in defense of spongebob

why are the squidwards of the world hatin’ on the spongebobs? i don’t understand. cause if nautical nonsense be somethin’ you wish. then drop on the deck and flop like a fish. if not, then bikini bottom, blowing bubbles, and tryin’ to be the spongiest sponge you can be, just ain’t your thing…

a study of the leftover spaghetti sauce jar I’ve been drinking water out of all day

Peter Gabriel’s album “So” is 25 years old this year. Now, I’ll go cry quietly into my shoulder pads.

Holidaze

Sometimes, I’m about as good at holidays as I am at fashion.  I just get Christmas put together, feeling good, and Bam, suddenly it’s not cool anymore.  Now, it’s all about red.  Hearts and love,  and I still got the Christmas plaid hanging around.  Looking a little dated.

I served dinner on Halloween plates the other day.

boot cut, straight leg?  I dunno.

Does anyone else have this problem?

Clara has been listening to the Little Mermaid Soundtrack, and I’m only going to say this once, it’s awesome. But now, I can’t get the main song out of my head….Up where they walk, up where they run, up where the stay all day in the sun……..

Seriously, I wake up with it in my head, I hum it while I stir my coffee, I fall asleep with it at night.  It’s a twitch in my brain.  It’s a problem.

Sometimes, I sing it out loud and I seriously don’t know I’m doing it.  I’m driving my kids, and myself crazy…

Wouldn’t you think I’m a girl, a girl who has everything?  Up where they walk, up where they run, up where THEY STAY ALL DAY IN THE SUN!……Wandering free……wish I could be………(big cymbal crash with wave breaking against rock)….part of your world!

Oh, and Ariel should not have a belly-button.  She’s a fish.

Lemonade is up for Documentary of the year on The Documentary Channel!

Please vote for my husband’s amazing film Lemonade. It’s the story of what creative people do when they lose their jobs in advertising, and get creative on their own terms.

Just go to the link here at The Documentary Channel, fill out some stuff and vote.

The film is available on itunes if you’d like to watch it!

Thank you

Could there be a tougher job?

I was reading the SI cover story about Michael Vick by S.L. Price this morning.  A great article about crime, redemption, trust, and maybe even true change.

There were 2 passages that really struck me.  One was from a discussion Michael Vick had had with his mother, and the other was from the Eagles’ coach, Andy Reid.

Here in this section, Vick is talking to his mom after his ‘birthday incident,’ a volatile event which occurred on his path back from prison. “And I could just see in her face, she was tired.  She told us it was embarrassing.  She wanted to disown us.  That’s what she told me:  She wanted to walk away.  She’s like, ‘You went to prison for 19 months, and you come out and you still ain’t listening…’  Right then I told myself, I am changing my life.  I’m going to do everything they ask me to do.  I’m getting myself away from the madness.”

And here’s the passage about coach Reid’s decision to take on Vick with the Eagles, “Reid had his reasons.  Both of his sons, Garrett and Britt, had been battling drug problems for years, and Andy had spent every Thursday for two years visiting them in prison…He’d seen others sincerely willing to change but often met with coolness or hostility.  Garrett and Britt, though, were given jobs, support from other families.  Reid’s eyes still well up in gratitude.  ‘I know what it’s like to have young people who make mistakes and feel they’ve changed, and no one gives them a chance,’ Reid told Dungy. (Tony Dungy, former Colt’s coach who has agreed to mentor Vick.)   ‘I don’t want to be that way.  If that guy has changed and is looking for a second chance, I want to do it.’”

Is there anything more amazing or more tough than a parent’s love?  I know the phrase “tough-love” gets overused.  But, it seems to be the only phrase that fits here.  A mother willing to say, ‘I’m done’ was exactly what seemed to kick-start Vick.  He had to hit bottom, and she had to be willing to let him.  Then there’s the story of 2 coaches, also parents with their share of heartache, who are willing to take on the potentially disastrous media/PR storm that seems to follow Michael Vick wherever he goes.

S.L. Price closes his article saying, “We, watching, are part of it.  The longer it continues, the better it gets, the more the Michael Vick story becomes about us.”

Trust, love, redemption and maybe even forgiveness?  That is something to be truly thankful for.

It’s my first Retraction!

Okay – so the other day I did a post/rant/observation about the game Monopoly.  I called it serious capitalist training. I also said that these days mortgages and bankruptcies are not funny – and not really a game.

But, I also said that I would play the game anyway, because playing a game, any game, is fun.

And Monopoly is fun.

My family had been playing a Monopoly game over the course of 3 days and well, I kinda liked it.

I took some serious juvenile pleasure in nearly bankrupting my opponent (husband).  I had 2 houses on Pacific Avenue that almost did him in.  I was winning (had tons of cash and property).  But, we folded the game in the best interest of the kids.  It was getting too one-sided. (My sided.)

I challenged him to a new game tonight…What’s wrong with me?

Oh dear God, I’m a capitalist.

Comics are good for you

I’m writing this post because comic books are important for kids.  Not just older kids, but younger kids too.  I’m talkin’ 5-6-7-8-9.  If there’s one thing that can get kids reading, it’s something cool and attention getting.   How about an example from the book world?   Harry Potter.  Not only did it get kids reading, it captured their parents attention too.  I know just as many moms as kids that read Harry Potter.  And when a family reads together, it’s not just great – it’s amazing.

I’ve had the fortune to learn that my 6 year old son loves comic books and graphic novels.  I’m able to find great stuff for him at comic book shops, on-line, the public library, and even his elementary school library carries graphic novels.

These books are engaging and fun.  And they get him, and his sister reading…yes, girls like comic books too.  I would love to see more for the “hers.”  I would love to see more for the moms.  I’m not the only chick I know who loves science fiction and frogs that speak in Elizabethan English.

So what really launched our family into comics was Franklin Richards, Son of a Genius.  It’s written and drawn by Chris Eliopoulos with Marc Sumerak. On his site, Misery Loves Sherman, Chris Eliopoulos just wrote a great post about the importance of keeping comic books alive, especially for the younger reader, and writing for markets that are entirely overlooked.  He also talks about creating more ipad apps like the Alice in Wonderland one, which would be very cool.

A little while ago, I wrote a post about comic book shops and my search for more Franklin’ Richards.   Basically comic books get my kids reading.  There aren’t enough of them for kid’s my son’s and daughter’s ages. (6 and 4)  And now, the shops aren’t carrying as many for the littler crowd.    In fact, I just called our local shop to see if they tracked down some comics we wanted and they didn’t have any luck.

So if you are reading this, and you love comics for yourself or for your kids…let Marvel know.  I’ll be sending them this post too.  We need to keep the kids reading, and comics are an excellent way to do it.  We want more for younger kids, especially Franklin Richards.  He’s a smart, funny, and engaging character that needs more adventures, please.

Monopoly – Family game night or serious capitalist training?

I love playing games with my kids.  We play Top Trumps, Candyland, Connect 4, n’ stuff.  So last night, the kids pulled down the Monopoly game we haven’t played yet.  They’re too little for it, but as soon as the box was busted open, and the money spilled everywhere – it was like 2 little Gordon Gekko’s took seed in our play-money drenched carpet.

At the tender age of 6 and 4 they have learned what it means to have cash.  Which is good and bad news.  The good news is that both my kids pretty well understand that if they do chores, they get money.  Clean up, help wash the car, help with laundry means work – and work means a little money.  I’m confident that that’s a good lesson.  However, they also know that cash equals buying power.  We live in a consumer society and they like to consume toys.  The trick is to help them learn the value of the money and what it all means.  Money doesn’t make you happy – it just gives you more options.

It was weird this morning ’cause the Monopoly game was in the kitchen, I hadn’t had enough coffee, and my son wanted to know how the game works.  As I began my explanation, I started to feel like I was giving lessons on becoming a bloated landlord.

Mom:  See, when you roll the dice, and you have enough money, you buy the property you land on, then you own it.  Then when someone else lands on it, they pay you rent.

Son:  So where do you get the money?

Mom:  You start the game with some.  Then you earn some through rent that’s paid to you. Or by chance from winnings or inheritance.

Son:  What happens if you don’t have enough to pay the rent to someone else?

Mom:  You lose all of your money and you lose the game.

Son:  How do you win the game?

Mom:  Hmmmm.  Well, you have the most money, the most property, and everyone else is bankrupt.

So, that’s when I said, “Just eat your breakfast.  We’ll talk more later, it’s time to get ready for school”  So weird.  Let’s sit down and play a game where the winner owns everything, the loser loses everything, and it’s fun!

Of course it’s just a game, and we will sit down and play it – that’s what games are for.  And, when you play any game there’s a winner and there are losers – but it just seemed particularly cruel to talk about losing property and not being able to pay the rent.  As I was putting it away, I looked at the board, and my eyes lingered on “Electric Company.” Really, it doesn’t seem like much of a game now that I’m a grown-up.

On October 26th, a retraction was posted regarding this entry.  Turns out, I like playing Monopoly.