Cinderella (1997)

This post has been moved to my review blog. Click here to read.

Post 140: GIFS

There is an argument about how 'GIF' is pronounced. Hard G or soft g? Is it G-IF as in girl, or JIF? like jug? I, personally, say JIF, with a j as opposed to a g sound. Even though the 'G' stands for Graphics with a hard 'G', the pronunciation of the acronym with a hard 'G' sounds weird.

GIF stands for Graphics Interchange Format. It is a moving picture, essentially. It is like the above and below moving pictures, like clips of things. There are people who are actually pretty passionate about how it is pronounced, even insulting others who disagree. There are even debates about the pronunciation. 

Steve Wilhite, who created the Graphics Interchange Format, or GIF announced: "It's pronounced JIF, not GIF."

But there is still arguments about the pronunciation. A lot of people argue that hard-G GIF makes the most sense. They argue that it isn't  Jraphics, its Graphics, so it should be GIF, not JIF. Even, Obama says GIF. 

Why does it matter? Why am I talking about it? Because as it so happens, I've decided to start using them in my posts. I've used some already in my Top Ten posts, but I'm thinking - like this one, I'm going to start adding and integrating gifs into my posts. I think they are fun and easy to add. And, there is really a surprising variety of them out there. 

Post 139: Top Ten Forgotten or Under-appreciated Disney Characters

1. Eilonwy from The Black Cauldron - The queen of forgotten Disney characters. She is strong and brave. She gets kidnapped by a pretty freaky (gives me nightmares, at least), skeleton king and locked in a dungeon. And what does she do? She stays calm and finds a way to get herself out. She saves the male lead and does it with humor and sass. She is also very sweet. Unfortunately for her, the movie she is in is one of the most forgotten about Disney movies. Probably because the movie didn't have a clear audience. The main characters looked young (like 10-14), there were fairies and a cute pig which made it seem like it was meant for little kids. Yet, the villain and his army of the dead and the sexual humor of the witches made it seem more for teens and up. Usually, Disney hides the sexual innuendo, but the minstrel being turned into a frog and getting stuck in the witch's bosom? Not very hidden. What was your audience with this movie Disney? You had a good plot and good characters but, really, what was your target audience? 

2. Audrey Ramirez from Atlantis: the Lost Empire - spitting in the face of sexism and beating up bad guys at the same time. She is one of two daughters of a man who wanted sons. Audrey and her sister were raised as sons. Her sister is a boxing champion, while she is an expert mechanic. She took over her father's shop and now is on an elite team of explorers and she isn't even in her 20's yet. But, as a minor character, Audrey tends to be forgotten about compared to Kida and Helga. Which is sad, because she has the most sass - and in the end, when they're about to destroy a civilization, Audrey is the first one from the team to look back and realize what they were doing was wrong. (Except for the Doctor, who wasn't really part of that scene - because, apparently, it was just decided before then they were going to leave him behind. It just wasn't shown.)

3. Megara from Hercules - It takes a very strong person to sell their soul to save someone else's life. Especially in a Universe where the Elysian Fields (a sort of Greek mythology version of Heaven) were real. Assuming he was a good person before he dumped her, she knew he would end up in the Elysian Fields because Hades was real to sell her soul to. Yet, even knowing he would end up somewhere good if he did die, she still sold her soul to spare him from pain. And yet, even after he betrayed her she was still able to open her heart to Hercules. And let me just say, I've worked for some tough employers, but can you imagine a worse boss that Hades? I mean, he sent her to deal with a centaur and who knows what else, and quitting is not an option, so really she is one tough chick. 

4. Charlotte La Bouff from Princess and the Frog - Charlotte is seriously under-appreciated. She is the exact opposite of basically every Disney princess. There were really no hardships in her life. She didn't have wicked step-sisters, she didn't have to clean or hide, and she never had to worry about anything. She always got everything she wanted. But she never abandoned her friend, Tiana, even though she probably had a lot of people swarming her trying to be her friend. And in the end, she wanted to help Tiana get the man of her dreams, even if it meant giving up her own dream to marry a Prince. The first time she didn't get what she wanted, and it was her choice to give it up in order to help out a friend.

5. Edna Mode from The Incredibles - I love Edna. Edna has the passion and fire that makes her the perfect fashion designer for superheroes. She is smart and strong. She also really puts a lot of thought into every design. She takes into consideration not only a supers powers but their personality and situation. Every hero probably goes to her, yet she knows them all on a personal level and is even there for Helen when she is worried about her husband. She also gives good advice.

6. Captain Amelia from Treasure Planet - A captain needs to be respected by their crew, especially in a time where pirates run wild and treasure is buried in the center of planets. No, but seriously, people in charge need the people following their command to respect them (or fear them, as Machiavelli might say). Captain Amelia is a well-respected Captain, something that based off people's reaction to her seems like it is rare for a female Captain to be seen as. She is tough and even after being shot she still tries to take care of her crew mates. 

7. Adelaide Bonfamille from Aristocats - I honestly adore Adelaide. She is fabulous. She is a retired opera singer who was very famous and is now very rich. And she leaves everything, her entire fortune to her butler. True, she does say it goes to her cats first, which is what causes the butler to lose it. But cats do not really live that long, sadly. So, in fifteen years at most, most if not all of the cats would be dead and the fortune would have been his. And in the meantime, it isn't like the cats can shop. So, he would be the primary caregiver. So, he would just have had to take care of them until they died and then he would receive it all. If he had been smart enough to realize that cats having nine lives, doesn't mean they live nine lifetimes, then he'd have known he was going to still be alive and not much older than he was when he received the fortune. Anyway, in the end, she puts her fortune towards helping stray animals and opens her home to strays. She just seems like such a strong, down to earth woman. 

8. Princess Dot from A Bug's Life - I don't know how old Princess Dot was in ant years or otherwise. But, she is clearly very young. And until the end, she couldn't fly either. Yet, she was incredibly brave and compassionate. She was also clever. When she saw someone suffering for being different, she went out of her way to try and make them feel better. She was loyal to her friends and risked her life to try and help her friends and her colony despite her young age and small size.  

9. Kala from Tarzan - Kala is so sweet. There doesn't seem like there were many human visitors to the island, before his parents. But they did seem to recognize he was human, suggesting that humans had been seen around the island before and not in a particularly positive way. Perhaps, it was his parents. Perhaps, it was other settlers. Either way, the fact that Kala took him in disregarding his differences and her own mate's input (who was also the leader) to try to save him really shows how strong her sense of compassion is. She also is very encouraging, she lets him be himself even though that gets them both in trouble. 

10. Olivia Flaversham from The Great Mouse Detective - I think she is under-appreciated, but also sometimes annoying. I think it is her voice that annoys me, it seems a little...off somehow. Maybe I find it a little annoyingly high pitched, or maybe the accent sounds kind of strange to me. I don't know. But the character her self is pretty impressive. She is a young girl who suffered a terrible trauma of having her father abducted and her home destroyed. And what does she do, she goes off by herself far from home with no money or help to try to find someone who can help get her father back. And when she finds the Detective, he seems crazed and is armed, but when he said he won't help, she doesn't give up. She is a strong kid and therefore earns the last spot on this list. (Though, Penny from the Rescuers should get an honorable mention here, because she is also very brave.)

Post 138: Does Nepotism die?

Nepotism: the practice among those with power or influence of favoring relatives or friends, especially by giving them jobs.

My mom got me a job at her office. It was to come in and help out with office administration type things. I have done it before and I did go through an official process, I had to take typing tests and go through interviews. But, in the end, I was flagged for the job because she was my mom. 

It's not that I'm not capable or qualified, but it was nepotism that guaranteed me the job. After the job ended, as it was a temporary position, I went on to other things. 

However, I am now working in the office again, though not in her department, because her boss wanted me to come back and work there. 

Yet, I cannot help but wonder if all of it is still connected back to that original act of nepotism. Has the rest been tainted? Or because they asked me back on their own because I am a good worker, does that make it separate? 

This is a question that I've thought about a lot. Though, I'm still not sure of the answer. I think sometimes people who come in that are also new think that it was only nepotism. I mean, they're not in the same department as me, so much as people I work with outside of it but still with the same overall employer.  

They know my mom works in the same place and sometimes they seem to talk to me in a manner that suggests they don't think that I have experience doing....anything, really. Sometimes they even try and tell me how to do the job that I have been doing longer than they have. I have been working admin. positions for like 8 years. I have been in and out of this office (really, different positions all working in the same building for the same person) for 4 years. I have a typing speed of around 55 WPM. I have taken classes in using word and excel. I have the skills and experience. 

But I am treated differently because my mom works here. At least, at first. 

After a few days working together they realize that I am capable and treat me like anyone else in the office, even coming to me for help. 

But the whole thing does make me wonder about nepotism. Is it still nepotism if my current job is one I got out of skill, if the person who hired me only learned about me through a position I got through nepotism? 

SoundHound: iPhone App

SoundHound is probably one of my favorite apps. It is also one I use fairly regularly. Essentially what the app does is listen to the audio and identify what it is. It is useful when listening to the radio when the song isn't listed or when you are shopping and a song comes on that you like. I have tried Shazam and musiXmatch. I found musiXmatch is best for lyrics, but not very good at identifying songs. I also found SoundHound seemed to have more songs that Shazam in its database.

I also found that SoundHound was better at identifying songs when I sang or hummed them, if the song was no longer on or I remember it later. Personally, I also found Shazam's layout a little disorienting.

One of the features I really like, aside from the main one, is that it saves your searches. So, if I hear a song when I am out that I like but can't use or connect to the internet, it saves so that I can search later. Which is really useful, because I often worry about going over on Data charges.

After finding the song it gives you the option to search on iTunes. So, you can buy it after you find it. I have used this to find a lot of songs I really enjoyed.

The most recent songs I used it to find are: Rewind by Neverest, 503 by Hans Zimmer, Dark Horse by Katy Perry, and Dream on the Dance floor by Basshunter.

I also use the app to see lyrics for songs. This is a feature of other apps as well, but I find SoundHound has a lot. (Or at least it did, since the last update it doesn't seem to have as much.)

I would recommend the app to those who find music out or on the radio they like. It is easier than writing down lyrics to search up later. Even if you don't, it is free and you never know when you might need it.

So, I recommend you check it out on the iTunes store, or the Android store (I assume the apps are the same).

Zoobe

So Zoobe is a pretty interesting and very popular app. People who frequent Tumblr have probably seen things from it before. Basically, what it is, is an app that provides people with minimalistic animations of characters that you provide a voice for. The lips move sort of in time and then you complete them and you have your own video. 

Often, they are used to make rant videos. People will complain about something and then post it on Tumblr or YouTube. It allows them the anonymity of not showing there face and tends to add some humor because it allows you to complain about serious situations through a bunny or shark as opposed to a person. 

There are other uses, people make funny videos or say 'I love you'. There are videos of people using an animated Smurf to ask their loved one to pick up certain kinds of cereal at the grocery store.

I find it a strange app, but amusing. However, I do understand some of the surrounding frustration that real animators have that their own work isn't getting as many views as some of these videos that were created by the poster with little to no effort.  

I'd recommend it to anyone who can find a use for it. I have some sample videos below. 

Post 136: Breaking the Laws of Logic

I'm thinking of taking the LSAT. And, to be honest, I mostly want to take it for fun. I don't know if I really want to go to Law School. I don't really know much about it. I know that I don't want to be done with school once I graduate, but that's about all I can say for sure.

No, the LSAT is strictly something that seems fun to me. And challenging. But the kind of challenging that stimulates and inspires, as opposed to the kind that makes you want to tear out your hair.

Why do I think this test will be fun? It is a test, after all. Because I like logic problems. They're like math, without the math. The fun part of math, if there is such a thing.

And I like them a lot. I remember when I was young and we created these weird diagrams to solve problems. Like Jon, Mary, Stew, and Connor were in three races. Mary wasn't first when Stew was third. Connor didn't finish last. And Jon never beat Stew. Who was second?

This is, of course, not an accurate problem because it is off the top of my head and probably would only yield nonsense.

But, you get the idea of the questions that were asked.

You then drew a chart, and the more variables the more complicated it became. The one I described would be pretty simple, a more complicated one would be:

Mary, Kyle, and Nick all have cars. The cars are red, blue, and green. Mary's car is the fastest. Kyle has a blue car. Nick's car is not the slowest. The green car is the slowest. And then it would ask something like, who drives the slowest car?

Those graphs and these questions are fun for me. I like them. I like doing them. Does that make me crazy? Probably not. Am I still crazy? Probably, but for other reasons.

Anyway, I was looking over questions on a practice LSAT and I think the test is cheating people. I'm in a Logic and Reasoning class, and the subject has come up in other Philosophy classes, and one of the things that comes up are formally valid arguments.

A formally valid argument has to fit into a particular mold, because these molds show what argument forms work ALL THE TIME. If there is an example where it isn't true, then it is logically invalid.

The two most basic forms are Modus Ponens and Modus Tollens.

Modus Ponens: If A leads to B, and A is happening, then B is happening. (If you stub your toe, your toe will hurt. You stubbed your toe, so your toe hurts.)
Modus Tollens: If A leads to B, and B is not happening, then A could not be happening. (If it rains, the ground will be wet. But the ground isn't wet, so it couldn't be raining.)

Get it?

One of the most common mistakes with these (called a logical fallacy) is assuming that not A, means not B. (If it is raining then the ground will be wet. It isn't raining so the ground won't be wet. - BUT what about sprinklers, snow, hoses, the Ice Challenge, etc).

Other things can lead to B.

But on there are questions that go against this.

For example, N cannot be selected unless L is selected. So, if N, then L. Because if there is an N, there will always be an L. But it doesn't say that it goes both ways to mean both, if there is an L there is an N and if there is an N there is an L.

And yet, there were three questions of the six that I was looking at in the practice test that relied on this assumption that it goes both ways to get the answer. Some of these answers would be wrong if it wasn't true.

And according to the practice test, a lot of people do poorly on these questions and I think that THIS is why. From the wording, they are going against what we are taught in school about logic and how it works, because it gives us something that can be put into a specific rule and then it breaks that rule.

Confusing, but in an interesting way. I mean, clearly. I am blogging about it, so it interests me. And now I know to watch for it. And other potential trick questions.

The Good Witch (Movie Series, 2008 - 2014)

The Good Witch, The Good Witch's Garden, Gift, Family, Charm, Destiny, and Wonder.  Seven movies in one series may seem a little bit excessive, especially without any explicitly known mythical creatures, action adventures, or wars of any kind.

No, they are all Hallmark movies, about a family. And a 'Good Witch', though it is never fully out and out stated. I think that I like it best when it is kind of ambiguous, if they had ever completely come out and shown her to be a witch or made it obvious then it wouldn't have had the same magic.

The first movie is about her coming to town, trying to get settled in. It was a sweet movie, with a good message about not judging a book by its cover. The second was about having hope and helping others, as she still struggles to fit in as certain townsfolk still work against her. The third is about her wedding, and second chances. The fourth about family and growing up, as an unexpected distant relative comes to town. The fifth is about family as well, but more specifically about how good parenting isn't an exact science but something built from good intentions. The sixth is about destiny and responsibility. The last is about relationships.

Of course, as they are Hallmark movies, there are overlapping messages, but all are positive. All are about having faith in yourself and others. And in one movie, Cassie says that is what the real magic is.

Okay, that sounds a little sappy. But, Hallmark is a little sappy. They're all about happy endings and meaningful messages. These are no exception. But they are funny too.

And I think, compared to some of the Hallmark movies I've seen, they don't cross the line between heartwarming and sweet into cliche and cringe-worthy.

I must say though, the TV show is a no-go. At least not if you liked and watched the movies. I've only seen an episode and I can tell you that it is not the same. The magic behind it is gone and the relationships seem weird. I think, you can watch the movies or the TV series, but not both.

Not for everyone, must like happy endings and have a tolerance for sometimes sappy moments.

Post 135: Character Quotes

Everyonce and awhile I come up with a quote, saying, or rant that I think would make a good insert into a story. Most of the ones I have don’t yet belong to a character or specific story. But, some have inspired stories. Here are a few:

The greatest tragedy I can imagine would be for me to become any more like you, and any less like me.

We’re holding on. Ha. Holding on. Clinging on is more like. We don’t have the strength to hold on forever or the sense to know when to let go. Like a child who acquired some contraband that an adult is trying to take away.

Truth is vintage.

Take that sh*t out of the microwave, it’s starting to get mushy.

My desire to share is often outweighed by my desire not to care.

I am a mood ring, ever changing and indecisive, colorful and bright, but not always accurate.

Never try to be someone you are not for so long you lose who you are.

I bite my tongue, I hold my breath and I delve into the darkness of my mind, unprepared and terrified of the monsters lurking there.

Travel the world, capture what you see and treasure it like a memory.

Grief is the price we pay for love.

When we were young, love was the place where care and attraction met.

I’m not fearless, just foolish.

What’s my aesthetic? Some random person playing Bad Touch on a Ukulele in the middle of a lecture hall. And by some random person, I mean, me. Let’s face it, it would be me. 

Post 134: Third Wheel vs. Spare Tire

'Third wheel' is a term often used when describing the third person in a group, that was really meant to be a pair. Like when someone tags along with their friend on their friend's date. But there is a difference between being a third wheel and a spare tire.

Third wheels are often unintentionally so. Maybe there were supposed to be four people and someone cancelled. Maybe it was supposed to just be a three person group, but two people in the group are pairing up and making the third feel left out (this happens unintentionally sometime in activities that require pairs).

A spare tire is someone that is intentionally invited to an awkward gathering as backup. For example, Mary has been set up on a blind date and asks her friend to come with her, in case the guy bails.

The term can also be used when people are put on the 'back burner'. For example, when a friend comes to you when they are fighting with their best friend and acts like you're their best friend, but as soon as they stop fighting it is like you basically disappear.

Neither are good.

But I think in some ways, being a 'spare tire' is worse. Because like a real spare tire, it is only when needed that it is appreciated.

That's it for this post.

Post 133: Thoughts on Phil. - Divine Control Theory

Phil. as in Philosophy, my almost minor.

Divine Control Theory: 

Divine Control Theory states that things 

are morally good if they are commanded by God.

This theory states that things in themselves are not right or wrong. So, murder is not wrong until God says it is. This is all well and good on paper, but accepting it as true raises some complicated questions. The main question that hits me is whether an act committed by someone that believed they were acting on God's behalf is the same as someone actually doing it. 

For example, let's say a man is suffering from schizophrenia and he honestly and wholeheartedly believes that God is talking to him and has chosen him for a special mission to kill Tom Cruise for working on the Sabbath. If he goes and kills Tom Cruise (who I have nothing against it was just the first name that came to mind), would this act be morally good because the man who did it was told by God to do it? Even if he doesn't know that it wasn't really God? 

On the one hand, "thou shall not kill" is the 6th commandment. So, it seems like this might supersede other commands. But, most interpretations take this to mean "murder" not "kill" and distinguishes them as separate. Making most interpretations of this that "murder" is wrong and that murder is only committed through acts of the heart and are personal acts. 

Assuming that the man does not hate Tom Cruise, but is only following the voice that as far as he knows is God, it would not be murder according to this definition. And Exodus 35:2, could be said to condone Tom Cruise's murder as well, because it states that people who work on the Sabbath should be put to death. 

Does the fact that he is not actually being commanded by God change the virtue of the act? Especially taking into account that the Bible is thousands of years old and was written by 40 authors on three continents in three languages. It has been translated and re-contextualized and amended by many different people all of whom are assumed to be speaking on God's behalf. So, in order to be morally good, all these people must be right and trusted to have said exactly what God had intended, even with all the middle men it went through. But one man, listening to and trusting his own senses is deemed crazy. But even deemed crazy does not rule his action morally good or bad. 

Before moving on from the Bible, I would also like to point out that so much of it is ignored or reinterpreted while other parts are taken as literal. Other than the earlier example from Exodus condoning Cruise's murder, Exodus 21:7 condones selling one's daughter into slavery. 

So, assuming the man was sent to kill Tom Cruise for working on the Sabbath, would the act be justified even if it weren't God's voice, because it is still in the Bible?

And there are arguments that everything is God's will, so even if it weren't his words in the man's head, it would still be God's will that he heard them.

So, according to Divine Control Theory, are the man's actions morally wrong?

Addendum:

After a brief discussion in tutorial, I still haven't arrived at a specific conclusion. However, the tutorial did bring up some possible solutions. The two theories we discussed were very different. One suggested that there is a right and wrong, even if we don't know it. So, it doesn't matter what the man thinks, murder is wrong. Though, it doesn't really address the potential that it was still God's will that the man think he was being commanded to kill. Or, Exodus 21:7. 

The other is that we make right and wrong as a society. Which would mean that he would be wrong, because society would say it is wrong to kill, even if he heard voices telling him to kill. Though, either way, he would probably end up in an institution.