If only life were like Scrivener...

For anyone who hasn't used the software program Scrivener, it's a little like the amazing gadget in the Adam Sandler film Click. When Adam couldn't be bothered sitting through a family dinner because he wanted to get on with his project, he just forwarded through the event to where he wanted to be. In the same way, Scrivener allows the writer to jump from one scene to another, while keeping the two scenes completely separate. My first fumblings at writing were short stories and I relied on my memory if I had an idea about a character or the plot line. Years down the track, and some longer stories later (and the filing system in the memory banks now full of useful information like all the words for American Pie, how to make a health cake with five ingredients, and the postcode for every suburb I have ever worked in), saw me making notes at the end of a MS word document as ideas interrupted my story flow. After recommendations from some fellow writers (Lili Wilkinson and Chris Miles take a bow) I finally took the plunge and looked at the Scrivener software. Am a babe in the woods at present, but I'm already liking the corkboard and scene cards that can be colour-coded, additional notes added to, images added to etc. Kind of like the Click machine, but using it for good instead of evil...

It's the story of a lovely lady... Gossip Girl

Okay, I'm gonna put it out there. I have been watching Gossip Girl. I'm pretending that it's for research, but am finding it strangely addictive. I've been trying to think of an equivalent show from the 70s (my prime teen watching time) but the only thing I can come up with is the Brady Bunch (Marcia, Marcia, Marcia). Which is hardly comparable. The closest Marcia got to the escapades of the Gossip Girl gang (or was it Jan?) was locking braces with some geek. I think Alice the housekeeper got more action than the teens on that show, and that was with Sam the butcher. (Hey Alice, I've got some nice pork chops there for you.) By all accounts, what the Brady Bunch got up to behind the scenes might more closely mirror the goings of the East-siders.
Does Gossip Girl just mirror where teens are at today? The teen labels of the 70s that I aspired to were Levis, Staggers and Lee — all jeans brands. Today there are designer labels for infant clothes. Teenage girls are drooling over accessory must haves and stick thin celebs show them the only way to wear that outfit properly is to be a size 2.
I've been pondering the success of GG and wonder if it's the voyeuristic glimpse into the young and rich world that most of us will never enjoy that makes it such a naughty treat. It makes the OC look like the Brady Bunch. There's a kind of reverse snobbery where viewers can take pleasure in the downfalls of the rich and young players in this teen drama.
Which reminds me of another show that was around a couple of hundred years ago — Romeo & Juliet. Maybe things haven't changed that much at all. (And no, I wasn't around then...)

High School Musical 3

Is it the stars?
Is it the music?
Is it the hype?
Will someone please explain...

Ummm, excuse me, I changed my mind...

What is the protocol re going into a multi complex cinema, finding you are in a dud movie that you have just paid $16 for, then maybe just popping into another cinema to catch a different movie? I found myself leaving a movie today and would have maybe skipped into a different cinema except I was so traumatised by the dud movie that I just had to leave completely. I did want to approach a representative of the cinema to say, look that movie was awful, I didn't stay, could I have at least half my money back? I guess it's buyer beware and the onus is on the cinema goer to research what is around — which is the downside of just turning up and taking your chances. Still, I have seen some pretty good movies just turning up and even enjoyed some that have had some out and out bad press...

In the end...

Chookas to all the VCE and HSC students out there who are busting their books to pull out a miracle. Just remember, in the end, it's not the end, but another step in that fantastic dance we call life. Embrace it. Enjoy it. Life is not a dress rehearsal. Grab the spotlight and shine!