I have to say that my dog is becoming a little worrying to me. He’s always been frightened, but his fear of things is becoming ridiculous – loud noises, cows, sheep, squeaks from the back of the car (perhaps he thinks it’s a ghost?), puddles – yes, I did say puddles. I mean how can a puddle scare him? Okay it’s the big ones that freak him out as you drive through them, but it’s still a puddle; he’ll happily traipse through them when he’s walking along, so why the nervous breakdown in the car? Or is it the wheelchair bouncing about in the boot that's squeaking and maybe he thinks it’s possessed?
So, anyway, I thought that I'd review a film I’d seen - just for a change. But then I realised we haven’t been the cinema in years because it’s so expensive to go; and I’m not just talking about the ticket price. No, I’m moaning about the cost of popcorn, sweets and drinks.
I mean is it right that you have to remortgage your home just to be able to buy a cup of pop and a small tub of popcorn? As for the chocolate pick and mix bar, I can only advise people to rob their nearest bank before partaking.
These days I personally wait for it to come on the satellite movie channels (premier, not the buy to watch channel). That way I can buy the cheap supermarket fizzy and popcorn, and any sweets I want too. Maybe we don’t get out like we used to but then we’ve also not had to pawn the dog either, so I guess its win/win really.
The other plus points for me is that I don’t have to be embarrassed when my husband falls asleep and his snoring drowns out the soundtrack; and I’m not fed up with people leaping up and down in front of me with wads of cash to buy a single chocolate peanut from the pick and mix bar.
For anyone chuckling at this and saying it can’t possibly be that expensive, I have to say that I agree that £2.99 for 100g of sweets sounds reasonable. But whilst a 100g might sound a lot, it really isn’t; it weighs out to about two chocolate brazils and a marshmallow.....and you can eat that before that ads have finished. Let's be honest, having mugged you for the ticket prices do they have to rob you blind over the sweets too?
Twice we sneaked ours in from the supermarket; even though there’s a lot of notices all over the place saying that “only consumables bought on the premises can be consumed in the cinema”. We took our own bottles of pop and sweets in with us – I looked like some weird alien woman with my pockets bulging with our secret contraband.
Admittedly none of it ended well; the first time the bag of popcorn wouldn’t pull open and I lost my temper. After a struggle and much muttered swearing it finally tore, and popcorn covered our row and the rows in front and behind – it was like it was snowing popcorn. Luckily no one told; though I think that was because they were busily munching their own smuggled goodies.
The second time the bottle of pop had gotten a bit shook up as we were late and had to run to the cinema (that was way back when Noah wore short trousers and I could actually run anywhere). We sat down, I was parched and opened the bottle......well, I loosened the top and the rest exploded – you wouldn’t believe how high those things can blow their plastic tops.
Sitting through a movie whilst you’re covered in sticky fizzy drink is not an experience I’d ever recommend unless you're kinky that way. At one point, and despite trying to wipe down my jeans in the ladies loo (which was meant to be embarrassing judging by the teenage girls sniggering around me, but I was just too sticky to care), I was honestly a little concerned I was going to stick to the seat......fortunately I didn’t.
So those mishaps, coupled with the feeling that we were smuggling drugs into a church social, I really felt it wasn’t worth the stress again. Smuggling in contraband, having the illicit stuff turn on me and the fear of discovery (although I often saw other people with the same bootleg goodies) I really couldn’t be bothered. I've also decided I would never smuggle stuff as I suck at it; I just look guilty and get all sweaty - not good on any level I'm sure you'd agree.
My advice is to just stay at home, watch it on the tv, have your own cheap sweets and stuff that you didn’t have to sell both kidneys and a lung for, and enjoy the evening.
This is Simi, thanks for reading................
Hmm, I really liked this one! It brought back warm fuzzy memories. Back when Sunday's were my only day off, and I would take my 3 girls out for a mommy daughter day, with gifts, treats meals and of course! Movies!! We would do Movie marathons, and watch 2 to three shows one after another.
ReplyDeleteIt started off as a joke. My youngest was quite a pill when she was little. And one day, she said, "Ma, instead of flat soda, stale popcorn and crap candy, can't we smuggle in some REAL food? Please!?" Of course my twins totally agreed with the little blue-eyed bane, and I caved.
The first time, it WAS kinda fun messing with the other movie patrons. ^^
Imagine, you are setting in the audience, you JUST saw the previews, the lights dim, and suddenly, your nose is assaulted by the sharp indistinguishable scent of FOOD! Not nachos, or pretzels, but honest to goodness food! The first time we did this, we were running late and I just stuffed the 4 whopper Jr. meals and 4 sodas into my bag after dumping it out in the backseat of my car first to make room. The 'baby' was fussing for food and whining LOUDLY she was starving. Since she had eating issues anyway, I was happy she wanted to eat, so I was like damn the torpedo's lets DO this! I was always smart and bought the tickets first before the show would start then we would go and Mall it up, or bowling, or Putt Putt Miniature golf, always several somethings to try and make up for what I could never really provide, my time...I worked Monday through Saturday. 17 hours a day. They had been kicked out of SO many Daycare's,and they had to go to After school, then I'd leave work, drive from Downtown Charleston, all the way to their school, sometimes going 75 to 80 miles an hour, just to be there on time and gather my girls and then drop them off at an all night day care, where I'd be picking them up at 3 or 4:00 AM. I was hard, but I had NO choice. I only had a HS Diploma, and my grades were not that good, so a lot of jobs were not available to me, cause you just cannot raise 3 children and keep a roof and food on the table at minimum wages. Sometimes, to give them some light, you have to live in the 'dark.' I did what I had to, and what I could. And yes, I would do it all again.
So, there we were, running inside for the ticket counter to flash our tickets and haul ass to get a good seat inside. We couldn't sit too close, I got a severe migraine. We couldn't sit too far back, the 'baby could not see and would bitch until one of her sisters settled her down, cause she would argue with me, LOUDLY, and NEVER minded me. BUT, her big sisters, she respected and listened to. *Usually*
After Goldie-locking' the entire area, FINALLY, we find the sweat spot of seats that was 'JUST RIGHT' and get settled in.
You know the people that are like blind bats in a cave? That was us. After several, "Hey! Watch it's!" And, "MOVE!" Finally we settled in a good 4 seater, in the center, in the middle.
Now the FUN part...^^
People are actually commenting, "HEY! I smell Burger King!" We just giggled, peeling down our sandwiches, and snarfed on our fries, and took long drinks of our icy cola bottles. That was SO much fun! To break the rules, to eat 'outside the Cinema box's rules,' and say, "HELL 2 Tha NO!" about paying for overpriced snacks & treats. It was a bonding moment...
The next time? Chinese food! We laughed SO hard at the comments too!
Being a single parent is one of the hardest things to face.
But, if you approach it with an open mind and heart, there are a lot of lessons to be learned.
The biggest one is this.
Time spent doesn't have to be perfect, it just has to, BE. Spent. With. Your. Child. For most parents, they are too busy worrying about their child's future, to even notice them standing there, needing, a "right now moment much more than a someday one."
^^
Y A