First Day of Fall

I hope the exit is joyful and I hope never to return.
–Last entry of Frida Kahlo’s journal.

Today during my lunch break I went outside and laid under a tree for a while, just staring up and letting my mind wander. For the first time, it really felt like fall. Last year, this time, I was busy all the time, taking a pottery class, and doing my senior seminar.

I try to think what it is I love about fall so much. Maybe it’s the implicit quiet. Plants are shutting down, animals are storing up fat, the days are getting shorter, and there’s more solitude all around. The smells, too, I love the smells. The first bits of chimney smoke, moldering leaves on the ground, the chill in the air. Another reason I love fall: the beginning of October is when my guy and I started dating-we’ve been together almost three years now.

Movie Review: Bride and Prejudice. Though it’s blatantly corny in parts, there’s also a lot of good dialogue. The updates of the novel are interesting, too. Whereas Austen’s book had class distinction as a conflict, this film uses culture instead. Aishwarya Rai plays Lalita (the Indian version of Lizzy) and is a wonderful embodiment of the original, feisty Jane Austen character. Martin Henderson steps in as Darcy, and Naveen Andrews plays Balraj (a.k.a. Bingley). Great performances and wonderful visuals (sets, costumes, and handsome actors) are alone worth watching the movie.

Movie Review: Frida. I was familiar with some of Kahlo’s art before watching the movie, but I wasn’t a huge fan of it. After watching the movie, I’m looking at her stuff in a new light. Kahlo was a hugely autobiographical artist, so now knowing about her life informs what I see a great deal. Anyway-the movie itself. Salma Hayek and Alfred Molina are excellent and the director did wonderful things with the visuals-she implants some very surreal moments that she actually manages to pull off. Nifty shit, dude. Watch the movie.