A lighter topic

I write about a lot of more serious topics, but I'm not really a serious person.  I really enjoy having fun, and one thing I frequently do as a diversion (spurred on largely by Zach's love for this activity) is go to the movies.  I saw quite a few during 2012, and I am going to share my top 10 in case you are looking for something to rent.  The actors in italics are not necessarily the main characters, but the more famous actors, just in case you are curious "who's in it?"

10. 21 Jump Street  I'm sure you saw the previews, and you may have even rolled your eyes at the antics of Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum, assuming (understandably so) that all the funniest parts were in the trailer. I am happy to report that this assumption is false.  There is no deeper meaning in this movie, but it's a good solid 2 hours of funny, if that's what you're looking for!

9. Moonrise Kingdom  (Bruce Willis, Edward Norton, Bill Murray)This was one of the more unique storylines I've seen lately.  A child in foster care is at scout camp, and doesn't really fit in, so he runs away with a young girl.  Despite his oddities, they become close friends and even fall in (pre-teen) love.  It comes complete with a happy ending, too.

8. The Descendants  (George Clooney) I've always been interested in visiting Hawaii.  This movie made me want to go even more, and not just to visit, but to make it my home.  (Ok so I don't really ever foresee myself not living in the Pacific Northwest, but it's kind of a nice alternate reality to imagine.)  Have you ever felt angry at someone you loved while something horrible was happening to them, and had to reconcile all those emotions?  Then you will probably be able to relate to this movie.

7. Argo  (Ben Stiller, John Goodman, Victor Garber)  This movie captures an interesting bit of American history that was classified until the Clinton presidency.  It almost has to be a true story, because you cannot make this stuff up.  The cast really brings the story to life, and I challenge you to TRY not to have white knuckles by the end!!

6.  The Hunger Games  (Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Elizabeth Banks, Woody Harrelson) I read the whole trilogy of books just before going to see the movie, and I would recommend reading at least the first book before you see the movie; they do a really, really excellent job filling in some of the stuff that would seem difficult to understand from the vantage point of the main character, Katniss (Lawrence) but I still feel like there would have been some leaps that were not intuitive to me had I not read the books first.

5. Seven Psychopaths  (Collin Farrell, Woody Harrelson, Christopher Walken)  I wasn't quite sure what this movie was about going into it.  I thought I would find it entertaining but ultimately forgettable.  Wrong!!  It is one of the funniest movies I saw all year, and I'm not sure it was even billed as a comedy; or, at the very least, it is a different type of comedy than "21 Jump Street," more subtle and dry (and just a little graphic at times).  A writer (Farrell) is trying to come up with a plot involving 7 psychopathic people, and looks to real life for inspiration.  Christopher Walken basically plays who you expect him to play, which makes it that much more awesome.

4.  The Grey (Liam Neeson)  A plane full of men wrecks in the freezing arctic, and as the men try and survive the cold and the elements, they are also being hunted by a pack of wolves.  As they conquer some of the wolf pack, the wolf pack conquers some of them.  This movie makes even Bear Grylls look like a big wimp.

3.  The Perks of Being a Wallflower  (Emma Watson, Kate Walsh, Paul Rudd) A freshman-in-high-school boy looks for acceptance in the early 1990's.  Basically, I loved it because I found it relatable on a strange level.  I wasn't quite that shy or affected when I began college at OSU, but I was fairly shy and found some of the best and deepest friends of my life among people who were very different from me.

2.  Pitch Perfect (Anna Kendrick, Rebel Wilson, Elizabeth Banks)  Ok DON'T JUDGE until you've seen it.  I dragged Zach along with me, and even he loved it!!  Beca (Kendrick) is a college freshman who is being forced to attend the university her dad teaches at, even though she wants to produce music in L.A.  Her dad encourages her to be involved in a group, saying he will let her drop out after one year if she is involved in a group and still doesn't want to come back to be a sophomore.  She joins the Barden Bellas, an all-female a capella group which has graduated the strongest members and is looking to rebuild.  From there, all I can say is that hilarity ensues, and the musical numbers they put together are really, really catchy.  (And the a capella competition commentators are a hilarious touch.) I would put this movie on par with "Bridesmaids" in proving that women really can be really, really funny!

1.  Bernie  (Jack Black, Shirley MacLaine, Matthew McConaughey)  Don't go into this expecting to see a typical Jack Black movie.  You will almost forget it is him by the end of it, because he doesn't do any of that weird attention-seeking stuff.  He gives life to the character, and he is very believable.  He plays Bernie Tiede in a part-film-part-documentary about an early 1990's murder in east Texas.  Bernie came into town, worked for the church, and made little old ladies feel like they were the center of the universe when they became widowed.  He was beloved all throughout town, and befriended an especially crotchety one (MacLaine) especially closely.  One day something horrible happened...I will let the movie tell you the story.

A friend posted this on facebook, and it moved me.

It's true, that things that just happen to us can make us more valuable in the eyes of others.  Things like physical appearance, race, or the socioeconomic status we are born into (which is harder to break out of than most of us would like to believe).

But the part that really hit home for me was how she was talking about how insecure she is, and how none of the benefits of being a model make her all that happy.

I don't put this out there very often because it's hard to talk about (if you ask me about it in person, I will start crying and I don't know why, so please don't) and I don't like considering it part of my identity, especially since it's pretty well-resolved at this point, but I struggled with disordered eating in college.  I was never alarmingly small unless you were family or friends who'd known me for awhile, but I was pretty slender.  And to be honest with you, I liked having that body.  Wouldn't mind having it now.

Flash forward to now, I am about 30 pounds heavier than I was back then.  It's enough to put me one or two pounds into the "overweight" range (which I am working on, in a healthy way).  And you know what?  There is no point in all of my almost-29 years in which I could say that I am happier than I am right now.

Get secure in your own skin.  Develop a skill you can be proud of.  Spend time around people who are positive.  You probably don't look like a model, because few of us do, but that's more than ok.  Getting prettier (or skinnier) won't make you happy, but developing yourself into someone you genuinely like will.

Results which both conservatives and liberals want (citizens, not necessarily politicians)

An end to gun violence
An end to all violence
An end to child abuse
An end to poverty
An end to hunger
An end to joblessness and under-employment
An end to the need for war
An end to having a huge national debt
Everyone being able to access quality healthcare as needed
People being paid fair wages for the work they do
Children being properly educated in public schools with a variety of extracurricular offerings
Public safety officers doing good work and being respected for it
Personal rights being preserved

If you don't believe me, LISTEN (without arguing or formulating a rebuttal in your head) to 10 people you know who have differing political ideology from you.  I bet at least 7 of them have mostly the same end goals as you, and just different ideas of how best to accomplish that.

We are destroying this country with the divisive two party system and a refusal to find common ground!

*I even chickened out of putting one item in here just because I wanted to avoid the inevitably ensuing flame war once I posted this on facebook...we have enough to discuss with the above items.