Caraccioli

Plunder received from Mary Diamond and Jacky Tar. Wow! You two each really have insight into my character. I wish I were so talented at gift selection...

I was watching bits of a favorite movies last night (M. Hulot's Holiday) when it occurred to me that the ensemble story really is a work of art, but it's difficult to get right. I think this is an extension of the fact that our minds can only keep track of 5-9 things in short term memory (and, thus, consciousness). Of course, if you can get something past the ST memory and into the LT memory, that's a different animal entirely. But I would guess that, for most people, stories (movies, stories and whatnot) tend to reside in the short term memory unless a person becomes a fan of a particular story. I am reminded of one of my favorite books, Tales of the South Pacific (James Michener), which is very much an ensemble story and which has literally dozens of notable characters. It is a bit easier to digest, however, in that it is written in the style of a s series of loosely related short stories. Still, several characters (at least 5-9 of them) are recurring and important to the overall structure of the novel - loose though it is. Interestingly, the best character of the lot - Tony Fry - isn't included in the much lauded musical based on the book. OTOH, there are huge ensemble cast books like Red Storm Rising (Tom Clancy) where it became nigh impossible for me to figure out who was who. This may be more of a criticism of my inability to differentiate one character and their location from another - even with the character list and locations given. I think this is due mainly to the similarity between the various characters. Or it may just be that I can only keep track of 5 items it ST memory rather than 9. For myself, I like writing stories with character ensembles. My first effort (unfinished) got so out of hand that I needed a list of characters to figure out who was doing what. (Which may well be why it's unfinished.) My second (which is still underway - in a very low key way presently) is a bit more focused. In fact it follows the concept of the MIchener novel. At least I don't need a list of characters to keep track of their goings on. So I guess I like ensembles. When writing, it's nice because you can switch between characters, depending on who you feel most like writing about. (Or, perhaps, whose persona you wish to mentally adopt.) When reading, so long as I can keep track of things, it gives the story a brighter, easier aspect. At the same time, it allows you to focus on the characters you like and look forward to them re-appearing when they're not around. It works similarly for movies, I suppose.

Hmm... Separated at birth? (Maul's sword is bigger... )

Germany? Everyone knows that Belgium is actually in England.

Good point! (That also explains to me an alternative reason why I might like him better than the other characters.) Very astute. As for Jack...I think Jack's planning is more like anti-planning and playing the events of the moment. It's not reacting, per se, because he has a goal, but the goal is the only important thing to Jack. The means (which would involve more extensive mental cognition - ie. planning) are irrelevant. Actually, I respect this sort of animal cunning immensely. I believe it is a huge part of the reason I liked the first film so much. See, I think some people just walk somewhat numbly through life without observing the underlying structure of things at all. People (real people) like the Jack character can see the structure, but don't care much about it - they just want to play the system, either to their advantage or just for the fun of playing it. "We are game-playing, fun-having creatures, we are the otters of the universe." -Richard Bach "I gotta work on my game." -Boon "No, no, no, don't think of it as work. The whole point is just to enjoy yourself." -Otter [Now, having said all that, I find I am usually diametrically opposed in personality to the character of Jack. And Otter. Who is basically the same sort of personality type as Jack.]

This Sherlock Holmes show just gets better and better! The world really lost a treasure when Jeremy Brett died. I most recently watched the show with [sherlock] Holmes' brother, Mycroft, who was played by none other than Charles Grey! Joy unconfined! Let's do the time warp again! And he re-appears in the show several times, so I have that to look forward to. This really is an outstanding series. I highly, highly recommend it. Highly "Jealousy? From you Mr. Bond? I'm flattered." -Blofeld, Diamonds are Forever

To which I pm replied (and now reply to anyone on the great wide web): *Whew* Now I gotta go rest some.

And here is the pm that oderlesseye sent me (which, since he wanted to post it, I feel comfortable doing so here): I wanted to reply to your opinion on Norrintons Character that If they do give us more on him I just hope it's not in the "Lost" tv show fashion. I hope they simply visit facts and not so much his past.

Ok, the topic with my post about Norrington got locked and oderlesseye actually sent me a pm about my post because he wanted to comment on it, so I'm starting a new post. Here's selected bits of the original post:

http://moviesmedia.ign.com/movies/image/ar...27013939450.jpg Usually they're spot on when casting the Harry Potter movies, but this Luna is not quite spacey looking enough IMHO. I hope they don't write all of her best scenes out (Although I know what a challenge it must be to make these movies when Rowlings adds, what is it?, something like an extra 100 pages+ to each successive novel... Luna is one of my favorite characters in the series. (She and Remus Lupin - although I was hoping for a more scraggly looking actor there, so it might just be me.) I also hope they at least give her the direction to act somewhat out of sync with reality...

I hope so. Even knowing what was coming I was disillusioned with my re-watching of POTC2. I really hope that bring back the cool bit parts for the character actors. It is sorely missing (other than selected members of Jack's crew, of course). Although Norrington just rocks. You guys can say what you want about Barbossa, but he's pretty shallow as a character. Norrington has the potential to be the most 3D character of them all. (I hope they take advantage of this giving us more of the down-and-dirty Norrington in 3. Although I have a slightly bad feeling about the odds of this actually happening... They need to watch the BSG TV show and see how to give characters levels, shading and Deppth...)

Try Travelocity! I used the +/- one day option when looking for rates (since I didn't particularly care when I left). Being as I'm leaving right after TG, Friday is the best day to leave for me. I've used them repeatedly and always been pretty happy. Plus I have a growing list of emails that tell me to have a good trip to KW in my Inbox. One of the few things I save over time... Why is everything scheduled for the weekend after TG? I'm missing a corporate-paid trip to Vegas to attend Autocad University to do this! Overall, that's ok, Vegas isn't really my thing - well, except Treasure Island Ts. The T-shirt I bought there was expensive as bloody hell, but it's stood up better than most Ts I've bought, so I guess it might almost, maybe, possibly be worth it. I'll be sorry to miss the University, though. Alas. I'm returning Monday so's I don't miss whatever happens on Sunday. I imagine it's pretty low key on Sunday, though. You can usually find a prop plane leaving from south Florida cities to KW airport for $100 - $200 round trip. You might save money with Spirit and a small air service if you look. Plus, the problem with cars is always where to put them. Key West is a small island and sometimes you have to pay the hotel for the parking space because it's at such a premium in Old Town. I don't know the circs of the parking for Fort Zach, though. As I recall, it's got a reasonable amount of parking spaces available and they may have set up something special for the pirateers. I'm sure William could tell you more about that. (For myself, I am bringing my bike and will probably only rent a car for a day so's I can visit Pigeon Key (probably a convertible) and make the bike trip on the portion of the old 7 Mile Bridge that is open to Pigeon. Plus I have to visit the No Name Pub...it's tradition. )

The die has been cast. I purchased the tickets direct into EYW yesterday for the week leading into pirate fest. ($411 from DTW to EYW with 2 brief layovers! Last time I did that it cost me $587! That was 2 years ago and gas is so much more expensive now! Amazing...) I'm still trying to figure out a good place stay this time. (Something away from the main drag with a fridge for my insulin, peaceful with fairly private quarters.) My long time favorite KW hostelry turned condo just weeks after I left last time. (Although my being there or leaving had nothing to do with this. As far as I know. A moment of silence for The Colony Cottages. *sniff* I was a regular contributor to their bottom line.) Michael Bagley is generously helping me out with an outfit appropriate to an pirate appropriated surgeon. (My character.) Now I must really look to making up a fairly period correct surgeon's kit... (If only I had paid more attention to the surgeon's exhibit at Sid Meir's museum last time...)

I like the map to earth concept. It makes sense, but it also fails to clarify anything very well. Perfect for a show like this. (Although I do wonder how they got it there? Did the 13th tribe come back and set up the whole deal or what? Ah, questions, questions...) Curious thing about the girl in Gaius' head not being...well, I won't give anything away. I have a feeling Baltar had something to do with the creation of the human Cylons myself. I'm surprised the tests didn't reveal a closed off portion of his brain where he carved his initials. Or maybe the initials "ZB."

Well, I'm afraid that the ninjas can kick the pirates butts because they're trained in the oriental arts and pirates don't have much formal training at all other than...what? Isn't this one of those pirates vs. ninjas threads? (Actually, it almost is. Who started such an absurd rivalry anyhow?)

I was walking this morning, noticing the birds singing when the tone became shrill. I quickly spotted the reason: a tabby cat slinking along the sidewalk, apparently toward the nest of some now alarmed bird. This made me wonder what the point of scolding the cat might be. Surely the bird doesn't expect to scare the cat away? It could be warning other birds, but that isn't going to help protect the nest, is it? Maybe it's calling other birds to it's aid? (Yet I've never seen a group of small birds do much harm to a cat outside of the cartoons.) You just have to wonder...

Aw, I'll be happy to trade with you Hilde. What's life without a little risk? pm me your address.

Well, for travel they have a really nice bus system that goes between all the Disney resorts and parks, so if you're staying on campus, you can take the bus. (Last time I was down there, I made extensive use of the bus system.) Plus there's always taxis. Well, if those are the terms, I hope you have good luck finding a partner. Isn't there someone in your group you can convince to go with you?

*shrug* (To borrow an e-phrase from Iron Bess) To each their own. In many ways, I find it's more enjoyable bachin' it in theme parks myself. It adds a zing to an already zingy experience. (And you can quote me on that.)

Just go by yourself. I once spent the better part of a day by myself at a theme park and had a marvelous time. (In fact, overall, it really was the better part of the day. There's a sort of freedom from others and convention that is indescribable.) Of course, it is sort of like the lottery - you never know who you'll wind up with on a ride or when (if you're particularly lucky) you'll get to ride by yourself.

"It's always hard. Ethics are about what you're willing to lose. And you can't lose every day or you'd be out of business." -"Buzz" McCoy Of course, the last statement focused the statement on money, but the core statement - "Ethics are about what you're willing to lose," seems on first blush to be true to me. Whenever you face a "moral dilemma," what you're actually facing is whether you want to sacrifice something you want in order to stay true to your (or at least someone's) theoretical moral code. So, in essence, you're decided on whether you want "to lose" out on something. So then is ethics always the "science" of self-punishment as this statement suggests? Here is where I begin to disagree with Mr. McCoy. For, in denying yourself some gratuitous pleasure, you gain other advantages. As a base example, let's say you have a more code regarding intimate liaisons. What host potential problems do you avoid by confining your activity? Some of them are obvious, STDs, the expense of treating such, protective measures, resultant single-parent children and so forth. Others are more esoteric such as the stress involved with the tenuous, yet real, emotional links, worry over the above and certainly the disagreement between the two consenting adults over what to do with any after effects. (This is to set aside all non-consenting intertwines, which are generally considered to be morally repugnant.) There are also the truly ethereal ideas that dwell somewhere in the subconscious about moral violations, which, admittedly, are highly personal and based in the individual's personal world-view. Suffice it to say that, in the above overly-simplified example, there are both tangible and intangible benefits to obeying a moral imperative. On the other side of the balance scale seems to me to be a instantaneous gratification and, if the relationship is significant but not completely committed, perhaps a growing closer. I propose that this is true in nearly any other example. Does it then make sense that the master observes morality as a facet of their mastery? In fact, it would seem to me to be true nearly always. To take a more "mastery-oriented" approach than the above example, it seems to me that the master would always be interested in the optimizing the craft of their mastery (whatever that may be - it need not be confined to tangible products of mastery, although they lend themselves most directly to this discussion.) In fact, to behave in a way that is not ethical to the craft of mastery seems to me to undermine the very precept of mastery. Can the master behave with great ethical consciousness in their field of mastery and yet behave with less elsewhere? Certainly so, in the way that masters are recognized in our society. The Western world is rife with examples of this - outstanding mastery in one facet of life and utter ethical failure elsewhere. In fact, we reward and celebrate such in many instances. We are told to focus on a niche and pour all of our energy, talent and such into that niche. While all of our time is spent focusing on that niche, other areas are not constrained by the same behavior and we can create a lopsided, yet often societally-celebrated, sort of persona. So where is the balance between ethics and moving through the world? In some ways, it seems to me that we a more a collection of the principles that make up our existence than we are of our accumulations and actions. Yet our actions must impact our principles. In an idea situation, our actions would be a natural extension of our principles, but, failing that, our principles became a second-rate collection of ideas that grow out of our actions. Ethics are about what you're willing to lose." -"Buzz" McCoy Perhaps in one sense this is true, but I think it is really just a matter of perception. Because while you may lose the short-term benefits of the moment, you gain the long-term benefits of a ethical structure. And, as I tried to show, these are both tangible and intangible. So while Mr. McCoy sees loss, I see gain.

Youd've killed her? (Not that I don't think you could do it, mind...) The library has my copy of POTC:DMC ready and waiting (I was #48 or something on the reserve list when I first requested it), so I'll be mentally prepared for the next installment. Hopefully I'll enjoy it more this time around since I know what to expect and not to expect.

That's got to be the best picture I've seen of Elizabeth. Now if only they'd make her character more like the spirit that image. But no... In the group shot everyone has a weapon thrust forth except Elizabeth (who sports a lantern and a gun pointed at the ground) and Sao Feng, whose weapon is in its scabbard and tucked behind his back. [so what are they telling us here in regard to roles?]

..and from the pictures, I would expect Lauren Bacall or Betty Grable to show up any second. Nothing beats retro (of any era). I love living in a time capsule. I should be so lucky. Lauren Bacall was cool. (As were Veronica Lake and Grace Kelley.) Give me a savvy, smart, independent woman like that to hang around with any time.

At long last the bedroom web page in my Art Project House is done. The bedroom itself -which has an Eagle/Art Deco theme going on in it- has been done for quite awhile, but I didn't have the web page assembled. (The things take hours to create with all the photos, editing and whatnot.) So, for the curious and those who liked the pirate-themed living room, you can follow the link to the Eagle/Art Deco themed bedroom here.