Day 12+1: The dumbest thing I ever said?

In case you are wondering, I'm not superstituous, I'm just trying out a new base 12 numbering system. I figure we should make some use out of memorizing the times tables up to 12--screw base 10 I say.

The dumbest thing I ever said? (Or, at least in the top dozen).

I was at dinner with friends a few years back, just after Leonard Cohen's son had released his first album. The first single was getting some play on Much Music and I remember being pretty into it--although having listened to it again recently, it ain't that good. I also had / have a bit of a man-crush on Leonard Cohen. There is something about a fair to moderate looking dude who still manages to be a genuine ladies man that I found quite compelling.

I was thinking about Leonard and his poetry which explores the play of the sacred and the profane and couldn't figure out why he named his son what he had. So I asked the table of friends:

"Is Adam a biblical name"?

As soon as the words were spoken I remembered. And the great thing about friends is they don't forget things like that. Especially a bunch of literature loving dorks like I was hanging out with.

Day 12: Buddydudeguy's Guide to Movies

It is pretty rare that I see a movie in the theatre, although I always love it. The first few minutes of any movie are incredibly cool. They bring me back to the best parts of my youth, like watching 'Star Wars' with my family. Or watching 'Back to the Future' with my buddy Wayne and his little bro who had to sit on his lap because the movie was packed.

Last night I saw 'One Week' with Joshua Jackson. It wasn't amazingly, wonderfully awesome but it was a happy little movie. Jackson's character gets diagnosed with cancer and decides he needs to have an adventure so he buys a vintage motorcycle and drives from Toronto to Tofino. Along the way the film is an ode to Canada's landscape and over sized structures.

A couple things, in particular, struck me while watching this movie. First, if you have done this drive many times--as I have--it really bumps you when things are shot out of sequence. Although, you could argue that the road trip is a metaphor and complete continuity misses the point. But, seeing the 'Big Stick' arena located in Winnipeg instead of Duncan, BC was troubling. The other thing that occurred to me was that this movie isn't perfect. That's a bit of a duh statement, but it is more than that. This movie wasn't trying to be perfect. And it seems to me this is a real aesthetic of Canadian film-making.

If you ever watched an Atom Egoyan film you've probably seen this story telling aesthetic in action. They are vignettes of the lives of people that don't have the Hollywood story arc we are used to. There is no definitive climax, no clean denouement and no easy determination of a moral message. In other words, they are a bit more like life. This is strange for those of us raised on Hollywood blockbusters, but it is comforting as well. You don't leave the film excited, ready for battle or convinced your soul mate is in the vicinity of where you just happen to live. But you do leave quietly inspired about the beauty of life and resilience of the human spirit.

So, I give 'One Week' a worth seeing recommendation. Just be prepared for a Canadian experience and to leave the theatre not quite positive how you felt.

Day 10: So, you're a writer are you?

Amongst the many pet peeves I have, because I tend towards pettiness, is random people claiming they are writers when they don't write for a living, or publish any of their writing. And no, self publishing a blog, or donating your writing to a free website that is desperate for content does not count. They both count as places to improve your writing skills, but just writing things doesn't make you a writer--just like telling a convincing lie doesn't make you an actor.

Put simply, writers, actors, musicians, artists are all names of professions. If your primary income comes from one of these things then feel free to introduce yourself as such. Or, preferably introduce yourself with your name and let people discover the variety of things that makes you interesting. And, if asked about what you do, try "I am graduate student, which lets me pay the bills and will lead to my career, but what I am really passionate about is writing". This sort of introduction has two benefits. First, you don't come off as a pompous self-deluded ass who insults the ability and efforts of the many talented writers who work very hard to scrape out a living at it. Second, by using the phrase 'what I am really passionate about' I know to extricate myself from the conversation and begin ignoring your existence.

But, to be slightly more serious I have a fundamental problem with these sorts of self descriptions. I don't think the world needs to be separated into descriptions of 'self as commodity', but that doesn't mean the only other answer is essentializing bullshit. I'm a writer. I'm an actor. I'm a singer. These are all immature self-descriptions. Try being a well-rounded and reasonable human being (says the dude who describes himself as leaning towards pettiness). If you love writing, and it is important to you, then fucking say that. If you really wish to be a writer but have another job, then say that too. Nobody will think less of you--and by nobody I mean no reasonable adult--if you say "I really want to be a singer, it's the thing that excites me most in life but I work as a teacher to pay the bills". See, not so tough and now you sound like you understand that life is more complicated than one word descriptions of a person's essence.

I just would love if people had some sense of themselves, and gave some thoughts to their place in the world. I like role-playing games. Does that mean if I was hanging out with Tom Hanks and Bobby DeNiro I should claim to be an actor too? Of course not, that is self-aggrandizing and insulting to them. Maybe that's a big part of my pet peeve--people who so casually insult the people around them, without knowing it. If you are going to insult someone, be deliberate. That's my move.