The Big Words.

My filmmaking class sometimes seems more like a morality/psychology class... We often talk about things that affect us human beings. That's what we do as filmmakers and storytellers; we talk about the human condition. One thing that can always spike up a conversation, as my prof explained, are what she calls "the big words." They are words that have a powerful meaning, that are often associated with the terrible things that happen to us, like war and slaughter, but also the good things, like hope and faith. Things that can make any one of us start a heated argument.

An example would be the word justice: she asked us who was for or against the death penalty. Without started an argument, of course.

Here's the list we came up with in class:

-Seven deadly sins (Greed, gluttony, lust, sloth, vanity, envy, pride)
-Rage                     -Martyrs                    -Will                       -Duty
-Sacrifice                -Patriotism                -Redemption          -Valour
-Glory                    -Loyalty                    -Joy                        -Doubt
-Fraternity              -Courage                   -Grace                    -Equality
-Justice                   -Hope                       -Prudence               -Obedience
-Denial                  -Faith                         -Hypocrisy             -Forgiveness
-Jealousy               -Liberty                      -Honor

All of these can make for great subtext in a movie, or any story. My prof has over 80 of these words. Some of these, you can relate to right away, others you need to think about.

What are some of your big words?

Sisters

We may not be super close, but I still love my sister. She's loud, totally disorganized, crazy, a total social butterfly, a hoarder, hilarious and she's got a great fashion sense.

We only have 1 year and a half age difference, which can lead to some pretty intense sister rivalry. We fight, we make up, we fight, we talk it out, and it goes on. But having less than 2 years difference also makes for having a lot in common.

Now we go to school together again, and we might see each other more often. We both work a lot and we have our own social circles, but I definitely want us to be closer. If we try, we get along great! ...we just have to try a little more!

Happy weekend!

Happy Sushi!

Today is a good friend of mine's birthday (Happy birthday Jess!) and we went out for sushi during lunch, which so happened to be literally across the street from the university!

Sushi: Salmon rolls and California rolls // Shirt: (Germany) // Cardigan: Warehouse One

I'm sure I'm not the only one when I say this: I LOVE sushi! My mom has always loved japanese culture, and so she started making sushis at home and I can never get enough! At first, I only ate it with cooked fish. Eventually, I started experimenting and discovers that seaweed and raw fish really isn't as terrible as it sounds!
And the rest, as they say, is history.

Elephants

I love elephants. They are definitely my favourite animal. I'm not entirely sure why, but here's the story:

I've always thought they were pretty cool, but it wasn't until I watched Water for Elephants that I really fell in love with them. They are such a fascinating and intelligent animal...!
Then, I watched a couple documentaries on Netflix, namely Echo of the Elephants and that only deepened my love for these giants.

When I was in Germany, I went to the Berlin Zoo with a couple friends and they had elephants!!!!! I have overjoyed. It was just one, either. They had a bunch! I think there must have been six of them! They even had a baby!

Anyway, my last day in Germany, I went to a fair with my host mom and I found this gorgeous necklace. (For some reason, elephant-pendant necklaces seem to be all the rage these days) Having only a couple Euros left for the airport, I couldn't afford it. So I just walked away... The next day, when my host mom dropped me off at the train station, she gave me a little gift. I opened it in the bus and there it was: the elephant necklace!

I couldn't believe she'd gone back while I wasn't looking to buy it! Danke, danke, danke!

Peer Support

Last year, I decided to get more involved in school. I hated high school and really didn't want anything to do with it. When I got to university, I decided that I wanted to make these next few years count. I wanted these to stand out even more than high school. So, I decided to join a student group. The student group I chose is Peer Support.

The best way to explain what this group does is this: it's a counselling service for students by students. We are trained by a professional counsellor and have office hours, where students can come and talk to us about anything, from school stress to breakups to more serious problems like depression and suicide. It's a safe space for students to talk and we have the same secrecy policy as normal counsellors do. Sometimes, it's easier to talk to a peer, or someone your own age, rather than someone much older (40s-50s), where you could maybe feel like a subordinate.

I've dealt with many situations, first and (mostly) second hand and I know that if I were in those situations, I would want someone to talk to, who knew how to help me. I want to help others. I want to be there for anyone who needs help, whether it's advice or just a shoulder to cry on. They don't need to be my best friends, I will be there.

Anyway, this year, during O-Week (we have big festivities during the first week of class; beer gardens, free food, live bands, campus tours, etc.) and our co-ordinators had a table for Peer Support with a registration list. I helped out Thursday and Friday on my breaks and we got so many names! I'm really excited for this year!