Monthly Archives: May 2012

Fleeting: Poking fun at Ignorance

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Below are a few stories I have that have some interconnection:

THE NGUYEN DYNASTY
Before I begin let me show you an image and news article that made me chuckle a bit a while back:

Now in case you are wondering… if you were to read the words underneath those eight student’s pictures it would have read:

We know … what … you’re … thinking … and … no, … we’re … not related.

For a bit of a history lesson, the very last monarchy to rule in Viet Nam was the Nguyen dynasty (closest English pronunciation would be wynn or win). When the Nguyen dynasty came into power in the early 1800s many of the populace promptly changed their surnames (or family names as it is more widely known at the time) to Nguyen as a way to curry favor with the monarchy or to avoid persecution.

When the last monarch of the Nguyen dynasty abdicated his seat and transferred power to the State of Viet Nam, a fair number of the population stuck with the last name of Nguyen.

I suppose the English/American equivalent to Viet Nam’s “Nguyen” would be “Smith”. If you’re still kind of confused.

What annoys me (and many others in similar situations) is the common, “oh you have this last name then you must be related to…” No, not always. So the eight girls decided to really to poke fun at the average person’s ignorance and pull a prank on their yearbook quote… and honestly I found it funny even if others might not. 🙂

Anyway, seeing the above image and reading the corresponding article(s) is what drove me to write this particular post with a little of my own experiences with racial ignorances:

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Review: Lemont High School’s production of Chicago

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Normally it would take a lot for me to think about going to see a high school production. Not only that but I’m not really a fan of the Chicago musical either, but what brought me ultimately to see this particular high school production was because one of the students I tutored in mathematics was a part of it. What makes this student different from most anyone else is the fact that for someone as cerebral as she is, auditioning for a play, let alone a musical is a huge step away from her norm. It was a risk, but when it came out that she was called back for the part of Velma Kelly (mind you this is her first audition), but ultimately cast in ensemble… it meant a great deal for her, and I vowed to do what I can to see her in it.

Fortunately time was by my side, with rehearsal over by five, I had enough time to relax and then ultimately head over to Lemont High School to see her production, what I didn’t expect to see was her not only in the ensemble, but also w/ lines as the Bailiff in the trial of Roxie Hart. As her math tutor I was more than proud for her, she did something that was completely and totally out of her comfort zone and not only did she find that she enjoyed it, she actually caught the acting bug as well.

What caught my attention from the get go was the actress that played Roxie Hart. Roxie, to me, was suppose to be this annoying little chit while Velma Kelly should be the starlet that needed a real breakthrough. Instead the girl that played Roxie totally stole the show while the girl that played Velma bored me half to death.

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Review: Emursive presents Punchdrunk’s Sleep No More

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Early in April (the first weekend of April) I made a trip to New York City to watch a couple of theatre productions for one of the blogs that I write for. While there I saw Disney’s the Newsies the Musical and Once the Musical… in fact my impressions of those particular shows have been posted on my blog already.

There is one show – if it can be considered a “show” – that I also went to that went beyond all words and description that it literally took me a few months to truly comprehend what I had experienced and realized that when I go back to New York, I would be more than willing to plop down more to see the production a few more times. Yes, a few… and I’ve already “seen” it twice.

British Theatre Company: Punchdrunk made the trip over the ocean to introduce the Americans to a new kind of theatre experience with the presentation of Sleep No More. They first made their debut in Brookline, Massachusetts, when they took over an abandoned school and transformed it into a variety of scenes that delve into the world of Shakespeare’s Macbeth and tying this Shakespearan tragedy into the world of the Speakeasy / Film Noir.

Even now I am having difficulty organizing my thoughts on this fantastical production. I’ll see what I can do though:
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Reflection: Regret is a Funny Thing

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Once upon a time… a guy was visiting his family in the States from Europe. He met this girl that caught his attention, but she was with someone else at the time. She agreed to take a few days off from her life and work schedule to introduce him to the city and keep him company and they hit it off well. A few years later after he dated around and she moved on from the previous relationship, they struck up conversation again via email and reconnected. It came off that they were both still single and both were interested in meeting the other, so the guy flew back to the States to visit the girl but the chemistry wasn’t there, the girl had placed her job as more of a priority over the guy.

The girl spent as much time with guy as she thought she was able, but the connection, the chemistry from before and from online just wasn’t there. Guy left the States disheartened and girl knew she made a mistake. Girl vowed that if given the chance she would have guy be more of a priority in her life over work/career, but that chance never came… guy emailed later saying the chemistry just wasn’t there and he didn’t want to make another trip if it just wouldn’t work out. Girl agreed, regretfully and both parties moved on…

Over the years, though girl never heard from guy, she still grew as a result of a mistake she felt she made with guy. She learned to place family, friends and life above her job/career and as a result lived a fuller life, she vowed that in any relationship that she would find herself in down the road would take precedence over her job… She never really thought about guy except in passing and hoped to reconnect with him as a precursor to a possible trip through Europe but that never materialized either. Deep down she always knew that if an opportunity arose or if they had lived closer she would have fought to keep him in her life, because she had always regretted letting him go. So when word came to pass – seven years after their initial meeting – that he was engaged to another she didn’t experience loss as she had expected, but rather happiness and joy. For in her mind, he found someone that he felt he connected with in a way that they were unable to all those years ago.

And so it was… the one guy I ever really regretted in letting go has moved on and found another. And you know what? I’m ok with that, because he deserves all the joy and love in the world. So I suppose in hindsight… I don’t really regret him anymore and in some ways I’ve moved on as well.

UPDATE: Website Additions and Changes

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After looking through the years of writing projects that I’ve shelved, I’m dusting off a lot of what I have written and posting them at “Beyond the Abyss”, a side blog dedicated to everything related to my fictional writing projects (primarily fanfiction and some original).

I am doing this primarily because questions have popped up over the years in regards to some of the things I have written and were discontinued for one reason or another. This particular side blog will be connected primarily with such projects like Currents, Like a Dream, and the fanfiction Elements of Song that I have worked on in the past and will post ideas, characters, background that I feel have no chance of being revisited again in the near future. Another web-drama that never got a chance to come off the ground was Rosarito, I may provide insight to that particular never launched web serial depending on which characters/background I may recycle for future works.

In the meantime, in the coming months I will be busy blogging at other sites:
Pure America’s Got Talent (Mondays and Tuesdays)
– Providing the music list and personal thoughts/power rankings on the acts that have come through the show

Pure So You Think You Can Dance (Wednesdays)
– Providing the music list and personal thoughts on the dancers during the auditions and power rankings when the performances are live

Pure Dancing with the Stars (Thursdays and/or Fridays)
– Providing comparison statistics of previous seasons to this last season
– Providing statistics and graphs of celebrities rumored to be on the show for the Season 15 All-Star Season in the Fall

Also in preparation for Season 15 of Dancing with the Stars, because so many questions have popped up I will be providing expository calculations, reasoning and breakdowns as to how I come up with the predicted calculations and pre-season elimination predictions. These pages will be found via the PureDWTS page on my personal blog.

Literary Review: Changeless by Gail Carriger

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Title: Changeless
Author: Gail Carriger
Series: Book Two
Format: Audiobook

So here we are, the second audio book of the Parasol Protectorate series by Gail Carriger: Changeless. I don’t know where to begin… well I guess I’ll start with the technical aspect of the audiobook. I rather enjoy listening to Emily Gray’s interpretation of the variety of characters in Changeless.

Part of the reason I never mentioned Emily Gray during my review of Soulless was simply because I wasn’t entirely sold on a female voice emulating so many male voices. I loved Emily as she interpreted Alexia, her sisters, her friend Ivy and even Lord Akeldama… however. So I chose to wait and give it another audiobook to see if my feelings have changed, and in honestly because Changeless has so many female characters taking center stage, this made the listening experience much more pleasurable.

While in the first novel we were introduced into Gail Carriger’s interpretation of the supernatural world and how they are integrated with society at the time. This second novel delves more into the unknown of the supernatural… primarily the preternatural.

Alexia is as witty and stubborn as always, and while her husband has run off to Scotland to take care of a “family problem”, she is trying to figure out what is causing the mass exorcism of the ghosts in the London area and the humanization of the vampires and werewolves. After a little digging around, Alexia believes that the solution involves following her husband up north, into Scotland.

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Fleeting: Sense and Sensibility the Musical by Jeffrey Haddow and Neal Hampton

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Back in late-September of 2011, I went to New York City to watch the up and coming musical: Jane Austen’s Pride & Prejudice via the New York Musical Festival.

When I first listened to the music for Jane Austen’s Pride & Prejudice created by Lindsay Warren Baker and Amanda Jacobs, I would admit, as much as I enjoyed pieces of the music I wasn’t completely sold. Until I went to see this production live on stage… seeing everything put together did the music come to life to me. Not necessarily a good thing, but it does bring the audience goer deeper into the story.

The music of Sense & Sensibility by Jeffrey Haddow and Neal Hampton is very similar to that for me. When listening to the music, I was intrigued, but very few songs drew me in. One of these being “I Must Have Sense” that Elinor sings to Marianne in an attempt to prevent herself from breaking down in the possibility of losing her sister.

In the meantime while reading my RSS Feed I found out that one Marcia Milgrom Dodge (Tony nominee for Best Direction of a Musical of the 2009’s revival of Ragtime) was tapped to direct the production at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts for their 2012-2013 season.

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Fleeting: The Viet Khang Movement

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Politics, the art of the possible… So says the military in the now revived show of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Evita (starring Ricky Martin, Elena Rogers and Michael Cervaris), but this post isn’t about Evita, or anything remotely Broadway related… but because I had the song stuck in my head and I feel like starting this post on a musical note:

Anyway! So I was at my grandparents for dinner and on the television was a programme talking about what has been happening around the world. Two months ago an artist/musician was arrested by the secret police and there is a movement in Washington DC to force the US hand in releasing the political prisoner. In fact, the movement take it a step further and is calling upon the U.S. government and others to investigate the human rights abuses and oppression in a country that the U.S. had a hand in many years ago.

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Entertainment: The ‘Auror’s Tale’ by Red Phoenix Pictures

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Yes I’m a huge Harry Potter fan. So when I heard that a group of people over at Red Phoenix Pictures based in New York City was developing a web series called the “Auror’s Tale”, I was about as giddy as a kid at Christmas.

So when MuggleNet posted a 10-second video sneak peek from the “Auror’s Tale”. I was positively thrilled. The sneak peek is fascinating enough for me to want to watch later… Though, later in the day a full minute trailer of the Auror’s Tale was released, and now I can’t wait til the webseries air.

My understanding is that this is set in New York City where Dark Magic controls the underground and it is up to the NYC Department of Magical Law Enforcement (DMLE) is the only defense against them. For anyone that is a fan of the Harry Potter series, this is a web series made by fans that grew up with the books, for fans that grew up with the books. Releasing the web series in 10-minute increments they plan on a DVD release upon completion of the series of 10-minute increments on the web.

Literary Reviews: Blink vs. Think (Part Two of Three) by Malcolm Gladwell

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Title: Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking
Author: Malcolm Gladwell
Format: Audiobook

So in part one of this series I wrote about how I balance decision making between logic / reasoning and gut instinct / intuition. Also noted was the self-awareness that I was using logic and reasoning far too much in my life and the active shift towards integrating gut instinct / intuition into my conscious thought.

In the last post, I also mentioned two books that I have read that also lead into those trains of thought. I don’t believe in going down just one road or the other, but rather finding a balance of both. So this particular post will be my thoughts / review on the book Blink: The Power of Thinking without Thinking by Malcolm Gladwell. While the third post in this series would be about the rebuttal book Think!: Why Crucial Decisions Can’t be Made in the Blink of an Eye by Michael LeGault.

Blink dives into the hypothesis that “quick judgment” decisions work just as well if not better than decisions based off of extensive analysis. The author also talks about how one’s likes and dislikes, prejudices and stereotypes, and biases can color their gut instinct / intuition. But how can one tell if they have an unconscious bias?

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Entertainment News: The Voice is coming back in the Fall

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Why am I not surprised? The Voice, NBC’s summer smash hit in 2011, and made new waves in spring of 2012 is going to come back in the fall 2012 lineup.

Not only that they are planning to cycle in additional judges to the panel. Not necessarily because of the chemistry of the current panel, but on the contrary TPTB (The Powers That Be) feel that since the judges are all working musicians, to ask them to schedule time for the show would be asking too much as it is.

To say that I’m excited is an understatement. What I am most worried about is whom they would bring on as coaches, after all the chemistry between the judges panel now (CeeLo Green, Adam Levine, Blake Shelton and Christina Aguilera) was a total unknown when the show premiere last summer and it soon became such a massive hit. I mean take a look at the Superbowl promo they filmed:

Anyway, I’m getting off the point. I think the only way that the Voice can sell in the Fall is if they make just as huge of a knockout with the judging panel as they currently have. But who to bring?

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Personal Endeavors: Stage Musical “Wish List”

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Ask any actor/actress that enjoys being a part of theatre, chances are they probably have a short list of shows and/or roles they’d love to play. I’m no different despite this being more of a hobby for me than anything. Although I don’t have a stage play short list (I am usually game to most anything) I do have a musical theatre short list… two of those musicals I have either already done or am doing, so what do I have left?

Well let’s start with what I have already done:
– City of Angels
Yes, I was even willing to grow a beard for a show. =) I loved the musical: City of Angels ever since I first heard “The Tennis Song”, so when I read up on the synopsis of the show and started listening to more of the music I knew that this was a production I just HAD to be a part of. Little did I know what the director at Theatre-on-the-Hill had in store for me…

City of Angels is NOT based off the Nicholas Cage movie of the same name. Instead it is about a writer whose is hired to adapt a popular book of his for the big screen. As we follow the writer go through the perils of working in Hollywood we are also watching scenes from his movie unfold concurrently. Changes he has made in the script are seen live on the stage as it happens.

What I love about this particular show is how two seemingly separate storylines are intertwined. There are particular moments in the shows where you see only one story or the other, and sometimes you see them both happening concurrently. Sure it forces you to think more than the average show, but once you get it, it makes the whole thing even funnier and worthwhile.

There was one conversation I had with a friend whose career is in the performing arts and we agreed that if someone is truly serious about acting and performing they better damn well be willing to make a fool of themself on stage. Pride, image, ego, etc goes right out the door, there is simply no room for it. If you’re not willing to “look ugly” on stage, then you’re not really serious about acting.

I swallowed my pride for my art and to this day people still remember that role. That’s making an impression. People don’t always remember the leads or the straight forward roles, they tend to remember the crazy, off beat, quirky characters. Plus you have fun along the way. =)

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Entertainment News: Into the Woods in NYC and MN

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At first I was so excited that Into the Woods was going to get the outdoor treatment and seeing who was cast in the show at Shakespeare in the Park nearly convinced me to make the trip to NYC towards the end of July just to see it happen.

Now after just reading the possibility of The Public Theater talking to investors and raising the funds to see it make a turn on Broadway, it just makes me giddy with anticipation.

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Fleeting: Mother’s Day’s Dark History

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Who really knows what Mother’s Day is about? I sure didn’t, I was taught in elementary school that Mother’s Day is a day to celebrate the mother in your life. To take a day to spend time with her and revel in being their son or daughter and to thank your mother for all that she did.

Mother’s Day started due to the efforts of Anna Jarvis, a woman who never had any children of her own and was moved by the death of her own mother. So she wanted everyone to send an intimate day/evening/time with their mother where she wouldn’t have a chance to do so herself.

However, as it was for all “special occasion” days, it quickly became commercialized and Anna’s original idea of an intimate Mother’s Day dissipated. How? She felt that the idea of giving your mother a greeting card as opposed to writing a letter or creating a card yourself promoted sloth and idleness.

So when Mother’s Day became more and more commercialized, the woman that originally fought to create Mother’s Day in the first place, now found herself fighting against what it had become.

In the end, Mother’s Day is as it has become today… and I think in a way that Anna couldn’t see over a century ago is that people still spend time with their mothers. The joy of the freedom of choice is a chance to spend time with your mother in the best way that you see fit. For some it may be a few hours. For others it may be just the day… or others still, like myself… it’ll be more of a weekend, if not a week. =)

So happy Mother’s Day for all the mothers out there… and for everyone else, how are you planning to spend Mother’s Day?

Inspirational Poetry: “Letting Go”

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This was something I came across years ago… I don’t remember nor know why.

==========

To “let go” does not mean to stop caring,
it means I can’t do it for someone else.
To “let go” is not to cut myself off,
it’s the realization I can’t control another.
To “let go” is not to enable,
but to allow learning from natural consequences.
To “let go” is to admit powerlessness,
which means the outcome is not in my hands.
To “let go” is not to try to change or blame another,
it’s to make the most of myself.
To “let go” is not to care for,
but to care about.
To “let go” is not to fix,
but to be supportive.
To “let go” is not to judge,
but to allow another to be a human being.
To “let go” is not to be in the middle arranging the outcomes,
but to allow others to affect their own destinies.
To “let go” is not to be protective,
it’s to permit another to face reality.
To “let go” is not to deny,
but to accept.
To “let go” is not to nag, scold or argue,
but instead to search out my own shortcomings, and correct them.
To “let go” is not to adjust everything to my desires
but to take each day as it comes, and cherish myself in it.
To “let go” is not to criticize and regulate anybody
but to try to become what I dream I can be.
To “let go” is not to regret the past,
but to grow and live for the future.
To “let go” is to fear less, and love more.
Remember: The time to love is short

(Unknown Author)