Month: April 2013

P – Progressive Book Club

Published on by Sydney Aaliyah Michelle16 Comments

a-to-z-letters-pThe End of Your Life Book Club by Will Schwalbe – I read this book in Dallas. That’s work with my A to Z theme, right?

First of all, if you haven’t heard of the Progressive Book Club, check out what a our book club host ML Swift created.

I really loved this book.  It was simple, sad, hopeful and beautiful. I got so much out of it.

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Life Lessons

“As in many book clubs, our conversations bounced around between the character’s lives and our own.”
“Still, one thing I learned from Mom is this: Reading isn’t the opposite of doing: it’s the opposite of dying.”
“It’s much easier to follow your bliss when you have enough money to pay the rent.”
“They help us talk. But they also give us something we all can talk about when we don’t want to talk about ourselves.”

Writing Lessons

Have a great first line.
Tell a story and involve the read in the lives of the character.

To Read List for 2014

  1. On Chesil Beach by Ian McEwan
  2. Appointment in Samarra by John O’Hara
  3. The Savage Detectives by Roberto Bolano
  4. Man Gone Down by Michael Thomas
  5. Marjorie Morningstar by Herman Wouk
  6. Couples by John Updike
  7. Gilead by Marilynne Robinson
  8. Traveling Mercies: Some Thoughts on Faith by Anne Lamont
  9. March by Geraldine Brooks
  10. Brat Farrar by Josephine Tey
  11. Continental Drift by Russell Banks
  12. The Price of Salt by Patricia Highsmith
  13. Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout
  14. Suite Francaise by Irene Nemirovsky
  15. The Bite of the Mango by Mariatu Kamara
  16. The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery
  17. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
  18. Big Machine by Victor LaValle

And, I saw myself in this book:

This is exactly how I feel about London:  “I think it was the first place she really felt like an adult.”

This is exactly how I thought about the movie Auntie Mame: “It rekindled in her the fantasy of being Auntie Mame, the women who took her nephew on a glorious trip around the world and taught him that “life is a banquet and most poor suckers are starving to death.”

BTW, if you haven’t seen Auntie Mame, check it out (the Rosalind Russell version). 

This is the exact reason why I need to get over my insecurities and start telling people I am a writer:  “Never make assumptions about people. You never know who can and will want to help you until you ask.”

The book made me feel good about myself. Like the author, I to spend a significant portion of my life watching reality television and that is in no way disrespectful to my creativity:  “Part of curating, collecting and appreciating was editing – mom never had much patience for junk or for crassness and less so now that she knew her time was limited.  I, on the other hand, continue to waste a significant portion of my live watching reality television, learning about the lives of dubious celebrities and consuming cultural garbage with the feigned irony and faux populism that’s a hallmark of my generation and the ones that immediately follow.”

The book was about a mother dying of cancer, a son who tries to deal with it the best way he knows how and the time they spent together reading amazing books. And, if that’s all you got out of it, you missed the point. Great book.

Have you read it? 

O – Dallas Observer

Published on by Sydney Aaliyah Michelle4 Comments

a-to-z-letters-oMy second trip to New York, I was 17 years old and pushing the limits of my parents patience with my quest for independence. They humored me by taking me on a college tour even though they had no intentions of allowing me to attend university there.   I was roaming the streets and shops of The Village and picked up a copy of the Village Voice.  I devoured the quirky and eclectic stories and features. Little did I know, we had our own version in Dallas called the Dallas Observer. Even today, I read it every week either in print or the online version.

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Let me share a few of the stories from a recent issues:

Did I mention it was free? Does your town have a paper that features the not so normal side of the news?  

N – Nightlife in Dallas

Published on by Sydney Aaliyah Michelle2 Comments
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Growing up in Dallas our night life consisted of house parties and teen dance clubs. In high school, I was on the street team for a series of clubs, first, Level 5, then DV8 (deviate) and than finally, Metropolis.

We were at the pulse of nightlife for teens in the Dallas Metroplex.  We thought we were so grown up.

You enter the famous bank vault doors and the cool air and the sweet stench of sweat and cigarettes hits you first. While your eyes adjust to the dim light, you fell the atmosphere in your bones. The bass thumps as if it’s inside your brain and it brings a smile to your face, yet at this point, you still can’t see a thing. All you know is you feel privileged to be in this space.  
As you eyes adjust, you see lights and shadow and ghosts moving to the sound. White linen hang from the rafters, swaying to the music.  The linen sections the room to offer some privacy to the patrons canoodling on the starch white couches scattered throughout the main floor.   If you lucky, you can catch a glimpse of something inappropriate.  Those participating aren’t embarrassed, after all people come here to be seen.   
You float along the current created by the energy in the room. It’s as if your instantly connected to the collective with everyone so happy and warm and welcoming. 
In the center of the main room, you find your way to the top of the stairs which lead down into the pit. It’s what those in the know call the dance floor. You don’t dare enter unless invited.  Permission is granted according to some standard only the elite are privy to.  You descend the steps with slight trepidation. These are the moments your momma warned you about. Are you going to make the right decision? You know what goes on down there. You’ve heard the stories.  Inhibitions are lowered, but individualism is expressed. That’s proposition is more then you can resist. This is a turning point, a milestone. This moment defines the rest of your life because when you ascend you will be different.  
 
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The Starck Club was in the 80’s what Studio 54 was in the 70’s, but in the south.  The legend of The Starck Club preceded the time I spent there. When it was open to teens on Sunday nights under the name DV8, we were just a bunch of suburban teens trying to recapture what we could of the mystic of the club, but in the most innocent way.  If your not aware of the Starck Club check out the related post below.

Have you every heard of The Starck Club?

Related Post:
D Magazine:  How the Starck Club Changed Dallas
The Starck Club

M – Movies Set in Dallas

Published on by Sydney Aaliyah Michelle6 Comments

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I wanted to dedicate this post to my my A to Z Leader Nicole at The MadLab Post and one of my favorite bloggers and an A to Z host Alex Cavanaugh at Alex Cavanaugh.com.  The two of them are great examples of how to blog about movies.

 
 
 
 
 
I also want to list others who have movie related themes or post for A to Z: 
S.L. Hennessy at Pensuasion
Nicole Pyles at World of My Imagination: Best Crying Scenes in a Movie
Lynda R. Young at W.I.P. It
Arlee at Tossing It Out
Tasha at Tasha’s Thinkings

I don’t remember when I feel in love with movies. I have been a movie fan all my life. Movies have always been and will always be my favorite escape, figuratively and literally.  Hint to family and friends, if you can’t find me, if I don’t answer my phone, if I am MIA for a while, most likely, I’ve snuck off to the movies.

While I don’t see movies multiple times in the theater like I did when I was younger (Titanic, Speed and The Matrix – 6 times each in the theater), I can still watch my favorite movies over and over again.

 

Top 10 Films set in Dallas:

  1. JFK
  2. Born on the Fourth of July
  3. Armageddon
  4. No Country for Old Men
  5. Any Given Sunday
  6. Office Space
  7. Tree of Life
  8. Friday Night Lights
  9. Batman & Robin
  10. Love Field

If you know of any other blogs using movie themes, let me know in the comments. Any movies filmed or set in your hometown? 

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L – Love in Dallas

Published on by Sydney Aaliyah Michelle10 Comments

a-to-z-letters-lI love parks. I think they are romantic.  One of my favorites is Celestial Park in Addison.

Maybe it’s the steps with poem verses written on them or the sun dial at the top (I love the sun), but the place inspires my creativity.  I not only love the park, I fell in love in this park.

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“Where are we going?”
We’d been driving around for 20 minutes. The radio is load and I have to yell for him to hear me, but he doesn’t answer. He squeezes my leg, tries not to smile and continues to focus on the road. 
He slows down and turns into a neighborhood. We don’t know anyone in this neighborhood. I know everyone he knows.  
As I am about to yell again, he pulls in next to the curb and turns off the ignition. 
“Where here.” 
“Where?” 
“Come on, I’ll show you.” 
From where we parked, I see a trail covered with trees. I can’t see where it leads, but through the trees I sees an open area elevated from the street.  
He takes my hand and leads me to the trail. I can feel the gravel through the soles of my sandals. The air is filled with the smell of lavender and a hint of magnolias.
I notice he is still grinning. I can’t imagine what I am in for, but I can feel the excitement through his fingers as they grip my hand tighter.  
The trail takes a hard left turn up ahead. Before we reached the turn, he stops. 
“You have to close your eyes.” 
“What?” 
“Trust me,” he smiles at me, squeezes my hand and I close my eyes, trusting him completely. 
He lets go of my hand, but in seconds, I felt him standing behind me. He places his hand on the back of my arms and guides me forward. 
We take a few steps and then he turns me to the right and wraps his arms around me. He whispers in my eye, “Open your eyes.” and this is what I see. 
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“Welcome to Celestial Park.”
This is where I fell in love. 

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Unfortunately it didn’t last, I was 15, but still special.  Can you pin point the time and place you first fell in love?