Fairy Tales

I saw Tangled for the second time yesterday. My mother in law, Miya, and I went together. Fairy tales are threaded with darkness. The brothers Grimm and Hans Christain Andersen intended for them to be that way. Fairy tales are not always happy. The little match girl died in the snow. Cinderella's step sister chopped off half of her own foot to fit the glass slipper. Snow White ate a poisoned apple.

In Tangled, the princess is kidnapped from her parents. At the end, Flynn (the beau) chopped off Rapunzel's long blonde hair to save her life. She became a brunette!  She suddenly became a modern hip princess with a short haircut. I so loved that.

Anyway, fairy tales are not what we always think they should be. There can be deep sadness. The endings though are beautiful. As long as we are alive, there is always hope for a fairy tale ending.

These are a few of my favorite things

Right now, Miya, my four year old, is standing in front of the tv singing my favorite things with Oprah. "When the dog bites, when the bee stings, when I'm feeling sad, I simply remember my favorite things and then I don't feel so bad."

I loved the audience reaction when they realized that it was a "favorite things" episode. I used to make fun of the screams and tears, but I would have totally reacted the same way. I actually teared up! I understand the effectiveness of acquiring favorite things when you are feeling bad. I have been doing a lot of online shopping and mall shopping.

This episode reminded  me of Saturday Night Live's sketch about Oprah and her favorite things...Enjoy!

Haunting Dream

Sorry friends, but it is time to get sad. I had a dream last night that my sweet little Miles was still in the NICU. He was getting better and he was coming home soon. Actually, Phillip Seymour Hoffman was in the dream as well. Anyway, the dream was really vivid. I woke up very sad. I am posting a pic of my little boy today. I may take it down later.

Coco

Matt and I watched the movie "Coco before Chanel" with Audrey Tatou. Matt is in love with her (not Chanel but Tatou). Watching it, I was inspired by Coco Chanel's determination. She grew up as an orphan and at one point was the equivalent to a call girl. Nevertheless, she created a fashion empire that is still so relevant today. In a time when women were wearing corsets and huge hats, she created the simple black dress. Now, every woman has a simple black dress in her closet.

After the movie, I read some articles about Miss Chanel. She never married, no children, died working at an old age. Reputable sources, such as the Smithsonian and London Times and more, revealed the fact that Coco Chanel was Nazi sympathizer. She was exiled from France for ten years due to her involvement with Nazis. The movie of course did not reveal that aspect of her life.

Anyway Coco, no more Chanel (well imitation) for me!

When the dog bites...

Right now, Miya, my four year old, is standing in front of the television singing "my favorite things" with Oprah. "When the dog bites, when the bee stings, when I'm feeling sad, I simply remember my favorite things and then I don't feel so bad."

I loved the audience reaction when they realized that it was a "favorite things" episode. I used to make fun of the screams and tears, but I would have totally reacted in the same way. I used to live in Chicago but never got a chance visit Oprah. I understand the effectiveness of acquiring nice things when you are feeling bad. I have been doing a lot of online and mall shopping lately. I will calm down on the shopping in 2011. I would have loved to get Oprah's favorite things though!

This episode reminded  me of Saturday Night Live's sketch about Oprah and her favorite things...Enjoy!

Jasmine The December Princess

Miya has a calendar in her room. It is a Disney Princess calendar with the princess of the month. In August, the princess was Cinderella. I told her that when we got to December, Jasmine, it would be time for Miles to be born. Unfortunately, Miles was born in October, Sleeping Beauty. He only survived till November, Snow White. It is hard to look now at Jasmine on the calendar. There was a lot of hope surrounding her.

We look forward with our calendars and make plans. Some times they go our way and other times obviously not. I wonder what the calendar will bring next year.

Breaking Up

One of my favorite shows is "In Treatment" on HBO. It is about a therapist and his therapy appointments with his patients. It is very slow, all dialogue but amazingly great. Dr. Weston (played by Gabriel Bryne), the therapist, cares deeply for his patients and makes it his goal to make breakthroughs in their treatment. He even makes tea every session for Sunil, an Indian patient, because it makes him feel like Dr. Weston is a friend and not his therapist.

Back to me, I see a therapist. I will call him Dr. Michaelson. I realize though that not all therapists are created equally. He is very old and falls asleep during sessions. Of all the therapists in New York City, I get the one that falls asleep. Woody Allen said that his therapist calls him in the middle of the night crying. I guess I should not be complaining. 

Now, I wonder if I should break up with my sleepy doctor. I have tried having earlier appointments but I think this doctor is old and tired. Do I send a "Dear John" letter? I have to think about this one.

So I need Dr. Weston, who would make tea for me. It would not hurt either if he looked like Gabriel Bryne.

Ha Ha

Matt and I have really needed to laugh lately. I normally love deeply depressing movies such as Sophie's Choice, The Pianist, and  Cinema Paradisio .  I actually wanted to see Shoah, a 9 hour documentary with real footage from Auschwitz showing in a movie theatre here in NY.  It would have taken 2 days because it is shown in 2 parts. I wonder if I would have had to pay twice. As much as I really want to see it  (seriously), it is probably not a good time.

After the death of our sweet baby Miles in the NICU 2 months ago, we have decided to watch as many funny movies as we can.

We enjoy watching The Office (American version), Always Sunny in Philadelphia, and even ICarly with our 4 year old daughter.

Last night, we watched Stepbrothers. What a ridiculous and funny movie! No real plot but amazing! I love it when the 40 year old brothers sleepwalk through the house.


I see that The Jerk with Steve Martin is on Instant Watch on Netflix. So the laughter needs to continue. The pain is still there and probably getting worse...but laughter makes it bearable.