Sunday, February 24, 2008

Prelude

I don’t know about anyone else, but when I’m sick, I become such a crybaby. I’ve never been the kind of person who fights through the flu, dumping gallons of over-the-counter medicine down my throat and trooping onward like everything’s fine. No, I prefer to embrace the disease. Maybe, in a weird way, the repeated hacking up of my life-force reminds me I’m alive. Maybe, in an even weirder way, I actually enjoy being sick. I love the idea of getting time off work, and I even more love the extra time for self-indulgence. Maybe I’m lucky that I’m not at a place in my life in which people are counting on me to feed them or clothe them or otherwise nurture them… or whatever, because when I’m sick, it’s all about me. So while I’m whining and moaning about how crappy I feel, I’m secretly reveling in the Me-Time.

Everyone has their own Emergency Death’s-Door Cold-and-Flu-Season Survival Kit. Mine is stocked with Kleenex (the softest available), Chicken Noodle Soup (straight from the can), Chocolate Milk (no medicinal value but, hey, it makes me feel good), and my Disney movies. There’s something about dancing appliances and singing squirrels that kicks my immune system into high gear.

If my temperature is over 100.0, a Disney Movie marathon will commence… almost without fail.

I consider myself so lucky to have grown up in Disney’s Golden Age, i.e. 1989-1994. Not only did I get to see The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, and The Lion King in theatres, but I was also in the target audience. They made those movies for me and only me… or at least that’s how it felt. I have concrete memories of experiencing these movies for the first time, memorizing the songs, and collecting the toys from McDonald’s. I can’t remember who my best friend was in second grade, but I sure do remember wishing she were Ariel.

So, in the spirit of unbridled Disney Devotion, I would like to sing the praises of each of these monumental achievements in entertainment in turn. I’m currently splicing and dicing The Little Mermaid so I can effectively piece together what it is about this movie (and all the rest) that makes me feel like I can rise from my sick-bed and face the world.
Stay Tuned!

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Between the two of us, Reeva, I think we're on a jag of self-indulgence. Ain't it great?

As you talked about growing up in the golden age of Disney, I wondered what golden age I grew up in. Hmmm. School House Rock, KISS, The Monkeys, Wonder Woman, Sesame Street, Mr. Rogers, The Electric Company, and Saturday Morning Cartoons. Oh, and I forgot the Mickey Mouse Club and the Hardy Boys - with Sean Cassidy, no less.

My kids had a lot more children's programming to choose from, but I survived okay. Well, maybe I'm just a little warped from playing KISS and The Monkeys with my siblings. There were four of us in the house, perfect for us to each take a character. I was the Star Child from KISS and Davy Jones from The Monkeys.

I'm trying to decide whether I should close by wishing you would feel better. It sounds like you have too much fun sick. :)

Take care.

Erin G said...

Can you please do Aladdin or Lion King first? I am DYING for a vacation, and the middle east or africa - even just vicariously through your blog - would be super. Plus, Aladdin is HOTT. Remember?

Ryan D. said...

Mary - I watched Sesame Street and Mr. Rogers, too, and while I do cherish and adore both of them, I can't say I connected with them in the same way as with Disney. But all those shows you mentioned are great.

I am feeling much better, and even though I do enjoy all the self-indulgence that comes with the flu, I'm glad to be out and about.
Thanks for all your good wishes!

Erin - unfortunately, the Little Mermaid post is almost complete so it will be first, but I've already decided to skip Beauty and the Beast for now and skip to Aladdin. But... I still say Prince Eric is hotter.