1 I 2012

Not actually the most auspicious start to the New Year. I didn't read my customary New Year's book. It's going on 5:30pm and I have yet to actually move anything to the new place. But, it's been a good day of resting and spending some time with Brad before he ran off to visit some friends of his. Maybe this is what I needed this weekend. Some rest and time with friends before the whirlwind crazy of moving starts up again.

And the promised picture of the new house.

Not starting over, but starting fresh...

Just as the title says, I'm not starting over, I'm starting fresh.

I decided last month that I needed to move into a place of my own. It was a very quick decision. Once the thought entered my head, I wasted no time in jumping on it. I sound like I'm rushing to get away from Brad, which is about the farthest from the truth that you can get. I'm rushing to get back to myself again. I've rented a house from some friends and I'm slowly moving in over the next month or so. I need to take it slow as I'm still recovering from surgery (which is going exceptionally well!) and Brad is being really supportive about the whole thing and helping me move.

It's a large house, at least for me. It has 3 bedrooms, a 2 car garage, large fenced in backyard so I can have Mame on weekends, a huge finished basement that will give me room to have all of my collections out and on display. I'll have a library and a guest bedroom for when friends are in to visit. I've been buying some new furniture and whatnot, so that I can have a home that is my own, and not all hand-me-downs from family. Nothing wrong with that, but I just want my own things. Needless to say, I'm just a little excited about it.

I'm looking forward to a fresh start with my reading as well. 2011 was about my worst reading year ever, so I'd really like to make up for that in 2012. I've got some loose plans to try to help me achieve that goal.

So, there it is. A new year and a fresh start! And I'm really looking forward to it all.

Round

I'm so tired of looking in the mirror and seeing a big, round me. I was on the treadmill last night next to a guy who was running at a really steady pace like it was nothing. I want to do that. I'm so tired of the me that I've become. I want a healthier, more fit me.

Off to the gym I go. Someday, somebody is going to be writing a blog post about being on the treadmill next to me and watching me run like it's nothing.

Moving and other changes

So, I've decided to move. This has nothing to do with my roomie, Brad. He's a fantastic friend, and the only person I've been willing to live with for years, but as with everything, it's time for a change. With all that's been going on in my life the last couple of years, I've decided that I need to get a place of my own to help re-center myself. Some friends of mine have a house for rent, and they're being extraordinarily generous with the amount that they are asking for rent, and the timing just feels right for me, so I'm moving.

Of course, the timing feels right except for the fact that this coming Friday I'm having surgery on my shoulder and won't know how long that's going to put me out, and I am still planning on going on vacation over the holidays at the end of December, bt other than those two little things, I totally feel confident that this is the perfect timing for all of this...

A friend asked me the other day if I thrived on chaos. I just may, which is why I'm hoping that this move will help ground me a little so that I don't feel like I'm still flailing about willynilly.

In other news, I've lost 10lbs. It would appear that eating healthy and going to the gym actually do have some positive side effects. Who knew? Now, just to see how the BP looks at the Doc's office this Thursday. Fingers crossed that's not a new medication I see in my future. OH! And my A1C was 5.7-something, so I'm well out of the diabetes danger zone for right now. I'm going to prove myself to be the exception to the rule in my family! No diabetes for me, just allergies, of which I'm the only one who suffers this bad, apparently. Leave it to me to always be the odd duck out!

Adding insult to injury...

I rotated a vertebra or a disc in my neck yesterday at work by simply turning my head to talk to a Coworker, and now I can barely move my head. And my right shoulder is practically useless. It's embarrassing to note that right now my left shoulder with the torn labrum is actually the better of the two. I ended up getting an adjustment from the doctor when I went yesterday to get my allergy shots, which helped, but I'm still mostly immobile.

Damn and frustration again!

Well, damn and frustration! Just as I thought I was doing OK and thought I'd be good to start weening myself off the anti-depressants... Well, I did try, but I'm so moody and temperamental and irritable, my friends are even asking me what's wrong, so back to the regular dosage I go! I guess I'll have to talk to the doctor more about this at my follow-up in a couple of weeks.

#sigh

#NaNoWriMo 2011

I've decided to participate in NaNoWriMo this year. I want to finally get this YA novel that's been knocking about in my head down on paper, and this is the perfect opportunity! Updates as I progress.

The Disney 50: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs Release: 1937

Main Characters
The Evil Queen
The Slave in the Magic Mirror
Snow White
Prince Charming
The Huntsman
Dopey
Doc
Sleepy
Sneezy
Bashful
Grumpy
Happy
The Evil Queen as Old Hag

Thoughts
I don't remember exactly when the first time I saw Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was. I'm sure I saw it at some point during one of it's numerous theatrical releases, but it wasn't until the video release in the early-mid 90s that the film made any lasting impact on me. I was already a fan of Disney animation but all I really knew at that point was The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast and Aladdin. I'll admit that I was a late bloomer when it came to my love of Disney. However, as the years have passed, I've gone from just a normal love of all things Disney to it being something that I live and breathe on a daily basis.

I decided to start watching my entire Disney library since I realized how much I missed the animated classics, and naturally, I started at the beginning with Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Its interesting to watch the progression of the films over the decades. Released in 1937, I think it is a testament to Walt Disney and his animators that it has stood the test of time. Granted, there are quite a few elements to the film that are dated (Snow White's physical movements and voice being the most obvious) and parts of the film are overly sentimental, but it tells a clearly thought-through story with just the right balance of emotion and action.

I can honestly say that I am always amazed by this film. I remember when it was released on VHS several years ago (I think that was the first time I had ever seen the complete film), and I remember being blown away by the fluid and natural motion of the characters. I think there is a certain amount of realism present in this film that is not found in many animated films today, including those produced by Disney. For never having attempted something on this scale before, the Disney animators certainly made it look like this was all old-hat to them. The watercolor backgrounds and the earth-toned colors throughout give you the impression that you have stepped into a storybook and are watching as the drawings come to life. In some aspects, I don't know that there has been a film since that has created this same technique.

The writers did an extraordinary job of making the story believable and pulling the right emotion at the right time. They make you feel concern for Snow White and you find yourself hoping that everything will be "happily ever after." Each character has a grounded personality that is believable and true. Snow White is impossibly innocent. The Evil Queen is deliciously evil. The Old Hag is appropriately creepy. The Slave in the Magic Mirror is even creepier. Each of the Dwarfs lives up to his name. Every aspect of the film was obviously thought out and carried through in the execution.

Another aspect of the film that has truly stood the test of time is the music. The songs from the film are all immediately recognizable and after giving the movie a watch, you'll catch yourself humming them without even realizing it.

Originally dubbed "Disney's Folly" by other Hollywood studios because they thought that this was going to be Disney's downfall since no one would want to sit through a cartoon, the film did amazingly well and grossed far beyond it's then astronomical budget of $1.4 million. For a time it was the highest grossing movie in America (only to be outdone by Gone with the Wind) and it even garnered Walt Disney an Honorary Oscar, which recognized the film "as a significant screen innovation which has charmed millions and pioneered a great new entertainment field for the motion picture cartoon." Shirley Temple presented Walt Disney with a normal sized Oscar that was accompanied by seven smaller statues.

The film marks the creation of the Disney legacy, because if it hadn't been successful, there wouldn't have been another made. It may not always be my favorite Disney film, but I do give it the respect that it deserves as being the first and being ahead of its time, and every once in awhile, it's good to go back and see how it all started.


So, there you have it. The one that started it all. The fairest of them all. The one that put Disney feature film animation on the map. Up next? Pinocchio, released in 1940.


"Whistle while you work..."

The Disney 50

I picked up Disney's new movie Tangled on Blu-Ray the other day, and I had forgotten about the very cool trailer they had put together honoring Tangled as the 50th full-length feature animated film they had produced. And it got me to thinking, I haven't watched many of those films in a really long time. I own them all, so there is no reason why I shouldn't take some time and do a Disney 50 Marathon!

I don't really know how long it's going to take me to get through the entire 50. I don't have a set plan or anything, but I just thought it would be fun to watch them all, chronologically.

I think once I get done with the Disney 50, I may move on to the Pixar films and the Studio Ghibli films that I have. I don't own all of the Ghibli films, so I'll just watch the ones that I own.

Obviously, I'll be starting off with the one that started it all, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, so stay tuned for my thoughts on that movie soon!

When I look in the mirror...

When I look in the mirror, you know what I see?



Fattums McButters Butt