Speed Read This!

Earlier this week I was reading a book called The Art of Speed Reading People: How to Size People Up and Speak Their Language [amazon]. It's about the 16 personality types and explains how you can improve communication with someone after figuring out their type. I'm a sucker for relevant-to-real-life psychology (almost) as much as I am for relevant-to-real-life economics so I thought it would be interesting. After taking the test, I learned that I'm an introvert-intuitive-feeler-perceiver (INFP). The subsequent description fit astonishingly well. (I wondered if it was like astrology in the sense that all of the descriptions might fit. Nope. Color me impressed.) However, I also realized that, as an intuitive, I generally focus on the big picture and miss lots of small details. You know, the kinds of details that you have to pick up on to "speed read people." Wonderful.

In all seriousness, I never expected the book to be useful for anything more than entertainment. However, wouldn't it be nice if the book practiced what it preached? Should it not take steps to "speak my language" after it has "sized me up"?

Last Minute Gift Idea + Best Movies of the Year

My favorite movie of the year comes out on DVD this Tuesday. In the true spirit of the holidays, I've informed my family that someone *must* get it for me for Christmas.

The movie? Once [amazon]. Anyone who's the tiniest bit romantic should love this movie along with anyone who likes music similar to Damien Rice. It's hard to explain beyond that. It's a romantic musical but it's not a typical romance nor a typical musical. It's just a great story about two people meeting and developing a relationship. (Sort of in the documentary-style spirit of my favorite movie, Before Sunrise, but less romantic.) Very simple and realistic yet amazingly beautiful, along with great musical performances. (Bonus movie gift recommendation: Collector's Editions of Blade Runner come out on Tuesday in DVD, HD-DVD, and Blu-ray!)

This seems as good a place as any for a "Best of the year" list, so here's the cream of the crop for films this year. I chose to do a top 3 because no other films I've seen come very close to these picks.

1. Once
2. Away From Her
3. Enchanted

Once was a joy to watch and kept me thinking about it for weeks after seeing it. Away From Her, about a man dealing with the onset of Alzheimer's in his wife, is one of those difficult to watch movies that truly deserve to be watched. Lastly, we have Disney's Enchanted. This is a perfect "desert island movie" that you could watch over and over and never get bored. Amy Adams is funny and cute as the princess-to-be while James Marsden is surprisingly hilarious as the prince.

Two musicals on in my top 3 movies of the year? I'm surprised myself. I'm definitely not a fan of traditional musicals but these films show that the genre can be much more broad than we usually see. (By the way, my favorite pre-2007 musical is The Umbrellas of Cherbourg.)

Lastly, let me say that I have seen No Country for Old Men and it's not the best movie of the year despite what many others have said. It's interesting, for sure, but Stephen Hunter's review hits the nail on the head. It's an amazing display of skill but the joke's on us and it's not that funny.

From the Comments

Renee Denfeld, Who wrote this book, All God's Children, IS SEVERELY MISINFORMED!! Where the hell did you get your information? Did you make it up for a more interesting story? I am an original member of NGP and sickboys, (i was a sick chick) and the stuff you wrote in your book is so off that it makes my blood boil. You are putting out slanderous info about a very vulnerable and lost group of people. Shame on you. You should find a way to right your wrongs.

Hazel 5150

This comment was in response to my previous post on Denfeld's claim that increasing initiation costs increased the demand for street family affiliation. Just to be clear, the "you" is most certainly referring to Denfeld and not myself. It isn't surprising that her book [amazon] wasn't well received by the street family community. I also wouldn't be surprised if it contained inaccuracies. (Although it was pretty compelling for the most part and didn't seem to confuse speculation for facts all that much.) In any case, I've followed up with Hazel and will report back if I get a response.