7.21.2011

How 'Midnight in Paris' Taught Me Why It's Good to Moderate Nostalgia

I saw Midnight in Paris the other day. It was fantastic!

It's as if a bunch of screenwriters came together and thought, "Ashley's going to watch this movie, let's make her eat this up!" And I did, I ate it up. I'm such a sucker for movies that are not only about traveling (with outstanding views of Paris and Versailles), but also about...dun dun dun...fantasy vs. reality.

I can't get away from this theme in my life!

There was a quote in the movie that went something like, "Nostalgia is just denial of the painful present."

Ouch! That struck a chord.

And then there was a point in the movie where Owen Wilson realizes that he's never happy where he is, cause he's always longing for somewhere else. And when he gets to that somewhere else, he longs yet again for another location.

Surely, I've posted about this enough on my blog, but I think it's good to remind myself often: I must moderate my day dreaming, wanderlusting, fantasizing ways just a little. Not completely, of course! But really, I can turn it down just a tad.

Sitting by the Rive Droite eating a pistachio eclair is not going to solve life's problems. Because, I love the saying, "Wherever you go, there you are." We cannot escape ourselves.

Love how I learn this crap all from a movie?

***

But because I only want to moderate nostalgia and not eliminate it, can I just show a few old pics from my 2009 trip? You have no choice!


Pic052
St. Germaine, how I love thee!
Pic087
One of the fantastic rivers ♥
Pic110
Hall of Mirrors, suckers!
st.germaine
Montmarte...where the artists and hippies hung out. I fit right in!
Pic040
Paris in a nutshell.

17 comments:

  1. But don't let the rivers run dry. Nostalgia is a strange thing, but it is much different than wanting greater things for your life.

    :)

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  2. That's true, my friend.

    I will say I'm good at going after "greater things" for my life...If I really get the urge to live overseas again, I'll do it!

    But I reminisce WAY too much throughout the day, and it always has to do with traveling. God, such an addcition. I just need to cool these engines and calm these jets on the nostalgia front.

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  3. Hi,

    I think I'm a sucker for dun dun dun..."fantasy vs. reality" too!

    You'd be surprise how much you can learn saying, "Hey, I do that!? Is that true?" from movies like, "You've Got Mail," What Women Want"and "When Harry Met." Guess the thought of "it-can-happens" is what I live for the most in life...

    Even though I don't like Owen Wilson at all, the message of the movie sounds pretty good. Nice pictures. I hope to visit Paris one day :)

    lettersinatreehouse.blogspot.com

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  4. * "When Harry Met Sally" P.S. I love the Meg Ryan of the 80's!

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  5. Tuedai-- I love your name!

    ...and I'm pretty sure movie makers loooove movie-goers like me. I actually take all of it in and sometimes make changes in my life based on movies :) haha. And I agree, Meg Ryan in the 80s and 90s was the best. I just watched Kate and Leopold last night :D

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  6. Your photos are amazing! I'm heading to Paris at the end of the year, your photos have made me even more excited! And the movie sounds wonderful, such a great message. :)

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  7. Paris is dirty and beautiful at the same time, if that makes sense. But oh my gosh, you must have wine and cheese!!!!! And a pastry of some sort. Ahhh, nobody does those three things quite like the french.

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  8. i want to see that movie. it looks good. isn't it great when movies teach us things? that quotes DOES sting a little. i need to work on my daydreaming as well. be happy in the NOW and not the WHEN. :)

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  9. Word, Briss! You are so empowering :)

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  10. I can only imagine that this never occurred to you, but it's a hilarious unintentional pun to caption a crotch shot of the Eiffel Tower "Paris in a nutshell."

    Yeah, say it. I have a dirty mind. That's why you love me.

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  11. So need to see Midnight in Paris...

    And oh boy this is true: We cannot escape ourselves. I find myself at home and at peace wherever I am...here in Switzerland, or in Turkey, or in France, or in England or in California. It's a wonderful feeling, but also one that will never fully vanish. It shouldn't anyway.
    And yes, moderation is what I need, too! ;) It's what we all need!

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  12. Interesting post. It was a GREAT movie. (Spoiler alert)Loved the line about "they don't have antibiotics" in the 20s. The past was never as good as you remember it. And the past was once the present that you were probably hating then too. As Garth Algar (Wayne's World) said, "live in the now!"

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  13. Ant--Um yes, go!

    Ali--HAHAHAHAHA. I would have NEVER thought of that as a crotch shot, but yes, I do love you for pointing that out!!!!

    Selma--you've been to Turkey?????

    Chris--Oh my gosh, yes, loved that line as well! Glad the movie struck a chord with you too...I'm not the only schmuck!

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  14. @Ashley...since I can't email you back...so, yes I've been to Turkey many times. I have relatives living there, mostly in Istanbul. I was there this year in May/June!!! :)

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  15. I really must see this movie! Anyway, I enjoyed both your refutation of nostalgia, and your photographic trip down memory lane! And it definitely sounds like this movie has some interesting themes.

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  16. hahaha...you like that contradiction? :)

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