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Gone Fishin’
Learning to fish is one of the most important skills a person should master.
But not in a river or a pond.
Well, not a literal river or pond.
Daniel Wallace’s literary masterpiece Big Fish: A Novel of Mythic Proportions, translated into the cinematic masterpiece Big Fish by the perfectly weird and surprisingly sentimental Tim Burton, does not dethrone The Great Gatsby as America’s favorite novel, but it surely has earned a spot on that same top-shelf.
The stories, the characters and the extraordinary circumstances experienced by an ordinary man should be read, seen and enjoyed by anybody who sees life through a dream-filled lens. This imaginative wonderland forces us to pause and challenge our surroundings and the people we meet and the people we become. It even dances around (though barefoot) the supreme question, “why are we here?”
Unfortunately, there is no magic sentence or grand reveal from Mr. Wallace or Mr. Burton that definitively answers that eternal uncertainty.
Fortunately though, Big Fish reminds us that earthly hints to answering this question are sprinkled along the long, winding path we walk.
It’s just an issue of how you see and hear the world.
https://youtu.be/KIuyDlPYTcg?t=9m
Before we get too far into this week, remember that your wild imagination is not limited to the weekend.
Walking up a busy stairwell could simply be walking up a busy stairwell.
Or…
Dream, Try, Do Good
Is 30 the new 25? 26? 27…?
How did this happen!? I turned (gulp) 30 this morning. This day always seemed so far off on the horizon that it was barely visible. The past few days, weeks and months have been increasingly overwhelming. To say it’s been like an out-of-body experience would be pretty accurate.
Now I know how a new ghost feels.
We all have goals we strive to achieve by certain ages in our lives, yet it’s interesting how quickly we forget how old we are when we reach these milestones or have a special, serendipitous moment. Everything else loses focus. It’s a little bit of a phenomenon. 30 is 30, which is just a number, except that’s it’s the most introspective number of them all. This is a transitional age that has the power to turn us on a dime and that’s a good thing. The next chapter always needs to be written with the same enthusiasm and unexpected expectations as the last with each new challenge, opportunity and chase towards a dream.
Saying goodbye to your 20s and welcoming your 30s, it feels a lot like this.
Boy Meets World for the win.
The Spinning Top Generation
(Princeton University, Office of Communications, Denise Applewhite)
What did forthcoming Princeton University graduates want to hear this week as they prepare to enter the overwhelmingly expansive real world that’s full of twists and turns and unlimited pathways that are equal part linear and non-linear?
A speech from today’s cinematic and storytelling expert on grit, epic realities and dreams: Christopher Nolan.
“In the great tradition of these speeches, generally someone says something along the lines of ‘Chase your dreams,’ but I don’t want to tell you that because I don’t believe that,” he told the students at Class Day. “I want you to chase your reality.”
One of the constants in movies by Nolan is that regardless of the setting, everything is realistic (and yes, this applies to those astonishing dream sequences). He proposed a novel idea in his speech: aspiring to our desired reality. This certainly includes, Inception, which he referenced to and added just a little context to that excruciatingly famous ending.
Instead of floating off onto a cloud above our reach towards the bright light of our dreams, he wants us to pick a reality and do anything we have to do to reach it. Like his movies, the main protagonist(s) are thrown into extraordinary situations, yet they choose to battle whatever barriers stand in their way. However psychologically draining or physically dominating their enemy/wave/tumbling hallway is, we must feel the bumps in the road on our feet, the rain on our faces and feel terrified by the surrounding thunder and lightning.
Why?
Because we have the knowledge to achieve a lot, but it’s only by testing and adjusting this knowledge through life’s unsuspecting experiences that we will ultimately learn how to reach and become our coveted reality. In essence, Nolan’s message is to add practicality to our journey and future, no matter the environment:
A dream is above us, but reality is in front of us.
I think the students listening were just glad that he adjusted the mind-bending element of his speech down from 90% to 70%.
You could say that was a bit of a dream come true.
Dance of the Butterfly
Spoiler Alert: Content in this blog post is from the April 29, 2015 episode of The Goldbergs
Feeling like a dork is strangely normal, but only in the rare cases when it’s socially acceptable. In every other situation, the embarrassment is like freaking out in the middle of a high school cafeteria at lunch protesting the lack of chocolate pudding by smashing superfluous pears with slurred speech due to new temporary braces, all while enduring the tragic vision restrictions of pink eye by wearing giant rimmed glasses not considered cool in any decade.
This is Steve Urkel territory, which Erica experienced for the first time in years.
“I’m a butterfly! I’m just going through some stuff, OK?”
For Erica, her unlucky streak began when her unlucky brother Barry unknowingly spread his grotesque pink eye to his sister by laying face down on her pillow. This was after Erica and Lainey informed Barry his “dance moves” were just awkward moves in a small space. Therefore, the BFF’s forbid Barry from joining them on the regionally broadcast sensation, “Dance Party USA.” So, accordingly, Barry took it upon himself to learn real dance moves by asking his surprisingly nimble gym teacher to help him in a comically awkward midnight dance session.
End result: Barry’s dancing on TV with his girlfriend and Erica’s struggling to find her butterfly wings that’s totally not a metaphor for anything related to life and outer appearances.
(The Goldbergs Twitter)
The only other Goldberg more unlucky than Erica at this point was Adam. Blinded by the gloriously infinite all-you-can-eat popcorn shrimp Pops won as a bonus in Atlantic City, he was in sheer awe of Pops. Seemingly invincible, there was no end to Pops’ lucky streak of winning at anything gambling-related. Except, what if his bubble of wonderment was popped by his dad? Murray, always the straight-talker with no filter, informed his youngest son of the charade of Pops’ perceived perfection.
Awkward…especially after Adam over-estimated the lucky powers of Pops and nearly lost his entire childhood to his friend in a hilariously predictable game of lunchtime paper football at school. Super mom Beverly came to the rescue, except this was a job for the super grandfather, with or without his leather jacket.
Growing up with two older sisters who were in high school the same time I was in middle school (like the Goldbergs sibling trio), they seemed like they had the inside track on things. Even with all the chaos that comes with high school, there was a sense of control on their parts. And for the longest time, I had been (am) the goofy younger brother with a valuable obsession of insightful knowledge of movies, music and TV. They’ve basically informed me as much. But even when I was going through my awkward phase in middle school (as we all do), my sisters made sure I got to tag along on several occasions. This despite the “coolness” protocol that dictated otherwise.
It wasn’t just the specific activities we did together during this time in our lives, but more so that I was given a temporary visitors pass into their world for a little bit. They’re special memories. While I could list some specific events, it’s tough to beat Erica, Lainey and Barry all dancing and groovin’ together without bounds or concern over looking ridiculous on a popular regionally broadcast dance show.
And yes, “Dance Party USA” was a real thing back in the ’80s!
From Barry trying to a little bit less Barry in front of his admittedly too-good-for-him girlfriend Lainey to Pops passing down his grandfather’s pocket watch to Adam to Erica feeling a glimpse of sibling love to Mr. Meller sharing off some killer dance moves that his ex-wife is surely missing to Beverly losing a war (the card game kind), this episode showed there’s no luck needed when family and friends are involved.
The Goldbergs is simply all-you-can-get awesomeness.
Jimmy's Daily Planet 