The honeybee thanked Preston for moving it out of harm’s way by stinging his finger and leaving a throbbing welt. After a cussing storm that rivaled most Floridian hurricanes, Preston said you’re welcome by unzipping his jeans and showering the bee with his own brand of golden honey.
Showing posts with label Honey. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Honey. Show all posts
Sunday, November 30, 2025
Saturday, January 21, 2017
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
MOVIE TITLE: The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
DIRECTORS: John Lounsbery and Wolfgang Reitherman
YEAR: 1977
GENRE: Children’s Animation
RATING: G
GRADE: Extra Credit
In the Hundred Acre Woods, a stuffed bear named Winnie the
Pooh goes on cute adventures with his many animal friends and his human master
Christopher Robin. Whether Pooh-Bear wants some honey to eat or is trying to
find shelter from a windstorm or a flood, he always brings his childlike charm
and naïve thinking to every event in the story. His equally cute and cuddly
friends are the depressed donkey Eeyore, the energetic and bouncy Tigger, the
green-thumbed Rabbit, the delightfully wise Owl, the tiny stuttering Piglet,
the hardworking constructor Gopher, and the flower-loving Kanga and Roo. Children
of all ages can bask in their innocence at these cuddly mini-stories and grow
up to be loving adults.
I cannot emphasize enough how insanely cute this movie is
except for by giving it an extra credit grade. Whenever I watch Pooh-Bear eat
honey, play with his friends, or just be his silly self, it makes me want to
cuddle with stuffed or real animals of my own. Tigger’s hyperactivity,
mitten-like paws, and joyful singing also make me want to cuddle with animal
cuties. There isn’t one character in this movie who doesn’t warm my insides
like a freshly baked apple pie (with honey drizzled on it, of course). Even the
bees that swarm on Pooh for trying to steal their honey have their cute
moments, particularly with their character designs and high-pitched voices. And
who could forget all the laugh-inducing times when Gopher fell into his hole in
the ground…over and over again. This kind of cuteness overload will set the
tone for children later in life when they have kids of their own or adopt pets.
Love is a universal language that can be taught with movies like Winnie the
Pooh.
Another thing I’ll always enjoy about this movie is Sterling
Holloway’s vocal performance as Pooh-Bear. He was always known for having a
nasally rasp voice with a hint of baritone. Mr. Holloway has used this same
voice to play characters like Amos Mouse in “Ben and Me” and Hiss from “Robin
Hood”, two Disney classics. Hearing this sweet and innocent voice makes me glad
that Holloway’s successor, Jim Cummings, decided to keep the tradition going
when playing Winnie the Pooh in future movies. It even warms my heart to know
that Mr. Cummings uses his Pooh voice to comfort sick children in hospitals. Is
this another example of how the movie can teach love and friendship at such a
young age? Why, I’d like to think so! Of course, Sterling Holloway isn’t with
us anymore, but his contributions to the Disney universe will never be
forgotten.
Just like with all good things, this movie must eventually
come to an end at the 74 minute mark. How does one wrap up a series of short
stories known for bringing happy emotions to an entire generation? By having
Christopher Robin grow up, of course. While only a year has passed since the
events of the movie, little Christopher eventually has to go to school and get
good grades. Not all children end up having fond memories of school, whether
it’s because of difficult assignments, harsh teachers, or bully students. The
movie put us all at ease with the conversation Christopher had with Pooh-Bear.
They talked about growing old together and always being friends no matter what
life throws at them. One way or another, Christopher Robin will never forget
where he came from and will always come back to the Hundred Acre Woods…even
when he’s a hundred years old and moving around on a walker. How old will Pooh
be? Ninety-nine. “Silly old bear!”
Let this be a lesson to all of the adults reading this
review: never forget the love you experienced as a child and always take those
positive memories into the future with you. Even if you grew up with harsher
circumstances, know that someone out there loves and cares for you. Someone out
there will be your Pooh-Bear. If you have to go to the Humane Society for a
basket of Pooh-Bears known as kittens, what are you waiting for? You’re never
too old to acknowledge cuteness when you see it. Age-consciousness is for
suckers.
Monday, November 2, 2015
"January First" by Michael Schofield
BOOK TITLE: January First: A Child’s Descent into Madness and Her Father’s Struggle to Save Her
AUTHOR: Michael Schofield
YEAR: 2012
GENRE: Nonfiction
SUBGENRE: Schizophrenia Memoir
GRADE: Extra Credit
In this tear-jerking memoir, Michael Schofield describes what life is like raising his schizophrenic daughter Jani, who was officially diagnosed with an acute version of the disease as a six-year-old. As a result of her psychosis, Jani would burst into violent tantrums where she would punch, kick, and head butt anybody who suggested that her hallucinations were fake. She has assaulted her own parents, her teachers, her nurses, and even her baby brother Bodhi and her dog Honey. Jani is highly resistant to any medication she is given as well as the harsh discipline her father tries to enforce. The violence, the sleepless nights, stressful days, and constantly playing the role of gatekeeper has psychologically exhausted both Mr. and Mrs. Schofield. And through it all, they learn to be strong and come together as a family.
As someone who teaches college-level writing classes, Michael Schofield has a tight command over the art of literature. His pacing is quick, his ability to show instead of tell is present, his innermost thoughts are compelling, and he does all of this with a no-BS style of writing. He doesn’t try to employ an overly flowery style of writing with poetic descriptions an incomprehensible words. He’s a no-nonsense, no cheap gimmick writer, which is probably why this book is a fast read to begin with. The pacing has to be fast because trying to control an unstable child like Jani is a fast paced business to begin with. It’s exciting, but at the same time it’s emotionally taxing because of the heartache the family goes through.
Speaking of emotionally taxing writing, I’m going to get straight to the point when it comes to this memoir’s extra credit (five-star) rating. I was diagnosed with schizophrenia when I was only 17 years old. As a mentally ill person, I recognize a lot of the frustrations the parents and their child Jani have to go through. To see such a small, beautiful, intelligent child descend into darkness is devastating to me. Michael Schofield expressed these tearful thoughts in such a way that I was almost driven to tears myself. January deserves nothing but a bright future and just when it looks like nobody can help her, her parents keep on fighting for her despite having empty tanks. I haven’t cried since the year 2007, but came very close to doing so several times while reading this heartbreaking book.
And then you have Mr. Schofield’s criticisms of the hospitals that did a minimal job of trying to help January, which I believe to be accurate. Before eventually taking January to UCLA and getting the schizophrenia diagnosis, the Schofield family had to deal with uncaring nurses, incompetent doctors, predatory insurance companies, and none of those same people having a damn clue what the hell is going on with this child. If I had to deal with that much of a lackadaisical approach to medicine, I’d be pissed off and in tears too, just like the author was. The events of this book took place before Obamacare became the law of the land. But even after such a historic law was passed, we still have a lot of work to do when it comes to hospital reform. If you don’t believe me, read this book.
This book spoke to me in a way that no other text about schizophrenia could. I was actually able to feel the struggles that the Schofield family went through, not just as a schizophrenic myself, but also as a human being. But some people will never admit to that, because there’s all this buzz going on about how Michael was abusive to his wife and children because of his hot temper. To those people who falsely slander Michael that way, I have only one thing to tell them: you show me a parent who isn’t going berserk after fighting for a mentally ill child and I’ll show you an abusive parent. Until then, keep your one-star ratings and your judgments to yourself.
AUTHOR: Michael Schofield
YEAR: 2012
GENRE: Nonfiction
SUBGENRE: Schizophrenia Memoir
GRADE: Extra Credit
In this tear-jerking memoir, Michael Schofield describes what life is like raising his schizophrenic daughter Jani, who was officially diagnosed with an acute version of the disease as a six-year-old. As a result of her psychosis, Jani would burst into violent tantrums where she would punch, kick, and head butt anybody who suggested that her hallucinations were fake. She has assaulted her own parents, her teachers, her nurses, and even her baby brother Bodhi and her dog Honey. Jani is highly resistant to any medication she is given as well as the harsh discipline her father tries to enforce. The violence, the sleepless nights, stressful days, and constantly playing the role of gatekeeper has psychologically exhausted both Mr. and Mrs. Schofield. And through it all, they learn to be strong and come together as a family.
As someone who teaches college-level writing classes, Michael Schofield has a tight command over the art of literature. His pacing is quick, his ability to show instead of tell is present, his innermost thoughts are compelling, and he does all of this with a no-BS style of writing. He doesn’t try to employ an overly flowery style of writing with poetic descriptions an incomprehensible words. He’s a no-nonsense, no cheap gimmick writer, which is probably why this book is a fast read to begin with. The pacing has to be fast because trying to control an unstable child like Jani is a fast paced business to begin with. It’s exciting, but at the same time it’s emotionally taxing because of the heartache the family goes through.
Speaking of emotionally taxing writing, I’m going to get straight to the point when it comes to this memoir’s extra credit (five-star) rating. I was diagnosed with schizophrenia when I was only 17 years old. As a mentally ill person, I recognize a lot of the frustrations the parents and their child Jani have to go through. To see such a small, beautiful, intelligent child descend into darkness is devastating to me. Michael Schofield expressed these tearful thoughts in such a way that I was almost driven to tears myself. January deserves nothing but a bright future and just when it looks like nobody can help her, her parents keep on fighting for her despite having empty tanks. I haven’t cried since the year 2007, but came very close to doing so several times while reading this heartbreaking book.
And then you have Mr. Schofield’s criticisms of the hospitals that did a minimal job of trying to help January, which I believe to be accurate. Before eventually taking January to UCLA and getting the schizophrenia diagnosis, the Schofield family had to deal with uncaring nurses, incompetent doctors, predatory insurance companies, and none of those same people having a damn clue what the hell is going on with this child. If I had to deal with that much of a lackadaisical approach to medicine, I’d be pissed off and in tears too, just like the author was. The events of this book took place before Obamacare became the law of the land. But even after such a historic law was passed, we still have a lot of work to do when it comes to hospital reform. If you don’t believe me, read this book.
This book spoke to me in a way that no other text about schizophrenia could. I was actually able to feel the struggles that the Schofield family went through, not just as a schizophrenic myself, but also as a human being. But some people will never admit to that, because there’s all this buzz going on about how Michael was abusive to his wife and children because of his hot temper. To those people who falsely slander Michael that way, I have only one thing to tell them: you show me a parent who isn’t going berserk after fighting for a mentally ill child and I’ll show you an abusive parent. Until then, keep your one-star ratings and your judgments to yourself.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)