So upon its absence, what is present of me will try to cover a couple subjects on our own.
I recently finished experiencing three things:
- "The Grand Design" by Stephen Hawking (Book)
- "Spirited Away" by Hayao Miyazaki (Film)
- "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" (Film)
All were great experiences. Here's what I liked about each of them, and what I didn't like:
"The Grand Design": Perhaps I'm partial to anything that's not by Michio Kaku regarding the subject of this book, but it was very roughly summarized for such a magical topic. It could have used a more effective editor as well. But it did handle a couple topics well enough. I particularly enjoyed the information on the "Game of Life" and, though I wish Hawking had elaborated a bit, the explanation at the end for why the universe would and did come from nothing. Very interesting stuff, but I'd highly suggest reading Professor Kaku's recent stuff if you really want to grasp the ideas. But I left with a slightly more refined view of the universe and everything in it, and a couple interesting ideas for novels I may write in the future as well. So in general it was a decent read.
"Spirited Away": This was a truly magical film. It deserves all the praise it got. Uniquely weird, cute, inspiring, and deeply emotional. I actually left with the sense that I knew what love was like, as if I'd forgotten somehow and Miyazaki had reminded me. I thank him for that.
"The Half-Blood Prince": Well, it was a little slow compared to the rest of the series, but it was still interesting watching the film years after reading the book (out of order, might I add). I enjoyed some parts, particularly the ones involving quidditch. Seriously, if that game existed, it would be the one sport I cared about. I enjoyed the ending as well; the view from the astrology tower was absolutely stunning. According to Wikipedia, that set was filmed in Chile, but I cannot find such an image (or castle) anywhere else. It inspired me just a little bit more to travel.
I'll be watching "The Deathly Hollows" tomorrow at 10 AM with a couple college comrades. That should be interesting. Thank goodness I managed to catch myself up with the storyline or I would have been thoroughly confused.
Cheers for tonight, and for those of you who continue to read the scribbles of this rambling wanderer, I thankee-sai.
/BAS
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