History: A Day Not to be Forgotten

I am wearing my "God Bless America" t-shirt today for a few reasons...
1. It was on top of the stack of t-shirts in my drawer
2. It is incredibly comfortable. It is (almost) a 10 year old shirt and nothing is more comfortable than a 100% cotton t-shirt that has had multiple washes until it is thin layer of fabric that acts like an "extra layer of skin."
3. Today/Last night is a significant day/night in our nation's history.

Yesterday was as much a victory for the US as it was for the world. The leader of the terrorist attacks against the US on 9/11 is no longer in charge.
This is what we set out to do almost 10 years ago directly after 9/11.

I remember 9/11 like it was yesterday. I was nine years old and in the fourth grade. I remember it started out like any other day. I got up begrudgingly at 7:00 am. I ate my breakfast at the kitchen table. I got dressed. I combed my hair. I brushed my teeth. I got in the car and my dad drove me to school. We went about our daily business and went to each class until around 9:00 am there was an announcement over the intercom. The principal said to meet in the church for a prayer service for the airplane that crashed into the World Trade Center in New York City. We went to the church and said a few prayers but we were not told many details. It wasn't until I got home from school that I saw what had happened on the news and really began to understand it. I watched the news all afternoon and into the evening. I didn't change out of my school uniform. I just sat glued to the television not believing what I was watching. My mother turned off the TV in the family room but I went into another room and found a TV with a rabbit ear antenna (those no longer work) and kept watching. I watched until I believed what I saw. Once I began to believe that two planes purposefully crashed into two buildings in Manhattan, that the fiery explosions that were coming out of those buildings were not just special effects from a movie, that the people jumping out of the towers were real people, that the people running from the fast cloud of dust and smoke that consumed the city streets weren't just actors in a movie, and that my country that I had grown to know and love and thought could protect me couldn't protect me, I began to cry.
I ran to my mom (the only person who I knew could protect me) and cried and asked her all sorts of questions. I wanted to know why this happened. I wanted to know if everything was going to be alright. I wanted to know if we were going to be attacked at home. I wanted to know who would have wanted to do this and why he thought this would be a good thing to do.
The truth was I was scared. I didn't feel safe anymore. I kept telling myself that Dallas isn't that big of a city. I kept repeating to myself that they wouldn't target Dallas. They wouldn't target my school. They wouldn't target the building where my dad worked.

It was a very frightening time and shortly afterward, my school sold the t-shirt I described earlier that I am wearing today. But then there was the President.
President Bush said reassuring words to us and told us he would not stand for this kind of attack on American soil. He told us not to lose our American spirit. He united us together in a time of crisis. He was not only our leader. He was a great friend who was suffering with us but offered his shoulder for us to cry on while he remained strong.
He began the war on terror. He didn't want anyone to feel the pain we did and he wanted to stop the people responsible for this terrorist attack before they could inflict any more pain on any other innocent people all over the world.
He wanted to stop the terrorist group by finding the man in charge and removing him from power.

Yesterday, we were told that this man has been removed from his position of power.

I received a text message from my mom after mass Sunday night and at first (much like on 9/11) I didn't believe it. It took me a minute to realize that this was true. I first had to reason that my mother wouldn't joke around like this. I mean, my mother is a very comedic person (Q: How do you think I got so funny? A: It is in my mitochondrial DNA) but she would never joke around like this unless she had referenced it in an earlier text as a previous joke and now she was just referring back to it. So after I ruled that out, I went down to my dorm's basement where the big screen TV was tuned to msnbc. I watched as Brian Williams told me the story and showed me the people at the White House gathering.

At first I was astounded that people were celebrating the death of a man.
After all, I cannot, in good conscious, rejoice over the death of one of God's creatures.

But why am I happy? Why do I want to celebrate?

First off, I would like to say that the speech that President Obama gave last night was my favorite speech that he has ever given.

It was nearly 10 years ago that a bright September day was darkened by the worst attack on the American people in our history. The images of 9/11 are seared into our national memory -- hijacked planes cutting through a cloudless September sky; the Twin Towers collapsing to the ground; black smoke billowing up from the Pentagon; the wreckage of Flight 93 in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, where the actions of heroic citizens saved even more heartbreak and destruction.
And yet we know that the worst images are those that were unseen to the world. The empty seat at the dinner table. Children who were forced to grow up without their mother or their father. Parents who would never know the feeling of their child's embrace. Nearly 3,000 citizens taken from us, leaving a gaping hole in our hearts...
...We were also united in our resolve to protect our nation and to bring those who committed this vicious attack to justice. We quickly learned that the 9/11 attacks were carried out by al Qaeda -- an organization headed by Osama bin Laden, which had openly declared war on the United States and was committed to killing innocents in our country and around the globe. And so we went to war against al Qaeda to protect our citizens, our friends, and our allies...
...For over two decades, bin Laden has been al Qaeda's leader and symbol, and has continued to plot attacks against our country and our friends and allies. The death of bin Laden marks the most significant achievement to date in our nation's effort to defeat al Qaeda...
...As we do, we must also reaffirm that the United States is not –- and never will be -– at war with Islam. I've made clear, just as President Bush did shortly after 9/11, that our war is not against Islam. Bin Laden was not a Muslim leader; he was a mass murderer of Muslims. Indeed, al Qaeda has slaughtered scores of Muslims in many countries, including our own. So his demise should be welcomed by all who believe in peace and human dignity...
...The American people did not choose this fight...
...We give thanks for the men who carried out this operation, for they exemplify the professionalism, patriotism, and unparalleled courage of those who serve our country. And they are part of a generation that has borne the heaviest share of the burden since that September day.
Finally, let me say to the families who lost loved ones on 9/11 that we have never forgotten your loss, nor wavered in our commitment to see that we do whatever it takes to prevent another attack on our shores.
And tonight, let us think back to the sense of unity that prevailed on 9/11. I know that it has, at times, frayed. Yet today's achievement is a testament to the greatness of our country and the determination of the American people.
The cause of securing our country is not complete. But tonight, we are once again reminded that America can do whatever we set our mind to. That is the story of our history, whether it's the pursuit of prosperity for our people, or the struggle for equality for all our citizens; our commitment to stand up for our values abroad, and our sacrifices to make the world a safer place.
Let us remember that we can do these things not just because of wealth or power, but because of who we are: one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
Thank you. May God bless you. And may God bless the United States of America.

This is why I want to celebrate. For half my life we have been looking for this man. We have been wanting to find him and bring him to justice. We accomplished what we set out to do.
"Today we are reminded that as a nation there is nothing we can’t do." -President Obama

In times like these, where I am constantly reminded of how many soldiers are dying in the multiple wars that are going on, of how poor our economy is and that China will soon be better than us, and how the American dream cannot be realized anymore, this is what we needed as a nation.

Just how the Miracle on Ice in 1980 was something that people rallied around when things looked bad in the Cold War. This event has made me proud to be an American. Not because we killed a man but because we accomplished our goal when almost everyone around us said it couldn't be done, when all those around us had given up.

There is nothing we can't do.

(We are a lot like Rudy.)

Now I want to be clear. I do not think that killing is the answer EVER. From my understanding, the primary goal was to capture him. I am almost as happy now as I would have been if we captured him. I would have been happier if we did not have to take a human life.

I can't help but say I am proud to be an American and I am very thankful for the Navy seals that carried out the operation.

I am wearing this shirt because it means something to me. It reminds me of the emotions that I experienced during and after 9/11. Now, I wear it with a somewhat relieved feeling. I know this isn't the end of the war on terror but it sure feels good that we have accomplished something that we set out to do right after 9/11.

It is a crazy time to be in college. Apparently there was a gathering around the Main Building and at the Library. There were gatherings on campuses all over the country celebrating this important milestone in the War on Terror.

This is our generation's victory. We all suffered and lived through 9/11. We all knew what it felt like to be scared. Now the man responsible for putting those fears there can't put anymore fears in us.

I want to thank all our troops. Those at home and overseas. Those currently serving and those who have served.

God bless America.

My Reason for being on this Earth (Part 2)

My Reason for being on this Earth

To make everyone around me a little happier.
To make everyone's life a little easier.
To love and to serve everyone.
To help everyone to the best of my ability.
To share my thoughts with others and listen to others share their thoughts.
To find the truth and fight for it.
To be virtuous.
To hunger and thirst for righteousness.
To forgive.
To forget.
To make you smile.
To be the shoulder to cry on.
To be the best brother I can be.
To be the best friend I can be.
To be the best son I can be.
To be the best cousin I can be.
To be the best nephew I can be.
To be the best grandson I can be.
To be the best student I can be.
To be the person I was meant to be.
To make peace.
To share the gifts I have.
To give to others.
To share the joys of my life with others.
To share in the joys of others lives.
To care for others.

To live.
To laugh.
To love.

"Life is an opportunity, benefit from it.
Life is beauty, admire it.
Life is bliss, taste it.
Life is a dream, realize it.
Life is a challenge, meet it.
Life is a duty, complete it.
Life is a game, play it.
Life is a promise, fulfill it.
Life is sorrow, overcome it.
Life is a song, sing it.
Life is a struggle, accept it.
Life is a tragedy, confront it.
Life is an adventure, dare it.
Life is luck, make it.
Life is too precious, do not destroy it.
Life is life, fight for it."
-Mother Teresa

A Life Changing Night

I can't sleep.
Why?
Because I've just had one of the best nights of my life.
How do I know this?
I just spent four hours with two of the most interesting and wonderful men in the world.
Who are they?
My acting professors, Bo and Tom.
How are they the most interesting an wonderful men in the world?
I shall tell you.

They invited me to dinner Friday April 8 and told me that they would pick me up at the library circle at 6:15.

I walked out side just as they pulled up.  Bo got out of the car and gave me a hug and told me to get in the car with Tom as he went into the Hesburgh library (yes...touchdown Jesus) to pick up books for Tom (a Yale graduate, F. Scott Fitzgerald scholar, Princeton Professor, and a wonderful man).
[I would be later told at dinner that I walked outside just as Fr. Hesburgh was walking out the door of the library]
I sat in the car with Tom and started a conversation.  I can't remember the conversation word for word but we talked about my classes and my major and we shared the fact that we both started as Pre-med students.  He wanted to be a doctor but then changed his mind because he was scared of Organic Chemistry (to tell you the truth it is one of the scariest things in the world).  He told me about the day he told his father that he didn't want to be a doctor anymore.  His father was disappointed but he soon became mad when Tom told him he wanted to become a teacher instead.
When Bo entered the car with 3 or 4 books (one I saw was on pottery), he gave them to Tom and then greeted me.  He talked about the restaurant that we were going to and told me how it was set up.
We went to La Salle Grill.  The fanciest place I have ever gone to eat.  "The menu changes every night," Bo says.  "They have very good steaks and fish."  I tell him since it is a Friday during lent I can't have meat.
[Side note: I am not a fish person.  I don't like fish.  I never have.  So it follows naturally that I don't know anything about fish.  I told myself, "Look, you need to give fish another try.  Maybe this place will be so good that you will love it."  This information will come in handy later]
So I think I'll go for the fish, I tell him.  He says, "Good.  I usually get the fish too."  When we arrive, Bo drops me and Tom off at the entrance because Tom uses a cane to walk and there was no close parking.  I get out and open the door to the restaurant for Tom who thanks me promptly while Bo parks the car.  I enter the restaurant with Bo who tells me to put my coat in the coat room (for all you Texans: this is a room that holds your coat while you dine because in the North people wear REAL coats).  Oh but wait, he tells me NOT to hang my coat but to put it on the table.  The people at the restaurant will hang it for us... [yes it is THAT fancy].  Tom and I talk for a bit in the vestibule of the restaurant where he warns me of the restroom door, hidden right next to the entrance.  He tells me that this door might jump out and hit me.  I take a step away from the door and then Bo enters the restaurant.  All three of us enter and as soon as the doors open, a hostess greets us, "Hello Bo! Hello Tom!"  A waiter shows up, "Hello Bo! Hello Tom! Good to see you again."
"Thanks, Paul!"
"I have your usual Table right here."
"Why thank you, Paul."
Tom and I take our seat while Bo quietly goes to the restroom.
Again Tom and I have a short discussion and quickly Bo returns.
The server Paul comes.  Bo offers me wine and I say "Sure, as long as the restaurant is ok with it."  Bo says they usually are ok with it, however, tonight is not an "ok" night.  Nobigdeal.  I'll take some iced tea.
The menu is placed in front of me.

So, I look at it and it makes as much sense to me as an SN2 reaction (shout out to all orgo people).  I do not know what to get.
Bo tells me to get a appetizer and an entree.  I choose the safest bet for an appetizer: Classic Caesar Salad.
Thank God Bo was there to ask if I wanted the anchovies or not.  I had no idea that anchovies were even going on it.
Bo asks Paul what he recommends.  He says the Trout.  Bo looks at me and I say, "I'll have that."
My fate is sealed.

So as we wait for our food.  Bo tells me stories about eating dinner with Katharine Hepburn.  Then he tells me the story of how he met Stephen Sondheim, went to dinner at his house, and is now good friends with him.  Such good friends that anytime Sondheim has a show put on in London or New York, he gives his personal tickets to Bo and his friend for both the opening and closing nights.  So when Bo and his other friend take him up on the offer, Sondheim watches his show standing the back while Bo and his bud are in Sondheim's seats.
Tom tells me stories too.  Like the one where he choked on chicken at this very restaurant, had the Heimlich maneuver performed on him, broke several ribs, and was carried out on a table to an ambulance.  And the story about the book he compiled which took him 20 years to compile on The Faerie Queen (the first epic in English and one of the most influential poems in the language for later poets from Milton to Tennyson).  He told me stories about teaching at Princeton and Arizona State University.  He told me stories about his freshman year at Yale and, oh yeah, his crazy Italian roommate.  His roommate came from a mob family and he was (according to Tom) a fat, always naked in the dorms, short kid from the Bronx.  Ever heard of Matthew J. Bruccoli?  That guy who wrote that intro to that book that you read in high school.
O come on!  Do I have to tell you?  Ok fine... The Great Gatsby
So yeah no big deal right?
But I forgot to tell you that Tom's personal mentor was none other than C.S. Lewis.

Ok, so they tell me their stories.  They ask about me.  I tell them some background information about me.  I tell them about my upbringing.  How I've never been to a restaurant this fancy, EVER.  How I went to an interesting high school.  How the last two years of my life have been the most influential on me.  I told them bullet point versions of all the stories I have: collarbone break 1 and 2, Cistercian (way to big a story to even summarize here), death knocking on my door in the ER in Dec '09, my Eagle Scout adventure, my college decision process, my first semester of college, and all the other stories that are way to personal for a blog, sorry.
I told them how I thought it was crazy that I was going to dinner with my professors.  I had heard stories about college kids going to professor's houses and socializing with them but I didn't think I would be one telling a story (at least not 'till my senior year).  I told them how gracious I was and thankful.  They said how thankful they were that I made time in my busy student schedule to have dinner with them!!!!
So after I told a few stories I told them about the concerns I had about my life and the direction it was headed in.  I told them my concerns... OH WAIT MEANWHILE...
people from the restaurant: the cooks, a Serbian cook, another waitress, the owner, another server, and other people who I have no idea their relation to the restaurant is, are stopping by the table to say hi to Bo and Tom.  Every time a new person comes by, Bo introduces me as one of his acting students who is a "very talented actor and singer."  I was incredibly flattered by this every time it happened.  I didn't know how to respond.  I was literally speechless and dumbfounded.
Ok back to what I was saying... I told them my concerns about the meaning of my life and what I am trying to do to live my life the way I was meant to.  I told them the life philosophy that I have developed up to this point (I'll save it for another blog post...hehe).  I wanted to run it by these two very experienced men.  They gave me their opinion and made me think from a different perspective.  The main thing Bo taught me is that we are all on the planet to love and help one another.  The key word is love.  Loving each other in a way that we do things for others out of the love we have for them as a unique human.
So, somewhere in the middle of the conversation, our food arrived.  The salad was lovely.
But then came the main course.
Bo got a plate full of mussels, clams, and prawns.  My trout arrived.  I wasn't a fan but I ate it anyway.  Bo shoved a mussel and a clam and a prawn on my plate.  He told me to try it.  I didn't know how to eat these things.  Bo taught me.  "Go ahead and eat the head and the eye and the legs."  I do.  "Don't eat the inside of the clams that are closed.  Those are bad and those are the ones that we give to Tom's freshman year roommate Mr. Bruccoli."
I have never eaten such crazy things before in my life.
Ok so the main course is over.  They offer me coffee, espresso, cappuccino, and the like.  I take a coffee and they practically make me order the chocolate brownie sundae.  The dessert comes and it has the biggest strawberry I have ever seen right smack dab in the middle of the plate.
My heart fills with joy.
So Tom's espresso comes and along with it comes a tall shot glass filled with clear liquid.
Bo tells me, "I call that 'liquid jet fuel.'"  He tells me to try some.

As soon as the liquid touches my lips, my sinuses clear COMPLETELY, my mouth burns, my throat burns all the way to my stomach, and I say, "Oh wow, that is very strong."  Bo chuckles and tells me it is a "digestivo."  In particular and Italian alcoholic beverage called grappa.  I think he was expecting me to have a stronger reaction...
O by the way, during our meal, a group of Italian orchestra players sit next to us.  These people are performing tomorrow at Notre Dame.  Once they get up to leave, Bo and Tom have a short conversation with them in Italian.
So after the meal we sit and talk a little while longer.  Tom decides that he needs to go back to bed and we get up from our table.  The Serbian restaurant fellow stops by and asks when Bo and Tom will be back.  Bo says that they'll be back for Tom's birthday next Tuesday.  Right at that moment, Bo asks me if I am free to join them... for Tom's birthday... C.S. Lewis' pupil's birthday...

Bo also tells me that we are having a special guest next class period... Fr. Hesburgh!!!
I tell them I have never met Fr. Hesburgh.  They say, "You should!  And you could be one of his readers. (Fr. Hesburgh suffers from macular degeneration and a select group of students read the newspaper to him daily)  We'll recommend you for that job!"

They drive me back to campus after telling me a final story about how they met and became good friends with the first ever female Supreme Court Justice of the United States of America: Sandra Day O'Connor.  Tom told me the day after he met her, she called him and she said, "Tom?  This is Sandy!  I want to take the class that you are offering at ASU!"

They dropped me off at my dorm.  I quickly met up with two of my best friends at Notre Dame and told them this story.

I have been so excited that I can't sleep.  I cannot believe this night just happened.  I tried to lay down and fall asleep but I couldn't stop thinking about all the things they told me and the anticipation for the next acting class and next time I'll go to dinner with them (ON TOM'S BIRTHDAY).

This has truly been a life changing night.  I might alter my career path now.  I might leave my dorm tomorrow and call everyone I know and tell them how much they mean to me.  I don't know what I'll do (besides study and do homework).

Please tell your friends about this story.  I want to share it with everyone.  I want everyone to meet these men.  They are truly wonderful people.  If through this post is the only way you can meet them, that is better than never knowing about them.

I am so blessed to have met them and to consider them my friends.

I can't sleep.

We have now reached our crusing altitude of 30,000 feet

Ok folks, bear with me on this one.  This one could get a little weird...


Picture your self at Disney World, now I understand if you have never been to Disney World this might be kind of difficult to imagine - all I can ask is that you please try.


Picture being on a ride like Soarin or Mission Space.
These rides were made to simulate traveling.


Here comes the weird thought...


How do we know if we are actually traveling or not?


I thought about this while I was flying back to school after Spring break.  I was flying Southwest and I had a few stops on the way back.  I found myself taking short naps in between takeoffs and landings.  I would wake up and be told I was in Kansas City or St. Louis or Houston.
I believed the captain when he told all the passengers that we were in a new city.  I had no reason to doubt him.  After all, I looked outside the window and saw a different landscape, different people, a different airport, and different planes. 
Then, on one leg of the trip, I sat next to a woman, originally from Texas, but she currently lives in Missouri.  We talked the whole trip.  (It just so happens that when you get two people who like to talk next to each other, they don't stop talking)  We talked about a lot of things: politics, education in the US, military (her husband is a marine who is deployed in Iraq), culture differences throughout the US, her new grandson, mental and physical health (after she learned that I wanted to be a doctor), life experiences, law and government, and lots of other things we touched upon.
While we were conversing, she would refer to Texas many times by saying "here" and Missouri many times by saying "there."  Once she heard the captain of the plane say, "We have begun our decent into Kansas City, [Missouri].  Please put your tray tables up and your seats in the full upright position.  Thanks for flying with us at Southwest Airlines and we hope to see you real soon," she changed her reference points.  She now referred to Missouri by saying "here" and Texas by saying "there."  I do not know if she was aware of this change but I sure was.  I didn't say anything to her about it but I was thinking about it for the rest of my journey back to campus.


I thought, "When was the appropriate time to switch adverbs?"  Technically, it should be when you cross the border, right?  But my airplane buddy (single serving friend) switched the adverbs after she was notified by the captain that we are almost in Kansas City.
The key word there is almost.  We still could have been in Texas for all we knew and in that case she would have "technically" been wrong. 


So where were we?


Did I know exactly where I was?
No
Did I know I was in an airplane?
Yes
Did I know I was in Texas when I walked onto the airplane?
Yes


So I was in Texas before this plane ride.  Where was I now?
I was in Missouri!  How did I know that?
I looked outside my window and did not recognize the sights I saw (skyline, landscape, people) and the captain said, "Welcome to Kansas City, Missouri!"


Well, I've been on both the Soarin and Mission Space rides at Disney World and during those rides I knew that I was not actually soaring over the USA or blasting off into outer space and encountering several seemingly life threatening malfunctions to the space shuttle that always seem to happen at the same time every time I rode that ride.  But those rides were so technically advanced that after thinking about this topic, I realized that I could have easily been fooled into thinking I was flying into space or soaring over the country.  After all, the g-forces on the take off of Mission Space felt so real, because they were, and the smells and wind from Soarin felt so real, because they were.


So if I was told by NASA to be on the next mission to Mars and they put me on that ride, I would think that I was actually in Space for two reasons: 1. I trust the authority that told me where I was. 2. I don't know what traveling to space feels like.  I cannot compare this journey to space to any other space adventure I had in the past that could prove to me that I wasn't actually in space.


Using this reasoning, I have come to the conclusion that I do not know if I have ever gone to a new place after "traveling" on an airplane.


It could be that I was fooled by HD TVs in the windows of the plane, false g-forces put on me by a rotating apparatus of some kind (similar to that of Mission Space), and fooled by the captain and flight attendants who told me I was some place new (different from where I started from).
So, now, when I exit the plane and am told I am in Chicago, I see a "new" airport and new people and a new skyline...


I am obviously in a new place now right?  Well, what if I told you that while I was in the plane a group of workers (whose sole purpose in life is to fool me) rearranged all furniture in the airport that I left in Texas to make it look different, created a type of "Truman Show" environment that made me believe I was in a new place, and gathered actors together to act like people from a different place.


I could apply the same logic to car traveling and now I'm stuck with a new problem...


Ok ok ok...  for all those people out there thinking, "Whatever, I've traveled, I know I traveled, you can't make me think otherwise no matter how hard you try," I get it!
I don't think that I have never traveled.  I believe the captain when he says, "Welcome to Kansas City/Chicago/Houston/St. Louis/Dallas!"  I have every reason to believe him.  This was just me entertaining a thought of mine and seeing where it would take me... philosophizing (is what I like to call it).


Tell me what you think, you guys.  It's a scary thought, I know.

I'd like to thank the Academy...

I wanted to write about something deep...

like the Atlantic Ocean... (thanks Farley 2A)

But seriously folks, I'd like to start off with a quote from the movie The Prestige:

"The audience knows the truth: the world is simple. It's miserable, solid all the way through. But if you could fool them, even for a second, then you can make them wonder, and then you... then you got to see something really special... you really don't know?... it was... it was the look on their faces..."

This is true.  The audience does know the truth.  In fact the audience knows more than the truth.  The audience can read your mind.

One of my many directors told me this back in high school.  He told me that I could be acting my heart out on stage but if I wasn't committed both physically and mentally to the role, the audience would see right through me.

This is spot on because herein lies the difference between a good actor and a great actor.  An actor can play a role and still do a fine job portraying a character and not be fully devoted to the project.  But, those actors that fully devote themselves to a role are the ones that blow your mind.

So with that in mind... I give you some of my Oscar picks

(I have not seen every movie but I still think it will be fun to see if I'm right...)

Visual effects: Inception

I mean, what a cool way to depict dreams...

Music (Original Song): Tangled (I See the Light)

Just because I love this movie.  One of my favorite animated movies ever.

Film Editing: Angus Wall and Kirk Baxter for The Social Network 

I think this was the best edited movie.  It was captivating.

Directing: David Fincher for The Social Network

99 takes for the first scene (which was 8 pages long) just goes to show you that this guy won't settle for less than perfection.

Costume Design: True Grit

Just because I love Western movies.

Cinematography: Wally Pfister for Inception

It's about time for Wally to win one.

Animated Feature Film: Toy Story 3

Duh…

Actress in a Supporting Role: Hailee Steinfeld in True Grit 

I absolutely loved her in this role.  She was rough and tough and I believed in this character and wanted her to get her revenge.

Actress in a Leading Role: Natalie Portman in Black Swan

I still haven't seen it but I trust everyone that has told me how great she was.

Actor in a Supporting Role: Christian Bale in The Fighter

I haven't seen this movie but, come on, it's Christian Bale...

Actor in a Leading Role: Colin Firth in The King's Speech

I haven't seen this one either but I really want to.  I pick Colin Firth for a few reasons: he is too good of an actor to not have an Oscar, I have loved him in every movie that I have seen with him, and it is his time to shine.

Best Picture: True Grit

I love Westerns, I love the Coen brothers, I love Jeff Bridges and it is about time for a Western to win an Oscar.

Those are my picks...

It is true that I have a biased opinion.  It is also true that I do not have an informed opinion because I haven't seen all the movies that are nominated.  But I've done my best to put down my picks.  Who knows?  Maybe I'll get a few right...

Rest of my picks:  

ART DIRECTION - Inception 

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE - Inside Job  

DOCUMENTARY SHORT SUBJECT - Poster Girl  

FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM - Biutiful  

MAKEUP - Barney's Version  

MUSIC (ORIGINAL SCORE) - The Social Network  

SHORT FILM (ANIMATED) - The Lost Thing  

SHORT FILM (LIVE ACTION) - God of Love  

SOUND EDITING - Toy Story 3  

SOUND MIXING - The King's Speech  

WRITING (ADAPTED SCREENPLAY) - 127 Hours  

WRITING (ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY) - The King's Speech

Beauty is in the Eye of the Beholdee

You know how they say that every snow flake is unique and different?

I believe you can say the same for eyes.  But not just, "Every person has a unique pair of eyes."  I think that each eye is different even if they are on the same face.

Now, lets take a step back for a second and really think about what the eye does for us.  It doesn't technically "see" for us... does it?

[Here is the "sciencey" part of this post]  
Reflected light passes through the clear cornea and the aqueous humor in order to enter the eye through the pupil.  (Now depending on the amount of light coming in, the radial or the circular muscle may contract.  If there is a small amount of light, the radial muscle will contract and dilate the pupil.  If there is an excessive amount of light, the circular muscle will contract causing the pupil to constrict.) After the light has passed the pupil, it goes through the lens.  This lens is made up of transparent proteins called crystallins.  What is interesting about the lens is that it can be adjusted in your eye without you knowing.  There are muscles called ciliary that contract and stretch the lens so that your eyes can adjust to maintain a clear focus on an object as its distance changes. Once the light passes through the lens it enters the eye[ball] and travels through a jelly like substance called the vitreous humor.  Finally, the light hits the back of the eye, the retina.  There, the photo receptors (rods and cones) of the retina undergo chemical and electrical reactions to send signals out the optic nerve to the brain where these signals, caused by the light entering your eye, are translated into the sensation of seeing. [End of "sciencey" part]

Now, I could further explain how the rods and cones work and all the different types of cells responsible for making and transferring the signal to the brain and even how the brain crosses the signals from each individual eye before all the signals are translated into "vision" but, I think it is more interesting to imagine seeing things without eyes...

You have to admit that it might be possible to stimulate the neurons in your occipital lobe (the lobe containing the primary visual cortex) in such a way as to mimic the signals that the eye sends to the brain.  Then wouldn't you see something?

I mean, you don't have eyes!  But the same process that happens to perceive "sight" should happen in your brain if you stimulate the neurons in the same way your eyes do.

Ok, so why do we have eyes? Well, eyes just make everything easier... but that isn't a creative answer. 

I like to think they serve a greater purpose.  After all, we are created in the image and likeness of God.

I think they tell something about who you are (window to the soul).  The uniqueness of each individual eye just makes the person who has them that much more unique.

I think that eye color is something that helps my argument...
(Now I don't mean for this to be a "every person is unique and different" post.  I just want to comment on interesting facts of the eye)

I looked up different eye colors and this is what I found: brown, blue, hazel, gray and green.

In my experience, eyes have two regions for color in them.  The region right around the pupil and the region that surrounds that.  For the sake of clarity: lets call the region near the pupil region 1 and the other region 2.  Region 1 is rarely a perfect circle but region 2 extends from the edge of region 1 to the sclera (the white of the eye).

(Now, this doesn't mean that there can only be two different colors in an eye.  There can be many different shades in these two regions.)

The best way I can describe region 1 is a "splash."  It looks as if someone splashed a drop of color around the pupil and froze that splash.

What is cool about these regions is that they are in all different eye colors.  It can be that region 1 is a light shade of brown/blue/hazel/gray/green and region 2 is a darker shade of brown/blue/hazel/gray/green (or vice versa).

All eye colors are attractive.  This "splash" is something that makes them so.

There are so many songs about eyes and eye color...

One of my best friends, Bailey, loves the song "Brown Eyed Girl" by Van Morrison. (and it just so happens that she has brown eyes)

One final thought...

You can never know your eyes better than someone else.  This makes sense since you can never "see" your eyes.  Well, you could see them in a mirror or a reflection in the water (like Mulan).  But those reflections can't be trusted because it is almost impossible to have a perfect mirror or perfectly calm pond.  Besides, what you'd be seeing is a reflection- not the real thing.  Only another human can truly "see" your eyes (with their own).

This makes for an interesting proposition:

Since the eyes are the window to the soul, is it possible that the best way to get to know yourself is through another?


Thanks for hanging in there with me.  I know this is a long post but I think everything here needs to be said (including the shout out!)

Thanks again to Wikipedia and this time webMD!