Our newest family tradition

Hey, nothin's happening at my blog. Guess I need to post something. I wish it would just bloom without needing so much effort on my part.

My family and I developed an unintended new tradition, courtesy of Netflix. Hey, I should get paid by them b/c I am promoting them on my blog, but I refuse to compromise my creative freedom in that way! Anyhow, we have ordered every kind of movie from Netflix -- classic westerns, modern & classic dramas, comedies, silly/stupid movies, a Shakespeare play, probably everything except a musical, and I'm sure that will be coming (still haven't seen Hairspray).

I think we've plumbed the depths of the '80s -- I think this was when I was growing up, and towards the end, when Dwaine & I went to see a movie every weekend, B.C. (before children), so I have fond memories of a lot of those movies.

Anyhow, so this is a "family" tradition in that often, the whole family actually gathers in the living room -- at the same time. Now, let me explain in a bit more detail. If it's a movie like "The Queen" or "Lawrence of Arabia," my husband quickly falls asleep. Typically, Austin is sitting on the couch, using his laptop -- multitasking, you know. Andrew may or may not actually be in the room, and if it's a movie he is not into, he will either fall asleep (Lawrence) or be playing on his iPod, possibly with a headset on. But the point is, he is in the room with us! Remarkable for a prickly 13-year-old.

So, that leaves me to actually watch the movie. Ha! I take on the burden for the whole family, so I can rave about how wonderful that movie was later.

Occasionally, I confess, I multitask, too. For instance, Andrew wanted to "watch a movie together" tonight, and I'm blogging. It's a rerun, though, something we own. And hey, I'm in the room!

Some truly amazing movies: Lawrence, "Treasure of the Sierra Madre," "This is Spinal Tap," "High Noon," "Casablanca," "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly," "Gallipoli," "Moonstruck," "City Slickers," "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest," "The Milagro Beanfield War," "Mrs. Doubtfire." And we have, currently, 101 in queue. At the rate we watch, that's more than 2 years' worth of movies. Some I can't wait for (The Lonely Guy, Amelia), others are obligatory (North by Northwest, Mamma Mia).

We all get to choose movies, which leads to quite an eclectic selection. We watched all the Oceans movies, and I discovered that if you miss 10 minutes of one of those, you're thoroughly lost for the rest of the movie, so why watch? We've watched animated movies, action/superhero flicks, the few we don't already own; one or two teeny-boppers, and maybe even a dud or two (selected by my kids, no doubt).

Movies are history, in a way. Sometimes, they make history. The best are like fine literature. They capture personalities and moments so vividly. The music can be incredible, and the settings. I still, on the whole, prefer to curl up with a good book. But seeing a good movie, with my family, is a close second.