I’ll keep this brief: it would be super cool of you to complete the survey below so I can better understand a few things: my readership, the current curated content, and how I can continue to build this community in the coming year. I do have some rough ideas as to the kinks I need to work out but your feedback would be greatly appreciated.
(Note: If you do decide to do this, I wouldn’t suggest you complete it in the WordPress Reader–I’m not sure data saves if you misclick outside the window–you’d have to start over.)
Top Ten Tuesday is an original weekly meme created by The Broke and the Bookish. I thought this would be a fun way to share a condensed version of potential rambles and thoughts that I have.
This Week’s Theme: Top Ten Books I Read In 2014
Initial Thoughts:
The theme this week was “Top Books Read in 2014” but I’m going to shift the focus a bit and highlight certain categories, like many award shows, and select a top contender for each. I’m sticking to books solely read in 2014. I’m going to be extremely cheesy and call it the Thinker Awards (so you can think about what you would award each category when you respond–but also because thinking is fun?).
I have also enlisted the help of some friends for their input as well (because I have clearly not read everything this list describes LOL). Thanks Jeffrey and Savindi for the assistance. I have marked their nominations with a star*.
Alternatives is the tagline feature for other forms of entertainment outside of discussing literature. These posts may encompass television, movies, games, and music with a randomized flavour of the moment approach to each post.
Alternatives Movies – Nightcrawler
Genre: Crime, Thriller, Drama Duration: 117 Minutes Directed & Written By: Dan Gilroy
"NIGHTCRAWLER is a pulse-pounding thriller set in the nocturnal underbelly of contemporary Los Angeles. Jake Gyllenhaal stars as Lou Bloom, a driven young man desperate for work who discovers the high-speed world of L.A. crime journalism. Finding a group of freelance camera crews who film crashes, fires, murder and other mayhem, Lou muscles into the cut-throat, dangerous realm of nightcrawling -- where each police siren wail equals a possible windfall and victims are converted into dollars and cents. Aided by Rene Russo as Nina, a veteran of the blood-sport that is local TV news, Lou thrives. In the breakneck, ceaseless search for footage, he becomes the star of his own story."
Nightcrawler—not to be confused with the Marvel mutant—gives a master class in shameless journalism that panders to fear mongering and is served with a side of ambitious, sociopathic enthusiasm of the everyday schmuckn. This is perhaps the superficial layer of the film and it works just fine. But the meaning is rooted in how Louis Bloom (Jake Gyllenhaal) treats himself as an enterprise. From discovering where his core values and interests lie to business modeling and analytics, every action reinforces Lou’s corporate mantra as he navigates the competitive landscape while maintaining and manipulating his relationships with only success in mind. It becomes incredibly fascinating (and a tad bit frightening) to witness Lou endorse the American dream; an aspect this film paradoxes so well of today’s culture of ambition. “If you want to win the lottery, you have to make the money to buy a ticket.” Logically sound, metaphorically resilient—Ayn Rand would surely endorse this film—and it is a meaning best understood post-viewing.
![[Miscellaneous] 2014 Book Blog Survey](https://thoughtsandafterthoughts.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/surveybanner2014final_featimg_1038x576-ver2.jpg?w=672&h=372&crop=1)
thoughts and afterthoughts. 