don't get headaches. So I look much more fashionable in the summertime.

The other problem is that sunshine kind of sucks the life out of me. I get dehydrated really easily, and one time, after a trip to Georgia in August, I had to go to the hospital and get an I.V. to replenish my body.

But I still love sunshine!

It's a complicated relationship, mine and the sun's, but it's certainly not a love-hate one. 

Just love.

Good Movies

As a wannabe screenwriter, I have an immense appreciation for good movies.

Or, at least, I should.

And I do. Really.

There's something about a good movie-- and by "good" I mean super well-made, cool story, great acting, awesome everything-- that makes me feel so pumped when I finish watching it.

When I finish watching a good movie, I want to go out and tell the world about it. I want to stand on top of the Empire State Building with a megaphone and shout out everything that's awesome about it.

Only I'm afraid of heights.

But good movies are like endorphins. They give off the best feeling in the world. Even better than concert-high. More on that later.

The reason I'm writing this is I just finished watching Drive, which was, quite possibly, the most well-made and cleverest movie I've seen in a while. That shadow shot was incredible. INCREDIBLE! If you've seen it, you'll know what I'm talking about.

Last week at a film school interview, I was asked why I liked Taxi Driver. And all I could come up with was: "It was entertaining. And I liked the look of it."

Really? That's it?

That was it.

But then I remembered exactly why I liked it. And the reasons are many.

First, it was Robert De Niro. De Niro! Suuuuuuuuuch a good actor! That final scene, when he looks in the rear-view mirror is seriously some of the best acting I've ever seen.

Secondly, the deconstruction of that character. What a change!

Third, yes, the look of it. Of course the look of it! It's film noir! It has a dirty city and newspapers and dull colors and dimly-lit streets.

And Martin Scorsese is amazing. And it has awesome camera angles! And the fact that he survived is pretty crazy and kind of cheesy, but whatever! It's De Niro!

And all of those things, I couldn't think of when the time came.

So I had to say them now.

But it's that kind of excitement that good movies invoke.

And I don't always like well-made movies. There are a lot of well-made movies that I think are boring or depressing (Here's looking at you, Aronofsky) or just overrated.

But movies like Drive or Taxi Driver are just movie magic.

Awards Shows

Now that LOST is over, there are three things I watch on TV all year: the Emmys, the Golden Globes, and the Oscars.

That's it.

I'm not into the VMAs or the People's Choice Awards, or the Grammys. The first two, I don't consider actual awards, and the third is music, and I really couldn't care less about it. I like music, but I like movies a million times more.

When awards shows are on, I devote my whole night to watching them. Especially the grandfather of all film awards shows: the Academy Awards. On my 20th birthday, the Oscars were on, and the only thing I wanted to do on my birthday was watch them. And that's what I did. The next year, I had a party and forced everyone to dress up and fill out voting ballots. I had champagne and hors d'oeuvres and everything.

There are three things I love most about awards shows: the glitzy gowns and the red carpet, surprised acceptance speeches, and the length of the telecast

On the night of any of the three awards shows, I start my night out by watching 2 or 3 hours of red carpet coverage. I love dresses, and I love fashion, so seeing all of the beautiful gowns is like my kryptonite. I love playing the critic, too. After the telecast, I go on People.com and make my own best dressed list. Yeah, I'm into it.

My second favorite thing, the acceptance speeches, may actually be what most people hate. I know a lot of people watch awards telecasts just for the dresses, unless they're on MTV and there's bound to be some crazy antics. But I love the speeches. They're best when the winner doesn't expect to win at all. Kate Winslet had a great one when she won her Oscar for Best Actress in The Reader. And Octavia Spencer had a pretty great one this past weekend when she won the Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress and almost fell off her feet.

It's all about crying and cursing and fainting for me. Sometimes I get chills. Sometimes I even cry.

The third thing I love most is where I definitely differ from every other person on the planet. I love how long awards shows are. Seriously. Because I'm more than happy to sit through an awards show for 3 hours after 3 hours of red carpet coverage.

I love every award. I love Best Screenplay, Best Director, and Best Sound Mixing as much as all of the major acting ones. Heck, I even think they should air some of the boring technical ones that nobody cares about on TV. Honor everyone! Hollywood equality for all!

But I know that I'm alone on the whole length debate. And that's fine. Because while everyone else is complaining because they can't watch American Idol, I'll be basking in the glamor of the evening.

I feel like, since I only watch 3 things on TV all year, I can afford to spend half a dozen hours in front of the TV.

The year the writer's strike was going on was a dark one. Not because I'm a working screenwriter or producer or director or anything like that, but because the Golden Globes were announced by a boring NBC host.

And there were no actors.

And there were no dresses.

And there were no acceptance speeches.

But those dark days are over, and it's awards season again. The Emmys are done, the Golden Globes have wrapped up, and the King is coming in less than a month. And I couldn't be more excited.

Eyebrow Actors

I know, it sounds very strange. But I love actors who use their eyebrows while acting.

I'm pretty picky when it comes to actors. Some actors, like Leonardo DiCaprio, Johnny Depp, and Brad Pitt are just great in whatever they do. And I love them.

And some actors aren't.

But some actors are simply amazing because they utilize movement of their eyebrows. It inspires so much more feeling in the audience. I swear!

For example, Jeremy Davies, who played Daniel Faraday on "Lost" was incredible. And why was he so incredible? Because he moved his eyebrows like crazy.

I mean, just look at this. You can see the movement in a still shot.


And, unfortunately for him maybe, because of this, he always looked saddened or confused or mysterious. But it totally fit the character. And it was marvelous. And very endearing.

Another really great eyebrow actor is Mr. Frodo Baggins. Er...Elijah Wood. He's got some eyebrow-moving prowess!

There's this scene in "Return of the King" where he looks at Sam and kind of smiles and folds his eyebrows up and it's so touching. Watch it if you don't believe me. Another great eyebrow scene is when everyone bows to the Hobbits at the end. Watch him. Watch Frodo.

Here are a few pictures of Elijah Wood as Frodo:



The first one is his "oh no!" look. The second is his little endearing-Hobbit-friend look. And the third is actually a drawing someone did. But the artist even included his eyebrow movement!

It's strange. I know. But it really helps. People like, say, Keanu Reeves, don't have what these guys have. And, why is that? Oh, yeah. Right.



I could teach a whole acting class based solely on my love for eyebrow movement in actors. But I won't.

For one thing, I'm really not qualified to do that. At all.

And for another, Acting 101: How to Move Your Eyebrows probably wouldn't draw in many interested students.

But I love it. And I'm sure other people love it, too.

To me, acting can really make or break a movie. And if the actors have the eyebrow-moving chops, then the movie is made.

So, call me crazy all you want. But you'll be watching for this.