& Moira Bianchi: agosto 2013

terça-feira, 27 de agosto de 2013

The ocean before midnight

hi,
Yes, I've lost it completely. My head is spinning with the power dose of good culture I inflicted myself this weekend.


I've already talked about Before midnight, a movie I longed for and to which I related way too much. And then, I read The Ocean at the End of the Lane , the new Neil Gaiman book. How these two wonderful works mix? Dunno. But I can tell you where they meet. 

In my mind, 
they talk about the same thing 
from different angles.



Told you I lost it.


Here's the thing: In Before, it's the parents' perspective - in special the mother, woman, professional, friend, daughter - in other words, wonder woman's view. In Ocean, it's the son's perspective.

Worst, the son is no longer a child. He is a child only grown and then back to being a child. Do I make any sense? No? I absolutely don't want to give away any spoilers, go read Mr. Gaiman 's book. It's puuuuurfect!

Those two works got me thinking about me and my boy while thinking about me and my parents at the same time. Difficult place to be - in between - and actually I'm not as gloomy as I usually get when in this mood. I feel... inspired.

There's always something we can do better different. That's what I'll try from now on. 
Avoiding spoilers, there were two lines in the book that are forever imprinted in me: 

"...‘Sorry,’ she said. ‘That took a lot longer than I expected. It didn’t want to cooperate, neither, and in the end it took me and Gran to do it, and she did most of the heavy lifting. It wasn’t going to argue with her, but it didn’t help, and it’s not easy …’
‘What?’ I asked. ‘What are you talking about?’
She put the metal bucket down on the grass beside me without spilling a drop. ‘The Ocean ,’ she said. ‘It didn’t want to go.'..."

and


"...‘And did I pass?’
The face of the old woman on my right was unreadable in the gathering dusk. On my left the younger woman said, ‘You don’t pass or fail at being a person, dear.’
I put the empty cup and plate down on the ground.
Ginnie Hempstock said, ‘I think you’re doing better than you were the last time we saw you. You’re growing a new heart, for a start.’..."

Get it? Sheriff of Crazy Town now has a new badge. A heart shaped one.






And before saying goodbye, pray for me ? tks
"Saint Jane of Austen, help me finish the Portuguese version of '45 days in Europe with Mr. Darcy' that I have just started. Amen."




Disclaimer: Images from Google, superb text from Mr. Gaiman, babble is all mine.

sexta-feira, 23 de agosto de 2013

Mayor of Crazy Town

hello,
hot rio chicktoday I finished revising my third book - although only one has been self published yet - and sent it to my dear loved lovely beta readers Beate and Enid. 

And today, an exceptionally warm August day in Rio, I watched the third part of my beloved 'Befores' trilogy. I had already read a lot about Before Midnight , heard a lot, but nothing is like watching it.



My romantic young adult years loved Before Sunrise with all my being, thinking: 'Oh, wow! I want an adventure like this!' From a girl living in small Rio de Janeiro town almost forgotten in time and space when the 90's started, meeting a guy in a train in Europe and letting myself fall for his cheesy lines, stepping out of said train to spend a night wandering Vienna was such an adventure that it couldn't even have limits, edges.



My depressed underemployed overwhelmed Balzaquian self watched Before Sunset with difficulty to contain the erratic heart beatings meeting a dear one from the past a decade in the future brought. The pull of the unknown combined with the anxious curiosity for sunnier days to come - often quenched in stupid fortune tellers' appointments - made me crave the oportunity to throw it all to the wind. Starting over, from scratch, betting all your money on a promise from the past still has power over me, btw.



My mommerish new-found-writer tipping over the edge thirty-nineish self is sighing uncertain of how much I did like Before Midnight . I did, it's perfect because it is life: unperfect, messy, confuse. Julie Delpy looks 40 just as I am very sadly looking 40ish. Ethan Hawke looks haggard and thin, like he has been carrying a lot of weigh on his shoulders. And often times he looks better than she does. 
hot rio chick
And the problem is exactly that: I relate too much to these movies. I read somewhere that they picture a generation and blah, blah, blah but the other two were dreamy to me. This is one is the raw reality.

I am married to my Jessy - or Mr Darcy -  for 16 years + and we have been through rough patches, also effing good moments but both of us would like things to be better or different in many levels. And we fight. And we give ourselves another chance.

Celine may be the Fucking Mayor of Crazy Town as Jessy accused her of being, and you know what? I'm the sherif. When their fight went out of proportion I caught myself thinking that she was over reacting to something that I could not put a finger on, but that I was sure was going to be explained. When it was, it was me...

The guy had time to write, take long strolls under the olive trees and chat with his fellow literate friends. She had been spending the days making dinner, squirting sunscreen on the girls, bffing his son. When he says he saw her frolicking on the beach and pushing greek salad down her throat I thought: I'm gonna cry.
edgy woman
Anger, overwhelming frustration, rage and a need to fight back. Celine says she arrives home from work and babysit, work and babysit, work and babysit. Me, me, me...

And then I saw that on this movie, they are mostly trapped. In the car, having lunch, hotel room. The other movies, they wandered, free and aimless. See where I'm getting?
hot rio chick

It ends as a loving couple's fight ends: giving a second chance. I guess I needed them to show me the way.

In reality, I need time to digest this movie as I did after the other two. From sunset I need almost a week... A movie hangover.

Where's my Chilean wine?
hot rio chick
Can I have a six pack, please?


Disclaimer: all images are Google and excuse me, I'm hangover.

quarta-feira, 14 de agosto de 2013

Keeping Mr. Darcy

Hi there!

Darcyland is grooving here for me. 45 days in Europe with Mr. Darcy is under revision and I must say it's lovely. And... I've just finished reading Austenland .



My Darcy friends want to discuss the book before the movie comes out here in Rio and so, we're all reading it. My opinion in one sentence?


If you think your obssession with Mr. Darcy is a problem, Austenland is not a safe place for you.
hot rio chick sexy darcy
Why? Because he lives there...


Let me make myself clear: the book is engaging, a page turner even but... from page five you know how it will end. You may say that for a Pride and Prejudice afficionado as myself, predictability IS NOT an issue. It's not. But something in Austenland made me uncomfortable.

For starters, I can't understand why someone would pay to live a romance. It sounds like the call girl business only immature and gullible. Because when one hires a call girl/boy, sex is the main service provided - Anais/Charlotte from my 'Image and Likeness' would snort derisevely in my face - but in this case, the guests in Austenland hire romance regency style.


hot rio chick

Of course I relieve the regency romance in Mr. Darcy and Lizzy's offhand courtship over and over, reading and writing their story incessantly. I love their love but I never saw myself as Lizzy. In my head, I'm always someone from the outside witnessing it click between then. In Austenland, a guest could say: I want to be Elizabeth Bennet . Or I want to be Catherine Morland , or Anne Elliot . And then, bam! A dashing British actor would materialize as Mr Darcy , Mr. Tilney or Captain Wentworth and play the part with her.

Theater? Yes, theater! I get that. But... how can I put this?... It gave me the idea of being a loser proposition for losers. If one likes a book soooo much to the point of choosing to reenact it, she is related to the book. And then, she pays someone to fall in love with her, no, she pays someone to reenact the story she loves so much making her feel like the heroine. If she relates to the story so much, wouldn't it be heartwrenching? It's not real after all...

Throughout the book I kept hoping for a twist like......work at Austenland. Sorry, mild spoilers but... Nope, nada, zip. It didn't happen...

One thing I hated: the innumerous references to both the BBC series and the 2005 movie. The heroine is obssessed by Firth's Darcy but does she need to find him playing pool in his waist coast? Does he need to say 'Your hands are cold.' when they have a moment? I didn't like it. Nah... tacky.

One thing I loved: the banter between Lizzy and Darcy Jane and Nobley. Deliciously Austeny, tallyho!


The book is lovely, engaging, good humored but... blergh


Maybe I consider myself a loser as humungous as Jane Erstwhile.

hot rio chick


Yeah, that's probably it.


Let me close this post with a token from Mr Darcy judge , it always lifts my spirits.



bj

disclaimer: Images from Google, Austenland is worth the reading and everything else is mine.

sexta-feira, 9 de agosto de 2013

About tattoos

Hi!
These last few days I've been dwelling on tattoos. Guess why?

Yeah, Mr. Darcy has just gotten one!


ळिज़्ज़र्ड् ळिज़्ज़र्ड् ळिज़्ज़र्ड् ळिज़्ज़र्ड् ळिज़्ज़र्ड् ळिज़्ज़र्ड् ळिज़्ज़र्ड्

It may not mean much now but when you reach chapter 19 of '45 days in Europe with Mr. Darcy' this Sanskrit word will put a smile on your face.

After I wrote this scene I sent his tattoo to a few friends and all guys approved of it: both what it means and where it was done. Except my personal Mr D. who said: 'Mr. Darcy would never have a tattoo.'

My hubs always say that Mr Darcy would never act the shenanigans I write for him... *sigh*

Googling, I found a few examples that well, may be hot but also may give hubs the upper hand... 
What do you think?


hot rio chick

Or...

hot rio chick

hot rio chick
coming soon!

sexta-feira, 2 de agosto de 2013

Let's play The Lizzie Bennet Diaries personality game?


Hello!
Today I'm wrapping up  
and I got this lovely personality game based on 'The Lizzie Bennet Diaries' characters. 
It is so cute that I want to share with you.
'Shall we play?'

personality game


bj

Disclaimer: I don't know who organized it but I love it. Congrats fellow Darcy friend!

Joguinho do Lizzie Bennet Diaries

Oi!
Hoje estou escrevendo o último capítulo de 
e tb recebi esse joguinho bacaninha do lindinho 'The Lizzie Bennet Diaries'
Como estava em Inglês eu traduzi.
'Bora brincar?

the lizzie bennet diaries


bj

Nota: O joguinho muito fofo apareceu hoje no meu feed do Facebook. Não sei quem bolou mas adorei e traduzi.