2019 Little Women

I finally got to see the new Little Women movie. I say finally because even though it's only been out for a few days, I've been waiting for this movie for a couple of years now, even since the project was first announced.

I was so anxious to see it and I hoped that I would enjoy it the same way I enjoyed the 1994 film when I saw that in the theater. It makes perfect sense that another Little Women remake would be released now, not only because we just celebrated the 150th anniversary (which is why last year saw 2 other Little Women adaptations released) but also because the film industry loves to recall the same audience. The women my age who saw the 1994 film are now grown, with children of their own so we can share the same story with them, starring the actresses that represent their own generation.

The 1994 film had 90's It girls Winona Ryder, Kirsten Dunst and Claire Danes accompanied by Christian Bale, whereas this new version stars Saoirse Ronan and Emma Watson, who represents this new generation so well because we all saw her grow up on screen, portraying Hermione Granger in eight Harry Potter films. Some of the images from this film hearkened back to the 1994 one almost identically, such as when they walk to give their Christmas breakfast to the Hummel family

and also when the family circles around the newly married John Brooke and Meg

 

During the first few minutes of the film, I started to panic. Unlike all the other film adaptations I've seen, this one does not follow a linear telling of the events in the text. Instead of beginning on Christmas Eve when the girls are young, it opens up with Jo standing outside of a NYC newspaper office, gathering up the courage to go in and sell one of her stories. 

It seems to come in closer to the Good Wives half of the story, rather than the classic Little Women (The book was originally published in two parts, the first being Little Women and the second story being Good Wives, when the girls are young women). The portions of the story that are quintessential Little Women like meeting Laurie, Amy burning Jo's manuscript, Amy falling through the ice and more) are depicted in flashbacks. Seeing such a familiar story presented in a new, unpredictable way made me very uncomfortable at first and my internal monologue went something like "Oh my God! Why did they change the timeline?! What are they thinking?! They're going to wreck this story! If they ruin this story for me I will never be able to get over it and I will spend the rest of my days spelling out my arguments to anyone who will listen and I will end up wasting the rest of my life because I won't be able to concentrate on anything else!"

However, once I settled into the story I realized that the new presentation makes perfect sense in context of recalling a generation of movie go-ers such as myself.

When I saw the 1994 film, I was 12 years old. I had just read Little Women for the first time (an abridged version from Scholastic book orders, which I still have). I wanted to see that movie so badly and then it turned out I had strep throat, so I had to lay in bed and wait even longer.  It kind of fit perfectly, because if strep throat isn't treated, it can turn into scarlet fever, which is what Beth's fate is in the story. I finally got to see the movie, and it made a lasting impression on me.  .  .I mean, how many times by now have I blogged about something Little Women related???

The 1994 film really focused on the March girls' childhood. When Meg becomes engaged, the film reaches a turning point, and we fast forward four years to her wedding. As the family circles around Meg and John Brooke and sing the hymn "For the Beauty of the Earth" (which I also included in my own wedding for this reason) we see a contented Meg, and solemn Jo who resents this change, a Beth who looks even more sickly and fragile and a beautiful, grown up Amy. After rejecting Laurie, Jo makes her way to New York, accepting that she is stepping over the "great divide of childhood and all that lay beyond."

In contrast, this 2019 film does not focus so much on childhood, but rather on young adulthood. Rather than allowing the audience to witness their childhood 'first hand', it shows the audience four young women and then shows us what happened in their lives that shaped them into the people they've become.

When the film opens, we see Jo in NYC, a place as creative as she is and as chaotic as she feels her life is at that moment.

 We see Meg in her cottage with her two young children, the symbol of domesticity and motherhood. 

Beth is in orchard House still, because her fate never really permits her to grow up very much so she never leaves her parents' home.

 Meanwhile Amy is pursuing painting and proposals in Paris, a place of beauty and romance.

I enjoyed this rendition very much because it included some very important ideas from the book which do not usually get included in the films. For example, although Meg loves her husband very much, she feels burdened by their poverty and often wishes for the luxuries she sees her friends enjoying. One day as Meg is shopping with her well-to-do friend Sallie Moffat, she sees some silk that she would like for a dress. She knows it's an expense they cannot afford, but she purchases it anyways. Afterwards, she feels so remorseful for her her selfishness and sorry that she is making her husband feel like a poor provider that she sells the fabric to her friend. That type of interaction is present in almost every marriage, and as I've written before, Little Women might as well be a guidebook for Transcendentalist ideals of love of marriage. The 1994 film has Meg declaring that she's not afraid of being poor rather than admitting that she is still struggling to overcome her childish greediness.

The 2019 film also shows us how Jo struggles with her jealousy as she gets older. In the 1994 film, she does not seem to be bothered at all that Amy and Laurie get married. She merely makes Amy promise to always live closy by so she does not lose another sister. However, in the book Jo struggles more with the news. She knows she is not in love with Laurie, but she still mourns the loss of her childhood best friend; she knows that she will never be his best friend again because his wife, her own sister, will now be in that position and share intimacies of their own. This 2019 film shows Jo writing Laurie a letter, asking him to propose to her again, before she finds out about his recent marriage to Amy. She retrieves the letter before he can find it, tears it up, and throws it into the water, quietly accepting that she lost her own chance at a life with Laurie. 

Likewise, Amy also seems to struggle more with Laurie's courtship of her. She tells him that she has always been second to Jo, and she does not want to live the rest of her life knowing that she was a consolation prize. There is more attention given to the choice she makes between Fred Vaughn and Laurie, and how it impacts her.

The ending of the film seems to be garnering quite a bit of attention because it breaks the fourth wall, with Jo speaking directly into the camera, negotiating to own the rights to her new book (which is titled Little Women) and watching the first copy of the book get produced at the publisher. The metafiction devices at work are not simply to differentiate it from other film adaptations, but to provide some biographical information on the author Louisa May Alcott; the 1994 film includes a line about Meg's father's school having to close down after he "admitted a little dark girl." I do not recall if that's mentioned in the text, but I do know that Bronson Alcott did admit a black girl into one of his schools which caused a scandal, and led to the school's closing, so slipping in some biographical details is not new.

However, the ending also serves to highlight the strength of Jo's character and provide an ending that is not focused on marriage being her happily ever after. The 1994 film ends with Jo and Professor Bhaer kissing under an umbrella. 

This ending includes that image too, but her real "happily ever after" moment comes with the success she made herself with her writing and her resolve to control her creative fate. Alcott herself did not want to end Jo's story with a marriage, but had to in order to appease her publisher and her young fans, so this ending pays homage to her original intention because the marriage is not the be all, end all.

In closing, I LOVED this movie.

I do not think it will ever replace the 1994 film that I saw when I was 12, but it's a very close second.

I feel like the 1994 film  is all about childhood, whereas this film is about becoming an adult.  .  .which works out pretty perfectly for me and others my age. 

Merry Christmas

My father's father passed away in 2003. Shortly afterwards, the family was going through old pictures and mementos, like most families do when they lose a loved one.

This photograph hangs on the wall of my stairwell. I still remember the first time I saw this photo, and it kind of gave me chills when the gravity of it set in.

It was taken at Christmas time, sometime in the 1940's. We often take pictures of our Christmas trees so we can try to capture the spirit of Christmas for future years. In fact, I keep seeing this article pop up on social media that compiles photos of Christmas trees for the past 100 years and it is interesting to see this icon of holiday history travel through time.

The focus of my family's photo isn't the tree though, it's the four portraits underneath it. My grandfather (2nd from the right) and three of his (seven) brothers were all serving in different branches of the military during World War II. I can't imagine how his parents, remaining brothers and sister felt that year, not knowing if any of them would return home.

The holiday season stresses us out for so many reasons, and most of us have some struggles during this time; we mourn those who have died, and feel guilty about relationships that are strained or estranged while we feel compelled to put on happy faces and show up to parties and battle crowds everywhere we go.

I walk by this picture multiple times every day, but the other day I stopped and looked at it for a minute. Every year when I watch "It's a Wonderful Life" I try to imagine what Christmas must have been like for past generations; it always seems like it was easier. No booking flights or driving across multiple states to see your relatives. No Walmart. No TV's blaring movies that set unrealistic expectations and commercials for 'must have' toys. 

But this picture is my own reminder to try and focus on the most important things.

Peace and Merry Christmas.

modern miniature scene

I decided a while ago that I wanted to try something new with my dollhouses/miniatures.

I follow a lo of mini artists on social media, and so I got inspired by @little_lucciola. Her creations are very modern, but still whimsical.

They are also pretty small, and I am running out of space in my house for all my dollhouses, so I need to make ones that are small and can be easily stored.

This one actually folds up into its own case!

I found the case in a storage closet, and I covered the outside with the gold patterned scrapbook paper. The carpet is a piece of scrapbook paper.

The bed was in my stash of supplies, and I made the blanket and pillow from fabric scraps someone gifted me.

The dresser is from Dollar Tree, and so is the wall decoration. The pennant banner was in my craft stash.

The little llama is from a jewelry line at Hobby Lobby. The wooden chair and table are also from Hobby Lobby.

The bedside table is a napkin ring I got on clearance at Kohls for 49 cents.

The little stand w/ succulent plants was bought last spring on clearance from Michael's.

I think it still needs a few more accessories, but I'm happy with it so far.

a B movie and a Barbara movie

I've been able to sneak downstairs early a few mornings to indulge in some pre-code film gems. It's something I truly love and look forward to; lighting a fire in the woodstove, making a cup of tea, and snuggling under blankets on the couch with an old movie on the TV.

 I admit that sometimes it's hard for me to break away from my favorite actors and actresses and watch films that star ones I'm not familiar with. But beggars can't be choosers, and when you're streaming movies for free on YouTube (because their copyrights expired and they went to the public domain) you have to see what comes up.  The first one that came up featured a cast I was not familiar with. But look at the pulp-fiction imagery on the poster!

I couldn't resist. And of course any film that centers around a troupe of cabaret singers won't disappoint. Within the first few minutes, a man is peeping through a keyhole on a ship, hoping to see a young lady undress. The story that follows includes suicide, divorce and knife-fights.  .  .not bad for a B movie.

 The next one I need to write about is from 1929, so it's a very early talkie. In fact, I commented to my husband that this film illustrates very well the bridge from the silent because although there is sound, their faces and body language still do quite a bit of the communicating and acting.

This film is the second one starring Barbara Stanwyck. Her first film was a silent one, which has been since been lost. 

The title of the film alone is pretty risque, because we all know what happens when men and women are behind locked doors together. There's also alot of drinking shown, which was obviously still illegal in 1929 thanks to Prohibition. At one point a man questions his wife about a mutual acquaintance, plainly asking "Did he ever make love to you?". Obviously he's concerned about her virtue and pre-marital chastity, but with that question he also concedes that it was possible.

I'm watching another Stanwyck movie now, but it's not a pre-code one so I'll write about it in a future post.

"This is Halloween- everybody make a scene!"

One of the most depressing days of the year for me is the day on which I put all our fun summer stuff away for the year. I don't mean beach balls or plastic pools; I mean all the stuff that makes our house and yard so Us. I put all my handmade wind chimes, yard art and funky painted furniture into the garage,shed or basement so they don't get damaged in the long winter months. My consolation for putting away those things which always make our home so unique, and weird and welcoming is that at least I can put up the Halloween decorations. So, the first one I put up was this Halloween wind chime, which I recently made:

I also decorated the outside porch: 

Eric and Johnny raked up some of the leaves and pine needles yesterday: 

And of course I had to get out the Nightmare Before Christmas display:

And the other day I saw our old grill sitting in the shed and I got inspired to turn it into a Halloween fairy garden:

Most of the stuff I already had in my dollhouse/craft supplies, but I did buy the little tombstones at Michael's this morning.

I've also been working on some Christmas dollhouses and crafts, but I'll save that for a future post.

House Work

Not dishes and laundry and vacuuming, though; I mean dollhouse work!

We recently went to NYC to see the  Beetlejuice show on Broadway. Since that's one of my all-time favorite films, it was pretty exciting to see it come to life in front of my eyes.

The show is more like "inspired by" the movie rather than a theatrical version of it, and I didn't care for some of the changes to the characters and story. However, the visuals were amazing! And it really motivated me to work more on my Beetlejuice dollhouse when I got home. I found a small sandworm light from Hot Topic that I bought for the bathroom:

And once I started working on the Beetlejuice house, I got ideas for other houses, too. I finally got around to making a pumpkin patch for Hagrid to hang in, outside of the Harry Potter book shop:

I also have been scouring the thrift stores for things to add. I recently came across a vintage brooch that was a fan. I removed the pin part, and put it to use in the geisha house. It looks like the fans they use in dancing:

I also have been working on some of the smaller houses/displays, but I'll save those for a future post.

A Small Wonder

Welcome one and all, to the AMAZING spectacle of library magic, performed by the one and only Ms. Mawn!

In this trick, I take ugly, brownish, metal book trucks, such as this one:

And transform them into colorful, polished carts, complete with rubber shelf liners (to keep books from slipping and sliding) such as these:

How's that for magic? I'm still waiting on my Hogwarts letter though.  .  .

New School Year 2019!

The new school year is underway!

The first day of school was great. I really enjoyed seeing the students again: who got taller, who got a haircut, brand new backpacks. I got lots of hugs and high-fives.

I have to say that I am really proud of the work I did last year with the Kindergarten, 1st and 2nd grade students. We spent all year reading books together using the Whole Book approach, a method of reading and storytelling that I learned about in grad school. Using this approach, you don't just read the words and look at the pictures, you invite the students to make observations and critiques about the entire book: the text (color, shape, size, placement), the illustrations, the orientation of the book (landscape or portrait) and the different parts of book anatomy (spine, gutter, endpages, dust-jacket).  .  .ALL of the classes that we read this way with last year have remembered everything! Even the 1st graders (last year's K students) remembered that the left page is called the verso, and the right page is called the recto. I was blown away.

We've been reading "The Day You Begin" by Jacqueline Woodson because it's a Ladybug Award nominee and because it's a good theme for beginning a new school year, and they have been commenting on the endpages, and the pink flowers, and the mixed media illustrations.  .  .It made me feel so optimistic about this year, and what we'll be able to accomplish. It's a beautiful book, so you should watch the trailer:

Last year I applied for the Dollar General Literacy Grant for Youth, and I GOT IT! (or, rather, I got one of them). I authored the grant so that the funds would be used to inspire and support readers who are struggling and/or reluctant, so the materials I purchase with the money will be mostly graphic novels (even if you can't read text, you can read pictures!), Hi-Lo fiction (high interest books for older readers with a lower lexile) and some new Early Chapter books (because our EC collection is kind of outdated). I applied last spring, and when September came, I figured I hadn't gotten one. Then one morning out of the blue, I got an email congratulating me! I did some grant writing at my previous job, but that was just from our Parent Group. This was my first national grant! It's very exciting!

Despite the pride I feel in that accomplishment, I can honestly claim that the work-related event that made me feel the very best was one that took place outside of my school. I have some friends on social media that are former students from my previous school. One of them posted her new college address, and asked for some mail, so I sent her a care package of Emergency Chocolate and a little note. She received it, and sent me a message saying how much it means to her that we're still in touch after 7  years. The connections I make with students is the best part.

It's what keeps me going.

The End of Summer

I haven't blogged in a couple months. I wish I could claim that it's because I went screen free, and spent the majority of the time communing with Nature in a Walden-esque way, but.  .  .I didn't.

I had a great summer, probably the best one I've had in a long time. And I did hike, and walk, and ride my bike, but I also binge-watched ALOT of TV. The Sopranos (never got to watch it when it was on because I never had HBO), Orange is the New Black, Stranger Things, the new Veronica Mars.  .  .right now I am watching Game of Thrones and of course I am watching BH 90210, 90210 IS the series that inspired my very first blog series: Archetypes of Teen Soap Opera.

I didn't spend my entire summer with my eyes glazed over though. As I wrote in my last post, we did our annual trip to DelMarVa, including the ALA conference in Washington DC for me.

We saw some concerts: Natalie MacMaster in the park in Portsmouth, and The Mighty Mighty Bosstones in Hampton. In a couple weeks we're going to see Blue Oyster Cult.

We also traveled to NY to see our families. While we were in Rochester, we decided to spend a day exploring Buffalo since we never really had before. It was fun. We went to the Anchor Bar, the original home of Buffalo wings.

We also checked off a few Atlas Obscura sites, including:

                                                the assassination place of Pres. McKinley

                                                 an abandoned Wonder Bread Factory

                                                             and the Shark Girl statue.

The worst thing that happened this summer was losing both of our bunnies, on the same day; we were all pretty upset for a few days. But the best thing that happened this summer was this:

We adopted a dog! Her name is Elza, and she is an 8 year old black lab-pitbull mix. 

School started a couple weeks ago, which for teacher signifies the real end of summer. And now that there's a chill in the air, and the sun is coming up a little later, I know that fall is definitely at the door.

I have some thoughts about the new school year, but I'll save those for my next post.

Rehoboth '19

I've been a little slow in writing these updates about our annual summer vacation. We've been back for about a week now, so I'll post these photos now.

Every year since John was a year old, we've gone to Rehoboth Beach for a day in the summer. I'm not a huge beach person, but this one is my favorite. I love seeing how much he's grown when I look at the pictures each year:

                           2016                                                     2017                                      2018

 

With his Hawaiian shirt, he was the coolest 4 year old on the boardwalk!

 

                                             We made a few discoveries

 

And had fun on the rides

2019

Wilmington

While we were in Delaware, we spent a day exploring Wilmington.

There were a couple of places on Atlas Obscura for the state that we hadn't made it to yet, so we decided to cross a few more off the list.

The first place we visited was a rare gem. Gibraltar Gardens is described as beautiful and well-kept, but it was downright magical! I thought we'd just go in and take a quick look, but we were there for a while because there was so much to see.

It's hidden behind a stone wall, so it's very reminiscent of The Secret Garden, and the decrepit mansion that overlooks it could easily be a stand-in for Misselthwaite.

 

I love watching YouTube channels about urban exploration, and I love the gothic beauty of abandoned buildings so I had to get as close as possible. (There is a small chain across the top of the staircase, that I ducked underneath. I just wanted to get some better photos up close.)

The gardens came to life before our very eyes. As we admired the small pond with all the lilypads, we spotted a frog. Before we knew it, there were several frogs, of different sizes, croaking and jumping around and splashing in the water. We also spotted some koi fish of different sizes.

I couldn't stop taking pictures because everywhere I looked was a cheeky frog, or a regal-looking statue, or a Victorian fountain, or a burst of color from the flowers growing in there.

 

We also made a quick stop at the sculpture garden at the art museum to see The Crying Giant. It is a memorial to the people who were killed in the 9/11 attacks. This sculpture is actually one of three that the artist made; the others are in the Netherlands and the state of Missouri.

The original plan was for the statue to be a kind of fountain that cries an endless stream of tears into a pool, but that part never came to fruition, so it's just a sculpture.