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Blog #2

A body is broken

By what all men are eventually broken by, Death.

Death caused by pain

by suffering and by war

War leaves bruises and scars

It physically burdens the body

Pain and suffering leave bruises and scars as well

Ones that stay with you forever

These are the real burdens in life

The brokenness no one knows about

Until the body faces it’s final burden

That is when a man’s burdens are exposed or trapped inside forever

Death is the final burden of man

and somehow the liberator of the broken body.

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Movie Part of Blog #1

Dukhtar by Afia Nathaniel is the foreign language film I chose to watch. The film takes place in Saudi Arabia and portrays the uncivilized and subpar living conditions of the country. This movie also brings to attention other severe problems. Saudi Arabia is behind in so many things. Some of the most obvious and called out are the lack of safety, women’s rights, and government control.

Two tribal leaders who have been in war for years, decide to make peace by wedding one of their daughters to the other. The daughter is only ten and is given no say in the matter. This marriage, along with the constant repetition of women showing their fear of men through various circumstances, conveys just how few rights women have in the middle east. The mother of the child that was to be wed, kidnaps her and flees across the country to avoid this premature marriage. They face robbers and murderers along their journey, mostly by the rival tribe hunting them down. These tribes are what really run the country due to the lack of government enforcement.

Saudi Arabia is portrayed has being behind in technology, innovation, economically, and socially compared to the Western World. The one positive idea or image portrayed in the film, is the courage and strength of women represented by the mother protecting her child. She defies the tribes, her husband, the male criticism, and death until the very end when she unfortunately is shot by a man from the rival tribe and passes.

While the film showcases how behind in the times the middle east is, the film itself is a fresh look on women empowerment for the country. A fresh look in the sense that women empowerment is a new idea for people in the Middle East. Furthermore, the fact that a Saudi Arabian director made the a film and called attention to the negative treatment women receive in Saudi Arabia is a big change from the centuries before.

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Dinner Part of Blog#1

Luciana’s Mexican Grill is an authentic Mexican restaurant with a Texas twist. (aka the best state ever) However, the food recipe I specifically want to talk about is cheese quesadillas.

Being from Texas, I obviously have had Mexican food before. However, I actually had never tried quesadillas before. Typically, I order fajitas or enchiladas. All my friends order quesadillas and love them, so when I was assigned this project, I knew exactly which food dish to choose. I was actually surprised to see how different and yet similar quesadillas are to fajitas and enchiladas. The taste is very different between all of them, however, all three recipes have the same two main ingredients. These two main ingredients are cheese and tortillas.

There are also different types of quesadillas that are offered at Luciana’s Mexican Grill. The different types include cheese, cheese and chicken, cheese and beef, cheese and shrimp, and then the option of combining two of them together or all three of them together. The authentic dish is just with queso, or cheese. It’s made in a soft tortilla and the queso is cooked inside of the tortilla. The inside of the quesadillas is very creamy. They are baked and served hot!

Quesadillas are perfect for the Hispanic lifestyle due to their convivence of creation, reasonably priced ingredients, and the availability of the ingredients needed to make the dish. Furthermore, it is a favorite by people from all different nationalities. I can attest to this as well. After trying quesadillas at Luciana’s, they are now my go-to order at any Mexican restaurant I dine at!

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Blog #3

The Little Hours is one of the funniest movies I’ve ever seen. It’s also one of the lowest rated movies I’ve ever seen. I can’t think of a better movie to fit the description of a “really good bad movie” than The Little Hours. The plot, humor, and characters are criticized for their randomness and lack of structure in the plot. It’s also criticized for being unnecessarily raunchy.

However, I think the best things about the film are its random nature and the inappropriate actions of the nuns in the film. I also like how the setting is in a nunnery during 1300′s in the countryside of Italy, yet the actors talk and act as if they were in a setting of the current time period. This contrast also adds to the humor of the film in my opinion. Nuns cursing at and abusing people, practicing witchcraft, and stealing are just a few of the abnormal occurrences that make the movie so much more enjoyable.

I have several favorite quotes from The Little Hours. Some include, “That’s the longest list I’ve ever had: apostasy, abusive language, heresy, revelingness, eating blood. Do you think I’ve ever written down ‘eating blood’ before? Where am I?”, These are sins: filthy conversation, lustfulness, homosexuality… Did you roll your eyes?... No. “You’re rolling your eyes!”, and “I think I like lesbian sex more. Maybe it’s because I’m a Jew. I’ve never told anyone that before. Don’t tell anyone that” are just a few of the quotes in the film that really make me laugh.

My only complaint is that there is a lot of unnecessary and I’d say excessive nudity. Other than that though, it is probably one of my favorite films solely based on the weirdness of it all. It is so different than any other movie I’ve ever seen and that is one of the biggest reasons as to why I like it so much. You never know what crazy thing is about to happen next.