near future

The Road Goes Ever On and On

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A hiking trail at Radnor Lake State Park

A friend and I went hiking in Radnor Lake State Park. We took the Ganier Ridge trail, which is a bit more difficult but also more rewarding for the scenery and wildlife.

As I was walking, my mind immediately went to the scene in the first Lord of the Rings movie where Frodo and his companions set off on their quest. I almost felt like a hobbit as I walled down the wooded trail.

I also remembered how the movies were great, but the books were so much better because there’s just so many themes the movies never really delved into. Such as how the present age was passing away and a new one was coming. Regardless of whether Frodo succeeded in destroying the One Ring, so much would be lost forever.

Life is like that. As much as we try to hold on to things and people and places, we end up losing them.

You can choose to be saddened by the loss. Or you can choose to use what time you’re given wisely and make the most of these things and people and places while you have them.

But really, when you think about it, do we ever lose anything? Didn’t Jesus say that whoever suffered loss for the sake of the Kingdom, whoever made sacrifices and said goodbyes would receive a 1000 times what they lost in the life to come?

So maybe we never really do say goodbye at all. Maybe it’s more of a “See you later.”

All that from one nature walk. I really should get back to this place more often.

Aside from the heat and humidity, it was a perfect walk. Well, more humidity than heat. I’m a wimp when it comes to heat.

I’ll also have to make a point to re-read The Lord of the Rings sometime in the very near future.

 

My Big Ugly Audacious Movie Goal for the Rest of 2013

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I found a list of all the Oscar-winning movies and, to my surprise, I’ve seen quite a few of them. In fact, I’d say I’ve seen roughly about half of the movies that have won at least one Academy Award.

My goal for the rest of 2013 and beyond is to see the other half. Well, there maybe one or two that I’ll skip for personal reasons, but I will watch the vast majority of them.

last_emperor

First on my list is The Last Emporer from way back in 1987. I don’t know much of anything about this particular film, other than it’s old and long and won 9 Oscars, including Best Picture.

gandhi

Second on the list is yet another lengthy film, Gandhi, from 1982. It also won Best Picture, as well as Best Actor for Ben Kingsley and 6 others (bringing its grand total to 8, for those too lazy to do the math).

cabaret

The final movie on the initial list is Cabaret from 1972 (a year which also produced me, though I have yet to be nominated for anything in any category). It also won 8 Oscars, but lost out to The Godfather for Best Picture.

I’ll keep you updated on the other award-winning movies that I watch in the near future, as well as what I think about the 2013 Best Picture nominees, which I have only seen 1 and have 8 more to go.

On a semi-related side note, I finally got around to watching One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, which won all the major Oscar categories. That means I have seen all three movies that swept the major Oscar awards, i.e. Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Acress, Best Original/Adapted Screenplay, and Best Director. It’s not something to put on a resume and it doesn’t make me a better person, but it does give me a sort of warm fuzzy feeling, and that’s got to count for something.

As always, I’d love to hear what old movies you’ve seen and recommend. Even if it came nowhere close to getting nominated for an Academy Award. Even if it got nominated for a Razzie (the award bestowed on the worst movies in any given year). I wanna know.