Oodles of Odd's

Everyone has to overcome odds at some point in their life to move forward. In Stephanie Meyer's, Eclipse, the main characters overcome more than their share of odds. First of all, Edward Cullen, the handsome vampire in love with a mortal, has to overcome the day by day battle not to succumb to his instinct temptations and suck his girlfriends blood. The two cannot kiss, hug, or even be in close proximity to each other without the risk of Edward losing control. Another issue the two have to constantly overcome is their differing opinions on the issue of Bella transforming into a vampire and also her friendship with Jacob, a young werewolf. Edward, on one hand, cannot stand the thought of separating Bella from her soul just so that he can live forever with her, and he also disapproves of her intermingling with his born enemy, the werewolf clan. He believes that Bella is in danger every second she spends with her werewolf friends because they have very little control over where and when they transform into ferocious monsters capable of killing almost anything. However, in truth it is almost the same amount of risk for Bella to be spending time around blood thirsty vampires, than a clan of uncontrolled werewolves.

Caught Up in Love

The topic of love it one found in every word of every line of every paragraph of every page in the Twilight novel series by Stephanie Meyer. I am currently reading the third installment in the series called Eclipse. Eclipse thus far has revolved around Bella the human and Edward, the vampire's, undying love for one another. One unforgettable moment of Love in this book is when Edward refuses to allow Bella to transform herself into a vampire like himself, even though it would mean an eternity of immortal love together, due to the fact that he believes she would lose her soul. The two characters are torn because they both want nothing more than to be with each other and for the other to be happy. Bella on one hand insists that she desires to turn into a vampire, whatever the cost, so that she can live forever with Edward. Edward, however, is not so keen on the idea because he cannot bear the idea of his beloved Bella being put through such pain and losing all of her family for his sake. The two lovebirds are so caught up in what they want for each other they barely make room for what they want for themselves.

Attack

While reading Eclipse, by Stephanie Meyer, yesterday the book took an interesting turn for the worse. It has been revealed that the characters are about to enter a war. There have been multiple attacks in Forks, all the believed cause of a several "newborn", or recently transformed, vampires. These vampires are notorious for wreaking havoc and being more powerful and less predictable than fully developed vampires. The Cullens, Forks friendly family of "vegetarian" vampires, is bent on putting a stop to this. The Cullen's are now being forced to assemble an army of sorts so that they have some chance at beating the irrational newborns. Bella, Edwards one true love, realizes that it would be beneficial to the Cullen's cause if she were to transform into a vampire early so that she could help fight off the enemy. However, obviously Edward is not willing to risk his beloved Bella to some dangerous vampire warfare, so as of now Bella's staying human. Vampire war... commence.

Colonies at Risk

In the midst of reading Stephanie Meyers, Eclipse, I came across a passage about colonization. Not colonization familiar in any way to us, but vampire colonization. Hundreds of years ago, vampires ran wild, ravaging the countryside. They were most populous in the Southern U.S. and fought over territory (inhabited by humans ) as if humans didn't exist, or more as though they were livestock. The Vampires began to build up colonies in this area, to brand the territory as their own, as well as the people who lived on it. The Vampire colonization of the South had many similarities and differences to colonization we have seen taking place in the real world. One thing the Vampire colonization has in common with the European colonization of Africa and India, is that the dominating party showed no concern for the people they affected and took control of. One difference they have is that the Vampires colonized the humans without, for the most part, them even knowing, however when the Europeans colonized Africa, everyone was aware of their presence.

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Economy on the Rocks

This afternoon I read an article in the New York Times website titled  World Bank Says Global Economy will Shrink in '09 by Edmund L. Andrews.  This was a very intriguing article which discussed multiple issues.  One being that the decreasing rates of exports of developing countries are hurting the countries general well being and its primary cause is the banks.  Robert BZoellick, the president of the World Bank, wants wealthy governments to set aside a percentage of what they spend, called a "vulnerability fund".  This would be used to help lend a helping hand to countries in need.  Finally Eastern Asian countries are feeling this blow the hardest because of their high demand of their cheap goods has declined.  This has impacted them so heavily in both a direct and indirect way because this was a very important source of income.  In conclusion as most of us are realizing now more than ever, the world is going through a tough time becauseof the failing world economy. 

Holiday in Vamp-Land

While reading Eclipse by Stephanie Meyer yesterday, I came across an interesting passage about a holiday. But this is no normal holiday it is a Vampire holiday. The celebration is based around the Vampires restoration of peace many years ago in the Southern U.S. and Mexico. In the early 19th century, vampires ran wild and free across the countryside, using humans only as cattle ripe for the taking. Vampires began to build up their own private "herds" of humans without the humans even noticing ( except for some frequent disappearances). And when competition between vampires over territory and humans got tough, a new method was created. Vampires began to create their own private armies of newborn vampires by biting selected humans and setting them out to ravage their enemies. But this frenzy didn't last long. Soon the ancient vampire family known as the Volturi intervened and set things straight. This resolution has been celebrated for years and years, and was introduced in the twilight books from the firsthand perspective of Jasper, Edward Cullens reclusive brother. Jasper was bitten by a recruiting vampire and placed in one of her armies, yet he lives to tell the tale many years later.

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Bend It Like Bollywood

Bollywood has been a reoccuring theme in my life recently. First Slum Dog Millionaire wins the oscar for best picture, then we watch Bride and Predjudice in class. This weekend I watched a Bollywood movie (produced in the U.K and the U.S.) called Bend It Like Beckham and I have decided to use this movie as a visual text for my blog. Bend It Like Beckham is a very modern day story about a young girl who is passionate about soccer even though her parents do not support her. It sticks to the traditional Bollywood themes of traditional Indian values clashing with modern culture, as well as the very Bollywood like portrayal of an Indian mother. In all Bollywood movies I've seen the Mother figure is always portrayed as a very pressuring figure who pushes marraige onto her children. Bend it like Beckham not only illustrates the key themes portrayed in Bollywood films but also is a good hearted story about a young girl following her dreams to become a professional soccer player and break tradition.