Movie Night!

I'm happy to say that I was raised by a bunch of movie lovers. We go way back on my maternal side, and I've got years of memories and stories about what movies I've seen with whom and where. Some stories aren't even mine, but have passed down over the years through my mom and various cousins. One of my favorites involves my great-grandmother. It seems she was known to sometimes take a few of her grandchildren to the drive in, and being that this was the post depression era, she was probably always one to find a way to save a few pennies. One cousin in particular, and I won't name names, was often the specially picked grandchild to help in this area. As they would approach the entrance to the drive-in, my sweet little great-grandmother would give the order: "Slouch down and look slow!"

That would be so un-PC today, wouldn't it? But hey -- it worked!

When we lived in Germany in the early 80's, my brother and I were overjoyed when my parents invested in a Sony Betamax. We could watch real videos! We especially enjoyed the one that the Beta came with, entitled, "Viva Sony Land!" It was all about a girl named Viva who was so excited to be in the world of Sonyland. Beyond that, we had some old movies, some classic cartoons, and a copy of "Dumbo." We watched them all until they were old and tattered beyond belief.

Moving back to the states a few years later, we realized Beta was becoming obsolete and joined the VHS generation. We kept our local Wherehouse in business, going in every weekend to rent as many movies as we wanted, and as a family would watch up to two movies an evening on Friday and Saturday. We did plenty as a family outside of the house, and with a pool in the backyard, there was plenty of swimming going on during the day. But movies were a favorite. I was raised on the good old fashioned trilogies of Indiana Jones, Star Wars and Back to the Future. Certain holidays were even more memorable because we'd go to a movie. "The Black Stallion" in Germany on Christmas Day. We were the only ones in the theater, and they wouldn't turn the heat on or give us food because we made them stay open -- but we loved that movie! "ET" on Easter in Vienna, either before or after we saw the Lipizzan Stallions at the Spanish Riding School. "Top Gun" on Thanksgiving, because hey -- why not? Oh Maverick, if only you could have stayed so cool.

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Tonight is my beloved Girls Night Out, and we're doing a second showing of "Sex and the City." It's got to be seen on the big screen just once more! Hmmm...movie tickets do cost a lot these days. Perhaps we can find a way to save a little money. Hey, The Mom -- how do you feel about slouching down and looking slow?