Blue Valentine

I watched Blue Valentine tonight. My thoughts:

I've never been a huge fan of Michelle Williams, but I think she did a great job with the character she was given in this movie. You pity her character just enough. 

I've long respected Ryan Gosling, mostly because of his work with Dead Man's Bones. I've only seen him a few movies. His portrayal of his character was really well done. Like Williams's character, the viewer pitied him the right amount. Nothing seemed fair to either character, yet the unhappiness was equal. 

This movie felt human. The lines didn't feel at all forced, which is a credit to great writing and great acting. I liked the occasional slips and seeming mess-ups of lines. No one in reality says everything the way he means to say it all of the time. 

The tension between different characters and in different situations was almost unbearable. I found myself cringing for them, wanting to grab their arms to hold them back and ridiculous things like that. 

Near the beginning of the film, Gosling's character says something in the way of that men are more romantic because the only reason they would marry a girl is if they are totally in love with her, whereas women will marry men for the stable income and peace of mind-- settling. I don't want to marry for many reasons, this being one of them. 

Another key component of this film was the gradual loss of affection and tolerance between Cindy and Dean. Granted, about ninety percent of the reason they married was because Cindy was pregnant and couldn't follow through with the abortion. They did love each other, though. The problem was, their marriage was based on necessity. I'd say the main reason I never want to get married is the fear of eventually growing to despise my partner, which I think is very likely. I understand why people cheat and get divorced. and fight. People change. Who was right for you at twenty is not necessarily who will be right for you at forty. I don't want to be stuck with someone I feel nothing for (plus, I don't do well being in close quarters with the same people for a long period of time-- I grow an aversion to them). Another reason not to have kids; they make it harder to change things, as Blue Valentine showed. 

I liked the open-endedness of the final scene. The cynics can believe that their relationship will keep withering, and the romantics can think that they'll work it out. I'm not sure which I want. I'd like them to work it out, as long as it isn't forced for the sake of their little girl. I honestly think she'd do better growing up in a "broken home" as Cindy called it than her home the way it was by the end of the movie, with parents who despise each other. A home can be broken even if the parents aren't physically separated. 

The filming was gorgeous. The music was great, since Grizzly Bear did most of it. Ryan Gosling's singing was adorable. The final scene leading into the credits was beautiful. The credits were actually worth watching because of the synchronized firework art and music, which is not to be said of most movies. 

Two thumbs up. 

What I've Learned From My Year At Starbucks.

The title makes this sound like a grade school essay. 

Anyway, Sunday is my last day, most likely forever, working at Starbucks. In my recent bout of insomnia, I've been thinking. A lot. Which, I admit, I enjoy. It's good to have my own ideas. It ceases to be fun when it's four in the morning and I can count on one hand the hours of sleep I will get before getting up to work an eight-hour day at the mall. But still. Insomnia's the reason I'm writing, so that's good, right? (RIGHT). 

Throughout these last few weeks, they being my last, my coworkers have been asking me various questions, all along the lines of "Are you excited you're leaving soon?" "Aren't you sad you're leaving?" "Won't you miss this?" 

That last one was usually said in sarcasm. 

Truth be told, I will miss it. I also won't miss it. I'll miss most of my coworkers and some of the mall employees I've gotten to know over the last year(ish). I'll miss the occasional really fun days or closing shifts. I'll miss earning my own money. I won't miss the stress, my feet and back aching, my clothes smelling like sour milk and syrups. I won't miss middle school girls asking "Do you know the secret menu?" and making me write obviously fake names on their cups (Yes, I've gotten Mrs. Beiber). I won't miss the rude customers or the zoo the store becomes on the weekends. But still, it was part of my life and my routine, and no matter how much one dislikes something, if it is routine and it is changed, the loss is there. 

Back to the original point of this post-- what I've learned, good and bad. Bullet point time. 

• Adapting isn't really that hard.  
• Some people have weird-ass names. Many will get mad if you cannot spell it right.  
• Being convincingly fake-nice to people is a skill.  
• The customer is not always right. In fact, the customer is usually wrong. But...
• If you want to keep your job, the customer is always right. 
• Indians have cool names.
• The best people often aren't whom you expect. 
• South Charlotte women need to lay off the botox and makeup. 
• The majority of people are mundane-- not intelligent, uninspiring. 
• Middle schoolers with iPhones are worse than middle schoolers without. 
• Guys are creepy and girls are slutty. 
• Parking decks are scary at night. 
• You end up respecting different people after a few months than whom you respected at first.
• You can't dye short hair blonde without being called Draco and Slim Shady and Miley.
• Everyone has a life story. Many are worth hearing. 

There's more, but my brain is like heeeeyyyyit'sfourinthemorninggotosleep. I'll remember it later. Maybe make a part two. Who knows. 

Good night.