Practically Perfect

For those of you who really know me, you know that my very best favorite movie of ALL time is Mary Poppins.  I started watching this when I was young and haven't stopped.  There's something about the magic of the movie that captures me all the time.  As children, my sister and I used to go to my grandmother's house a few times a week (Nonni Day) and we used to watch either Mary Poppins and/or The Sound of Music.  As soon as Mary Poppins went on, we would dance around the coffee table to the overture and I'm pretty sure we could recite the movie word for word.  I even convinced my husband one year to dress up with me for Halloween...

To this day, I still feel like a kid when I watch the movie (I own it, and yes, I'll watch it on TV even if there are commercials).  


For Christmas, my husband bought me tickets to see Mary Poppins on Broadway.  I had been wanting to see it for a while, and was so excited.  We went on Saturday to see it (which was perfect timing, as my sister's 30th birthday was the next day and we were able to celebrate with her).  


So what did I think of the play?  I liked it but was extremely disappointed at the same time.  Confused?  Yes, so was I.  I think that if I had not been so obsessed with the movie, I would have enjoyed the show more.  There were a lot of difference between the show and the movie that I hadn't been expecting and I couldn't help but sit in my seat and make the comparisons.


Some differences:


In the movie, you have Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke.  OK, OK, I realize they can't be in the Broadway show.  But I couldn't help compare those two main characters.  The woman who played Mary Poppins undoubtedly had a great voice, but I was surprised at how cold she played the character.  Bert was great, but while he is originally from England, his cockney accent was just a little TOO good (hahaha).


In the movie, you have Mrs. Brill and Ellen, the cook and housemaid, respectively.  In the show you have Mrs. Brill and Robertson Aye, the cook and very awkward, weird, face making butler who seems to just take up space on the stage.  I still don't understand his role.


In the movie, you have Jane and Michael, who are not bad children, but seem to give their nannies a run for their money.  In the show, the children are portrayed as really bad and naughty children, who scream and yell and throw a lot of tantrums.  I found it very surprising (although the kids did do a great job).


In the movie, you have a story line.  You truly understand why they have the adventures they have and it all makes sense.  In the show, I found myself confused as to why they were doing certain outings, why naked statues were coming to life and why Mrs. Corey was giving out "conversations."


There was no animated sequence, there was no laughing on the ceiling and there was blatant magic being performed on the stage (whereas in the movie, you know she's magic, but it seems a little more subtle - she doesn't actually raise her arms, wiggle her fingers and fly things around the room, does she??  I feel like the movie gives you that feeling - did that actually happen?  Or was it their imagination?).  Some of the songs are different and there are a number of songs that aren't in the movie at all.


However, with all of these differences, I enjoyed the show.  It was entertaining and the singing and dancing was definitely great.  The Step-In-Time sequence was definitely great.


When we got home, I did a little more research about the movie and the show.  I learned that Pamela Travers (the author of the Mary Poppins series) really didn't like the movie, and when she was approached about the show, she put certain stipulations in place.  Apparently she felt that the Walt Disney movie did no justice to her books, was overall disappointed with how they portrayed certain characters, hated the animated sequence, etc etc etc).  If you have the 40th anniversary DVD, the second disc has a lot of footage and even some recordings of her meetings with the movie makers.  It helped to put the play into perspective for me.


So....At the end of the day, I did enjoy the show.  I really did (even though it may not sound that way).  But it will never replace the magic of the movie, or how much I love it.  :o)

In the Christmas Spirit

I'm feeling very Christmas-y.  It's been hard to get into the spirit....It's been unseasonably warm lately (it was 61* today) and the fact that I can go outside without my coat on does make it seem surreal that Thanksgiving has past and we're getting ready for Christmas.  None the less, I've started playing Christmas Music in the car and Scott brought up the Christmas Tree and decorations yesterday.  I've started my Christmas Shopping, and I only have a few more things to buy!


Last week was the first time finally started watching some Christmas movies.  We saw A Christmas Carol last week, and I was pleasantly surprised.  I thought it was very well done.  Then, on Thursday, I watched Mickey's Christmas Carol and The Santa Clause.  In watching those movies, I'm trying to figure out what my favorite Christmas movie is...


When I was younger, I would watch Santa Claus, the Movie over and over and over.  I truly believed that was the real story of Santa, and to this day, I compare every Santa movie to it.  Essentially it's about how Santa becomes Santa, and then how in the 20th century the bad guy tries to take over Christmas, but Santa triumphs. I know it never got great reviews, and most people haven't heard of it, but I love it!!

Aside from Santa Claus, my other favorite Christmas movies are White Christmas, the Santa Clause and Muppet Christmas Carol.  


I'm also doing a cookie swap on Sunday.  That always gets me into the Christmas season!  I have no idea what I'm baking, but I'll be sure to update with what I baked!! :o)

25 Random Facts

Here are a number of facts about me, the first two (which I won't count to the 25) are that I stole this idea from that "25 Random Facts" of Facebook that went Viral in 2008/2009.  I'm going to try to state a number of things that I didn't say back then!

1. I have to go to Rochester on September 19-22 for Work.  I've never been to Rochester before.
2. I love baking.  I'm sure you've seen this from previous blog entries.
3. I'm not a fan of cleaning, but I can't stand my house to be dirty.  It always seems to be messy.....
4. My husband and I have gotten into bike riding.  I love it and wish I did it more often.
5. I live in a condo, and can't wait to move out.
6. I want to build a house on at least 1+ acres in Barrington.  I hope I'm able to do that one day.
7. I have a love-hate relationship with caffeine.  To little = headache, too much = headache.
8. I don't understand the fascination with the word "pasta."  Growing up, it was either macaroni or spaghetti.  Pasta was just if you made it by hand....
9. I watched "Inglourious Basterds" the other day for the first time.  I loved it, and will definitely watch it again.
10. I love all movies made by Mel Brooks.
11. I tore my PCL 5 months before my wedding (on Christmas Eve).  It still hurts when I try to run.
12. My sister is getting married in June and I am the MOH.  Techinically I'm the "Matron" of Honor.  I hate the word Matron...It sounds so old.
13. I am newly obsessed with the 2004 Movie "The Phantom of the Opera."  I saw it at PPAC in Middle School, and it scared the crap out of me.  I have a new found love for the music.
14. I love dirty Martinis.  With 3 olives. 
15. I went to the ENT because I've been having a lot of issues with my ears.  Apparently I have arthritis in my jaw and it affects my ears.  I can't eat bagels or chew gum.
16. I don't like being taken advantage of, and I don't like being lied to.  
17. Hockey is my favorite sport.  Football is my second favorite.
18. I am transitioning into a new job.  I will soon be an individual contributor again.  I can't wait.
19. I get frustrated very easily.  I need to remember to take more big breaths.
20. We had a huge hurricane (Hurricane Irene) over the weekend that a lot of people didn't take seriously.  They actually reclassified it to a "Tropical Storm" but there are still areas that don't have power.
21. It should usually take me 45 minutes to drive to work.  Lately it's been taking almost an hour because of construction on Rte 44.  They're supposed to be doing this construction until Spring 2012.  JOY.
22. I have been trying to lose weight.  I have thus far lost 14 lbs on Weight Watchers.  I need to exercise more in order to boost the weight loss.  I get distracted easily.
23. I have more cookbooks than I know what to do with.  I hardly use any of them.
24. I have a facebook account, but I'm very upset with the new privacy settings.  You can now tag people in your posts and pictures, even if they're not your friends.  That doesn't seem very private to me!
25. I love Mexican Food.  And I love drinking Margaritas and Sangria with my Mexican Food.

The King's Speech

There's a guy I work with who has this way of getting movies from the Internet even if they're not out on DVD/BD yet....I don't know how he does it (I've asked him to tell me where he got the movies, but he was disinclined to acquiesce to my request).  Anyway, I'll occasionally ask him to find a movie for me.  I decided that since I love Colin Firth and that "The King's Speech" had won so many categories at the Oscars, that I would like to see it.  However, I would rather see it from the comfort of my own couch rather than at the movie theater.

So yesterday I had a pretty harrowing day at work.  I interviewed for a new job (same building/parent company) and while the interview was supposed to be from 2-5, it ended up being broken up throughout the day (11-11:45, 2-4:30) and it just made for a long day....Either way, I got home and was in a pretty crabby mood, so with the intention of making me feel better, my husband put on the movie (which has been sitting on the kitchen table since last week) and served me a shot-glass worth of vanilla ice cream (because that's all that was left).  Either way, my night got a lot better.

I assumed going into the movie that I was going to like it.  I like the cast quite a bit:  I love Colin Firth (no other explanation needed), I think Helena Bonham Carter is an amazing actress and has an amazing range and I also thing that Geoffry Rush is pretty awesome.  In any case, as I was watching the movie, I felt that it was an amazing story.  It was amazing seeing a grown man studder and stammer through public speaking, also amazing to see his brother make fun of him when he couldn't get a sentence out while he was upset.  I also got to see the love between a King and Queen, which I found interesting because I always ran off the assumption that for the most part, royalty was forced into arranged marriages (and learned that this is not entirely true).  I also learned about history and a very fun manner.  After the movie was over, I googled King George VI.  I was very interested to read that the biography and the movie was very much the same.  It wasn't one of those movies that really stretched out the truth.

I'm thinking that I may go home this afternoon and pop the movie in and watch it again (I think it's going to become one of those movies that I can re-watch a number of times.

It's the Pearl

Wednesday night....Nothing to do but think about my hectic day tomorrow (and the 5 meetings at 10:00am that I'm supposed to be in).  My husband and I met my mother-in-law for dinner tonight.  She treated us to dinner at Chardonnay's which is right over the RI border in Seekonk, MA.  It was pretty good.  If I wasn't trying to lose weight, I would have gotten Sangria and nachos, but alas, I had salad and chicken.

In any case, we're now home, lounging on the most comfortable reclining couch ever made.  There's not much on TV, so I suggested to watch a movie.  Tonight's movie of choice:  "Pirates of the Caribbean:  Curse of the Black Pearl."  I never saw this movie in the theater.  I find this fact somewhat absurd, seeing as I consider myself a Johnny Depp fan.  I remember my sister suggesting that I rent it, as she had seen it in the theater and really liked it.  Well, since then, I've probably watched it a couple dozen times.  This was actually one of the first Blu Rays that we bought, as it was listed on the CNET's top 40 list.  It has been a very good purchase. 

If I had a chance to be in a pirate movie, I think I would be....Just for the fact that I could dress up as a pirate...Johnny Depp or not...Although, he is probably one of the coolest actors ever.  I don't think that Pirates of the Caribbean would have been this popular and successful without him....Or Edward Sisscorhands, or Alice in Wonderland, or What's Eating Gilbert Grape.  Obviously, there are a ridiculous number of movies that he's been in, but either way, he's one of a kind...

Movies Movies Movies

I absolutely love movies.  My favorite two movies as a Child were The Sound of Music and Mary Poppins.  It was hard for me to incorporate other movies into that "favorites" category....I used to love The Three Musketeers (you know, when Charlie Sheen was normal).  I have the widest variety of movies at home.  They include all sorts of things, from Clueless, to Pride and Prejudice.  From Austin Powers to Twilight.  From Iron Man to The Godfather Trilogy.  I have all of my DVDs stored at home in alphabetical order.  It makes me happy.

My husband and I bought a new TV on Black Friday, and it came with a Blu Ray Player....So we've been shopping sales and trying to build a collection of Blu Rays.

Our first attempts at buying Blu Rays was at Best Buy.  Not a bad store, but always expensive. A BD for $40 is somewhat of a turnoff, especially if you can find it at Target for $30....

Our next attempt at buying Blu Rays was at Ultimate Electronics.  I'm not sure if you know anything about this store, but they're in the process of going out of business.  Currently, if you happen to find a store near you, they probably have stuff on sale anywhere from 20-70% off.  However, if you look carefully enough, you'll see that everything is marked UP, and then on sale so that it's at the regular market price.  The average consumer may not know this.  My husband and I are huge on research and Consumer Reports, so it makes it easier for us.......In any case, while everything is marked up to be marked down, the BDs were actually priced regular, and then on sale.  Pretty decent buys.  So on the two different trips that we made to the store, we got a number of different movies.  Monsters, INC., American Psycho, Clerks, Amadeus (a fan favorite), The Alien Anthology, and many many more.  I think we bought about 15 BDs all together.  And probably spent only about $200 total.  Which I think is pretty good...One of the movies that we got was Robin Hood.  We happen to see this movie on HBO one night.  I actually put it on because I thought that it was Robin Hood:  Prince of Thieves.  I had totally forgotten that this new version of Robin Hood was finally out and so we ended up watching it.  Originally, I didn't think it was going to be too good....I heard a lot of mixed reviews about it right after it came out in theater.  But I have to say, I was pleasantly surprised.  I even watched it On Demand the next night!  So while we were at Ultimate Electronics, I decided that since they had it (And since it was the Director's Edition) I should buy it.  Well I think I watched it twice over the weekend (Yes, I liked it that much).  I find that if I really like a movie, I have no problem re-watching it a million times (My husband gets very aggravated because if I see a movie on TV that I like, I will watch it, even through the commercials, and I often own it....Sometimes I just can't help it!).  So I suggest that if you haven't seen it, that you do see it.

My next movies that I'd like to buy are How to Train Your Dragon and Monsters vs Aliens.  HOWEVER, I'm waiting for them to come out in 3D....I don't know when that will be, but I'm waiting with bated breath!