I Will Most Surely Die

1 to 2 weeks. That's the amount of time my family is expected to survive the apocalypse. Honestly, even that long seems a stretch. My basic strategy for surviving the apocalypse is hiding in a hole until I die. We had a food score of zero and our only relatively strong category was x-factor probably thanks to my dad's weird camping skills. But even though in a crazy doomsday situation I am unlikely to survive I am glad I am not like the people on Doomsday Preppers. That guy who shot off his thumb and was having his ten year old use a rifle? If the apocalypse rolls around I do not want to be around when people like him are in charge. I'd say its better not to worry about the impending end of the world as we know it because if it is coming there's nothing we can really do about it anyway. But I guess that's what these people are trying to do: prepare to survive an impossible situation. But there's no point in trying to fight the inevitable. It is far better to focus on living a good life now than to prepare for some impossible unlikely situation in the future.

Snowpiercer: Possibly the weirdest movie I've ever seen but nice and post-apocalyptic nonetheless

This image pretty much sums up Snowpiercer at its best: gritty revolutionaries versus a creepy upperclass and a good dose of messed up humor.

In Snowpiercer, the world has become a frozen wasteland. Scientists developed a chemical called CW7 that was designed to combat global warming by cooling the Earth. Instead it destroyed all life on Earth in a deep freeze. All life, that is, except for those lucky enough to board a train, run by a miraculous everlasting engine, created by a man called Wilford. However, life on the train is far from  idyllic for passengers in the tail section. While the upperclass dine on sushi and get their hair done the passengers in the back are forced into tight living quarters, have their children stolen from them and have to eat "protein blocks" made of unspeakable things.  What happens if they go outside the train?

As the movie gets underway the audience learns about Curtis, played by Chris Evans, who is set to lead the next revolution of the tail section. The movie follows Curtis's journey to the front of the train, to the engine and to Wilford, who is practically worshipped by the passengers of the train. Curtis believes that the other revolutions failed because they failed to capture the engine so that is what he sets out to do with the help of "security expert" Nam and his daughter Yona, who appears to have clairvoyant abilities.

Tilda Swinton's character was probably both the weirdest and best part of the movie. She plays Minister Mason (and is referred to as sir) a leader of the front section. She's creepy, grotesque, and often darkly hilarious.

 

The shocking part of this movie is that it takes place in a very near future. The CW7 is set off in 2014 and the action of the movie takes place in 2031. It was easy to see the parallels between the society
 of the train and our society. It takes the shocking difference of lifestyle between the rich and the poor and puts those two opposites right up against one another. It also shows the danger of a closed society in which humanity has no opportunity to grow. At the end of the movie *SPOILERS!* Nam blows up the door of the train and the subsequent avalanche causes the train to crash. Timmy and Yona, the only apparent survivors are left alone in a world that is slowly becoming more survivable. Whether or not they will is unclear but it seems that at least humanity is freed from the oppressive hierarchy of the train.

The post-apocalyptic elements of the movie were great. I loved when characters referred to cigarettes or bullets as "extinct". It was also disturbing seeing the drastic poverty of the tail section contrasted with the wealth of the front section. But there was also a lot that bored or confused me. I didn't understand why the front section army was not able to easily crush the rebellion especially when SURPRISE bullets aren't actually extinct because of course we need to shoot people in this movie. Also there was this weird thing with a fish.

Despite a lot of weirdness though it was pretty good and I think it was a great take on a new kind of post-apocalyptic world.

The History in Orphan Train

Vivian did not have a choice in how her life turned out. When her entire family dies in a fire Vivian is left helpless and all alone. With no choice in the matter she is sent out West to be put on display in different town to see if any family would like to take her. She meets Dutchy who rightfully believes he will be put to work as a farm hand. When they and the other orphans are put on display they are forced to stand silent as they are poked and prodded by their prospective "parents". However, as one of the women from the PBS documentary mentioned, many of these people did not want children: they wanted a slave.

Only then does the stark similarity between the orphan trains and the slave trade become clear. Just like the African Americans forced into slavery these children were at the mercy of anyone who took them. There was practically no way to monitor their treatment and welfare. Many adolescent boys, like Dutchy were used as free labor and had no choice but to be worked to death or run away.  

The Great Depression also functions as a large plot point of the novel. People were first eager to take the free labor offered by the children. But soon another mouth to feed was not work it. At her first home with the Byrnes, Vivian experiences just this. Mrs. Byrne was eager to use Vivian as a seamstress until the Depression set in. Then she herself fell into a depression and refused to care for Vivian any longer.

The book also parallels the very sad and real incidents that occurred during World War II. Vivian is able to keep her store running throughout rationing and even flourishing throughout the war but  nonetheless she experiences terrible tragedy. Dutchy, who she reunited with and married, dies fighting in the war. There were about 5 million "war widows" after World War II. Vivian becomes one of these women and sadly gives up her child for adoption after her ordeal.

The history of Orphan Train was so well researched by Christina Baker Kline. She created an authentic historical environment that Vivian lives through.



                                                       

Inspirational Enzo

Many of the quotes I liked from The Art of Racing in the Rain were either really long or didn't work out of context. This one was just the right length and connected to the book enough while not seeming completely crazy out of context. Like, "The zebra keeps dancing," would have. The image I chose looks a lot like my dog even though it's actually from Google Images. Despite what the book said, I always pictured Enzo as a Golden Retriever. This quote, while a little YOLO-ish, really expressed what Enzo learned from Eve's death. He vows to appreciate life as she did and I think that is a wonderful sentiment. It showcases one of the best parts of the book: Enzo learning from the people around him how to be a good man.

Enzo the dog?

I love dogs. When I was little my favorite books were all about dogs. So I was very excited to read a book narrated by a dog. Well, I’ve been disappointed.

It’s not that the narration is completely off, but there is something we expect from a talking, or at least a thinking dog. Well what we expect is this:

 

But even if Garth Stein wanted to go for something more subtle than that he had to at least capture that doggy nature. Enzo is sweet, sometimes, but is just a bit too much like a man. I suppose that may be the point, that is Enzo’s goal after all. But then, why advertise your book as being narrated by a dog. It’s narrated by a human soul trapped in a dog body.

Because of how I feel about this I think the best parts of the book are when Enzo does act like a dog and doesn’t understand how the world works. For instance, the demon zebra. Enzo hallucinates this crazy zebra massacre and continues to be haunted by the evil zebra stuffed animal.  At first, it weirded me out but it’s strangely growing on me.

 

Anyway, this is going to sound mean, but I don’t really understand the appeal of this book. I understand people wanting to read a book narrated by a dog (so did I) but  I don’t understand why they would recommend this  book, which to me is NOT really narrated by a dog. It’s narrated by a prophetically wise soul that just happens to follow this guy named Denny around.

I'm Amazing Amy

Which “Gone Girl” Character Are You?

1. You got: Nick Dunne

   You have good intentions, we know. You want what’s best for everybody, but you’ve definitely made some mistakes. Still, you’re mostly trustworthy and a genuinely good guy. After all, it’s not *your* fault that you’re awkward in front of a camera!

   20th Century Fox
2. You got: Amy Dunne

   Amazing Amy. You’re a planner. You’re organized. And you don’t trust anyone. Sure, you have some parent problems, but you ALWAYS get what you want…even if you have to kill for it.

   20th Century Fox

 

 

 

Maybe I shouldn't be surprised on this one...Just kidding! But I wonder what it would be like to take a serious quiz analyzing what character you would be. It's possible I would still be Amy, but I don't think so. Buzzfeed quizzes like these just ask you what's your favorite color and pet and other random things. They have hardly anything to do with actually being like the character.
Am I anything like Amy? I like to plan things I suppose, but I'm not particularly organized. But I guess I do pay attention to small details. I'm not quite as sociopathic as her, to say the least. It's funny though, I'm not offended or anything by getting her. She is very smart and she knows what she wants and how to get it. Though I certainly wouldn't want to be her even for a second it's, not nice, but interesting to know that at least according to Buzzfeed I am somewhat similar to Amy Elliot Dunne.

crazycrazycrazycrazy

Honestly, towards the end of Part One I had completely given up hope for Nick. The evidence was so strong against him and when he went out to the shed and thought nonononono  I believed we would find Amy’s decaying body inside. Then I flipped the page.

 

 

 

 

 

 

So yeah, that was my basic reaction to part two of Gone Girl. Everything I had thought I knew about Amy was a total lie. She had literally created a character to take her place, to mess with the reader’s mind and turn them against Nick the way the police and the media betrayed him. When I started the book, I was first on Nick’s side. He seemed kind of messed up but Amy seemed really demanding and manipulative. As part one went on, however, I grew to pity Amy more and more. By the end I thought Nick had to have done it and that maybe Gillian Flynn had known that the reader would think that the killer would not be Nick because that was too obvious so that then the least obvious thing to do was to make Nick the killer. That’s how good Amy’s scheme was. I had to justify that to myself. The woman is so messed up, so evil, I was literally crying over how disturbed I was by her.

I was the most creeped out by this section of Amy’s confession:

“I remember always  being baffled by other children. I would be at a birthday party and watch the other kids giggling and making face, and I would try to do that too, but I wouldn’t understand why. I would sit there with tight elastic thread of the birthday hat parting the pudge of my underchin, with the grainy frosting of the cake bluing my teeth, and I would try to figure out why it was fun.”

But looking back on it, it’s just kind of sad. Clearly there is something wrong with Amy. Probably due to the way she was raised, but it has to run deeper than that. She actually is insane. A sociopath or something. She is smart and meticulous but has no real grasp on her emotions. Which is actually pretty good for her, since the only times she messes up are when those tiny shreds of humanity come out.