All posts by HPSH Plaid Line

Movies/TV/Theaters

A review of ‘Brothers’

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By: Hayden Fitzsimons

‘Brothers’ is a 2009 film, by Jim Sheridan, starring Tobey Maguire, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Natalie Portman. ‘Brothers,’ as one may suspect, is a film about brothers Sam and Tommy played by Maguire and Gyllenhaal respectively. Sam is a respected marine returning to duty, whereas Tommy was just released from prison after serving for a robbery. In Sam’s absence, Tommy steps in to take care of Sam’s wife Grace, played by Natalie Portman, as well as their two daughters.

The film follows the arcs of all three characters, as both Tommy and Sam change drastically over the course of the film, almost in polar opposite directions.

Sam’s helicopter crashes whilst in Afghanistan, and he is presumed dead. This causes great unrest within the family, greater than there already was. However, Sam survives and is captured by the enemy.

Sam goes through severe hardships while captured, and it changes him nearly completely.

Meanwhile, Tommy and Sam’s family are getting far closer, and everything seems to be going well despite their belief of Sam’s passing.

To go further would likely spoil the film, so I’ll simply state that from here, the emotional turmoil is heightened even further.

Simply put, ‘Brothers’ is deeply emotional, as it follows the cruel effects of war and also the difficulty of family. Nearly every character in this film has their own unique arc which develops them into something they largely weren’t at the start. This heartbreaking writing is one of the film’s strongpoints.

Out of anything in the movie, dialogue, and the way that it is delivered, shines above. For the most part, it’s much of what the film has to offer.

Gyllenhaal and Maguire both deliver far above expectations even if they are both already known for their tear-jerking performances. Both actors complement each other perfectly and are able to bring out the best in one another in addition to Portman’s excellent performance. These performances are awe-inspiring and are the main focus of the film. This leads to the film feeling very natural, realistic, and touching.

However, while the writing and performances are top notch the rest of the film lags behind. Cinematography, score, and most other elements of film, apart from the two previously mentioned, are incredibly bland and/or lacking. The thing is, most viewers will not have a large problem with this, and the film does well enough solely through the acting’s power. Due to this imbalance ‘Brothers’ delivers on its intentions, however it feels held back. It’s almost as if there was much more to this film that wasn’t fleshed out and was simply glossed over.

In all, ‘Brothers’ is quite the good film with some legendary performances and with a riveting and stirring story. ‘Brothers’ reaches the point it most likely intended and would leave most, including myself, both satisfied with the film and emotionally affected.

For those more acquainted with film, ‘Brothers’ has much of the same effect, but is slightly disappointing as it just barely misses out at being an incredible film and has to unfortunately suffice with being a really good film, which most filmmakers would be more than happy to achieve.

World

North Sentinel Island

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By: Jalalaisa Geleto

North Sentinel Island is an island off the south east coast of India. Even though it is close to India, the inhabitants of the island have been isolated from the outside world for 60,000 years.

They have been visited by multiple people in the modern era, but most attempts end in failure. The people of North Sentinel Island the “Sentinelese” hate foreigners and have attempted to kill any foreigners within their arrows range of the island.

Many times the Sentinelese succeed in killing those who visit them.

People believe the reason they are so violent towards foreigners is because of what happened the first time they contacted outsiders. In 1856, the British visited the island and kidnapped two Sentinelese. They decorated the Sentinelese with fancy clothing and gifted riches to them. They did this to convince the two Sentinelese to hand them over the island.

There were problems with this. The Sentinelese were extremely primitive and they don’t have immune systems that can deal with outside diseases. So, when the British returned to Sentinelese, they died immediately from disease. Ever since that first encounter, the Sentinelese seemed to have a burning hatred for all outsiders.

The Senetinelese are a mysterious people because of their xenophobia. We don’t know their language, culture, population, food supply. The little we do know is that they might have forgotten how to start fires. It seems like they wait for lightning to strike some wood, then they try to keep the flame going for as long as possible.

Their population is a mystery. There could be 20 – 400 Sentinelese on that island. They are a very rare special group of people so they are under the official protection of the Indian government.

A group of people who are from a distant past is quite remarkable and hopefully we can learn more about these strange and ancient peoples.

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Advice/How To

Tips for meditation

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By: Joxery Mezen Camacho

Meditation is one of many ways that people are able to relieve stress. Daily meditation helps lead to a clear and energized mind. So, here are a few tips to help you get the most out of meditating! 

Be open-minded.

When you go into meditation, it may take a while for you to find what works for you. There are different types of meditation, with different types of positioning, or sometimes even movements. Try to stick with what makes you comfortable. 

Be patient. 

One of the hardest things to do is to stay patient. It may take time for you to truly begin to feel as though you’re benefiting from meditation. This is normal, and expected, because you can’t always get everything perfect from the get go. 

Slowly ease into it.

In order to get the best out of your meditation session, try to slowly relax into it. This will raise relaxation and allow you to focus better as you meditate. You can try to relax into it by taking a few deep breaths to wind down your body. This will cause your body to feel safe, secure, and ready for meditation! 

Limit your movements.

As you are meditating, try not to move too much. Moving may be distracting and can take away from your experience. If it’s your position that is making you restless, you can try readjusting it and get comfortable. But make sure not to let your position become too much of a distraction! 

Acknowledge thoughts and feelings.

Meditating can help you get a good grasp on, and better understand, your thoughts and emotions. So, when you’re meditating you can acknowledge that you are having these thoughts and then try to bring your focus back to your breathing. 

Ease back into your day. 

At the end of your meditation, try to slowly get back to your day. Slowly begin with moving your fingers, toes, and then your hands and feet until you’re able to get up and move about. Easing back into your day will help you feel better throughout the day. 

Lacrosse

The face off position in lacrosse

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By: Jimmy Somerville

I’m here to tell you about the sport of lacrosse; specifically, the face off in lacrosse.

The face off is basically a battle for possession of the ball, where you and your opponent line up at the midline, and place your sticks on the line. The ball is then placed in between the heads of your sticks (the head is the part of your stick where you catch and throw so the end of it).

Once the ball is set, the ref gives the cadence of “down, set, whistle.” On the whistle, you and your opponent, as quickly as possible, attempt to clamp the ball – this means to push your stick (more specifically, the head of your stick) over the ball as fast as you can.

If you get the clamp, you then pop the ball out of your stick into your stick again. If you are able to do that successfully, that means you won the face off and you got possession of the ball for you and your team.

The face off happens at the beginning of every quarter, and after every goal, so it happens quite often.

Possession in lacrosse is relatively hard to get, so the face off is very important, as having possession leads to scoring goals.

I take the face offs for my lacrosse team and I FOGO (face off get off), which means that after the face off, I get off the field.

I enjoy these competitive 1 vs. 1s for the ball, as it’s a test of quickness, hand speed, athleticism and determination.

A FOGO is nowadays almost always a position on high school lacrosse teams, college lacrosse teams and pro teams. It is a very unique and interesting position that is also very fun and competitive. I hope to earn a scholarship for lacrosse being a FOGO.

National

How did Joe Biden win the 2020 election?

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By: Grace Blumer-Lamotte

According to the Associated Press, Joe Biden won the 2020 election on November 7th, 2020. Biden won the most electoral votes against Donald Trump. Biden ended up with 290 votes and Trump ended up with 232 votes. It was a head to head race against the two. Many people admitted to it being the most “anxiety-inducing” election because it was so closely matched.

The election was very close up until the last day when Biden took the lead. Biden didn’t win the most states but he won the most electoral votes, by 58 votes.

Biden had also flipped a couple of states such as Pennsylvania and Michigan. He stayed stable in Minnesota, Nevada, and New Hampshire. The states that he lost were Florida and Iowa. Trump won North Carolina, Alaska, and Texas. 

Everyone keeps asking the question, “How did Joe Biden win the 2020 election?”

He did it by constantly campaigning with his vice-president, Kamala Harris. Having a woman as a vice-president can either benefit you, or hurt you. In this case, many people liked having a woman, especially a woman of color, in a government leadership position.

Another advantage Biden had in the election was addressing people’s concern about certain topics. The topics that he addressed were climate change and the BLM movement. 

One of the biggest reasons that Joe Biden won was because he gained votes in metropolitan areas, mainly the suburbs. According to ‘The Guardian,’ “Of the 436 large metropolitan counties, 71% saw increased support for Biden in this election compared to 2016.” Biden has also made many gains in college-educated areas.

Advice/How To

The law of attraction and manifestation

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By: Anna Hisle & Lizzy Woxland

What is the LOA/Manifestation?

According to Psychology Today,’ The law of attraction (LOA) is the belief that the universe creates and gives you what your thoughts are focused on, or what matches your energy/vibration levels.

Everything in this world has atoms that are vibrating and producing energy.

That being said, we ourselves are vibrating and putting out energy as well. The higher your vibration/energy level is, the happier you’ll feel. If you’re feeling more down/sad, your vibration and energy levels would be lower.

It is said that “like attracts like.” Positive thoughts result in positive consequences, but negative thoughts result in negative consequences.

Basically, you attract what you feel. You are going to attract events, circumstances or things that align with your energy levels. Therefore, if you are feeling super happy and you feel like things are going super well that means that you are vibrating at a high energy level and are most likely attracting positive things at that higher energy level. And vice versa, if you are feeling really sad or angry, your vibrations will be moving slower and more negative things will be attracted.

If something or someone makes you happy, you’ll want to focus on that energy and surround yourself with it because it will raise your vibrations which will lead you to attract more and more positive things.

The law of attraction is always going. Even though you might not realize it, your smallest thoughts are attracting things.

How to practice manifestation

You practice the LOA through manifestation. Manifesting is what lets you achieve your goals/thoughts. When you manifest something, you are attracting it to you.

Manifesting is turning your thoughts into real life.

– Journaling

One of the main ways to attract things into your life is by journaling.

By writing down your thoughts and feelings, you release good energy and attract good things. Not only is journaling healthy for the mind but also helps uplift your mood and raise your vibration.

Also, by writing things down you are putting them out into the universe. By putting thoughts into the universe, you will receive back what you sent out.

Some great ways to start journaling is by creating a routine. Maybe you journal in the morning when you wake up, or before bed at night. Just create a routine that works for you and it will be much easier.

Some journaling exercises to make yourself feel more positive are writing things you’re grateful for, your affirmations, or even just writing your thoughts.

– Affirmations

An affirmation is a statement where you declare something to be true. When said in the present, saying positive, uplifting statements into your subconscious mind will make you feel empowered.

By repeating these affirmations everyday or as a routine, you will eventually attract what you want.

– Visualize

Another great way to manifest something into your life is simply by visualizing it. Think of what you want to attract, close your eyes and imagine it like it is happening right at that moment. You’ll want to focus on your emotions and let them take over you.

By focusing on your emotions and focusing on how you’re feeling, you are putting a signal out into the universe. The signal saying that you already have what you want will actually attract it.

– Meditation

When you meditate, you take time to focus on yourself and your thoughts. This raises your vibration. Meditating helps you visualize and have your vibration align with the vibration of your goals.

If you’re not sure where to start, there are many guided meditation videos on youtube, and apps that you can use.

– Be positive

Speaking to yourself positively and having a positive mindset not only makes you feel better, but also releases a positive energy and vibration out into the universe. This leads to others attracting your positive energy.

Having a positive mindset will make you, as well as your peers, more positive. This will not only allow you to attract good things but also the people you surround yourself with.

There are so many resources to help you get started with manifesting. You could go on Youtube, find books to read, go on Pinterest, and so many other websites. Most of all, have fun with it!

There’s no wrong way to manifest. Just be casual. Overthinking, or thinking about your desires 24/7, will delay them. Don’t overfocus.

Examples of how its worked for others

Celebrities who use the law of attraction:

A lot of celebrities have recently become verbal about their success stories with the law of attraction. One of the most well known, and prominent, celebrity that talks about the law of attraction is Oprah Winfrey.

Oprah openly talks about how she believes she has attracted many things she’s wanted into her life. She also more specifically believes that it was her using the law of attraction that got her, her very first film role. Oprah said in an interview, “We create our own circumstances by the choices that we make and the choices that we make are fueled by our thoughts.”

Another celebrity who advocates for the law of attraction is Jay-Z. He says he focuses on the law of attraction a lot when he talks about his future in his lyrics. This is actually very common in songwriters, specifically rappers.

A lot of rappers will talk about their future saying that they’ll become famous and have a ton of money with the intention that the universe will give back those positive vibrations. Jay-Z is very vocal about the law of attraction and states how, it changed his entire life and he strongly believes you create your own luck.

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Getting To Know/History

From Thanksgiving to the Indian Removal Act

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By: Caden Ligman

Years before the first Pilgrims landed in the Americas, the continent was inhabited by Native Americans. When they did eventually come, the Pilgrims started to colonize America. The Native Americans responded to them in various ways. One of these ways was feasting with the Pilgrims, on an autumn day, in 1621. This day is now a national holiday in the U.S. known as Thanksgiving. It is where we celebrate this peaceful interaction between the two parties.

As the Pilgrims continued to colonize North America, tensions between the Native Americans and the colonists grew. The colonists grew hostile and battles broke out around the country. Less than a year after the first Thanksgiving, the Powhatan tribe attacked colonists in Virginia.

This attack is what has come to be known as the Jamestown Massacre. The Powhatan killed 347 of the colonists. This massacre was the first of many conflicts between the colonists and Native Americans. Local governments began to take advantage of the Native Americans, stealing their land and killing tens, of thousands, of their people.

After the U.S. became a country in 1776, elected presidents began to further terrorize the Native Americans. When Andrew Jackson was elected in 1826 he began his campaign to relocate Native Americans away from the colonies.

Jackson introduced the Indian Removal Act in May, 1830. The act gave the president the ability to negotiate with the Native American tribes to relocate them from their land east of the Mississippi in exchange for new land west of the Mississippi. A few tribes complied with these negotiations and moved west, however, the Five Civilized Tribes (Chickasaw, Choctaw, Seminole, Cherokee and Creek) were not as compliant and refused to relocate. The U.S. responded to this by using force to remove them.

Today, the Indian Removal Act is seen as a prime example of how horribly Native Americans were treated.

We celebrate Thanksgiving each year with family and friends. Thanksgiving is a holiday where people appreciate the ones who are close to them and give thanks to the ones they love.

The first Thanksgiving marked the beginning of the relationship between the Pilgrims and the Native Americans. This relationship however, did not stand the test of time, and sadly, turned hostile, eventually leading to the Indian Removal Act and much more.

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Movies/TV/Theaters

‘I’m Thinking of Ending Things’ is weird

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By: Hayden Fitzsimons

‘I’m Thinking of Ending Things’ is Charlie Kaufman’s latest directorial, as well as written, work, and it is, as the title suggests, weird. This is to be expected with Kaufman’s work, as the weird, dream-like, and ethereal style of his writing often becomes a main figure in his films.

This film however is particularly odd, even for a Kaufman film.

The dialogue, as usual, is masterfully written, yet almost feels as if it is a one-sided jumbled mess of thoughts, and it is intentionally done so. The cinematography is equally as odd and off putting, and yet in it’s own way strangely inviting and familiar. Once again, both of these are staples of Kaufman’s work.

‘I’m Thinking of Ending Things’ revolves around the relationship between Jake, played by Jesse Plemons, and Lucy, played by Jessie Buckley. Specifically, it focuses more so on Lucy’s thought of ending the relationship. However, there is clearly a connection between her and Jake, and so she is having difficulty ending the relationship.

The film takes place on a road trip through a blizzard to Jake’s childhood home to visit his parents. However, once they get there things become extremely unsettling and it seems as if multiple timelines are merging together. From here, the film continues to spiral and spiral into delusion until the viewer is ultimately left extremely confused and most likely also very pleased with the film.

The film is an extremely slow burn, once again, intentionally so. ‘I’m Thinking of Ending Things’ lasts just over two hours, however, it feels as if it is four hours or longer. Normally, this would be detrimental to a film, however, in this film’s case it is the highest of compliments.

The world which Kaufman creates is so engrossing and atmospheric that it essentially doubles the length, complexity, and enjoyment of the film simply due to how mind-boggling it is. The length, or at least the perception of the length, could turn some people away from this film which I completely understand.

In addition to this, the film is extremely confusing from start to finish and after finishing the film, if any film were to require a second viewing, this would be the film. This confusion and practically necessary second viewing most likely will deter most viewers from ‘I’m Thinking of Ending Things.’ This is an unfortunate issue which plagues many of Kaufman’s films as they are all deeply cerebral and often require deep thought into even the most basic of elements.

I highly recommend this film despite how hard it may be to consume for the average viewer. However, if you are looking to expand your tastes and your perspective on life and media, you will find a deeply emotional and atmospheric tale of regret, aging, time, and consumption as a society in ‘I’m Thinking of Ending Things’ which will likely have a profound effect on your life in some way or another.

Since ‘I’m Thinking of Ending Things’ is a Netflix production, it’s likely readily available for your consumption, so please give it a shot.

Getting To Know/History

Lucid dreaming

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By: Grace Helmke

Dreams are where our subconscious creates fantastical and terrifying visions of life. We run away from monsters in slow motion, fall from ledges, and jolt ourselves awake. We soar above jungles, run through glowing forests, and walk on water.

But what if dreams could become more than a subconscious vision in a state of sleep? There has long been speculation that some individuals have the ability to “lucid dream,” or become conscious within their sleeping state. 

This subject has captivated individuals as far back as 3000 BC. In ancient Egypt, they depicted three bodies: one of the corpse body (shat), one of the living body (ka), and one of the soul (ba).

In Egytian hieroglyphics, ba is generally portrayed as a bird with a human head. A famous image of a man and his ba depicts a person laying in a bed with one eye open. The bed symbolizes sleep, while the eye means awake. Ba can be seen floating above the sleeping Egyptian, symbolizing an out-of-body experience.  Putting all of this together would translate to “sleep awakening.” This Egytian portrayal is known as one of the earliest depictions of lucid dreaming.

But the first to harness the ability to lucid dream were Tibetan monks. They taught the ability to control one’s dreams through yoga, which is a spiritual practice aimed towards enlightenment. They use techniques to maintain awareness while slipping into a state of sleep.

This method was said to be the passing on of enlightenment. Those that could lucid dream would communicate with enlightened beings, shift into the physical form of other creatures, and fly with beings of another world. They believed that awareness within a dream was the purest form of consciousness. 

The term “lucid dreaming” was developed in 1913 by a Dutch psychiatrist named Frederik van Eeden. He preached the idea that there were nine different types of dreams including: initial, pathological, ordinary, vivid, symbolic, dream-sensations, lucid, demon-dream, and dissociative. He is known for having recorded his own lucid dreaming experiences, including his thoughts and actions before, during, and after the dreams took place. He states, “In these lucid dreams the reintegration of the psychic functions is so complete that the sleeper remembers day-life and his own condition, reaches a state of perfect awareness, and is able to direct his attention, and to attempt different acts of free violation.” 

Today, we continue to study and attempt to decipher what it scientifically means to lucid dream. There have been some recent findings that will provide a basis for the research of awareness within sleep.

Lucid dreaming is a form of metacognition. In other words, you are aware of your own awareness.

While normal dreams can happen in any stage of sleep, it was discovered by British parapsychologist Keith Hearne in 1975, that lucid dreaming tends to happen in REM sleep. The state of REM, or rapid eye movement, is the last stage in the sleep cycle. All other stages are considered non-REM stages.

Some studies have found that the prefrontal cortex, which is the section of the brain that’s responsible for, is connected to lucid dreaming. While most physicalities of a person do not factor into the likelihood of lucid dreaming, it was found that the prefrontal cortex is bigger in those that can lucid dream. In addition, activity in the prefrontal cortex is comparable to levels when a person is awake. 

Lucid dreaming has occurred all over the world for centuries. This fascination with the unusual, and relatively unexplained state, continues to drive individuals to study and gain more knowledge of what causes us to control our own dreams. 

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Science/Nature

Rare phobias

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By: Joxery Mezen Camacho

Phobias are one of the most common mental disorders in the world. According to ‘Medical News Today’, phobias are specifically known as a type of anxiety disorder. Most of us know the common phobias such as arachnophobia (fear of spiders) and acrophobia (fear of heights), but there are some phobias that are rare and many do not know. 

Turophobia: 

The first rare phobia is Turophobia: the fear of cheese.

People with this phobia tend to steer clear of having to see, taste, or smell cheese. They also avoid the cheese aisles at grocery stores, or stores that only sell cheese. Those with Turophobia begin to get sweaty or have panic attacks when they’re near cheese. 

Catoptrophobia (or Eisoptrophobia):

This phobia is the fear of mirrors.

People with this phobia try to steer away from mirrors and other objects that have reflecting surfaces. It is believed that people who have this phobia are superstitious or religious and that it’s sometimes connected to witchcraft. This can also be tied into the idea that mirrors can work as portals for ghosts, spirits, and many other fear rising things. 

Chorophobia: 

This next phobia is the fear of dancing.

Those with this phobia attempt to keep away from places that involve dancing like clubs, parties, and studios. Many also can’t watch or be near others who are dancing. It’s believed that this fear stems from lack of confidence and social anxiety. 

Decidiophobia: 

This is the fear of making decisions, and is one of the rarer phobias listed.

People with this phobia steer towards superstitions or rituals in order to decide for them. They can do this through astrology, the flipping of a coin, or going to the universe and asking for signs. Many with this phobia don’t trust themselves enough which causes them to not be able to make a decision. 

Ancraophobia: 

This phobia is extremely rare and is the fear of wind.

Those with this phobia tend to avoid being near windows, hair and hand dryers, windmills, doors, and air vents. This fear relates to many other ideas that surround the idea of air such as swallowing wind and/or being blown away by strong waves of wind. It’s believed that this phobia is caused by a connection between wind and disasters such as hurricanes and tornadoes. 

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