Mad About Gatsby

I first read The Great Gatsby as a college freshman, deciding I should be prepared for when an English professor inevitably assigned it. Honestly, I don't remember exactly what drew me in, but I've become smitten with those fast tragic jazz age books.

So imagine my delight this week over two major Gatsby developments.

PART ONE: Computer game.


That's right. It's found at www.greatgatsbygame.com.

You are Nick Carraway, searching mansions and gardens for the Great Gatsby:

Power up! After finding a ritzy yellow hat, Nick becomes a classy man with a mission: destroy the martini-toting butlers. He does this by chucking a boomerang (not pictured) at them. Because we all know that social-climbers don't fight with their hands.

To provide some storyline, we get a lonely glance at Jay Gatsby, always looking for that green light.


Fortunately, I don't spend more than five minutes on the site because it's not terribly interesting. Plus, the third level is just a pair of floating eyes that shoot laser beams. My boomerang is useless against it, so I just run around until boredom sets in.

Or until I die.
PART TWO: Movie.

Oh yes. Oh yes. There are so many reasons to be excited about the 2012 feature. Most importantly, Baz Luhrmann is directing. If you're not familiar with the gentleman, he wrote and directed Strictly Ballroom, Romeo + Juliet, Moulin Rouge, and Australia. I haven't seen the last film, but Luhrmann's overall style is fantastically vivid.

Plus, Leonardo DiCaprio will star as Jay Gatsby, Tobey Maguire is Nick Carraway, and Carrie Mulligan won the coveted role of Daisy Buchanan.

I'm so excited.

Possible downside: 3-D. I'm not a fan.

Harford 3C...In Your Dreams

I dreamt last night that ALL of my Englishy suitemates from sophomore year were together in the same...hallway. I think there was no space for us in the main room, so we girls set up lawn chairs in a nearby hallway. We were going to watch a drama production at the beach, which doubled as Alexis & Aubrey's apartment. Corey was there too, helping the two drama majors in filming a television broadcast of the show.

Plus, I rebuked a rude woman in French.

Good dream.

In fact, it was a much better dream than a few nights ago, when I was trying to find a Plan-B pill. The school nurse with shaking hands said she could jab a giant needle down my back or I could wait ten days for someone else to help. I thought needles and waiting periods defeated the purpose of the "Day After pill."

So, yeah, H3C for the win! Miss you guys.

Acceptance.

Although I still occasionally mope about not having a real money-maker of a job (stop that! No more of it. Move on.), I really like writing part-time for the local newspaper. As a regular at editorial meetings, I'm getting to know the other reporters and take on new types of articles (town meeting, school prayer lawsuit, murder trial, etc.).

My official position as freelancer was to pick up stories other writers couldn't cover. But I appreciate my editor's efforts to make me part of the team. I went to the office Christmas party and was invited to an important local luncheon with the editorial staff. I often feel like one of them, only with fewer articles.

And then yesterday, the editor assigned me a new project: an enterprise story.

"You ready?" he said.

"I think so."

An enterprise piece is an in-depth, three-part article. Our paper recently investigated a huge highway project (and possible scandal, which has since been halted since publication). Another enterprise piece just began on prescription drug abuse.

The writer begins with long-term research and a thousand interviews. How do you finish? At some point in the process, I was told, you just decide to stop writing.

I'm writing the elusive real-world thesis. My subject will be volunteer fire departments.

VFDs (an important subject in A Series of Unfortunate Events) are a huge part of the culture here. All of the local stations are entirely volunteer-based and non-competitive. I'll examine the funding, partnerships, people - whatever comes to light.

I'm kind of excited.