Bits and Pieces of Our Days

Saturday night movie with Atticus: Everything Must Go. On Netflix, you can find it listed under comedies. That's comic. Not a comedy. Will Ferrell is seriously good, movie is seriously touching. Netflix also calls it "Understated" and that is accurate. Don't watch it if you're looking for a fun date night -- watch it when you want to see a character study, a reflection on letting go, a brief portrait of human interaction and friendship.

*****

Atticus sent me this link -- it's two little girls explaining why one (the five-year-old) cut the other's (the three-year-old's) hair. So cute. I especially loved that they hid the hair under the radiator and that they justify the haircut by saying that everyone does something like this once in their life, or three times, or two. Or three.

*****

The girls attended Totus Tuus recently at our parish, and we also had the fun of having the team (eight college kids/young adults) over for dinner one night. A fun week for the girls, and so lovely to see these sweet, faith-filled young adults give their summers to this work. Avery, Amy, Andrea, Colleen, Ben, Nicholas, Jake and Dan -- you guys will permanently be in our prayers.

*****

Did I mention that Betsy is driving now? Did I mention how weird that is? Atticus said that when he watched her drive away the other night, all he could think about was the Christmas when she was three and a half years old. For reasons I don't remember, we stayed home for Christmas that year, and no one was able to come visit, so it was just the four of us. Betsy got a new baby doll set -- baby, cradle, high chair. A humble little set that I remember costing about $15. She played with it all day long. Anne-with-an-e spent the whole day playing in the Little Mermaid tent that Santa left. Atticus and I spent the day listening to Christmas music, napping, eating, watching the girls play, and sighing contentedly to one another. We both remember it as one of the loveliest Christmas days ever.

And now two of my three girls drive away.

In five years, we'll start teaching Ramona to drive.

Did I mention how weird that is? Good. But weird.

*****

Did I mention that teaching my daughters to drive might be the single scariest thing I've ever done in my life?

No, strike that. The scariest thing is actually letting them drive away by themselves after you've taught them to drive. Scary. But good.

*****

More vacation pictures:

Girls on a plane

Platypus on a plane: 

Girls about to head into Hogsmeade: 

Girls at The Three Broomsticks: 

Hogwarts!

Ramona and friend, chatting near dolphins at Sea World: 

At the delightful Seuss Landing: 

Daytona Beach: 

The ticket that Atticus won at Disney World, in 1987. 

They told us it was good for one all-day admission and that it would never expire. 

Mickey Mouse was true to his word: 

Poetry Friday: I'm Sorry, Atticus, I Just Can't Do It

At least not very well. Not today.

Given that we were recently in Florida, and given that Wallace Stevens has always been one of Atticus's favorite poets, and given that it is Poetry Friday, Atticus suggested that I post a Stevens poem, "O Florida, Venereal Soil" and he suggested that I do it "without groping after some epistemological objective categorizing of the deeply subjective reactions reflected in the verse."

Gee, do I do that?

He went on to say, quoting John Keats, "In other words, 'be capable of being in uncertainties, mysteries, doubts, without any irritable reaching after fact and reason....'"

But, um, I always do that irritable reaching. I thought he found it endearing. And I so often do it on Poetry Fridays.

But not always, really. Right? I am highly qualified to live in uncertainty, mystery and doubt. I'm a Catholic. It doesn't get more mysterious than that. And I sometimes post just the poem, sans any torturous reflection on my part: such as here and here and here and here and here and here. (Methinks I protest too much?)

I am capable, as William Hurt said in this clip, of just letting art flow over me. 

But, I can't post about Wallace Stevens -- I can't even think about Wallace Stevens -- without thinking. Long and hard, about a number of things. His life as both insurance executive and poet is fodder for scrutiny, and that's before we even get to his body of work. He was an interesting, perplexing human being. And I can't think about Florida, and travel, and real life vs. vacations, and how randomly we all seem to land in various geographical areas without that sparking some reflection.

And of course, all of that leads to a new stream of thought: Stevens isn't alone as poetry-writing insurance executive. The 13th U.S. Poet Laureate Ted Kooser had the same Paper-Pusher-By-Day-Deep-Thinker-By-Night existence (though they are obviously extremely different types of poets). And that brings me to the poem posted at The Writer's Almanac today -- Kooser's "So This Is Nebraska" ... and that means I've gone full circle from Nebraska to Florida and home again.

Not only that, but on today's Writer's Almanac page, there is also a mention of the birthday of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, and that brings me to a quote from The Little Prince: "It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."

And if I believe that, I must be capable of being in uncertainties, mysteries, doubts ... and I am capable of that. Just not, clearly, capable of posting a Wallace Stevens poem without saying something. And nothing.

And, sadly, now, I'm thinking I should've just posted some Keats.

Maybe next week.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Poetry Friday round up is at Paper Tigers.

DISNEY WORLD! (from Ramona)

So we went to Disney World, and it was awesome. I didn't go on "It's a Small World" ride.  None of us did. Betsy wanted to, though.

 Question:

Has anyone seen or heard of Pixar's newest movie, BRAVE? I have not seen it, but I want to. We met Merida, the princess in Brave. It was really fun. 

We also met some other princesses. It was REALLY FUN!!!!!

So, yeah.

Adios, amigos,


Ramona

I Forbid You to Skip the Forbidden Journey

We aren't generally the kind of people who say, "Hey, let's fly to Florida!"

Our vacations tend to run more along the lines of, "Now tell me again which side of the family we're visiting? And it takes how long to drive there?"

Not that visiting family isn't great. It is. Fantastic, wonderful stuff. But our family is not -- no offense, family -- a thrill ride.

I'm not speaking metaphorically.

It's absolutely true that not one, single extended family member is capable of waving a wand and sending us soaring through the air, skimming the turrets and towers of Hogwarts, zooming just behind Harry on his broomstick, past the Whomping Willow as we dodge dementors in the Quidditch pitch and do our Muggly best to avoid giant, spitting spiders (I'm actually quite glad that our usual vacations don't involve the last couple of things I mentioned.)

So, yeah. Our family is not, strictly speaking, a thrill ride, however ... it is thanks to the incredible generosity of my parents (and their Hey-You-Guys-Homeschooled-Through-High-School! gift) that Atticus, the girls and I did experience the thrill ride that is Harry Potter's Forbidden Journey. This video gives you a pretty good idea of the fun (the lighting isn't perfect, but it gives you a taste):



The first time we rode, I -- Karen-Who-Gets-Carsick -- closed my eyes for the entire ride. No, strike that. Correction: I opened my eyes when I needed to lean forward and yell at the seat next to me in order to reassure Ramona that she would not:

a.) fall off the ride
b.) lose her flip-flops
c.) get sick
d.) have her soul sucked out of her body by a dementor
e.) have actual spider spit on her
f.) fall off the ride

It wasn't Ramona's favorite thing that we encountered in Florida. I wasn't sure what I thought of it because, well, I had my eyes closed for the entire ride.

So, the next morning, Anne, Betsy and I went on the ride again. I kept my eyes open.

Go.

Ride the ride.

Soar, zoom, dodge.

(Ramona says, "Don't forget 'scream' and 'panic.'")

Send your nine-year-old to Ollivander's with her daddy if that's what she prefers.

Thank your parents for a very cool gift.

(Update: Here's a link with a detailed article about the opening of the ride/Wizarding World.)

We're Back From Hogwarts!

We've been to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter:

(and Disney, and Sea World, and the insane traffic of I-4 in Florida ...)

Now we've safely touched down back in the Muggle World and I'll return soon with details. It was, to say the least, a magical trip.