witches and magic

I grew up in a bit of a conservative household. We dressed up for Halloween, but my mom wouldn’t ever let us be witches. Even when we were little and we watched Hocus Pocus, my mom thought that it wasn’t a good idea to dress up as the Sanderson Sisters. I wanted to be Sarah Jessica Parker’s character because she was blond and she was pretty. It didn’t matter though, because I was a chubby kid and as I said, we were forbidden from dressing as witches. I kind of left it alone after that, but then Harry Potter happened. First there were the books, then the movies, and then there was the lecture I sat in on at Oxford. An Oxford professor talking about witches? Sure!

My first attempt at dressing up as a witch was Halloween 2007 in Ukraine. I was a teacher and I wanted to throw my students a classic Halloween party. We bobbed for apples, ate Ukrainian donut shaped treats off strings, and danced to some happenin’ music. I dressed up a witch, partly because as an adult I had every right to do what I wanted and partly because I had a black shirt and skirt and making a cape wasn’t going to be very hard to do. I looked great…and scary. See?



Okay, so in this picture I don't look TOO scary, but still. I look dirty, right?

So yesterday, I went to watch the final Harry Potter movie with my friend, Chris. She dressed up as Professor Trelawney and quite frankly, she had the BEST costume in the whole place. I didn’t plan ahead so in about 45 minutes, I threw together a purple Rita Skeeter outfit. I was only missing the true ringlets in my hair and a quill. It was great.



This morning (or early afternoon), I am recovering from the midnight movie by lounging in my PJs, writing on my mac as I watch The Sorcerer’s Apprentice. It’s a great one. And again, it has that magic stuff. I love it! There’s something about magic and witches that I like more than all the vampires and werewolves that are so popular these days.

To be honest, as far as Sci-Fi/Fantasy goes, witches would always be my choice. My cousin loves the dragon stuff. My sister loves vampires and werewolves. My brother loves werewolves. I love witches and magic. I just do.

Dreams of pirates and the like

Bad dreams. Bleh! Who needs them? As a kid, I could sense when the bad dreams were coming on. To stop the haunts, I would tell my favorite teddy bear, Pinky, my fears. That only lasted so long. I realized as I got older that I had to clear my head in order to fall asleep. So I would. I would think out and write down every thought I had before I could fall asleep. Only when my mind was clear would sleep find me.

Last night, I read before going to bed. I’d skimmed and read short lists in the most recent issue of Entertainment Weekly. Johnny Depp is on the cover. There’s a whole spread about the Pirates movie coming out in a few weeks. I didn’t realize the Pirate would seep in before I fell asleep. But it did and I just woke up from quite an adventure. I wasn’t truly in danger. I mean, Blackbeard just chased me down some rickety stairs, but he really didn’t have a chance of catching me. I was a lot faster than him. The one thing I do find weird is that the tune from the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disneyland overshadowed the Dashboard Confessional song that woke me up. No need to hear about a stolen heart. Why not just sing, “Yo ho. Yo ho. A pirate’s life for me.”

Dancing in Movies

My sister, Shelli, was always into dance movies. Anytime a dance film came out when we were in high school, she’d want to watch it and she would. She was grounded for most of her senior year of high school. Thus, the two of us had many a movie night. Shelli and I would go to Safeway, pick up a four-cheese pizza and our favorite ice cream and walk over to Blockbuster to rent the old eighties dance movies she loved. It was our thing. And when our parents were out of town and we were left alone, instead of having parties, this was what we would do. I’m sure my nerdiness rubbed off on her. She’d always been the cool one (which explains the dance movies). But it was a good time. Now every time I watch a dance movie, I think of Shelli. Why wouldn’t I? It was our thing. Shelli lives a state away these days. We don’t get to spend a lot of time together and when we do, we’re usually surrounded by all of our family members. I’m sure some day, we’ll be ditched by the family and only Shelli and I will be lounging around on the couch together. But for some reason, I doubt we’ll pop in a dance movie.

Crap show of Sex and the City

I never understood why in the first movie, they put Stanford and Anthony together. It made no sense. And to have their wedding open the second movie was just ridiculous.

Let me start at the beginning. I’m not a first-timer. I’ve watched Sex and the City since early 2003. It had been almost over by then, I believe, but two girls from my English Lit classes at NNU thought I needed an education in HBO television. They loaned me their VHS tapes and rather than preparing for finals, I spent time watching Sex and the City. It was alright, I still had good grades, but more importantly, I met the likes of Carrie Bradshaw, Charlotte York, Miranda, and of course, crazy Samantha.

It was a good investment of my time. The show was all over the news, often referenced in People and forever on the lips of my English major friends.

Basically, I like the show. I REALLY like the show. And I’ll always be sad that Carrie ruined things with Aiden and also be glad that she ended up with Big, as Chris Noth is very attractive.

That said, Sex and the City 2 was a simply awful movie. It started out slow. I liked the wedding. It was cute and sweet and so over the top that I loved it, but it really had NOTHING to do with the rest of the movie. What was going on? Okay, so the two (very fun and sweet – at least Stanford was) gay guys were getting married. This is special. But then the movie moved on. We didn’t hear from either of the B-Rooms again. What? Why not?

And then Carrie starts getting mad at Big because of the TV. Really? The TV? So I know that people in relationships, girls especially, get mad about stupid things and mess things up by being ridiculous, but really? Getting up set about the TV? Come on, Carrie. Carrie had always been my favorite until she started complaining about the TV and trying to force Big to go out all the time.

And then the trip to Abu Dhabi. That was cool. That was the main story. Why were there so many mini stories before? For real: why? Aiden’s role was really minor, but the previews made it look much more prominent. And would I really want it to be prominent? Probably not. That might mean that Carrie would be cheating on Big or something. Not a good move! And then she kisses him. At least that’s all. For real.

I’m not trying to spoil the show or disagree with people who liked the movie, but really? It was awful. I’m glad I didn’t pay full price for my ticket. I would have been really upset about it.

All in all, I’d give this 2.75 stars out of five. It’s not quite to the three stars bit (meaning I like it) but I don’t dislike it either.

Fairy tale rebeliever

I don’t believe in fairy tales. Sure, I like to read the occasional story to my niece. And the Disney princess movies will always hold a special place in my heart, but for the most part, fairy tales cease to be real to me.

There is a story, however, that has recently filled an empty hole in my heart. The Princess and the Frog is by far the BEST Disney princess story of all time. Mulan doesn’t count as she isn’t a real princess, is she?

I used to love Sleeping Beauty best. Then I grew up and realized that Princess Aurora basically gets hurt and can only get made better when a prince comes to save her. Come on now, how realistic is that? Princes just don’t ride up on their white horses anymore, despite what Julia Roberts and Richard Gere pretend in Pretty Woman.

Okay, so I know I probably sound like a bitter old woman, but that’s not what I intend at all. This new frog movie has revitalized my faith in the whole love biz. Yep. Love stories may not always turn out the way we expect, kiss a frog and you find your prince, but they may turn out eventually, down by the Bayou. ☺

Oscar night

I really had intended to do some serious homework tonight. But then I realized that the Oscars were on TV. I’m watching them now.

It’s been years since I’ve been able to watch the Oscars on TV. The last time I saw them was probably back in high school. In college, I was always working Sunday nights. And in Ukraine, well, Ukers just don’t watch the Oscars. And then the rents didn’t have TV.

The tribute to horror movies made me realize how little I know about the genre. Sure, I finally watched Saw. And I’ve seen all versions of Scream and I know What You Did Last Summer. I still haven’t seen Psycho. Oh man, I’ve gotta get going! So many movies to see, so much other work to do in the meantime.

Quentin Tarantino looked pretty happy with the horror bit.

My eyes were glued to the screen when it came to the sound effects. How cool would it be to do that? I work in sound... at the radio station. Could I have a future at the Oscars? Um… it might be a long shot, but it’s still a pretty awesome idea.

Here are some of the things I have learned thus far during this night at home with the Oscars:
1. I need to finish school so I can have more time to go to the movies.
2. It would be beneficial for me to watch a bunch of John Hughes films.

Here are some of the movies I added to my “to see” mini journal I take with me everywhere:
1. Crazy Heart
2. The Hurt Locker
3. A Serious Man
4. Avatar
5. The Young Victoria
6. An Education’
7. Precious
8. Imaginarium by Doctor Parnassus

I agree about the ingenuity of Inglorious Basterds. I’ve been talking about it since I first went to see it. Oh man, I hope it gets its due.

Commercials during the Oscars can be pretty rockin’ too. There’s a new show coming to ABC. Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution. Hmm… sounds pretty great.

Note: Movies are powerful. There have been at least five times in the past hour and forty minutes watching this awards ceremony when I’ve started to cry or tear up. What can I say? I’m passionate about movies.

The dancing to the movie scores is pretty amazing. I’m really glad we humans are such fabulous and innovative people. I’m definitely a fan!

Happy Oscar watching to all!

R.I.P. Brittany Murphy

Brittany Murphy is gone. I can't believe it. She was so cute and funny.

I remember what a weirdo she was in Clueless. And I loved her in Little Black Book. Man, sadness.

Get the scoop.

Movie girl

Movies. I absolutely love movies. I think that going to a movie is one of my favorite things to do for fun. I suppose it has something to do with my family. That used to be what our family did together. We'd go to the movies for New Years or sometimes even on Christmas day.

Today, I went to see All About Steve with my best friend's mom. It was pretty good. I laughed so hard through the first half. It was so crazy and ridiculous. And then the movie's ending was just as it should have been. I'm probably not going to buy it, but I imagine netflixing it in the future.