The 2010 Banned Books Celebration will be held from September 25 through October . Here’s a cute little video produced for the 2009 Banned Books Week celebration: I don’t think I’ll ever quite understand book banning. I mean, if something offends you, don’t read it. And as far as kids are concerned, encouraging them to…
Memory Lane Monday…Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House
I watched this movie for the first time probably 20 years ago with cousins, I think on New Year’s Eve. I loved it the first time and I’ve loved it each of the perhaps dozen times I’ve watched it since. The clip below was used for a paint commercial a few years ago. It makes…
Memory Lane Monday…Retro Commercials
Two all-beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions on a sesame seed bun. Yes, my brain is chock-full of important stuff like that. And this one, which I can repeat word for word: Or how about this one? I’ve been known to forget my own cell phone number but I’ll never forget this number:…
Memory Lane Monday…A children’s book
Did you ever read the children’s book, “Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day”? I used to read it to my kids and after the day I’ve had, it was brought to mind. One of my family members is hurting and I had to have another cat put to sleep today. What…
Frankly, my dear…
I read “Gone With the Wind” for the first time when I was in 7th grade. I was immediately captivated by the story and the antebellum setting. I may have been born and raised in California but I’m convinced I lived a previous life in the “old South”. (Don’t take that comment seriously; I don’t…
French Friday…Amélie
I love French films. In fact, that’s part of the reason I finally got glasses. I couldn’t read the subtitles across the room and my meager French is insufficient without that assistance. One of my favorites is Amélie. It is an utterly charming film and one I can watch over and over. I adore the…
Memory Lane Monday…A Little Princess
“A Little Princess” by Frances Hodgson Burnett I was one of those kids who lived in my head most of the time. Come to think of it, I still do. Thinking, pondering, imagining, pretending, projecting…my mind was and is a swirl of activity. Much of this tendency is book-fueled. I learned to read in…
Memory Lane Monday…A Family Affair
I loved this show when I was a kid. I think part of the reason is that it was so different from my own life. While I was totally happy with my own childhood, I must admit that living in a high rise in New York City seemed quite exotic to me. Sort of like…
The Wisdom of the Mockingbird
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the publishing of one of my all-time favorite books, “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee. I have an old hard cover version which I picked up at a used book store many years ago. I have no idea how many times I’ve read it. One time on…