Saturday, January 12, 2008

Movies: ARK: Evan Almighty, Maya Lin Chapel Haley Farm

I got a call to Substitute at the Alternative High School. I LOVE going there. It's my favorite place to Sub. The kids, work mostly independently, doing computer modules or whatever. I think there is a lot of lost opportunity as to the potential that is being lost, but hey, I'm not the Principal-yet. LOL.

So every Friday kids are released at 2. I don't know why. Lunch is at 11:30 (I had a really nice SUB sandwich from Central Kitchen), then they watch a movie. The Homeschooling part of me despises this. In Public School there is simply SO MUCH WASTED TIME!! AWWCCCKKK. Makes me crazy. Maybe what it does is create a space for "community"...yah--maybe.
Anyway, somehow it fell on me to do the CHOOSING. Wow. That is huge. I had a list of 8 different movies, and when I got to Chart Hits EVERY one of my choices was not available. (Maybe a GOD thing?).
I had a student with me, and asked for suggestion from Movie Place Person. We ended up with EVAN ALMIGHTY.
My friend Char had gone to the theatre to watch this, and LOVED it. I am not much into movies until recently.
SO...the High School kids LOVED it.
Has great themes, Home, Family, Personal Responsibility, Political involvement, Community awareness, YES all that.
Can be a definite recommend. Today, my 11 yr old watched it, we watched all the "EXTRAS" in the DVD. HIGHLY entertaining--the lost scenes, how the ARK was built etc. I found this especially interesting as I am a Children's Defense Fund Emerging Leader (Fellow)Class of 2004, -- A quick side trip: Maya Lin, the builder of the Vietnam Veteran's Wall in Washington DC also created an "ARK" in Clinton Tennessee. Her design, with a budget of $3 million, was inspired by the Children's Defense Fund logo, a child's drawing with the text: ''Dear Lord, be good to me. The sea is so wide and my boat is so small.''
I sang in that chapel area, and was moved to tears. The Alex Haley Farm is a retreat operated by the national nonprofit, the Children’s Defense Fund, and is the only place in the world to have two buildings by Lin on the same site.

The picture doesn't even begin to do it justice. It is..HUGE, Inspiring, awesome.

No other way about it...ARKS are COOL. In the movie, ARK= "Acts Random Kindness" ie: pay it forward.

Steve Carell -I love him from Office Space, and he is great in this.
GOD is Good, LOL

Change the World-- Great theme. Go forth...And ARK. ....


(just to show you, THIS cool pic of the BIG back of my head was at B SMITH's, in Washington D.C. in April 2007. WOW...isn't my hair perfectly streaked?? And my sparkly top!!! OH MY!!!)

2 comments:

Mini Me's Room said...

that movie is one of the best besides national treasure,book of secrets!!!


William should see it(being both movies)

WORKING MOM said...

my charter school watches a lot of movies on fridays, too. sometimes if i need a break from my office, i run and find a room with a movie that i like.