Category: Articles

Movie Night Friday – Brown Sugar

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Yall know what this is, we’ve reached another Friday where I present some of my favorite movies and why I love them. Now, since I love Friday’s, today’s theme is Love and what better way to celebrate love than with a little brown sugar?

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This is one of my most favorite movies. From the beginning until the end I was hooked. One reason is because the narration is so poetic. Sidney (Sanaa Lathan) is using her love for Hip Hop as a metaphor for her love for Dre  (Taye Diggs), even though she would probably initially disagree with me. You see, Sidney’s got issues confessing her heart.

 

brown-sugar6A Coming of Age Love Story, the spark was kindled between Sidney and Dre in the Bronx, on the corner of a New York Street corner, where together they witnessed the birth of hip hop. As time goes on music would bind them into a friendship that picks up some 15 years later. We see that Sidney is the successful editor of XXL magazine, a music critic, and Dre’s a successful music executive. As you can see, their love for music has driven them into their respective careers, but that’s not all. Their love for music has also driven them in love….with each other.

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But, Dre has just proposed to this new honey, the beloved brown sugar of his dreams, sending Sidney into a wave of emotions. Though she has feelings toward Dre they have never actually been in a relationship. However, this new love in his life causes Sidney to reexamine her heart. Stubborn that she is, Sidney gets romantically involved with a professional basketball player and it seems the prospect of a little brown sugar with Dre is obsolete.

Will Sidney and Dre ever cross the line between friendship and romance? It is up to the music to teach them.

Trailer:

Funny Movie Mistakes

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During the scene where Sidney and Dre are walking through The Mall in Central Park, you can hear someone giving set directions.

Is this your favorite movie? Why do you love it?

Lay vs. Lie (vs. Laid) and Lain

I know I am not the only one to have been confused between these words. I love writing, but grammar has not always gotten me very excited. It’s like running for fun (writing) but not wanting to exercise (Grammar). While I’ve always excelled in English, this is one confusing language! It’s the only one where a maybe, possibly, perhaps, and I’ll try exists. Everyone else just says yes or no! In any event, we must know these things as writers because our English teachers  said so. Sooo, below is an excellent breakdown I found online on the difference between Lay, Lie, Laid, and Lain by Brian A. Klems:

Lay
Lay and lie are both present-tense verbs, but they don’t mean quite the same thing. Lay means to put or set something down, so if the subject is acting on an object, it’s “lay.” For example, I lay down the book. You, the subject, set down the book, the object.

Lie
Lie, on the other hand, is defined as, “to be, to stay or to assume rest in a horizontal position,” so the subject is the one doing the lying—I lie down to sleep or When I pick up a copy of my favorite magazine, Writer’s Digest, I lie down to take in all its great information—and not acting on an object. In both these cases, you, the subject, are setting yourself down. Are you with me so far?

I Lie Down vs. Now I Lay Me Down (to Sleep)
To clarify things further, I’ll answer this question that you’re probably wondering: How can you be lying down in your examples while the classic nighttime prayer for kids clearly begins “Now I lay me down to sleep”? You must be out of your mind! It’s true, I’m totally out of my mind, but both the examples I used and the kids’ prayer are correct—and here’s why.

In I lie down to sleep, there is no object to the sentence, just subject (I). In Now I lay me down to sleep, there is a subject (I) and an object (me). Even though the subject and object are one and the same, the object is still present in the sentence, so you must use lay.

Laid vs. Lay vs. Lain
In the past tense, “lay” becomes “laid” (Last week I laid down the law and told her it was inappropriate for her to pick her nose) and “lie” becomes “lay” (Yesterday she lay down for a nap that afternoon and picked her nose anyway). Yes, “lay” is also the past tense of “lie.” And the confusion doesn’t end there.

To throw you for another loop, “laid” is also the past participle form of “lay.” So, when helping verbs are involved, “lay” becomes “laid” and “lie” becomes “lain.” Grandma had laid the chicken in the oven earlier this morning. The chicken had lain there all day until it was cooked all the way through and ready for us to eat.

Remember: Lay and laid both mean to set something down, while lie, lay and lain all mean the subject is setting itself down.

And now, I lay this question to rest. (Enjoy this totally awesome chart below to help you keep track of when to use lay, lie, laid, lain and more.

Lay vs. Lie Chart

Infinitive    Definition         Present     Past     Past Participle    Present Participle

to lay      to put or place          lay(s)      laid        laid                  laying
something down

to lie     to rest or recline     lie(s)            lay        lain                  lying

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OK, I think I got it. I think. 🙂

#Ronovan Writes Weekly #BeWoW Blogshare – Be Good To Yourself

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Be good to yourself.

It’s easier said than done, but extremely important to remember. Humility does not ask that we think less of ourselves, just that we think of ourselves less. Many of us spend our days constantly looking out for others and it is a great work. We encourage, inspire, share, and overall put others above ourselves. But we have to remember to give this same kind of love to our own selves too. People who are good to themselves are strong enough to be good to others. On the other hand, there’s a saying that says to beware when a naked person offers you a shirt. What kindness can I offer you if I don’t first have the same kindness for myself? We have to learn to humbly accept compliments, rest when we need to, and treat ourselves every now and again. It’s not asking too much to implement some kind of exercise routine for your physical body, reading for your mind and prayer and reflection for your spirit. Our worlds can be so chaotic at times that we may even need to pull away for a while to tend to ourselves. This is not just a suggestion, but we need this. If you can’t function you can’t perform. We need to take care of ourselves so that we can continue to be of service to others. So take some time today and be wonderful to yourself this Wednesday.

Writer’s Quote Wednesday – Jean Jacques Rousseau

For this week’s installment of Writer’s Quote Wednesday, I take my inspiration from Jean Jacques Rousseau:

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There’s an ancient proverb that says that patience can cook a stone. What this means is that the impossible is possible with patience. You cannot literally melt a stone down into a cooking pot unless you intend on waiting for a very very VERY long time. Waiting, it is the bitter taste of patience. Not only is it sometimes stressful to have to wait, but to remain diligent while you wait is often our greatest challenge. Writing and producing takes a lot of patience but people who possess persistence are capable of achieving great things because they took their time preparing for it. Sometimes we get an idea in our head that is not meant to be acted upon right now. Sometimes these ideas are just there until it is time for them to bloom into that sweet reward that comes from hard work. Creativity then is also wrapped up in patience because waiting for the right time often nourishes our ideas; helps to organize them into realistic goals.

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That’s it for this week’s episode of Writer’s Quote Wednesday. Follow the links to see how you can read other amazing quotes from amazing bloggers.

Patience

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Whether were talking about blogging or life in general, we have got to start being more patient with one another. As soon as we see something different, be it a viewpoint or belief system, so many of us are ready to throw in the towel. The concept, however, of networking is to learn from each other, and to build while gaining insight along the way because the fact of the matter is that we don’t know everything; which means that everyone you meet will always have something new to teach you. Their eyes have seen what yours have not and their strengths may in fact include what you are still striving to obtain for yourself and vice verse. We can’t be in such a hurry to condemn and to judge someone’s actions because we can’t see how it is relatable to our lives at this very moment. The most cowardly thing I’ve seen online, for instance, is when one blogger chooses to disagree with another person’s blog but instead of approach the person directly, to this person’s dismay, they have to read about it in that person’s post and then guess whether or not they’re the person being spoken about. If this sounds confusing and juvenile that’s because it is. I see this many times on Facebook and sadly it has not escaped the blogosphere but is something people seem to do often on social media. Not that this has happened to me personally, I’m just using this as an example. It is never good to assume and always worth it to ask questions. Nothing anyone says or does is always about you personally. You see, patience is everything and covers many different angles. So it’s easy to miss something if we can’t control our emotions and are quick to fly off the handle. Did you really think no one on the internet would ever disagree with you? Ever? I allow varying viewpoints on my blog because that’s the real world. As much as we would like to make our blogs our own little world in the corner of a room it doesn’t work like that. It’s not going to always be lollypops and rainbows, but sometimes there will be a little thunder. Reaching people is not just about sitting around the table talking to people who already believe exactly as you do because it’s no growth in that. For this reason, I allow people to have disagreements here because it’s that way in life. Being flexible doesn’t mean to give up what you believe in, it just means to understand how to navigate the world around you. Leaders are born from patience.

Movie Night Friday – The Day After Tomorrow

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Today, I will be discussing The Day After Tomorrow for movie night.

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This movie is special to me because I remember the exact day I saw it for the first time. My Aunt was a major Movie Feign and had every movie ever made. Literally! She had boxes and boxes of DVDs and VHS tapes. So naturally, after she got this DVD she announced the commencement of movie night. But, as we were still young adults when this came out, no one really felt like sitting around watching movies since all we ever wanted to do was go outside and flirt with boys and other things teenagers do. You see, my Aunt was famous for her forced movie nights. She’ll load her ever comfortable bed down with snacks and force everyone in for the grand event. If your feet were dirty though you’d better get a chair because you’re not sitting on the bed! But I decided hey, “why not?” and went in to watch it with her and it turned out to be a really good movie. Three years later (2007), my Aunt died and that movie night we shared would always be associated with this movie. And so this movie is very special to me.

Synopsis:

After climatologist Jack Hall (Dennis Quaid) is largely ignored by U.N. officials when presenting his environmental concerns, his research proves true when an enormous “super storm” develops, setting off catastrophic natural disasters throughout the world. Trying to get to his son, Sam (Jake Gyllenhaal), who is trapped in New York with his friend Laura (Emmy Rossum) and others, Jack and his crew must travel by foot from Philadelphia, braving the elements, to get to Sam before it’s too late.

Trailer:

Funny Movie Mistakes:

When Jack is in the library towards the end of the movie, he looks in a room and then the shot goes back to facing him. If you look very carefully, in the back of the hall you can see a person walk by. He is very hard to see.

Do you have good vision? Put it to the test! Watch the movie and see if you can spot the knot!

#Ronovan Writes #BeWoW Weekly Prompt – Silence is Golden

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I’m not sure what the suggested topic is for today, but I am excited to be back after missing last week. My positive contribution to Ron’s  BeWoW prompt today is Silence is Golden.

I believe there is a time to speak, but I also believe there is a time not to speak. When it is not the time to speak, Silence is Golden. It is worth more than the most trusted opinion, more than the long list of facts, more than the careful strung words we tend to place between our teeth. Silence, when implemented in its time, is a most powerful weapon; it cuts through to the meat and shatters the bones. It ceases the need for a humble snack, or the need to taste your words twice. Most importantly however, it cuts down on unnecessary negative energy. I have come to keep quite on certain matters, not because I am afraid to speak on them, but because I do not desire to give it my energy in the first place. For whatever reason, we tend to realize the need for these things far too late, a lesson we know all too well, that is, hindsight is always 20/20. But that’s life, and what is our existence without these lessons? I have come to understand time as our most precious and most valuable resource, why waste it for the sake of words spoken out of season? Even a fool is considered wise when he closes his mouth and watches his words. Silence indeed is golden.