"When she woke him at dawn by lightly sweeping her nipples across his back, he sometimes forgot who he was."
The above is a quote from the novel Good Benito by Alan Lightman.
When I read that line for the first time many years ago I had to pause for a moment because I could feel my brain expanding with awe. Reading it now makes me nearly tear up at the beauty of words, the sensuality of the setting and characters, the subtle yet overflowing passion.
Every time I read this sentence I have a tiny visceral meltdown, and it is absolutely wonderful.
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Monday, August 9, 2010
What really matters is what you like, not what you *are* like
The full quote:
"...I agreed that what really matters is what you like, not what you are like... Books, records, films - these things matter. Call me shallow but it's the fuckin' truth, and by this measure I was having one of the best dates of my life." ~High Fidelity
I recently got into a debate about the validity of the above quote, and while it's not by any means the golden rule, there have been too many instances in my life and my friends' lives that prove having the right pop culture favorites in common can go a long way.
The opposite is clearly also true, and obviously more volatile.
A fellow and I had been dating for several months. We were being snuggly on the couch and talking about local music festivals, one of which we happened to both attend long before meeting each other. I mentioned I thought Wilco was, "just kinda okay," and he was suddenly no longer holding my hand. He was agitated, even disgusted. I was fairly certain he was going to break up with me on the spot. Internally I wasn't sure if I should back peddle and talk up specific music nerd qualities I particularly enjoyed about Wilco, or defend my "meh" stance. But my main thought was simply, "What the fuck?"
A gal friend recounted watching a very dramatic and heated debate between her boyfriend (Joe) and his bff (Mike). The two gents had been best friends since grade school, but at a bar a few months ago Joe discovered Mike liked The Rolling Stones far more than The Beatles. Joe was livid. Hurt. Betrayed. How could he have not known this about Mike, despite living in a small town in Kansas together all these years? How could Mike be so stupid and tasteless? Mike stood firm. Joe nearly friend broke up with Mike that night, nearly ended a life long friendship over pop music band favorites.
While these sorts of anecdotes are endless (and also endlessly enjoyable), my intent for this post is to begin a new set of prompts for My Favorite Things as they are remembered and discovered. Hopefully it will provide some good self insights and possible cultural favoritism discussions among my friends, acquaintances, and readers. ^_^
"...I agreed that what really matters is what you like, not what you are like... Books, records, films - these things matter. Call me shallow but it's the fuckin' truth, and by this measure I was having one of the best dates of my life." ~High Fidelity
I recently got into a debate about the validity of the above quote, and while it's not by any means the golden rule, there have been too many instances in my life and my friends' lives that prove having the right pop culture favorites in common can go a long way.
The opposite is clearly also true, and obviously more volatile.
A fellow and I had been dating for several months. We were being snuggly on the couch and talking about local music festivals, one of which we happened to both attend long before meeting each other. I mentioned I thought Wilco was, "just kinda okay," and he was suddenly no longer holding my hand. He was agitated, even disgusted. I was fairly certain he was going to break up with me on the spot. Internally I wasn't sure if I should back peddle and talk up specific music nerd qualities I particularly enjoyed about Wilco, or defend my "meh" stance. But my main thought was simply, "What the fuck?"
A gal friend recounted watching a very dramatic and heated debate between her boyfriend (Joe) and his bff (Mike). The two gents had been best friends since grade school, but at a bar a few months ago Joe discovered Mike liked The Rolling Stones far more than The Beatles. Joe was livid. Hurt. Betrayed. How could he have not known this about Mike, despite living in a small town in Kansas together all these years? How could Mike be so stupid and tasteless? Mike stood firm. Joe nearly friend broke up with Mike that night, nearly ended a life long friendship over pop music band favorites.
While these sorts of anecdotes are endless (and also endlessly enjoyable), my intent for this post is to begin a new set of prompts for My Favorite Things as they are remembered and discovered. Hopefully it will provide some good self insights and possible cultural favoritism discussions among my friends, acquaintances, and readers. ^_^
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)