Back in the mid to late 70s, my mom made my sister and I sock monkeys. Sock monkey dolls have been around since the early 1900s and have always been made with Rockford Red Heel® socks, positioned so that those red heels become the mouths of the cute monkey toys. I loved mine to pieces, literally I think. I cannot find it anywhere and seem to recall the stuffing eventually coming out of the thing. Sadly, I am pretty sure I will not be able to talk mom into making me another.

The good news is that I do not have to depend on mom if I want to get my hands on another sock monkey. You can buy a vibrant, updated sock monkey at www.genuinemonkeez.com. They sent me a Colonial Candle Sock Monkey night light to try out and the entire family has fallen in love with the cute little guy. It’s a little bit of nostalgia in the face of the modern world. And, it’s been a great way to introduce my six-year-old daughter to the classic Sock Monkey of my youth. The updated versions come in red, blue, green and orange and really appeal more to kids my daughter’s age than the classic brown monkey dolls. Plus, this version has magnets in the hands and feet that can cling to one another or any metal surface. The options for fun are endless. The site offers clothing for the dolls and related accessories. That’s where you can find the link to buy one of the night lights like the one I have pictured in this review.

Vibrant, stained-glass style colors.

The warm glow of the light when it is switched on in a dark room.

It is a shame that when we need the library the most, they really are not there for us. Not only do school workers like me not get paid over the summer, I am also dealing with the loss of my postiin at the school and the reality that a lot of us who were laid off might not find slots this fall. I am sure it will work out in the end, but things are tense right now. I depend on the local library more than ever to ensure my daughter and I have lots to read this summer without breaking the bank.

But, our local government is seeing some of the same financial woes that the school bard is seeing and they have cut library hours drastically. Most branches are only open in the evenings a couple of days a week all branches shut down two days out of the week. You should see how CROWDED the libraries are now when they are open. The irony is that more people than ever are using their servers and they have to fit all those people into less hours. Yikes. Don’t expect a quiet place to study at any of the libraries around here. They are mini madhouses filled with people eating in line for computer access, crowding into the video aisles, and jockeying for the best books in the children’s section. Oddly, the people who WORK at the library are the loudest ones of the bunch, but that’s more appropriate for a letter to the editor than a blog article.

Anyway, you can see how much I rely on the library for our household book consumption. Even with my complaints, I would rather see my daughter spend time reading than doubling up her time on the computer or spending too much time in the hot, Florida mid-day sun. The library is the one local tax-funded amenity I really use and I try to do my part to help. I donate books, help with fundraisers and gladly overpay on fines. It’s just so flipping stressful to go there now and fight the hoards. I have had a stack of books to return sitting on my foyer table for a week. In the meantime, I have actually made two trips to the Barnes & Noble around the corner and purchased some of the books I have been eager to read. It just seems easier. I find that I am avoiding the library for the same reason I avoid the Mall – too many people rudely jostling for position, too many out-of-control kids, and not enough incentive to stay.

On the other hand, my daughter and I are both re-discovering some of the books we already have on our bookshelves. Re-reading is a luxury I rarely make time for and now is the time to remedy that.

A lot of what I plan to do while I have the whole summer off work is catch up on my reading. I want to re-read at least four on my Truman Capote books (I have multiple copies of all his books – he is my favorite author). And, I want to get going on the books I have added this past year to my time travel fiction collection. No, not time travel romance novels (Ick), but thoughtful time travel fiction generally residing in the science fiction or fantasy. I finally got a copy of Time Camera by Terence Lee (so far, it looks awkwardly written, but holding to a cool premise) and the first in the Time Travelers, Inc. series – Reflections of Toddsville by Hollie Van Horne.

To me, the greatest pleasure of writing is not what it’s about, but the inner music that words make.
–Truman Capote

As I always state, if you want a synopsis of the film, you can probably get it on a hundred other blogs and websites. I am not going to repeat that information.

I just want to talk about my experience as a mother of a six-year-old girl. We went to see the Hannah Montana movie early this morning. My daughter really wanted to see it last night, but I reminded her that if we see a movie before noon on a weekend, we can both get in for $5 each. It would have cost me considerably more last night and although the movie was actually very good, I think it was much more worth my money at the $5 price.

The movie is chock full of references to family devotion, honesty, and the search for humility and looking for your dreams in your roots. The superstar side of the character (Hannah Montana) is not the focus of this movie. The story revolves much more around Miley Stewart and her family. She struggles with her desire for the lifestyle her fame as Hannah affords her, but we ultimately watch her discover that her family is a nobler pursuit.

When taking my daughter to a movie, I am much more concerned with the small details, like any use of questionable language, the way the young female characters dress, and how love relationships are portrayed. In true Disney style, we don’t see belly buttons or short skirts in this movie. There is no objectionable language. And, though there are a couple of onscreen kisses, the camera angle is such that actual lip-lock is obscured.

The movie uses many of the same characters and inside jokes as the Hannah Montana television show, but the movie also gives us some of the back story many of us may have misses – the story of Miley’s mother, how Miley got her nickname, and why Miley’s dad keeps such a tight hold on his county roots.

All in all, it is completely appropriate for a young child. Though a bit simplistic for adults, the movie still made me smile.

When I really, really like a TV series, it generally gets cancelled. Last season it was Journeyman. This season, Life on Mars. Tonight they aired the series finale.

And tonight, my DVR filled up and it did not record Life on Mars. I have not been keeping up with old episodes of some shows and I just plain ran out of space. But the irony! This is the only show that did not record tonight. Lost ended one minute early and I can live with that. Life on Mars, though, I was really looking forward to watching this final episode.

I know I can go to the ABC website and watch it, but I am not sure when they will put up this last episode. It is not on there now.

I have small pleasures in my life, as it stands. Little things. This was one of them.

And, by the way, why can’t TV watchers be a more savvy bunch? Journeyman and Life on Mars were both *smart* shows. And still, crap like Dancing with the Stars and American Idol run season after season.

Oh, man. I completely thought we were set for the halftime commercials being aired during the Superbowl tonight in 3D. I had a couple of pairs of the glasses we got when we saw Journey to the Center of the Earth in the theaters. My daughter and I had them, all set to see the commercials in 3D…and they did not work.

*sigh*

I guess that means I am out of luck for tomorrow night’s episode of Chuck, too.

I never bothered to pick up 3D glasses in the Supermarkets, because I thought the ones I already had would do the trick. What comes to mind is that age-old adage about the word ASSume.

When Tous les Matins du Monde (All the Mornings of the World) first came out of video, back in the very early 90s, I fell in love with the music and the story. I also began an appreciation for Guillaume Depardieu. He was achingly beautiful in this film, wise beyond his years, quite perfect in the role of the young Young Marin Marais. He was about 20 when he made the movie.

I followed his career over the years, his films, his motorcycle accident, the tragic events that led to the amputation of one of his legs, the troubles with his family, and on October 13 of this year – his death.

When I read of his passing from pneumonia, I was stunned. I knew he lived hard, but it seemed such a sad way for him to die after all he had lived through. I rented Tous les Matins du Monde again today, because I wanted to see Guillaume again at his most beautiful. I think I loved the movie even more this time around. Of course, knowing Guillaume is dead made it all the more poignant, but the music also impacted me on a deeper level than it did all those years ago.

They are two artists I associate with time I have spent in New York City. I remember being at the Rainbow Room when Eartha Kitt was performing and I saw Harold Pinter’s play Betrayal in New York City when Liev Schreiber performed in the play with Juliette Binoche and John Slattery.

Kitt died today in New York, at the age of 81. Pinter died on Christmas Eve. They both died of cancer, as is unfortunately the fate of so many in our times.

Christmas is bittersweet this year.

I have not seen a film in years that was as outright entertaining from the first frame to the last frame as Bedtime Stories!

My daughter and I made it part of our Christmas Day together to go and see Bedtime Stories and I am thrilled that we did. It made the memory of our day together all that more special. This film is as close to perfect as anything I have seen in a long time.

You can read a synopsis of the film on nearly any movie review website. My “in a nutshell” version is that Adam Sandler’s character agrees to look after his niece and nephew while his sister looks for a teaching job out-of-state, due to the closing of her school. Sandler years to run the hotel his father founded, but later sold to a chain. As Sandler tells the kids bedtime stories, he realizes that elements from the stories are coming true.

The special effects are stunning, adding just the right level of fantasy to the story sequences. Bugsy, the pet guinea pig, is aw-inspiring (as in “Aw! How Cute!”) There are also a couple of very delightful, albeit brief, cameo appearances by other Disney Pixar characters. (Also look for blink-and-you’ll-miss-them appearances by Carmen Electra as well as Sandler’s wife and one of his daughters.) I cannot remember even a second when the movie slowed down, but I can remember several times I realized I had a huge grin on my face as I was watching.

There is not a single weak link in the cast. Of course, Sandler is charming and easy to sympathize with, Courtney Cox is Sandler’s perfect foil as his sister. Russell Brand, a British import with a pretty much non-existent profile in the United States, is absolutely engaging. There is, of course, even the obligatory and uncredited appearance by Rob Schneider. Guy Pearce and Lucy Lawless are the ideal villains for this children’s film, as they is never actually menacing and generally bumbling.

The only objectionable material I can even highlight would be some very mildly suggestive flirting between some of the characters near the beginning of the film. Both a horse and a guinea pig pass gas, but even that is in context of the story. Also, a character does say, “Oh My God.” My daughter picked up on that, but not all viewers may be as sensitive.

My daughter is five and was thoroughly engaged the entire time. She did not even ask to use the restroom during the film, and that is generally something I can absolutely count on her doing. In fact, there was a child in front of us who looked like he was about 18-months-old and although he was fussing and crying before the movie and during the previews, we did not hear a single peep put of him once Bedtime Stories began.

Even with skyrocketing ticket prices, this film is well worth your money.

This afternoon I went and saw Twilight. One of my friends was taking her 14-year-old daughter and two of the daughter’s friends to the movie and wanted another adult along for the ride. Though it is not a movie I would have chosen on my own, I was OK with keeping my friend company and being able to see what all of the hype is about at the same time.

My first thought is that Twilight is to today’s young teens as Flowers in the Attic was to young teens when I was that age. We’re talking about two very popular series of books that made a splash with the younger end of the teenage reader group. Both had movies made to follow on the tailcoats of the wildly successful books. The main difference in that the movie for Flowers in the Attic was pathetic. The movie for Twilight was actually quite skillfully executed.

I know the movie cut out a lot of what was in Twilight the book, but show me a movie based on a book that doesn’t do the same thing. There’s just never time to film everything that is in most novels. Nonetheless, most of the story in Twilight would make sense even to those who have not read the book version.

I was perplexed as to how anyone would find the character of Bella Swan irresistible after seeing the film. She is morose, unenthusiastic, dull, and monotone. The actress portraying Bella (Kristen Stewart) speaks in a whiney, breathy way that seeks to simulate emotion, but it falls flat. It’s that same voice quality Neve Campbell uses in all of the Scream movies. After talking to the teens I saw the movie with, I was assured that the Bella of the book is deeper, more romantic, and compelling.

Overall, though, the film was intriguing enough to compel me to borrow the book from my friend’s daughter. I asked everyone in the car on the way home to refrain from giving me the details about the future of the story, as I would rather read about.

Not even a year ago, I was writing about how Mary Delgado punched her fiancé, Byron Velvick, in Pinellas County, busted open his lip, and made her infamous trip to the local jail. Now, she has been arrested once again, although this time it happened in Texas.

In case you need a pop-culture refresher, Delgado was the winner of the sixth season of The Bachelor and Velvick was said Bachelor.

Delgado was arrested Saturday night for public intoxication, resisting arrest and disorderly conduct at Lorina’s Cantina in Del Rio, Texas. Velvick is apparently still in her life. He is the one who bailed her out of the Val Verde County Correctional Facility.

You can’t second guess love, folks.

…but they last longer now, too.

Did you know that you can already get a 2009 Fun Card for Busch Gardens in Tampa? My daughter and I used to get our sometime at the beginning of any given year and then we would be able to get in to the park for the rest of the year on the same full-priced, one-day admission ticket.

The price for an adult Fun Card is going up 8 percent, to $69.95. The price for children ages 3 to 9 is going up 9 percent, to $59.95. However, you can start using these cards now and keep using them through the last day of 2009.

In January, Busch Gardens will replace the Fun Card with a “Pay for a Day” deal where you can get unlimited park visits without blackout dates for the price of a 2009 single-day admission. No news yet on those prices.

Despite what sounds like it might be a money losing venture for the park, their revenue is actually still very strong. They make their money off of parking, food, and other concessions from your repeat visits.

Since the Tampa Bay area is basically devoid of real celebrities, the Hogan family saga is what passes for celebrity gossip around here. And since it has been several weeks since our last tidbit of Hogan hijinks, I suppose it was past due for a new Hogan-ific story.

Linda Hogan says the real reason she is divorcing the Hulk (Terry Bollea) is that he was cheating on her with daughter Brooke’s (former) best friend Christiane Plante.

While Linda insists the reason for divorce is as simple as Hulk’s cheating, Hulk himself is not satisfied to let well enough alone. I suppose he’s just not one to put his tail respectfully between his legs and slink off into the beautiful Clearwater Beach sunset. Nope, he repeatedly and often fires back at Linda with accusations that she simply wants to be in the limelight.

Hulk’s lawyer, David Houston, released this statement:
“It is unfortunate Linda Hogan will do virtually anything to keep herself in the public spotlight. We are not going to demean this process nor the family any longer by responding to what amounts to pathetic pleas for attention.”

He can blow as much smoke as he wants, but I agree that Linda is justified with her simple statement about Hulk cheating. That says it all. We don’t even have to get into the fact that the person he cheating with was the MUCH-younger BFF of his own daughter. That’s the tacky icing on the creepy cake, so to speak.

It’s been an amazing season for the Tampa Bay Rays. They went from being a black spot on our sunny map to the most celebrated team in the region. Tampa Bay Rays apparel can be seen everywhere you go. There is a lot of pride in the team, and a day of celebration has even been named in their honor.

And, even though the Rays did not quite take the World Series, they did win the American League title. And much like a tasty cherry on the top of an already delicious cake, our own Evan Longoria has won American League Rookie of the Year today.

The much loved third baseman won in a unanimous vote by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America. This is the first time in the Rays’ 11-year history that they have had a Rookie of the Year on their roster.

So many people seem in awe of the fact that Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie raise six children together – the three they adopted and the three they had naturally.

Me, I just roll my eyes? Why? Well, listen to this little bit of info:

“During a recent trip to New Orleans, the couple – who raise three adopted children, a biological two-year-old daughter and three-month-old twins together – originally flew out with four nannies but had to jet in an extra two after reportedly struggling to manage their large brood.”

Seriously? They need one nanny per child. I have friends with 5 and 6 children who do everything quite well without any help at all. In fact, I know casually one family who has 11 children and never use outside help. Even so, they have things well under control. It’s not impossible.

So, go ahead and send the Jolie-Pittsgift baskets to congratulate them on their stunning child rearing abilities if you must, but I will save my kudos for the day when they stop acting out the roles of privileged brats and run their won family without the help of hired hands.