Not THAT friendly

This morning Sean dropped a handful of badges on the coffee table in front of me and told me I could have whichever one(s) I liked. They all promote "V-Day," a performance of The Vagina Monologues that will benefit anti-violence programs; Sean bought the badges as part of V-Day's fundraising drive.

I wonder if I have the guts to wear this:

Book-of-the-week

From That's Amore! The Language of Love for Lovers of Language:

Pummel (German)
[PUM-uhl]
Pummel literally translates as 'chubby one,' and conveys the German belief that chubby people are more gemutlich. Gemutlich is often translated as 'cosy,' 'snug,' or 'comfortable.' If someone calls you Pummel, they feel comfortable, relaxed, easy, and at home with you.

mne tak sladok tvoy plen (Russian)
[mne tahk SLAH-duhk tvoy PLEN]
This poetic declaration literally translates as 'your prison is so sweet,' and is used to express both the joy felt in a loved one's company and the sense that being in love is not entirely voluntary.

In the introduction to the chapter on "pain and rejection," I ran across a word I once knew and loved but had forgotten: limerence. Erin McKean says, "Limerence, the feeling of uncontrollable infatuation with another person, thrives on a regular alternation of hope and despair; the idea being that one is never sure of where one stands with the object of one's affection." Handy word, limerence.

Enslaved

Last year about this time, Entertainment Weekly published a list of "The 25 Movies You Need to See Before Oscar Night." I perused the list, realized I had already seen 13 of the films, and thought, "Huh. I can do this." With my trusty cohort Norman along for the ride, we blazed through those remaining dozen movies in about five weeks, barely finishing before the Academy Awards were handed out (North Country had disappeared from theatres weeks before and Norman had to wait for the DVD, which was released a scant five days before Oscar night; I, luckily, had caught it the previous fall and thus finished my Oscar cram session with the far superior Pride & Prejudice). I have never felt so prepared for the Academy Awards, and I correctly predicted the winner in nearly every category. A silly accomplishment, but an accomplishment nonetheless.

All year long I've been wondering if EW would publish a similar collection of recommendations for 2006 films, and I have not been disappointed: "The List," as Norman and I affectionately have termed it, appeared in this week's issue. As of this moment I have seen 13 of the movies (those listed in red) and am committed to seeing the other 12 before February 25.

1. The Departed
2. Dreamgirls
3. Babel
4. The Queen
5. Letters from Iwo Jima
6. Little Miss Sunshine
7. United 93
8. Little Children
9. Notes on a Scandal
10. Flags of Our Fathers
11. The Last King of Scotland
12. The Devil Wears Prada
13. Borat
14. Blood Diamond
15. Volver
16. The Pursuit of Happyness
17. Venus
18. Children of Men
19. Pan's Labyrinth
20. Half Nelson
21. Thank You for Smoking
22. The Painted Veil
23. Stranger Than Fiction
24. Hollywoodland
25. For Your Consideration

Last year EW specified that the descending order of The List reflected their guess as to how likely the film was likely to be nominated for something; they didn't do that this year, but it seems likely that they were operating under that principle again. I find it interesting that there are no documentaries on The List, even though 2006 was a terrific year for documentaries. There are only two foreign films included, and both of them are from Spain (although last year's List included but one foreign film, Cachet, which turned out not even to be eligible for the foreign language Oscar). Until Monday night, the only movie I really didn't want to see was Venus, that gag-inducing Peter O'Toole vehicle; since the Golden Globes and Sacha Baron Cohen's acceptance speech, however, I am now dreading Borat as well. The two films I'm most worried about finding in time are Flags of Our Fathers, which is at the discount theatre in town right now but could disappear at any moment, and Stranger Than Fiction, currently playing 'way out in West Hollywood and two farther-flung locations. I think it's unlikely that Stranger Than Fiction, in particular, will get any noms, but that's not the point: the point is to see every movie on The List, and to see as many of them as possible together. Until February 25, Norman and I are enslaved to The List.

We're going to a movie tonight, but is it anything we need to check off The List? No, of course not -- we're seeing a revival of His Girl Friday. I'm not quite sure when we're going to fit all this moviegoing in.

For the record, I think Children of Men was the best film of 2006. So far.

Faded photographs

Yesterday my old friend Trooperdog had the guts to post his senior high school picture on his blog, so in this new year of being brave and accepting challenges (because that's the kind of person I always wanted to be, even though no one actually challenged me to post anything), I humbly offer you mine. I, fortunately, had my braces off by the time this photo was taken, but dig the fussy hair: nearly half an hour with a curling iron and hairspray each morning to curl everything under, forward, and back and then brush it perfectly into place. And the morning the photo was taken it took me damn near an hour to tie that silk bowtie -- I wanted to buck the current look of the time and be one of the few girls in my class not pictured in an angora sweater with a string of pearls.

I dare Lucy to post her picture!

Follow-up

After reading Lucy's comment yesterday, I decided to look into the whole Bell Jar thing. Sylvia Plath's novel was published in England, where she was a resident, in January of 1963, just a few weeks before she committed suicide. She didn't want her roman a clef to be released in the United States because she was afraid too many people would be hurt by it, so it was not published here, although imported and bootleg editions sold well in NYC bookstores.

Due to some quirk of international publishing copyright law (since changed), which had to do with an author failing to secure overseas publication within six months of a book's being published, an American publisher could publish its own edition of The Bell Jar after a certain amount of time had passed. I don't think the novel fell into public domain; I just think it means someone could publish it without anyone's permission, but still have to pay royalties. Which is exactly what Random House planned to do in 1971, until someone at Plath's British publishing house prevailed upon them to go through the proper channels. I believe Random secured the permission, if not the blessing, of Ted Hughes, and the American edition of The Bell Jar is indeed authorized by Sylvia Plath's estate.

My favorite college professor told one of my classes that The Bell Jar was a fine novel that no teenage girl should ever be allowed to read. I've yet to read it myself.

New math

While at work today, I overheard two older ladies (probably early to mid-70s) discussing a book they saw on a display.

Woman #1: The Bell Jar! I read that book a hundred years ago!
Woman #2: Well, we're not that old.
Woman #1: No, but I read it ages and ages ago. How old is it anyway?
[Sound of pages being turned as she searches for the copyright date]
Woman #2: It's probably the 1960s.
Woman #1: Oh, at least. Here it is -- 1971.
Woman #2: That's pretty old.
Woman #1: Yes. What is that, 25 years ago?
Woman #2: Yes, at least.

Yes, at least.

Resolved...

Perhaps it is not the wisest idea to base one's New Year's resolution -- and thus one's potential New Approach to Living -- on a bumper sticker, but that's what I'm doing this year:

That one sentence encompasses not only every New Year's resolution I've ever made, but also every half-formed wish or deal I've ever made with myself. Maybe it's because I'm 40 this year, but simply telling myself yet again that I'm going to lose some weight just has no appeal. I feel like I need to reassess my whole life, to look at all its components, and see what is working and what needs changing. Am I a good enough wife? Do I treat my friends as well as they deserve to be treated? Am I taking care of myself, too? That one sentence is a challenge, but it also gives me hope that 2007 will be interesting and rewarding.

Currently:
50.9 degrees F
66.5 lbs above goal weight
1 book finished in 2007 (The Fugitive Wife by Peter C. Brown)
1 movie seen in 2007 (Notes on a Scandal)
mood: optimistic