I’m not much of a fan of boxing movies.

I watched Rocky. Winced when they cut his eyelids so he could see!

And cheered when he won.

That’s basically what most boxing movies seem to be about.

A guy who beats the odds, pardon the pun.

And yet Cinderella Man with Russell Crowe and Renee Zellweger is so much more than that.

It’s about how desperation can give a person an edge.

I love the moments during the match when he’s flashing back to seeing his family in poverty.

And my favourite scene is when he goes to the boxing establishment after he’s been destitute and asks for money.

Definitely recommend this movie!

It had me in tears in spots.

I’ve been pensive all day thinking about it and other things.

Spent the day working exceptionally hard!

Washed the bathtub, tried to unclog the upstairs drain but it’s still running slow, made a huge pot of beef biryani and some hummus (cleaned up the disaster in the kitchen afterwards!), and then I actually finished the writing of the first act of my screenplay!

It was tough!

I was supposed to finish it last Tuesday but just couldn’t manage it. Luckily the teacher of the class has agreed to accept it late so I’m mailing it tomorrow morning, insha Allah.

I really like it.

I’m going to find some websites with the screenplays of movies I really like, such as Cinderella Man and see how they’re written.

Then I’ll tweak mine and see what I can do.

Last night I emailed my Japanese translator for Wanting Mor in a panic to see if she was okay.

She said how she was lucky because they live far from the epicenter. She felt the quake and ran out of her fourth floor apartment on to the ground which was heaving violently. It even made her feel dizzy.

Her daughter was on a train on the way home. The train stopped and she had to get out and walk to the next station. She spent the night on the floor of the train station. Her son spent the night in his chair in his office.

God has blessed me to live in a place impervious to tsunamis.

We had an earthquake a while back, and for once I actually felt it.

It felt like the house shuddered, and that’s how long it lasted, like a shudder. I had thought a heavy truck had passed by the front of the house.

And then there’s Libya.

Again, I’m fortunate that I live in a land free of oppression.

So let’s see, I don’t have to deal with the kind of destitution that Cinderella Man had to deal with, don’t have to deal with earthquakes and tsunamis and no oppression.

Life’s good Masha Allah.