Multimedia Monday: It's time to start the music...

Today I'm introducing a brand new "day" theme: Multimedia Monday!  Each Monday, I will be reflecting on creativity in a variety of ways, including sharing my TV/film/art/music/literature recommendations, as well as - when I'm able - my own creative work.

Finishing the Hat started out as a way for me to communicate about - and share - my creative endeavors.  When I began my weight loss journey, so much of those creative endeavors began to focus on my fitness and my food, so the blog took a sharp turn in that direction.  Don't worry - I'm definitely going to continue my journey, and writing about it every day.  It'll even play into my Multimedia Mondays.

I still have a long journey ahead of me, but part of me has felt a little disconnected here at Finishing the Hat.  So much of my passion stems from watching (and creating! and also, in previous work, selling) film and television.  Actually, any creative endeavor makes my heart sing.  So each Monday, I'll singing my heart out here about it, here.

I'll start each MM post with "Short Cuts," a quick list of my thoughts and recommendations for the week.

• The fall TV season has begun!  Tom's been working 7 days a week for the past few weeks, so he and I have been struggling to keep up with the new shows (and the new episodes of our old shows.)  We finally killed the last new ones on our DVR last night, and we think we've honed in on one new show to follow, so far: The New Girl, starring Zooey Deschanel.  It's charming without being twee, it has bite without being too cynical or ironic, and - this is a big one - it actually made us laugh.  

• I always feel happy when I make a good recommendation for someone else.  I had suggested to my father that he go see The Help, and though he was hesitant to see a "chick flick," he gave it a glowing review after seeing it.  If you haven't seen it yet, it's worth a look.

•  As a former market-eer, I take close notice of film and TV campaigns. Though I haven't seen the film, I'm impressed with the tagline (which is the slogan typically on posters and in ads) for 50/50, starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Seth Rogen.  A good tagline says it all in one punchy phrase, and the 50/50 tagline definitely does. "It takes a pair to beat the odds."  From that little sentence (and the accompanying photo of Rogen as he watches Gordon-Levitt shave his head) we can gather that this is both a cancer movie (his odds are 50/50; "a pair" = nads) and this is a buddy movie ("a pair" = Rogen + Gordon-Levitt.)  Ingenius!

• Over the weekend, we happened to see a trailer for a film I saw in early preview this spring.  I can't tell you anything about it.  I won't even tell you the name of it.  But I will tell you two things.  One, I loved the movie thoroughly.  THOROUGHLY.  And two, the trailer goes WAY out of its way not to tell you what the movie is really about.  I hate when that happens!  (As a former market-eer, I understand why it happens.  But I still hate it.)

 And on to today's topic.  I saw someone describe these beloved characters as "heartfelt, by hearts made of felt," and I can't help but agree.  I love me some Muppets.

My parents were fond of telling the story about how I used to dance to The Muppet Show before I could even walk.  Apparently, I would squeal as soon as I would see that spinning-top ITC Production Logo. 




My fondness for the Muppets certainly didn't end when I became an adult.  In fact, I may be crazier about them now than I was back then.  (I squeal less, though.)  Luckily for me, there's been a big revival of the Muppet franchise, and if you haven't noticed the resurgence of Kermit and the gang, you're bound to see it before the new film opens November 23.

I'm looking forward to it.  Besides my beloved felt-hearted frog and his friends, it includes the talents of Jason Segel (who is starring as well as screenwriting), Amy Adams (who I've followed gleefully since her Oscar-nominated performance in the wonderful Junebug), and music by Bret McKenzie from Flight of the Conchords.

They're building buzz around the film with a variety of different interesting projects.

For one thing, a cover album of Muppet greats - The Green Album - came out last month.  It's a surprising collection of Muppet classics as performed by a variety of popular and indie artists.  I knew I'd love the already-amazing "It's Not Easy Bein' Green," and the haunting-even-when-sung-by-Gonzo "I'm Going To Go Back There Someday," but I didn't realize how brilliantly clever (and kind of painful) the lyrics to "I Hope That Something Better Comes Along" really were until I heard it performed by Matt Nathanson.  Big thumbs-up.

For another thing... I'm not a frequent purchaser of nail polish, but I can't wait to buy my own bottle of O.P.I.'s "Rainbow Connection."

Or "Fresh Frog of Bel-Air." Or "Excuse Moi."  Those two pictured above.

Oh, for that Excuse Moi polish a few Octobers ago, when Tom and I went as my favorite fuzzy duo for Halloween.

My favorite duo costume. Ever.  We don't fit 'em anymore, though!

As fun and playful as the Muppets are, there's such a deeper side to them.   Sometimes deeply sad.  Sometimes deeply inspiring.  I got the idea for this blog topic yesterday, when I stumbled upon a video that Henson Studios posted in honor of the 75th anniversary of Jim Henson's birth.

It's the finale from the television tribute special, after Jim's death.  I won't lie.  It made me cry. 





I was so inspired by the video that I started doodling... and it became another Art Journal entry.

Thank you, Jim, for the beautiful legacy you left to all of us.  Your creativity inspires me every day.

As far as my weight loss journey... it has been a bit of a challenge in the last week, and I'll write about it more tomorrow in my Weigh-In update.  This may be a hard path to travel on, but as I doodled, I realized that having all of you in my life - believing in me - has helped me to believe in me.

I believe in you, too.

Take care of you.