So, I was out the other day, and overheard someone going on about couples in literature that had changed romance and relationships as we know it. Too true, and a very interesting topic. It got me thinking about the couples on TV and in movies that had influences ME, and came up with the following list. This is probably very generational, but hey.

1) Bella Swan and Edward Cullen from the Twilight Saga movies and books – Now, everyone knows Twilight. And most women who have seen the movies and/or read the books, just melt at the idea of Edward Cullen. Sure he’s a vampire, but he is also dark and tormented, which women invariably love. (Maybe we all wish for the challenge of being able to soothe his pain? I know I do!) Plus he is an utter gentleman who never deviates from loving Bella, a girl who is, even in her own words, ordinary. Their relationship is deep, full of pain and temptation, with both of them only wishing for a life with each other. This is the kind of relationship most women dream about – complicated, loyal, complete. So it probably wouldn’t work in real life, but thats not the point now, is it? 

Bella Swan and Edward Cullen

2) Fox Mulder and Dana Scully from the TV and movie phenomenon The X-Files – Now these two characters played on the edge of innuendo for eight seasons before their first “real kiss” (they almost kiss in the first X-Files movie, but Scully is stung by an genetically modified bee before their lips could lock) let fans finally see their favourite characters move towards the relationship they were born to have. Two complete opposites – Mulder the believer in the unexplained and Scully the scientist the believer in cold, hard fact – they weren’t really suited to being partnered together in the FBI, and yet found an even ground where they balanced each other out. Their deep trust in each other, their respect and friendship, strengthens their characters bond over the years. Each continuously saves the other from peril and death, and despite many disagreements and varying beliefs, never turn their backs on each other. The romantic angle is built up excruciatingly slowly over the seasons, never blatant, but always there enough through furtive looks and body language. Theirs is a relationship of utter truth and trust, of danger and respect. 

Fox Mulder and Dana Scully

3) Ross Geller and Rachel Green from the hit TV show Friends – Here is a couple that truly shaped a generation. The up and down relationship between Ross and Rachel is well known to all. Ross’ character always held a flame for Rachel from their High School days, and ten years later when they come to be in the same group of friends, that spark is still there. Over the many seasons you see Ross and Rachel fall in love, fight, get jealous, go on a break and ultimately break up. They both go on to date other people, but with at least one of them still nursing strong feelings for the other at any given time. They struggle with letting the other move on, Ross even getting married to another woman at one point much to Rachels heartbreak, but he stuffs it up at the alter by mistakenly naming Rachel in his vows as opposed to his wife-to-be. They go through copious amounts of real-life situations together, as well as the ludicrous, but always come through it with a strong sense of friendship, respect and ultimately, love. By the last episode of the last season, Ross and Rachel have come to find they cannot live without the other. (Which is great because by then they have a kid together, from a passionate “one more time”) A modern, deprecating look at love in this day and age – along with being hilariously rediculous!

Ross Geller and Rachel Green

4) Max Evans and Liz Parker from the TV show Roswell – Not everyone was a fan of Roswell, but I certainly was. It focused on Roswell, New Mexico (you know, where the 1947 UFO crash was supposed to have happened and the US government covered it up?) and three aliens that came down with the UFO. Crashing to earth in the guise of kids, the show opens on them as teenagers who have been adopted into the human world. Max is the unofficial leader of this band of aliens, whose goal is solely to find out where they came from and why they ended up on earth. Liz is a popular, sweet High School student who one day see’s Max for what he is when he saves her from being shot in a freak accident. Liz and Max quickly fall hopelessly in love with each other, both fascinated by the other to the extreme. Liz (and eventually some of her human friends) helps Max and the others search for the answers they need, cementing her place in his life. There is nothing they wont do for each other, despite their obvious differences. It’s a deep, very sweet, one of a kind type relationship. In a way doomed, but also pregnant with possibilities.

Max Evans and Liz Parker

5) Buffy Anne Summers and Angel (aka Angelus) from the award winning TV show Buffy The Vampire Slayer (and the Spinoff Angel) – Buffy and Angel is one of the most heartbreaking unions ever created for TV, in my opinion. Buffy, a vampire slayer, and Angel, the vampire with a soul, have obvious complications from the start. Despite their deep and honest love for each other, they face both disgust from those around them, and danger due to who and what they are. They “meet” in season one, and go on to fall hopelessly for each other, despite their better judgement. By season two, Angel loses his soul when his curse is lifted due to one moment of happiness – a night in Buffy’s arms. He turns evil, and starts killing the people Buffy cares about and wreaking havoc on the town in general. He tries to end the world and Buffy is forced to kill him and send him into a hell dimension to stop this from happening, causing her to break down. Angel returns in season three by The Powers That Be, but after tortuous months trying to be with Buffy but unable to “Be” with Buffy, Angel leaves Sunnydale to start a new life in LA. But over all of the Buffy seasons and the Angel (spinoff) seasons, neither of them ever finds love again quite like what they had. They both take on partners, but it always comes back to wanting to be with each other. It is true love, dark and filled with pain, and given up due to their responsibilities to keep others safe. It doesn’t have a happy ending as they never really let go of each other, never truly move on, and so are forever doomed to be detached to whomever they are with in the meantime. But ahhh… So sexy!

Buffy Summers and Angel

6) Marge and Homer Simpson from the animated TV show The Simpsons – Okay okay, they aren’t “real people”, but they are an extremely famous TV couple, are they not? Their marriage is one of uneven footing, with Marge being attractive and sensible, and Homer being a bit of a lovable, idiotic slob. Homer creates more trouble than he is worth, throwing the Simpson family often into upheaval (losing the house, getting fired from his job, gambling away all of their money etc) but Marge ALWAYS stands by him. She gets frustrated, she gets upset and worried – sometimes gets even! – but she always supports Homer and helps him get them back on track. They love each other, and Homer often reminds himself how very lucky he is to have Marge as his wife, and Marge is constantly having to remember that her love for him is more important than the amount of crap he creates for her. Great, hilarious couple. It may be a cartoon, but I think their relationship is quite poignant. 

Marge and Homer Simpson

7) Carrie Bradshaw and Mr. Big from the TV series (and recently, box office movie) Sex and the City – The relationship between Carrie and Big is one many can relate to. Both with their twenties long behind them, they face all the pressures of life – careers, ex’s, their expectations of relationships – which invariably get between them. Their relationship is realistic in the sense that despite the fact their feelings for each other are true and passionate, they often let everything else come in the way. Dramatic, filled with hurt and betrayal, their relationship is one that seemingly should work, but never does. Of course, everyone around them pushes them to move on, get away from each other and find happiness with more appropriate people. This works on and off over the series many seasons, but inevitably they end up back in each others arms. Their relationship isn’t perfect, their characters are flawed and often selfish, but at the end of the day they love each other. They like each other. By the end of the last episode of the last season, the two of them deicide that being together is the only thing that really matters – even if it is going to be a lifetime of hard work! This relationship is a great example of modern day couples facing the stresses of work, money, appearance and acceptance – all the while getting older!

Carrie Bradshaw and Mr Big

8 ) Henry Roth and Lucy Whitmore from the movie 50 First Dates – This is a comedy, and not even a particularly big budget film. Henry is a laid back, commitment-phobic ladies man who is quite happy being a bachelor and living on the beautiful Island of Hawaii. That is, until he meets Lucy by chance one day in a diner. Lucy is beautiful and quirky, funny and sweet – and he falls for her almost immediately. But then he finds out the horrible truth about her – years before she was in a terrible car accident and suffered a serious head injury, and every day she wakes up she thinks it is the day before the accident, and every night her memory resets itself and she forgets everything she did that day and starts again. Obviously, a relationship with Lucy would seem impossible, especially for a guy who has never been in a serious relationship with anyone. But the absolute beauty of this movie is the journey Henry goes through as he falls more and more in love with Lucy and decides no matter how hard it got, just being with her was worth it. So every day, he sets about making her fall in love with him all over again. He creates albums,videos and diaries of their times together, puts this woman above his own wants and needs for the first time in his life. Lucy, on the other hand, struggles every day with new and fresh guilt, with confusion, but ultimately falls in love with him by the end of each day. This is a uniquely sad and equally funny movie that tugs at your heartstrings. 

Henry Roth and Lucy Whitmore

9)  Frances ‘Baby’ Houseman and Johnny Castle from the movie Dirty Dancing – Dirty Dancing is one of those iconic movies that everybody has seen and almost everyone loves. It’s set in the 1960’s, and Baby and her family arrive at a resort in upstate New York’s Catskill Mountains for a holiday. Baby is an ambitious, intelligent and slightly bookish 17 year old with aspirations to join the Peace Corps before marrying a Doctor just like her Father. To kill time at the resort, she starts a few dance classes and finds she has an interest in it. And then she meets Johnny, one of the resorts dance instructors. He is gorgeous, he is sexy, and he dances like no one she has ever seen before. In the repressed 1960’s, Baby has never witnessed the dirty style dancing that Johnny does, but she is drawn to him and to his dancing style. They are thrown together as dance partners due to Baby trying to help another resort worker, and from there an impossible romance blossoms. They dance, and you can see the passion flaring between them. They talk, and Baby’s eyes are opened to a much harsher world than she has ever known, while Johnny is suddenly hopeful at a future, pushed by Baby. Their love is one that struggles with their differing socioeconomic groups, with their varying views on the wold and people as a whole, but their love is so pure it washes everything else aside. It is a coming of age love, and a beautiful one at that.

Frances "Baby" Houseman and Johnny Castle

10) Sam Wheat and Molly Jensen from the movie Ghost – Another famous flick, and if you haven’t watched it your life is most certainly lacking. Sam and Molly are a couple that are happy and have just moved in together. While Molly is openly in love with Sam, Sam is still a little bit reserved and hasn’t quite worked up to the “I love you” bit yet, and instead replies “Ditto” whenever she says it. While walking home together one night from the theatre, they are accosted in a dark alleyway and Sam is shot and killed. Obviously, this puts an early end to their relationship, and Molly is devastated. Sam, on the other hand, becomes a ghost and chooses to stay as an earth-bound spirit rather than moving on because he can’t yet let go of Molly. As he watches over her, he also starts to piece together that his murder didn’t happen by chance and that now Molly is in danger too. He finds a woman that can see and hear him in his new form and begs for her help him save Molly from an untimely end. He does everything he possibly can, and runs the gamut of emotions, to keep the woman he loves safe. By the end of the movie there is no question how very much he loves Molly, and their connection is beautiful, epic and worth a bit of a cry. They really are soulmates.

Sam Wheat and Molly Jensen

So, there you have it! My top ten screen-based romances. Hopefully you learned something, or at the very least went “Awwwwwwww”

BENEATH THE SPIN • ERIC L. WATTREE
 

Cheney Certainly Didn’t ‘Dither’ During Vietnam – He Hauled Ass

Where is Dick Cheney’s shame? And where is the shame of the people who are supposed to be covering him?

Dick Cheney is walking around demanding that we place our troops in harm’s way like a veteran who begged for combat, then won the Congressional Medal of Honor for his service. The way he’s strutting around, lecturing America and saber-rattling for war, one would never know that when the nation called for him to serve, he ran like a weasel on high potency steroids to avoid military service – and the mainstream media is just as gutless for not pointing that out.

What’s passing for the press in this country has proven without a doubt, that they’ve literally degenerated into a group of glorified ambulance chasers. They’ve been staked out under Tiger woods’ toilet seat for the last week trying to get an exclusive on Tiger’s sex life.  At the same time, they’re completely ignoring the most pertinent news in the nation – a draft dodger and former CEO of a major military/industrial corporation pressuring the president to rush our troops into harm’s way.

Why isn’t the media holding Dick Cheney accountable for his deplorable hypocrisy? Why aren’t they holding Cheney accountable for anything? I can think of several questions that the media should demand that Cheney answer every time he sticks his head out of his undisclosed rat hole.

What were the “other priorities” that he claimed was more important than America when he sought, and received, five (5) deferments from battle when it was his turn to fight? What hardships were those deferments based on? Were they more important than the hardships in the lives of men who responded to the nation’s call, then fought and died? Who approved Cheney’s deferments, and were they valid?

Was it just a coincident that his daughter and fellow chicken hawk, Liz Cheney, was born virtually nine months to the day after the selective service declared that married men would be called for duty, but married men with children would remain deferred? The rules of deferment was changed on Oct. 26, 1965. Liz was born on July 28, 1966 – nine months and two days later. Cheney got his final deferment Jan. 26, 1966 – because his wife was pregnant. Now there’s some sexual prowess worth looking into.

In addition, considering the nation’s sacrifice in both lives and treasure, isn’t it worth investigating who was involved and what was discussed in Cheney’s “secret meeting” prior to the Bush administration taking us to war in Iraq? Who decided to award no-bid contracts before going into Iraq? And who decided what corporations would receive no-bid contracts, and what criteria was that decision based upon? And here’s a question that just begs to be asked – didn’t they consider it a conflict of interest that Halliburton, the corporation that Vice President headed before entering office, was awarded the largest no-bid contract in Iraq?

The mainstream media also seemed to have been out to lunch regarding the outing of CIA agent Valerie Plame. Isn’t that treason? So why was it handled so casually by the press? Revealing the identity of a CIA agent is the very height of treasonous irresponsibility for any citizen, and the fact that it could be done by the Vice President of the United States is simply unfathomable. When that incident took place it should have alerted every citizen of this country that instability reined in the Bush administration and virtually anything was possible – oh, but sounding that alarm is the job of a responsible and diligent fourth estate is it?

We have a very serious problem in this country when citizens have to depend on late-night comedians to put the shenanigans of our government into perspective. Renowned newsman Edward R. Murrow once said that “A citizenry of sheep begets a government of wolves.” I wonder what he’d say about a press filled with ostriches with their head in the sand?

Murrow would immediately recognize that even the most informed citizen relies on the press to sound the alarm when government goes astray. The founding fathers depended on that as an important element of keeping America free. That’s exactly why the freedom of the press was incorporated into the nation’s founding documents. But what passes for the press today has gotten so caught up in the economic, egocentrism, and self-service of our political environment, that they’ve become next to useless on the issues that really count. They seem to be afraid of angering a demagogue by asking him the obvious question.

Even though our troops were dying under the nation’s mandate to capture the people responsible for 9/11, Rep. Maurice Hinchey (D-N.Y.) alleges that the Bush administration purposely allowed Osama Bin Laden to get away so they’d have an excuse to invade Iraq. The congressman said: “That was done by the previous administration intentionally let Bin Laden get away. If they would capture al Qaeda, there would be no justification for an invasion in Iraq,” He went on to say, “There’s no question that the leader of the military operations of the U.S. called back our military – called them back from going after the head of al Qaeda.”

So why isn’t all hell breaking loose in the press? Why isn’t that all we can hear about on every channel, and the headline of every newspaper? In other words, why isn’t it being given the Michael Jackson treatment? Instead, all we can hear on every channel is how many women tiger Woods is allegedly sleeping with, and whether his wife went after him with a putter or a nine iron.

Now don’t get me wrong, I’m just as nosey as anyone else about whether or not a billionaire who’s the most recognized sports figure in the world can get a girlfriend. But I prefer my national news not being preempted by such frivolity. I can wait to get that information on the Wendy Williams Show (How you doooin’, girl?) – and I’m virtually certain that most Americans agree. Well . . . maybe not, but that’s grist for another mill.

Edward R. Murrow brought an end to the grip that Sen. Joe McCarthy’s hypocrisy had on the nation with just one commentary, and one commentary by Walter Cronkite essentially spelled the beginning of the end of the Vietnam conflict. These journalists provided a valuable service to the American people. But the electronic commentators now on the air are so self-aggrandizing and prop-laden that they lack the dignity and clot – and the few true journalists left are treated like field hands.

While CNN does make an effort to maintain some semblance of journalistic standards as far as they go, they are just as guilty as the rest of the networks of failing to pursue issues of vital importance to the nation. And I wouldn’t even mention Fox in a news context, since they’re clearly nothing more than a public relations firm for the Republican Party, but they’re significant because their appeal to the very worst within us is what’s responsible for dragging down the journalistic standards of the electronic news media as a whole.

A perfect example of that can be seen in the programing of MSNBC. The network has great talent on their staff, but they’ve lost credibility by allowing themselves to be reduced to spitball fights with Fox in order to gain ratings.

Take Keith Olbermann, for example. He’s a great talent, but his talent doesn’t come close to matching the size of his ego. When I watch Olbermann I get the feeling that the news is secondary to showing how witty he can be. On the surface Keith’s antics may seem harmless enough, until one tries to imagine either Murrow or Cronkite throwing copy at an imaginary window, or quoting people in the news in cartoon-like voices. It’s only then that one begins to recognize how far downhill we’ve come.

Okay, maybe it’s just fun and games, but when you play games with serious issues like a politician blatantly lying to the American people about healthcare, or the meaning of torture, or about a competing network purposely misleading the American people, you leave the impression that the offense can’t be all that serious, otherwise, you wouldn’t be joking about it. So they contribute to the perception that lying and corruption is nothing to become alarmed about – it’s just the way the game is played.

So in that regard, their behavior is just as irresponsible and damaging to our society as Fox News.

Eric L. Wattree

wattree.blogspot.com

Religious bigotry: It’s not that I hate everyone who doesn’t look, think, and act like me – it’s just that God does. 

writes about the leaves humped over the grass, damp.
Above them, branches stitch across the air, in sky. Leafless.

Still, a few rice grains cling to the glass bowl, exposed
to light, like bark peeled back to reveal knots of muscle,

lesion where sap and blood and thoughts have eddied and
gotten stuck in cells. December seeks words with singular

meanings, with only one taste, without the confusion
of sugared mimesis, or sharpened synonym. White rice.

I have been to a handful of weddings. Some greater than others. The wedding I went to last Saturday, Lizzie’s and Nelson’s wedding, was definitely top 3. There’s something about going to a wedding and seeing a couple vow to be with each other forever. It’s quite beautiful. It’s quite sad that my gay friends cannot share in this joy, either. One day, I hope I can retract that statement.

Lizzie planned out her wedding in two months. I repeat, two MONTHS!  The reception was at the Hotel Derek. The ceremony at St. Cyril. And it was joyful. Completely beautiful. Lizzie’s family was absolutely happy.  And there was a lot to be thankful about. A lot to be joyful for.

Some highlights:

I’m really sorry if I’m not making any sense on this post.  I just finished writing a 20 page research proposal as a final assignment. And I have to do a poster presentation on Saturday. So much fun!!

This week has gone by pretty fast. Had my last day of the semester on Wednesday. It was dramatic and unnecessary. My Practice lab has always been dramatic and I don’t know why the last day shouldn’t have been as well. I finished my hours at my internship. I will continue to go once a week so that I can keep track of my kids. I made some strides today. I started seeing kids on my own and I did my first official assessment and have my first case on my caseload!

It may seem like nothing, but to me, it’s pretty exciting stuff! The kids are starting to warm up to me and I love it. I love what I’m doing and these kids are awesome.

The GREATEST NEWS EVER is that Houstonians may see some snow tomorrow!!! Texas never sees snow. Houston actually saw some last year, when I was in Boston, and everyone was calling my phone talking about how awesome the snow is, while in Boston, it was just freezing, with not a lick of ice. Ironic.

I am going to sleep in tomorrow. And it will be wonderful.

Paz <3

DecemBear checks the mailbox

Happy 29+1 birthday to Liz today!

I’m exhausted and am fully planning to fall asleep on the couch in oh, about 5 minutes.  Even thought it’s not yet 10PM.  My favorite things from today were:  running outside with Nick and the pup, shopping with my hunny (and Kohl’s cash – woot), moving DecemBear with NJ, and the yummy dinner Nick made out of a head of cauliflower.  Yum!  G’night!

Cashew wants to knock over the tree

Pinot is tired too!

Following a heated discussion with Liz regarding books, she suggested I make a formal recommendation of the books that I insisted she read. I’d be happy to expand on any specifics if requested. Happy reading and please post your recommendations in the comments!

First,  my top three. In this order:

1. Midwives by Chris Bohjalian (and anything else by him)
2. The Red Tent by Anita Diamant
3. Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden

Other recommendations, in no order:

1. My Sister’s Keeper by Jodie Picoult (and anything else by her)
2. Brooklyn Follies by Paul Auster
3. Crossing to Safety by Wallace Stegner
4. Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbodsky
5. Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand
6. Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
7. Trans-Sister Radio by Chris Bohjalian (and anything else by him)

In my most tender experiences, brand new lyrics come to my head except now that I’ve looked them up I learn I sing them differently but mine are good for what they do to me;
I know you think that I’m someone you can trust, but I’m scared I’ll get scared and I swear I’ll try and never give up (everyone now).

The show was amazing and one of those nights where I didn’t know the lyrics so I listened and thought about my life and all things in it instead.  I didn’t get ahead on anything, maybe even a little more behind, but at least I thought about it.  The worst you can do is neglect yourself and your feelings. It never hurts to listen a little more carefully.

Those moments in your life where something occurs and you notice or realize a trivial or exponentially important matter in your life can now come to a close, whether by your question, rhetorical or not, being answered, or your life now taking a new direction as a result of what has occurred or been noticed… long sentence… a landmark, anyway, is what I am referring to.  Two of what I would call these “landmarks” happened to me today.  Brace yourself.  I’ve been wondering how I should approach this.

The less trivial one – amusing and, let’s say, neat, to my knowledge – happened in class when a classmate was presenting his essay topic.  Doom Generation.  There’s a scene where Rose McGowan, who plays Amy Blue, takes a bath and she’s sitting there topless and, not that I can actually vouch for this, but I thought, for the 5 seconds of screen time that they get, her boobs look like mine.  I don’t know, but I haven’t seen very many boobs like mine so I thought that was neat.  Boobs here, I’m talking simply about them as objects, really.  When you have them and you see them all the times, they’re not that special.  Unless they look like Rose McGowan’s (because she’s totally hot).  I found a screen shot on google but the website’s not loading now.  There’s a thumbnail, anyway (because this is clearly important…).

The second landmark is much more significant. I got my letter of acceptance today for volunteering with one of the biggest organizations in Canada.  And like a tactful blogger, I’m not going to mention the organization name in the event that they google it and find my blog and then read about how I think I have similar boobs to Rose McGowan.  In any case, I’ve dreamed about becoming a volunteer here since I was really young and reading that letter made me pretty proud and excited to start working with such a wonderful group.  It took me almost 2 months of screening.  Horrah!

Tonight I’m going to Live Lounge’s win to get in concert featuring Hey Rosetta! I’m really digging their song “There’s an Arc” on their myspace.  They’re one of Liz’s favourite bands, from the same side of town, and she has guest list so I can’t pass it up.  It’s been a while since I’ve been on guest list.  Fabulous.

But before all that, I have a 10 pager due tomorrow that I’m not nearly finished. Oi yoi yoi ——- however you spell it.

I found a box in the living room!! I think I’m the first one to find it, Brady, Liz and Ben don’t even seem to notice that it’s a BOOOXXX!  Hang on, let me check…Nope, they don’t seem to notice.  This is perfect, it will be MY new space, just for me!  I can see almost the whole living room from here!  There’s the window, there’s the coffee table, there’s the couch yup that’s about all of it! What was that? Oh never mind, just a thud.  Anyways, this would be the perfect place to clean myself up a little bit.  Let me see if anyone’s coming for my box… Nope! All clear!  Let the lick-fest commence!

-Wishy

Oh, I love Ben.

The Final 4 went home to see how well they could do on their own for 60 days.

From the beginning Danny’s looks were most noticeably different. Amanda and Rudy showed big differences too, but not as dramatic as Danny’s. To be fair, Amanda is pretty close to her goal so she wouldn’t show as dramatic a difference. Liz showed improvement as well, but the least out of the group – in my opinion.

Danny and Amanda seemed to have the better support systems at home and were able to stay consistent.

There was a point where Danny’s wife was having a crisis of conscience wondering if her husband would still want her as he was looking better and better. This is a real fear. I have read more than a few articles where one spouse looses a lot of weight and gains a whole new outlook and self-confidence while the other remains in their status quo. These changes often cause conflict and have led to many divorces.

Rudy is a busy guy working long hours and wants to spend precious time with his young wife and baby girl. I remember how that feels. His schedule doesn’t leave him with the time he needs or would like to spend on himself. Again, I totally empathize.

Liz and her husband have a strained relationship, maybe even fractured. Whether or not it’s reparable was not evident. When visited by Jillian, Liz had been left alone on her rural property – a small farm – to take care of and run on her own. It didn’t leave her a lot of time for herself. Liz does not seem happy at home.

The group got a lot of support in the form of video-taped DVD’s, visits from Bob and Jillian and even a chef. They were given their final BL challenge to run a full 26.2 mile marathon.

When I could run, I was only good for short sprints. I hated the pain and agony of any extended run, so I know how they felt when they got the news they had to run such a distance.

During the run they received inspiration in the form of former BL Winners and finalists running with them, urging them on. Among them was Tara “The Machine”. It was noticeable that she had put on weight, but she still looked good and had that competitive fire. She really helped Amanda through a rough spot of doubt during the run.

I have to say I was impressed how well Rudy did. He broke away from the pack early while still carrying a considerable bulk on his frame and left everyone in the dust finishing in less than 5.5 hours.

Amanda came in second. At her young age and her much improved physique; I figured she’d have been first.

Danny, also still carrying a lot of weight, had considerable trouble. He was in a lot of pain, but Liz stayed by his side. At one point they had to stop and Danny iced his knees before continuing on. It was trying, but Danny made it over the Finish Line in just over 7 hours – not bad for a big guy…not bad at all.

During their weigh-in before the big finale, the women each posted a 16 pound weight loss over the last 60 days, which is good and a normal rate of weight loss. Danny then gets on the scale and pulls a huge 59 pound loss. About 1 pound a day! Then Rudy gets on the scale and he shows a 43 pound loss – averaging over 5 pounds a week.

I was thinking these numbers are pretty good for the guys until it suddenly dawned on me, “Holy crap, they lost this sort of weight during the last 60 days – at home!”

This made their accomplishment all the more astonishing.

Liz and Amanda fell below the yellow line, and each pled their case to America to vote for them as the third and final finalist to compete for the $250K next week.

We voted for Amanda. I like Amanda because she was heavy all her life and I know just what that’s like. However, I think Liz will get the sympathy vote being the older woman and in a troubled relationship.

Either way, it doesn’t matter as Danny and Rudy were so obese to begin with their total potential percentage of weight lost should be greater than either of the ladies could attain. I’m looking for Danny to win the whole thing…

BrightSparks runs an art workshop every Wednesday afternoon from 1pm till 3pm at 27a Access Artspace, 60 Northgate Street. (See our “About” page for more details.) However on the last week of each month, we have a poetry workshop instead of art.

In October 2009, Tim Sayers led our poetry workshop on the theme of “Rebellion”.

To the Labour Party

by Jean Binta Breeze

You sold out the working classes
Brought the Unions to their knees
Now you want to win back the voters
But it’s too late, can’t you see

You left me with
An inborn fear of bureaucracy
A fright when you talk about democracy
‘Cause I’m tired of all this fallacy
When things rebounding right out of control
And it hard to pay the heat bill in the cold

You promised us a government of vision
You promised you would hear our voice
It didn’t take you long to stop listening
And taking away our choice

Now you wonder why there’s growth in the right wing
and the bankers have taken all the notes
But you’re still making friends with the city
as they tighten the noose round our throats

Rebellion

by Martin Burch

Am I a rebel or a traitor?
A freedom fighter or a terrorist?
Was I cheeky or rude or even aggressive?

Why would I rebel against
homely comforting nurturing safe
parents?
Why would I rebel against
the stuck fixed old staid
restrictions?

Why didn’t I individuate, find myself, take risks or experiment?
Why can’t I rebel?
Or have I rebelled now?

Rebellion against those who care

“You’re going hyper”

by Claire

They all care so much
But it is overpowering
They’ve seen it all before
They sadly are frightened of the score
The highs and lows of their mate
The highs are good but that’s what they hate

Admittedly it IS a fine line
But sometimes there’s a period when you ARE fine.

Again they panic fuss and fret
Scared it’s kicked in when it hasn’t yet
How can you calm them, reassure
It’s not surprising they are frightened
Just tread along and take it slow
And reassure them of what you know.

Rebel

anon.

Rebel is Great
Rebel is fun
I want to be a rebel
Image of a Man
Shadow of a God
Rebel fascist
fascist fascist
Rebel questions
not follow
Iron fist
Do we need that
Rebel Rebel
Rebel is Great.

Untitled

by Liz

Why don’t we listen to children?
The saplings in our wood
The beginning of the next future
nurture, not destroy we should.

Why don’t we listen to children
They see more than we think
But adults think they know better
They don’t always see the link.

Why don’t we listen to children
And see what they go through
when really we should remember
we were kids once too.

Why don’t we listen to children
The knowledge from us they sup
And watch just what we teach them
So that we don’t fuck them up.

I had assumed that color
would move down
from the top, narrow
to widening. The trunk
being so close to the bottom
of the layers of leaves
on branches. The tree sends
up its last shot of green
whipping up and up the
branches like a breath
spiraling, conical,
sharp exhale.

Catch a falling star and put it in your pocket
can be hazardous to the dreams you have,
Left too long and it’ll burn a big round hole,
Taking along your things till nothing’s left.

Catch a falling star and put it in your pocket
makes a fine admiration from afar for a while,
But leave it untouched too long and it’ll fade
till there’s none than just a dim ember smile.

But I still catch a falling star and put it in my pocket
for the sake of feeling its warmth against my chest,
Even for just a little while till it’s time to release
that little star that kept my night warm with its best.

So if you ever have doubts about a short-lived joy,
Think about the happiness you’ve come to know,
And then, just then you might start to like the idea
to catch a falling star and feel your heart aglow.

So I guess you can say I’ve become obsessed with the vh1 show True Love.  And I feel like I would be a mix between Ms. Lonely(Sally), Ms. Body Issues(Jenna) and Ms. Marriage (Liz). Mean I do love my curves, its just this dam belly of mine. >.< Anyways, on tonight’s episode Steve gave Jenna an assignment, to write 50 good qualities/ compliments about herself.

So I figured since I’m sort of struggling with the same issues she is, I would give it a try. I did something similar in  my social psychology class. I had to write 6 good things about me and 11 bad things about me. At its definitely a lot easier to write bad things about your self than it is to write good. I just feel weird and feel like I’m being conceited. Well starting time is 10:13, so here we go, 50 things….

so I’ve been told….

1. i care about others
2. I’m nice
3. I’m a good friend
4. i have nice eyes
5. I’m cute
6. i have a nice smile, when i do smile
7. have nice butt
8. I’m nurturing
9. I’m friendly
10. I am honest
11. have a good sense of humor
12. I’m funny
13. a good cook
14. a good baker
15. I can draw well
16. I’m smart
17. I have curves
18. um eh. my hair smells good after I shower?
19. I’m affectionate
20. ummmm,  I’m myself?
21. I have a good personality
22. I’m sweet
23. I can be fun to be around with
24. ehhh, hmm, I’m easy to get along with
25. i’ve been told I have kissable lips…

So yeah 25 so far, half way through, well its 11:11 now, so I’m going to take a shower and get back to this after.

Campanile Village builds on the geometry of the Kessler Campanile. The seats are land that can be plowed on a mountain side. The stairs are a border between the two nations. Originally, the pool with the waterfall was going to be for the Sea people, but that idea was scratched. In further expansions, the pool could be a place where people can fish for seafood or trade with a distant nation.

The application is a spin-off from several existing games and applications listed below.

1. Pocket God iPhone application contributed the villagers and interaction people may have wanted: example vid

2. Black and White game contributed the idea of making the user god-like in the Campanile Village and having the villagers give praise/worship to the user: example vid

3. Other ideas taken into the brainstorming process: Virtual Villagers, Harvest Moon, and Farmville.