Scrooge

I love this movie. I think I have three different versions of "The Christmas Carol" on DVDs around here- actually, four if you count that Mr. Magoo cartoon. This version runs just over an hour and twenty minutes and in my no account opinion, it is by far the best version out there.

The first time I saw this was many, many, many, years ago, in the darkness of my childhood bedroom. I must have been about ten at the time and while it may not have been Christmas eve, it was close. We had a small mini TV that somehow foolishly ended up in my room. I remember watching this late at night with the lights off and the sound turned way down. I don't remember if I was under the blankets while I watched it, but I feel like I should have been. It totally gave me the creeps. It still does. This movie was made for watching in a dark room, late at night. The sharp black and whites, and long, foreboding shadows are perfectly fitted to my idea of the era. There's a colorized version of this, but it doesn't interest me at all.


Nobody looks like a better Scrooge to me than Alastair Sim- from his sneering and arrogant greed at the beginning of the story, through his mounting fear and regret, and finally through his sorrow, joy and redemption at the end.

I'm fully aware that you can see the reflection of a stage hand in the mirror toward the end, but it would take more than that to ruin it for me. Enjoy.

Christmas Shopping

I miss shopping at Ames. Ames was a department store about five miles from our home. It was similar in style to a Target, but in my mind, it was somehow better. It had that "lived in" look. Ames was at one end of a plaza and a grocery store was at the other. Often, on Friday nights, we would stop either on our way to, or our way from, grocery shopping- with a side trip to the news stand that stood in between them. The local Ames store closed years ago when the entire chain went bankrupt. This happened despite a healthy subsidy provided by our family throughout those years. We shopped there all year long, but we shopped there a lot at Christmastime.

Not ours, but close.

I particularly miss Christmas shopping at Ames. I especially miss taking my kids there to pick out Christmas presents for their mom. This adventure usually took place at night, which for some reason, seemed to add to the excitement. We would all bundle up and pile into the freezing cold mini-van for the short, ten to fifteen minute drive. Along the way we would look at Christmas lights and listen to Christmas carols. When we arrived, we would head en masse into the brightly lit store and begin our search. Usually the kids would scour the toys first, studying each one, and dreaming about what they hoped they might get for Christmas. Eventually, we would wander over to the Jewelery and Women's Department.

Everything in those departments was scrutinized as well. Sometimes the perfect gift was found right away, but more often than not, it took a lot of searching to find just the right thing. Sometimes a large, sparkly broach would be selected. Sometimes it would be a necklace made of over-sized, brightly colored beads. Often the perfect gift would be a sweater- the more festive, the better. The best sweaters had scenes on them: dancing reindeer or Santas, Christmas trees with over-sized ornaments hanging from the branches and brightly wrapped presents underneath, fuzzy snowflakes of various sizes falling around a colorful village scene- each sweater reflected the joy of the holiday season in it's own subtle way.

Once everyone had picked out their gift, we would head to the front registers- the kids skipping and giggling as if they had just found some buried treasure and they were now struggling to keep it a secret- which in a way, I guess was true. From there, we would head back out to the freezing cold van to drive home- going "the scenic route" so we could take in more Christmas lights and Christmas music and talk about the perfect presents they had just picked out.

The best thing about the whole adventure was their excitement- not only in having found the perfect gift, but their excitement in wrapping their gifts, and putting those hidden treasures under the tree and then watching with pride as each of their presents were opened.

The whole adventure was a lot of fun- at least as much for me as it was for the kids. Probably more. Boy, I sure miss that store.

A New Family Tradition

For the first time in I don't know how long, the whole family was together last night. And since it is so close to Christmas, what better way to take advantage of  the time together than doing a little shopping and having a movie night!

So, Helaina, Rachael, Jake and I made a quick stop at the grocery store and then off to the liquor store to enjoy the bright lights and shiny bottles. Then it was back home, where we dimmed the lights and gathered around the TV to watch that feel-good holiday classic, "Drive".  Within minutes, we were all under the spell of that old Hollywood magic- where we were whisked off to a simpler, happier time- and strapped into that sentimental roller coaster some call "Love".

We laughed together. We cried together. And in the end, lessons were learned- lessons about love, about life... and about the true meaning of Christmas!

Yes, it's moments like these that really brings a family together.

Another Change of Pace

Dental Update

The sharp pain coming from my upper rear molar has now turned into a dull, throbbing ache. I'm taking this as a positive sign.

Things I Miss

I miss hearing violin music in the house.
I miss hearing trumpet music in the house.
And I wish I heard more singing around the house.

Mimi

When Jake was a toddler, his word for snowman was "mimi". I'm not sure what this has to do with anything, but it's another one of those things I think about.