Quite some time ago I was fortunate to partake on a backpacking trip to the wonderul South Manitou island in Lake Michigan. This is an absolutely gorgeous environment and I have been privy to visit it about half a dozen times. With pristine beaches, beautiful nature trails, and no motor vehicles allowed (except for one tour truck that operates only once a day) the island is a spectacular getaway location for anybody wishing to escape from the "real" world.

On this particular trip I was joined by my older cousin Stephanie. My 4 day long vacation just so happened to end with my cousin and I meeting a couple who were from a local theatre group here on a vacation after finishing their last performance. We quickly engaged in a myriad of discussion ranging from weather to politics. As the evening grew later the topic turned to more agreeable and easier to relate subjects. One such subject was that of movies. The last movie that we discussed that night was the cryptic yet beautifully artsy flick Magnolia. Lemme share with you how the conversation went at that point. I shall refer to myself as "me"...the artsy husband as "dude" and his wife as "dudette" with my cousin stephanie as "steph. Here we go:

Me: "Yeah, I like movies quite a bit. I like watching those movies that most other people don't watch simple because they're not mainstream."

Dude: "Have you ever seen the movie Magnolia? It's absolutely amazing!"

Dudette: "It really is. It's just so, powerful! It's one of those movies that will change you!"

Steph: *sips some Gin and Tonic*

Me: "Wow! It sounds like it's a really good movie. What's it about?"

Dude: "I can't tell you."

Me: "I thought you saw it. Why can't you tell me what it's about?"

Steph: *sips more Gin and Tonic*

Dudette: "Because that would ruin it for you. You have to see it. The ending to it is amazing!"

Me: "The ending?"

Dude: "It completely explains the movie. It's the type of ending that if you're into art, I mean TRULY into art, you'll completely understand. Otherwise you'll never know what the movie was truly about."

Me: *blinks eyes a minute*......"Yeah, so how about one of them Gin and Tonics?"

Honestly people....it's a movie....a MOVIE!!!! I hate people who get their panties in a bunch of art related stuff. I mean, come on already! It's not created specifically for you, so get over it! The same could be said about the uber religious fanatics. Sometimes I want to just slap them upside the head (I'll save that for another day though).