Suggest You - Self Improvement

Perfection Is Overrated
A few weeks ago, I attended a reading at Barnes & Noble for Violin Dreams, the latest book by Arnold Steinhardt, first violinist of the renowned Guarneri Quartet. When asked during the Q&A about advances in recording technology, Steinhardt replied that while digital technology enabled the production of flawless recordings, in his opinion, they were lacking in emotion and personality.He then related an anecdote about Pablo Casals, the great cellist, who was asked by the sound engineer during a recording session to redo a section where the intonation had been a little off. Casals replied indignantly: “But that’s the way I played it!As someone who hears the constant voice of self-criticism, I was struck with admiration for Casal’s integrity. How many of us have such loyalty to “imperfect” reality that we would refuse the opportunity for a do-over? Most of us are much more fascinated with achieving perfection – a life free from flaws, mishaps and mistakes.A Questionable Quest Performing artists and athletes spend hours practicing their craft or sport, striving to ensure a “perfect” performance. In the workplace, we’re intent on presenting an unimpeachable front to colleagues and supe

ect sense."

A thwarted bid for freedom. A failed attempt to overthrow Maya. Enjoy the insanity of the epiphany.

::: Joe vs the Volcano

"Nobody knows anything, Joe. We'll take this leap, and we'll see. We'll jump, and we'll see. That's life, right?"

Death and Rebirth. Unlike American Beauty, this is all about moving forward, "away from the things of man."

::: Man Facing Southeast (Hombre Mirando Al Sudeste)

Watch especially for the visual poem of a man crumbling a human brain into a sink while looking for the soul.

::: The Matrix

"Like everyone else, you were born into bondage, born inside a prison that you cannot smell, taste, or touch. A prison for your mind."

Plato's Cave for the people. As allegorically lucid as Joe vs Vocano, Pleasantville and Star Wars.

::: Monty Python's Life of Brian

"No, no! It is a sign that, like Him, we must think not of the things of the body, but of the face and head!"

Sacred Cow-tipping at its best.

"Meaning of Life" also belongs on this list.

::: Nineteen Eighty-Four

"If you want a vision of the future, Winston, imagine a boot stamping on a human face—forever."

This movie is unique in the sense that it's as good as the book, wh

Two Ways to Exercise That Burn Fat
When you perform any kind of activity your body burns fat and glucose. If you want to burn fat you must tailor your activities to burn fat in a larger proportion to glucose. The good thing is that you do not need to exercise so hard to burn fat. Studies have shown that when our workout intensity is low to moderate, we tend to burn a much higher percentage of fat.What we also know however, is that moderate workout - though raising metabolism - burns fewer total calories than a more energetic or intense way of exercising. So if you are on a weight loss diet, how should you handle this problem?If you want to burn fat with workout or exercise, there are actually two ways to do it; let's call them the quick way and the slower way:The quick way Increasing your metabolism by performing intense anaerobic exercises. This way you will burn fat indirectly, but relatively fast. The slower way exercise in a low to moderate level of effort, (walking, slight running) and for longer durations at a time If you don't have time for long duration walking, swimming, jogging or whichever training a

"Let me tell you why you're here. You're here because you know something. What you know, you can't explain. But you feel it. You felt it your entire life. That there's something wrong with the world. You don't know what it is, but it's there. Like a splinter in your mind — driving you mad." -Morpheus, The Matrix

This isn't a movie review list and it's not comprehensive. It's just some notes about a few movies I think are useful for the purposes of awakening and why, or that aren't and why not. With tools of understanding, bad is often better than good.

Major themes represented on this list seem to be these:

- Heresy - Captive/Captor - Teacher/Student - Nature of self/man - Death/rebirth< - Cataclysm/epiphany - Untrustworthiness of mind/memories

The only thing I might advise with regard to movies and books is to raise the material up to the level where it becomes of value to you. Orwell might have been writing an anti-communist manifesto, but Nineteen Eighty-Four is much more interesting viewed as the struggle between man and his confinement. Apocalypse Now is about something more than Viet Nam, How to Get Ahead In Advertising is about something more than rampant commercialism, etc.

::: American Beauty

"I feel like I've been in a coma for the past twenty years. And I'm just now waking up."

I've included American Beauty mainly for what's wrong with it. Lester's major death/rebirth transition shows promise, but what does he transition to? Backward to teenage crap, not forward in any sense. A fear-based regression. Stupid car, stupid drugs, stupid vanity, stupid skirt chasing. Not at all redeemed when Lester sees his own folly near the end or by sappy/smarmy dead guy voice-over.

The movie is slightly redeemed by the presence of the quasi-mystical neighbor kid and his video footage of a windblown bag:

"That's the day I realized that there was this entire life behind things, and this incredibly benevolent force that wanted me to know there was no reason to be afraid, ever."

::: Apocalypse Now

"In a war there are many moments for compassion and tender action. There are many moments for ruthless action — what is often called ruthless — what may in many circumstances be only clarity, seeing clearly what there is to be done and doing it, directly, quickly, awake, looking at it."

You'd think that Apocalypse Now Redux, the director's cut, would be the version to watch, but all the stuff that was rightly cut from the original has been wrongly replaced. (Raising the interesting point that directors and authors often don't understand the higher applications of the stories they're telling.) Stick with the original over both Redux and Conrad's Heart of Darkness.

Apocalypse Now is all about the Horror. A journey of discovery, into the heart of darkness, arriving at this horror. What's the horror? How do you get there? Why would anyone make such a journey? Should you make such a journey? Why or why not?

Note the powerful epiphanies that drive the film. The first assassin's letter home, ("Sell the house, sell the car, sell the kids..."), Dennis Hopper's youthful exuberance, Kurtz's diamond bullet, Willard's "...I wasn't even in their army any more."

::: Being There

"Spring, summer, autumn, winter... then spring again."

A lovely film ruined by a foolish walking-on-water stunt tacked on to the end. Without that nonsense the viewer would be free to think, to decide, to wonder. Instead, the movie zips itself up tight with its clever little dumb-it-down twist. Hit the stop button when Chauncey is straightening the sapling, before the ruinous denouement, and it's a fun, lovely film.

::: Blade Runner

"I've seen things you people wouldn't believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I've watched c-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser Gate. All those moments will be lost in time like tears in rain. Time to die."

Were you born five minutes ago? Of course not, and you have the memories to prove it. You'd know if they were artificial implants, because, uh...

::: Cast Away

"I couldn't even kill myself the way I wanted to. I had power over nothing."

If a man screams on a deserted island and there's no one to hear him, does he make a sound? Is it enough that he hears it himself? What if not? What's left when you take away everything?

Self stripped bare.

This movie raises many intriguing questions about the substance of self, or lack thereof, and includes a very Zen eulogy.

::: Dead Poets Society

Heresy.

::: Harold and Maude

"Vice, virtue. It's best not to be too moral... Aim above morality."

American Zen, master and disciple.

::: Harvey

"For years I was smart... I recommend pleasant."

Elwood P. Dowd, wisefool. A sweet depiction of a higher order of being misinterpreted as a lower order of being. Would we know the Superior Man when we saw him?

::: How to Get Ahead In Advertising

"Everything I do now makes perfect sense."

A thwarted bid for freedom. A failed attempt to overthrow Maya. Enjoy the insanity of the epiphany.

::: Joe vs the Volcano

"Nobody knows anything, Joe. We'll take this leap, and we'll see. We'll jump, and we'll see. That's life, right?"

Death and Rebirth. Unlike American Beauty, this is all about moving forward, "away from the things of man."

::: Man Facing Southeast (Hombre Mirando Al Sudeste)

Watch especially for the visual poem of a man crumbling a human brain into a sink while looking for the soul.

::: The Matrix

"Like everyone else, you were born into bondage, born inside a prison that you cannot smell, taste, or touch. A prison for your mind."

Plato's Cave for the people. As allegorically lucid as Joe vs Vocano, Pleasantville and Star Wars.

::: Monty Python's Life of Brian

"No, no! It is a sign that, like Him, we must think not of the things of the body, but of the face and head!"

Sacred Cow-tipping at its best.

"Meaning of Life" also belongs on this list.

::: Nineteen Eighty-Four

"If you want a vision of the future, Winston, imagine a boot stamping on a human face—forever."

This movie is unique in the sense that it's as good as the book, wh

How To Prevent Identity Theft
One of the most prevalent crimes in America right now is identity theft. The victims of this crime can attest that taking the time to prevent the thieves from stealing your identity is far better than trying to clean up the mess after the fact.These thieves are very clever so you must constantly be on guard with all your personal information. There are very few people that need to have all your information. So keep it heavily guarded.There are a few extra precautions you can take to prevent online identity theft. For instance, many credit card companies will now issue you a one-use credit card number for online purchases. What this does is protects your main account number. If someone steals the one time number, it will be of no use to him or her. When you are doing your shopping, shop with better known vendors. They are more likely to have safeguards in place to protect your information.Installing a security system on your computer that has a firewall is also a good deterrent. If you have security in place, it makes the task of hacking into your information much harder. Most identity thieves are looking to do the least amount of work possible, so if you have a firewall,

like I've been in a coma for the past twenty years. And I'm just now waking up."

The movie is slightly redeemed by the presence of the quasi-mystical neighbor kid and his video footage of a windblown bag:

"That's the day I realized that there was this entire life behind things, and this incredibly benevolent force that wanted me to know there was no reason to be afraid, ever."

::: Apocalypse Now

::: Being There

"Spring, summer, autumn, winter... then spring again."

::: Blade Runner

Were you born five minutes ago? Of course not, and you have the memories to prove it. You'd know if they were artificial implants, because, uh...

::: Cast Away

"I couldn't even kill myself the way I wanted to. I had power over nothing."

If a man screams on a deserted island and there's no one to hear him, does he make a sound? Is it enough that he hears it himself? What if not? What's left when you take away everything?

Self stripped bare.

This movie raises many intriguing questions about the substance of self, or lack thereof, and includes a very Zen eulogy.

::: Dead Poets Society

Heresy.

::: Harold and Maude

"Vice, virtue. It's best not to be too moral... Aim above morality."

American Zen, master and disciple.

::: Harvey

"For years I was smart... I recommend pleasant."

Elwood P. Dowd, wisefool. A sweet depiction of a higher order of being misinterpreted as a lower order of being. Would we know the Superior Man when we saw him?

::: How to Get Ahead In Advertising

"Everything I do now makes perfect sense."

A thwarted bid for freedom. A failed attempt to overthrow Maya. Enjoy the insanity of the epiphany.

::: Joe vs the Volcano

"Nobody knows anything, Joe. We'll take this leap, and we'll see. We'll jump, and we'll see. That's life, right?"

Death and Rebirth. Unlike American Beauty, this is all about moving forward, "away from the things of man."

::: Man Facing Southeast (Hombre Mirando Al Sudeste)

Watch especially for the visual poem of a man crumbling a human brain into a sink while looking for the soul.

::: The Matrix

"Like everyone else, you were born into bondage, born inside a prison that you cannot smell, taste, or touch. A prison for your mind."

Plato's Cave for the people. As allegorically lucid as Joe vs Vocano, Pleasantville and Star Wars.

::: Monty Python's Life of Brian

"No, no! It is a sign that, like Him, we must think not of the things of the body, but of the face and head!"

Sacred Cow-tipping at its best.

"Meaning of Life" also belongs on this list.

::: Nineteen Eighty-Four

"If you want a vision of the future, Winston, imagine a boot stamping on a human face—forever."

This movie is unique in the sense that it's as good as the book, wh

Personal Leadership - What's Wrong With (Being) You
One of the great frustrations of my working life is the continuing interactions I have with people who will not be themselves. They somehow feel that it is better to be something or someone they are not.Their reticence at being who they really are and saying what they really think stems, I have no doubt, from something to do with their psychological make up. Perhaps a lack of confidence, a fear of failure or a level of overemphasised respect for the individuals they interact with.In corporate life, I find them in all kinds of situations.A classic is in the interview for a job. A question I like to ask in an interview is "What are you passionate about?" Fifty percent of the time I either get a droll exposition about something to do with the job function or some or I get an treatise on leadership or people management delivered with all the passion of a cardboard cut out.The reason I ask the question is twofold. The first is to find out what the person does actually get passionate about. Passion is a necessary behaviour to be successful in working and personal life. Also, the answers as they roll enthusiastically off the tongue say a lot about what people value.The secon

gly replaced. (Raising the interesting point that directors and authors often don't understand the higher applications of the stories they're telling.) Stick with the original over both Redux and Conrad's Heart of Darkness.

::: Being There

"Spring, summer, autumn, winter... then spring again."

::: Blade Runner

Were you born five minutes ago? Of course not, and you have the memories to prove it. You'd know if they were artificial implants, because, uh...

::: Cast Away

"I couldn't even kill myself the way I wanted to. I had power over nothing."

If a man screams on a deserted island and there's no one to hear him, does he make a sound? Is it enough that he hears it himself? What if not? What's left when you take away everything?

Self stripped bare.

This movie raises many intriguing questions about the substance of self, or lack thereof, and includes a very Zen eulogy.

::: Dead Poets Society

Heresy.

::: Harold and Maude

"Vice, virtue. It's best not to be too moral... Aim above morality."

American Zen, master and disciple.

::: Harvey

"For years I was smart... I recommend pleasant."

Elwood P. Dowd, wisefool. A sweet depiction of a higher order of being misinterpreted as a lower order of being. Would we know the Superior Man when we saw him?

::: How to Get Ahead In Advertising

"Everything I do now makes perfect sense."

A thwarted bid for freedom. A failed attempt to overthrow Maya. Enjoy the insanity of the epiphany.

::: Joe vs the Volcano

"Nobody knows anything, Joe. We'll take this leap, and we'll see. We'll jump, and we'll see. That's life, right?"

Death and Rebirth. Unlike American Beauty, this is all about moving forward, "away from the things of man."

::: Man Facing Southeast (Hombre Mirando Al Sudeste)

Watch especially for the visual poem of a man crumbling a human brain into a sink while looking for the soul.

::: The Matrix

"Like everyone else, you were born into bondage, born inside a prison that you cannot smell, taste, or touch. A prison for your mind."

Plato's Cave for the people. As allegorically lucid as Joe vs Vocano, Pleasantville and Star Wars.

::: Monty Python's Life of Brian

"No, no! It is a sign that, like Him, we must think not of the things of the body, but of the face and head!"

Sacred Cow-tipping at its best.

"Meaning of Life" also belongs on this list.

::: Nineteen Eighty-Four

"If you want a vision of the future, Winston, imagine a boot stamping on a human face—forever."

This movie is unique in the sense that it's as good as the book, wh

Bankruptcy Information - Relief From a Stay
Filing for bankruptcy issues an automatic stay from most action against the debtor from things like a foreclosure, lawsuit and even garnishments. The stay was enacted to keep the debtors property protected but the stay is not permanent. If you are a creditor they try to get relief from the stay by going after the debtor they must consult the judge assigned to the case first. There may be a hearing that the creditor must show cause as to why they wish to collect before the discharge of the bankruptcy.A creditor that is seeking relief from the stay in order to go ahead against the debtor the property of the debtor must be able to proof to the bankruptcy judge during a hearing that there is enough cause for granting the relief or lift of the stay. Cause may be proven by showing that the interest of the creditor is not really protected or by showing the judge that the debtor has no real equity in the property and the property itself is not needed in order for reorganization through Chapters 11 and 13.Most commonly it is the secured creditor who is out to get relief for foreclosure stay or car repossession. The creditor can often get relief from the stay in order to foreclosure on real estate

e off the shoulder of Orion. I've watched c-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser Gate. All those moments will be lost in time like tears in rain. Time to die."

Were you born five minutes ago? Of course not, and you have the memories to prove it. You'd know if they were artificial implants, because, uh...

::: Cast Away

"I couldn't even kill myself the way I wanted to. I had power over nothing."

If a man screams on a deserted island and there's no one to hear him, does he make a sound? Is it enough that he hears it himself? What if not? What's left when you take away everything?

Self stripped bare.

This movie raises many intriguing questions about the substance of self, or lack thereof, and includes a very Zen eulogy.

::: Dead Poets Society

Heresy.

::: Harold and Maude

"Vice, virtue. It's best not to be too moral... Aim above morality."

American Zen, master and disciple.

::: Harvey

"For years I was smart... I recommend pleasant."

Elwood P. Dowd, wisefool. A sweet depiction of a higher order of being misinterpreted as a lower order of being. Would we know the Superior Man when we saw him?

::: How to Get Ahead In Advertising

"Everything I do now makes perfect sense."

A thwarted bid for freedom. A failed attempt to overthrow Maya. Enjoy the insanity of the epiphany.

::: Joe vs the Volcano

"Nobody knows anything, Joe. We'll take this leap, and we'll see. We'll jump, and we'll see. That's life, right?"

Death and Rebirth. Unlike American Beauty, this is all about moving forward, "away from the things of man."

::: Man Facing Southeast (Hombre Mirando Al Sudeste)

Watch especially for the visual poem of a man crumbling a human brain into a sink while looking for the soul.

::: The Matrix

"Like everyone else, you were born into bondage, born inside a prison that you cannot smell, taste, or touch. A prison for your mind."

Plato's Cave for the people. As allegorically lucid as Joe vs Vocano, Pleasantville and Star Wars.

::: Monty Python's Life of Brian

"No, no! It is a sign that, like Him, we must think not of the things of the body, but of the face and head!"

Sacred Cow-tipping at its best.

"Meaning of Life" also belongs on this list.

::: Nineteen Eighty-Four

"If you want a vision of the future, Winston, imagine a boot stamping on a human face—forever."

This movie is unique in the sense that it's as good as the book, wh

Holiday Loans: A Small Step to Enjoy Life
Life is a cigarette, once ignited it is sure to get burned off. Your life was initiated when you came out of your mother’s womb and its getting consumed by every passing day. You work and you remain busy in fulfilling your responsibilities. Don’t you want to take a break and have some fun? SECURED PERSONAL LOANS for Holidays are the perfect package if you want to get that fun back into your life.Holidays require you to select a venue for having fun, your boarding over there and of course the money you will need for eating, sight seeing and shopping.SECURED PERSONAL LOANS are the best tool for catering to all your needs including holidays. You can proceed with a personal loan if you have a pawn to keep. These loans with a warranty attached are called as secured holiday loans.Since the lender has the safety of a warranty, he can give you several perks such as• Low rates of interest• Easy repayment planThese two factors allow you to enjoy your holidays to the maximum and come back with rejuvenated spirits to work. With the above said perks you will be in a good condition to pa

ect sense."

A thwarted bid for freedom. A failed attempt to overthrow Maya. Enjoy the insanity of the epiphany.

::: Joe vs the Volcano

"Nobody knows anything, Joe. We'll take this leap, and we'll see. We'll jump, and we'll see. That's life, right?"

Death and Rebirth. Unlike American Beauty, this is all about moving forward, "away from the things of man."

::: Man Facing Southeast (Hombre Mirando Al Sudeste)

Watch especially for the visual poem of a man crumbling a human brain into a sink while looking for the soul.

::: The Matrix

"Like everyone else, you were born into bondage, born inside a prison that you cannot smell, taste, or touch. A prison for your mind."

Plato's Cave for the people. As allegorically lucid as Joe vs Vocano, Pleasantville and Star Wars.

::: Monty Python's Life of Brian

"No, no! It is a sign that, like Him, we must think not of the things of the body, but of the face and head!"

Sacred Cow-tipping at its best.

"Meaning of Life" also belongs on this list.

::: Nineteen Eighty-Four

"If you want a vision of the future, Winston, imagine a boot stamping on a human face—forever."

This movie is unique in the sense that it's as good as the book, which is an extremely intimate portrait of the captor/captive, Maya/man relationship. Compare this to Moby-Dick or One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest which are superb books but useless movies.

::: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

As with Moby-Dick, Hollywood castrated the book. They stripped it of its archetypal dimensions and reduced it to a meaningless pissing match between McMurphy and Nurse Ratched. Great entertainment, but for meaningful insight, read the book.

::: Pleasantville

"There are some places where the road doesn't go in a circle. There are some places where it keeps on going."

A cheerful tale of heresy in which no one is burned at the stake and the new paradigm is, eventually, embraced by all.

::: The Razor's Edge

"The dead look so terribly dead."

The razor's edge is what makes it interesting; seeing Larry shakily balanced on the fine line between what he was and what he's becoming. He is walking the edge between two lives. The Bill Murray version is a bit unfocused... stick with Tyrone Power or read the book.

Maugham supposedly used Ramana Maharshi as the model for the novel's holy man.

::: Star Wars

"The force will be with you, always."

The first one, where Luke makes the transition from flesh to spirit.

The Hero's Journey.

::: The Thin Red Line

"Maybe all men got one big soul everybody's a part of, all faces are the same man."

A sublime inquiry into the spiritual nature of man. More a sad/sweet song than a narrative film.

::: The Thirteenth Floor

"So what're you saying? You're saying that there's another world on top of this one?"

Layer after layer. Turtles on top of turtles.

::: Vanilla Sky/Abre Los Ojos

"Open your eyes."

If you like Vanilla Sky, check out the original, the Spanish film Abre Los Ojos (Open Your Eyes). These two films may be the best of the bunch for our purposes; the closest to an enlightenment allegory.

Of course, the interesting thing about enlightenment is getting there, not being there, and that's what these films are about; awakening from a false reality, opening your eyes. They're not so much about what's real as what's not.

It's the story of the journey one takes to get to the place where anything, even jumping off a tall building, would be better than continuing to live a lie, even a beautiful, blissful lie.

Note the presence of the true guru, explaining in clear terms why leaping off the building is the best thing to do, and waiting patiently for it to be done.

::: Waking Life

"They say that dreams are only real as long as they last. Couldn't you say the same thing about life?"

Wide-ranging philosophical inquiry. Provocative. Amusing. Potentially disruptive.

::: Wings of Desire

"When the child was a child, it was the time of these questions: Why am I me, and why not you? Why am I here, and why not there? When did time begin and where does space end?"

A lovely, intelligent, thought-provoking film. Can the awakened being return to the dreamstate? Would he want to?

::: Others

Some other films that reward thoughtful viewing are The Wizard of Oz, About Schmidt, What Dreams May Come, Total Recall, All the Mornings Of the World (Tous les Matins du Monde), and, of course, many more.

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