My Top Romance Films

My honors freshman English students have just finished reading Romeo and Juliet in class. I have to say I've been impressed at how well they have done with the material they've been given. I've remarked over and over again at just how well they have responded to the story and how engaged they have been with something that was written about 400 years ago.

And because I'm a nerd and I like lists, I decided that now would be a good time for me to make a list of my top romance stories of all time. 

DISCLAIMER: I'm actually going to try on this list. My favorite movies and books might just be action-adventures, but I'm going to get in touch with my feminine side and give this a solid effort. 

1. Jack and Rose in Titanic - There's no romance like "Oh-no-we're-both-going-to-die romance." I  won't lie that I saw this when I was in fourth grade. The movie was a huge deal at the time and it's probably the first romance I ever saw that I actually cared about. Come to think of it, it might have just been the first tragedy I ever saw.

2. The Notebook - I made fun of this film relentlessly when it first came out. But then, I make fun of most movies the first time I see them. The film seems to borrow themes from Romeo and Juliet by talking a lot about summer romances and how they are "like shooting stars" which blaze brilliantly for a short time and then burn out. Both were held apart by the disapproval of others. Romeo and Juliet were shooting stars who basically vowed to burn out together. So this is almost like what would have happened if Romeo and Juliet had just had more patience and an awesome old house to renovate.

3. Padme and Anakin in Star Wars: Attack of the Clones - Ha, just kidding. That's a terrible romance.

4. The Decoy Bride - I watched this one with Christina because it had David Tennant in it. It's a silly movie, but it's fun. Yes, the whole premise is a bit ridiculous (famous actress needs a decoy to distract paparazzi so that she can have a private wedding) but it takes place in a tiny island hamlet in Scotland and feels almost like the British version of Sweet Home Alabama. I just like Tennant as a bumbling writer who stumbles on success almost by accident.

5. Letters to Juliet - another film I saw with Christina. It's a fun-filled romp through the Italian countryside with a snooty British guy who turns out to be not half-bad. You know where this is going...but in all seriousness, half the film revolves around an elderly couple who are seeking each other after fifty years apart. Those two are probably just as interesting as the younger couple and provide what Shakespeare never seemed to be able to show: two elderly people in love.


Just for fun: Warm Bodies - a zombie take on the story of Romeo and Juliet. The guy's name is Rrr (for Romeo) while the girl's name is Julie. There is a balcony scene. They're held apart by the disapproval of zombies and humans. So..yeah. Shakespeare's influence right there. 

Wanna Play Crazy Driver?

Well I've completely fallen flat on my face when it comes to making blog posts over the last two months. Kohls has been kicking my butt.

But since it is a lovely Saturday morning and I did not travel for forensics, Ellery is relatively content in a high chair, and I have just a little bit of time before I need to start cleaning the house, I figure this would be an ideal time to post. Specifically on this whole "raising a human" thing.

Over the last few weeks, Christina and I have both been back to work and trading off on who takes Ellie to the babysitter in the morning. However, even though Christina has been back at her job, I'll be the first to admit that she has has taken on more work when it comes to Ellie. Christina is the one waking up at 3:00 a.m. to feed her when she's hungry. She's also the one taking care of her when I'm gone Tuesday and Thursday evenings for forensics practices as well as Fridays and Saturdays when we're at meets. Heck, even when I'm the one taking care of her, usually it's so that Christina can do something like, oh I don't know, EAT A MEAL.

I'm definitely blessed to have Christina for a wife. She does all this and more and she loves being a mom.

Even with my limited time with Ellery, I've definitely seen a difference in how Christina and I handle her. (Is "handle" a good word to use for raising a baby? Sounds like Ellie is a stick shift or something)

Probably a prime example would be in the "games" we'll play with her. Christina will interact with her and will work to get others to interact with her as well. Like the dogs. Peety, for the record, is not a fan of being "ridden" by Ellery. But he does like to lick her face. She doesn't seem to mind it, either.

But Christina will, by and large, interact with Ellie on almost a spiritual level. Our baby is perfect, and Christina will take moments to appreciate Ellery's perfectness.

Me? Well, Ellie and I play "crazy driver."

Ellie will lay back against my knees and I hold her hands so that she can "buckle her seat belt," "turn on the car," "grip the steering wheel," before simulating driving 120 mph down a freeway. Ellie always "crashes" the car, but thankfully she has an ejector seat so she can "parachute down."

Her eyes usually get intensely big whenever we play.

Sometimes we'll play "beat box," where I'll make a hip-hop beat and have Ellie bust out some dance moves.

Sometimes we'll play "sports fan" where I teach Ellie how to cheer OU.

And about a week after she was born I made a video of her on her belly set to the tune of "Eye of the Tiger." I called it "Eller-eye of the Tiger."

So we've done some pretty dorky stuff. Not that Christina hasn't done her share of dorky stuff (she hums "The Imperial March" to her sometimes). But it is interesting just to see how the things we do seem to compliment each other. I sometimes feel like I have to make the most of the time I have with Ellery because the next evening I may not be home until 11:00 p.m. So my way of taking advantage of that is to play some of these high-energy "games" with her. But she also needs these quiet moments with both of us, and Christina is the best when it comes to calming her down or getting her to feel secure and sleep.

Are we doing it right? I think so. There are certainly "wrong" ways to raise a human, but as long as we just "play" crazy driver and don't actually drive crazy, I'd say we're ok.