Mirkwood Reflections

We rented Stardust because I had heard so many good reports about it. However, I was so totally disappointed in it that I shut it off halfway and made the kids go to bed. I thought it was PG, but after I looked it up online, I saw that it was PG-13, which explains some of why it was so inappropriate for kids. However, it was marketed as a movie that would be wonderful for children. Now, to be totally honest here, I did not see the very beginning, as they started it before I got home. As I came in, Bob and David both told me it was a weird movie. I'm sure there is more to the plot than I am listing below, but these are the parts I found objectionable. But this is what I gathered. Claire Danes apparently plays a star (yes, like from the sky) that fell down and Michelle Pfeiffer plays a witch who needs to cut out Claire's heart and eat it to stay young. Not only that, apparently Michelle and her 2 witchy sisters had already cut out and eaten another star's heart, which ...

In 2007, I read 86 books (the same as 2006, in fact!). Following are the ones I rated Excellent . I'd recommend any of these books. Fiction Red Leaves - Thomas H. Cook The Cloud of Unknowing - Thomas H. Cook Family Tree - Barbara Delinsky The Double Bind - Chris Bohjalian Veil of Roses - Laura Fitzgerald Blessed Child - Bill Bright & Ted Dekker A Man Called Blessed - Bill Bright & Ted Dekker Gap Creek - Robert Morgan Kidnapped - Jan Burke Outlander - Diana Gabaldon Blink - Ted Dekker The Last Sin Eater - Francine Rivers Hadassah: One Night with the King - Tommy Tenney with Mark Andrew Olsen Shadow Man - Cody McFadyen The Cay - Theodore Taylor Non-fiction The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio: How My Mother Raised 10 Kids on 25 Words or Less - Terry Ryan Curly Girl: More than just hair...it's an attitude! - Lorraine Massey How to Talk So Kids Can Learn At Home and In School - Adele Faber & Elaine Mazlish The Light and the Glory - Peter Marshall and David Manuel Every Y...

New Moon by Stephenie Meyer - 12/02/07 Good - Fiction Edward leaves and Bella establishes a relationship with Jacob, but he also has a secret. The sequel to Twilight - I can't wait to read the 3rd one. I'm #6 on the library's waiting list. How to Write Romances by Phyllis Taylor Pianka - 12/11/07 Good - Non-fiction How to combine conflict, desire, adventure and romance to create compelling love stories (1988) Although this book is twenty (!) years old, I think the info is still relevant. It jives with all the other info I have read online. Open Invitation by Karen Kendall - 12/13/07 Fair - Romance Explicit Ranchowner needs an etiquette consultant to get him ready for his sister's wedding This is part of the Harlequin Blaze series. Let's just say I don't think *I* will be writing this sort of romance novel. I debated even putting it on my list here, but honesty won out. :::sickly grin::: Montana Twins by Charlotte Maclay - 12/16/07 Fair - Romance Sheriff...

I thought this was funny, especially #6, 13, 24, 25. Trying out the post-by-email feature, so we shall see how this works out. Movie review coming soon of National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets. Saw it on Sunday morning. (Yes, instead of going to church! Eek! Am I a heathen?) ~~~~~ Did you ever notice that certain things only happen in the movies, but never happen in real life? For example: It is always possible to find a parking spot directly outside or opposite the building you are visiting. When paying for a taxi, don't look at your wallet as you take out a note. Just grab one out at random and hand it over. It will always be the exact fare. Television news bulletins usually contain a story that affects you personally at the precise moment it's aired. Creepy music (or satanic chanting) coming from a graveyard should always be closely investigated. Any lock can be picked with a credit card or paperclip in seconds. UNLESS it's the door to a burning buildin...

[edited 12-30-07 with complete list] I am participating in the Triple 8 Reading Challenge . Anyone care to join me? I only need to read 56 of these books to finish, but I'll try to read all 64 of them. Come on and READ WITH ME in 2008! Books Recommended to me by others Hide – Lisa Gardner (my mom) The Furies of Calderon – Jim Butcher (sister Christy) Vineyard series – Philip Craig (mom) Beauty - Robin McKinley (Marta) A Tree Grows in Brooklyn - Betty Smith (sister Janet) Austenland - Shannon Hale (sister Christy) librarian series (Christy) Courting Trouble – Deeanne Gist (Mom) Young Adult Fiction Holes – Louis Sachar ttyl – lauren myracle Eclipse – Stephenie Meyer Spiderweb for Two: A Melendy Maze – Elizabeth Enright Artemis Fowl: The Time Paradox - Eoin Colfer Eragon – Christopher Paolini Inkheart - Cornelia Funke Magic by the Lake – Edward Eager Non-fiction Ordering Your Private World – Gordon MacDonald Radar, Hula Hoops, and...

Initially I had not planned to let my kids see Transformers . Although it is a movie based on a series of kids' toys, which obviously interests my boys, I had read that it contained mature themes and it was rated PG-13. But then I talked to several people who had seen it and told me how great it was and that it would be wonderful for my kids. So, I reconsidered. And now I have to say - what in the world are those people thinking? This is really not a kids' movie. We've got swearing, and not just the occasional mild profanity. We've got a very revealingly dressed teenage girl and lingering camera shots highlighting her body. We've got talk of masturbation and pornography. Now, without all that stuff, this would be an awesome movie for kids, but then it'd be rated PG and then sadly none of the adult males who played with Transformers in the 80's would consider seeing it. (Yes, the kids who used to play with Transformers are GROWN UP now. Or at leas...

Just a quick entry about the Sandra Bullock film Premonition . I do enjoy watching Sandra; she seems so down-to-earth in all her films. The premise of this movie intrigued me from the start - she learns her husband is dead, then the next day he is alive. Then he's dead again. Figuring out the timeline was confusing, but thankfully Sandra's character also found it confusing and made a handy chart that cleared everything up! Things that didn't make any sense earlier in the movie become much clearer throughout. I enjoyed seeing the story unfold. All that said, I detested the ending. There was an alternate ending in the deleted scenes. I hated that one too. If I had to do it over, I'd start 10-15 minutes from the end and change everything thereafter. Oh well, I can imagine my own ending, right? IMDB page for Premonition Screenit.com Review of Premonition