In Which I Am a Huge Nerd
Just a heads up: If you haven’t seen Inception there are semi-spoilers ahoy! But if you haven’t seen it, you really should, because it’s a phenomenal movie.
As usual, I am late to the party and only just saw Inception this past weekend. And although I could go on forever about every aspect of this movie, I won’t. Especially since it’s exhausting just thinking about how plausible all of the interpretations are. Instead, I’m going to focus on one aspect: Totems. They aren’t a main part of the plot, per se, but they are very much a focal point of the movie.
If you haven’t seen Inception but still want to read my super awesome blog entry about it, I’ll briefly explain what totems are in the movie. Basically a totem is anything you can use to verify that you’re currently in reality, and not in someone’s dream. E.g. Leonardo DiCaprio’s character uses a simple, metal top. If it keeps spinning infinitely then he is in a dream. If it topples over, he knows he is in the real world. It’s just a simple way to do a reality check.
Personally, I think this is awesome. So freaking awesome, in fact. And ever since I was a kid, if I saw something in movies/TV that I thought was cool, I’d copy it. I know this isn’t uncommon for kids to do. And thanks to good marketing, it’s not uncommon for adults to do – they just do it less consciously. However, even though I’ve grown up, I consciously decide to do things I see in media. I do it more personally now, but I still imitate what I see on TV. Why? Because I think it’s freaking cool.
For example, instead of just stealing the top for my totem, I’ll take the idea of a totem. I haven’t decided what I want to use as my personal totem, but I’ve got some ideas in mind. And in case you’re wondering, I’m not going to stop at just obtaining a totem. Oh no. I’m actually going to use it. I am going to periodically use my totem to check the reality of my surroundings. And I’ll probably do it with a serious/concerned look on my face. Then when I realize that I’m not in a dream, I’ll heave a dramatic sigh of relief and slip my totem back into my pocket. Why? Like I said, because I think it’s cool. DO NOT SPOIL MY FUN.
I know I’m not the only one to do this—Inception was a great film so I’m sure a lotlotlot of people are going to do exactly what I’m doing. But those people are also nerds, just like me. And we’re pretty awesome for that.
If you’ve seen the movie, do you want a totem? If you do, what would it be? Or is there something else that you emulate from media for no other reason than because you thought it was cool?
On a side-note: constantly checking reality might also help me become more aware in my dreams. If I’m always doing this reality check, it should carry over to my dreams, in which the reality check will obviously fail. Maybe if I’m lucky, I’ll notice and have a lucid dream!
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Hello, my name's Josh and I might be a hipster (you decide!). I've been blogging and designing in some form for the past eight or so years and I think I'm starting to get the hang of it (once again, you decide!). I love indie music, coming of age stories, sarcasm, video games, and aesthetics. At the moment I'm working part-time and going to college with hopes of being a web designer. 
Posted by Rybacki — Friday, April 8th 2011
Now, see, I’m also this level of nerd, however, I’m not sure what my totem should be. THe lucid dream thing would be kinda awesome though.