“Be the energy you want to attract.” Anonymous

My theme: something about books, something about poetry, and something about tech – QA in specific. E is Exciting: E is for The Exorcist, Epulaeryu, and Exploratory.

Entertainment Corner

E is Exciting: E is for The Exorcist

I had two choices for the letter E – Emma and The Exorcist. Given my normal reading (and watching) habits and my love of Austen, I wanted to write about Emma at first. But given that I watched and read both of these books/movies years ago, I picked the one out-of-norm for me, the one whose memories were stronger; in this case – ‘The Exorcist’ did make a bigger impact with its shock factor.

The Book Versus The Movie:

The Exorcist by William Peter Blatty – I saw this movie when I was much younger. If you are wondering how I might have ended up watching this movie then, it was most likely a highly censored version with deleted scenes and muted profanity; and horror or grossness in movies did not have the same impact as violent fights or language or nudity, as far as what was OK/allowed to watch, for us. Also, I did watch the movie hiding behind my mom during all the scary scenes, so maybe that is why I did end up sleeping after watching this one! But what I recall is that I was grossed out more than anything else – one too many ewwww scenes – guessing those were the ones I did watch.

But I read the book well in my 20s and I have to say, I had a few sleepless nights over that. This book (and the movie) is definitely not for the faint of heart. I am tempted to read the 40th Anniversary edition of the book now (though I have grown to realize that I am not really a horror-book-or-movie fan, with some rare exceptions).

As far as this book and movie – if you enjoy horror-flicks or reads and somehow missed this (impossibly), then read the book and watch the movie. And if you don’t care for horror but might want to read or watch something just for the experience just once, then this is the book you should read (and the movie to watch – there are a couple of others too, hence in brackets).

“But a myth, to speak plainly, to me is like a menu in a fancy French restaurant: glamorous, complicated camouflage for a fact you wouldn’t otherwise swallow, like maybe lima beans.” 
― William Peter Blatty, The Exorcist

The Question: Book or Movie

Blatty’s powerful narrative in the book combined with my imagination ensured stomach-churning moments galore and staying-up-at-night promises. His use of everyday speech made the book more real and hence infinitely more scary. And words matter – detailed descriptions of many of the disturbing scenes lend itself to the reader’s imaginations far more than the movie could.

So while Blatty also wrote the screenplay for the movie (with some scenes and dialog taken as is from the book) which I guess accounts partly for how close the battle is between book and movie, in my opinion, the book wins this one (by a small margin though).

What about you? Vote below :

[yop_poll id="5"]

The more you lose yourself in something bigger than yourself, the more energy you will have. – Norman Vincent Peale

Poetry Corner

E is Exciting: E is for Epulaeryu

Epulaeryu is a poetic form invented by Joseph Spence Sr as a result of all the feasts he enjoyed while touring the Mediterranean, Asia and America. The name comes from the Latin word “epulae” for feast, and the Japanese word “ryu” for style.

The epulaeryu is a 7-line, 33-syllables, unmetered, unrhymed poem; the first line has seven syllables, the second line five, the third line seven, the fourth line five, the fifth line five, the sixth line three, and the seventh line has only one syllable which ends with an exclamation mark. Each line has one thought relating to the main course.

So, the syllable count and pattern look like – 7 – 5 – 7 – 5 – 5 – 3 – 1!

My attempt at the epulaeryu is below. And I noticed that the form, when the words are centered this way, resembles a dish/cup of a sort, doesn’t it? Not sure if that was intentional but suits the subject for this form 🙂

Chai
Black tea leaves, milk and water –
Steeping in the pot.
Ginger, cloves, cardamom too;
Sugar? I eschew.
A mug – earthenware,
My cuppa –
Cheer!
-Vidya (LadyInRead)

QA Corner

E is Exciting: E is for Exploratory Testing

I talked about ad-hoc testing earlier in the series. Based on what I read about these two terms in tandem, here is what I came up with:

Exploratory testing is (kind-of-like) ad-hoc testing with a twist and a turn-around wrapped in a formal package with a thinking cap on it.

It has been designated as a technique, as testing itself, and more. One of the most succinct definitions however is the one below:

Exploratory testing is simultaneous learning, test design, and test execution.

And as I read more about exploratory testing, I realized that this is exactly what I had been doing without actually knowing or using this term for it (woe me but now I know better and more!)

I now simply point you to James Bach‘s excellent article on exploratory reading for further exploration!

Wrapping up the E post

“The higher your energy level, the more efficient your body. The more efficient your body, the better you feel and the more you will use your talent to produce outstanding results. ” – Anthony Robbins

I am working towards those higher energy levels with my better-me plan each day and hope to start producing outstanding results as a result 🙂

What are your comments or questions about today’s post? I would love to hear from you. Check out previous posts in this challenge using the links below.

Day 0 Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4

Linking up to BlogChatter A to Z, A to Z Blogging Challenge, and the Ultimate Blogging Challenge (click on the images to learn more about these challenges)