Went to the Internet movie database, as one often does when needing a bit more data, to read what others have said about la dolce vita so I could perhaps gain a keener appreciation of the film. many people have it actually placed on their top ten or top five lists. [This site is brilliant and essential by the way if you do not know it. I've been digging it since ‘98. Go here and check it: www.imdb.com.] Best movie lists are impossible of course but always fun. its always interesting to read other peoples lists. you read about movies you’ve never even heard of before. You can then jump right over to netflix.com and order the DVDs to come sit in your player for a night.

My top five if I absolutely had to, but only in this moment, with very little thought and in absolutely no order; in fact they are all tied for first place:

raging bull, sound of music, my fair lady, schindlers list, 8 ½, the matrix, fight club, godfather 1 and 2, but 3 gets nowhere near the top 1000. royal tennenbaums, of course, and life aquatic of Steve zisou, star wars and empire strikes back are always fun, until the end of the world and the two angel movies Wim Wenders did, far away so close and that other one. and then give me any early Cary grant movie just to have him in there. I don't really care which one. take Philadelphia story. That's a good one. and would have to get eternal sunshine of the spotless mind in there because I think it may be one of the best screenplays ever written in humankind’s history. of course apocalypse now, since along with citizen Kane, it just may be actually in the top two of all time. oh yes and also the top two would have to include at least three of Woody's, say, Annie hall, deconstructing Harry, and stardust memories, off the top of my head. Solaris comes to mind for its tone and vibage, but prob not top fifty. But good flick because it speaks to US and not the common masses like most movies do these days.

For tonight that would be it and that would be a fine list for any desert island experience.  

For fun we took our IQ tests on this website, www.tickle.com. I missed 4 questions out of 40. Scored a 136. Not bad. Not as good as I expected but not bad. Top 5% overall percentile. Top 100 percentile in visual-spatial, logical, and linguistic intelligence, which means that out of the one-million people who have logged on and taken the test on this site, the score is higher than 100% of all of them – however they figure that??? Or that 0% have ever scored higher; so where did I fuck up? The glitch is that I flubbed some math; only top 95% in mathematical intelligence. All four of my wrong answers were math related. Princess Little Tree on the other hand was so good at the math problems that she didn't even need to see them. I would just call them out to her and she would answer them correctly in a few seconds. I was impressed. She is after all she reminds me an engineer. I have no idea what engineers do actually but I assume it must have something to do with being good at math.

Stats are as follows:
In fact, 95% of all people have IQs within the range 70 to 130. 68% of people score between 80 and 120. The following chart to your right, shows these percentages and where your IQ score is on that scale. You scored in the top 5% of all participants.

Fucking math. Always been my weakness. But not bad for a kid who was by all accounts a complete fucking idiot in school and never got a grade above a D in twelve years. [this is the truth. I'm not even making it up for dramatic purposes or poetic license. I just never could do school. Always felt lost in it.]

I have always believed, despite what experts claim, that our IQs are constantly changing. Or better, are constantly able to change, depending on our up-bringing and our desire and ability to change the results/outcome of that upbringing and of course our present circumstances play a minor role in it such as how much sleep we've had or how much caffeine or how we distracted we are in the moment etc...

I'm pleased with the results of today's test because I take good care to exercise which I think keeps you smart, I stay in a constant state of learning – for me its certainly prioritized higher on my list than any social concerns – I'm always going to choose reading or writing or working or studying to going out -- taking classes of any kind on a regular basis and always learning new languages and staying in this constant state of learning is not only going to keep you smart, but I believe, makes you smarter.