Food & Wine: July 2007 Archives

Yesterday was the Forth of July but we weren't very patriotic until very late in the day.  It was raining and we had that "stay inside" feeling.  I worked on processing our wedding photos and Sybille worked on Thank You cards.  Later we watched a movie - "Click" - a cute little "remake" of Dickens' Christmas Carol.  I say that loosely, as it wasn't really a remake as much as it was a similar story line and an "and then I woke up" kind of ending.

I'm know I have said it before so maybe I have written it before, but I must say, I appall that kind of ending!  Maybe its because my 5th grade English teacher taught me to never abandon a fiction story with an "and then I woke up" ending.  She was right because that type of ending usually sucks.  However, I am amazed at the number of times it is used - especially in film.  Hollywood loves that ending.  "Oh, it was just a dream!", must be up there among moviegoer quips.

I wonder, have we learned to accept that kind of ending?  Have we become so frosted over that we require outlandishly written premises in order to entertain us - ones so extreme that the author has no choice but to offer an "and then I woke up" story line?  Don't get me wrong.  There are masterfully told stories with "and then" endings.  (I got tired of saying, "and then I woke up" so I have amended it to simply "and then".)  The Sixth Sense comes to mind as one of the best spins on this type of ending and Shyamalan deserves all the credit for approaching it so blatantly.  However, to Shayamalan's credit, he wrote the story from the "and then" ending as the premise.  That was the point.  That's why it worked.  It wasn't the other way around.  Dickens' tale was done that way too.  Which is why it made its way to a classic title, wherein "Click" probably wont.  But it was still fun and as it turned out, it was a 4th of July film.  We had no idea when we slipped it into the DVD player, but the story begins with a man who is torn between work and/or family during the 4th of July weekend.  By the time it was done, we felt much more patriotic than earlier.  And it had stopped raining as well.

So, we quickly jumped in the car and ran up to the store for supplies:  marshmallows, graham crackers and chocolate bars.  You guessed it.  We had S'mores - which was a first for Sybille.  She was under the impression that it was some kind of Independence Day treat.  I'm not sure where that misinformation came from, but as I hadn't had one in at least 15 years, I was game.  We made it back from the store just in time for the neighborhood fireworks to begin and we watched them while roasting marshmallows over the fire pit.

Sybille did me proud, quickly learning the art of roasting a marshmallow and how to blow them out when they catch fire.  She went on to perfect my recipe by using two big marshmallows her second time around.  They were great - the fireworks and the S'mores.

Above is a picture of the two flags which now fly over our backyard.  They are the wedding gifts of Janet and George.  Thanks to both of you.  We love 'em.

While writing this, I listened to: No Rain from the album "Blind Melon" by Blind Melon.

PS:  "Hi, Grandaddy.  I'm doing great!"