The Green Light

It's hot. The sun took its sweet time to reveal its full strength, but now it has come roaring into New York in late May. I like the warm weather, but it's harder to be outside for fear of heat stroke. Nevertheless, I'm glad summer is creeping up on us. Everyone seems to be a bit more glowy with their short shorts, light dresses, and flip flops (even with sweat glistening on their faces).

This past weekend, I went to see The Great Gatsby with my mom. I first read the book April of my senior year for my AP English class. I remember enjoying it, but also feeling quite troubled by its last lines.

Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgastic future that year by year recedes before us. It eluded us then, but that’s no matter — to-morrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther. . . . And one fine morning ——

So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.

Don't we all have a green light that we strive towards? Whether it's someone we dream to be or someone we love or something we dream of having, we're all working towards something just on the horizon. But these lines suggest that no matter how hard we work, everyday we get farther and farther away from what we want. I still don't know what to make of that idea. Is it really true? I remember getting chills when Tobey Maguire, as Nick Carraway, reads these lines as Leonardo Di Caprio's Gatsby reaches for that green light. Quite a poignant moment.

I thought that the movie was done incredibly well. The cinematography was amazing. Gatsby's house was breathtaking, the 1920's fashion was fun and flirty, and the parties were out of this world. The kids of today truly have no idea what a great party looks like. I also thought the actors did a great job of showing the emotions of each character. I was pleasantly surprised by the quiet power of Maguire as Nick. He let Gatsby be the star of the film, but he was his greatest supporter and ultimately his only friend. Leo was fabulous as Gatsby. I think that's no surprise to anyone who's familiar with his work. He was beautiful and sad and cool. This man needs to get an Oscar already! What is the Academy waiting for?! There is nothing that he can't do. And he's named after my favorite artist (da Vinci), which makes him even cooler in my eyes.

On Wednesday, I decided to walk 40 blocks down 2nd Avenue for no apparent reason. I love long walks, but this one was killer because I was wearing flats, it was hot, and I was carrying a heavy bag. However, I chose to ignore all of these discomforts and just observe what was around me. I find that this is the best way of getting to know any city. Just pick a random avenue and walk for as long as you can. Look around you, the stores, the restaurants, the office buildings, the residences, and most importantly the people. I guarantee that you will a lot of interesting/random things.

Today, I visited my old high school. I hadn't been back since last June so it was so nice to see everyone. I love how it still smells exactly the same! haha. If I closed my eyes while walking down the hallways, I would have felt exactly like I was senior again. My old calc teacher thinks I can still blend in with the high school kids, and I think I can, but I definitely don't feel like one of those kids anymore. Too much has happened in the last two years. I spent much of my adolescence in those hallways, looking and feeling like those kids. Frustrated by exams and weird teachers and overprotective parents and unrequited infatuations. All that good stuff. It's stuff that I still have to deal with, but it's different now. I like to think I handle it all a bit better.

I was talking to the woman I monitored (monitoring is sort of like volunteering in a school office) for during my last two years of high school. She's one of the biggest reasons why I go back to visit that school. Working in that office and being around her and the rest of the staff there really made a huge impact on me. That was my home away from home. It's so important to have that person or that place you can go to, where you know they'll welcome you. At the end of the day, that's the kind of stuff I remember from high school. Not the day to day drudgery (haha), but the people I met, the memories I created. That is what's important.

Oh, and on a random note, I started to read Inferno, and it's awesome so far!

S.

Lately, I've been going back and forth between "Song of the Week" and "Quote of the Week". I'll try to be more consistent with that. haha.

I love this song. It's the best song on The Great Gatsby soundtrack.

Song of the Week

I've seen the world, lit it up as my stage now
Channeling angels in, the new age now
Hot summer days, rock and roll
The way you'd play for me at your show
And all the ways I got to know
Your pretty face and electric soul

Will you still love me when I'm no longer young and beautiful
Will you still love me when I got nothing but my aching soul
I know you will, I know you will
I know that you will
Will you still love me when I'm no longer beautiful

Dear lord when I get to heaven
Please let me bring my man
When he comes tell me that you'll let him
Father tell me if you can

Oh that grace, oh that body
Oh that face makes me wanna party
He's my sun, he makes me shine like diamonds

~ "Young and Beautiful" by Lana Del Rey