I already mentioned that The Force Awakens is one of the movies I liked the most last year. It's not odd that I've kept thinking about it, and one thing that has been in my mind is how differently The Force is presented in this one, compared to last decade's and last century's (and now that I put it like that, it seems like this is an ages long story... three generations and counting... wow).
In the first "era" of Star Wars (1977 to 1983), The Force is treated like this mystical energy field that connected all the living things in the galaxy.
VERY new-agey. But perfect for a time when hippies were still roaming the Earth in large packs, and vague enough for anyone to make it their own and intepret it as they felt like it. Probably part of the reason that the concept became so loved and succesful.
Quoting Yoda (a very new-agey guy himself) from The Empire Strikes Back (Episode V): "For my ally is the Force, and a powerful ally it is. Life creates it, makes it grow. Its energy surrounds us and binds us."
In the second "era" of Star Wars (1999 to 2005), we saw all this metaphysical allure dissapear behind a "scientific" explanation. Now The Force wasn't just energy surrounding us and keeping the Galaxy alive, it was caused by these microscopic lifeforms living in the cells of creatures: the midi-chlorians.
Besides sounding like something you'll forget right after the 8th grade biology test, they were a fairly dissapointing attempt at shedding light where there was no darkness (as we say in Venezuela, "no aclares que oscurece", which means "don't explain 'cause you're making it all more confusing").
But let's give them some credit, it was the turn of the millenium and an explanation closer to hard science semmed like a better idea than something that was basically "because of magic".
And then we enter the third Star Wars Era (2015 and expected to be until 2019). So far, the best explanation of The Force in this new pack of films *now worries, no spoilers, as it's on the trailer* it's when Han Solo simply says "It's true... all of it". Now the Jedi, the Sith and The Force simply are, no explanation provided, they now happen to exist just as magic and fairies in any other Disney film.
So, which explanation do you prefer for The Force: the mystical energy field, the midi-chlorians or none?
This has been a great year for movies. And it's not over yet (can't wait for The Revenant, The Hateful Eight and The Peanuts Movie).
And as I was thinking about some of the movies I've enjoyed the most so far, I started to notice some things they have in common, so here it goes...
As usual, there will be spoilers, so if you haven't watched The Force Awakens, Mockingjay Part 2 or Mad Max Fury Road, you can stop reading.
5. They're all sequels to very long series: This is neither good nor bad, but they are all part of something bigger than a trilogy. However, the only one that feels like clousure is Mockingjay Part 2, as Fury Road is more of a reboot, and The Force Awakens sets the tone for the last three (that we know of) of a trilogy of trilogies.
4. The main team has to infiltrate the bad guy's fort: Whether they needed to get to President Snow's mansion, Inmortan Joe's Power Cave (or wathever the place from which he ruled the wasteland was called... which I just checked and it's called The Citadel) or The First Order's Death Star on steroids; in all cases, the main plot involved the need to get to the villain's domain, overcoming a series of death threatening obstacles.
Knock Knock / Who's there? / The heros, hahahaha YOU LOOSE
3. A brainwashed young man has a change of heart: As anyone who drinks a black sugary carbonated mix of chemicals and enojys it will know, brainwashing is powerful. But these movies do a great job reminding us that there is something more powerful than that.
In all three films we have a young man (Finn from The Force Awakens, Peeta from Mockingjay Part 2, and Nux from Fury Road) whose mind has been messed up by the bad guys, but somehow their true conscience manages to break through and they become a key person in the day-saving activities of the hero's crew. Whether they were raised and trained like Finn and Nux, or went through a Clockwork Orange-style session of Ludovico Technique(known in The Capitol as Hijacking), these guys are psychological time bombs waiting to meet the right girl to swap sides.
His beaten mind says KILL but his eyes say WHAT I'M I DOING?
2. An evil dictatorship Vs. heavily armed rebels: These movies won't end with a surrender and the ressistance knows it and it's ready to fight big fire with sneaky fire. On one side, we have armies of face-covered men defending a tyranical system (The First Order's army, The Capitol's "Peacekeepers", The Citadel's War Boys) enforced by an evil dictator-like ruler with absolute power (Supreme Leader Snoke in The Force Awakens, President Snow in Mockingjay Part 2, and Immortan Joe in Fury Road). On the other side, we have a diverse group of dissidents willing to sacrify themselves for a cause they feel very strongly about.
You can bet this won't end with a peaceful protest and a referendum
1. An action woman as a lead character: True, these are movies with more than just one protagonist, but Rey (The Force Awakens), Katniss (Mockingjay Part 2) and Furiosa (Fury Road) certainly make the plot advance in their respective universes. They are strong, have an objective beyond "finding love" and, unlike the Marvel Designated Women, their personalities are way more than a pair of boobs that know karate.
When it's time to put a lightsaber/arrow/bullet in the big bad's heart, they are more than able and willing to do so. And yes, they're young, white and attractive (armless Charlize Theron is still Charlize Theron), but they are not all about looking pretty or using their looks to seduce their way into their goals. And besides that, there were also strong female characters of all ages and shapes, which is not something you see often: you had beloved Princess Leia as the main example in The Force Awakens, hated President Coin in Mockingjay Part 2 and the brave Vuvalini of Many Mothers in Fury Road.
Let's do this!
Three very different movies that are not so different after all when you try to see the big picture.
They say that the more things change, the more they stay the same. I bet we could check any time in history and people will think that the taxes are unfair, the next generation is useless and lazy, and the end of the year should be celebrated.
But since I can't do time travel, I'll focus now on space. As I'm celebrating my second Christmas in Ireland, I can't help to compare it to the Venezuelan way. And even though we're seven thousand kilometres appart, I feel the similarities are very strong.
So, allow me to list the 10 things we do oddly alike in Christmas...
10. We're both very early birds: Both in Ireland and in Venezuela, it's beggining to look a lot like Christmas very prematurely in the year. Back in Caracas, you could mark the unofficial start of the season in mid-September when the schools go back to class and they start preparing for the gaitas, an inter-school Christmas music competition which is serious business (think a South American Christmasy version of Pitch Perfect or Glee).
And while Ireland's high-end department store Brown Thomaslaunched their Christmas section at the end of August this year (causing a big media buzz and exposure), Venezuela's Beco was not so far behind, traditionally bringing the green, red and golden stuff at least three months before it's needed.
9. We're obsessed with snow (although we don't really see much of it): Nothing says tropical Christmas cheers like fake plastic snow on fake plastic trees. Surprisingly, we do get a tiny bit of snow in the top of Venezuela's highest mountain (Pico Bolivar) every now and then, which makes everyone in the country go mental and try to go on a hike to take a snow selfie.
Snow in Ireland is a less abnormal occurence, but it's still odd, and everyone looses it when the weather forecast predicts it (although 90% of the time it's just slushy rain that is melt by the time it hits the ground).
FYI, if you see an adult doing snow angels, throwing snowballs and building a snowman while everyone is walking normally, it's probably a Venezuelan seeing snow for the first time, and doing all the things he has watched in cartoons' Christmas specials.
Me or any Venezuelan, watching snow for the first time as an adult (Via http://www.playbuzz.com)
8. Christmas markets are a big deal: You'll find them in shopping centres, in parks, in squares... Lots of people go for handmade gifts and these are the places to get them.
Expect artisan jewlery, knitted stuff, chutneys and Chritmas cakes.
7. We drink something better than eggnog: Whether you are team Ponche Crema or team Baileys, you know that there are better creamy drinks than the egg flavoured beige thing that comes out of a milk carton. Both beverages are available all year round, but both are Christmas favourites, and even though they're brands, many people do their own homemade versions, which are actually really good.
While they have similar textures and serving sugestions, Ponche Crema's flavour is closer to condensed milk, and Baileys' is more on the nutty side.
You know what, now I need to find out what happens if I mix them... cheers.
* Similarly marketed during Christmas * Ponche Crema's alcohol is 14% and Baileys is 17% * They're popular with coffee and ice * They're very creamy * They're better than eggnog
6. We love Christmas commercials that make you cry: If it's emotionally manipulative enough to make moms cry, it will be a success. The saddest the story a commercial tells, the more chances it will go viral. Lonely old men, little children, pets... the cuter and more vulnerable, the better.
For example, Ireland was loosing its mind over the heart breaking John Lewis Christmas advert you'll find below:
And Venezuelans loose it every year since 1987 to the Plumrose add (or some variation of it), in which a little girl wants to buy honey glazed ham but it's out of stock, and the store manager stops the presses to make sure she gets a ham.
5. We prepare an extremely laborious yet delicious dinner: For Venezuelans, the dinner table consists in hallacas (big beef and pork tamales), pan de jamon (ham stuffed bread), pernil (slow cooked pork leg) and hen salad (oddly similar to coronation chicken) [by the way, now you get why the girl in the add was so upset about not having a ham for Christmas, we put it on everything].
For the Irish, Turkey, ham, stuffing, potatoes, Brussel sprouts and vegetables make the menu.
Not the best time to be a vegetarian...
And in both countries, the Christmas cake has to be there, even if no one truly likes it. It's tradition.
4. Christmas crackers Vs. Cebollitas: There is something about tiny and controlled explosions that just seems to bring smiles to peoples faces here and there. In Ireland you'll have the Christmas cracker, wich looks like a giant candy and is filled with little toys or sweets and cute messages, and which makes a "pop" when you open it. It works thanks to the effect of friction on a shock-sensitive, chemically-impregnated card strip (thanks Wikipedia).
In Venezuela, you'll have the cebollitas (among many other small and safe-ish fireworks). The name translates like little onions and it's because of their shape. They also make a small "bang" but you have to throw them to the ground or step on them. They work thanks to a very tiny amount of silver fulminate high explosive mixed with gravel and sand, tightly wrapped together, causing friction when thrown.
Now that I think about it, both countries have a few traditions that involve cheerfuly burning stuff up in public, but that's another story.
Let it pop, let it pop, let it pop ♪ ♫
3. Last minute shopping: Despite the fact that Christmas arrives early to the shops in both countries, both Irish and Venezuelans can be seen running around city centre on Christmas Eve to get that last present or the outfit for the party they'll attend in two hours.
2. Lots of Skyping with scattered family members: In countries where immigration is common, you'll always have a cousin in Australia, a sister in Spain or a childhood friend in the States. And Christmas will be a time to get in touch with them, ask them what time is it there, and, if the budget allows it, send them a little something from home (usually food).
And if you are a Venezuelan or an Irish abroad at Christmas time, you'll probably try to do a mashup of the local traditions and the ones you grew up with.
1. We are just filled with Christmas spirit: You'll get the odd Grinch here and there, but in general, most people are VERY Christmasy. Both Venezuelans and Irish sing along to Christmas songs in a non-ironic way (and many even dance to them), it is normal to see adults wearing Christmas themed stuff (no one beats the Irish and their Christmas jumpers, though), we look forward to the office Christmas party which is actually fun, we go to Christmas shows and concerts, watch Chritsmas movies, and feel all warm and fuzzy while looking at the fairy lights in the streets and houses.
I've always found The Hunger Games series very odd. Which is good.
Perhaps is not a very known fact, but Francis Lawrence, the films' director, had his big break making the videoclip for Aerosmith's "I don't wanna miss a thing", a.k.a. "that song from Armageddon". He also made the clip from "Jaded" (one of my favorites ever, see below if you like).
Before his film debut, he worked with numerous rock and pop artists making video clips, and after taking a look at the list of clips signed by him, I realised it made perfect sense for him to bring Katniss Everdeen to the big screen.
Just to name a few and make my point, he worked with Gwen Stefani, Shakira, Avril Lavigne, Destiny's Child, Pink, Shirley Manson (Garbage), Alanis Morrisette, Beyonce, Nelly Furtado, Jennifer Lopez, Britney Spears, Janet Jackson, Lady Gaga, Mila Kunis (in Aerosmith's Jaded)...
Just a few pre-Hunger Games Mockingjays Lawrence directed
Are you catching the pattern by now?
Please see pictures above and compare poses and ideas
If you need someone to direct a video about a strong, beautiful woman with an edge, he's your guy. And the Mockingjay surely had three out of three. She's the ultimate Francis Lawrence's diva.
So, I've watched all the movies and now that the last film, Mockingjay Part 2 is out, I went to see it in the cinema, and a chilling thought cooked in my mind as the events unfolded: I've seen this somewhere, and not precisely in the books.
There will be some spoilers below, so if you haven't seen the movie and don't want to know what happens, you've been warned.
District 12, the one with the worst living conditions, the one that supplies fuel to the Capitol, has been progresively kept under tighter and more violent control. No one in the Capitol cared when 12's kids were hungry, but when the riots jeopardized the supply, the alarms went on. Eventually, corrupt and sophisticated president Snow gave the order to bomb Distric 12 and completely destroyed it. No one in the Capitol cared, everyone was watching Caesar Flickerman's talkshow, or perhaps the games.
Then, the survivors fleed and reorganized in the middle of nowhere, welcomed by the blood-thirsty tyrant, president Coin who ruled District 13, an area previosly destroyed by the Capitol forces, and that now had a very heavy arsenal of weapons, a deep hate towards the Capitol and access to broadcasting.
There they, especially Katniss, are manipulated into being the face of the rebellion, making frequent and chilling videos that start spreading fear in the spoiled and desensitized Capitol population. Now they care. As the group becomes more and more radicalised, they organise to atttack the city, even willing to sacrify themselves for Coin's cause, which they've been convinced to believe is theirs.
And so they enter the Capitol and Snow decides to make an espectacle out of the hunting of the rebels.
As the city watches them on mandatory reports displayed on all screens, they go through nightmares, rivalry, internal fights, but it's too late to have second thoughts. Their faces are now on all "wanted" posters, while Coin and the game master get ready to take over in the confort of their well hidden base. It's always the young and vulnerable who take the shots for the greedy and powerful.
Snow then decides to evacuate part of the Capitol, and calls up all the refugees to a safe area where food and medicine is promised. As all the scared and disoriented people follow his instruction, Katniss and her "star squad" infiltrate the refugees and, hiden amongst them, plan to get close enough for an attack.
Surveillance is weak and they manage to seize the chaos to get to Snow, and then, when he's captured, Coin makes her move and brings fire to the Capitol. Now the bombs weren't in distant and empoverished Distric 12, they were in the heart of the shinniest city of Panem. The children crying were not malnourished, the adults running were not miners and farmers, and the buildings burning were not shabby huts and improvised markets.
Then a Real Life makeup brand started selling 12-Districts inspired makeup. Via ecocult.com
And at that point, Coin shows her (ill-hidden) true colours. After what could pass as a successful coup d'etat, she seats in Snow's office with her military junta and appoints herself "Interim" President of Panem, with elections coming, eventually "when the time is right".
Then, her first motion is to organize a "symbolic Hunger Games" where the districts will get their awaited revenge by watching the Capitol's children fight each other in the arena. As a populist, vindictive, master of propaganda, the woman knew who'd be the sole winner of that.
Katniss, who had knew for a while that Coin's medicine was worst than Snow's disease, manages to put her down before she pull off that plan, and a mob of angry people takes care of Snow. After that, in an idealistic turn of events, Panem actually gets what seems to be a fair election and a decent president, so everyone can now go on with their lives and rebuild their homes.
But the nightmares will never go away. And the lost ones will never come back.
Francis Lawrence was also aware of the uncanny resemblance of the movies' story to less fictional events, and in an interview he gave after the premier of Mockingjay 1, he resumes it very accurately: "Suzanne Collins wrote a series of books specifically about the consequences of war, and one of the facets we get to explore in this movie is the use of propaganda in war, and the manipulation of imagery and people in the use of propaganda. Unfortunately, this kind of thing has been happening for a really long time. Now, due to technology, it reaches people in a faster, more immediate way.”
The Carrot Vs The Stick
Perhaps, if there was a Hunger Games' expanded universe, we could have seen more of the other districts and more of the Capitol. Probably we've seen the better-off districts worrying slowly and becoming paranoic when the fire arrived. Maybe, we'd discovered that many people with Capitol's passports were recruited and radicalised thanks to the Mockingjay's charisma and manipulation (see flamboyant Effie, who turned up to be a rebel). Who knows, if there was anything similar to social media in Panem, many people would have covered their profile picture with the Capitol's colours to show empathy, while others would bitterly wonder why wasn't it possible to get District 12's colours when it happened there.
I think that Mockingjay Part 2 was a pretty good movie, with an eerily timed premiere, and even though it was slower and longer than The Hunger Games and Catching Fire, it was fair to the books.
And by the way, Francis Lawrence -the director- and Jennifer Lawrence -the Star- have the same last name but are not related. Speaking of coincidences.
There are thousands of diets out there, and lately I've been thinking... if we can adjust the way we eat in order to obtain a certain result, maybe there is a similar way to change what we consume as entertainment in order to think differently.
I started to think that after realizing how much time I was spending online doing nothing, learning nothing and not even having a real laugh. I started to feel like those people that notice they're getting sick because they eat fast food and ready meals all the time. Yes, they're cheap and tasty, but deep down you know they're not the best you could be having.
And there's nothing wrong with indulging in a never ending scrolling of memes and social media statuses, nor will I judge anyone who's spends a whole evening reading one Buzzfeed list after the other (those 84 thoughts they had while watching Game of Thrones really are all of us) or someone that follows more "and you won't believe what happened next" links than they would like to admit.
However, when it came to the point that I was giving it almost enough time for it to be a part time job, I felt that I was starting to think in GIF images and memes, and I didn't like it.
It got so bad that just as older people might have a saying or a popular expression for many things, I caught myself repeating popular captions such as "nothing to do here", "I'm not even mad, that's amazing" and "I'm not always X, but when I do, I Y".
Let's say that if I were to compare entertainment/information to food, I would be exchanging most of the fast food, takeaway and ready meals I was having daily, for a mix of homemade cooking, some quirky artisan products and a good sandwich from a nice deli. It doesn't sound so drastic because it isn't, but I'm not ready to go vegan on my enterteainment either.
Instead of setting it by the day, as you can more easily do with food because you eat it three times a day, here's an example of what I'm trying to get done in a week:
1. Watch 1 "good" blockbuster movie: Everyone will have their definition of what a "good movie" is, but to keep it simple for the example, let's say it's a movie with at least decent ratings both from critics and audience in the website Rotten Tomatoes (although if it has a great score on one side and awful in the other it might be interesting as well). Ideally in the cinema, by the way.
2. Watch 1 "good" non-blockbuster movie or a few episodes of a good TV series: It can be a classic, a documentary, a "foreign" (non Hollywood), an independent or a lower budget film. In other words, something that is a bit different.
3. Read/listen to the news for a few minutes every day: One of the things I love about living in a country in which occasionally you get good news is to find out about them. I leave them on, on the radio on my way to work, or stop and read an article or two when I see them shared in my social media.
4. Catch up on social media, and then move on: Instead of jumping to my screen everytime I hear the alarm, I will tend to it when I have a moment to dedicate to that, and instead of compulsively checking every post from every friend, I'll just do a quick scroll and stop if I find something interesting or truly funny.
5. Not sharing rubbish: I wasn't very guilty of this anyway, but now I try to do it even less. Well, maybe a picture of a dog occasionally is not the end of the world, but you get the idea.
6. Not engaging in Internet arguments: I used to do it sometimes, out of boredom or to defend a friend, but it's just not worth the time.
7. Read a few chapters from a real book: By real I mean a paper book, just because I like it, but an e-book is fine if that's your thing. But it has to be non technical please, recipe books and manuals don't count, and neither do magazines, even though some of them are great. Fiction, non fiction or something in between, try to go through a couple dozen pages at least, before you put it down.
8. Make something creative: Maybe write a short story or at least a page in my diary or a post in here, attemp to mix some music samples (I've tried once so far so it counts!). If I'm feeling dumb, at the very very least, fill up half a page from a colouring book.
9. Listen to new music: I love my playlists, but sometimes when you play the same few songs over and over, you might not discover something new you will love. Spotify is great for this, but many pages and apps can help. And it doesn't have to be literally "new" it can be a very old band, or a new album from a group you used to listen to. As long as it's NEW FOR YOU, then it counts.
10. Have more conversations: In person, via Whatsapp, Skype or Facebook... it doesn't matter, just ask some one how they are or what are they thinking, and listen/read, and then talk/write. It's as simple as that.
I don't know if I'll have time to get all these done every week, but I'm sure I'll try.
Sometimes I crave to see a hundred memes or funny vines, and sometimes I do, but not all the time anymore. I won't pretend to recommend anyone anything or tell prople what to do, but for me, so far, so good.
I'm so fed up with the sadistic culture going on in many kitchens, where you are expected to be humilliated before they teach you anything. It's just like a cycle of domestic violence where the child that was abused grows up, and now he hits his wife and children.
I've seen it so often. I know many wonderful people working in the food industry that sometimes suffer because a bully at work makes their life miserable and they are afraid to speak up or confront them. After all, the fear of losing your job is real and strong.
So, when you want to abuse your staff or coworkers, please ask yourself the following three questions:
1. "Am I building a pyramid?": If the answer is NO (which it is), then have some self control and avoid acting like if you were raised by wolves in a mental asylum.
Nothing against wolves, they're actually excellent at team work
2. "Is this my way to get revenge at this unfair world?": If you can relate to that statement, please change your approach. There are places in Japan where you can pay to be allowed to break dishes. You can also join your local fight club or find a moshpit and let the rage flow between consensual adults, perhaps you can even make friends with a masochist.
3. Am I the last living master of a mythical martial art?: If you are, then I give you a green light to go and get a hut at the top of a mountain and make your aprentices suffer in order to gain your ancestral knowledge. If you are not, please stop acting like you were.
A couple of weeks ago I travelled to London for the first time. You always read the name next to New York, Paris, Tokyo and other super capitals of the world. You see it in movies: tourists trying to make a Royal guard laugh (no touching), everyone walking fast under their umbrellas in the rain, and the Big Ben overseeing all the madness.
Imagine the possibilities of randomly running into a friend
I've realized by now that I am a small city person, I get bored in villages and stressed in metropoles, so for me, Dublin is what the warm oatmeal plate is for Goldilocks, but meeting a new place is always exciting.
So I arrived, alone and for five days, having the privilege of staying with great people I haven't seen in a very long time and that happened to be living in London.
I have to admmit that for the first half of my trip I was overwhelmed. The distances too long, the prices too high, the crows too big, and I've never been a skilled map reader so, being without Wi-Fi most of the time and using an old school paper map to get by was a challenge.
I assure you, it was more colourful in real life
The people were surprisingly kind, except if you were standing in the left side of an escalator, and everywhere I went there were the same three or four food-on-the-go chains. Yes, there were good restaurants, but I was on a budget and actualy on-the-go, as I wanted to see and do as much as possible, so for the duration of my trip, I sticked with a diet of sandwiches and prepacked sushi.
A course I was taking absorbed most of my time, but I was able to see the London National Gallery and Tate Modern. I'm not an art expert, but I enjoy visiting art museums and staring at pieces that catch my eye, trying to identify what's it about them that atracts me. I've also went to the beautiful St. Paul's Cathedral, to Hyde Park (were I had the chance to share my on-the-go avocado wholegrain sourdough toastie with a squirrel) and to Spitafield Market.
Just sharing with the locals...
Spitafield Market
National Gallery [In the back]
In that last place I made the only shopping I allowed myself to do in the city: a hand painted shirt with a little cottage lost in a forest of pines. I had to have it. Near that, I also visited the famous Cereal Killer Cafe, a place that only serves bowls of cereals (but they have tons of options).
Of course I went to a pub and had a pint with the classmates. A very drunk local guy approach the table and he was allowed to stay and make a fool of himself by talking a bit of nonsense and attempting to stand and dance on his chair.
I'd say one of the most "travelly" things I did was visiting The Monument, a 62 mts tall structure which happens to be the tallest isolated stone column in the world (thanks Wikipedia).
The Monument
I say "travelly" because it was really out of my comfort zone, in fact, I don't know what got into me -I'm a person that is scared of heights and gets vertigo in shopping centre's balconys- but I was walking by it and decided that I wanted to see London from the top (who doesn't?). I paid my 4 pounds ticket and started going up the winding stair, looking out from the small and frequent windows that reminded me that every step up I took, I was on a deadlier distance to the ground.
I just kept looking to the centre of the spiral
Thoughts of the thing falling apart with me inside it, of a person running and bumping into me accidentally (or on purpose) pushing me to the floor, tempted me to stop and go back. And it wasn't just because it cost me 4 pounds that I kept going... when would I get another chance to do that? The fact that I could hear children laughing on the top only made my fear seem more irrational and silly.
So I decided to stop overthinking things and then, London and I got along better... I rolled my eyes to people standing on the left side of the scalators, found my way around without asking and for a moment, I got why people love living in very big cities where everything happens at the same time, where you are anonimously free yet constantly tracked, and where trends come and go faster than you can even find out about them.
London is beautiful and exciting, fun and scary, punctual and messy, friendly and hostile, and just like the mushroom in Alice in Wonderland, it can make you feel big or small depending on which side you choose.
I went back home with a cute shirt, a souvenir from the museum, a pinecone from Hyde Park, a bunch of overpriced subway tickets, and the slap of fresh air I badly needed.
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