Jello, poetry, and entertainment update

*Okay, since you asked (yes, YOU :), here are my thoughts on "The More Loving One":

There’s a Felicity episode where Felicity quotes this poem: “If equal affection cannot be, let the more loving one be me.” I don’t even remember the context, but that couplet has stuck with me.

Me, I tend to be rather intense. I care very deeply about the people who are important to me. Oftentimes, I’m not going to find “equal affection,” and if that’s the case, yeah, I would rather care too much than too little.

Okay, so that’s why I like this poem.

Here's my best little paraphrase: We love the stars, but the stars couldn't care less about us. But just think if they could? What if they were radiating love to us every night, and we couldn't return that same passion? Indifference is less painful. In reality though, as much as we think we love the stars, we don't really pine for them during the day. If they suddenly disappeared, we could learn to love the dark night sky just as much. We are fickle.


Here's an analysis of meter and meaning (more meter than meaning, though he does say the theme is the "ambivalence of affection").

*Because I've been sick, I got some Jello cups, which is not a usual food item for me. As I was eating one, Pippin kept looking curiously at the Jello. I pointed to it and said, "Jello." She cocked her head and answered, "Hello!" It was very cute. :) I guess Jello does sound like "hello."

*Atonement-- I recently watched this on DVD. I love the cinematography and the color and feel of the film. It is well-written and well-acted. However, I felt rather let down by the movie. It reminded me of Cold Mountain, though I liked Atonement better.

*Frontline: The Age of AIDS-- I got this 4-hour documentary from Netflix. It is very informative, tracing the international spread of and reaction to AIDS. I was looking for something with more personal stories, which this didn't really address, but it's very good for what it is.

*The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver-- I've liked the Kingsolver books I've read (The Bean Trees and Pigs in Heaven), but it took me multiple attempts to start this book, something I've heard from other readers. The beginning is very slow. However, once I got several chapters into this book, I quickly fell in love. This is a complicated, fascinating novel about a missionary family who travels to the Congo right before Congo's declaration of independence...and the decades of aftermath. It's very good. I highly recommend it.

*Rent: The Broadway Soundtrack-- Awesome!
"The opposite of war isn't peace; it's CREATION!"
"No day but today."
"Five hundred twenty-five thousand, six hundred minutes. How do you measure a year?"