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On the verge
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or... I started back in September posting on Twitter with a hashtag to make the wait, and experience of planning my trip to Montana something that I would look forward to, and entertain my few followers for a couple of months. I even went as far as to make a list. As life would have it, my life got busy and I fell behind on my list of things to post, which was good because I didn't have enough things to post at the time. I had 60+ days if I was to post every day, and only 45 items on my list. But life intervened beautifully, and now I have a reason to get a post up in November. So, here we are. Two weeks from my departure/arrival date from New York/Great Falls, and I have listed below, all the potential things to do while spending one of my favorite holidays with my amazing family. Bake as many cookies as I can...
and not let my brothers have any. JK, they can have as many as they want after I take my share of the best ones and hoard them. Trim the Tree! Cause someone with a sense of style and elegance should hang all the handmade/homemade keepsake ornaments on the +8 ft tall tree. Stay in my PJs all day. It's not a vacation if you don't do this. Literally. I've done research. Survey says it's true. Read Catch up on my recreational reading in my Dad's library, while still wearing my PJs. Kidnap my "fur nephew" Maddux, the sexy Yellow Lab for Pure Puppy Antics Keep him the entire trip, and possibly smuggle him back to NYC with me. This may not go over well with my brother, but I must give it a shot! Crash one night at each of my brother's apartments. They all crashed with me for a week when they visited NYC, turnaround is fair play. Trick my brothers into sticking their tongues to frozen flag poles. I just need to figure out how to pull this off with my brothers actually being smarty pants. Wrap all the gifts. And do it so expertly, that the entirety of my family has to pull out their pocket knives to get into them. Make some killer gingerbread houses with my brothers. And anyone else who wants to join. Kids are welcome; adults are encouraged to join without children. Watch TV with my Dad. Anything really. Sports, movies, episodes of NCIS. Anything. It's a really cool zen calm watching TV with him. I love it. Give Grams the biggest hug ever! Mostly because she's my Grams and I haven't seen her in ages. Also because she's all of 5 foot nothing on a good day, and it's fun. See Bow Tie Friday In Action Witness the full effect, in person, that "Bow Tie Friday" has wrecked upon Great Falls by my stylish brothers and their ingenious plan. Karaoke. Because Montana should be witness to my mad skills on a good Karaoke Night. Build a Snowman Since there will be snow. (THERE HAD BETTER BE!!!) Help is encouraged, but not required. Gossip Late Into the Night Stay up late with Grams and Mom talking about EVERYTHING and finally getting to bed at 2AM because we don't know how to shut up. Deer Jerky. This is contingent on my brothers having been successful this hunting season. Needless to say, I will be disappointed if they are not. Singing and Playing Christmas Music I play the piano. Well I use to play the piano. I now only play the piano when I'm home for the holidays. I pretend that I am a much less talented Nora Jones as I rock out to a concert for one. Stealing all the Good Gifts from the Advent Calendar My mom has this really cool advent calendar that has a cubby for each day of December up until Christmas. As kids we would try to sneak and figure out who was getting which one and trade. My brothers aren't living at home anymore. Guess who's gonna get the good stuff! Christmas Food. It's not officially Christmas without certain items that come out of my mother's kitchen. Ginger Molasses Cookies, Breakfast Casserole, Turkey, and the infamous Crescent Rolls. Sledding, Snow Angels, and Hot Cocoa I may need to borrow my adopted nieces and nephews for this one, or just recruit those friends of mine that are young at heart. Still, it'll be the best time ever! Sibling Rivalry Snowball Fight Or the best way to get away with torturing your fellow siblings without getting yelled at by the parentals. Then again, something tells me that this might not be a fair fight anymore, and I may need to re-evaluate my position. Friends, Family, Friends that are now Family! Something that I always loved about the holidays is the coming together of everyone that has drifted away during the year. This year I plan on seeing the following family members, families of friends, and friends while home (in no particular order): Uncle Don, Aunt Roni & Nik, Uncle Bill & Aunt Karen, Uncle Mike, The Liston Family , The Mattingly Family , The Briggs Family, The McCracken Family, The Folds Family, The Grooms Family, Allison, Jayln, and so many others! Girls Day or Mother/Daughter Day This will include pampering. Getting our hair done. Getting our nails done. Just being girls! And possibly doing it with another mother/daughter pair. Good Ol' Fashioned Run Around Without the Adults Granted, my brothers, cousins, and adopted siblings are all adults, but we totally love the freedom of going out and doing things together without the "grown-ups". Like drinking. This will be the 2nd Griffith Gang Bar Crawl. It will be epic. You have been warned. Sip N Dip This infamous bar in Great Falls is so wacky that I have to go visit, anytime that I'm in town. Mermaids swim in the pool behind the back of the bar and flirt with the customers. There are giant fishbowls. It's an event. You should check it out. The Entire Ritual of Christmas Eve. This is actually what I'm looking forward to the most. On Christmas Eve, our family gets together, takes a family photo while all dressed up, runs around to all of the holiday parties we were invited to, goes to Christmas Eve Mass, hit any remaining parties we missed, and return home - the long way - while driving around looking at all of the Christmas lights. After we get home, we get into the "Christmas PJs" and watch The Santa Clause. After which we go to bed, and get up in the morning ready for presents under the tree. If that doesn't sound magical to you, well it doesn't have to. It's magic to me. or... R to L: The 2016 Chicago Cubs celebrate winning the 2016 NLCS; The 1908 World Series Champions, Chicago Cubs It’s official, the Chicago Cubs have made it to the World Series, and the devil himself is pulling out a scarf and hat to survive the sudden storm.
For those of you not well versed in American Baseball, or I as call it, The Greatest Sport Known to Man, the Chicago Cubs have not been to a World Series since 1945. That’s 71 years between appearances. Not only that, the Cubs have not won a world series since 1908. That’s right, the Chicago Cubs have not won a world series in over a century. Let me say that again… THE CHICAGO CUBS HAVE NOT WON A WORLD SERIES IN OVER A CENTURY. Let’s put this into perspective, as much as we can, because let’s face it, unless you’re a die hard Cubbies fan, you don’t really understand the kind of drought that this team has had. Television, and the modern radio had yet to be invented when the Cubs last won a world series. You couldn’t even follow along to the game unless you were there in the stands or read the paper in the next couple of days. There have been 14 teams added to the Major League Baseball roster. That’s right, fourteen teams were not even in existence when the Cubs last won the series. Not to mention, that the NFL, NBA, and NHL weren’t even formed. That’s right, we have seen the creation of three major sports leagues and all of their participating teams, since the Cubs last won the series. Wrigley Field, home of the Chicago Cubs, had yet to be built when the Cubs last won the series. We added 4 states to make the complete union of the United States 50. That’s right, there were only 46 states when the Cubs last won the world series. Which states? New Mexico, Arizona, Alaska, & Hawaii. Basically, A LOT has happened since the Cubs won the series. But what I am super excited about (and I really mean this), is that my brothers and I have finally won the “Griffith Family Cable Debate”. You see, growing up my family never had cable. NEVER. We had the basic networks, and nothing else. We didn’t realize that this was not normal until we got to school and found out there were whole networks dedicated to kids, and cartoons. We were missing out, and we were not happy. We eventually got up the nerve to ask my parents if we could get cable. We had our arguments ready. We wanted cable for Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network, and the Disney Channel. Mom could have it for all those baking and cooking shows. And Dad would get ESPN, and every other sports channel. It was a win-win-win all around, … or so we thought. After much pestering on our part, my father finally gave us this ultimatum: We’ll get cable, when the Cubs win the Pennant. We didn’t really know what that meant, but we told everyone that the Cubs needed to win the Pennant in order for us to get cable. And all the adults that we told, laughed. We were soon schooled in the practicality of that qualification. We learned about the track record of the Cubs, and how they had not been to a series since before my dad was born. We learned that there was a curse, and that my Dad’s favorite team was (to no big surprise) the Chicago Cubs. We learned that we would probably never get cable. That was until Saturday, October 22, 2016. On that fateful evening, the Cubs won the National League Championship Series. (Personally, I prefer the term Pennant, but it seems to be a dying term.) The Cubs have won the Pennant, and are headed to the World Series. The excitement I felt was enormous! This was historic! This was something for the history books! This meant my father would have to get cable! Actually, it doesn’t mean that at all, because up until recently, my parents had at least one of their four beautiful children living at home with them. And as of September, all of us have moved out and onto our own apartments, and houses. My parents have finally been left alone in peace. It’s also a bit tragic. In a day and age where cable is becoming less, and less of a draw, due to the constant ability to stream almost anything online through your computer, tablet, or smart TV, cable is almost obsolete. The likelihood of my parents jumping onto the cable bandwagon is so slim, it could be compared to well … you get the picture. Not only that, they have their own lives, friends, and things to do. Plus, they have moved with the times, and have their own smart tv, Netflix account, and Amazon Prime. I really doubt that cable is actually coming into the picture. But the thought of my father finally getting to watch ESPN now that he doesn’t have to share it with a bunch of rowdy kids arguing over which team to root for, paints a beautiful, peaceful picture in my mind. Congrats to the Cubs and all the Cubbie fans. And congrats to my father, for waiting out his children, so he has the opportunity to watch as much of his cable (or lack there of) in peace. ...or I am a bit of a movie buff. I dabble in it. I say this knowing real movie buffs who can cite the cinematographer for that random film that you saw one time, with that guy you kinda liked, but didn't really like in the film because the set was wonky. I don't pretend to be a full on movie buff. I dabble. In my dabbling, I have been exposed to many amazing films from all different eras. Silent films of the early 20th century, to the blockbusters of Marvel fame. I have seen bad, horrible, brilliant, gut wrenching, magical, and despicable films. Some films have changed my view of the world. Some have changed my views on life. Some have temporarily destroyed any faith that I had in humanity. Some are just a good time and quickly forgotten. Some of these films are remakes, some are originals. One film that changed my life, in ways that are not always present and tangibly explained, is a remake. The funny thing is, they are remaking it again, and it’s coming out this year. Normally, I have an open mind about remakes and revivals. As an artist I accept and love them. It allows a story to be seen with a different point of view. It gives other artists a chance to explore characters, and moments that have different meanings from when they were first experienced and captured. That being said, there is something about the original, or in this case, the original remake. The Magnificent Seven (1960) was a remake. It was an adaptation/remake of The Seven Samurai (1954), a japanese film with the same plot. This major blockbuster was a remake. It's insane to think that this could be possible, and yet it is. One of the films that did so much to shape, me, my personality, and certain life choices was a remake. This has not dampened it’s impact.
The first time that I saw The Magnificent Seven I was very young. Elementary school young. My father had the habit of bringing home movies for my brothers and I to watch. There were four of us and the easiest way to keep us all occupied, and out of our parents hair, was to put us all in front of a movie. We had quite the collection. My father is a big fan of John Wayne's, so westerns were a staple in my house. But this was the one western that my father brought home that did not have John Wayne. It was about seven unlikely, washed up, heroes who band together to stand up to the bully, and do the right thing. How inspiring! How resilient! How unabashedly American! I wanted to shout from the rooftops. This was a great film! A new favorite of mine and my brothers. We could all agree that this was a tie breaker film. You know, when you’re arguing about what movie to watch, because there is only one tv with a VCR, this was the one we could break the war over. As I got older, I learned more about the film, the stories of the cast on set. How Yul Brynner and Steve McQueen were constantly trying to one up one another and draw focus. And how half the cast was a part of another great film “The Great Escape”. At it’s core, it’s about a group of men with different stories, different skill sets, and different motivations, coming together for a worthy cause. It could not be more patriotic. Then I got older. We moved from Arkansas to Montana. We were spread out across three different age groups, elementary, middle and high school. We didn’t agree on much, we fought about everything, and we had to start new schools, yet again. It’s always hard to do. But something magical happened. I started school at my second high school. It was a quarter of the size of my high school in Arkansas. It was different school colors, a different locker system, a different map to learn. I didn’t know which teachers to avoid, which ones to befriend. I didn’t know where the cool kids sat, or what was even considered cool. I didn’t have a friend, just a freshman cousin. But when the first pep rally of the year happened, the entire school gathered in the field house and I was welcomed by the theme of The Magnificent Seven - it was my new high school’s fight song. The magic of this film surpassed any expectation that I had ever had, and will always hold a special place in my heart. It will always mean that there is a place for me. |
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November 2017
AuthorLondon Griffith is an Alaskan born, Montana raised, Southern influenced, New York Actress. She occasionally writes about her life and experiences of being on the verge ... |