Tinkerbell: Secret of the Wings

I just watched the latest Disney Fairies movie, The Secret of the Wings. Everyone who reads this will know that I LOVE LOVE LOVE pretty much everything Disney, and the Tinkerbell movies are no exception.

In case you haven't seen any of the hundreds of commercials on TV about this movie, I will describe the plot: it is almost time to go back to the Mainland for Winter, and all the fairies are busy preparing. After sending off a shipment of snowflake delivery baskets, Tinkerbell looks over to the Winter Woods, where no one from the other seasons has ever gone to, because of a rule.

Tink, under the guise of helping Fawn cross some animals over the autumn-winter border, secretly crosses. When she does, her wings begin to sparkle! Fawn pulls Tink back before too long, and the sparkling stops. Fawn insists to her that it is dangerous to cross the border, but Tinkerbell is still curious as to why her wings sparkled. She sets out on an adventure to the Winter Woods, and discovers a magical secret: she has a sister!

I was captivated by the plot, because I've always felt like there is someone or someplace out there that I need to discover. Plus, I love all Disney movies in general.

I was so excited to hear about this movie, and jumped at the chance to rent it. The Amazon instant video had a hard time buffering, of course, but other than that it had clear, crisp picture on my PC. I got to see the movie either way, so I can't complain too much.

I LOVED the animation. It is AMAZING! Especially when they showed Fiona the Lynx. It was so smooth, so beautiful! And I couldn't help but love the ADORABLE LITTLE FUZZIES that Tinkerbell helped Fawn cross over the border. My heart melted at the sight of that runaway bunny, and how scared he was to cross. Why does everything small and fuzzy have to be so cute?? Very well done, Disney! The only animal I didn't like was that snitch of a Snowy Owl that Milori rode on.

The movie included very good music, which to this moment I cannot get out of my head. I especially liked "The Great Divide". It's one of those songs where the lyrics are so general, you can take it out of context and make it a gospel song! At least, from what I remember from the lyrics.

The backstories were REALLY well written and interesting. For example, the one about the two lovers from opposite sides of the border. So sweet! So sad! So Romeo and Juliet-like, which is my favorite type of romance! And, the other, about Peri and Tink's Arrival Day. It was so cool how they both said the EXACT SAME THING when they first arrived.

I got why Tink and Peri were really alike because they were sisters and all, but there were other winter fairies that were really like some warm fairies we've met, even though we are never told they are siblings. I found it a little lazy for Disney to just cut and paste the old characters to new bodies. I liked when they formed a sort of Frost Squad to save the Pixie Dust Tree, though!

Overall, I LOVED this movie, and thought that the plot was heartfelt and amazing, even to the end. I'm sad that I only have the movie for forty-eight hours!

I have a few questions, though: Clank and Bobble led Tink through Winter when she first arrived. Their wings didn't freeze and break then. Why?

Is Vidia, like, officially Tink, Ro, Sil, Fawn, and Dessa's friend now? How did that happen? I mean, obviously, it had something to do with the events of The Great Fairy Rescue, but I thought Vidia was only slightly less mean after that?

How could a wing break if it just wilted, as a winter fairy's wing would if it crossed over to Summer, Spring, or Autumn?

How did Queen Clarian and Lord Milori NOT KNOW that Peri and Tink were sisters? Do they not share the arrival dates inter-seasonally?

When Milori told Peri the story of the two lovers, he somehow got on top of that floating snowflake in Dewey's library. If his wing was still broken by that time, how did he get up there?

Was it just me, or were some of the voices, mainly of Tinkerbell's friends, different in this movie?

Millsberry

Probably anyone who reads this has never even heard of Millsberry. It was an online game sponsored and run by General Mills cereal, mostly as an advertising gimmick. You would sign up, create and dress up a character, then go around a whole town of shops, arcades, et cetera.

My brother and I used to play this game a lot, mostly for the arcade mini games. We would constantly be fighting for the high score. My personal favorite game was the skiing one, Slalom..something. It was really fun!

My favorite part in the entire game, though, was decorating your house. You could add furniture, buy pets
(<3) and show off your house to other Millberry "citizens" if you unlocked your house, or became friends with a person who wanted to see it. I thought my house was pretty cool.

Mutt and I grew out of the game, and never really had the time for it anymore, so we didn't go on it anymore.  Not that it matters anymore. Millsberry is gone. It closed yesterday, or something, and it's just...gone. They apparently announced it was shutting down last winter, but I haven't been on Millsberry in AGES. I didn't know until a friend of mine mentioned it on a social website I use...

Why are all the websites I like shutting down? First it was Virtual Magic Kingdom (long story), then World of Cars Online, then Barbie Girls, now Millsberry. What's next?

Sure, Millsberry wasn't a very interactive or exciting game, but it was fun and part of my childhood. And now it's just gone? Because of what, you might ask? Toucan Sam.

Yes, they shut down Millsberry because General Mills' characters are making kids biased on wanting cereal, and making them ask their parents to buy it for them. Millsberry was basically nothing BUT Toucan Sam, Lucky Leprachan (I think I misspelled that), CooCoo the Cocoa Puffs Bird, Chef Cinnamon, etc. It sounds as if they're getting pulled. Hasn't that been the gimmick all along? Colorful character= kids want the cereal= parents buy the cereal for the kids. General Mills is blaming the characters, not the parents who don't decide for themselves whether or not to buy their kids the sugary cereal.

I played this game for years. Did it make me want the cereal more? Overall, no. Of course, there were times when I really wanted Cinnamon Toast Crunch, because of this one arcade game, but I got over it.

Well, farewell, Millsberry, you were a fun game, and will be sorely missed.

Song Parodies!

I am obsessed with many things. On the top of the list is music, and mystery, particularly the Nancy Drew variety. So what if they were put together??

Some employees at Her Interactive, the creators of the ever-amazing Nancy Drew games, wrote a parody of the viral song "Call Me Maybe", called "Call Me Nancy", or "Second Chance Me", after a feature in all of their games. Whenever Nancy makes a mistake, you get a game over sequence and are given a "second chance" to do things right.

This is one of my all time favorite videos, since "Call Me Maybe" is also one of my favorite current songs, and Nancy Drew is my all time favorite teen detective! So, this video got me inspired to write a parody of my own. This one is called "I'm Nancy and I know It"

Yeah, when you walk on by

You might see me, this little private eye

I’m walking my beat, down River Street

Never see defeat

This is how I roll

Togo the dog getting out of control

It’s Nancy with the knack for clues

I’m so sweet how could you suppose

That I’m sniffing out clues (x3)

Uh huh I solve crime

Yeah, I’m sniffing out clues (x3)

Uh huh I solve crime

When I walk to the crime scene

This is what I think

Someone out there is watching me

I got a magnifying glass and I ain’t afraid to use it

Use it Use it Use it

I’m Nancy and I know it

I’m Nancy and I know it

Yeah, I wasn't able to finish it. I ran out of creative lyric ideas. I didn't make a video of me singing it, because   I would have to change keys A LOT to be able to hit all of the notes, and it would be overall catastrophic. Plus, I can't get the rhythm right.

Feel free to finish these lyrics for me, and maybe even post your results, and/or sing it!

(Disclaimer: all rights are reserved to respective owners: "Call Me Maybe": Carley Rae Jepsen. "I'm Sexy and I Know It: LMFAO. Disclaimer to the disclaimer: I would NEVER say that one acronym out loud... just FYI)

Beauty

Hi! Guess writing everyday wasn't as easy a prospect as I thought it would be. Lately, I have been busy with musical rehearsals, piano lessons, homework, church..everything has just piled up, and I haven't been able to write as much.

Today I am going to write on a topic that has been on my heart for a long time: beauty. If you look up the word in the Merriam-Webster dictionary, it would say beauty was defined as "the quality or aggregate of qualities in a person or thing that gives pleasure to the senses or pleasurably exalts the mind or spirit." So, beauty is directly correlated to our personal feelings/senses. It implies that how one looks might make one feel differently than another. It has nothing to do with a set line of rules we have to follow to be beautiful.

So beauty is in how one perceives things. Interesting. But why is a clear face more "beautiful" to some than, say, a broken-out face? Why is a woman who is slender more attractive than one who is overweight? Why? 

Going on the point that beauty is in how we perceive things, think about styles through the ages.  Ever notice how no one wears leg warmers these days, except for exercise, when they were a cute, popular accessory in the 70-80's? I think they are still cute. But they went out of style. People's perception of what is cute has changed drastically over the years. Who knows? maybe in the 2020's kids will look at...I don't know, TOMS, and call them silly-looking. But they're so cute now.

Beauty shouldn't be based on outward appearance: what we might think looks beautiful is so inconsistent. It's all relative on the day, and the person's own opinion, supposedly.

But what should we base beauty on? To find true beauty, we need to look at people through God's eyes. He can't see just the outward person. He looks in a person's heart. A person's character and Godliness is what we should rank beauty by, not superficial appearances. I challenge you all to think of one person in your life who you don't think particularly "beautiful". Tomorrow, find that person, and spend some time with them. Sit with them at lunch, chat over the weather- just something. You might be surprised at the kind people you never knew existed.

I should know- my two closest friends at school aren't exactly the thinnest girls in our class, but they are more fun to talk to and more supporting than a lot of people that I have ever met. THey are the kind of friends you hope never to lose. I plan to know them even through when we are neighbors in Heaven. 

Don't get me wrong, I am not saying that people who try to look their best aren't kind. All I am saying is that appearance shouldn't matter. If they are beautiful to the eye, and beautiful in their heart, then power to them, too.

Until next time!