One Day, Bridget Jones, I don't know how she does it. These are just some chick flicks (some are film adaptations of books).
There seems to be quite a big stigma surrounding romance films and books. Here is my take on it.
I love romance films and novels. I am a sucker for a good chick flick or love story. Books and films are a form of escapism which is why most books/films have a happy ending because you want to escape real life not read all about it. That is what people have to remember, you may not know it but when you go to watch a film or read a book, you are escaping from your own life.
However, not all stories and films end with a happy ending, there are some very upsetting endings (*coughs* One Day, I am still recovering). There is a quote from Stephen Fry which annoyingly, I cannot trace. He says in other words that fiction tends to have/need some truth in it. I agree with what he says in that fiction does need aspects of truth in it for ease of relating to characters and situations.
I wish that this prejudice towards romance novels would dissipate but I don't think it's going to be that simple.
Romance novels are more than often considered 'cliché' which is quite odd to me personally. I find it odd because it's romance, people fall in love, it happens, how are you going to make that any different. Granted, different things tend to happen and people fall in love in different ways but we are only human at the end of the day. We are humans, we are not some omniscient beings, we are human. Love does not always go how we want it.
I have come to a realisation that people use the term 'cliché' to describe most romance films/novels because we want to escape, to have a change from 'real' love. As humans, we like to dream, at least I do. People dream of falling in love in a revolutionary way but love is love and it's not going to change. Love comes in a different form, shape and size to each individual but it can only be what it is.
This is generally my take on the whole situation but maybe if people really thought about why they don't like romance films/novels, they might discover something. The light bulb might switch on.
Romance novels/films are moving and awkward like real life is. We tend to speak the words 'Oh I wish it was like the films' a lot but it is. Most of the time, films paint an 80% accurate picture of human love. As humans, we don't want to admit this, we like to be different and unpredictable. We also like everything we see, hear, watch and read to be unpredictable but there are only so many things you can do.
Wednesday 31 December 2014
Monday 22 December 2014
Chaos Under The Clockwork Tower And Further...
Delicane looked up at the clock tower as the clock struck twelve. It was midnight. It was quiet that night, very quiet. There were a few people walking around but they were just the usual wanderer's.
There was a sudden chill to the air. Delicane looked to her left and then to her right, all seemed normal. Something wasn't quite right, there was a quirkiness to the air. She looked again, and there he was, the strange man.
Delicane is not normally one to judge but this man had a certain aura about him. Delicane started slowly walking over to him as a compulsion to do so was planted within her. She stopped. To people passing she would almost look as if frozen in time alike the strange gentleman who seemed out of his time. At a closer glance, she noticed she seemed to be the only person who could see this man.
His eyes bore in to her with ferocity. He tilted his head.
Delicane was now far more interested and simply had to go over to him.
'I can answer your question for you now, yes you are the only person that can see me' he spoke coldly.
'Why'? she asked.
'All of that is to come for you but for now, you must remain in the dark' he muttered.
Delicane was about to speak when she heard a commotion. She and the strange man looked over to the scene of a crime. A woman was screaming and wailing whilst embracing this man lying on the floor. One can only assume the man is her husband. One can also assume that the man is dead. Delicane was understandably shocked by the scene and terribly confused.
'How could this happen? I was standing here, in this area, how could somebody be killed right under my nose!' she exclaimed.
'As I said before, you are best left in the dark at this moment'
'Well, I don't want to be left in the dark! I want to know what is going on. This only happened when you arrived so it must be you.' she said
'You are eager aren't you' he said
Delicane was beginning to get increasingly distressed by the sounds of the woman's heart breaking because her husband has just died.
'Okay, I keep calling you strange man in my head and I can't do it anymore so please tell me your name'
'Strange man, well that's interesting. My name is Valdus'
She exhaled, content with now knowing the man has a name. Valdus grabs Delicane by the wrist and starts to pull her along with him. She protests.
'Hey! Get off me! Where are you taking me?' she gasped
'Your protests are futile, not a soul but I can hear you or see you for that matter'
Her head told her to run from Valdus now but her heart told her to go with him. Delicane was always bored and was looking for some excitement and now she had some.
Along the way, he had stopped dragging her along as she was now willingly following him.
Suddenly, there was a big loud bang and fire shot in to the air. Delicane turned and stood in shock. In the place where they had both been stood, something had exploded and had now left the place in ruins.
'Valdus, stop. Please explain to me what is going on. Bad things are happening in places I have been. Am I a chaos walking?'
'Delicane, I'm going to switch the light on now' he said
Delicane was momentarily confused and then she realised what he meant.
Valdus took the suggestive look from Delicane as the signal to carry on.
'This may be hard for you to believe but I am here to save you-'
'Save me? From what?' she asked
'Please, let me finish. This will save a lot less time if you just let me finish'
Delicane inhaled as though she was about to speak but thought better of it.
'I am here to save you because people are after you. I am Valdus, a crime fighter of time. I am not from your time, in fact I don't have a place in time anymore. I have been travelling between time periods for five years, I am a crime stopper of time. I stop crimes happening to the time people by the crime creators of time. Delicane, you aren't just a normal girl, you are one of us. You won't remember this because we had to send you back here to your time, and that resulted in your memory being wiped.'
Valdus stopped speaking as he noticed the look of utter internal combustion going on within Delicane. Valdus knew this was a lot to take in.
'Valdus, I'm running. We must get back to the marble. Valdus, Valdus'
Valdus' face dropped.
'You're remembering'
There was a sudden chill to the air. Delicane looked to her left and then to her right, all seemed normal. Something wasn't quite right, there was a quirkiness to the air. She looked again, and there he was, the strange man.
Delicane is not normally one to judge but this man had a certain aura about him. Delicane started slowly walking over to him as a compulsion to do so was planted within her. She stopped. To people passing she would almost look as if frozen in time alike the strange gentleman who seemed out of his time. At a closer glance, she noticed she seemed to be the only person who could see this man.
His eyes bore in to her with ferocity. He tilted his head.
Delicane was now far more interested and simply had to go over to him.
'I can answer your question for you now, yes you are the only person that can see me' he spoke coldly.
'Why'? she asked.
'All of that is to come for you but for now, you must remain in the dark' he muttered.
Delicane was about to speak when she heard a commotion. She and the strange man looked over to the scene of a crime. A woman was screaming and wailing whilst embracing this man lying on the floor. One can only assume the man is her husband. One can also assume that the man is dead. Delicane was understandably shocked by the scene and terribly confused.
'How could this happen? I was standing here, in this area, how could somebody be killed right under my nose!' she exclaimed.
'As I said before, you are best left in the dark at this moment'
'Well, I don't want to be left in the dark! I want to know what is going on. This only happened when you arrived so it must be you.' she said
'You are eager aren't you' he said
Delicane was beginning to get increasingly distressed by the sounds of the woman's heart breaking because her husband has just died.
'Okay, I keep calling you strange man in my head and I can't do it anymore so please tell me your name'
'Strange man, well that's interesting. My name is Valdus'
She exhaled, content with now knowing the man has a name. Valdus grabs Delicane by the wrist and starts to pull her along with him. She protests.
'Hey! Get off me! Where are you taking me?' she gasped
'Your protests are futile, not a soul but I can hear you or see you for that matter'
Her head told her to run from Valdus now but her heart told her to go with him. Delicane was always bored and was looking for some excitement and now she had some.
Along the way, he had stopped dragging her along as she was now willingly following him.
Suddenly, there was a big loud bang and fire shot in to the air. Delicane turned and stood in shock. In the place where they had both been stood, something had exploded and had now left the place in ruins.
'Valdus, stop. Please explain to me what is going on. Bad things are happening in places I have been. Am I a chaos walking?'
'Delicane, I'm going to switch the light on now' he said
Delicane was momentarily confused and then she realised what he meant.
Valdus took the suggestive look from Delicane as the signal to carry on.
'This may be hard for you to believe but I am here to save you-'
'Save me? From what?' she asked
'Please, let me finish. This will save a lot less time if you just let me finish'
Delicane inhaled as though she was about to speak but thought better of it.
'I am here to save you because people are after you. I am Valdus, a crime fighter of time. I am not from your time, in fact I don't have a place in time anymore. I have been travelling between time periods for five years, I am a crime stopper of time. I stop crimes happening to the time people by the crime creators of time. Delicane, you aren't just a normal girl, you are one of us. You won't remember this because we had to send you back here to your time, and that resulted in your memory being wiped.'
Valdus stopped speaking as he noticed the look of utter internal combustion going on within Delicane. Valdus knew this was a lot to take in.
'Valdus, I'm running. We must get back to the marble. Valdus, Valdus'
Valdus' face dropped.
'You're remembering'
Tuesday 16 December 2014
On going weight loss and current results
At the start of this year, I weighed 13 stone 1 which I found out recently made me obese. In February, I went down to 12 stone 12. Just before Summer, I went down to 12 stone 6. In September, I went down to 11 stone 11. Last week, I went down to 11 stone 5. I still have another stone and a bit to lose before I am at my desired weight. The photo of myself in the black dress was from late June last year.
Saturday 13 December 2014
The Stranger At The 4:00pm Bench
Victorian London. It's an odd place, very pleasing to the eye. The thick fog conceals the identity of each passerby. This then creates a sea of enigma.
I sit on a bench, my bench. It's my bench because I sit here at 4:00pm every single day. As I am a regular visitor of this bench, I begin to become fairly well known amongst the locals. There is Marty, the sweet older gentleman who never fails to tip his hat towards me. I never fail to return the gesture.
It's Winter at the moment. It gets considerably quieter during the winter. The cold is too much for many people. Personally, I love the cold, especially for this season.
There is a beautiful building opposite I. It stands tall and proud. Solid iron gates embrace the building like a warm hug. The building is white with black rectangular panels going down and across. I still, in all the times I sit here do not have the faintest idea of what goes on there. I should find out someday.
'Oh that's odd very odd' I mumble to myself
A peculiar man walks towards my bench. He dons a smart suit, top hat and cane. I assume he must be fairly wealthy.
'May I take a seat on your bench'? The stranger asks
'Why sir, how could you possibly know this is my bench'? I enquire
The mysterious stranger smirks and proceeds to sit down next to me.
'I see you, always watching, I know how you wonder'
This man has a very icy tone to his voice.
Where do you watch myself watching from'?
The stranger's grey eyes pierce my soul like a dagger. After what feels like a good minute, the strangers mouth finally starts to drip a syllable.
'The beautiful building that is white with black rectangular panels going down and across' he sings
My face drops.
'How, how do you-' I stammer
'Ah, that's for me to know and for you to never find out'
'Tell me!' Tell me how you know! Who are you?'
This may seem like an over reaction to this very peculiar stranger but I tell you now, I got a very, very nasty feeling running through my veins.
'Now now Victor, calm yourself, so many questions'
'How do you know my name'? I ask sternly
The stranger rose from my bench.
'You'll never know, it's going to drive you insane' he whispers
The stranger turns so his back is facing myself and silently glides away humming an eerie melody. The stranger completely fades away.
This bench, is my bench no longer.
I sit on a bench, my bench. It's my bench because I sit here at 4:00pm every single day. As I am a regular visitor of this bench, I begin to become fairly well known amongst the locals. There is Marty, the sweet older gentleman who never fails to tip his hat towards me. I never fail to return the gesture.
It's Winter at the moment. It gets considerably quieter during the winter. The cold is too much for many people. Personally, I love the cold, especially for this season.
There is a beautiful building opposite I. It stands tall and proud. Solid iron gates embrace the building like a warm hug. The building is white with black rectangular panels going down and across. I still, in all the times I sit here do not have the faintest idea of what goes on there. I should find out someday.
'Oh that's odd very odd' I mumble to myself
A peculiar man walks towards my bench. He dons a smart suit, top hat and cane. I assume he must be fairly wealthy.
'May I take a seat on your bench'? The stranger asks
'Why sir, how could you possibly know this is my bench'? I enquire
The mysterious stranger smirks and proceeds to sit down next to me.
'I see you, always watching, I know how you wonder'
This man has a very icy tone to his voice.
Where do you watch myself watching from'?
The stranger's grey eyes pierce my soul like a dagger. After what feels like a good minute, the strangers mouth finally starts to drip a syllable.
'The beautiful building that is white with black rectangular panels going down and across' he sings
My face drops.
'How, how do you-' I stammer
'Ah, that's for me to know and for you to never find out'
'Tell me!' Tell me how you know! Who are you?'
This may seem like an over reaction to this very peculiar stranger but I tell you now, I got a very, very nasty feeling running through my veins.
'Now now Victor, calm yourself, so many questions'
'How do you know my name'? I ask sternly
The stranger rose from my bench.
'You'll never know, it's going to drive you insane' he whispers
The stranger turns so his back is facing myself and silently glides away humming an eerie melody. The stranger completely fades away.
This bench, is my bench no longer.
^I wrote this short story as a spontaneous moment appeared with an interesting thought and this is what came out of that thought
Tuesday 9 December 2014
Soundtrack To My Life
I recently watched a Youtube tag video by Lily Melrose. In the video, she collaborated with Zoe London. They created a tag called 'The Soundtrack To My life'.
This video fuelled my thoughts about how I have certain artists who narrate my life in a way. The artists being; Lana Del Rey, Paloma Faith, Fun. and Florence and The Machine.
I listen to these artists the most because they all have a similar style but also because I relate to the stories they are telling through their lyrics.
I have also found, I listen to this one particular band the most during the winter time. The band is 'Fun'.
My favourite songs by Fun are: Stars, We are young, Carry On, Some Nights and Some Nights Intro.
It is a well known fact that when you are in a particularly sad mood, you take notice of the lyrics to song and generally then have a better understanding of what the artist is trying to say.
I love music, it's a real mood lifter.
I will do the tag in blog form which contain the same questions Zoe London and Lily Melrose penned.
Song you listen to when you're happy? Hey There Delilah by The Plain White T's
Song you listen to when you're sad? Born To Die by Lana Del Rey
What song will you have at your wedding? Cosmic Love by Florence And The Machine
What song do you dance around the house to? Comfortably Numb by Pink Floyd (The Pulse version)
What song do you play in your headphones when you are out and about? Some Nights by Fun
Song you listen to when you are angry? Only Love Can Hurt Like This by Paloma Faith
Song you'd have at your funeral? Songbird by Eva Cassidy
Song that makes you lose your shit at a party? Sex on fire by Kings Of Leon
The Last Song you listened to? Cosmic Love
Your karaoke song? Dancing Queen by Abba
What song do you work out/exercise to? Everybody's on the run by Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds
Song with the most memories attached? Born To Die by Lana Del Rey
Song that makes you cry? Flying Without Wings by Westlife
Song you hate the most? What Makes You Beautiful by One Direction
Your favourite song of all time? Born To Die by Lana Del Rey
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