Category: Media Reviews

Posted on

The Blindside….

So I think I’m about 6 months late for a rave review about The Blindside. You know, the movie about adoption. The movie that got Sandra Bullock a Golden Globe and an Oscar for Best Actress. Ring a bell?

It wasn’t for lack of interest, but movies in the theaters are few and far between in these parts. When my friend mentioned she’d rented The Blindside, I was glad to hear it was on DVD, and even gladder when she let me borrow while she had it out from Blockbuster. So last Sunday BgK and I sat down and watched. And watched. And watched. (it’s a long movie)

And? We LOVED. Of course it’s a neat and tidy, made-for-the-silver-screen story. I’m sure a fly on the wall in the Touhy family saw more drama, tension and issues then you’d ever see in a 2 1/2 hr movie. But it captured some of what happens when an older child joins a family. It touches on some issues when that child is of a different race.  And I think it captured what a mother goes through when a child joins her family through adoption or really, in this case, guardianship. The dance to get to know each other, the small doubts that come and go, and the fierce protectiveness that comes from knowing you are a child’s best advocate, protector and source of love.

My favorite parts all involved Leigh Ann (Bullock’s character). I loved her yelling at the football coach. I loved her walking next to Michael, looking so small and yet such a source of strength and love. I loved her insisting on going to talk to Michael’s biological mother, letting her know that her son was OK, and that he still has a place in his heart for her. I loved her going to look for him when he takes off.

And I loved Michael calling her, toward the end of the movie, “Mama”. I can only imagine how the real Mrs. Touhy felt when the real Michael called her  that.

If you haven’t seen it yet–go rent it already. You’ll be glad you did : )

Posted on

Hallmark Mom E-vent

Tuesday morning, I dropped MAM off at the arranged childcare area (which was awesome int it’s own right) and met the group in the lobby. We started out at the Hallmark Visitors Center, and then continued onto the corporate offices. It was an interesting day, one of many topics and discussions.
  • It turns out that I am not the only one who loves to get handwritten cards in the mail, but am bad at sending them.
  • I am not the only one who ends up keeping cards waaayyy past the time I should have sent them, for silly reasons like missing a street number.
  • I am not the only one who wants to bring back handwriting in the age of the keyboard.
  • I am the only one, it turns out, who played “card store” as a child.
We had the opportunity to speak with designers and writers, and talked about the balance between social interaction online and social interaction in-person. We spent about 8 hours talking, talking and talking (taking a break only to munch on the tasty snacks and great KC bbq for lunch). I think we could have carried on the conversation for 8 more hours.
Here is a group shot at the very end of the day….from left to right: mommymandy, aordinarylife, adventuresinbabywearing, table4five, mooshinindy, 5minutesformom, designmom, mommygoggles, (back row): redsoxmommy, sweetnsassygirls, mommyneedscoffee, and me.

Thank you, Hallmark!
Posted on

Thursday Thirteen

If you have been sucked into the vortex that is Facebook, you may be stuck in a world of memes like I am. 25 things, the book lists, the bucket list, you name it, it can be a note in Facebook. I am all ab out the lists. Then I got to thinking that they would translate pretty easily into a Thursday Thirteen.

So here’s a list (my first of 2009, I believe) of 13 albums that I think fondly of. That hold distinct memories for me. That I memorized the words to, that I knew the order of the songs, that flood me with times and places that once were.

They are in no particular order.

1) Achtung Baby–U2*
2) Disinegration–the Cure*
3) 1999 –Prince*
4) The Reality Bites Soundtrack
5) Cracked Rearview–Hootie and the Blowfish
6) Grease-the Original Broadway Cast Album (first cassette I ever owned)
7) Rites of Passage–Indigo Girls
8) License to Ill–Beastie Boys*
9) Violator–Depeche Mode*
10) Violent Femmes–Violent Femmes
11) Red, Hot + Blue–an album of Cole Porter covers
12) Magical Mystery Tour–the Beatles*
13) Under the Table and Dreaming–Dave Matthews Band*

Now in putting this list together, I noticed a couple of things.
1) Not a single one was produced in this millenia. I’m ok with that. I enjoy music now, but don’t “get into it” like I once did.
2) All but about 2 of them I owned on cassette tape, not CD. Now I’ve had a CD player since 1991, but didn’t have a car with a CD player until 2004. What good is music if you can’t play it in the car???
3) In the case of the **, these albums aren’t necessarily my most favorite albums from these artists, they just happen to be the first album brought to my attention that then launched into an obsession of that band.

So 13 would be a large amount to leave in the comments section, but tell me–what are a couple of your favorite albums of all time??