Where have all the good movies gone?

This summer, when Jim's brother was in town, he and Jim and their parents and one of his sisters & her husband and I all gathered out on our deck, drinking and talking. (I, of course, was drinking water at the time... OH! What I wouldn't give for a nice glass--or two--of wine!) Anyway, usually when Jim's folks are around, the talk turns to politics. It just seems to go that way, since it's always good for a debate--Jim and his parents often have different views, or else somebody ends up playing devil's advocate. It's always a bit spicier if John is around, as well.

Except this time, the hottest conversation was actually about how they don't make good movies anymore. All the movies out there (according to Jim's mother, Kay, and Jim actually agreed with her on this) have negative messages or are scary just for the sake of being scary or they just don't have anything positive to say. I think the general message wasn't just about how bad the movies are these days, but how they're indicative of the times we're living in, and how it's just a really bad time and everyone is becoming more and more negative. I tried to play devil's advocate on this one. (I'm usually best off if I just keep quiet!) I think I was trying to say that we are just in the down-times right now. There seem to always be peaks and valleys, y'know, good times and bad, and I was just thinking that things are especially low right now. (e.g. The economy isn't so great, gas prices are horrendous, we're in a war, etc.) But Jim and Kay both felt like it wasn't as simple as that... they both felt that people's values have gone to hell and there's no bringing them back. It's just going to get worse and worse. I pretty much fizzled out after that, as I'm not exactly a historian--I can't really point out exact dates and times when things looked so terribly bad and then got better (other than the Depression, I suppose).

I'm thinking now, several months later, that maybe Jim and his mother were right. We borrowed the movie "Pollyanna" when I had that free Netflix membership. (We also got "The Music Man", which was very fun and wholesome and uplifting, I thought.) Now, Jim had told me about "Pollyanna" when we first met--he actually used to call me Pollyanna. If you haven't seen it, here's the thrust: Pollyanna is a girl who, at the ripe old age of 10, has already had her share of hard times; however, rather than be poopy about all the bad stuff and boo hoo over it all, she searches for the things in life that she can be glad about--playing The Glad Game. She ends up turning this whole town on its ear, changing their bad and/or selfish attitudes into positive and helpful ones. It was an amazing movie! The only one that I can think of that's remotely similar (as far as changing one's perspective about things) is "It's a Wonderful Life"--which I plan to be watching again in the next month or two!

So, now, watching that movie has gotten me thinking: what kind of movies are out there today? What kind of TV shows are out there? What are people talking about in their day-to-day conversations? The movie "Saw III" is in theaters now--that's a gore movie just for the sake of gore. Nasty. And there are probably half a dozen other very scary (probably gory) movies in theaters or about to be in theaters as well. Other movies, like "The Breakup", aren't scary, but in all honesty, have bad values. (I'm being old-fashioned, it's true, but I'm also abiding by my Catholic Faith: living together, without the benefit of marriage, is a sin. Topic for another blog, I suppose!) Movies that aren't scary are often all about how to get into bed with someone else. And at the very least, if they're not about that, they're often about how to get the best of someone else. I saw "The Devil Wears Prada" not long ago. It was pretty good, and with the exception of one instance of fornication (which, at least, wasn't shown but was implied), it didn't have too many bad things going for it. However, the main point of that movie was that you have to be mean to get ahead, even if it means stepping all over the people close to you. The heroine finally chooses not to go that route, but you're left wondering (at the end of the movie) if she'll be nearly as successful as she could have been by staying on that track of stepping all over others. (By the way, "successful" in movies these days is clearly defined as making a lot of money and having a lot of stuff--yet another value I don't agree 100% with.) The TV shows these days aren't any better. I try to watch questionable stuff when the girls are in bed, like "Sex in the City", "Friends", any "Real World/Road Rules" challenges. Even "Hell's Kitchen" has tons of swear words bleeped out of it, and it's obvious people get where they want to by stabbing each other in the back. I'm even finding some of the shows the kids watch aren't that much better. "Hannah Montana" and "That's So Raven" often have people sneaking around and conniving to get what they want, in less nasty ways than grown-ups, of course, but they're still teaching trickery and deceit. Even some of the cartoons, like "Fairly Odd Parents", have people being mean to each other and calling each other nasty names. I try to stand by and make sure my kids know the difference between what's acceptable and what's not. But it's getting to a point where, if they're not watching PBS, I don't want them watching anything!

When I babysit at Jazzercise, I often have a few older kids come in. By older, I mean ages 9 to about 11. I'm shocked at the behavior these kids are displaying already. They're mostly good, but at the same time, they're already trying to act the way kids of my generation did when they were in their early- to mid-teens! I have a 9 year old girl come in now and then who is obsessed with when she'll get to wear a bra. I don't even remember thinking about that until about 12. It seems like kids are trying to grow up faster these days, and I wonder how much of that is coming from the movies we watch, the TV shows we watch, and maybe even the conversations these kids overhear.

Maybe I'm oversimplifying. I guess my point is that, after watching "Pollyanna", it really made me realize there are no (or very few) good, wholesome, family-oriented movies out there. Even things like "The Parent Trap" or "Cheaper by the Dozen" or "Yours, Mine and Ours"--movies that are all remakes of old, wholesome movies--needed to be 'modernized' in order to appeal to current audiences. Some of those 'modernizations' would include things like couples living together before marriage, people playing nasty and potentially dangerous tricks on each other, etc. In the old days, they didn't have to cross those lines in order to appeal to audiences. Thus, I'm thinking that we really are in a bad, negative time, and things aren't looking like they're going to get better... or if they do, it'll be a long time coming.

Sorry... kind of a bummer of an entry. My apologies to Jim and Kay--you were right and I was definitely wrong. I wish I hadn't been, though. Got any suggestions of old, wholesome movies we can watch? I'm over this new stuff!!!

Halloween Pictures

We had a little Diva and an Angel Fairy in our house this Halloween Season. They had so much fun wearing these costumes, and they were lucky enough to be able to wear them not only Trick-or-Treating, but also to a couple of parties and to Boo-at-the-Zoo! They had just as much fun posing for the camera!!!

Baby Shower

A few weeks ago, my great friend, Anita, threw me a baby shower. I hadn't thought (initially) that I needed one, having had children before. However, since I'm having a boy this time, and it will have been nearly six years since the last one, it did make sense to stock up on a few new items. (Not to mention the fact that Jim and I have still been unable to find any of the old baby clothes I had--y'know, that early newborn stuff that's often unisex.)

So family and friends joined together at Anita's beautiful house. We were treated to all kinds of delicious goodies (two different gourmet cakes, pumpkin bars, bite-size ham or turkey sandwiches, chips, nuts, blue popcorn, etc.), and the games we played were fantastic! My favorite was the poopy diaper game: Anita stuck different candy bars into individual diapers, nuked 'em for a few seconds so they'd melt, and then passed around each diaper for us all to determine which kind of candybar it was. What fun, to have a group of women sitting around, sniffing what looks like poop in a bunch of diapers. I know (or, at least, I hope) I wasn't the only one who was tempted to have a taste. We all managed to use our self restraint, though. Sniffing was as far as it went! We also played the game where you decide, just by look (not even scent) what kind of baby food is in each of several baby jars. That was a tough one--you'd never believe how many foods are orange or green! Another game was to guess how many calories were in a huge jar of Baby Ruth candy bars. That was tough--I don't think I was anywhere close. Bummer, too, 'cuz I really wanted to win that jar of candy bars!!! My second favorite game was the memory game. I won't give that one away, as it had a bit of a twist, but I do want to say I got a huge kick out of it!!!

Naturally, I got a ton of great stuff--thanks to all who were there, and to those of you who didn't make it but sent or brought gifts anyway. I'm so very blessed to have such great friends and family! One of the gifts I was most excited about--one I'd even joke was the reason I got pregnant--was my Diaper Cake. Don't get me wrong, I love and am grateful for every single thing I've received. I mean it when I say that I'm blessed--Jim and I were starting to get worried about whether or not we'd be prepared, and now we will be. But the Diaper Cake (which Anita made) is something I've seen given to other expectant moms. It's one of the most clever, yet functional gifts I've ever seen. I was just about beside myself to receive my very own, and it's going to be very hard for me to break down and dismantle the thing to use the diapers. Thank goodness I got a couple of pictures of it! (If you can't tell by the pictures, the 'cake' is accented with little bottles of baby shampoo, baby lotion, baby powder, etc., and at the top is a rubber ducky, a washcloth, and a little key-ring rattle.)

A couple weeks ago, Jim was in Texas taking a class... he was gone all week. I had been wanting to paint our kitchen for months, and I decided it'd be fun to see if I could get it done with Jim gone and surprise him! Was I ever in for a treat! The only walls I wanted to paint were the backsplash (behind the stove and between the counter-top and cupboards) and the part over the sink (which is mostly taken up by more cupboards and a window). So I wouldn't even say that space was enough to cover a regular wall. But it's a bit of a cramped space. Those two walls were that "country kitchen blue" that was fashionable about ten years ago. I've never liked it, but it worked in this kitchen... the floor has some of that same blue in about 1 out of every 5 tiles, plus the formica on our conter-top is flecked with that blue, as well. But, as I said, I've never liked that blue, and I've always wanted a sunny yellow kitchen. So I set about buying paint (something I've never done before... I got so lucky--and the lady at the hardware store was extremely helpful!), sanding the walls as I was instructed to do, taping up all the edges, and I was ready to go. Well, since that blue was on the darker side, I had to do primer first. No problem (except it stinks worse than regular paint)... except that I could still see the blue through the primer! Fine, I just put a second coat of primer on. Now I was ready to do the fun part--the color!!! It went on a little brighter than I'd really expected, but I figured it was going to be okay. However, it didn't seem that two coats of paint were enough. So I put on a third coat of paint (on top of the two coats of primer). This took me through the whole week, up to Thursday morning. By Thursday morning, I was ready to remove the tape, clean up the newspapers and debris, and hang my curtain up--get everything back to the way it was. What happened, though, was that I started taking down the tape... and ripping the paint off with it!!! It pulled away like rubber! In some spots, it went all the way down to the dry-wall! I called my friend, Anita (always my hero!), bawling and absolutely freaking OUT! She pointed out that none of those home-improvement shows ever let you see the "touch-up phase", and she said she'd be right over. And a bit later, here she came, with a specially made cookie from Eileen's to cheer me up (with a huge rainbow on it in, I swear, about two inches of frosting)! She picked up one of the craft paintbrushes I'd set out and started fixing up my little problem areas. (In the meantime, I'd decided that home-improvement tip #27 is: when the tape doesn't pull away easily, cut it with an exacto knife!) I only had a few areas that were bad, and in about 20 minutes, you couldn't even see them! Yay! Anita to the rescue! Later that evening, I went back over to put a second coat on the touch-ups, and you really can't notice them at all, unless you come close with a flashlight and magnifying glass, looking for them. So I finally got to put away all the mess from my painting. I spent Friday sweeping, mopping, vacuuming, and basically cleaning up any clutter around the rest of the house. I decided that it'd be cool for Jim to come home, not just to a newly painted kitchen, but to a freshly cleaned house with a newly painted kitchen! I'm pleased to say he reacted exactly the way the girls and I wanted him to, spending a good 10 minutes fawning over the whole project, exclaiming all kinds of kind things about what a great job we did, etc. I had let each of the girls do a bit of painting, on the first coat of color, with the roller. They each were excited to point out "their wall". I think I'm done nesting for a few weeks. Will write about any further work I feel it's necessary to do!

Netflix, Bunco, Elephant Feet--Oh My!

I received a month's worth of free Netflix from a FANTASTIC friend of mine, and I am LOVING it!!! It's really a great deal (especially when it's free). I can keep the movies as long as I want, and I don't have to pay shipping when I send them back. I actually don't like to hold onto the movies for very long, though, as I'm enjoying turning around and sending them back to see how fast I can get something else. Turnaround time is usually 2-3 days. I suppose it's easier, in a sense, to just go to Blockbuster or Hollywood Video to pick up a movie, rather than wait for it to come in the mail. But I don't mind waiting a day or two, and I really love creating a list and having Netflix pick from the list for me. I can change the order of the list, in case I decide I want to watch one thing before another--that came in handy this week, with Jim out of town. I've tried moving all of the "chick flicks" on my list up, so I can watch them while he's gone. Part of what's so cool about it is that Netflix has so many movies that aren't available at the regular video stores anymore. And since I can create a list of my own, I can go add to it anytime I think of another movie I want to see--it's so much better than standing there in the video store for 20 minutes going, "What was it that I was thinking of the other day? None of these movies sound good!" Okay, enough for my plug on Netflix... if you haven't tried it, you should give it a shot. You can get two weeks free when you go to www.netflix.com.
Bunco is a new passion of mine! I'd heard about it from my friend Beth about four years ago (give or take a year), but the concept was pretty fuzzy. This past year, my friend Anita got into a group and was constantly asking me to come with her, as a sub. For various reasons, it just never worked out, and I have to admit, I was a little intimidated by the game anyway. I didn't know how to play, so how could I possibly fill in for someone? And I was scared by the prospect of spending an evening with a roomfull of women I didn't know--I would only know Anita, right? And my time with her couldn't be very extensive, knowing there would be ten other women there! But finally, after about four months, I finally broke down and joined her as a sub one night. I couldn't believe how easy (and ADDICTIVE) the game is! The very next day, I told Anita I'd love to become a permanent member, if they ever had an opening on the team. She told me there actually was an opening (one of the 'regulars' decided it'd be better for her and her family if she stepped down to 'sub' status). Yippee! Well, this month was my first turn as a 'regular', and due to unforseen circumstances, someone was needed to host at their house (the originally slated host was unavailable). I decided to jump in with both feet--gave the house a MAJOR cleaning and had everyone over to my place. It was a BLAST! I've only played twice, now, and my pregnant brain trips me up every once in a while. But this group is SO much fun, and it's exciting getting to know them all. What's kind of neat about it, too, is that it seems like there's always someone who can't make it, so there's always a sub or two--which means meeting even more new people. And I can't believe I was afraid of doing just that! I'm glad I finally pulled my head out of the sand! All I can say is: BUNCO RULES!!!
One last thing, before I'm done. It's been kind of warm here, the past few days. Sunday, Monday and Tuesday, it was in the low 90's each day. Yesterday was cooler and today should be cooler, too. But the damage is done: I've got Elephant Feet! I remember my feet swelling with both Lindsay and Josie--more so with Josie--but I don't recall it happening this early in the pregnancy. (However, my memory is so fuzzy, it could have started at exactly this point last time--I just can't remember.) I'm sure it didn't help that I took the girls on an excursion through the zoo on Sunday, during the peak of the heat. And all this week, I've been on my feet, doing one thing or another. I've only gotten 45 minutes to an hour and a half each day with my feet up. So I'm not really giving them much chance for the swelling to go down. I'm hoping this is not a constant state... kankles are not a look I fancy, even during pregnancy. Thank goodness it's cool again, so I can at least cover them with jeans. I do have to wear my AirWalks, though, as socks would bind too much and there's not much chance of me tying tennis shoes anymore. The funny thing is, I bought my AirWalks about 1/2 a size too big, knowing, at the time, that I was pregnant. Now they're very snug, and if I have them on for long, my feet start molding in shape around them. Neat. Ah, the joys of pregnancy. It could always be worse, and I'm STILL loving every minute of it. Back pain, frequent trips to the bathroom, going through a bottle of TUMS each week--they're all part of the fun for me! It truly is a blessing and a miracle, and if there are a few discomforts along the way, they only make me appreciate the gift I receive at the end of the journey!