HMD #38 - I'm ba-a-a-a-ack.....

Remember me? Yes, the HeloMom is still without her laptop (a hard business for a late-night, before-bed authoress..my library downstairs is a fishbowl and so darn cold at night!) but a new school year is upon us and there is much to discuss. So I'm sitting downstairs at the desktop because I love...and because I decided to go to cheater Mass at 5 and have some free time on my hands. :)

Anyhoo.....

You'll recall, dear friends, the Beautiful Liar-Beautiful Stranger dilemma. I'll get to that. But first....

Enter the Beautiful Bad Boy.

Our favorite Athlete has gone off to college, a mere 45 minutes away. He still pines. He still loves. When he can think of a good reason, he texts and/or calls. And there are some great reasons - he's made the school's Ultimate Frisbee club (very competitive, apparently), as well as auditioning for slots as the student radio station's sports announcer - got it - and television sports anchor - got the secondary spot. Not bad for a freshman in his first month of school. We are very proud of him, and the Princess is genuinely thrilled at all of these accomplishments. Her tall friend is hitting his stride, has girls throwing themselves at his feet....but his heart is still back here in the middle of nowhere, NY.

Westley is still quietly pitching woo - but the Princess is not catching on. When the Beloved came for a back-to-school visit, he asked for - and received - permission to court the Princess. The catch: the Princess has to say yes. She has skirted the issue, and with good reason. Westley also discussed his plans to enlist in the USMC with the Beloved (who, as some of you may recall, is retired USMC and spent three dreadful years as a recruiter). This has caused the Princess to be quite reluctant to pursue any sort of relationship with Westley, beyond very basic friendship. He is 18, he's darling, he's a good boy from a very conservative Christian family....but.....it's just not clicking. Nevertheless, Westley has stated that he is content to wait and see if she changes her mind. He appeared unexpectedly with flowers and a card because she had a bad back-to-school cold last week after cheering at a chilly football game during a nasty, steady downpour. He came to Friday's home game to sit with me and some other family members, and escorted her safely back to the car. The young man is smitten, and he seems very patient and determined. The Princess' exact words: "he'd be a lot cuter if he wasn't leaving town..."

And now, there's the third player in the saga...the Bad Boy. He is actually not a truly "bad" kid, just very snarky and cocky...and a seriously talented standout football player in his junior year. Another tall, lanky kid who does double duty as a running back and a linebacker. Honor student, has a fraternal twin (who's definitely the "good" twin"), is very popular...but his sarcastic, cutting sense of humor is a bit much for even some of his best friends to handle. Princess has known him since junior high, they were on the same Youth Court team until this year...he was quite put out when she was reassigned and promoted to a judge position last month (ha! hooray!) while he remains a prosecutor, despite having an extra year of experience on the team. He's never given her much thought or a second look. Until now. He looks at her all the time, but (for once) says nothing.

And she's been looking back. Her fellow cheerleaders have noticed - most recently, when she was practicing her new "flying" job this past week and nearly fell/was dropped when the football coach screamed at the Bad Boy by name to get his @$$ back over to the team and away from the girls. She was startled, he was mortified. The next day, the boys finished practice early, but the girls were still at it. She and her base group stayed late to ensure she had the dismounts under control. She was struggling, but then the other girls saw Bad Boy and his cronies watching from the parking lot, told her he was there, turned and faced her towards the parking lot....and suddenly she was making superstar leaps, twists, and graceful landings. Her coach gave her a raised-eyebrow smirk and said she was possibly the biggest cheeseball she'd ever seen. All were laughing.

So what's the hold-up with this kid?!?

As with your typical cocky ultra-popular high school kid who has a crush on a younger, less-popular, but cute-as-heck girl....he's not sure what to do. She's smart. She's pretty. She's a cheerleader. She's a judge as a 10th - not 12th - grader. She sits on all sorts of school and county-wide youth committees where selection is based on merit, not popularity. BUT..... He's friends with a few older brothers of the Princess' tormentors, and has heard all sorts of strange rumors (fabricated and generated by the nasty girls). However, he has also spent enough time in her general vicinity outside of school to question what's been said about her. Yet at the same time...is it worth risking your reputation to give this girl a chance? It's a very "Pretty in Pink" - like scenario. (Except for the blue collar vs. upper-middle class theme... they're on fairly equal footing there.)

After this past weekend's first victory (in which Bad Boy played a major role), the varsity football players and cheerleaders had a bonfire party (dry, for once...). Princess sat on a rock near the fire talking with a few of her teammates. Bad Boy stood directly across the fire pit from her, staring intently...but looked away quickly every time she caught his eye. And then he left without saying a word.

The Princess is petulant, and intends to get to the bottom of this strange behavior. As she put it, "Who the heck does he think he is? Mr. Darcy?"

One can only hope...

HeloMom is not yet equipped to deal equably with a Wickham.

Will report in with any new developments.

HM out.

Shhhhhhh!!!!!!

Don't look now...but I have NOTHING on my calendar tomorrow after 12 pm, Saturday is clear, and there's no cheerleading practice on Sunday.

Please, dear Lord...let us be activity and disaster-free for those 60 precious hours...

I hit the $5 movie rack at Target again...this is becoming a sickness...but I got "Rebecca" with my secret childhood romantic idol...Sir Laurence Olivier.

Can't wait!!!

SCORE!

I love Big Lots...the me of 10 years ago wouldn't have been caught dead in a place like that (never set foot in a WalMart until after I got married, either), but I'm smarter and cheaper now, and besides, I needed random garden and cleaning supplies. Where better to find such things, along with discontinued toiletries and strange shelf-dated foodstuffs?




Anyway, I was tooling along and snapped up one of my all-time fave movies about one of my all-time fave Saints on DVD - one that I've had a bad VHS copy of for years, having taped it on the AMC channel....



A Man for All Seasons.....THREE BUCK$!!! The late, great Paul Scofield as St. Thomas More. Oscar for best pic of 1966. Awesome!




If you haven't seen it, make haste to thy local Big Lots!!! (Or queue it up in your Netflix account, you high techies out there!)

Happy Birthday Princess!!!

Back in 1994, after 36 ridiculous hours of induced labor, our eldest was reluctantly born. (She was quite comfy where she was, thank you.) And as I type this, the little weasel is passed out, snuggled beneath the covers in the Beloved's now-vacant spot, having wanted to spend the night and wake up next to me in the morning "so you're the first person I look at, just like when I was born!"

[sniff...]

This is true - she was a bit blue and sluggish at first, but when I asked through my morphine daze if she was okay a few minutes after she finally emerged and had been whisked away for assessment and Apgar scoring, she turned her head toward me from the incubator and finally opened her eyes and started making squeaky sounds.

[Again with the sniff...]

Now I am looking over at a beautiful young lady - a quincinera today - sound asleep in body at the moment, but just awakening to all the potential of her womanhood. So much promise, yet so fragile, too. I am more conscious than ever of the huge responsibility I bear to ensure that her mind, body and soul remain pure and intact as we navigate these treacherous worldly peaks, valleys, and waters of the next few years.

Thanks be to God for this beautiful gift He's given us, and please pray for her as well as for her parents, that we may be virtuous and courageous stewards of her soul for as long as she's ours to nurture.

Princess facts: the portrait above is Empress Elisabeth of Austria, (a.k.a., Elisabeth of Bavaria, Queen of Hungary, or, more simply, Princess Sissi) the icon of fashionable European royalty back in the 1800's...a suitably beautiful yet tragic life story (oh those Hapsburgs...), and a source of fascination for our own Princess. This portrait inspired the Christine Daae "Think of Me" costume in the 2004 Phantom of the Opera movie:

We have a pact that when she marries, I will find or commission a set of those fabulous Swarovsky crystal hairpins to be made for her coiffure...

Ahh, to be a princess....

Happy Birthday, sweetheart!

HeloMom Dispatch #21 - Hearts Afire

Happy Valentine's Day - or the morning after, anyway.

And once again, the romance continues...

After another derriere-numbing, all-day wrestling tournament [Aside: he only won matches when she was wearing his warm-up jacket for good luck...hmmmm...looks like we won't have wardrobe selection issues at Sectionals next week....] the young non-couple [snort] exchanged gifts last night. His: a dozen roses and a stuffed puppy -- we refer him as such due to his oversizedness and not-quite-grown-into-his-puppy-paws-edness. Her gift to him:

Yes....it's true. She got him one as a joke. In blue. They've sat countless hours in our living room mocking the tv commercials, and our favorite Athlete has repeatedly sworn he'd never ever wear one, not even if his life depended on it. Naturally, the Princess took this as a challenge. She squirted it with her aptly-named Princess perfume, which he loves. So after he was done laughing, he relented, slipped it on, and inhaled deeply. Just then, I hopped out from the dining room with my little Flip Mino rolling and captured the evidence on film. (Thanks again for the product rec, Digi!) ;-) In all fairness, apparently it was rather comfy and actually is long enough to make it all the way down to his ankles, which was shocking. We have since learned that he slept in it after he went home last night.

As a further testament to his admiration for the Princess, the poor kid spent Valentine's Day evening here watching the threatened chick flick of choice: Steel Magnolias. He was so wiped out from his tournament that he never got to see his man movie (Tombstone), and so whether from exhaustion or out of anti-estrogen self-defense, he slumped over and passed out on the couch with his little friend at his side and secure in his arms about 15 minutes into the first movie. We had to wake him up and send him home at midnight. He called his mom to let her know he was on the way, and called me as soon as he got home, unasked, to assure us that he'd arrived home safely. Good kid.

He is coming back over tonight to cash in his man movie raincheck and devour a few pizzas now that he doesn't have to worry about weighing in for a week. As one of my colleagues (a former farm girl) put it after seeing their Dance photos:

"As his future mother in law, you're either gonna have to start grocery shopping at Sav-A-Lot or learn how to slaughter and butcher your own cows...he's huh-yooooooge!"

Well, I have no such audacious hopes in the matrimonial department, but I do know that the Prom is in June, and the Princess has selected her dress, which arrived on Friday. That's a story for another day...I have a book on cow killin' to read. Just in case.

Helo Mom out.

Helo Mom Dispatch #18 - Chick Flick Pick

The still "unofficial" youngsters [the non-couple that spends every spare moment together in person, texting, or on the phone] are currently in negotiations for Valentine's Day plans.

Athlete would like to take Princess to dine at any restaurant she chooses. She would rather not do this because: 1) she is not allowed to date "Duh, mom, a dinner date is a date!"; 2) she is not allowed to go in a car with a boy unless and until she is old enough to drive herself home [NB: we have offered to relax the transportation rules where the Athlete is concerned because, well, he's uniquely trustworthy...within reason. Read on....]; and 3) that's too "public" for her - they are keeping the extent of their association to themselves and away from the prying eyes and inappropriate comments and innuendoes of their respective senior and freshmen classmates. [How they will manage this after the Big Dance this weekend is anyone's guess, but we'll get to that later...]

So she has suggested that they "order in" and have a private night together, watching romantic movies here at our house. Both sides appealed to me for my input and ultimate verdict - I think it's a splendid plan. Parents, little sister, curious baby, love-seeking dogs and Jack the Lap-cat will all be there to make sure they behave themselves. Athlete wanted to know if there could be an even split - a guy movie and a chick flick. We are working on this, but in the meantime, Princess has been trying to persuade him to watch Pride and Prejudice with her. He was groaning about it, but ready to give in, so I asked (jokingly): "Which one? The 5-hour BBC version or the 2-hour Keira Knightley one?"

Him [suddenly perky]: "There's a 5-hour one?"

Me [somewhat bemused]: "Yeeaahhh...why? Is that a good thing?"

Him [with a decidedly cheeky grin]: "Hmmmm...let's see. I have a choice between spending two or five hours curled up on the couch with your daughter on Valentine's Day. Which one do you think I'm gonna pick?!?"

Helo Mom curses herself for being slow on the uptake, yet cannot help but laugh - this kid is quick on his size 16 feet, and just too darn cute for his own good.

Heaven Help Us

...no, not a political statement, but one of my all time favorite (and hence most underrated) movies from back in the day. I've had the vhs tape for about 20 years, and have checked periodically to see if it ever made it to dvd.

It did!

The movie is set at a Catholic boys' high school in mid '60s Brooklyn. As one might expect, it's full of juvenile [phallic] boy humor and casts a critical - but not necessarily offensive - eye on the Church at that time, (i.e., there are scenes that deal with rather harsh and unjust corporal punishment, but there's nothing blatantly anti-Catholic).* It would be a much different story if it were re-made today.

Every former Catholic school boy I know, from my Dad who went to Jesuit boarding school in the '50s to my best law school buddy who went to Crespi HS in LA followed by TAC in Santa Paula, to a certain 17 y/o Athlete (and his sporty of-age compatriots, who borrowed it along with Vision Quest), and of course my Beloved and untold numbers of his Marines, has laughed themselves sick watching it.

There are a number of familiar young faces in this movie - Kevin Dillon, Andrew McCarthy, Patrick Dempsey, John Heard, Donald Sutherland and one of my absolute favorite character actors, Wallace ("In-con-sthee-vable!") Shawn:





The best scenes are posted on YouTube, of course, but if you're interested in the movie, don't watch them yet! If you've got about $8 to spare you can pick it up on Amazon, but if you are easily offended, well....don't. Definitely not for the underage crowd, although I saw it in HS and thought it was hysterical at the time.

*Its R-rating is for language, sophomoric sexual humor, non-sexual nudity (butt shots at swimming pool in gym class) and the brief punishment scenes. It has a lesser, Catholic school version of "Animal House" feel to it, if that helps. Somehow I see Digi enjoying it immensely...

Snow Days Are Great, Right? /HMD #17

I know I'm a freak, but unlike most parents who were bitter about the long Christmas - oops - WINTER break, I loved having the kids home for two weeks. Similarly, I LOVE snow days because we get to hang out in our jammies, have a big breakfast, bake stuff, and be slobs all day. Everyone wins!

So this morning, when the Princess appeared in our doorway in a panic asking if school was canceled, I was more than a bit stunned when I said "yes" - and she burst into tears. "This is so stupid, I hate snow days!"

It's mid-term exam week, and she had two scheduled today. They will be pushed back to next week. ("Bonus!" I say...) But she is upset because she was prepared and now has to worry and wait another 5 days to take them. ("Little freak-nerd..." said I.)

But the kid has reason to be upset. She's worn out. She has a sore throat, bruises all over her back and legs from cheerleading practice (no room in the gym so they practice all of their stunts and somersaults on the cafeteria tile floor), and a regional athletic conference cheerleading competition this weekend. So the snow day meant one less day of practice before the competition. The competition is the Saturday after exams...a lot of pressure to have both big-ticket items on your plate the same week.

Hence the tears and the stress all day.

[Begin: Helo Mom Dispatch #17]

However, the giant Athlete came over for dinner and a movie ("The Express" - worth the rental or PPV) with the family this evening. I looked over at the two of them on the adjoining couch, mid-flick, and she was slumped against him, dead asleep. He'd covered her with a blanket and had her nestled in his big long arms (yes, all you Helo Dads reading this, his large puppy hands were visible at all times). He caught my eye, gave me a shy shrug ("What was I supposed to do?") and tentative little smile...and got an approving one from me in return. The Beloved caught on, gave the situation a sizing-up, and sunk back into his chair, unconcerned.

When the movie was over and it was time to leave, he very gently said her name and she awoke with a start, mortified and apologizing profusely ("Oh my gosh, I didn't drool on you, did I?!? Please tell me I wasn't snoring!!!"). He leaned over and whispered something to her, and she hugged him with all her might as he stood to leave.

Well of course I had to know, I'm a motherhovercraft. So two seconds after he left:

Me: So....?

She: It's so sweet, I can't say it or I'll cry.

Me: [misting up already, dammit!] Well, now you REALLY have to tell me!

She: I can't believe I fell asleep. I'm such an idiot, he came over to visit, not watch me sleep...but I was so tired, I couldn't help it. And when I was sitting there with him, that's the most relaxed and happy I've been all day. I felt, I don't know, safe. So I passed out about five minutes into the movie. Is that weird?

Me: No. It's actually very sweet. And so...are ya gonna tell me?

She: Duh, of course! This is the weirdest part. He said 'You're impossibly beautiful when you sleep. And you will always be safe and protected when you're in my arms, for as long as you want to be there.' He said the same thing I was thinking. 'Safe.' And he was right - other than Daddy holding me when I was little or you snuggling me when I'm sick [a ritual we've maintained for nearly 15 years] , I've never felt that way, Mamma. That's the best nap I think I've ever had. I feel so much better now, and he was so nice about it.

Me: He's a nice guy... [turning, dashing away liquid evidence of my mushiness]

She: [...smiling...a lot...] Gotta go review some more. 'Night Mamma.

Our girl is growing up. I thank God each night that this boy is the first one to stray across her path, and I pray that whatever the outcome, they remain in each others' lives. Truth really can be (in this case) better than fiction - this kid's a rare find.

Just before burrowing in for the night, the Beloved said, in his succinct way, "Oddly enough, I don't plan to kill him."

A good evening for all, and to all of you, Goodnight.

Helo Mom out.

Ahh Ahh Ahh...!

1. VON! That's VON Cheerleader who vants to see the T[v]ilight movie this veekend, but can't! [Ahh ahh ahh...!]

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2. TWO! That's TWO dedicated parents who vill be driving her to Rochester to freeze their bahookies off vatching her cheer at an outdoor football playoff game in Rochester tomorrow.

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3. THREE! There's THREE inches of snow predicted to fall in Rochester tomorrow!

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4. FOUR! That's FOUR hours of driving for the TWO dedicated parents tomorrow to get the VON Cheerleader to the game in THREE inches of snow! [Ahh Ahh Ahh....!]

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5. FIFTH! That's VON FIFTH of R-r-r-rumpleminze! That's vhat Kit vill have tucked in her parka tomorrow to be dumped into the hot chocolate during the game!

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AHH AHH AHHHHHH!!!!!!!

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(Thank you to Fr. Erik and his Vampire posts for the inspiration...)

300

UPDATE: WOO HOO!!! THEY WON AN AMAZING GAME!!!

"[NEXT WEEK], THEY DINE IN HELL!"

[A.K.A., ROCHESTER]

In honor of my 300th post:

Good luck to the Cheerleader's football team in their tiny school division State quarterfinals tomorrow. Sadly, I fear they may go the way of King Leonidas and his companions...

"Remember this day, men, for it will be yours for all time!"

I must say, the movie was a bit gory, but well worth watching just to see that handsome Gerard Butler running around, being brave, saying cool stuff, bleeding....mostly shirtless....

For the record, being quite content with my Beloved, I do not lust after Mr. Butler in my heart...but I wouldn't mind having him, say, come over and do some yardwork at my house on a warm summer day while I supervised from the patio...he could take breaks and chat with me in that cute Scots brogue and stuff. Yep, that would be fine. If he wanted to drop by to practice and maybe improve his shotput skills while wearing a kilt and undershirt, that would be lovely as well...I'd make him some oatmeal:

Hee hee hee!

I will make the last of my Scott's tomorrow at dawn before trekking off to somewhere outside of Syracuse to get the girl to the game. And her Football Player, who persists in his attentions despite her gentle rebuffs. I feel a little sorry for him.

The Feast of St. Bruno

Today is the Feast Day of St. Bruno, a revered educator at Rheims who eventually fled to the hills of France and founded La Grande Chartreuse, a.k.a., the Carthusian order. One of his former students, Pope Urban II, dragged him back to Rome to be an advisor on the reformation of the clergy, but Bruno soon asked to be released. Pope Urban II offered him a Bishopric to keep him close by, but Bruno declined and headed back to the hills, this time in Italy. He died on this date in 1101.
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The essential rule of St. Bruno (I don't know if it's an official "rule" or not) is that life should be lived as a prayer, preferably in quiet and solitude. This is what the Carthusians have been doing in groups of like-minded bretheren for nearly 1000 years. Hmmmm....today may be a good day to watch "Into Great Silence" again in honor of St. Bruno and his order, come to think of it. If you haven't yet seen this film, put it on your short list for a quiet weekend viewing. It's incredible.


Statue of St. Bruno from St. Peter's Basilica - he has his own dedicated transept area...you could spend a month in Vatican City and not see enough.

St. Therese of Lisieux

Isn't she beautiful?

Today is her feast day. Most people who read this blog already know all about her, but even so, click on this link for a brief description of her life. Her parents will be beatified later this month. What a family!

Exactly four years ago today, I began reading her autobiography, Story of a Soul. I was in a villa we rented in Tuscany, on vacation with the Beloved and girls, fighting off jet lag. I finished the first half in one night, and the rest the night after. To me, her story and message was about more than just exemplifying saintliness and perfect submission of one's will to God's will; it was about growing up. Letting go of your own selfishness, immaturity, and self-centeredness. Something I'm still working on at 40, and something I'm trying to impart to my girls as they are coming of age.

We bought the recently released movie, Therese, which may not be an earth-shattering, award winning masterpiece, but it is beautifully done and great for families - and girls at this age. I recommend it, and of course, I recommend Story of a Soul (the image below is from Tan Books).

St. Therese pray for us, send us flowers of your wisdom from heaven!

The Phantom of Obama

Photo and transcript from Rush Limbaugh's website - someone who knows of my Princess' love of the show sent it to me. LOL!!!

Barack Obama wants the public to think he's Mr. Nice Guy, soft-spoken, erudite, a new kind of politician, new, fresh, unique, uniter. He's going to come around and he's going to just wave his hand and all of these partisan feelings of rancor are going to vanish. He is inciting partisan feelings of rancor; he is inciting hatred; he is inciting racism; he is using every tactic he can to make people as mad as he can make them, all for the
purpose of manipulating them for their support. He's Mr. Nice Guy while his thugs are in Alaska looking for dirt on Sarah Palin, hacking into her personal e-mail account while he runs race-baiting ads and lies about what he's done and lies about what Senator McCain has done. He's running a two-tier campaign. Chicago tactics behind the scenes, new politics imagery in front of the cameras, Barack Obama, a man whose mask has been removed. There can be no mistake who he
is now. There can be no conclusion other than he is just an average Chicago thug, typical liberal Democrat politician when you strip everything else away. [. . .] You know, we could call this The Phantom of Obama.

The mask is coming off, and the view is not pretty.

Bella on DVD

We unwrapped the dvd and popped it in the blu-ray...and lo and behold, at the very BEGINNING, prior to the gratuitous previews, there was a disclaimer indicating something to the effect that the director/actor commentary "expresses views not shared by Lionsgate Films" I have not had a chance to watch the film with the commentary on, but I am guessing the "views" in question have something to do with the director and lead actor's Catholicity and ardently proclaimed pro-life leanings. Anyone had a chance to check this out? I'll report back over the weekend.

Bella

If you haven't already...

Rent or buy this movie.

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My dear friend/Boy's godmother, the Princess and I watched it last night and were a weepy and smiling trio throughout. Wonderful, wonderful life-affirming film. After you get over how shockingly handsome the lead actor, Eduardo Versategui, is...then do a little research on him, his background ("the Brad Pitt of Mexico") and his conversion.

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Awesome.

(Interview here)

Movie moment

Just sitting here rolling up a basket of mismatched socks when all of a sudden....




"Them sy-reens luv'd 'im up and turned him into a h-h-ho-horny toad!"

LOL!!!

Cranford

It arrived Wednesday, we watched the whole 5 hours yesterday, and I highly recommend it - especially on a rainy AND sick day. :)
There's a panoply of Britain's best actors, all of whom turn in excellent performances. It's more than just a period piece - beneath the Jane Austen-emulating plots of Elizabeth Gaskell (who wrote her novels starting about 40 years post-Jane), there's some serious examination of the coming Industrial Revolution (North and South did that best) and the decline of the rigid class system that came along with it. She did, after all, have her serial pieces published by her mentor, Charles Dickens...
Oh, and guys, my very manly beloved laughed out loud at various points. He was on the couch under blankies and under the influence of Theraflu, true, but he was a trooper and watched most of it with us girls. As he puts it, "it's always good to study the enemy and get to know how their minds work."

Cinematical sick days

Here's what we've watched so far (in case it is not clear from what follows, the 14 year old is sick, too) since the plague struck on Saturday:

1. Atonement. Heard great things, was told I'd love it, right up my alley, etc., so I bought it without reading anything spoilerish.

SUCKED.

Note to self and others: the "happiest person" does not like getting her guts kicked in at the movies especially when at home with a fever and sore throat.

MAJOR SUCKFESTIVAL after the first 15-20 minutes, and use of the dreaded c-word came needlessly and outta nowhere, horrifying all of us. Our Little Therese came in to say goodnight at just the wrong moment - she has no idea what "it" is, but knew by our shock and collective gasps that it was the worst of the worst and so she was outta there for the duration. We are not gilded lilies by any stretch (case-in-point: same word used in Bridget Jones, which we loved despite ourselves, made us laugh out loud in shock), but this was just not a necessary device - other such descriptive words would have made the same point.

2. The Tenant of Wildfell Hall. Let's face it, it's a lesser Bronte novel. You know it's gonna tend toward the gothic, and that's fine. Overall, had some longish periods of SUCK, but it turned out right at the end.

3. North and South (BBC Elizabeth Gaskell adaptation, not the John Jakes saga).

LOVE. This is a sick-day staple, all 5 hours of it or whatever. LOVE.

4. Sense and Sensibility. (Emma Thompson/Kate Winslett/Hugh Grant)

LOVE LOTS. Unbelievably, we've had this on VHS forever and the kid had not seen it, or didn't remember it. I laughed watching her cry. :)

5. Pride & Prejudice. BBC and Kiera Knightley/Matthew MacFadyen versions. Again, sick staples. LOVE, LOVE, LOVE!!! (Even the new one, despite its many Austen-canon departures).

6. The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe. GOOD. Getting everyone ready to see Prince Caspian.

Finally....if any men are left reading this....the beloved was struck down in the night, too, so to appease him this morning:

7. Tombstone. Oh yeah.

"I'm yuh Huckleberry..." <-- Still not quite sure what that means,* but LOVE this one. Lots. 14 year old was a bit queasy over all the blood and gore (she was forewarned), 10 year old at school, baby laying down on floor in the next room surrounded by toys, covered in snot and a box of kleenex he managed to savage while no one was looking...Daddy in the grips of Theraflu and fever croaking out his approval of every single thing Val Kilmer and Kurt Russell said and did....AWESOME.


Now I must go make the tea and see if our latest movie-miniseries kill, Cranford, has arrived...


*UPDATE: Ok, I had to know, so here's the explanation from "World Wide Words":

To be one’s huckleberry — usually as the phrase "I’m your huckleberry" — is to be just the right person for a given job, or a willing executor of some commission.

Ohhhhhh yeah. Val Kilmer was just the right person for that role. LOVE LOVE LOVED him in this one!!!

5 Critically Named Movies I Detest Meme

From Karen...and here you go!

1. Schindler's List - Wanted to shoot myself to get it overwith. No, I am not an anti-Semite or Holocaust denier. I just don't like being so heavy-handedly delivered a message, emotionally manipulated by a little girl in a pink dress, and all that. I get it. I always have. It makes me sick. Interestingly, the beloved ran out in the middle of this one and got terribly sick - I was shocked at the thought of him being overwrought and sat there trying to decide if I should go check on him, but it turned out to be bad shrimp cocktail.

2. 2001: A Space Odyssey. I'm with you Karen - blech!

3. Bringing Up Baby - I love Katharine, I just found her whiny-wacky schtick to be a bit much

4. Saving Private Ryan - Like Schindler's List, I don't need to be beaten over the head with survivor's guilt, and then there's the gore factor in the opening scene, the stabbing scene...just too much. Sure, good filmmaking, whatever, but not for me.

5. Pulp Fiction - I just flat out missed the point of this one - HATED it.

TAG: MOTL, Adrienne, WSNS, AA, and of course...MA!

So Dear To My Heart

Just found this old VHS tape in the attic...this is a wonderful and hard-to-find old Disney movie - you can get the DVD on Amazon from 3rd parties, which I am doing today. It's a mixed live-animation movie about a boy raising a black sheep set at the turn of the century, rural Ohio - with strong Christian themes. The opening theme song (written by Mel Torme) and anmiation of old-fashioned postcards and Victorian decoupage revealing the credits alone is masterful. Highly recommended by Kit & Kittens!