Sunny Day, Sweepin' the Cloud Away.....

Growing up, we didn't have cable.  We lived too far out in the country to even qualify for it.  That left for lots of time to use the imagination, read books, and watch the one kid-friendly channel that did come in- PBS.  My sister and I would watch Zoobilly Zoo, Square One, and Reading Rainbow religiously.  The top favorite though, hands down, was Sesame Street.

Sesame Street has been a lifelong obsession for me.  What could be cooler than friendly furry monsters teaching you about life?  I learned my first Spanish from watching Maria on Sesame Street.  I learned how to do math from it, and how to face some of life's questions. 

When I was a kid, I remember receiving Sesame Street magazine in the mail, and that was a big highlight of my day.  As a teenager, I still obsessed over Elmo and Grover and the gang (don't judge!).  As an adult, I nearly had a heart attack when I realized that the Muppets were on temporary display at the Smithsonian, and you better believe I hopped on the first Metro and got myself down there.  And yes, I was the one who got in trouble for trying to take pictures of them.....lol.  I was like a kid in a candy store.

So as we celebrate 40 years of Sesame Street being on the air this year, I just want to pay homage to the show.  You are my all time favorite.  You inspire me and have played a role in my decision to work with children.  You are the master of teaching children with cool spoofs that even adults enjoy, and that has been the catalyst for my ideas on staging/media/etc. at my work! 

In closing, I have to pay homage to my favorite character- Grover.  Who can resist the furry lovable zaniness?

Twilight Obsession

I'll be honest.  About a year ago, I thought the Twilight fans were nuts.  They fit into the same category as die-hard Trekkies and Harry Potter fans to me.  No offense to anyone, I just didn't get it.  Nevertheless, I joined a book club and our first read was Twilight, so I got the book and started reading.  I thought it was pretty good and asked for the rest of the series for Christmas.  On the plane ride back home, I started in on New Moon.

10 months later, I was still drudging through New Moon.  That's right kids, it took me 10 months to push through the slow portions of New Moon.  Everyone kept telling me that if I just got through the middle of New Moon, I would love the rest.  THEY WERE RIGHT.

Over the last month, I have become a Twi-hard (that's the nickname for Twilight fans).  I sacrificed sleep, dreamed about vampires and warewolves, and pushed myself to finish the 700ish page final book in just a few days.  Now I totally get it.....they really are that captivating.

Yesterday Stephanie Meyer (the author) was on Oprah and I thought it interesting that she had never written even a short story before she wrote this series.  While I certainly don't count Twilight as a new classic, I think that she did a pretty good job at creating a book that has captivated kids, teens, soccer moms, and all the rest of us Twilighters!