MissMeliss: Escribition

Malnurtured Snay turned me onto the story, from the BBC news website, and I’m still rubbing my eyes in horrified disbelief. What is it? Well, apparently Universal Orlando is opening The Wizarding World of Harry Potter in 2009.

Okay, I admit, my first reaction was something like, “Oh, cool. I wanna go!” But then my brain engaged and I realized it’s DISNEY. Disney who ruined Winnie the Pooh, and edited one of the funniest lines out of Beetlejuice, which is fine for tv, but not so fine for re-released videos. One of the things I like about Rowling’s world is that it isn’t all shiny and clean and, well, Disnified. I’m cringing inwardly at the thought of humidity-drenched folks dressed up like witches and wizards, frolicking in the Florida sunshine. Or worse, cartoon-ized versions of the characters. I mean, can something like the “Hogwarts Quidditch All-Stars” animated series be far behind?

Okay, Okay, I know that Universal isn’t REALLY a Disney park, but can you honestly believe it’s going to be any better just because it’s Universal Studios and not Disneyworld? I mean, okay, I remember liking the backlot tour at Universal in California, but that was before Universal was into attractions. I mean, when we went, they hadn’t even opened their ET exhibit (it was in the very early 80’s if you must know).

And still, I’m leery about this, because while the movies are fun, and it’s the movie-verse that will likely be given the most weight in the design of this park/attraction/whatever, I still believe that Diagon Alley and Hogwarts are best served by existing in our imaginations, and not in plaster and paint with an all-day pass.

Link to the actual BBC News article is here.
Link to the Universal Studios Harry Potter World page is here.

…any of the games we regularly play, but I seriously think we should retire Dinner at Joe’s for a while. Oh, sometimes it’s amazing, but mostly it’s sort of annoying. I think there are ways we could be better at it. I think the refs could ask for descriptions differently and lead the audience toward better endowments, for example, but mostly, I think we over-play it, and it needs a rest.

I was in both the Friday and Saturday night shows this weekend, and I was a bit nervous on Friday because we’d been yelled at for not bringing enough energy to our matches the previous week. We played Dinner at Joe’s and it did get big laughs, mostly because Craig was given the character of the volunteer’s dog. We also played Foreign Movie, and the other team played Five Things, and Blind Line, and Forward/Reverse, but I cannot for the life of me remember what else we played. It wasn’t a bad show, either, I’m just blanking on it. Oh! Stunt Double.

Last night was fun for me because I got to try something new. My team played Dinner and Joe’s and we also played Slo-Mo, and Lil J and I did the commentary for it, which we’ve never done before (either of us), but it wound up being really funny, with no dead time, and I think using an English accent for it was a good choice. We played five things - only got to three, but the audience loved it. The other team played Arms Expert and Blind Line and Stunt Double.

Went out for a late dinner after the show, and then was talking with a troupemate in the garage, afterward, and there was this massive spider crawling up one of the posts, and he and Fuzzy want to play with it. Rather, he went to play with it and Fuzzy snapped pictures. It was about an inch long, not including legs, tapered body, white spots on abdomen, big fangs, and turned and hissed when troupemate poked it with his umbrella.

I stayed in the car and watched.
I don’t DO spiders.

No idea what we’re doing today. Maybe a movie. Maybe just hanging around the house.

It’s a rainy afternoon, and rainy afternoons are good for being quiet and puttery.

I have two shows of notes to type up, a new hairstyle, and something about a spider to blog about, but I’m tired and really not feeling writey tonight.

Consider this a teaser, I guess.

Will blog in the morning.
(By morning I mean, sometime after the sun has risen on Sunday, not necessarily actually before noon.)

As some of my friends know, I’m all about silly holidays like the random ones BlueMountain used to have in their list. Because, who DOESN’T want to celebrate International Hat Day, really?

This morning, someone on the ComedySportz forum had posted a link to Towel Day, an annual event commemorating the life and works of author Douglas Adams.

As The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy was one of the first non-Trek science fiction works that captured my attention (largely because my 12-year-old self responded to the cheerful irreverence of the book), I find it fitting to remember the guy who wrote it.

So, my towel is in my CSz bag, and yes, I will have it nearby all day.

So where’s YOUR towel today?
C’mon tell me.
All the hoopiest froods are doing it.

Appetizer
Name a sound you like to hear.
While I realize that most of you are expecting me to say “rain on a tin roof” or “the soft sighing of my dogs,” both of which are sounds I do like, the one that is coming first to my mind is a little bigger. It’s the sound of an orchestra tuning. The way the strings begin with discordant tones, and then settle into the all-too-familiar A-440, the way the brass and woodwinds start out with breathy sounds, but warm into confident ones. It’s always so exciting, and full of possibility, and to me, it’s the musical equivalent of the countdown to launching a rocket.

Soup
What is your favorite kind of cheese?
I like most cheese, and it’s difficult to pick a favorite. I love sharp Cheddar in combination with crisp apples, or even sometimes with olives, or on sandwiches with roast beef and strong mustard. I like Brie at parties. I like Monterey Jack in quesadillas, with or without the addition of peppers. Muenster and Swiss are my favorites for slicing on most sandwiches, but then there’s Provolone, as well. It’s easier, I think, to talk about the one cheese I don’t like, that I actually don’t remember the name of, but smells sort of like caramel. Or maybe I’m remembering wrong and it LOOKS like caramel? (It might be Geitost)

Salad
Do you sleep late on Saturday mornings? Why or why not?
Sometimes. I didn’t used to, but after I married Fuzzy this changed. I mean, YOU try leaving a soft bed when there’s a cuddly spouse and two sweet dogs sending out alpha waves and psychic “Stay…” messages! As a child, though, I never slept late. I would get up and read or watch tv, or go play outside in the first rays of the sunshine. And sometimes, if I didn’t have a show and a late dinner the night before, I still do this, get up and take early morning walks, or go write for a while…though I then go back to bed after.

Main Course
When was the last time you forgot something? What was it, and how long did it take to remember it?
If I’ve forgotten it, how can I remember? See above and the name of the evil cheese. More seriously, I’ve been completely scatterbrained lately. I never used to be, and it’s frustrating in the extreme.

Dessert
Fill in the blank: I notice trees when it’s cloudy. I completely do. It’s something about how the green of their leaves looks more vivid against a grey sky, or maybe it’s the quality of the light. Walking through such light is like walking on the fringes of fairyland and the trees arch to become a corridor of magic in my overactive imagination.