Retro-Weekend

This had been a retro-weekend. Aside from the usual chat with Francis in the morning and the ever reliable GabbieWebCam, the usual chores (laundry - ARRRRGGGGHHHH!!!), TNT showed some of my favorite oldies including Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory and then just now at 5:30PM, Grease.

While on chat Francis and I talked about the Willie Wonka movie and how much we loved it as children. We used to imagine being rewarded for being good by winning our own chocolate factory with giant gummie bears (me), chocolate river (Francis) and sugar candycanes (Gigi?). I realize this movie is the root of all my psychotic/neurotic symptoms in adulthood (mwahahahaha!) because I kept searching for the rewards that came with being good. And then guess what? In real life, no one cares if you're good!!! (Hoping Nicole skips this entry).

Willie Wonka is a mentally twisted person, analyzing him now. A bit obsessive with the way he keeps everything in the factory to go with his candy theme; also a bit masochistic, watching the bratty children fall into the traps of greediness and either inflating like a balloon while turning purple or being swallowed by the chocolate river or thrown into the chute for bad eggs; and the oompha loomphas (green elves with huge pomade laden hair) he keeps in the factory to run its operations - whoa! I see Michael Jackson.

It is the old children's story of the obedient and good winning over the evil. And what a better way to end it but with Willy reminding Charlie, the poor good winning-est boy to not forget the story of the man who got all he wanted. Charlie, eyes how happily contemplating the idea of bringing his whole impoverish family into the family to give them heartburn from eating too much chocolate, now asks: "what?". And Willie Wonka, smiles, but thank goodness doesn't break into another oompha loompha song replies: "He lives happily ever after...".

These were the old movies, reminding me of old times. Times when we went out to play with neighbor's kids and did not return to the house until sundown and parents did not worry. Simpler days when happiness was about playing in the yard in the summer with garden sprinklers and or on our tree house. My childhood was about riding my bike to the Sangley Point air base nearby and racing on the airstrip, playing piko, taguan (hide and seek), hagaran (tag) and patintero.

On more old movies I wish they'd bring back more of these that in all its sappiness will have some kind of moral lesson (I can imagine my daughter giving me the eye roll). Other movies I'd love to see again (not necessarily carrying with it a moral lesson): Alakazam The Great (the very first anime, I swear and precedent to Dragonball Z), Bedknobs and Broomsticks and the old TV cartoons of Superfriends, Wonder Woman (my role model - teeheehee!), Josie and the Pussycats and Scooby Doo. Nostalgic weekend indeed.

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