My Ramblings
Friday, July 04, 2003
Wednesday, July 02, 2003
With a road trip coming up in a few days, I'm forced to deal with a subject I'd rather not think about--car sickness. I've never been unable to truly enjoy a car trip without being overcome with nausea. I see other people in the car with me reading, drawing, playing games. I only see them doing this briefly, then I am forced to look back out the window as that awful feeling overcomes me.
Because of this, I'm usually the driver. When I was a kid, my brother and I use to ride in the back of my dad's blue Pinto with bucket seats. A couple times a month we'd make the curvy, windy drive to the McDonalds in town. So not only was I forced to sit way down in the back seat with nothing but the back of my dad's faded blue seat to look at, but I had to smell McDonalds food the whole way home, the car swerving down the road. Just the memory makes me feel sick.
I could share stories of having people pulling over for me so I could be sick, throwing up on the school bus, or vomiting down the highway as my friend drove at illegal speeds (well okay, that was due to a bowel obstruction, but I'm sure that was just masking the car sickness).
As an adult, I've figured out the tricks to not getting sick. If I'm not driving, then I take ginger. I've also used the silly scopolomine patches before (dot on the back of your ear? anyone?) and that silly acupuncture bracelet. I know to keep my head straight ahead and not took to look at things in the car, even for a second. Keep the cool air blowing on you at all times and pray for a short trip.
Although I'm very good at direction and know rarely get lost because I'm always looking out the window, I wonder what it would be like to be able to actually do things in the car, to finish work, to write a letter or read a magazine.
The vomitorium has lots of fun stories along this same line. Enjoy!
Monday, June 30, 2003
I stayed up even later than usual last night to watch "Time Machine", a movie from 1960 based on a book by H.G. Wells. I remember watching it as a kid and being fascinated by it. Of course, I was a child when computerized special effects weren't the hottest thing, so I was easily impressed.
But last night I watched it through 32-year-old eyes and found myself completely bothered more by the time inconsistency than the amateur (by our 2003 standards) special effects. It's when he does his first 60 or so years in the time machine that irk me. Specifically, it's the mannequin. He watches the female mannequin intently (MEN!), watching the fashions change through the years. Then he tilts his head and watches the sun move over his glass room over and over and over....faster and faster. Now if the days were really speeding by that fast, wouldn' t the mannequin's clothes be changing a bit faster? It doesn't take a year, or even a week, to change it's clothing. You see layers of mannequin clothing come off, but never anyone removing them. Then the clothing piles back on.
His unapprehensive attitude about the machine bugged me too. He'd just walk away from the thing and leave it there. Wasn't he worried? Maybe we're just in accustomed to always lock our car, take our purse, etc. when we're in public, but I'd think this ever-important piece of equipment, his only way home, would've been something to at least stand by or lock up when he's roaming a new, "future" land. No wonder why the Morlocks took it; it wasn't even a challenge.
And maybe it's from watching the Back to the Future flicks a few years back, but I kept wondering the main character coming back to the 1899 made some changes to the future (one of those confusing things that I could spend hours thinking about if I had hours to spend). I assume, since the "future" in this movie showed his friend's son saying that the man in that house never returned, that he actually didn't return, and he decides to go ahead in time to help the Eloi's build their society without the threat of the Morlocks hanging over their heads. Of course, I think the naaive blond of the future "Weena" had something to do with his choice.
I'm not even going to let my mind consider what three books I'd take with me to the future.
Here's a rather comical review of the movie.
