Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead envy

We are in the middle of the Drama unit in my AP Lit class, and it is fantastic. So far, we have read Death of a Salesman (Arthur Miller!! Perfection!! Possibly a post dedicated just to Miller is in order?), Trifles, Hamlet, A Doll's House, and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead by Tom Stoppard.

R&G especially inspired a word lust and an envy that happens whenever I read something so fantastic that it makes me want to cry because of the sheer brilliance of the writing. It makes me so jealous that I didn't write it, I think My God I wish I wrote that! I and then I go off into my room and write until I can't anymore.

In Stoppard's R&G, he rewrites the story of Hamlet through the eyes of courtiers Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, who were both minor characters in Hamlet. The way that Stoppard writes the play, intertwining R&G's stories into the original story of Hamlet, sometimes even incorporating scenes pulled straight from Shakespeare's play. I love the way he makes the characters, two bumbling idiots who spout truths about death and the meaning of life. I have a feeling that I'm going to keep coming back to reread this one.

Miller's Salesman was another example. His use of lighting as a way of cuing a flashback was ingenious. Whenever Willy is flashing back to a memory, the lighting changes and flute music is cued to tell the audience that this scene is set in a happier time in the Loman family's life. This element actually inspired me to use a similar tactic in the play that I am writing now. Miller's use of symbols, like the stockings from the line where Biff says "You gave her mama's stockings!" pull the play together. Lines like Biff's here really got to me, especially when I was watching it at a theater about 40 minutes away from my house. when I heard that line, I had an "a-ha" (who else thinks of "Take On Me" when they see that?) moment and everything came together. The meaning of the play and key to the unraveling of Biff and Willy's relationship. 

Trifles by Susan Glaspell and A Doll's House by Henrik Ibsen were so inspiring and thought provoking that I'm including them in a post about Feminism in early/turn of the century Lit (coming soon! *imagine this being said in an epic Morgan Freeman voice*). 

That's why sometimes it seems so daunting, opening a fresh new Word document or turning to a blank page in my notebook. What if what I write is no good? These masterpieces float around in the back of my mind and somehow my fingers can't move from being frozen, poised over the keyboard. I talk myself out of writing so easily. The little devil that sits on my left shoulder whispers evils into my ear and beats me back, away from the computer to the TV or the fridge. But I've recently found that writing is a lot like life. If you don't take that chance, you're not only letting that bitchy little devil win, but you're cheating yourself out of something special. I've learned that I have to write, even if I think what I do write sucks and no one will like it. Taking a leap of faith in writing is the only thing a writer can do. After all, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead wasn't written in a day.

Frida Kahlo: An Inspiration

Frida Kahlo is one of my favorite artists. I've always loved her self portraits, but I recently realised that I don't know much about Frida or her art, other than what I learned about in elementary school art class. I researched her life and her art, and she became even more inspiring as I studied her art online.

When I was little, I saw one of Frida's paintings in a museum. I remember it was a self portrait, and that I was completely mesmerized by her style. I still remember that trip because of that painting, and Frida has been one of my favorite artists ever since. She used her art to document her life. The pain and the passion. Even though the internet is still an incredible resource for knowledge, these pictures probably don't do the paintings justice. But please, admire them anyway. Maybe what you see here can inspire a trip to a museum to see her art in person, or to just go on to learn a little bit more about Frida's art and life.
  

 El Autobus

"I tried to drown my sorrows, but the bastards learned to swim, and now I am overwhelmed by this decent and good feeling."

Henry Ford Hospital

Moses Nucleus Of Creation

 

 Self Portrait 1926

"I used to think I was the strangest person in the world. But then I thought, there are so many people in the world, there must be someone like me who feels bizarre and flawed in the same ways I do. I would imagine her and imagine that she must be out there and read this and know that, yes, it's true. I'm here and I'm just as strange as you."

Self Portrait 1940

 The Two Fridas

What The Water Gave Me

"Feet, what do I need you for when I have wings to fly."

What I Watched This Weekend #2

1. Numb3rs

(Picture: http://images1.fanpop.com/images/image_uploads/Numb3rs-numb3rs-1134031_475_250.jpg)

I finished watching this series on Friday night. I started watching it again from the beginning after that. It's that amazing.

2. Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit

(Picture: http://www.comicbookmovie.com/images/users/uploads/53018/jack-ryan-shadow-recruit-2013_82761381896636.jpg)


I'm not a huge fan of high pressure intense action movies, but I am a fan of Chris Pine.

3. 7th Heaven

(Picture: http://7sacrowd.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/7th20heaven201.jpg)

I've been watching some of the early episodes, total blast from the past. I spent entire summers watching 7th Heaven.

4. Parenthood

(Picture: http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/sites/default/files/2013/11/Parenthood_a_l.jpg)

After finishing Numb3rs, my family started watching Parenthood. The Bravermans make the Camdens  look drama free.

5. The Great Gatsby (1974)

(Picture: http://www.sensesofcinema.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/The-Great-Gatsby-002.jpg)

I LOVED this adaptation of one of my all time favorite books! For the most part, I feel like they did the book justice, and the acting was on point. I'd take Robert Redford over Leonardo DiCaprio any day.

6. Howl

 

(Picture: https://west10th.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/howl-6084.jpg)

I was very disappointed with this one. I'm not familiar with Allen Ginsberg's poetry, but from what I read on Poetry Foundation before watching, I had high hopes. The animation and court scenes didn't mesh and it didn't really didn't do anything for me.

7. Stuck In Love

(Picture: http://stuckinlovemovie.com/images/features.jpg)

This is one of my favorite movies! Mostly because I love movies about writers and I love Logan Lerman.

8. Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters

(Picture: http://www.matthewgraybosch.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/hanselgretelwp.jpg)

Meh. The Grimm brothers are rolling in their graves. But if you're not thinking about how WILDLY inaccurate this is, both historically and the original fairy tale, it's a good enough thriller.

5 Women that SLAY in Everything They Do

1. J.K. Rowling

(Picture: https://larryfire.files.wordpress.com/2012/04/jk-rowling-official-portrait.jpg)

J.K. Rowling is Queen! She is wise, talented, accomplished in her craft. she refuses to be pigeon holed into a specific genre and has courageously branched out into other genres. Need I say more?

2. Tavi Gevinson

(Picture: http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2014/05/23/multimedia/tmag-tavi-gevinson/tmag-tavi-gevinson-videoSixteenByNine1050.jpg)

I have been obsessed with Rookie Mag ever since I read about Tavi in Teen Vogue a long time back. We're the same age, but when I was trying to take pre-adolescent pimples and poufy hair she became a fashion icon. Then she created Rookie. Then she acted in movies and on Broadway.

I can't even. Tavi is my hero, and I think we need to be best friends.


3. Emma watson

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She played my favorite literary heroine Hermione Granger. After the end of the Harry Potter series, she moved on to more grown up and diverse roles. My favorite is that she recently spoke at the United Nations on Feminism and women's' rights.

4. Taylor swift

(Pictures: http://www.billboard.com/files/styles/promo_650/public/media/taylor-swift-2014-sarah-barlow-billboard-650.jpg)

I am a huge Swiftie (I'm seeing her in concert this summer!!). I've been a fan ever since Fearless came out. Her music got me through middle school and high school so far, and probably will get me through college. She bravely went from country to pop, and was success. Recently, someone said that I was just like Taylor Swift. By the tone of voice, I'm no sure if it was meant as a knock or a compliment, but I'll take that as a compliment any day!

5. Jane Austen

(Picture: http://eatingforbalance.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/women-Jane-Austen.jpg)

Even though her works are sometimes put down for romanticizing the subservience that women had been subjected to in the past. Every one of her novels end in a marriage, but what some people fail to remember is that that was how it was back then! Woman had to get married to live. In my opinion, Jane Austen's works are famous because of her graceful and eloquent documentation of her time. But she is on this list because Jane was able to support herself in a man's world. Jane was very different from her heroines, she never got married and made her own money in a time women were dependent upon men. She made a throne for herself in a man's enterprise.

Weekend Playlist: Maneater

Straight from the Spotify, from me to you.

Maneater- The late 70s to the 80s punk and other songs Grimm should use (and have before). And some of their music videos.

1. "Maneater" Daryl Hall & John Oates

2. "Take On Me" A-ha

This video though. I love this, it makes the little comic book geek in me very very happy!

3. "Centerfold" The J. Geils Band

I've always had an irrational crush on Peter Wolf in this video. Don't ask me why, I'm not sure why myself.

4. "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)" Eurythmics

Annie Lennox Annie Lennox Annie Lennox

5. "Werewolves of London" Warren Zevon

Ah-wooooo! (*howls at the moon*).

6. "Danger Zone" Kenny Loggins

7. "Heart of Glass" Blondie

Debbie Harry Debbie Harry Debbie Harry

What I Watched This Weekend...

I was the Queen of Procrastination last weekend. Isn't that what a teenager is supposed to do over the weekend? Instead of being a good little nerd and reading (which I did do when i wasn't watching TV...) I watched TV. A lot. Here's the full list (get comfy, it's a long one).

1. Arthur

(Picture: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/4c/Arthurtv_logo.png)

When I got home from school, I made myself a nice bowl of cereal and sat down in front of the TV. I turned it on and there was one of my childhood favorites, Arthur! I watched the whole episode, and I enjoyed it. I am not ashamed.

2. Julie and Julia

(Picture: http://cdn.hellogiggles.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/29/picture-of-julie-and-julia-movie-photo.jpg)

We watched this on Sunday night. I love this one. Meryl Streep and Amy Adams? Plus food? Perfect.

3. Pretty in Pink

(Picture: http://image-cdn.zap2it.com/images/pretty-in-pink-andrew-mccarthy-molly-ringwald-jon-cryer.jpg)

If you've been reading my blog for a while, you'll know that Pretty in Pink is one of my favorite movies ever. Ever. I watched this Friday night for the first time in a couple of months. I hadn't watched it since September. I think that's some sort of record for me.

4. Moonstruck

(Picture: https://bestromanticcomedies.files.wordpress.com/2010/05/moonstruckxxx.jpg)

This was one of the picks for Saturday. I had never seen this before, but I had high hopes. I'm not a huge fan of Cher's music, but I love her as an actress. Mermaids is case in point (Cher and Winona Ryder are perfection, not to mention 60s fashion). This movie did not disappoint. A young (and extremely angry and attractive) Nicolas Cage satisfied the National Treasure fan in me as well.

5. Love Story

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I was pleasantly surprised. I was expecting a sappy Nicholas Sparks type movie. It kind of was, but the moving was so charming and the 70s style was so inspiring that it made up for any sap. And I watched this on Valentine's Day, a day when a little sap is acceptable.

6. As Time Goes By

(Picture: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/d/dd/As_Time_Goes_By_cast.jpg)

I love this show! It's an old British sitcom, something my dad likes to call a "muttery Brit show." I don't know about that but I love to watch this late on the weekends with tea and my embroidering. Like the 80 year old I am.

7. Brady Bunch

(Picture: http://cache.boston.com/bonzai-fba/Third_Party_Photo/2008/10/15/brady_bunch__1224097221_0886.jpg)

Another childhood favorite. I love this for Peter and the 70s fashion, but I can't help but feel like the creators missed such a huge opportunity with this show. Brady Bunch was about the merging of two families. In the pilot, Mr. and Mrs. Brady get remarried and their kids aren't so thrilled. The Brady boys especially are feeling the loss of their late mother. Mr. Brady says that their mother can never be replaced, but from that point on the boys call Carol "Mom." I can't help but feel like if the show had paid more of a homage to the characters past. If the show had been a little more realistic for more than  episodes and not tried to portray the PERFECT AMERICAN FAMILY, the show would not have been just iconic, but revolutionary!

8. Mad About You

(Picture: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/ro/0/07/Mad-about-you-in-window.jpg)
This is a new favorite... I love this! Especially how they do crossovers with Friends and Seinfeld.

 9. Sex and the City

(Picture: http://feminspire.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/sex-and-the-city.jpeg)

I bought the first season at Target a few weeks ago. I'm not a huge fan, but I like how Carrie is a writer. I love anything about a writer's life.
P.S. I love Carrie's shirt in this picture. Bowie fans unite!

10. Northern Exposure

(Picture: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/it/archive/f/f0/20091214011522!Northern_Exposure_titoli.jpg)

I. Love. Northern Exposure. The way that the show is written, the way that the actors play the characters, the sets and the location, all blend together into a masterpiece. Also, the moose in the opening credits is adorable, too. I don't know if it's on Netflix, but if you haven't seen this, watch it. Now.

This is your procrastinating Queen signing off.

Ch-ch-changes!

So I've changed the name of this little blog.

Again. 

I do realize that it seems like I've been changing the name and the URL every year. I went from Lizzie's Garden to Petals and Velvet to now The Ginger Introvert. I promise I'll try not to make this a yearly thing. But I went from one senseless name to another, and after I created my Tumblr using the name Ginger Introvert, I decided that I really liked the name and that I wanted to use it for this blog as well. This name has meaning for me... For obvious reasons, ha! I changed the header, too. I love this picture, my best friend took it for her Photography class last year. I used it for the cover of my portfolio for Creative Writing class last year as well. 

There have been so many changes since I last wrote. I'm a senior this year. I'm a little over five months away from graduating (eep!), I've chosen the college that I'm going to be attending in the fall (again... eep!). I've lost about fifty pounds since I started exercising last February (blog post about that coming up soon), I'm taking an all year AP Lit class that is helping me grow both as a reader and a writer (post about this coming up soon, too). And probably a million other things that I'm forgetting right now.

I'm not making any promises, because whenever I do, I forget about them and don't write at all, but I do want to write here more. I'm doing an independent study in creative writing this semester, so I actually have the time to write! Which is beyond amazing. Third block is my favorite time of the day. 

Write soon, Lizzie Rose.