Okay, I admit it. Much to the embarrassment of most of my family, I am a Twilight Junkie.
I’ve read all four of Stephanie Meyer’s Twilight saga books, twice. Not to mention the internet only manuscript of Midnight Sun. I check out the latest gossip on the New Moon filming and look forward with great anticipation to 11.20.09 for the opening of Twilight #2. My desktop image is the New Moon poster released by Summit last week.
I’ve had in depth conversations with my 12 year old niece as well as several teenage fans of the series and I just can’t shake it. I know that I’ll eventually get over it, but until then, I plan to enjoy!
I have often told my children that there are only a handful of original plots and that all books are somehow based upon those plots and their variations. Success; Failure; Love and Loss; Revenge; Mistaken Identity; The search for a higher power, be it God or the Devil (according to Stephen King).
Ronald Tobias wrote the book 20 Master Plots: And How to Build Them and subscribes to this list of 20 basics: Quest, Adventure, Pursuit, Rescue, Escape, Revenge, The Riddle, Rivalry, Underdog, Temptation, Metamorphosis, Transformation, Maturation, Love, Forbidden Love, Sacrifice, Discovery, Wretched Excess, Ascension and Descension.
But whatever notion you hold, I do believe there are only so many original ideas and the best authors mold and shape these basic plots into new and exciting twists that entertain us and become classic.
In that vain, my son showed me this video from Today’s Big Thing which really illustrates the point. This video is about music, but shows that there are only so many chord combinations that a muscian can create and still be original. Th video is very entertaining and makes you stop and think about what creativity really means.
There are trillions (I just made that up) of website gadgets out there, but I’m particularly partial to aBowman.com
aBowman.com has several interactive gadgets that are simple yet make you want to spend time, much like the soothing nothing of watching a fish tank. You don’t know why you like it, you just do.
Like my little hamster friend here will follow your mouse to his water bottle. You can feed him or make him run on his wheel by clicking in the center.
Check the other cool widgets to keep you company at aBowman.com. I have a feeling you’ll enjoy having them around.
There is no real explanation for the increased popularity, but I do have a theory. You see over the past, oh, 20 years or so, the World Taekwondo Federation, (also known as the WTF), has been successfully lobbying to have tae kwon do sparring as part of the Summer Olympic games.
Olympic Taekwondo Sparring has been seen in the Summer Olympics for several tours now beginning first as an exhibition and eventually becoming a medal sport. (more…)
My boss at my ‘day job’ where I work as a lighting designer (which is another post for another time) sent me the link to this very cool video last week. It’s about a street artist in New York who is so very clever it blew me away.
For anyone unfamiliar with New York City, it’s a very kinetic, dynamic place. Always moving, always changing. One thing it definitely has going on is way too much trash flying around. That’s what makes this artist so hip and clever.
New York street art is a unique enterprise that gives life and depth to the city. The fact that this artist captures that with something that is usually less than pretty is way cool. I admire people who can take the ordinary and make it extraordinary. It’s a trait I wish I had.
I’ve purchased dozens and dozens of domain names over the years, but the most important domain I have purchased by far is my own name.
Yes, perhaps it’s the misguided notion that one day I will be famous enough, like Oprah, Madonna or even Joel Comm, that my little old name becomes a viable commodity on its own. At the very least, it could become a valuable piece of virtual real estate which is why I decided it was important to buy my own name in a dot com version. (more…)
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and subscribes to this list of 20 basics: Quest, Adventure, Pursuit, Rescue, Escape, Revenge, The Riddle, Rivalry, Underdog, Temptation, Metamorphosis, Transformation, Maturation, Love, Forbidden Love, Sacrifice, Discovery, Wretched Excess, Ascension and Descension.
No matter how you spell it, you’re talking about the 