It’s Complicated
“50% percent of first marriages, 67% of second and 74% of third marriages end in divorce,” says Jennifer Baker of the Forest Institute of Professional Psychology in Springfield, Missouri. Sometimes I hear arguments that the divorce rate is so high because people go into marriage without sufficient commitment. I don’t think that a large number of people say to themselves on the day of their wedding as if they are selecting a restaurant for evening: “If it does not taste good, I will simply go to a different restaurant after the entre.” Most people I know find divorce quite unpleasant. Especially when there are children involved, one never fully get’s divorced. Typically at least one of the partners is deeply disappointment that the idea of being together for the rest of the life did not work out. Not infrequently this let-down partner hopes that a miracle will happen and reunite the failed couple.
The 40-Year-Old Virgin
The trailer was a lot funnier than the whole film that was only mildly amusing. The subject, of course, is serious. Human beings are designed to have sex but some people are extremely shy and lack social skills to hook up. The entire premise of the film that at age forty you can lose your virginity strikes me as highly unlikely. I once met a 65-year-old virgin who shared with me his philosophy of sex. I came away with the view that once he had hit forty, his chance of losing his virginity had dropped to virtually zero. That is why he was still a virgin at 65. Yes, the tagline of the film is correct: “The longer you wait, the harder it gets.” The film felt too constructed because the hero gets lucky in the end. I don’t think that life is that kind for most 40-year-old virgins.
Is Sarah Pahlin’s daughter Bristol getting married soon?
The story in People Magazine only makes sense if Bristol Palin is getting married soon. Otherwise, stay tuned for an hilarious moment in the not so distant future when Bristol will have to admit that she did had limited understanding of human nature during her Oprah interview.
Bristol Palin Vows Not to Have Sex Again Until Marriage
By Catherine Donaldson-Evans
Sarah Palin’s 19-year-old daughter Bristol told Oprah Winfrey on Friday she’s made a pact not to have sex again until she’s married - a decision inspired by her own teen pregnancy. “I just think it’s a goal to have and other women should have that goal,” said Bristol, appearing on The Oprah Winfrey Show via satellite from Alaska.
Continue ReadingThe First Solid Data on what drove Voters in the MA Senate Race
I definitely did not see it coming that the Democrats would lose Kennedy’s senate seat in Massachusetts. Here is the first solid information why the Republican candidate, Scott Brown, won the election. Click on More to find out who the man behind the stunning political upset is.
Brown’s Massachusetts victory fueled by frustration with Washington, poll shows
By Dan Balz and Jon Cohen (Washington Post Staff Writer)
Dissatisfaction with the direction of the country, antipathy toward federal government activism and opposition to the Democrats’ health-care proposals drove the upset election of Republican Senator-elect Scott Brown of Massachusetts, according to a new post-election survey of Massachusetts voters.
Continue ReadingAvatar
What a stunner! Turn the clock back 200 years. Not even the photograph has been invented. Here you are minding your business, strolling into your local pub. After your first beer with friends and family the room is magically transformed into a modern-day 3-D theatre, and you are treated to the visual beauty of James Cameron’s Avator. Grandpa and grandma would probably have a heart attack. They could not fathom that such a lifelike motion picture was possible. Are my eyes fooling me? Is the devil playing a trick on me? No, you are in a time machine, taking you 200 years into the future, and witnessing a major event in the history of motion pictures. Marrying animation with a new 3-D camera technology, James Cameron has taken filmmaking to a whole new level. Unlike Titanic, where Cameron used simple characters, this sci-fi adventure is populated by a wide range of interesting characters. Foremost, of course, are the avatars. Each avatar is a robot-like copy of a person that is controlled by his or her mind. Visually, the film is gorgeous. There are so many novel elements in the film that I wanted to see it a second time right away. Next time I will see it in an IMAX theatre, where the experience will be even greater. A day after watching Avatar, my inner life is still dominated by the effects of this amazing motion picture event.
Postscript Jan 12, 2023. I watched the film again before viewing the sequel. had forgotten most of the plot. Seeing it again was an adventure. Now that global warming has hit us so vividly, Cameron’s reverence for nature comes out even stronger.
Continue ReadingThis is it
Even by the standards of the recent fall of Tiger Woods, Michael Jackson is in a class by himself. He went from the biggest star on the planet to the erratic weirdo who could never fully shake the suspicion that his love for children went a bit too far when he routinely invited kids over for sleepovers to his ranch Neverland Unable to control is profligate spending habits, MJ stared bankruptcy in the eye. Many commentators believed that he had signed the contract to give the 50 plus live concerts in London to regain his financial solvency. In the weeks before the first concert date, rumors were flying that Michael Jackson was not healthy enough to survive the live show marathon in London. Suddenly MJ was dead even before a single concert took place. This is itchronicles the preparations for the London concert. The film confirms the theory that his doctor’s negligence caused MJ death rather than the strains of preparing for the concerts.
The Informant
The Informant (played by Matt Damon) is about a shady corporate whistle-blower. The trailer promised much more than the full product delivered. The big mistake was to try to turn the film into something of a comedy. This attempt fell flat. Thumbs down.
Atonement
My first reaction to Atonement was: I have seen this film before. Aristocratic daughter and son of servant fall in love. The differences in social class make it impossible for them to be together. The romance shatters. But before long, the film takes an unexpected turn and my second reaction became: This is a marvelous drama. The human brain is designed for people to survive. When you have done something terrible, beating yourself up for it and becoming all depressed does not have survival value. Suppression rather than atonement is a far more common reaction. Atonement, based on the bestselling novel of the same name by Ian McEwan, is remarkable because the sister of the heroine commits a terrible transgression but years later is able to admit her awful dead. She sets out to atone and win back her older sister’s respect and love. But then war comes and plays havoc with everyone’s plans.
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