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About Toi Question of the Month

#Question of the Month: a #bloghop to think about. No. 5- Who would play you in a movie of your life?

A little while ago, Michael D’Agostino, of A Life Examined, brought up the idea of a new blog hop called Question of the Month. He thinks blog readers would like to know a little more about us, the bloggers. So we’re all gathering to show you guys who we are by taking part in the Question of the Month blog hop. On the first Monday of each month, we answer the question that gets posted here.

This month’s question is: “Who would play you in a movie of your life?”

This is actually a question I’ve thought about; not because I’m an egomaniac or anything, but because of a question I often ask other authors when I interview them. On a past blog anniversary, I interviewed myself asking the same question, “Who is so you (or me) and why?”

Of course as time passes by, this question becomes more and more difficult to answer. There are so many new, up and coming, and undiscovered talents out there; should my story ever be told on the big or small screen, I might not even be familiar with the person taking on the role. As long as they are relatively cute (I see myself as relatively cute), have dimples, and brown skin, I’ll be happy…

Although, we may be reaching a level of technological advancements and make-up artistry where anyone could play any role regardless of their natural skin color, but that’s a discussion for another day.

I’m trying to start a new bookish blog hop for anyone who might be interested. Please check it out. BooktagsBlogHop

Please check out the other participants in this hop and even join in if you’d like.

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like it let me know and share it with others. See you next time, Toi Thomas. #thetoiboxofwords

Categories
Fun Hops Videos

Underrated Treasures Blogfest!

Hosted by the Ninja himself, Alex J. Cavanagh, this blogfest is sure to entertain you for days to come.

Everyone has a favorite movie or band that no one else has ever heard about. For whatever reason, they remain undiscovered and underrated. Now is our chance to tell the world about these obscure treasures!

Today’s the day I post about my favorite unknown:  MOVIE, BAND/ARTIST, TV SHOW, or BOOK. I can post about one or all four – my choice.

So here I go.

MovieMirrorMask

Wikipedia

I like the movie MirrorMask. I’m not saying that it’s my favorite movie or even my favorite obscure movie, but I do think it’s worth mentioning and here’s why: Neil Gaiman, Dave McKean, and Jim Henson.

There aren’t many around today who aren’t at least socially aware of the creative talent of Neil Gaiman. Whether or not people like his work or have even experienced it personally, most people in western civilization, at least, know who he is. I like Gaiman’s work. His influence and voice are clearly evident throughout this film.

Apparently Dave McKean wears many hats, including: Illustrator, photographer, writer, filmmaker, and musician. That’s all well and good, but I mainly know him from, Batman: Arkham Asylum, but have recently viewed some of this other work and am pleased with it. McKean’s signature artistic style shines in this film.

Then there’s Jim Henson. No need to talk this guy and his production company up. If people don’t know who he is, they can Google him. The Henson influence in this film isn’t huge, but it is significant. The Henson influence also isn’t its typically bright, high-spirited, more popular influence; it’s more along the lines of Dark Crystal and Labyrinth…which of course, is right up my alley.

When it comes to describing this movie there are three words that come to mind: weird, trippy, and complex. This isn’t a film that leaves you completely satisfied upon completing it, but that’s why I like it. It’s keeps you wondering, second guessing, and tilting your head. It’s a visual anomaly, having many clever and striking graphics, but there are also some that you’re just not quite sure are supposed to appear the way they do. This isn’t a comfortable film to watch, but for me, that challenge is part of the magic that makes this movie worth experiencing…And despite what critics say, the story is wonderful. It’s not completely coherent in places, but it’s unique and original, and that in itself is an accomplishment.

See the trailer here:

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=swrcKRVgeGI&w=320&h=240]

Song– Bohemian Rhapsody cover by The Braids (altering the category of BAND/ARTIST)

Wikipedia

There’s nothing better than the original Bohemian Rhapsody by the band Queen. This is one of those times when you’ll really have to hear me out before you decide to hang me. There’s a very specific and important reason I want to feature this particular cover of this song, but first I need to explain why I chose it for this list.

Plain and simple, I chose this song because not many people know it exists. Being from the High School High soundtrack, I can’t blame them. I’ve never even seen this movie, but I’m pretty sure I don’t need to. I originally heard the song on the radio back in high school, which brings me to why I’m featuring this song now.

I think most people take it for granted that everyone kind of shares their options about certain things without taking into consideration cultural difference. One great Cultural Revolution I like at the moment is the mixture of musical genres. Now I do love my classics and can be a bit of a traditionalist, but I like that people are expanding their musical horizons.

There was a time, and in some places this is still the case, when music was strictly regional. Black urban youths had no idea who groups like Queen and The Ramones were. I’m sure there were other regions where groups like Digable Planets and Digital Underground didn’t exist either.

When I heard The Braids cover of this song, I was excited to finally have a way to talk about a song and band I liked with my peers by sharing and comparing this song to the original version. This isn’t a great cover, but it’s not a bad one either. It’s definitely different from the original, but that’s why it’s so special. I have several friends now who’ve experienced many different musical genres all because I found a way to reach them, initially, with this simple cover song.

Finding a sample of this song was more than hard. Unfortunately the only one I could find was from a You Tube video where the person who posted it, included a picture of the group Fugees. I’m not sure why this person did that, but this song is definitely not by the Fugees; it’s by The Braids.

Listen to (don’t watch) this song here:

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vI_dKmVya-Y&w=320&h=240]

TV showOut of This World

Wikipedia

Every time I try to bring this show up in a conversation, people look at me like I’ve smashed together the languages of French and Stark Trek’s Klingon. I was actually amazed by how easy it was to find this with a Google search, but I guess it was because I knew what I was looking for. I know I can’t be the only sci-fi/fantasy fan who remembers this show from their childhood.

I distinctly remember the classic song, Swinging a Star popularized by Bing Crosby, being the theme song for the show, though it wasn’t his version that was used. As a kid, this show was right up there with Small Wonder, Alf, and Greatest American Hero (another underrated classic). If you don’t know these either, head to the Google machine.

This show had everything a young female sci-fi fan could ask for. It told the story of a girl who was half alien and had special alien powers. It was traditional silly, after school sit-con material, though it could also fit in well with Saturday morning shows like Saved By the Bell. I don’t think this show was ever in danger of winning an Emmy, but I liked it.

See the trailer here:

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2UkZzdyD0A&w=320&h=240]

Well that’s it. It’s more than I meant to share, but hey, I was on a roll. I couldn’t think of a book to add, so you lucked out there. Be sure to drop by and visit other stops on this hop. Whether you liked what I posted or not, someone else is bound to have something just for you.

Click here to see the Linky list.

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like it let me know and share it with others. See you next time, Toi Thomas. #thetoiboxofwords

Categories
My Geekdom

My Geekdom 10: The Big Bang Theory

geekdom2

Pins from Pinterest that inspire me and indulge my geekness. http://pinterest.com/toinette_thomas/thats-hot/

Please do not copy this image. Click this image to visit Pinterest and share, share, share 🙂

I love that geeks have come into their own. I can’t believe that it’s actually cool to be a geek now, at least on TV. It’s funny to me that there are millions of people who adore The Big Bang Theory TV show, but don’t actually follow the interests of its star characters. While there have been an increase in the number fanatic fanboys and girls, it seems to me that a lot of people just like the idea of being a geek…and there’s nothing wrong with that.

Again, there’s no rocket science (Hope Sheldon isn’t reading; Lol.) to the notion that comic books, video games, cartoons, and so much more have influenced my writing, but there’s so much more to my geekdom than fandom. If there’s no academic or intellectual processing involved to piggy back your fandom, well then, you’re just a dork and probably better off in the long run…

Now don’t get all wound up, remember “geek” and “dork” are positive terms now. Some of my best friends are dorks, even my husband; he doesn’t over think his fandom. I’m no super genius, but I have a love for science and an average to above average intellect that I use to over analyze things. My husband and I share our fandom and we love each other for it. I’m his geek and he’s my dork.

The whole point of this notion of geek vs dork is that while I’m influence by my world of fandom, I’ve also done my research. Facts make fiction more believable. Without a foundation in truth, as a writer, I wouldn’t be able to effectively bend the truth to expand my stories. With the Eternal Curse Series, I have researched fact, fiction, doctrine, mythology, opinion, and more. I am a geek and I do my homework.

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like it let me know and share it with others. See you next time, Toi Thomas. #thetoiboxofwords