Movie #20 in the Filmspotting Disney Animated Marathon takes us to the jungle, but it’s unlike any jungle I know!

Story By: Ken Anderson, Larry Clemmons, Vance Gerry, Bill Peet & Ralph Wright
Directed By: Wolfgang Reitherman

It would be very easy to finish The Jungle Book and dismiss it as a considerably lesser effort from Disney. The Reitherman style of animation is even less fleshed out than usual, and there are far too many scenes that look empty or borrowed. There isn’t any meat to the story, and the songs aren’t anything to write home about. Despite all of that evidence against The Jungle Book I still found it to be a fun movie going experience, and a movie that overcomes all of its faults for one reason and one reason alone.

All of the negatives I listed about The Jungle Book are true, and the films deficiencies are as simple as what I laid out in the opening paragraph. How then is The Jungle Book able to overcome such glaring faults? The answer is simple, sometimes a movie is fun and that’s all it needs going for it. This certainly won’t be a deep discussion about The Jungle Book on my part, my enjoyment from the film came about on a pure surface level. Characters such as Baloo, Bagheera and Shere Kahn were loads of fun and because of that the movie was oodles of fun as well. It doesn’t get any clearer than that, The Jungle Book is a simplistic road trip movie, and the characters Mowgli encounters along the way make the trip well worth it for the viewer. I know I sound like a broken record, but it really is that cut and dry with The Jungle Book, it’s a journey that you either have fun with or you don’t, and I did.

I do recognize the faults in The Jungle Book, and that is why even though I did have lots of fun with it I would never classify it as a great Disney animated feature. The Jungle Book is a good, but very flawed feature from Disney’s animation studios. It is a classic for a reason however, and that reason is the amount of fun that can be had with these characters. Sure, Baloo is a million times more awesome in TaleSpin, but everything in TaleSpin is a million times more awesome. If you are looking for some good old fashioned family fun then you can’t do much better than The Jungle Book, and did I mention that Baloo from TaleSpin is in this?

Rating:

***

Cheers,
Bill

“Awww, shucks! It’s a Briefcase, Jim!”

Daaang, I’m watching Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. I’m very much enjoying it. Everyone speaks fast,  I feel like I’m watching a movie in a different language… it’s definitely English, though

I think I’m having issues with drugs, I took some old penicilin for my throat. I have tunnel vision. HELLOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

My parents went to a visitation for a deceased friend (may she rest in peace) so, I did not get my film developed. Tomorrow, alas. I am now five days away from winter break !!!

I have an honest question, how can I make this blog more interesting? I feel like my day is kind of a stupid thing to just post day to day. How about like… favorite fruit friday or something? Tell meeeee.

I didn’t realize Mowgli’s upbringing was possible but apparently it is? What would you do if you were raised by wolves and then suddenly found yourself in civilization? I think I’d scale a building to start…

Whew…  what a weekend.  Up all night volunteering for Operation Red Nose (a fantastic first weekend!).  If you aren’t already doing so, apply to volunteer for one night this holiday season and give back to your community.  But I digress…

Here is what’s happening in Saint John this week:

• Serena Ryder (Mon 30, Imperial Theatre, 8pm – $32.50)
• Holiday Highlights of Fashion (Tue 1, Market Square Atrium, 5:30-8pm – $30)
• One Time Screening of AMREEKA (Tue 1, Film Pix @ Empire Theatres, 7-9pm)
• Pubstumpers Trivia League (Tue 1, Big Tide Brewing Co., 7pm – Free)
• Opera 101 (Wed 2, Saint John Arts Centre, 12:15-1pm)
• Operation Red Nose Volunteer Info & Training Session (Wed 2, Boilerworks – Media Room, 7pm – Free munchies!)
• Saint John String Quartet – Russian Winters (Wed 2, Saint John Arts Centre, 8-10pm – )
• KING SUNSHINE (Wed 2, The Blue Olive, 8pm – $15)
• Open Mic w/ Brent Mason (Wed 2, O’Leary’s, 9pm)
• Atlantica Centre for the Arts: Open House (Thu 3, Atlantica Centre for the Arts – 45 Hanover St., 4-7pm – Free)
• Christmas Wine & Cheese + Auction (Thu 3, Mahogany Manor, 7-9:30 – $10 IODE Fundraiser)
• Meet the Photographer Behind Portraits (Thu 3, NB Museum, 7-9pm – regular admission)
• Shakin (Thu 3, O’Leary’s, 9pm – regular cover)
• People Parade/Tree Lighting Ceremony presented by ONE Change (Fri 4, North End Community Centre, 6-7pm – Free)
• InterAction Children’s Theatre presents The Jungle Book (Fri 4, Imperial Theatre, 7pm – $13-$15)
• Skully (Fri 4, O’Leary’s, 9pm – regular cover)
• OPERATION RED NOSE (Fri 4 & Sat 5, Quispamsis to Grand Bay-Westfield, 9pm-3am – FREE!)  Call us if you need a safe ride home in your own car!  693-6810
• December Gallery Hop (Sat 5, Uptown Galleries, all day)  Galleries included: Handworks, NBM, Tim Isaac Art & Antiques, Peter Buckland Gallery
• “But I Can’t Paint!” Workshop w/ William Forrestall (Sat 5, NB Museum, 10am-1pm – $35-$45)
• Holiday Chef Demonstrations (Sat 5, Saint John City Market, 12-3pm – Free) 
• Sea Dogs vs Gatineau (Sat 5, Harbour Station, 7pm – $10.50-$16)
• SJ Chorale presents 16th Annual Christmas Gala (Sat 5, Imperial Theatre, 7:30pm – $10-$24)
• Live Music @ Urban Deli (Sat 5, Urban Deli – 68 King St., 8-10pm – Free)
• The Andrew Doyle Band (Sat 5, O’Leary’s, 9pm – regular cover)
• House Party w/ Nothing but a Nectie (Sat 5, Cougars Lounge, 9pm – regular cover)
• InterAction Children’s Theatre presents The Jungle Book (Sun 6, Imperial Theatre, 1pm – $13-$15)
• Sea Dogs vs Lewiston (Sun 6, Harbour Station, 4pm – $10.50-$16)
• The Skydiggers (Sun 6, The Blue Olive, 8pm -$20)

Have fun.

To switch gears, I recently watched Disney’s “The Jungle Book” again. It is the story of a young boy, Mowgli,  whose life starts in the heart of the jungle rescued by wolves. As Mowgli grows older the animals of the jungle decide that he should go to the ‘man-village’ where he belongs – but he refuses. The story continues as the boy meets and meets animals and a tiger whom he has to fight for his life on his journey to the village. Along the way he learns “The Bare Necessities” of life and the true meaning of friendship. Of course in the end, Mowgli is seduced into the village by a young woman.

The movie is full of fun songs with catchy beats. This is the last animated film to receive Walt Disney’s personal touch. I happen to LOVE animation and I do like musicals – so I love this movie! It’s a classic that the whole family can enjoy.

Remember Jungle Cubs? It was that other Disney Channel cartoon spin-off of The Jungle Book, and it followed Baloo, Bagheera, Louie, Shere Khan, and Kaa, but you know, when they were younger. Cubs, if you will. And stuff happened, but I don’t really remember what. I don’t think it lasted for very long, and no one ever excitedly mentions Jungle Cubs the way they do with Talespin. Anyway, the point of all this is that Jungle Book spin-offs never have Mowgli in them. The Aladdin TV show had Aladdin, The Little Mermaid had Ariel, and Simba had some cameos in Timon and Pumbaa, but no Mowgli, so far as I remember. They could have followed his jungle years living among the wolves, but they didn’t. You know why? Because Mowgli is annoying.

I have this weird thing with The Jungle Book where I remember it very fondly, and I always profess that I love that movie, but then when I watch it, I realize that I really don’t love The Jungle Book. This isn’t me being a book purist, either, because I haven’t read the original, which I hear is very different. There are some fabulous scenes in this movie, and even now, I’m wondering if I should take this all back, because…it’s The Jungle Book! I love The Jungle Book! But no, I don’t. I like The Jungle Book, but I don’t love it, and I’m blaming this on Mowgli being annoying.

And I know that’s not fair. If I had been raised by wolves in the jungle for eight or ten years, or however old he is, I wouldn’t want to go back to the man village, either. But sorry, Mowgli, just…even your voice gets on my nerves. I almost always sympathize with the Stuffy Nervous Sidekick. Sebastian, Cogsworth, the White Rabbit, I love them all. Here, we have Bagheera. Poor, long-suffering Bagheera. In the world, there are Bagheeras and there are Baloos, and I will always, always be a Bagheera. So when Mowgli’s being difficult, I don’t think, “aww, poor kid.” I think, “aww, poor panther.” If Mowgli were Harry Potter, then Baloo would be Sirius Black, and Bagheera would be Remus Lupin. (Kaa is Peter Pettigrew, obviously.)

And that makes Shere Khan Voldemort, of course. Shere Khan is an awesome villain for a number of reasons. First, he’s voiced by George Sanders, who is the best at being kind of smug and smarmy and fabulous. Second, he’s kind of sort of sympathetic, almost maybe. His motivation is understandable. He’s a tiger, an endangered species, so of course, he’s not going to like humans. I take it back–he’s not Voldemort–he’s the Magneto of the jungle. He wants to kill Mowgli because from his experience, humans kill his kind. He’s not a nice dude by any means, but you can see where he’s coming from. I’m pretty sure there was an episode of Jungle Cubs where Young Shere Khan first comes to distrust humans, but I can’t remember what happens. The third reason I love Shere Khan is because he’s so menacing without being overtly violent until the end of the movie. Like his scene with Kaa. He’s not being violent or over-the-top, but he’s still totally scary.

Speaking of Kaa, you didn’t think I was going to forget about Sterling Holloway, did you? It’s weird the first time you realize that Winnie the Pooh is trying to eat our hero. I had never noticed this before, but I guess some people see a lot of, um, inappropriate subtext in Kaa’s scenes with Mowgli. I will say that there is an awful lot of bad touching going on, but I would never have picked up on that unless it was pointed out to me. Moving on.

One of the reasons I always think I love this movie is because of the music. The music is awesome and catchy, and the score is lovely. But the thing is…okay, we may have an Unfortunate Racist Moment. And I’m conflicted. “I Wanna Be Like You” is my favorite song and scene from this movie, but…there are unfortunate implications going on in this scene that I understand even as I don’t want to, because it’s such a great song. Louis Prima, for the record, was an Italian-American jazz/swing musician, which explains why King Louie sings in that style, and I mean, the idea of an ape wanting to learn how to be human isn’t offensive in and of itself. I think the problem here is a combination of factors that, independent of each other, wouldn’t seem that bad, but put together, it makes you raise an eyebrow a little. I don’t know this for a fact, but it feels much less intentional than the racism in Dumbo, and more like Disney didn’t put some of the pieces together at the time.

And I can’t not mention the lack of ladies in this movie. For the animals, there’s a female elephant and a she-wolf who are both very minor characters, and for the humans, we have that one girl at the end who is there to tempt Mowgli away from the jungle with her feminine wiles. And a song. A song about how she’s going to fetch water until she gets married, and then she’ll stay at home while her daughter fetches the water, presumably until she gets married, because really, that’s all womenfolk are good for, isn’t it?

So, the next time I convince myself that I totally love The Jungle Book, I’ll be able to read this and remind myself that I like The Jungle Book, but I don’t love it. I just love Bagheera.

Favorite moment: I Wanna Be Like You

Because unfortunate implications aside, it’s still a super fun song that begs you to sing along with it.

Next time: The Aristocats!

–YoSaffBridge

Street Hawk

He-man

Rashana

Bajaj

Doordarshan

Mile sur mera tumhara

Amul Surubhi

Vimal

Ek Chidiya Anek Chidiya Doordarshan Video

The Jungle Book

PRAB SE SURYA UTHA

Doordarshan Signature Montage

“vicks ki goli” ad film

Lijjat Papad Commercial

Parle G Dadaji AD

Ajanta Clocks Vintage Commercial

Classic Commercial: Milcent (India – 1989)

It took me about 20 years, but I finally figured out where my strange cinematic attraction to the lyin’, cheatin’, stealin’, no-good, lowdown tricksters, sheisters and baddies comes from.

Walt Disney, if you’re eavesdropping from the Great Disney Vault in the Sky, I blame you for this.

Disney, you see, got me hooked on villains at an early age (“The Sword in the Stone” remains My First, so naturally it holds a special place in my heart). And not just one kind of villain — all kinds. The mind reels at the sheer volume of creative and unique villains Disney films have introduced over the years. They range from the purely evil (Scar, Shan-Yu, Cruella De Vil) to the snarky tricksters (Jafar, Prince John) to the just plain cool (what’s cooler than a pirate?). When it comes to cranking out new and exciting villains, Disney has — or at least had – the market shaking and quaking in the corner.

And now, coasting in on a killer wave of nostalgia, let’s take a look at the great Disney villains of the past half-century or so:

1. Scar, “The Lion King”

It goes without saying that plotting the death of your own brother while leading your young nephew to believe it was his fault sends you straight to the top of the Cold-Hearted Snake Ladder of Villainy.

2. Cruella De Vil, “101 Dalmations”

Plainly put, any woman who’d stuff puppies in a sack, drown them and then use their skins to make a coat is right up there with Michael Myers in terms of sheer ruthlessness.

3. Maleficent, “Sleeping Beauty”

Because anybody who can pull off lines like “You poor simple fools. Thinking you could defeat me, ME! The Mistress of All Evil!” while looking so effortlessly sleek and stunning deserves the utmost respect. And fear.

4. Shan-Yu, “Mulan”

Hulking, skulking marauder and village torcher Shan-Yu, with his total lack of morality and anything resembling compassion, will put the fear of the Huns in you (and a few arrows in your back, too).

5. Shere Kahn + Kaa, “The Jungle Book”

What we have here is a perfect combination of brute strength (Shere Kahn, all claws and big, pointy, nasty teeth) and unfathomable cunning (Kaa, unafraid to dust off that Snake in the Garden routine). Disney knows better than to sully the perfect odd couple.

6. Ursula, “Little Mermaid”

Part made man/wiseguy, part behind-the-scenes mastermind and schemer, part wise soothsayer — is there anything Ursual the Sea Witch can’t do? Of course not. It’s not fair, but life’s tough, innit?

7. Jafar, “Aladdin”

There are gangland enforcer-type villains, and then there are soliloquizing, sarcastic loonies like Jafar, reedy evil geniuses who pull the strings from behind the curtain. It’s badness without the beefcake-ishness.

8. Prince John, “Robin Hood”

Bad guys who find time to sling out witty repartee in-between running amock and perpetrating bouts of skullduggery? So much more intriguing than the lamebrained strongarms.

9. Madam Mim, “The Sword in the Stone”

Crazed sorcerers are hard to beat (see No. 3 on this list), particularly when they have a penchant for shapeshifting and know their way around some hard-core alliteration.

10. Captain Hook, “Peter Pan”

He’s a pirate (you know, eyepatch, parrot on the shoulder, “avast ye landlubbers!”?) with a hook for a hand. Need I say more?

Honorable mentions: The Evil Stepmother, “Cinderella”; Queen/Witch, “Snow White”; Hunter, “The Fox and the Hound”

I just watched Disney’s The Jungle Book with some of my friends this morning for the first time in a very long time. All racial caricatures aside, I really love this film & it’s groovy tunes & especially the philosophy of one Baloo. I think that if my roommate was there this morning to watch the movie with us she would have very much approved of his don’t work hard, be happy mentality and would have added it to Daoism as her personally philosophy. Of course, that’s her trying to get out of doing math homework, but I too definitely see the appeal of letting go and relaxing a bit. It can be so hard to just step back and take a break, especially in the competitive and hyper active college world of many schools like Smith College, but I definitely think it’s important to break the mindset of workworkwork and to live & enjoy life a little. It can seem so impossibly hard to not kill yourself with stress over this midterm or that paper or these exams. But stress is not what life is about! I think…I hope.

Anyway, I need to learn all of this myself before I preach anymore. Enjoy the music and add a little rhythm to your life:

P.S. Have a great Halloween!

Thank you to everyone who came out to see The Jungle Book and Strive over the weekend! The show ended up being a huge success and we sold more tickets than any of our past shows!

Stay tuned for Imagine: Dancing Beyond the Edge of Technology, our next performance in March at the Lakewood Cultural Center. It will be a fusion of dance with technology and visual effects that you won’t wanna miss!

Priceless footage – Louis Prima & his band recording the soundtrack to Disney’s “The Jungle Book.” One of the great entertainers. http://ping.fm/xPst4

As far as I know, Noah’s viewing of Disney’s animated The Jungle Book more than a year ago was not a defining moment. I was barely able to get him to sit through part of the jazzed out temple bacchanalia. Now he’s doing what he calls the ‘monkey dance’ complete with simian sound effects as he careens around the front room. Had I not known better I would have thought he was Mowgli’s understudy. He has some boppin’ riffs that even King Louis would have loved to claim as his own choreography.

Our boy is a dancer. His first joyful steps were to the accompaniment of Diogal’s Sore performed in this video at the Satellit Café in Paris. Not long after he stabilized upright he locked the rhythm down simmering sweet. He’s got a groove and it’s good to the see the mostly unihibited moves as he shakes, extends, bends and spins on the ground. Diogal, thanks for the initial inspiration, his first gift of dance.

With so much dance in the air, it’s à propos that we read It’s a George Thing. George is a zebra who serendipitously discovers that dance is his thing. It gives him a newfound confidence and a means to express himself. Dance is a passion he can share. Great story by David Bedford and illustrations by Russell Julian. The book has a tongue in cheek dedication to John Travolta. Sure to bring bedtime smiles and giggles for the three to six-year-old crowd.

Music and dance are soul mates and Noah loves them both. He’s relaying his passion to Nellie-Rose. She’s a welcome recipient experimenting in her own right with sound and movement. In fact, we’ve taken to riding with a small drum in the back seat of the car. I saw it sitting there between the car seats on a recent solo drive and thought, “This is going to be trouble.” It’s surprising though how just the one, a small one it must be emphasized, can have a soothing effect and provide great accompaniment to la ferme à Maturin, Old MacDonald’s. So far, it’s a great car toy but I wouldn’t want to contend with this while driving…

After the jam session, Nellie and I go out for our own pas de deux where rolling waves meet the beach at Rainbow Haven. It starts calamitously. I lose sight of her walking to the car. As I swing open my door I hear a soft thud and a wail of disbelief. Nellie is on her back in the driveway sobbing, tears streaming down her face. Fortunately a neighbour is walking by with a small puppy. She comes over and the distraction gradually dispels the tears.

Out at water’s edge, the foaming sea snakes up the beach, slithering in, whispering out. Nellie has her puddle hoppers on, unsure at first if she should retreat from the advancing water. She looks up into my face for a cue. With a big smile and a couple of words I encourage the fun and frolic option. I let her know that she’s safe and that I will stay close. It’s not long before a hesitant toe dip is a full fledged assault and Nellie becomes an island in the midst of shifting eddies.

This is all great fun, a salt tinged breeze on a mild October day, fine rocks to collect on the almost abandoned beach, the calming sound of breaking surf and time to be with my baby passing in an unhurried ebb and flow tempo. Her next move jags me out of my pastoral. She’s horizontal again looking up at the sky and getting wet as the last traces of water on the piece of beach she’s occupying gets sucked back into the sea. Into my arms for a cuddle. She’s a bit damp but none the worse for wear. Wet enough though for us to start making tracks home but not quite so bad that there can’t be a detour for some contemplative freestyle puddle exploration. It’s not as tricky as the run and dash water at the beach.

Sunday we’re on the road for Windsor – home of the giant pumpkins and the world’s first pumpkin regatta. Linus lovers of the world unite. This is the pumpkin patch gone out of its gourd. It’s a great pumpkin happening like no other and an inventive solution to stretching the tourist season.

Thousands of people are taking in the Childen’s Wish Foundation parade. First we hang out under the sign of the Tim”s where we get a pretty good view of some of the floats. We venture into the crowds on Water Street and one of the bystanders quips, “Look a double decker. And one in the oven.” The parade is almost over but these curbside bon mots as we roll by on the street make us feel like we’re part of it all.

We stroll down to waterside in search of those fabled pumpkin bateaux. This is Lake Pezaquid where the real action takes place. All eyes are drawn to the expanse of chilly water. Every 30 seconds or so, Noah wants to know, “Did it start yet?”. The crowds are getting denser and there’s a real carnival atmosphere along the downtown shore. Noah, Nellie and another young girl are adding to the merriment with their game of run-dance-tag. Vendors from Amherst, Halifax and Hants County make sure there’s greasy food par excellence and fresh produce to go the rounds. The real find is the stand selling giant home-baked cookies decorated with liberal amounts of Hallowe’en icing motifs. They’re so big that eating an entire cookie brings me to the brink of nausea but I just can’t pull back.

Noah’s perched on my shoulders to watch the first heat. It’s the motorized class. One of the three contestants is stranded not even halfway across the lake, dead in the water. The other two chug along toward our shore. There’s not much of a wake behind either vessel. Speed is relative in this event. In second place is is an 11-year-old boy. He’ll have some great bragging rights at school.

We’ve been standing around for over two hours and the chill is starting to penetrate our clothes. We’re all feeling a little dog-eared and ready to roll for home. If the weather’s nice next year we’ll time it differently so we can take in the paddlers. They’re the biggest contingent in the event as they cross the lake like an undisciplined, bobbing armada.

As proud as it is of its pumpkins, Windsor has a lot more to offer. It’s the Birthplace of Hockey as the highway sign proudly proclaims. There are pretenders to the throne but the Town maintains that it has near irrefutable evidence to make good it claim.

Windsor is also home to Mermaid Theatre, an internationally renowned children’s touring troupe. The company purchased the old Imperial Theatre in 2003 and now presents a series of cultural events throughout the year. In 2010 stay tuned for the return of The Very Hungry Caterpillar an award winning theatrical adaptation of Eric Carle’s children’s book.

We finish up the holiday weekend on an overdose of turkey and chocolate pie topped with hand whipped cream brought over by daughter Alexa and boyfriend Jordan. It’s good to see them both and we tune in for some art school, university tales. It’s a wonderful unrushed afternoon and I’m glad they are able to make the time for an Eastern Passage trip.

Hey everyone! Don’t forget to get your tickets for The Jungle Book’s Rikki Tikki Tavi showing in Parker on the 17th and 18th! Check out a sneak peek at some of the costumes and exclusive interviews with our dancers:

(Video: Dennis St. John for Veria Video)

Click here for more details on Apex's upcoming events!

Remember, tickets for our newest performance The Jungle Book are still on sale! The show starts at 3 p.m. on October 17th & 18th and will also feature STRIVE, a powerful performance about reaching for new heights. Don’t miss it!

BUT if you must break our hearts by not coming out, make sure an underprivileged kid can come see it by donating a ticket! Don’t miss out on giving local kids the gift of the arts for just $18 a ticket!

Click here for more details on Apex's upcoming events!

Apex Contemporary Dance Theatre will perform an interpretation of the story “Rikki Tikki Tavi,” a short story from Rudyard Kipling’s “The Jungle Book” on Oct. 17-18. The show will feature choreography by Apex’s artistic director David Reuille. Enjoy an evening of vibrant costumes and crazy characters in a classic storyline that’s fun for the whole family. “Rikki Tikki Tavi” is a story about Rikki Tikki, a wily mongoose who confronts two cobras with the help of a funny bird. Click here for a full version of the story to read to the kids before the show!

In addition to the Jungle Book, Apex will also present “STRIVE,” a powerful contemporary dance performance that encourages people to overcome obstacles and reach for new heights.

“The Jungle Book” will be performed at the Legend High School in Parker on Oct. 17-18 at 3 p.m. Tickets are $22 for adults and $18 for kids.

Apex Contemporary Dance Theatre is committed to creating dance that inspires using ground breaking new movement combined with media arts and technology. By fusing different dance styles with creative vision, Apex creates a vibrant new style that is accessible to everyone, no matter their level of exposure to the arts.

For more information about “The Jungle Book,” “STRIVE” or other events by Apex, contact David Reuille at (303)-803-4936 or david@apexdance.org or go to our website at www.apexdance.org.

Photo: Bruce Norman Photography.

September 2009

When did I become so busy?

I’m not quite sure what a free weekend is anymore.  Not that it’s a bad thing, but I can’t seem to find a time or day that I wasn’t doing something some weekend.  I wonder if we ever run out of energy.  I still haven’t, but I might feel the wall coming.

September was a good month.  It started out very discombobulated with a whole lot of things going on at once.  I took a trip to Memphis on a whim, I started to really feel busy during the week, went to my cousins wedding, played some mud volleyball, and got to see some people I haven’t seen in a while along the way.  So overall it was a good, but busy month.

I’ve come to the conclusion that I’m a guy that needs a goal.

Toward the end of the month I realized something.  I am in my element when I am not only pushing people to be better around me, but striving towards a goal.  I don’t consider myself goal oriented, but I need something to work on, something to fix, something to help, something to strive for; which in itself is slightly goal-oriented.  It’s just my nature.

I’m beginning to understand and figure out how I can incorporate that into my life.  Each month has been a different journey so far, and I feel strangely connected with people I am currently around and those others that are still near my heart, but not geographically near me.  I’m just waiting to see what those connections truly mean.

I’ve got a lot of journey left in me.

Challenge

Do Something Spontaneous

This is open for interpretation. Most people do something spontaneous at least once a month, but really go out of your box this month.  I took that trip to Memphis, TN early in September.  I wasn’t really planning on it until someone told me literally 12 hours before we went.  It was a great trip and I’m not saying you need to go travel somewhere, but doing spontaneous often will take you out of your comfort zone…. and that is where we really grow.

Books I’m Reading

Yeah I’m still reading War & Peace.  Or at least it’s taking up space on my end-table beside my bed.  I’m working on it.  It’s a really long book.  But hey look at all the other books I was reading this month. Tolstoy just takes some time.

War & Peace ~ Leo Tolstoy

Through Painted Deserts: Light, God, and Beauty on the Open Road ~ Donald Miller

The Jungle Book ~ Rudyard Kipling

Serve God, Save the Planet ~ J. Matthew Sleeth, M.D.

Album of the Month

OK I gave up my man card a long time ago.  So this isn’t a problem for me to say I like.  It’s a great album, and if you buy the deluxe version on iTunes then you get all of the songs in instrumental form.  You can’t go wrong.

My song of the month is by another artist who does a lot of electronic things.

Left Handed Girl ~ James Yuill

Ellipse ~ Imogen Heap

Hell no it aint! It still sucks massive pokemon balls. It makes me in most social situations want to flare up my arms in the air and sing The Jungle Book’s “I Wanna Be Like You.” At the end of the evening I am only left with the conclusion that I hate people. Ahh the small talk, the huddled groups, the standing with nowhere to put your arms.

Maybe some people got the charming cute awkward thing going for them but I just want to crawl up and hide in my giant ball of awkwardness until maybe people can forget what I am really like then give me a new chance.

Please release me from this shell! I want the secret of man’s red fire too!!

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

The Graveyard Book starts rather abruptly with the murder of a young family. Everyone is killed except for the toddler who has crawled out of the house and into the graveyard nearby. When the assassin comes pursuing him, the occupants of the graveyard (the ghosts) come out in his defense and scare him away.

The little boy is then raised in the graveyard by his adopted parents ( the ghosts Mr. and Mrs. Owens) and his guardian (Silas – a vampire, although it is not explicitly stated in the book) . The boy who is now named Nobody Owens (because he is nobody with no name) grows up in this strange environment; he is not allowed to step out of the graveyard because the assassin is still waiting for an opportunity to kill him. Nobody is safe only as long as he remains in the graveyard.

The rest of the story deals with his growing-up pains, his adventures, and eventually his stand-off with Jack the assassin.

My thoughts on this book:

The book starts a tad bit abruptly for my taste with the sentence – There was a hand in the darkness, and it held a knife. And it put me off the book for quite a bit. But slowly, I started settling down.

My copy of the book was illustrated and I enjoyed looking at the illustrations, while reading the book.

The Gate to the Graveyard

In between, the mommy in me started asking all too-practical questions – but how did he manage living in the graveyard in the winters? what about his vaccination shots? his dental check-ups, and so on…

But towards the last 100 pages, all my reservations about this book dropped and I really got into it. Nobody meets his childhood friend, Jack starts stalking Nobody again, and things really start to heat up. The story rapidly moves to a smashing climax, where Nobody gets his revenge.

The ending of the story was just perfectly bittersweet. Nobody is now a big boy and has to leave the graveyard and his friends, and make his way into the land of the living, and live his life. The parting between Nobody and the inmates of the graveyard was so poignant, it left a lump in my throat.

After I read the book, I read the author’s note where he mentions that he was very inspired by Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book. And I could see the resemblances – both are similar tales of a child left to be raised by someone not of his type. In both stories, there is a predator out to get the little boy.

But otherwise, the two stories are completely different. The Jungle Book had a lot more adventure and comic moments, and great characters. Whereas, The Graveyard Book is a softer, more emotional story.

I love them both

Cheers,

Baloo

Baloo is the lovable, joyful bear from the classic film “The Jungle Book.”  He also appeared in the sequels and in the Disney Afternoon cartoon “TaleSpin.”

Baloo is a fairly easy bear to find.  He’s also HUGE, so he’s hard to miss!  In Florida, he’s out fairly often at the Magic Kingdom.  He tends to meet in the meet & greet spot when you enter Adventureland, often with King Louie.  At Epcot, he’s been seen out behind the character spot.  At Hollywood Studios, he randomly appears around the big hat or in the Animation Building.  And at Animal Kingdom, he tends to appear a lot… normally near the entrance.

Have you met Baloo anywhere?

King Louie

King Louie, from “The Jungle Book”, gets out more nowadays than in the past.

He is often out at the Magic Kingdom in Florida.  He meets, sometimes with Baloo and sometimes with Timon from “The Lion King”, right as you enter Adventureland.  Sometimes you can find him near the Toontown train station as well.  At Animal Kingdom, sometimes he is outside the gates, sometimes along the path from Africa to Asia.  Ask around!

Have you met Louie anywhere?