Dori and I have been watching an interesting programme on the BBC over the last week or so. Produced in conjunction with the Open University, it examines the effect of modern technology on today’s society. A family have volunteered to live their lives as though they were living through the 70s, 80s and 90s with each day of the month representing one day of the three decades, starting off in 1970 on day one.
Dori and I often remark on how much has changed during our lifetimes, which isn’t a huge amount of time – no, really, it’s not – and this programme brought that fact home. You really do forget exactly what life was like back then. Most houses didn’t have central heating or double glazing, no freezers, no microwaves, no dishwashers, no colour TV, no CDs, no mobile/cell phones and, of course, no computers let alone the world wide web! Cars had no power steering, air conditioning, or power assisted braking systems. You couldn’t listen to music on the go as the walkman was still years away in the future. We lived in the Stone Age!
The production crew also decorated the family’s house to suit each decade complete with vivid 70s wallpaper, or chintzy 80s furniture. As each day (year) went by so more technology was introduced into the house. At the start of the project the family found that the parents spent much longer doing housework as they had none of the modern conveniences, and had to shop for food just about daily as freezers were yet to reach most houses. The children, in contrast, had more time on their hands than they knew what to do with, without any game consoles, cell phones, mp3 players or much TV to watch – there were just 3 stations, all in black and white and were only showing a test-card for the great majority of the day. So, they ended up spending time together, playing board games or even actually getting out of the house and playing in the great outdoors. Of course, back in the 70s, parents were also more likely to let their kids play out for just about the whole day without worrying too much – a complete contrast to today.
The 70s brought music centres, colour TV, calculators and, at the end of the decade, Pong! The 80s brought primitive computers into the house, slightly more sophisticated games consoles, the walkman, video recorders, CDs and microwaves. During this decade the family started to drift away from their communal activities and found that they had the technology to allow them to entertain themselves more. When the 90s came around so did the Sony Playstation, satellite TVs, mp3 players, mobile phones, digital cameras and, of course, the World Wide Web. The pace of change was ever increasing and the throw-away culture became more evident. The children would be alone in their rooms watching their own TVs, playing on a games console or listening to an mp3 player. And the adults would be doing something similar downstairs. Technology had rent the family unit completely apart.
Modern convenience has given us so much more leisure time but we spend it in such different ways now – more often than not in more individual pursuits and not in enjoying the company of those we love. We surf the net, blog even, we play on games consoles, or we listen to our own music on mp3 players. The price of “progress” indeed.
The BBC and Open University have created a website to go along with this series which is worth a look at, if only to remember how “bad” things really used to be!
http://www.bbc.co.uk/electricdreams/index.shtml
Sunday, 18 October 2009
Monday, 12 October 2009
The Price of Progess ....Part One
So, as Dori mentions in her blog post today, it was a relaxing weekend in the Yellow House this week. We watched some DVDs, worked on a project, and did a bit more organizing of a couple of trips we have coming up before the year’s end. We got some things done that needed doing, but they were done at our own pace and without any self-imposed pressure or timelines. It was a good weekend – despite the weather!
I was also able to watch the highlights of the Ukraine v England World Cup qualifier on Saturday evening. You may not think that is anything remarkable, but there has been a controversy raging here for the past week or so concerning this match. To cut a long story short, the TV company who had the rights for this match went bust a couple of months back, and no other UK TV companies were either able or wanted to step into the breach. As a result, the company to whom the TV rights had reverted decided to screen the match live on the internet with no live TV coverage at all, and charged up to £12 (about $20) for the privilege.
Thankfully, England have already qualified for the World Cup, and so there was no burning need for most people to fork out a portion of their hard-earned dosh to view the game. But the thought of this being the way of the future is not at all appealing. I would certainly not appreciate paying £12 only to spend two hours watching a message say “please wait....buffering”. And, whilst having an option to watch sport online is a good thing, restricting live sport to only the internet is far from it. I hope this isn’t the start of a slippery slope. Anyhoo, the highlights of the game were screened on Saturday night by the BBC, but they had been prevented from advertising the fact that they would do so until after the end of the game (just two hours before their show started). Presumably this was to ensure that everybody who may be tempted to pay for the live coverage would do so and not just wait for the free-to-air highlights on the BBC a couple of hours later. So, it was only by pure luck that I saw the listing for the game on the Electronic Programme Guide as we were flicking through to see what was on.
As it happens, all of this fuss was for nothing as England had their goalkeeper sent-off after 15 minutes and went on to lose the game 1-0. Ho hum.
I was also able to watch the highlights of the Ukraine v England World Cup qualifier on Saturday evening. You may not think that is anything remarkable, but there has been a controversy raging here for the past week or so concerning this match. To cut a long story short, the TV company who had the rights for this match went bust a couple of months back, and no other UK TV companies were either able or wanted to step into the breach. As a result, the company to whom the TV rights had reverted decided to screen the match live on the internet with no live TV coverage at all, and charged up to £12 (about $20) for the privilege.
Thankfully, England have already qualified for the World Cup, and so there was no burning need for most people to fork out a portion of their hard-earned dosh to view the game. But the thought of this being the way of the future is not at all appealing. I would certainly not appreciate paying £12 only to spend two hours watching a message say “please wait....buffering”. And, whilst having an option to watch sport online is a good thing, restricting live sport to only the internet is far from it. I hope this isn’t the start of a slippery slope. Anyhoo, the highlights of the game were screened on Saturday night by the BBC, but they had been prevented from advertising the fact that they would do so until after the end of the game (just two hours before their show started). Presumably this was to ensure that everybody who may be tempted to pay for the live coverage would do so and not just wait for the free-to-air highlights on the BBC a couple of hours later. So, it was only by pure luck that I saw the listing for the game on the Electronic Programme Guide as we were flicking through to see what was on.
As it happens, all of this fuss was for nothing as England had their goalkeeper sent-off after 15 minutes and went on to lose the game 1-0. Ho hum.
Sunday, 27 September 2009
Sunday Snaps 6 - A Town Called Helen
Over at From a Yellow House, Dori has posted many a photo of our travels around Wiltshire and other parts of England. So I thought it was high time that I did the reverse and posted some pictures of Georgia, taken during my visits over there.
These snaps are of a small town called Helen in the Blue Ridge Mountains in North-East Georgia. As you can see, Helen is a recreation of a Bavarian Alpine town. It felt quite surreal when I first went there to find this little piece of Europe thousands of miles away!
It even comes complete with it's own windmill.
Helen is a cute little town, which I enjoyed visiting tremendously.
These snaps are of a small town called Helen in the Blue Ridge Mountains in North-East Georgia. As you can see, Helen is a recreation of a Bavarian Alpine town. It felt quite surreal when I first went there to find this little piece of Europe thousands of miles away!
It even comes complete with it's own windmill.
Helen is a cute little town, which I enjoyed visiting tremendously.
Saturday, 19 September 2009
Fifty Things About Brit Boy
Dori posted this meme on her blog back in August, and invited whoever wanted to take it to do so. So I have (even if I have taken my time about it!) :-) I have changed 3 or 4 of the questions - because they weren't really relevant - and swapped them with other questions from other memes. I know you are not supposed to do that and the meme police will probably be knocking at my door in the morning, but hey, it's my blog and I'll do whatever I want with it!
If you want to take this meme and use it yourself, then please do.
1. What time did you get up this morning?
6:20. I had a lie-in as it is the weekend! The alarm goes off at 6:10 during the working week. I’ve not been sleeping in lately at the weekends. Don’t know why.
2. How do you like your steak?
Well Done. Although the steak we had in Paris on our 1st anniversary was still pink but tasted gorgeous. I guess it depends more on whether the person cooking it is actually a good chef or not, as well as the quality of the meat.
3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema?
Julie and Julia, starring Meryl Streep and Amy Adams. Really enjoyed it, even though I had never heard of Julia Child before the film was released.
4. What is your favorite TV show?
The West Wing. The most intelligently written, entertaining show on TV ever ...by a mile. And very prophetic too, as it turned out! Gonna talk more about The West Wing on here in a few days time.
5. If you could live anywhere in the world where would it be?
Near a beach, somewhere warm
6. What did you have for breakfast?
Skipped breakfast today (slap on wrist ...naughty boy!)
7. What is your favorite cuisine?
Italian or French, I guess. Not really a foodie, just like food that’s been well prepared.
8. What foods do you dislike?
Nuts, cherries, olives, ...I won’t bore you with the full list!
9. Favorite Place to Eat?
Frankie & Benny’s is my current fave. I’m a cheap date.
10. Favorite dressing?
Uhhh, ranch?
11.What kind of vehicle do you drive?
Rover 45
12. What are your favorite clothes?
Casual. Hate wearing suits or anything formal. Spend most of my time in jeans and t-shirts
13. Where would you visit if you had the chance?
Whoo, where to start?!! Lapland is on our list for a Christmas break one year. Australia, Rome, New York, Washington, California, Paris (again), Scotland (never been up there despite living only a few hundred miles away),.........
14. Cup 1/2 empty or 1/2 full
Half full ....mostly.
15. Where would you want to retire?
To that beach house I mentioned earlier.
16. Favorite time of day?
Early morning, just after the sun has risen from it’s bed.
17. Where were you born?
Wiltshire, England
18. What is your favorite sport to watch?
Football (soccer).
19. Would you move for the person you loved?
Yes. Dori has already done it, and we intend to move again - back to the States in a few years time.
20. Where did you live in 1987?
Bath, England.
21. What is your favourite film?
The Shawshank Redemption – love that film.
22. Are you a bird watcher?
Not really. Birds scare me.
23. Are you a morning person or a night person?
Definitely a morning person, which is a switch from my younger days. But if I don’t get what I need to get done in the early part of the day now, then chances are it won’t get done!
24. Do you have any pets?
No. Not unless you count Trevor!
25. Any new and exciting news you'd like to share?
Yes. I recently passed the course I have been taking on Web Design at the Open University, and can now put a whole sentence of letters after my name.
26. What did you want to be when you were little?
A rock-climber, a doctor (I even had the stethoscope and a little bag for all the equipment!), a magician, the Six Million Dollar Man, grown-up, ....
27. What is your best childhood memory?
Family holidays (vacations) in Cornwall.
28. Are you a cat or dog person?
I guess a dog person, cos I really don’t like cats. We used to have a dog when I was growing up, but I can’t say I have any great urge to go out and buy one now. Unless it was a robotic dog of course.
29. Are you married?
Very happily so, to the wonderful and beautiful Dori.
30. Always wear your seat belt?
Certainly do.
31. Been in a car accident?
Yes, yes and thrice yes. I’ve been hit by a car, a lorry and a van ...and aquaplaned into the back of a van myself on a very wet surface. I sometimes think our car must have a target painted on the back somewhere!
32. Any pet peeves?
People who stand in shop doorways, or who stop dead in front of you when you are walking along. Shopping. Bad drivers.
33. Favorite pizza topping?
Mushrooms
34. Favorite Flower?
Ummmm....
34b. How much cash do you have on you?
£3.12
35. Favorite ice cream?
Not a big fan of ice cream. If I do ever have it then it is usually a “99” – thats a soft ice cream with a flake for the unitiated.
36. Favorite fast food restaurant?
Steak n Shake. Thank you Dori for introducing me!
37. How many times did you fail your driver's test?
I passed first time – much to both my own and my instructor’s surprise! Never been so nervous in my whole life.
38. From whom did you get your last email?
The National Lottery to tell me that our syndicate had won a massive £13 in Friday’s Euromillions draw. So near to that £89million jackpot and yet so, so, so far away.
39. Which store would you choose to max out your credit card?
Gotta think about this one.... Ummm.......Ah, I know! The merchandise store at Kennedy Space Center, Florida. Loved it. Can’t wait to get back there - that's to the KSC not the store!
40. Do anything spontaneous lately?
Not great at spontaneity. Oh no, hang on. I bought Dori flowers for our proposal anniversary a few weeks back. That was a sort of spur-of-the-moment thing.
41. Like your job?
No. And yes. But mainly No.
42. Do you like broccoli?
It’s OK. Wouldn’t nominate myself as the leader of the Broccoli Lovers Association, but yeah, it’s okay.
43. What was your favorite vacation?
Paris for our first anniversary. We were only there for a few short days but the whole time was magical, including a virtual private audience for us of the Eiffel Tower doing it’s night time lights thing.
44. Last person you went out to dinner with?
Dori
45. What are you listening to right now?
Swindon Town playing against Walsall. It’s 1-1 at the moment if you are interested. :-)
46. What is your favorite colour?
Don’t think I’ve got one. Always struggled with this question ever since I was a kid. I’ll say RED, cos that’s the colour of Swindon Town’s shirts. (Grabbing at straws here)
47. How many tattoos do you have?
Zero
48. How many are you tagging for this meme?
I’m not. If anyone wants to take it forward then they are more than welcome to do so.
49. What time did you finish this meme?
8:33pm
50. Are you a coffee drinker?
What? Hold on, the previous question asked what time I had finished this, and then you go and ask me another question!? What kind of **** is that? Uhh, yes I am but only if it is not instant coffee, and then only sometimes. And now it’s 8:35pm and I’m being made out to look like a liar....... you can’t get the staff these days ....grumble grumble...
If you want to take this meme and use it yourself, then please do.
1. What time did you get up this morning?
6:20. I had a lie-in as it is the weekend! The alarm goes off at 6:10 during the working week. I’ve not been sleeping in lately at the weekends. Don’t know why.
2. How do you like your steak?
Well Done. Although the steak we had in Paris on our 1st anniversary was still pink but tasted gorgeous. I guess it depends more on whether the person cooking it is actually a good chef or not, as well as the quality of the meat.
3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema?
Julie and Julia, starring Meryl Streep and Amy Adams. Really enjoyed it, even though I had never heard of Julia Child before the film was released.
4. What is your favorite TV show?
The West Wing. The most intelligently written, entertaining show on TV ever ...by a mile. And very prophetic too, as it turned out! Gonna talk more about The West Wing on here in a few days time.
5. If you could live anywhere in the world where would it be?
Near a beach, somewhere warm
6. What did you have for breakfast?
Skipped breakfast today (slap on wrist ...naughty boy!)
7. What is your favorite cuisine?
Italian or French, I guess. Not really a foodie, just like food that’s been well prepared.
8. What foods do you dislike?
Nuts, cherries, olives, ...I won’t bore you with the full list!
9. Favorite Place to Eat?
Frankie & Benny’s is my current fave. I’m a cheap date.
10. Favorite dressing?
Uhhh, ranch?
11.What kind of vehicle do you drive?
Rover 45
12. What are your favorite clothes?
Casual. Hate wearing suits or anything formal. Spend most of my time in jeans and t-shirts
13. Where would you visit if you had the chance?
Whoo, where to start?!! Lapland is on our list for a Christmas break one year. Australia, Rome, New York, Washington, California, Paris (again), Scotland (never been up there despite living only a few hundred miles away),.........
14. Cup 1/2 empty or 1/2 full
Half full ....mostly.
15. Where would you want to retire?
To that beach house I mentioned earlier.
16. Favorite time of day?
Early morning, just after the sun has risen from it’s bed.
17. Where were you born?
Wiltshire, England
18. What is your favorite sport to watch?
Football (soccer).
19. Would you move for the person you loved?
Yes. Dori has already done it, and we intend to move again - back to the States in a few years time.
20. Where did you live in 1987?
Bath, England.
21. What is your favourite film?
The Shawshank Redemption – love that film.
22. Are you a bird watcher?
Not really. Birds scare me.
23. Are you a morning person or a night person?
Definitely a morning person, which is a switch from my younger days. But if I don’t get what I need to get done in the early part of the day now, then chances are it won’t get done!
24. Do you have any pets?
No. Not unless you count Trevor!
25. Any new and exciting news you'd like to share?
Yes. I recently passed the course I have been taking on Web Design at the Open University, and can now put a whole sentence of letters after my name.
26. What did you want to be when you were little?
A rock-climber, a doctor (I even had the stethoscope and a little bag for all the equipment!), a magician, the Six Million Dollar Man, grown-up, ....
27. What is your best childhood memory?
Family holidays (vacations) in Cornwall.
28. Are you a cat or dog person?
I guess a dog person, cos I really don’t like cats. We used to have a dog when I was growing up, but I can’t say I have any great urge to go out and buy one now. Unless it was a robotic dog of course.
29. Are you married?
Very happily so, to the wonderful and beautiful Dori.
30. Always wear your seat belt?
Certainly do.
31. Been in a car accident?
Yes, yes and thrice yes. I’ve been hit by a car, a lorry and a van ...and aquaplaned into the back of a van myself on a very wet surface. I sometimes think our car must have a target painted on the back somewhere!
32. Any pet peeves?
People who stand in shop doorways, or who stop dead in front of you when you are walking along. Shopping. Bad drivers.
33. Favorite pizza topping?
Mushrooms
34. Favorite Flower?
Ummmm....
34b. How much cash do you have on you?
£3.12
35. Favorite ice cream?
Not a big fan of ice cream. If I do ever have it then it is usually a “99” – thats a soft ice cream with a flake for the unitiated.
36. Favorite fast food restaurant?
Steak n Shake. Thank you Dori for introducing me!
37. How many times did you fail your driver's test?
I passed first time – much to both my own and my instructor’s surprise! Never been so nervous in my whole life.
38. From whom did you get your last email?
The National Lottery to tell me that our syndicate had won a massive £13 in Friday’s Euromillions draw. So near to that £89million jackpot and yet so, so, so far away.
39. Which store would you choose to max out your credit card?
Gotta think about this one.... Ummm.......Ah, I know! The merchandise store at Kennedy Space Center, Florida. Loved it. Can’t wait to get back there - that's to the KSC not the store!
40. Do anything spontaneous lately?
Not great at spontaneity. Oh no, hang on. I bought Dori flowers for our proposal anniversary a few weeks back. That was a sort of spur-of-the-moment thing.
41. Like your job?
No. And yes. But mainly No.
42. Do you like broccoli?
It’s OK. Wouldn’t nominate myself as the leader of the Broccoli Lovers Association, but yeah, it’s okay.
43. What was your favorite vacation?
Paris for our first anniversary. We were only there for a few short days but the whole time was magical, including a virtual private audience for us of the Eiffel Tower doing it’s night time lights thing.
44. Last person you went out to dinner with?
Dori
45. What are you listening to right now?
Swindon Town playing against Walsall. It’s 1-1 at the moment if you are interested. :-)
46. What is your favorite colour?
Don’t think I’ve got one. Always struggled with this question ever since I was a kid. I’ll say RED, cos that’s the colour of Swindon Town’s shirts. (Grabbing at straws here)
47. How many tattoos do you have?
Zero
48. How many are you tagging for this meme?
I’m not. If anyone wants to take it forward then they are more than welcome to do so.
49. What time did you finish this meme?
8:33pm
50. Are you a coffee drinker?
What? Hold on, the previous question asked what time I had finished this, and then you go and ask me another question!? What kind of **** is that? Uhh, yes I am but only if it is not instant coffee, and then only sometimes. And now it’s 8:35pm and I’m being made out to look like a liar....... you can’t get the staff these days ....grumble grumble...
Thursday, 10 September 2009
South African Dreams
Yesterday evening Dori and I went our separate ways as Dori had some study to do for her course, and I settled down in front of the TV to watch the World Cup qualifier between England and Croatia at Wembley Stadium. This qualifying campaign for the England national team has been somewhat unusual in that they have not had any of their usual mishaps or freak results. In fact, prior to last night’s game, they had won all 7 of their group matches in the quest to qualify for next summer’s tournament in South Africa. Victory in the match against Croatia would guarantee England their place at the World Cup Finals, which, as you can see from the Countdown Timer on this page, starts on June 11th 2010.
There was a little history to this fixture too, as just two years ago England were again lining up against Croatia in a match that, if they had won it, would have meant they had qualified for the European Championships of 2008. In a bizarre performance that night, England somehow contrived to slip to a 3-2 defeat and hence failed to qualify for a major tournament for the first time in 14 years. That result also led to the sacking of manager Steve McClaren who was later replaced by Italian Fabio Capello. So, last night was an opportunity to put things right and re-establish England as a major force in world football.
And the match could not have gone any more smoothly, from an English point of view. The team went ahead after just 8 minutes when Aaron Lennon was tripped in the penalty box and Frank Lampard smacked home the resulting penalty. Then, just 10 minutes later, it was Lennon again who played a crucial role, this time providing the inch perfect cross for Steven Gerrard to power home a header to make the score 2-0. Although the score remained the same for the rest of the first half, England were dominating the play and the result was already looking a foregone conclusion. The second half saw England score another three goals (Lampard again, Gerrard again and Wayne Rooney). David Beckham made a cameo appearance to notch up his 114th International cap. The only blot on an otherwise flawless performance was a momentary lapse in the England defence, allowing Croatia to score. But a resounding 5-1 victory meant that England have now qualified in some style for next year’s World Cup Finals, with two qualifying group matches still left to play. It is the first time ever that the national team have qualified so early for a World Cup, and they have scored 31 goals on their way to doing so – more than any other European team.
So, now the countdown to June 11th really starts, when the world’s best football teams will gather again to battle it out to become World Champions. England have won the World Cup just once before – in 1966, before I was born. Every four years, when the World Cup rolls around again, the expectation that England might just do it this time is ramped up, and each time they fail to live up to that expectation – more often than not going out at the quarter-final stage. But could this time be THE time? Capello has got the team playing impressively, and he is a manager with a proven track record. I am not going to predict an England win, as there are teams such as Spain and Brazil who have much stronger claims to be favourites for the crown. But this qualifying campaign has renewed belief in the national team and given me, and several million other long-suffering England fans, that little bit of optimism that means we dare to dream once again.
Just 273 days to go! Yay!
There was a little history to this fixture too, as just two years ago England were again lining up against Croatia in a match that, if they had won it, would have meant they had qualified for the European Championships of 2008. In a bizarre performance that night, England somehow contrived to slip to a 3-2 defeat and hence failed to qualify for a major tournament for the first time in 14 years. That result also led to the sacking of manager Steve McClaren who was later replaced by Italian Fabio Capello. So, last night was an opportunity to put things right and re-establish England as a major force in world football.
Wembley Stadium
And the match could not have gone any more smoothly, from an English point of view. The team went ahead after just 8 minutes when Aaron Lennon was tripped in the penalty box and Frank Lampard smacked home the resulting penalty. Then, just 10 minutes later, it was Lennon again who played a crucial role, this time providing the inch perfect cross for Steven Gerrard to power home a header to make the score 2-0. Although the score remained the same for the rest of the first half, England were dominating the play and the result was already looking a foregone conclusion. The second half saw England score another three goals (Lampard again, Gerrard again and Wayne Rooney). David Beckham made a cameo appearance to notch up his 114th International cap. The only blot on an otherwise flawless performance was a momentary lapse in the England defence, allowing Croatia to score. But a resounding 5-1 victory meant that England have now qualified in some style for next year’s World Cup Finals, with two qualifying group matches still left to play. It is the first time ever that the national team have qualified so early for a World Cup, and they have scored 31 goals on their way to doing so – more than any other European team.
So, now the countdown to June 11th really starts, when the world’s best football teams will gather again to battle it out to become World Champions. England have won the World Cup just once before – in 1966, before I was born. Every four years, when the World Cup rolls around again, the expectation that England might just do it this time is ramped up, and each time they fail to live up to that expectation – more often than not going out at the quarter-final stage. But could this time be THE time? Capello has got the team playing impressively, and he is a manager with a proven track record. I am not going to predict an England win, as there are teams such as Spain and Brazil who have much stronger claims to be favourites for the crown. But this qualifying campaign has renewed belief in the national team and given me, and several million other long-suffering England fans, that little bit of optimism that means we dare to dream once again.
Just 273 days to go! Yay!
Monday, 31 August 2009
Bank Holiday Films
As Dori mentioned in her post earlier, it is a Bank Holiday here today. It is the last Bank Holiday until Christmas here, and marks the end of the summer. It doesn’t seem like five minutes ago when we were making plans to go to Trooping the Colour, or to the Summer Solstice at Stonehenge, but here we are fast heading towards Autumn.
We have had a lazy day today as it is also the last day of my time off from work. For much of this afternoon we had the TV on in the background showing a countdown of the “100 Best Family Movies”. How they decided on this list I have no idea - it has seemed very arbitrary at times. I mean, how can “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang” not be in the top 10, when "Pirates of the Caribbean" is? For the record, the Top 10 Best Family Films, as suggested by this programme, are:
10 – Wizard of Oz
9 – Star Wars
8 – Charlie & the Chocolate Factory
7 – Back to the Future
6 – The Lion King
5 – Toy Story
4 – Pirates of the Caribbean
3 – Mary Poppins
2 – Shrek
1 – ET:The Extra-Terrestrial
A lot of the films that were mentioned brought back a lot of memories for one or both of us, such as “The Amazing Mr Blunden” which used to be shown here almost every Christmas but which I haven’t seen for years now. But what this show really made us think about was why don’t they actually show these films anymore rather than just having interminable countdown lists about them?!
Anyhoo, what are your thoughts about the final list? What would your favourite family film be?
We have had a lazy day today as it is also the last day of my time off from work. For much of this afternoon we had the TV on in the background showing a countdown of the “100 Best Family Movies”. How they decided on this list I have no idea - it has seemed very arbitrary at times. I mean, how can “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang” not be in the top 10, when "Pirates of the Caribbean" is? For the record, the Top 10 Best Family Films, as suggested by this programme, are:
10 – Wizard of Oz
9 – Star Wars
8 – Charlie & the Chocolate Factory
7 – Back to the Future
6 – The Lion King
5 – Toy Story
4 – Pirates of the Caribbean
3 – Mary Poppins
2 – Shrek
1 – ET:The Extra-Terrestrial
A lot of the films that were mentioned brought back a lot of memories for one or both of us, such as “The Amazing Mr Blunden” which used to be shown here almost every Christmas but which I haven’t seen for years now. But what this show really made us think about was why don’t they actually show these films anymore rather than just having interminable countdown lists about them?!
Anyhoo, what are your thoughts about the final list? What would your favourite family film be?
Wednesday, 26 August 2009
A Time Travelling Tuesday
This week is my last bit of vacation time for a few months. As seems usual for the times when I am off work, the weather has been a bit dodgy all week. In fact we are “enjoying” the last remnants of Hurricane Bill as I write this – nothing too extreme, it’s just been a bit windy with constant drizzle all day long. So, as a consequence we have been spending most of our time pottering about the Yellow House rather than going on days out.
Yesterday, however, we did venture out a little, and decided to go to the movies. We went to see “The Time Traveler’s Wife”, the film based on a novel by Audrey Niffenegger. Dori had read the book a couple of years back, and was keen to see how they would adapt it for the movies. The premise of the story is of a man who suffers from a genetic disorder which causes him to involuntarily travel through time. He has no forewarning of when this will happen, and no way of controlling it – he just disappears from one time period and appears in another. The focus of the story though is, as the title would suggest, the wife of this time traveller and the effect that his random disappearances have on their relationship.
This is certainly not a sci-fi film - it is a romance story and an examination of how this unusual “illness” affects the life of those around Henry (the time traveler). Starring Rachel McAdams and Eric Bana, it is a wonderful picture that I enjoyed thoroughly. This could have been a real mess of a movie, with all the different timelines involved, but director Robert Schwentke has done a superb job in keeping the audience aware of when they are and the pacing of the plot is absolutely perfect.
I won’t go into any more detail regarding the storyline, as I wouldn’t want to spoil it for anybody who has yet to see the film – or read the book. I will, however, highly recommend this movie if you fancy going to see a grown-up love story that will have you searching for your tissues by the end. As I mentioned earlier, Dori had read the book previously, which can sometimes colour your perception of the movie when it comes out. But she tells me that she was in no way disappointed with the film version. And as for me, I enjoyed it so much that I have already lined the book up as my next read!
Yesterday, however, we did venture out a little, and decided to go to the movies. We went to see “The Time Traveler’s Wife”, the film based on a novel by Audrey Niffenegger. Dori had read the book a couple of years back, and was keen to see how they would adapt it for the movies. The premise of the story is of a man who suffers from a genetic disorder which causes him to involuntarily travel through time. He has no forewarning of when this will happen, and no way of controlling it – he just disappears from one time period and appears in another. The focus of the story though is, as the title would suggest, the wife of this time traveller and the effect that his random disappearances have on their relationship.
This is certainly not a sci-fi film - it is a romance story and an examination of how this unusual “illness” affects the life of those around Henry (the time traveler). Starring Rachel McAdams and Eric Bana, it is a wonderful picture that I enjoyed thoroughly. This could have been a real mess of a movie, with all the different timelines involved, but director Robert Schwentke has done a superb job in keeping the audience aware of when they are and the pacing of the plot is absolutely perfect.
I won’t go into any more detail regarding the storyline, as I wouldn’t want to spoil it for anybody who has yet to see the film – or read the book. I will, however, highly recommend this movie if you fancy going to see a grown-up love story that will have you searching for your tissues by the end. As I mentioned earlier, Dori had read the book previously, which can sometimes colour your perception of the movie when it comes out. But she tells me that she was in no way disappointed with the film version. And as for me, I enjoyed it so much that I have already lined the book up as my next read!
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