Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Is This The Bus to the Renaissance?

You know what's cool about the internet? If you answered that you can look up all the Superbowl commercials on YouTube, yeeeessssss .... but that's not exactly what I had in mind. I think it is amazing how we can find people with common interests anywhere in the world, making it so you have more friends than ever! (Which is good, especially when you live in a town of 222. (My town's not that small. That's the population of Aleknagik, Alaska, just in case you were wondering. (Hey look, I'm doing the parenthesis within a parenthesis again. Awesomesauce! (How do you pronounce Aleknagik anyway?)))) Anywho, it was fun to read JazznJenna's post last week and see what we have in common with her. Do you know what else we all have in common? MOVIES! I have never met a person who says "I do not like to watch movies." Have you?

Wow, that was a roundabout way of getting to my topic, wasn't it? And I wonder why my wordcounts are always soooo long.

Since I prefer living in a fantasy world over my monotonous, boring one, I often let my thoughts linger on movies for hours or even days afterwords. And there's been many times when I've wanted to live on a certain set. Or ... live in that time period. Anytime I watch a movie that took place in the Renaissance times, I think "I so could have lived then." But only if I was a princess; not a pauper. I don't think about being born in the wrong century as much anymore, but when I was a teen, I thought for certain I had missed the bus from Heaven to Earth during the Renaissance times and then I got lost for a few hundred years and was born much, much, much too late. I even had a teacher reaffirm this for me. (And teachers know EVERYTHING.) I was in a high school play of Camelot, and as we were in dress rehearsal, the music teacher/director said, (in front of the entire cast) "Lori, you were born a few hundred years too late." I was giddy with excitement that someone else knew that there was a mess-up in heaven. I was not supposed to be born in 1985.


I think it all started with watching and reading Sleeping Beauty. Sigh. Love that story.

I know this may seem abnormal to some of you, but my husband is the most normal person I know, and he has similar thoughts. When he saw Dances With Wolves, he KNEW he was supposed to have been born as a frontiersman. Watching Last of the Mohican's reaffirmed this for him. He still insists that he would have loved to live back when there were more buffalo than people and when nothing but nature could be seen for thousands of miles.


 The picture is tiny because cameras were smaller back in the days of the untamed west.

So there is your topic this week: If you could have been born at any time, under any circumstance, when would it have been? What are your favorite movies from that time period? Mine are: Ever After, The Princess Bride, Tangled, Sleeping Beauty and Robin Hood (1991).

(Birth years in this post may have been change to protect the old.)

14 comments:

Jennifer Lovell said...

I couldn't possibly live in any other time period outside of now, because I love my life so much the way it is.

However, if there's one thing I can imagine, it's me being the heroine in an extremely romantic movie! I would love to be Margaret in "North and South", Elizabeth in "Pride and Prejudice", I could easily be Cinderella and the Little Mermaid ('cause I want to sing all of their songs), and even the more modern films--I would love to be Annie Banks in "Father of the Bride", and Jennifer Lopez's character Mary in "The Wedding Planner" (does that entitle me to Jennifer Lopez's body and pretty hair and complete bilinguality, too? Just checking... (and yes, Lori, you have my permission to adopt my new word "bilinguality"! ;o) ha ha ha...)).

I can't say I'd want to be Bella in Twilight because she's too much of a brat, and I just can't bring myself to want to be in "Sleepless in Seattle" or "You've Got Mail" because I'm so not attracted to Tom Hanks (so shoot me), even though I love those movies.

But speaking of Meg Ryan, that leads me to probably my #1 choice--please put me in "Kate & Leopold" so I can marry Hugh Jackman...I mean Leopold. Awesomesauce! : )

Nicole Jessop said...

I love Tangled! Ok, so I would love to have been born back when they wore big dresses, like in Pirates of the Caribbean times. I think it would be fun to always wear dresses like that. This isn't a movie, but I would LOVE to be on the sets of NCIS and Psych. They look like such fun sets to be on and the actors are awesome. And, since I love Lord of the Rings, I would like to be in that movie as well. Oh, Count of Monte Cristo, Aladdin, Anything where I can wear a big dress.

Anne Miller said...

Love your topics Lori! I don't know that i would have wanted to live then but.... Id love to witness the women's rights movement. Id love to meet Susan B Anthony and Ive always had a fascination with WWII . I love learning about both of those and i always thought the 50's-60's had such fun music and cute skirts :) I also like civil war time ..or at least before the war. They also have fun clothes so... movies to go along those... I loved gone with the wind, Anne of Green Gables , Pearl Harbor... can't think of any more off the top of my head but i.know there are tons!

Livingstonslifeinmontana said...

That is so funny, because when I was in High School I always thought I should have been born in the 40's or 50's! I really love the music: Elvis, Ricky Nelson, Buddy Holly, The Beatles. I love the movies: Cary Grant, Doris Day, Fred Estaire, Judy Garland. I love the clothes: poodle skirt with saddle shoes! I love when the women dressed up they wore long gloves and really chic dresses with awesome long wraps or coats!

I wouldn't want to change times now, but I sure wish that the clothing was different. I would love to be able to dress in those clothes or in the awesome renaissance clothes.

I can honestly say that I NEVER thought ONCE about being a frontierswoman!!!!!! (horrible outfits) Ü

Team C said...

I just wish I could live in cartoon times where everything turns out O.k. in the end. The girl always gets her guy, and the witch is always melted, or thrown off a cliff, or tower. (Wow, how macabre)How fun would it be to have tiny animals talk with you and help you clean the house!?

Lori Folkman said...

JazznJenna: I know, who could live back in days without computer, right? We're going to have to get together one of these years and have a slumber party and watch all those movies. You have such good taste!

Nicole: Ah, big dresses. You did it perfectly with your wedding dress. You ever put it on, just for fun? :)

Anne: So many amazing events have happened on this earth. It would be so cool to witness some of those you mentioned.

LLinMt:Sad how we've gone from such a classy society to one who purposely lets their underwear hang out!

Team C: you are so clever! I'd never thought of that before. That would be fun, especially to do the scenes where they use an eraser and change everything around the characters!

Robin said...

I wish I had been born a Southern Belle(wealthy of course). Also before the Civil War. I want someone to cook for me and select my clothes for me. Bring on those gorgeous dresses and shoes. I want to dance at the Cotillion's with a full dance card. Dream on Scarlett!

Sally said...

I have always been fascinated with frontier life. One of my favorite books, A Song of Years by Bess Streeter Aldrich, tells the story of families settling in Iowa in the mid-19th century. Life on the frontier was about basic survival, but they still found humor and entertainment in everyday situations. No, I don't wish I'd been a pioneer, but the idea of a less cluttered life does appeal to me. And I certainly don't yearn to dress the part. I'm pretty comfortable in my jeans and t-shirts. (Not saying my wardrobe doesn't need a makeover--just that it shouldn't include petticoats.)

Janice said...

I love the style of the 40's, 50's, and early 60's. (Pre-hippie days!) Picture Grace Kelly in "Rear Window." That's a classic look!

I also wouldn't want to dress like an early settler of the Western Frontier, but something about that time and life is very appealing to me.

Janice

Caitlin said...

Call me frumpy, but I’ve always liked the Victorian Era. I would have wanted to be wealthy and decked out in lace, floral, and cameos. Those guys had good taste! I’ll try to think of some good movies here. “Four Feathers”, “Room with a View”, and “Phantom of the Opera” are some of the best. “The Secret Garden” and “Little Princess” were a few years later, but they’re my favorites so I’m adding them in :)

steven said...

I honestly have to say I am pretty satisfied with the age in which I live. Easy access to exotic foods and foreign products, fast and efficient means of communication and travel. Gadgets like computers, IPods, tablets. Indoor plumbing! Heck yeah! But what fun is there in our modern age as compared to all the previous comments about the good old days where it was socially acceptable to slap people upside the face with a dainty glove, and even wear pretty big dresses? Well allow me to explain my trail of thought… Great movies that include (mostly) our current day and age, Inception! Well Inception is mostly about dreams. And yes ma’am I DO have some pretty wacky dreams, but some of them are so cool! So, Lori, I don’t know if this counts since my dreams are not a movie era… but what if some of my dreams could come true? I be down! Then my life could range anywhere from me being Dean Martin with a six shooter on my hip enforcing the law in the wild west, to being Captain Jack Sparrow giving helicopter tours of some place in Alaska. Strange? Yes. But there is no denying it would be fun, so long as Leo stays out of my life…

Bakerfam said...

Pants. What more can I say, I love being able to move In pants! I would have to agree with Janice and Matt about the un tamed western frontier though. I could see my self back then " rough tuff Montana stuff" Maverick, Quigley down under, man from snowy river...Of corse I would have a generous income and plenty of land to roam and breath the fresh air. Come to think of it they wore pantaloons too :( not so cute. However their dresses where pritty and simple.

PaulaShawn said...

I think I'm a "bloom where you're planted" kind of gal. Right here, right now is my pick without any kind of desire for anything else (I studied English Lit. and there's no way you'd get me (a woman) to go back anywhere in history). This is the best of times! And as for movies, check out the one that I'm in:http://youtu.be/tv1XYfkiMHY

I learned from a famous writer how to use parentheses. You like?

Lori Folkman said...

Robin: I hate to admit it because I feel like a lame loser, but I have never seen Gone With The Wind in its entirety! I've gotta get on that one.

Sally: I love the line about the petticoats! Guess what I'm getting you for your birthday?

Janice: I think the hippie era should be erased from history. Ick. They don't make them like Grace Kelly anymore, do they? So classy.

Caitlin: Your comment made me sigh. I'll do it again. Victorian Era. *sigh*

steven: Two words: Guest Post.
And, I'd pay big bucks to see you in a big, pretty dress.

Baker fam: Two words: Fleece dress.
Talk to PaulaShawn about that one. Supposedly it's just as good as pants! I love Maverick too!

PaulaShawn: Excellent usage of the (( )). AND, I was so worried you would send me to another exploding whale video that I almost didn't click, but what a pleasant surprise! Cute. *Sigh* again.