Friday, October 31, 2014
Thursday, October 30, 2014
Anne + Gilbert 4Ever
This blog post from a Canadian wedding photographer who staged an Anne of Green Gables wedding shoot is phenomenal. I LOVED Anne Shirley, both in L.M. Montgomery's books and Kevin Sullivan's movies. These photographs make me want to go home, reread my Anne books, rewatch my Anne movies, and book a trip to Prince Edward Island.
Tuesday, October 28, 2014
Halloween Flicks
Since I am too much of a scaredy cat to have ever enjoyed horror movies, my go-to Halloween entertainment is of a tamer variety. I have watched three of the following four movies in the last few weeks. One more to go by Friday.
Real Talk: "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" is not that great. Blasphemy, I know. I watch it every October and am reminded annually that this is far inferior to "A Charlie Brown Christmas." A good chunk of this special is devoted to Snoopy's imagined World War I flying ace adventures and I have been rendered bored during those parts since I was a toddler. But I am nothing if not a slave to tradition, so I will continue to watch Linus get boned by The Great Pumpkin each autumn.
E.T. was the first movie I saw in the cinema and it holds a special place in my heart. It was also the first VHS movie we owned. I have long questioned the sanity of Elliott's mother as she is easily tricked into believing a squat alien with giant feet is Drew Barrymore dressed as a ghost for Halloween. Lay off the sauce, Elliott's mom!
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| Michael, "Gertie"/E.T., and Elliott heading out for tricks and treats. |
Ryan and I went through a phase in the late '80s during which we watched Beetlejuice A LOT. Our mum recorded it for us and we probably wore out the tape watching the two Harry Belafonte dance sequences over and over. I had not watched this movie in its entirety in easily over a decade until I caught it on TV this past weekend. I had forgotten that Ryan used to do impressions of Michael Keaton's titular character. This was around the time that he was also honing his Pee Wee Herman impersonation. Weird times at 8 Victor.
I saw The Addams Family at the movie theater with a group of friends in sixth grade. I think it was the first movie I ever saw at the cinema without an adult chaperone. When this flick came out on video, we bought the VHS as McDonald's. Buying a movie and dining at McDonald's were life events back then, so I remember that night well. My current Addams-Family-related life goal is to adopt a female black cat and name her Wednesday. Too bad I'm at maximum feline capacity or that dream would become a reality by All Hallows' Eve.
Happy Halloween!
Monday, October 27, 2014
Friday, October 24, 2014
Baby Rhino
One of our uncles used to call Ryan "Baby Rhino" so it appropriate that this video of a baby rhino trying to prance like a lamb has amused us both today.
I have watched and giggled at the video multiple times this morning. When I sent it to Ryan, I got the following response:
"Oh God, I haven't LOL'd that much at an animal video since 1995's Babe the pig fell off the stoop."
Remembering 13-year-old Ryan dying laughing at the little pig falling off a ramp in the trailer for "Babe" made me laugh. So this one is for you, Bro:
I have watched and giggled at the video multiple times this morning. When I sent it to Ryan, I got the following response:
"Oh God, I haven't LOL'd that much at an animal video since 1995's Babe the pig fell off the stoop."
Remembering 13-year-old Ryan dying laughing at the little pig falling off a ramp in the trailer for "Babe" made me laugh. So this one is for you, Bro:
Wednesday, October 15, 2014
Thursday, October 9, 2014
To Do List
This weekend: The Apple Farm in Fairfield, Maine
Next weekend: Allandale Farm in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts
Growing up, Mum used to take Ryan and me to The Apple Farm every fall to choose pumpkins. Back then, we could buy apples and carrots to feed to horses on the property. Those horses no longer reside on The Apple Farm (or probably on this plane of existence), but I still love going there with my mother each autumn. Mum and I will be carving jack-o-lanterns in a matter of days. "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" will be viewed. Pumpkin cookies and apple cider will be consumed in large quantities. Fall truly is the best time of year.
Next weekend: Allandale Farm in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts
Growing up, Mum used to take Ryan and me to The Apple Farm every fall to choose pumpkins. Back then, we could buy apples and carrots to feed to horses on the property. Those horses no longer reside on The Apple Farm (or probably on this plane of existence), but I still love going there with my mother each autumn. Mum and I will be carving jack-o-lanterns in a matter of days. "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" will be viewed. Pumpkin cookies and apple cider will be consumed in large quantities. Fall truly is the best time of year.
Wednesday, October 8, 2014
A Favorite, Remade
This morning I came a across a new video of one of my favorite songs, "God Only Knows." I do not recognize half of the people in this rendition and it cannot begin to compete with the Beach Boys' original song, but I still found it interesting.
Tuesday, October 7, 2014
I'm So Scared Right Now
Even though it freaked me out, I watched The NeverEnding Story frequently in the '80s. Dum's "On & On" music video might be the source of a new wave of nightmares for me. Thirty years after the movie was released, and with the addition of superimposed creepy faces, Artax still bites it in the Swamps of Sadness. I didn't realize when I was a kid that the horse was succumbing to depression. That is dark, but then SO IS THE NOTHING.
There are two positive things that I took away from my repeated viewings of The NeverEnding Story. One is that even though I am a full-fledged cat lady, I would still like a puppy that resembles the Luck Dragon Falcor. The second is that my family and I somehow find ways to insert the phrase, "It's my scientific speciality" into conversations.
There are two positive things that I took away from my repeated viewings of The NeverEnding Story. One is that even though I am a full-fledged cat lady, I would still like a puppy that resembles the Luck Dragon Falcor. The second is that my family and I somehow find ways to insert the phrase, "It's my scientific speciality" into conversations.
Thursday, October 2, 2014
The Most Thrilling Headline Of All Time
Holy schnikes-- I just got super jazzed when I came across that headline. Ryan and I ate so many delicious personal pan pizzas at the Waterville, Maine Pizza Hut thanks to the Book It program. He got pepperoni, I got hamburger, we both got root beer in red plastic cups. Dang were those good times. I had a large Book It pin on my acid washed jean jacket for several fabulous years. Reading books and eating pizza were two of my favorite things in the '80s. Spoiler alert: They remain two of my favorite things several decades later.
The Last Five
I took a month off from blogging and still I don't feel that I have anything pressing to share with you. Just to try to get back into the habit of posting, I am going to write about books again. Since I last posted about my (always fascinating) reading list, I have finished five books. Two were loaners, two I selected on my own, and one was recommended by a friend.
Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand
I bought this book as a present for Ryan a few years ago. He and our dad read and enjoyed Unbroken and Ryan then suggested that I read it. He loves reading about World War II and I do not, so I repeatedly declined. I am happy that Ryan finally convinced me to read this book, as the true story of Louie Zamperini was entertaining, inspiring, and almost unbelievable. He was an Olympic runner who became a Japanese prisoner of war during World War II. For a theatrical glimpse into Zamperini's life, you can view the trailer for the upcoming movie based on this book:
The Yonahlossee Riding Camp for Girls by Anton DiSclafani
USteve loaned this book to me, remarking that the story of a young woman attending a Southern boarding school during the Great Depression included some spicy material. I am sad to say that although this book was set at a women's school, it did not remind me of my Wellesley experience at all. I now realize that I did not spend enough time riding horses or seducing administrators. What a waste of four years.
The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom
This was a good but very dark book, which is not surprising as it takes place on a plantation in Virginia and depicts the brutality of slavery. I enjoyed the characters that Grissom created, though I often felt frustrated by the lack of communication between them.
Lots of Candles, Plenty of Cake by Anna Quindlen
I picked this book up thinking that it might be similar to Nora Ephron's I Feel Bad About My Neck. Both books were written by successful and wealthy women "of a certain age", so the lives they explore are not entirely relatable to me. (More because of wealth than age.) This book lacked the humor of Ephron's work, and humor goes a long way with me.
Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal by Christopher Moore
A friend told me this was one of the funniest books she had ever read. Thus I started reading Lamb with unreasonably high expectations and was disappointed. This humorous reimagining of Jesus's life was only okay for me. Ryan is reading my copy of Wonder and told me last night that I over-hyped the book so now it is a bit of a letdown. Will this vicious cycle never end?
Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand
I bought this book as a present for Ryan a few years ago. He and our dad read and enjoyed Unbroken and Ryan then suggested that I read it. He loves reading about World War II and I do not, so I repeatedly declined. I am happy that Ryan finally convinced me to read this book, as the true story of Louie Zamperini was entertaining, inspiring, and almost unbelievable. He was an Olympic runner who became a Japanese prisoner of war during World War II. For a theatrical glimpse into Zamperini's life, you can view the trailer for the upcoming movie based on this book:
The Yonahlossee Riding Camp for Girls by Anton DiSclafani
USteve loaned this book to me, remarking that the story of a young woman attending a Southern boarding school during the Great Depression included some spicy material. I am sad to say that although this book was set at a women's school, it did not remind me of my Wellesley experience at all. I now realize that I did not spend enough time riding horses or seducing administrators. What a waste of four years.
The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom
This was a good but very dark book, which is not surprising as it takes place on a plantation in Virginia and depicts the brutality of slavery. I enjoyed the characters that Grissom created, though I often felt frustrated by the lack of communication between them.
Lots of Candles, Plenty of Cake by Anna Quindlen
I picked this book up thinking that it might be similar to Nora Ephron's I Feel Bad About My Neck. Both books were written by successful and wealthy women "of a certain age", so the lives they explore are not entirely relatable to me. (More because of wealth than age.) This book lacked the humor of Ephron's work, and humor goes a long way with me.
Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal by Christopher Moore
A friend told me this was one of the funniest books she had ever read. Thus I started reading Lamb with unreasonably high expectations and was disappointed. This humorous reimagining of Jesus's life was only okay for me. Ryan is reading my copy of Wonder and told me last night that I over-hyped the book so now it is a bit of a letdown. Will this vicious cycle never end?
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