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Quote of the day:

"A flower falls, even though we love it, and a weed grows, even though we do not love it."

—Dogen Kenji

Memory of the day: Just this morning I was thinking about the place where we stabled our horses in my before-I-went-to-school days in conjunction with a discussion [livejournal.com profile] sartorias had.

We weren't wealthy by any means and these stables were pretty run down and tired—but of course to me they were the most wonderful place in the world. We had to sell the horses when the stable closed down because my parents couldn't afford to board horses anywhere else.

Anyway, I was thinking about the open fields that lay north and south of the stables, how I used to love to play in them. I was not allowed to go to the one in the north unsupervised because it was as vast as the whole wide world and very little girls might get lost. The one on the south side of the stables was smaller and since that's usually where my mother was, I could wander into those and lay beside the little stream that ran there in the spring. I loved to watch the tadpoles.

In the north, though, there were ducks. And I so loved to visit the ducks! I'd beg to be taken over there. At the close of the day when the stalls were mucked out and we were ready to go, mom would take me to visit the ducks. These were big white ducks that belonged to someone at the stables, I think, and he let them wander around. I can't remember anymore if he had them in a pen or not, but they weren't locked up or anything. I used to feed them.

One day I asked to be taken to the ducks and my mother said they weren't there anymore.

"What happened to them?"

"Somebody stole them."

"But why?

"They probably had them for dinner."

Mom was always a straight shooter, I'll give her that.

It's funny I should think of this story this morning because I read in [livejournal.com profile] kmkibble75's blog about the disillusionment of a five-year-old by a parent. I think it's a tough call, deciding how much to prepare your child for the real world and how early. I'm not sure I'd know what to answer when the tough questions started...

Movie review of the day (NO SPOILERS): I saw Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Wednesday. I thought it was deeply strange, deeply goofy, and deeply hilarious. Kind of Great Expectations Meets Airplane! Meets The Wizard of Oz Meets Swinging Sixties London Mods Meets The Simpsons. Lots of sly movie and TV references.

I probably wouldn't have thought of Michael Jackson if folks hadn't mentioned it so much. As Le Depp himself said when asked if he based his performance on Michael Jackson, "It's interesting how people can express opinions that are so horrifically wrong." He said he was playing it as if Mr. Rogers were actually terrified of children.

I laughed a lot at Le Depp's performance (as I was intended to!), and I think Deep Roy needs to be nominated for Best Supporting Actor this year. He plays the oompah loompahs (all of them) and absolutely steals the show. Some great performances with Charlie and his family, too, and a nice cameo by Christopher Lee. Of course the visuals are boggling. Some great stuff there.

Date: 2005-07-25 02:19 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] kmkibble75.livejournal.com
I think it's a tough call, deciding how much to prepare your child for the real world and how early. I'm not sure I'd know what to answer when the tough questions started...

My theory might be a little odd... but as far as unicorns and the like go, I'd be for keeping the fantasy alive. But as far as the ducks go... sorry kid. They was eaten.

Bit of a double standard, huh?

Date: 2008-12-26 12:26 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] mrgoriandray.livejournal.com
that's a beautiful quote, thank you

also i loved Depp's Wonka but MJ never crossed my mind

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