Monday Listicles: Do You Know These?

Today’s Monday Listicles topic is 10 Movies. Or is it 10 Favorite Movies? Or 10 Favorite Movie Quotes? I do know what it is but I’ve decided to mush it together and, unfortunately, I have more than 10 quotes but they are from only 10 movies. Does that count?

These are some of my favorite movies and a few are “All Time” favorites.

Here you go and in no specific order of favoritism.

10 Favorite Movies And Their Best Quotes (IMO):

1. Airplane

 “Surely you can’t be serious.” "I am serious, and don't call me Shirley."

2. The Princess Bride

Inigo Montoya: “You seem a decent fellow. I hate to kill you.”

The Man in Black: “You seem a decent fellow. I hate to die.”

Prince Humperdinck: “Please consider me as an alternative to suicide.” (Great pick up line?)

Man in Black: “I do not envy you the headache you will have when you awake. But for now, rest well and dream of large women.”

Inigo Montoya: “You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.” (In response to “Inconceivable”)

I think the Man in Black said all the best stuff!

3. When Harry Met Sally.

“I’ll have what she’s having”

4. SAY ANYTHING

“I don't want to sell anything, buy anything, or process anything as a career. I don't want to sell anything bought or processed, or buy anything sold or processed, or process anything sold, bought, or processed, or repair anything sold, bought, or processed. You know, as a career, I don't want to do that.”

“One question: are you here 'cause you need someone, or 'cause you need me?... Forget it, I don't care.”

5. THE BREAKFAST CLUB

 “We're all pretty bizarre. Some of us are just better at hiding it, that's all.”

“Dear Mr. Vernon, we accept the fact that we had to sacrifice a whole Saturday in detention for whatever it was we did wrong. What we did *was* wrong. But we think you're crazy to make an essay telling you who we think we are. You see us as you want to see us... In the simplest terms, in the most convenient definitions. But what we found out is that each one of us is a brain...

...and an athlete...

...and a basket case...

...a princess...

...and a criminal...

Does that answer your question?... Sincerely yours, the Breakfast Club.”

6. THE WAY WE WERE

“When you love someone, from Roosevelt to me, you go deaf, dumb and blind.”

“Wouldn't it be lovely if we were old? We'd have survived all this. Everything thing would be easy and uncomplicated; the way it was when we were young.”

“Katie, it was never uncomplicated.”

“You never give up, do you?

“Only when I'm absolutely forced to. But I'm a very good loser...”

“Better than I am.”

“Well, I've had... more practice.”

7. SIXTEEN CANDLES

“That's why they call them crushes. If they were easy, they'd call 'em something else.”

And anything Long Duk Dong says.

8. FERRIS BUELLER’S DAY OFF

“The question isn't "what are we going to do," the question is "what aren't we going to do?"

“The 1961 Ferrari 250GT California. Less than a hundred were made. My father spent three years restoring this car. It is his love, it is his passion.”

“It is his fault he didn't lock the garage.”

“If you're not over here in fifteen minutes, you can find a new best friend.”

“You've been saying that since the fifth grade.”

9. SOMEWHERE IN TIME

“Is it you? Is it?”

“The man of my dreams has almost faded now. The one I have created in my mind. The sort of man each woman dreams of, in the deepest and most secret reaches of her heart. I can almost see him now before me. What would I say to him if he were really here? "Forgive me. I have never known this feeling. I have lived without it all my life. Is it any wonder, then, I failed to recognise you? You, who brought it to me for the first time. Is there any way that I can tell you how my life has changed? Any way at all to let you know what sweetness you have given me? There is so much to say. I cannot find the words. Except for these: I love you". Such would I say to him if he were really here.”

“Have we ever met before?”

10. PITCH PERFECT

“What are you doing?”

“Horizontal running.”

“I have a feeling we should kiss. Is that a good feeling or an incorrect feeling?”

“Well... sometimes I have the feeling I can do crystal meth, but then I think, mmm... better not.”

I saw this for the second time this weekend and it’s so much funnier. The best lines come from Fat Amy.

Trifecta: Changing the Pace

For Trifextra. 33 words for a new beginning.

Tightrope walking. Trapeze-like feats.

Toes tapping past drawn lines, sand  and otherwise.

"Should I?"

"Yes, you should." acknowledges the sensible one. 

Her Conscience.

"Stop."

"Just one last stunt?"

"No. Do not tempt her."

Fate.

*******************

Here's to a more cautious 2013.  Strange feeling acknowledging this. For me.

Baby-sitting the Big Girls, Oh My!

Every other year I have this “baby-sitting” gig. It's a big job and tougher than one might think but I'm happy to do it. 

My two charges are in their mid-70s. One has a newish hip with a tendency to fall and the other has two bad knees.

They are my mother and her best friend.

My mother’s best friend, Dolly, is a wonderful British woman who swings through the states every other year, as she makes her trip halfway around the world back to Sydney. When she stays, she stays for 6-8 weeks on average. Not with me but with my mom and dad. To say they have fun with each other is an understatement. We love it!

And every time she visits, they ask me to take them into the city. It's a very short Metra commute from where I live and it’s easy.

So what makes this challenging you ask?

They are unsteady on their feet. They drink a lot of wine. They have an agenda. A dangerous combination but that’s why I’m there. Did I mention it’s a full day affair?

At one moment I’ll be walking with them, side-by-side, listening to their funny stories. The next thing I realize, I’m almost a block ahead of them. I walk back.

The day before New Year Eve, two years ago, was the chosen day. The city was crowded. Mom and Dolly ate, drank and shopped their way around Chicago. 

Getting them back to Union Station for the trip home was like culling a cattle herd of two. We had a specific train to catch and, at the rate we were moving, we needed to pick up the pace to even have a chance of making it. It became obvious that wasn't going to happen so they sat and had another glass of wine.

Successfully seated on the next train 45 minutes later, I took a deep breath. We made it. I phoned ahead to my son for a pick up on the other end. We only live two streets from the village train station but I didn’t want to take the chance of walking them up the hill to my house in the dark.

As always, I forewarned them not to get too cozy as departing the train is tricky (for them) and our station comes up fast. Be prepared to exit BEFORE it stops. They’ve heard the speech before.

The conductor called out “Next stop Western Springs. Western Springs.”

“Ok, ladies. Let’s start wrapping things up.”

“Hiiiinsdale. Next stop is Hinsdale.”

“Up, up! Time to get to the door now. Remember, one stop ahead.”

They were not prepared. My mom was putting on fresh lipstick. Dolly was looking through her packages.

“Now. We need to go NOW!”

Pulling into town, I saw our car at the curb through the train's window.

I couldn’t get them to the door in time and as we descended the stairs, the doors began to close. As the doors were closing, my mother stuck her hand between them  as if they were elevator doors sensored to open. 

The doors closed on the palm of her hand, wrist on the inside, fingers AND PURSE on the outside.

Then my phone rang.

“You guys didn’t get off. There’s a purse swinging outside the train door.”

“Honey, I gotta go. Pick us up at the next stop! MOTHER! Why did you do that? 

“I thought it would open if I stuck my hand in.”

“It doesn’t work that way. Is your hand okay? Does it hurt?”

“No. My purse is just getting heavy out there because the train is moving fast.”

“Drop it if you have to.” It weighs a ton.

“I am NOT letting go of this thing. All my stuff is in it and my good ring is out there, too.”

Oh, jeeze!

Once I realized she was ok; she wasn’t hurt. The only thing I could do was sit on the stairs, place my face in my hands and laugh hysterically. Tears were streaming down my cheeks as my mom hung on.

Arriving in the next town, we stepped off the train laughing, as people who’d just had a lovely day together would. No harm, no foul.

And as we drove home, I whispered to my son, “Thanks for picking us up. That was grandma’s purse swinging outside the train. Best not to tell grandpa.”

After the last time, I wasn’t so sure I could handle them anymore. So it was with great trepidation that I agreed again this Holiday season and accepted the gig. Things went off without a hitch. I did a good and safe job with everyone arriving home in one piece including their belongings.

It's sort of a "circle of life" thing. I hope I have a qualified baby-sitter when I'm their age.

Trifecta: Intentions

This could actually be a true story if I actually did this. I am going to this event. If you're in Chicago, you could go too. And for all you fiction writers out there, there’s still time to submit your story for the Nelson Algren Literary Award for short stories. Somebody has to win, right?

*******************

It was like standing in the center of a souvenir snow globe of Michigan Avenue, as if someone turned the entire city of Chicago upside down and gently shook. The snow fell like tiny, soft, feathery flakes lightly blanketing everything it touched including her. It was a beautiful evening. 

She pulled up her hood.

As one of the remaining patrons still outside, she had the “good” kind of nerves. Maybe it was called “nervous with anticipation”. She wasn’t sure, didn't really care, but anyone watching closely would recognize her fidgeting.

She had just two tickets.

It was her intention to invite both to the event she so passionately wished to attend thinking each would love it as much as her. Plus, she didn’t want to go alone or with someone who’d simply “put up” with it on her account.

So she emailed an off-handed invitation, providing them plenty of notice. She worded it so casually. So nonchalant. No pressure. They both said they planned to try.

Hedging bets came naturally to her.

Why these two?

Because she was forever drawn to people with whom she “strongly suspected” she’d have a deep connection. These two melded with her on many levels. Reading, writing, intelligent and passionate conversation were alluring to all three. She knew that about them.

She told herself she’d be equally excited whoever walked down the street. Mentally preparing for one, more likely, due to proximity because the other, she thought, required much more effort and finesse.

And they couldn’t be more different.

One was a woman. One was a man.

She didn’t know either well. Okay. Not at all really. In fact, she had never met either in person. She just desired to.

Grasping at diminishing confidence, she thought, “What if they both came?”

Then, "Or neither?"

“Breathe.”

Gazing in the opposite direction, she heard a tentative, “Hello?”

Breaking into her widest smile,

“I’m so happy it’s you!”

“What do you mean “you”?

“I’m so happy to finally see you.”

***********************

33-333 words for:

INTENTION (noun)

1: a determination to act in a certain way : resolve

2: import, significance

3a : what one intends to do or bring about

  b : the object for which a prayer, mass, or pious act is offered

Monday Listicles: Really. I Have No Intention To...

I’ve fallen out of my Monday Listicles routine over the last few weeks. I think I’ll blame the holidays one more time for throwing a wrench into things. No really. I did enjoy the holidays but I’m definitely ready for some good old-fashioned nothingness. Aren’t you?

Here’s the topic for today. Easy, shmeasy!

10 Things I Have No Intention of Changing in 2013

1. I WILL continue to sing, unfortunately. I’ve been on a karaoke roll recently, having performed twice over the holidays. I can’t sing but I like to dance with a microphone in my hand. Maybe I’d be better at backup?

2. I WILL NOT be giving up my, slightly more than, occasional glass of wine even though I fully understand it’s impact on my body’s reluctance to drop those last few pounds that are nagging me. It’s a cost/benefit, pros/cons thing, in my opinion. I’ll just exercise more and eat less. How about that?

3. I WILL continue to require a workout before I sit down to write. Besides, that is when I come up with my best ideas. It’s good for me for a multitude of reasons.

4. I WILL continue to embrace my inner laziness if that’s what you call my ability to read for hours on end. Sitting on the couch reading is not being lazy. I can definitely show you real laziness. Watching sports is, technically, being lazy, too.

5. I WILL continue to dislike a certain, non-blood, relative in 2013 because she is still not very kind to me. Last year, I extended an olive branch (being the “bigger” person and all) and the year before that I did as well and the year before that… This year? Uh-uh! Don’t even ask me. The answer is “NO”.

6. I WILL still watch my favorite “shows” every night, Monday through Thursday. I feel it's what winter IS for when you live in a cold climate. Watching TV. I’m strictly a three-season TV watcher. And it looks like there’s going to be some really good mid-season series starting. Can’t wait to set the DVR!

7. I WILL NOT stop writing in run on sentences because I enjoy it and they make me feel slightly manic and that’s sort of a fun and exhilarating feeling.

8. I WILL try to keep my blog my secret again in 2013. It’s been really, really enjoyable carving out this one little place of paradise that is totally MINE. Plus, if I tell anyone in my “real” life”, they might look at me funnier than they already do.

9. I WILL continue being myself, or even more myself, this year. Hang on people; you’re in for a ride. So that means silly is going to get sillier. Dorky is going to get dorkier. And, and…

10. I WILL NOT change my introspective nature. I don’t always (hardly ever) share what I’m really thinking. My mind runs off on tangents and I should probably toss breadcrumbs so as to return to my original thought. I'm sorry but I will probably still tell "you" what you want to hear. Sometimes it’s easier for me that way. 

There you have it.

I’m sure there are more things I have no intention of changing in 2013. I can think of 5 more right now actually but you will be spared those.

Stream of Consciousness Sunday: A Painter's Palette

I’ve said this, probably, ad nauseum but I don’t care!!! It’s Sunday and on Sundays I write stream of conscious style writing hosted by Jana. Letting it rip in a socially acceptable way feels so good to me. So we aim to write for five minutes then hit publish. No fuss, no muss, just our unedited word filling the space. So there you have the rules.

Today’s totally optional prompt is:

What color defines you?

Smithsonianmag.com

If I were a painter with an artist’s palette, I would squish a beautiful light blue onto it. Then right next to it, I would squeeze out some green. Green and blue have been my favorite colors my entire life.

But if you took the paintbrush and started mixing the two, though not carefully, the color that I react to the most appears. It’s the color of the Caribbean Sea, a piece of sea glass, the stormy sky sometimes and my favorite color of eyes.

This light shade of blue, blue/green, is the color of eyes that I love to look into very deeply. When I look into the eyes of someone, it’s like looking through a pane of glass. Sometimes I squint to see in further. And if those eyes are blue, I feel a stir, like I can see through even deeper.

My eyes are blue and for some reason, I feel a connection when I find those of the same color or a mix of blue/green and even just green. I feel like mindedness and I’m not even sure why.

The color of the Caribbean Sea reminds me to breath in, relax, enjoy the moment, not fuss.

Sea glass reminds me of beautiful moments and memories. Something to turn over in my hand. To hang onto.

Stormy skies remind me to stay safely inside my home or within myself when something is brewing. Peaceful, somehow. I know from childhood what a sky tinged with green means.

Everything about the variety of shades created from those two colors speaks to me.

Trifecta: It's ALWAYS Something With Boys

Carefree hang time,

Spinning 360 degrees,

Snowboarding bliss

one moment,

Morphs into

fractured bones,

flesh,

plaster.

Yet,

a boy smiles big discovering

growth plates aren’t closed!

6’2” and beyond.

You’re still our “Peanut”.

**************************

This weekend's Trifextra challenge:  As you'll recall from your elementary science class days, the structure of the earth can be divided most simply into three sections: core, mantle, crust.  Here's a diagram.

Image courtesy of Danilo Rizzuti / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Give us 33 words from it.  Interpret the prompt however you wish--literal, metaphorical, or somewhere in between.  If you would like to use the image on your own blog, you must properly credit it.