Just a couple of games we like to amuse ourselves with...

Today I've decided to share with you a couple games my siblings and I enjoy playing.  We invented these games ourselves (clever, what?), and since they're movie games--and movies is what I talk about most on this blog--I thought it wouldn't be too awfully random of me to tell you about them.  (And anyway, I just wanted to.  Do I need a reason?)

 

The first one is called "Initials." It's a guessing game where one person thinks of a character in a movie and the other person has to find out who it is.  We always begin by giving the initials of the character we are thinking of--for example, E.F.  Once these mysterious letters have been revealed, the following type of questions ensue:  "Is it a boy, girl, man, or lady?"  Man.  "Is he the main character?"  Yes...well one of them.  "Is he married?"  No.  "Does he get married?"  No.  "Does he fall in love?"  No.  "WHAT KIND OF MOVIE IS THIS?  No love story?  How unutterably dull."  (That is my typical reaction...)

 

One of the things I particularly like about this game is that as you begin to collect information about the mystery person, you begin to create your own story...and I do enjoy creating stories!  The tale thus forming in your imagination is a very strange and interesting one, and it remains so until you find out who the person really is; whereat everything suddenly falls back into the familiar. Your new found story becomes an old one and you wonder how in the world you hadn't guessed it sooner...as it was all so absurdly simple!   Ha!

 

That's one game we play. 

 

The other one is a bit different.  It doesn't have a name, but it consists of linking one movie to another in a continuous chain until you've arrived at the ultimate movie...which, for us, always ends up being The Lord of the Rings.  (Why The Lord of the Rings?  Don't ask me.   Ask my brother.  He's the one who began it.)

 

Here's an example for you of how this game plays out.  We're going to start with It's A Wonderful Life and end with The Lord of the Rings.  Be aware, this can be a rather long process, so I apologize ahead of time if I lose you somewhere along the way.

 

{It's A Wonderful Life}

 

 

Obviously, this movie stars Jimmy Stewart.  Well, Jimmy Stewart also acts in...

 

 

{The Glenn Miller Story}

 

 

...alongside June Allyson, who plays Jo in...

 

 

{Little Women}



 

(Get the picture?  We're traveling from movie to movie, one actor at a time.)

In this version of Little Women, Amy is played by Elizabeth Taylor--who takes us straightway to...


{National Velvet}
 

 

From here we can take Mr. Brown (I don't know the actor's name) over to

 

 

{Pollyanna}

 

 

...because he plays the mayor in that movie.  And from here Aunt Polly (or Jane Wyman) is obliging enough to take us to...

 

 

{The Yearling}

 

 

...where we find Gregory Peck and move on to...

 

 

{ The Scarlet and the Black}

 

 

Oh, look!  It's Captain Von Trapp--or rather, Christopher Plummer.  So!  Where are we now?

 

 

The Sound of Music?

 

Nope.  Sorry.  We could go to The Sound of Music, of course, but instead I've decided to take Captain Von Trapp (I mean, Christopher Plummer) over to

 

 

{Nicholas Nickleby}

 

 

because there we can find Romola Garai (who plays Kate Nickleby) and travel with her to

 

 

{Emma}

 

 

(Are you confused yet?)

The man who plays Mr. Weston in this movie also plays in...

 

 

{Downton Abbey}

 

 

And in Downton Abbey we have Mr. Bates who happens to play Mr. Timmons in...

 

 

{Lark Rise to Candleford}

 

 

Here we find Miss Lane (Julia Sawalha), whom you probably recognize as Lydia Bennett from...

 

 

{Pride and Prejudice}

 

 

and now that we've arrived at this movie all we have to do is take Mr. Darcy (Colin Firth) over to...

 

 

{The King's Speech}

 

 

...where we find Anthony Andrews--otherwise known as...

 

 

{The Scarlet Pimpernel}

 

 

(And, good news!  We're almost done!)

In this film, Anthony Andrews plays alongside Ian McKellen who is none other than--you guessed it!--

 

Gandalf!

 

 

 

So, there you have it! We've arrived at The Lord of the Rings, and the game is over.

 

And wonder of wonders, so is this post!  (What a relief, eh?)  Tra la!

 

 

 

Have you ever played games like this?

What are some things you and your siblings do to amuse yourselves?

  



Wasting Time = New Blog Look

I've been wasting a lot of time lately.  The past few days have not been very productive at all.  Every time I sit down to work on an intelligent post (or some other writing project) I get distracted.  I've been fooling around with making headers, and once I get started on that it's hard to focus on anything else. 

 

Then this morning I got the urge to redo my sidebar because it was starting to feel disorganized and messy.  And of course, if I'm going to redo my sidebar I may as well redo my whole blog.  So...

 

I wasted the entire morning, and now it's almost lunch time and I haven't done a lick of writing.   It's terrible.  This new blog look had better inspire me to write more or I'm going to be extremely put out with it for having taken up so much of my time.

 

Complaints aside, I am rather pleased with how it turned out.  And I'm now curious to know what the rest of you think. 

So tell me, will it do?

 

Another Lovely Tag!

Cordy, who blogs at Write On Cordy! (a blog, by the by, that I am growing quite fond of), has tagged me for the Sisterhood of the World Bloggers Award.  I've actually done this tag before, but as the questions are always new--and these ones looked particularly fun--I thought I'd do it again.  

Thank you, Cordy! 
 

 

1. Do you have a favorite fictional couple? (If so, why do you like them?)

Oh dear me.  A favorite fictional couple?  Why is my mind going blank?  I know there are dozens of good fictional couples...why then when someone says 'favorite' do I suddenly feel that there is not one couple in all the vast array of fictional stories which I particularly and especially like? 

Hold it!  Let me a think a moment...  

Alright.  I'll just go with the first couple who popped into my head.

Mr. Knightly and Emma.   One of the things I like most about this couple is the fact that they've been friends all their lives.  They know each other so well, and can be totally real and honest with one another, while still remaining good friends.  (Also, their arguments are highly entertaining, and their romantic moments are the sweetest ever.)  "Will you dance, dear Emma?"  Aww.

2. If you could have any animal (safely) as a pet you would have a...

Oh, I don't know. I don't really like pets.  But if I must choose one, I suppose I'll go with a dog.  That's boring, but hey!   It's traditional.  (There is one condition, however.  He must remain outside.  Dogs in the house are a definite, NO!)

3. You get to live in Middle Earth, what race are you a member of?

Well, seeing that I'm an extremely adventurous person, who LOVES to try new things (not!), I would probably go with Rohan or Gondor.  Why?  Well, because they're people and I'm kind of used to being a people (ahem, a person.)  As a second choice, I'd probably choose to be a Hobbit.  Because I think Hobbiton would be a cozy and delightful place to live. 
 

Tell me, isn't that just adorably quaint and cozy?

4. In an ideal situation (you don't have to worry about living too far from family or money concerns) where would you live? (It can be fictional.)

That's a tough one, because I don't usually think about that sort of thing.  Hmmm...?

Well, if it were possible I would probably choose to live at my grandparents old farm...provided it was fixed up and back to what it used to be when they lived there.  The house has for several years now been a sort of dream house of mine, and I'd really like to live in a house similar to it someday.  Of course, I can't go into all the reasons why, but here's a picture for you. 

The inside  of the house (which is small and cozy...yes, I adore cozy places) is what I particularly like.  Unfortunately I don't have any good pictures of it, or I would share those with you, too. 

 

5. Do you have a favorite 'vintage' movie? (As in, filmed before 1960.) What is it?

I know I've mentioned this one before on my blog, but I'll take the risk of boring you and mention it again.  Random Harvest is one of my very favorite 'vintage' movies.  It's a beautiful story and if you haven't seen it, you really should.  :) 

 

6. When you were a little kid what did you want to be when you grew-up?

A clown.  Apparently, my brother and I were going to join the circus and thrill audiences with our hilarious antics.  However, I have a feeling we confused childish goofiness--of which we had a large supply--with being genuinely funny, so I can't say our career would have been a hugely successful one.  In fact, I'd hate to see the kind of reception we would have received.  (Eye rolls, maybe?  Rotten vegetables?)  Needless to say that dream died...and the world is a brighter and happier place.  ;)

7. You can be 'the best' in any sport (e.g. gymnastics, curling, synchronized swimming etc.) what do you choose?

That's a tough question, because I'm not really into sports.  Also being 'the best' at a sport would require a good deal of intense work, and I'm not really into that, either.  Okay...random off the top of my head, and I-probably-wouldn't-really-want-to-do-this-but-let's-go-for-it-anyway...ping pong.  How's that? 

8. List three things that you wish people knew about you but will never ask. (Or just three random things. ;)) 

I'm going to go with three random things.

1. A day of shopping for clothes  is not what I would consider a fun outing--unless we have to stop for lunch, in which case I just might be persuaded to enjoy myself.   ;) 
2. I am a terrible conversation starter, but I enjoy talking if someone else begins it.
3. I have a sister who reads my mind and whose mind I read.  We are forever stealing each other's thoughts.  :)  (Sisters are the best!)
 

9. Share a favorite quote!

I don't really have a large repertoire of quotes as I'm not one to collect them and memorize them, but with some quick research I was able to come across one that I like, so here it is.
 

10. What is your favorite thing about wintertime? (Besides Christmas.)

Well, I don't really like to be cold, but I do enjoy the cold weather in the wintertime because it allows me to be extra warm and cozy in bed at night.  Also, during the day, it gives me the opportunity to sit in front of the space heater in my room and toast myself to perfection;  which is a favorite winter activity of mine, especially when I have a good book to read and some candy to nibble on.  (Ah! Talk about comfort!  ;))



Now, as I haven't the brain power  at this moment to come up with new questions, I've decided not to tag anyone specifically.  However, if you'd like to answer Cordy's questions, please feel free.  And in that case, I tag everyone! 

 

Have fun!

Living in a World where "Love Comes Softly" ~What to Expect (and a Bit of Friendly Advice)~

 

To the Ladies:

1. First off, you will have romance.  Plenty of it.  Love doesn't merely come softly in this series, it comes frequently.  So don't worry about the possibility of being a lonely, unhappy woman all your days, because it's just not going to happen.

2. When your first husband dies, don't get discouraged, there's another one just around the corner.  (Seriously.  There is.  Every single time.)

3.  If a man--a  total stranger, mind you, who you only met like two minutes ago--makes you an offer of marriage for the convenience of you both, don't hesitate.   Say yes.  You may think marrying without love is a hard and depressing prospect, but nothing could be further from the truth.  It is a proven fact that marriages of convenience are your safest bet for a successful and happy matrimonial state.  (I'm not kidding!  All the books say so.  Ask any book you like.)  

4. You're faced with two suitors.  One is rich and says many sweet and flattering things to you, the other is a mysterious nobody who thinks he knows how to plow a field better than you do.  (Imagine that!)  And now, it seems, you're having trouble deciding between them. 

Honestly!  Where's the dilemma?  If you have any sense of romance in you at all you should know by now that the mysterious stranger always wins out over the flattering rich man.  That's so obvious.  (And besides, the mystery man just happens to be  your childhood enemy--go figure--AND...he's still carrying around the hair ribbons he took from you during your school years, so really!  How could there be any room for doubt?  If that's not love, tell me...what is?)

5.  Expect to have a complete makeover at some point during your married life.  And I mean a COMPLETE makeover.  In fact, there may be very little resemblance to your former self at all, but that's okay.  That's the way the world goes.

Get the picture?

6.  As a child you may be able to make fried chicken, but don't worry you'll get straightened out as you get older.   By the time you're married you'll have forgotten all about that, and will have mastered the art of burning your biscuits black and generally making food which is unfit to eat--just as every proper heroine should.

 

7.   You're a brunette, that is true.  And that isn't the style, certainly, for all your female predecessors have been blondes.  But calm down.  It's okay.  Remember the makeover.  By hook or by crook (or by wig, or by dye, or by...SOMETHING), you will be a blonde by the end of the series.

 



Yeah.  That's more like it!



 

8.  The story is drawing to a close.  You're in love with the nicest young man you've ever met, but your lives are taking two different directions.  The situation seems hopeless.  Time is running out, and soon you'll be separated from him forever--never having been able to tell him how much you truly care. 

     STOP stressing out.  Please.  You're driving me nuts.  Just calm yourself and wait for the final scene.  That's when your man will suddenly realize he can't live without you and come dashing by on his horse to bring you back.  I'm telling you, these men never can afford to lose a triumphant ending, even for your peace of mind.  So relax.  You're going to enjoy that romantic moment when it comes. 

 

To the Gentlemen:  

1.  Don't freak out over the argument you just had with the heroine.  That's your key to success.  Keep it up.  A heroine always falls for the guy who argues with her. 

2.  Um...a bit of friendly advice here.  You might want to think twice before marrying that girl.  You see, she's never been married before and that means you'll be her first husband, and uh, sorry to break it to you but...first husbands die, and that is a fact.   (Take for example, Marty's first husband, Missie's first husband, and Belinda's first husband.  Bing. Bing. Bing.  Dead. Dead. Dead.  I'm telling you, that's a rather disconcerting pattern.)

 

 

3.  Throughout the course of the story, expect to receive a lot of good advice from a man named Clark.  He's a man who always has something vital to say.  Also I suggest that you listen to him and take his advice, because he's obviously very smart.  (After all, he's the only "first husband" to survive a marriage, and that's saying a lot.)

 

4.  Make sure when you get married that you move away from your wife's family.  Not because you don't like them, but because it proves your independence and manhood...or maybe just because it provides that tearfully happy ending which is highly important for drama.

 

5.  The girl you marry will be a feisty, independently-minded woman.  Depend upon it.  That's the only kind there is. 

 

6.  And finally, if you happen to be one of those privileged men who falls in love with a widow, all I have to say is congratulations!  You are now guaranteed to live a long and happy life!  

 

 

The End.