Inspirations

I just saw the movie Julie & Julia, and I have to say, my local newspaper's review on it just didn't do it justice. It was a great movie. After seeing how, in the movie, Julie (played by Amy Adams) blogs on an actual blogging site, blogs.salon.com (but sadly, after further research, is no longer accepting the registration of new blogs) my blogging flame has been renewed. So, expect many more submissions from me throughout the rest of the summer. First up, though, is a very interesting movie made by the geniuses at Harvard, which shows, in a very vivid animated movie, the inner workings of a cell (in our body). Here goes: http://aimediaserver.com/studiodaily/videoplayer/?src=harvard/harvard.swf&width=640&height=520
It a strange animation, and when I first saw it, it was hard for me to grasp the fact that all of these things happen inside of teeny tiny cells in our bodies. I thought that many of the things looked like animals, in a big zoo. What does your imagination show you?
I also just finished a great book, called The Girl who Played with Fire, by Stieg Larsson. It's a very popular book, translated from Swedish. It's the sequel to the book, The Girl with The Dragon Tattoo, and the second in a trilogy, the third of which is set to come out in the US on October 31st. The books, however, are definitely not for the faint-hearted. To put it lightly, they are very intense. If you love thrillers, this is the book for you. If you've already read both of these books and are waiting extremely impatiently for the third one to arrive, I found that you can pre-order the British version of the book on amazon.co.uk for about $20 (I'm not sure of the shipping charges, though) which is set to come out on October 1st. But, if you can wait until the 31st, you should, especially if you'd like a cover similar to the other two books. The British one has quite a different cover than the American one.
I also just finished another amazing book, probably one of the best novels I've ever read, called The Art of Racing in the Rain, by Garth Stein. It's a story told through the eyes of a dog named Enzo, whose owner is a race car driver who hasn't quite made it yet. While you may roll your eyes (as I did) and say "great, another talking animal book", this book is quite unlike any animal book you've ever read. The dog, has thoughts and feelings very similar to that of a human's, however with an inability to communicate like a human. It's amazing, truly. And, unlike most books, I found myself dabbing the corners of my eyes with the back of my sleeve. Why, I'm not going to say, you'll have to find out for yourself and see if you have a similar reaction.
Following a week that broke temperature records in my area, this past week for me has been fairly cool, as I've found myself pulling out my sweaters and jeans that have been stowed in the back of my closet for the past few months. I plan to have a nice vacation at the end of August, just to take a week off and not think about anything before the fall rush begins again. So, wherever you are, I hope that you're safe, healthy, and happy.

Love always,

Olivia