The Blue Lady broken- Kelly & Cal movie

I recently watched a movie "Kelly & Cal" which was released in 2014 and is based on story of a married mom named Kelly having a short relationship with a disabled teenager named Cal which ultimately does not continue due to social circumstances and choices. The movie was somewhat light-hearted but one particular scene really captivated me and I think its worth sharing about as it struck a deep chord in its whole sensitivity- especially the scene in which we see Cal escaping with his "blue lady" on the wheelchair- for one moment I was reminded of the sculpture Pieta by Michelangelo where the dying Jesus lay in the arms of the weeping Mary..

Read through this lovely piece of dialogue between them when Kelly stops Cal in the scene above.

Cal: "I had unrealistic expectations. i should have never broken down my wall of illusion. You paint a picture of someone that you want to see and the reality never measures up.

i took my blue lady off her pedestal."

Kelly: "okay, i hear what you're saying, all right, and I completely understand you. but, you know, why don't we go get some coffee and we'll continue this conversation? we can go to the diner or something."

[Cal then throws the blue statue down the bridge]

Cal: "See? now we're both broken"

Kelly: "Why do you do that, cal? destroy everything that you make?"

Cal: "I don't know. I was thinking that maybe i'm a buddhist and i'm highlighting the impermanence of things, you know. could be like -- like a hindu, you know. reminding everyone the other half of creation is destruction. brahma and shiva"

The dialogues above were taken from the online script available below:
http://www.springfieldspringfield.co.uk/movie_script.php?movie=kelly-and-cal

The moment when both Cal and his blue lady are broken seems to be a divine moment which symbolizes unison- pointing to the deep hindu philosophy of Shiva and Shakti where both coexist...

A tribute to Robin Williams

Almost sixteen years ago, my earliest memories of actor Robin Williams date back to my sixth grade, perhaps in school, when I watched the movie "Jumanji". Juvenile as I was, little did I decipher the deeper meaning behind that fantasy movie where Robin could go into a fantasy world full of strange animals and unrealistic places, just by rolling some dice on a magical board, which could take him to a different time altogether. This movie showed his finesse in being able to make one laugh and forget the world and go into an imaginative, adventure-filled world and enjoy life like a child.

Almost a year ago, I watched his movie "Dead Poets' Society " which demonstrated his depth in being able to inspire with the gravity of a philosopher and poet, fighting to instill that spirit in juvenile students who were waiting for that "captain" to direct their sinking ship. And I, a student of poetry and philosophy, apart from other things, could connect with his finesse once again. Watch the scene at the link below:

My favorite scene from Dead Poets Society

And today, as I read about his sad demise, the poet and the child in me are both sad, but they speak to me something else too. Perhaps, for a soul like Robin, the child in him wanted to try something new and adventurous and in that attempt, transported himself to another world, away from the travails and troublesome realities of this world by the roll of dice, though the dice was rolled by destiny this time. To put in the worlds of Shakespeare, the philosopher in him realized that " Life is a tale, told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing"

In the words of Walt Whitman, He did indeed "sound his barbaric yawp over the roofs of the world".
I can hear it now, can you?


May his soul fly to uncharted galaxies in the other world and continue to shine beacon of humor and inspiration...

The whales who struggle with sounds

Hi,

If you read my previous blogpost, I talked about the idea of freezing sound as it may help to prevent harm to those who find it disturbing or deadening- equivalent to a noise.

Recently, I have been battling lot of noise concerns in my own residential apartment complex on campus.
And I realized that the walls of the building seem to lack reasonable sound proofing. I read that there are decibel meters which measure STC (Sound Transmission Class) ratings and most buildings only have a minimum STC rating of somewhere around 50dB.  So, there are many people who jostle with this problem in highly populated big cities where space is a problem and one finds apartments next to each other or sometimes, not having a good sound proofing. And the problem worsens, if you are on campus. The residential staff (arrogant and corrupt as they are) will not assist in improving the construction or help with reinforcing sound proofing on any walls- and to add to the distress, one cannot by his own, modify or add any furniture in the room.

Since my current room is tolerable except the noise sources which come up, I began to explore ways to block noise or reduce it. Getting noise-cancelling headphones, ear plugs, etc. Changing room was not an option I wanted to do as there was more risk associated with that too.

But then I realized that what I am going through is nothing compared to the daily disturbance which becomes deadening and even lethal to the marine creatures- particularly the WHALES.
I came across this news of many whales who rely on hearing underwater, have been found deaf and dead as part of ongoing naval efforts of sonar use and explosives for military training. It is predicted almost 1000 whales may die during the 5-year marine navy testing planned.




Read the article for the details:

http://www.nrdc.org/wildlife/marine/sonar.asp


I wondered how those creatures of the universe, majestic and gigantic as they are, are left at mercy of the navy and its ongoing efforts of military training.
I was so moved that I signed up a petition for this and made small donation.

Somewhere, in my heart I felt, perhaps I may in some small way contribute to prevent the sound (noise and disruption for whale- endangering their safety) of deadly sonars to reach their highly evolved ears,
because sadly, I cannot freeze sound and it has not been attempted too....

I thought what if the whales could be relocated or moved to another ocean! But that's something one can suggest but I don't know how practically possible it is. I remember having watched a movie (Salmon Fishing in the Yemen) where salmon fishes were relocated from Scotland to Yemen coast, but then salmon fish and whale size are on the opposite end of the spectrum.

This post is dedicated to the highly sensitive people who value the meaning of quietness and how crucial it is to have your own space and silence amidst the noisy industrialized world of today...