One day at golf practice Jeremy insisted that I should watch a movie called “Oldboy.” When I asked him to tell me anything about it, he wouldn’t. I had no idea why he was being so weird about it until I decided to watch it. In 120 minutes, I was confused enthralled, aroused, disgusted, then briefly optimistic, then more disgusted than I ever thought a movie could make me feel. I actually felt dirty after…
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If my father taught me one thing in the seventeen years I have been on this Earth, it is that the most important thing quality I can have is a firm handshake. Growing up, I took that to heart without question. It was the way it was. Dad’s business associates would always compliment my firm handshake, often accompanied by a remark about my father raising me well. Unless you are either severely arthritic or a…
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While Igor Stravinsky’s Firebird Suite may not be typically thought of as a traditional ballet, the traditional aspects of the Firebird Suite highlight the modernist elements of Stravinsky’s magnum opus, the Rite of Spring. While the pieces only premiered four years apart, Stravinsky’s attitude as an artist shifted immensely. Both pieces were intended to exploit a Western European fascination with Russian culture. In the Firebird Suite, Stravinsky attempted to display Russian folklore in a high…
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It was a rather busy day at the office. Even though it was flu season, this was unusual. The doctor didn’t mind; he had started to get bored from the recent dearth of patients. He preferred being busy, and he enjoyed helping his patients. He was glad that he had gotten to the office earlier than usual. Right as he arrived, he rubbed his bust of Hippocrates, as he did every day. Not two minutes…
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