Some of My Favorite Summertime DVDs!

I was going to assemble this post soon.  However, I'm going to be very busy over the weekend and unable to write blog posts.  What better time to leave this with you now!  I'll be back live and in person (so to speak) sometime next week.

I admit that Summer is when I tend to watch more DVDs than usual.  The heat and humidity can do me in quickly.  Air conditioning is my friend and I stay indoors a lot. While these are favorite movies all year round, they just remind me of Summer for some reason.

I also do my own "Christmas in July" week later in the month, closer to my birthday.  By that time I'm really tired of humidity.  I'll share more about it in a week or two.  These are in order of when I thought of them, not necessarily by favorites.  I guess you could say all of them are a favorite from time to time.

Some Favorite Videos

You may be familiar with the Love Finds You books.  They are written by various authors and some are great and others... not so much.  These first two movies were originally on the UP Channel and we enjoyed them so much, my husband asked for them as Christmas gifts!  Both are very family friendly.

Love Finds You in Sugarcreek is about a professional baseball player who is traveling with his young son to escape the paparazzi.  He ends up staying with the most adorable Amish sisters whose niece (a police officer) has doubts about this man with apparently no past.  Yes, they end up falling for each other but the story is very enjoyable and while not a comedy, it is at times quite amusing.

Further info... here.

Love Finds You in Charm is about a young Amish woman who loves Jane Austin books.  She is having second thoughts about joining the church and often dreams of what life would be like as an English woman.  When she travels to Charm, Ohio to help her widowed cousin, she gets a chance to live that dream one evening.  It is a good story about how what we often want most is right at home.  The Autumn beauty of this part of Ohio will cool you off.

Further info... here.

Saving Sarah Cain is based on the book by Beverly Lewis.  I saw it on... of all places... Lifetime Movie channel.  Sarah Cain is a successful professional woman who finds that her sister, who became Amish when she married, has left her children for her to raise when she passed away.  This story line is much more complex than the first two movies but there is a reason it is a favorite among many of Lewis's fans. 

Further info... here.

Finding Normal stars Candace Cameron Bure and it was also a TV movie but I can't recall what channel.  It does play now on UP TV once in awhile. Bure plays an LA doctor driving to Long Island to join her boyfriend, who is also a doctor to wealthy people.  She gets pulled over for speeding in Normal, North Carolina and has to perform community service as a general practitioner for a few days.

This is a movie about gaining faith in God and learning that the simple things of life are better than riches.  Yes, it is cheesy but very, very enjoyable and family friendly.  Perhaps my husband's favorite TV movie.

Further info... here.

The next two DVDs are from the 1960s, one was a favorite of mine and the other a favorite of my husband.  Although we like both of them.  There are some movies I say could never be made again in the same way for society has changed so much.  These are two of them.

Man's Favorite Sport? with Rock Hudson and Paula Prentiss.  Hudson plays a fishing expert who has actually never fished.  Everything he knows is from books.  Prentiss is the woman who pushes his boss to sign him up for a fishing contest, not knowing that he does not actually fish.  The chemistry between these two makes for  a very funny story. 

The fact it was made in a more innocent time is why I say it could not be made today.  In one scene, she has fallen asleep in his cabin after taking a sleeping pill and people are shocked when they find her there the next morning, even when he explains what happened.  Not in today's society.  Nothing terrible in it but probably not a family movie.

Further info... here.

Father Goose starring Cary Grand and Leslie Caron is another comedy from the 60s, one of my husband's favorites.  It is family friendly even though a romance evolves, the worst scenes is when he was umm... inebriated in the beginning.

Grant's character is assigned (unwillingly) to an island during WWII to watch for enemy planes flying over.  Caron's character is a school teacher who ends up on the island with a group of her schoolgirls after a shipwreck.  The results are great fun.

Further info... here.

I've mentioned the Wilderness Family trilogy before but it is 1970s movie fun.  My family loved these movies and enjoyed the escapism as well as making fun of the writing once in awhile. I knew a woman when I lived in Michigan who saw this as a teenager and it always made her want to be a homesteader. 

Kind of cheesy but in a good way, it is also about a family who cares about each other and the scenery is a star of all three shows.  I have come to realize it is good to have our kids watch some of these older movies because they were so much more innocent than what is produced today.  I find some young people so jaded that they can't enjoy the older movies.  Sad.

Further info... here.

Miss Potter... what can I say.  It is lovely.  Just lovely.  I thought it amusing when my daughter told me the first time she saw the movie, she thought immediately of me.  I do have a habit of naming and talking to inanimate objects.  Maybe I shouldn't admit that outside of the family?

Further info... here.

Christy is a series I enjoyed and like many people, was rather bummed when it was cancelled.  However, I can watch it when I want on DVD.  Somehow the story lines from the Blue Ridge Mountains cool me down in hot weather.  ;)

Further Info... here.

Rosemary & Thyme is a mystery series from Great Britain that revolves around gardens.  Who wouldn't love to watch that in Summer, especially those of us who love mysteries.  It stars two of my favorite British actresses, Felicity Kendall (Good Neighbors) and Pam Ferris (Call the Midwife).

Season One Info... here.

Haley Mills movies... I must admit, I do not own any of these DVDS but they are long time favorites.  The original Parent Trap is a movie we loved! To me it seemed Haley Mills was summer fun watching.  A few favorites were:

The Moon-Spinners
Further info... here.

The Parent Trap (I and II both star Haley Mills)
Further info... here.  (Unfortunately, it is only for Prime members, which I am not)

In Search of the Castaways
Further info... here.

Summer Magic 
Further info... here.

That Darn Cat
Further info... here.


That's probably more than enough ideas for now!  See you next week.

Disclaimer:  Most links to Amazon.com are Associate links.  Some of these movies may be available at your library.  Both Christy and Rosemary and Thyme have gone way up in price while many others have gone down in price.

Dolphin Tale, a movie

I have a soft spot in my heart for my friend Sally Clarkson's son, Nathan.  Although we've never met, his "out of the box" thinking led him to studying in New York and then onto Hollywood while my "out of the box" son became a computer scientist and creates apps for smart phones (while still in college).

Both of them have overcome obstacles as they are on that journey for which God created them.  So, it brings me great joy to help Nathan even if doing my humble little part to encourage all of you to see the movie, Dolphin Tale.

I'll be giving you more links after the preview but I can tell you this... after watching the preview I know I want to go see it (and I usually wait for movies to come out on DVD).  :)

Let's show Hollywood Christians in general and homeschoolers in particular love this kind of a great family movie.  The links below will provide further information.  Let's support Nathan and good family movies.

Sally's blog post about Nathan and his dreams... here.
Homeschool Movie Club's webpage... here.

Special information for homeschoolers:
Dolphin Tale's Facebook Homeschool Day... here.

Return to Cranford

The sequel to the lovely film, Cranford, begins this evening on American PBS stations.

It is available to view online only from January 10 through February 16... here.

Christmas reading and watching

I am sitting here typing away by the light of the tree while The Bishop's Wife is playing on the old Sony TV. I love old movies. They show us a reflection of the culture that was while we live in... that which is.

My theology assures me God places His people in time and space and in the years in which He wants them to live. I also know there was no perfection in the past... but times were different. I cringe at modern television as my senses are assaulted by the unexpected, which definitely becomes more defiled each year.

Recently Christopher and I were watching Father Goose (another Cary Grant favorite)... well, he was watching as I was cooking in the kitchen. He remarked how that film couldn't be made today due to the changes in attitudes toward women. I told him there were a lot of old films which would not make sense today.

One of my favorite films is Three Coins In a Fountain and I've often thought if it were made today, it would be completely different than the original for that reason... the changes in society. I'm certain my Casablanca would not be nearly as innocent and endearing and I wonder if the ending would be the same for giving up one's own happiness for that of one's country (much yet, another country) is rare these days.

This is a reason I love being at home, in the light of the Christmas tree. Within the four walls of our sanctuary, we can create a world that is not perfect... but more like what we would want life to be. It is different with each one of us but for me sanctuary is provided in many ways... not the least of these are the bookshelves filled with beloved volumes as well as those friends I hope to make. I developed a love for British novels about ten years ago and finding a favorite author at library sales is a much anticipated joy.

I did not grow up with fine china and silver serving pieces but I've always found them beautiful. I would open the pages of Victoria each month in the 1990's and peruse the lovely pages. Little by little I developed a style all my own combining my love for "country" with English Refinement... which I later came to realize as English Country.

Just because I was not raised in refinement, did not mean I could not create an atmosphere in my own home... with more patience than money. The most I ever paid for a silver piece was $25.00 for the complete silver service and tray long ago at an antique mall. It was tarnished but polished up just fine. My cheapest... $1.00 for a pair of beautiful silver plated Paul Revere candlesticks, purchased at a garage sale because an elderly lady decided she didn't want to polish it. :)

Just this past week I brought two Christmas DVDs home from the library and yesterday my husband and I watched our favorite Good Neighbors Christmas episode. Later I curled up with another British TV show. How wonderful are videos, DVDs, and library lending. Since I must be "in town", anyway... the trip to the library didn't even call for extra gas being used in the car.

We plan an evening of watching White Christmas very soon. Some of my favorite Christmas movies are silly but I still love them, especially Smoky Mountain Christmas with Dolly Parton. Our favorite scene is with the late John Ritter. It is on TV tonight and I'm already planning on making sugar free hot chocolate and popping some popcorn. :)

I almost finished the Elizabeth Goudge Christmas book before it had to be returned to the library. It was delightful. In the past I have enjoyed the Miss Read Christmas volumes, too. I think my favorite Christmas novel is Jan Karon's Shepherd's Abiding. One need not have read the other books in the Mitford series to enjoy this story. I can hardly believe an entire year has gone by since I read White Christmas Pie by Wanda Brunstetter. It was enjoyable and light reading, just what I needed at the time.

I'm half way through Phyllis Tickle's little book called What the Land Already Knows; Winter's Sacred Days. It is being used as my devotional reading at the moment. With my Amazon credit this month, I ordered a couple books which cost about a dollar from used book sellers (the postage was much more). The book which has already arrived is The Beautiful Ache; Finding the God Who Satisfies When Life Does Not by Leigh McLeroy. I remember reading about it on another blog long ago because the title sounded intriguing. It is now on the stack of books to be read on the coffee table.

Sigh... dishes are soaking in hot, soapy water and the buzzer on the dryer just sounded. Tonight I will watch a movie and read a book but in the meantime... miles to go before I sleep. :)

Julie & Julia... a warning!

I had something else to write about today but after walking through Border's Sunday afternoon and seeing the book Julie & Julia everywhere (because of the movie), I had to write this warning today. I've never given a book warning before! I don't remember reading another book that was such a letdown.

It is the only book I have ever given a "1" to as an Amazon reviewer and I made certain to give it a review when the new mass market version came out. I did find it amusing to read through other reviewers comments and find a few who said the only reason someone would give it a bad review is because they were right winged Republicans. Sheesh...

Now, I understand this is based on a really charming and cute idea, that is why I brought the book home from the library in the first place when it came out. I was shocked! Do not let your young ladies near this book. It is full of vile language and while part of the book is about cooking Julia's recipes, much of it is about this woman and her perspective on life... defiling to say the least.

I have found it interesting to have it recommended on a couple blogs I usually enjoy. I don't know if it is a generational thing but I find vulgar talk with the effe word thrown in here and there not to be enjoyable (and what it has to do with cooking one's way through The French Chef is beyond me).

That is what this author is like. I stopped reading it after the third or fourth chapter because I felt I had to wash my hands as well as my brain. Ugh... If you find you must check out the book, do that... check it out of the library and don't spend good money for it. Was I ever glad I had only checked it out and could give it back. Just make certain once again your young ladies don't check it out.

I enjoyed Julia's biography, My Life In France. It is always interesting to me how seemingly small decisions in our life can change its' entire direction. It is also the story of a woman who found love just a little later in life and the romance she and her husband had throughout their many years together. Child was not conservative in her beliefs but she was always regal, kind, and a great lady.

If you want to read an excellent autobiography by another of my favorite chefs, I highly recommend The Apprentice: My Life in the Kitchen by Jacques Pepin. He is just as much a gentleman as Julia was a lady. His story is also fascinating from his childhood in WWII France through being part of the early beginnings of the renaissance of fine cooking here in the United States.

Mental health day

I truly was chilled yesterday and with such cold, damp weather outside, it was perfect for a mental health day. In my former life, back when I was that person in suits and heels, I had a boss who believed greatly in mental health days.

No one had to call in pretending to be sick when they were burned out and barely hanging on, for he knew corporations could use you up and wring you out to dry. We just had to call and tell him we were taking a mental health day.

That's what I did yesterday. I finished the gotta do housework early in the day and since we had leftovers in the refrigerator and the cookie jar was full, there was no cooking or baking one had to do after lunch. Except when the decision was made to turn on the oven to bake a dozen or so potatoes and warm the room at the same time. :)

I opted for decaf coffee and a cowboy cookie for a snack while losing myself in Cranfield. At first I felt absolutely slothful for spending an entire weekday afternoon in Old England but quite soon guilt had been replaced by the enjoyment of the movie. I must return it to the library tomorrow but it had the affect I needed yesterday... an inexpensive (well, free as it came from the library) and fun mental vacation.

The little vacation worked as I felt relaxed and refreshed.

My husband spent the day making an excel spread sheet of food banks and relief agencies in the area. You must understand, that makes former engineers happy. They must have the whole picture in front of them in a logical format. I prefer a list but that is but one difference between we literary types and those who studied... math.

He was up early this morning to stand in line at the first of three food pantries open today. I much preferred shopping my own pantry as these tend to rely on high starch "poor people" food as well as dented cans and old bread. There are good things, too. I am thankful they are there for that time when one's own pantry is looking more like Mother Hubbard. We are blessed there are people, churches, and organizations that care.

However, it has strengthened my resolve to preach the "stocking up the pantry" message even further. I'll work the remainder of this week to get that sidebar of good links started and slowly add to them as I do research. I will also get caught up on e-mails. That is, when hubby isn't working on another excel spread sheet. :)

In the meantime, this is a great post about living through the Great Depression on Dry Creek Chronicles.

Photo: After Hours by Janet Kruskamp; allposters.com (the spitting image of my Storm Girl)

Wives and Daughters and my daughter

Stephanie told me I'd love it, as did many of you.

Someday I must own it to watch over and over... a beautiful British Flick!

Speaking of all things British... Stephanie received such a lovely gift from Sarah Clarkson. She sent "London In a Box". You can see it on Steph's blog.

A quick check in this evening

I know I wrote a post already today. Well, I copied a post from last year but that counts doesn't it? :)

However, I've forgotten to tell you that the flu symptoms are better but they still "come and go". It seems that is the way "the flu" often hits me. I'll be really sick one day and then for a few days I can be miserable and just fine and back to miserable all in the same twenty-four hours! That's the way I was today. I had the real stuff once, full blown influenza. It was when Christopher was a baby. I thought I was dying and didn't care if I did. When a new mama feels like that, you know you're sick. So I won't complain about having ordinary "flu".

I checked Elizabethtown out of the library a few days ago and spent the afternoon cuddled in the big Lazy Boy chair watching it. I've been wanting to see it because my Mom's "people" are from E-town and surrounding area. I was curious as to how that beautiful part of the world was portrayed. Well, it isn't a family film (a couple uses of the effe word and some innuendos and one scene of a non married couple waking up together). It's rated PG 13 and is very mild compared to a lot of other similar movies (I've heard just as bad language in the workplace, unfortunately).

At first the movie was confusing and I wasn't certain just where it was going. However, by the end of the movie I really liked it. We decided it is definitely one of those movies you'll like better in subsequent viewings because it can be very confusing until you reach the end (and perhaps for some people, even then). I have read mixed reviews but I think I liked it so much because I can relate to in my own family and having (years ago) come to the conclusion that going after the corporate golden ring is not what life is all about. You'll either love all the music or you will hate it. I want the soundtrack.

My cookies I made yesterday didn't turn out very well. I shouldn't try to bake when I feel like death warmed over as I neglected to add a very important ingredient. The candy (Homemade Mounds... a Beverly Nye recipe on my Recipe Blog and somewhere in this blog) is always a wonderful recipe. I made half of it almond flavored and the other half mint (by removing half of it before adding extract, then mixing the remainder with a different extract when the bowl was empty). The almond flavor was made into small balls and the mint was formed into small but flat discs, then frozen on three plates for about half an hour (timer set so I wouldn't forget) and poured into freezer bags. I'll dip them in chocolate coating on Saturday after defrosting. This is a great candy recipe for kids!

I was going through the notebook where I write the title of all books I've read throughout the year. I can tell I started working part-time in August, the number of books read fell substantially. However, once the colder weather is upon us (as it is now) then I spend most evenings curled up with my books. I still miss my furry best friend and I tear up each time I think of her, for she was there with me each evening for nearly seventeen years. I know anyone who has been blessed to have a dear furry friend understands (as do those whose friends displayed beautiful feathers... or gills... well, it is possible).

Thank you so much for your comments and e-mails. I just wish I could have tea with each of you, discussing great books... kids... gardens... theology (no arguing, of course)... art... history... and all kinds of wonderful ideas.

A lovely movie!

I must admit to being quite groggy today due to a very late night (morning?). It is already afternoon and I'm planning on brewing another pot of strong coffee when I finish my work at the computer.

I had put North & South on hold at the library, thanks to a recommendation by Lady Lydia. I picked it up the same day my daughter arrived to visit.

Finally...yesterday evening...after the kids were in bed...we put the first DVD in, thinking we would watch half of it during the evening yesterday and half tonight...uh huh.

We were glued to the TV the entire first disc. We looked at each other and asked what it would hurt if we watched one more episode. Then we figured...what the hey, we've already stayed up way too late...and watched the rest.

I have to say, North & South will definitely go down as one of my all time favorite movies. I don't know why I hadn't heard of it before. It will definitely be on my "purchase" list. I thought it was going to be a nice romance but it reminded me a lot of Amazing Grace, in the sense it puts you in the middle of urgent social concerns as they are happening.

I especially love having a strong female character who remains quite feminine and polite, while being forceful about the need for social change. This woman has character as well as intelligence. The lead male character is a Mr. Darcey type, need I say more?

Rent or purchase the movie, brew some tea, set out some cookies...and enjoy. This is a movie the men in your life will enjoy, too.


For an excellent review, read this by Lady Lydia on the LAF website.

My husband's happy birthday day

Well, I'm now married to a sixty year old man...impossible! That's what one gets when one marries an older man. Just as I'm getting used to turning a new "decade"...he turns the next. We met just days after I graduated from high school, I think I was still seventeen (at least for a few weeks as I have a July birthday).

He had dropped a class while an undergrad and found out he was being drafted (you had to take a certain amount of classes back then to stay out of the draft and he didn't even consider that). So...he enlisted instead and spent a couple tours of duty in Viet Nam. I'm sure our children are happy he dropped that class.

By the time we met, he had survived the war and returned to college to finish his undergrad degree and was beginning his Master's. He was a twenty-five year old grad student, a friend of some of the guys I knew in the Jesus People style coffee house where I "worked" in ministry on weekends. We became very good friends during that time. Later we realized we realized God was leading us towards marriage. We wed days after I turned twenty...he had already been twenty-seven for quite awhile. I guess it's working, having been married thirty-two years now.

In our family, we don't spend a lot on birthday presents as such. Instead the person becomes king or queen for the day. So...for his birthday, he received oatmeal for breakfast (no kidding, that's what he requested), an oatmeal cake ( do we see a pattern here, isn't it Bert on Sesame Street that loves oatmeal, too), he got to attend his favorite college team's skirmish on campus, he and I had a late lunch at his favorite root beer drive-in and we didn't even think of the nitrates in the cony dogs, and this evening the three of us are having a homemade meal of roast beef and mushroom gravy, mashed potatoes, and salad (along with that oatmeal cake). He received a wonderfully sappy card from his "little girl" as well as other birthday wishes from family and friends...it has been a good day. My birthday present is to help him do some lawn work soon.

While he was at the football game, I drove to the county library to pick up a book I had on hold. I can hardly WAIT to read the new Laura Childs' Tea Shop Mystery called Dragonwell Dead. I love that series of books. I had recently put it on hold from my home computer and I had an e-mail from the library saying it was in this morning...isn't technology grand?

While at the library, I looked for the January edition of Country Living, which has an article by Alexandra Stoddard (found it...checked it out) as well as last month's issue which has an article about collecting wire chickens (it was already checked out). I spent some time perusing the DVDs and brought home Ladies in Lavender, Rosemary & Thyme's first two episodes, and a DVD called Summer's Lease Volumes 1 & 2 (with John Gielgud as the star)...I haven't heard about it but it looks lovely...we'll see.

Now it's time to do that lawn work which I promised my husband. If I help pick up all of the branches fallen from trees and other "stuff" on our lawn, he can run the lawnmower early this evening. It's almost 80 degrees here today, hard to believe it snowed all day last Saturday!

More thoughts on Amazing Grace

Like a good book, the sign of a great movie is when one keeps pondering it long after the credits have finished rolling. Such has been the case with Amazing Grace.

I have to admit, I cried a couple of times (okay, more than a couple) in the movie theater yesterday. Tears of joy as well as sadness. However, there was one particular time when I felt tears come to my eyes because of something purely selfish.

As I watched the amazing story of Wilberforce and his friends, it made me realize how little of my original goals I'd made for my life actually came to pass. Coming to Christ during the Jesus Movement and the very atmosphere of the late 60s/early 70s...one always believed they would change the world. There was a joke among us back then, we'd say around lunch time that we still had enough daylight left to solve world hunger. Okay, remember...we were young. :)

Had I "missed it"? Had I let the years of personal turmoil and trials get in the way of "doing something for God"? Not that I hadn't been a witness at work, taught Bible studies and Sunday School, etc...but, nothing "big" for God. Instead I had married young (days after I turned twenty), had kids, worked full time and part time, homeschooled, been active in church, no longer active in church, days followed days and years followed years.

Then...while watching the movie...God reminded me of a conversation I had that morning with a three year old (almost four, Grammie!). He's just the cutest thing, asking if I'm going to be sending him more books soon. Then hearing about little Faith (not two until the Summer) and how she bowed her head while saying grace and shouted a hearty Amen! (I'm certain Miss E. is just as wonderful but I hadn't talked to her that morning.) There was talk about the new grandson who will make his entrance within weeks.

I also thought of a conversation I'd had with my son just the night before. How he's concerned about a couple of his Christian friends. He told me how grateful he was about the way we presented the Christian life to him. He said we'd never made Christianity all about rules or regulations but we'd showed him the road to walk where he'd have his own relationship with Christ...the Person. (Sniff...sniff) He felt the trials we've gone through actually led him into a real relationship with Christ rather than just knowing about Him from sermons and such.

I've been told numerous times, by my husband and family members, that my husband wouldn't be alive today if it weren't for me. As I've mentioned before, the physical illness he has had since before we were married affects him emotionally and mentally. There have been times he has been in the depth of depression. If I hadn't been there, he most likely would have taken his own life. In the midst of darkness...I would remind him of the true Light...to hang on...it's not Heaven, yet. Not perfectly mind you, there were also the times I stomped my feet and shouted at everyone (husband, kids, God especially) that this is not what I had signed up for, thank you very much. However, most of the time I think His Spirit came through and brought about calm in the midst of turmoil. It's just those days when one has had it up to HERE...well, you know those days...

I remember a pastor telling us once that as he was thinking of his life, he heard God "whisper" (that still, small Voice)..."What if it's not about you?" As he thought of that question, he realized it may not be up to him to change the world. It may be his children or someone listening to his sermons...he may be only the person that teaches the person...who influences a world for Christ in a big way. At the same time, he probably influenced people much more than he ever imagined.

I've been pondering these things in my heart, running them across the images in my mind, ever since watching the movie. Wilberforce didn't do it on his own, God provided him with friends (as in one who became Prime Minister), compatriots, mentors (I'm sure John Newton didn't realize we'd be talking about him in the 21st Century), a supportive and wise wife, family...all of whom made it possible for him to do great things for God.

I'm glad that in the early days of my faith, I had big dreams. God gives the young vision for a reason. I'm also glad He sent me to the writings of Edith Schaeffer, Elisabeth Elliot, Anne Ortlund, and other wise women who helped me understand that great things are found in small acts of service and love...giving water in a dry land...to family and friends. A good thing...

Picture: "John Newton" speaking with "William Wilberforce"

Amazing Grace

I wasn't certain what to expect with Amazing Grace. All the reviews I read were good and my daughter liked it a great deal. I suppose I was reticent because I've long found Wilberforce to be a hero and I was cautious about how he would be portrayed.

Well, I needn't have been concerned. From the opening credits to the final scene, this movie is delicious. It's visually stunning and Wilberforce is portrayed both as a man and a hero. My daughter said it was inspiring and so it is. A great movie for teenagers to see, I might add.

I can't recommend it highly enough.

Sunday Afternoon Tea

Can you believe it is Sunday again already? This week has literally flown by. I was busy beginning with spring cleaning so I guess it is truly a fact...time goes fast when you're having fun. :)

I was wondering what to chat about this week when, in the midst of said cleaning, I sat down for awhile in front of the TV and found an old WWII movie playing. I knew exactly what subject would be great for Sunday Afternoon Tea...old movies.

I've written a lot about how much I love old movies. Casablanca is my all time favorite but there are many others that bring various emotions. I think I enjoy the old WWII and Korean War movies because the men remind me of my father and older brothers. That would be the age of many of them (for WWII had both very young as well as middle aged soldiers). I also enjoy the culture of that time, when honor, character, patriotism, bravery, etc. were still considered important.

My husband and I recently watched Three Coins In a Fountain again on one of the channels that plays old movies. While watching it, we talked about how such a movie could not be made in this day and age for the very culture it required no longer existed. It has been one of my favorites since I saw it as a teenager (most likely on TV since it was made the year I was born!). Yeah, it is THAT old... I love the romance of that movie, the scenes of Rome in the 1950s, and the happy ending.

I enjoy old John Wayne movies, too. I have Hatari on DVD and Hellfighters on video (I need to get it on DVD some day). I especially enjoy watching Hatari but my husband and I always talk about how much the actors are smoking all the time. No wonder so many of the old time movie stars developed lung cancer! Just the second hand smoke would kill you. Still, both movies are lots of fun.

I remember those wonderful old Biblical epics that were once made...The Robe, The Silver Chalice, Ben Hur, and many more which were top movies of the day back when people knew their Bible history. Some of them should be shown again soon as Easter approaches.

Now I have to admit that there are some remakes I actually like better than the old movies. As much as I like Audrey Hepburn and Humphrey Bogart, I prefer the newer version of Sabrina to the older one. Most of the time I like originals better. I know the past was far from perfect. (I couldn't imagine what it would be like to live in WWII when most of the known world was at war.) However, I miss the culture and morals of that day and they certainly knew how to make a good story.

I know I've only touched the surface here so as you are sipping your tea, please feel free to share if you agree on any of these (or disagree!), or if you have a favorite that isn't even mentioned here.

Amazing Grace

I have to send you HERE, due to my own background music.

Wow...thank to Mrs. Wilt from The Sparrow's Nest. I can't wait to see this movie.

A movie review from Lanier!

Lainer's Books is one of the first blogs I bookmarked when I began reading blogs last year. It is still one of my favorites, she is a very talented writer and I enjoy reading her journal very much. She's been busy and hasn't written much on this site lately so I was very happy to see a new post show up on Bloglines today.

She has a review of the movie Miss Potter, which is about Beatrix Potter's life. I'd been wondering what it was like. After reading her review, I have almost talked my husband into seeing it with me. (There is a reason why we have not been to the movies together in years and he goes with my son instead...guy flicks.)

Cleaning, baking and a vintage movie

I worked hard to get most of my housework and baking finished before 2:00 this afternoon. That is the time one of my favorite movies was playing on one of the "old movie channels". I did some decluttering, made pizza dough and put it in the refrigerator to slow rise and roll out this evening, started the dough for a loaf of whole wheat bread in my bread machine (to rise later and bake as I am typing right now), and I made six mini loaves of cranberry orange quick bread.

All of that so I could sit down at just the right time and hear Frank Sinatra singing "Three Coins In a Fountain" while the cameras are bringing just the best images of Rome circa 1954...sigh. They don't make them like that, anymore. The film couldn't be made today, the social structure that made the film so romantic doesn't exist. For instance, the secretaries at the American Embassy (or was it an American company?) are not allowed to date any Italians. Today an employer could be sued for such a demand.

The women...dressed in their beautiful, vintage dresses and wearing white gloves and hats are quite a contract to young American movie stars of today. Of course, at the time they were the height of fashion! It's just a beautiful movie. Even my husband stopped what he was doing and watched the movie again.

So now I must now return to the kitchen. The loaf of bread has baked, the oven temperature has been turned up to bake the homemade pizza so the aroma of garlic, green peppers, onion...will soon be throughout the house. Yum...

Casablanca kind of day

We have a rule in our house about Casablanca. It can only be watched on dreary days (rain, storm, snow or blizzard). It's just that kind of film. Only on such a day can you feel the mood of the picture. I've probably watched the movie at least a dozen times but it is still my favorite. There is so much complexity in the film. There are layers there yet to be discovered.

I was thinking of the movie today, even though I couldn't watch it (football games, need I say more?). What brought about such ponderings, other than the dreary day outside? Well, to be honest, it was the past week. It was one of those weeks when I kept thinking things would get better and they haven't. The good news I've been expecting hasn't arrived, yet. Faith is still required when I want to hold the results of faith in my hands. Waiting is not much fun.

In my own need for patience, I was thinking of the patience and perseverance of the people in Casablanca. Instead of looking at the story in Casablanca, I started a mental review of the story that led up to the scenes in Rick's club. War is all these people have known for a long time. They don't know that the end will come and our side wins. They are still at work for freedom. It is a movie about faith and love, commitment and not giving up. It's about doing the right thing, even when the right thing hurts. I'm not so sure such a movie would be made, anymore. Times are different. Society is different. You don't hear as much about honor and sacrifice anymore.

So I've pulled my DVD off the shelf and put it on top of my TV. I've checked the forecast and there's a chance of rain again later in the week. A perfect day for making tea, finding a soft pillow and throw, and stretching out on the sofa to watch my favorite movie. My own challenges are small in contrast to a world war and the threat to freedom everywhere and for that, I can be thankful.

My Precious

There's something nice about sharing literature and film with friends and family. They provide a common bond, a vocabulary known and understood only by the partakers of that particular book or film.

When I tell my daughter I have found a "kindred spirit", she knows exactly what I mean. Just as with Anne, kindred spirits are rare and dear. We talk of Narnia magic and when it is Winter and never Christmas (a very long trial).

We agree my son-in-law is a Mr. Darcy, which is fine because I like Mr. D. I've called my son a hobbit even though he is nearly six feet tall because he likes to eat many small meals throughout the day (as in, second breakfasts). My grandson is a hobbit because...well, he looks like a hobbit right now. He's three years old with curly dark hair and big feet. Need I say more.

Shared movies have the same affect. There are lines like "I'm shocked, I'm shocked" that we use often or "the usual suspects"...both from Casablanca. How often I have said the quote from Shadowlands when C. S. Lewis tells us, "We read to know we are not alone".

I can't go into a Starbucks without thinking of the scene from You've Got Mail where the Tom Hank's character is describing how we can know who we are just by ordering a coffee. I'm a Venti Pumpkin Spice Latte With Whipped Cream kinda' girl (unless it is evening when we add decaf or I can't button my skirt so low fat becomes part of the description).

However, perhaps no two words from prose, poetry or film is used as often in our home as...my precious. Lovers of Tolkien know, within those two words are a multitude of meanings. For instance, when my son was very ill with Mono, the thermometer was called "my precious". He kept it within a couple feet at all times. We never quite figured out why it brought him comfort but it did. His father's morning crossword puzzles and sports pages from the newspaper are his precious.

So...here is a picture of my precious. It's a thing of beauty, a piece of architecture which has stood proud in many kitchens through the years. If an object can make my heart sing, this one certainly does. As for family and friends, they will put up with me waxing poetic about my precious as long as I continue to use it to bless them.

The Beauty of The Return of the King

We finally finished watching The Return of the King on DVD tonight. I know, we purchased it long ago but I was waiting to read the book before watching this DVD. Since I have a stack of books to read for the upcoming co-op literature class, the James Herriot biography that has to be returned to the library and three Russian novels to skim for a Russian literature class for my son...I do not see TLOTR in my near future. Perhaps over the Christmas holidays. So we started watching it last Sunday and had to finish the second half this Sunday.

Sigh...I'm sorry I waited so long. Even with getting a headache from cringing at the battle scenes, it was still a beautiful film. I am a sceptic when it comes to putting books on film. This trilogy pulled me in right from the beginning of The Fellowship of the Ring and kept me going, albeit over a period of years. We discussed the possible theological implications as we watched the movie; the many Christ figures, the elves as angels, evil vs good, etc. Some day this Winter, when the snow is flying and we can't get out of our driveway, I'll declare a LOTR Film Day and have the pleasure of watching one right after the other. Kind of like our old Star Wars Thanksgivings...yes, we are Christians.