Creative Physio

Today was an adventure, yet for most people it would just be an ordinary day. I drove to work and was there for the full day. Afterwards, I stopped by the mall, dropped off some mail that was missed in the pickup, sauntered around, then got some milk.

To anyone else, that would be a very boring day. For me, it was rejuvenating. That car trip marked the first time I had got behind the wheel of a car for over two weeks. It felt amazing to have that freedom again, and to not worry about being an inconvenience to anyone. I know that my father-in-law didn't mind doing the carpool thing with me, but it really helps in the long run that I can get about on my own. Not only can I pilot the vehicle to get myself around, I can also drive my family around too. Caitlin and I will be able to attend the Arrogant Worms concert on Friday regardless if my brother-in-law will be able to attend. Though I hope he does feel good enough to attend, but since he's going in for surgery tomorrow, it's anyone's guess.

Also walking around the mall, that was something of a workout, since I did it without the brace. Driving was done sans brace too, since the doctor formally told me that I could not drive while wearing the brace. On that note, he also said that I should spend some time out of the brace to strengthen my muscles. Put two and two together, and I am ambulatory! That's not to say it was a completely painless experience. I paused in stores here and there, but most of the time I tried to keep moving so that I wouldn't have a moment to focus on the pain.

I could take some T3 medication to deal with the pain, but the damage it did to my stomach, I don't want to take the risk. And while it does hurt, I know that I'm working at getting better. Plus, it's only been two days since I've tried venturing around without the brace, and while I was at work, I had it on. Made the work day a little bit easier to deal with.

Movie review to come soon. I know I said I was going to try to steer my daughter away from Disney movies, but she has been reading a children's storybook of Cinderella, and Grandma figured it was high time Erini saw the movie the book was based on.

Cure Almost Worse Than Disease

This is not to say that I have a debilitating illness, but rather my appointment today gave me a bit more freedom than my body is accustomed to. After wearing the back brace almost exclusively for the past two weeks, I tried getting around without it for the evening. I am now filled will all sorts of pain, largely located in the lower back, but I'm working my way through it.

We have the treadmill working, and Erini tried to do a bit of physio with me, but she almost fell on her face on the treadmill. Good thing the emergency switch works! She saw the support bar and figured that you had to hold onto it for it to work properly. I have a bit of work ahead of me to explain to her that treadmills are not like shopping carts.

While we did take in a movie tonight, my rehabilitation has drained my will to type much more than I have already. I have enough energy left for a shower, and that's about it.

At least I was able to get something out, and at least I was able to do it without the brace. I'm making progress! Painful progress, but it's going forward!

Movie Project - Day 44: Despicable Me

When you watch something like Despicable Me, you need to have two things in mind. First, this movie is incredibly silly and does not take itself very seriously, and second, the old guy is NOT Eric Idle. With that in mind, my daughter is not familiar with Monty Python (yet!) and I have yet to see her take a movie seriously. In short, she thought it was very funny.

Since we watched this at home, and not in 3D, a few of the scenes did not have the same impact that they would have in 3D, such as when Gru lands the spaceship, or the rollercoaster ride. Some of those shots were pure 3D grabs, and in 2D it doesn't play as well. The story still shines through, and there is a story worth watching beneath all the crazy effects and jokes.

Being a father, I could understand some of Gru's frustrations in trying to get work done and being plagued with the incessant demands of those three girls. My girls are still quite young, and I can wait just fine until they reach the ages of the girls in the film. Erini didn't really relate to the girls that much, because she was too busy laughing at the minions.

The best comparison for those little yellow creatures with prehensile appendages, would be some sort of cousin to the Raving Rabbids only a bit more organized. Only a little though.

DESPICABLE ME: Movie Trailer 4. Watch more top selected videos about: Despicable Me, Movie Trailers

The version we watched was DVD, and the Blu-ray has more special features, such as three shorts starring the minions. And a banana. Not too sure about the details on that, but I'm told it's hilarious.

If it can be believed, we don't own a copy of this, nor do Grandma and Grandpa. It was my brother-in-law from whom we borrowed their copy, and previous to that I rented it from a local rental outlet. However, after watching it again this past week, I think we might look into acquiring a copy of it. We need to get settled in our new place, and that will involve finding a new bed for our daughter. Kijiji stiffed me on that, but we're still looking.

Movie Project - Day 43: Toy Story 3

Seems like some time since I wrote about a movie I watched with my daughter, but I blame all those pain medications I was on. I'm at home, and I took some time to sit with my daughter and watch a movie that had previously given her nightmares, or so was the opinion circulating the household. Whether Erini truly did have trouble sleeping due to the movie or other circumstances, I don't know. What I do know is that after she watched this movie with me, she slept through the night without a peep. I would say the night troubles are over regarding this movie.

Not to say that there are some frightening parts, and not to say that everyone would feel comfortable watching this movie with their children. All I am saying is that I was very glad I watched this with Erini, and I was able to hold her during the scary parts. The parts I think she had issues with were: the garbage truck, the "libary" scene, and the incinerator. All those things were mentioned to me at one point or another in between our viewing in November 2010 and this past week. My daughter remembers her movies quite well, like her parents, and viewing movies with her mommy and daddy will help build good memories of good film.

The other thing I love doing with Pixar movies in general - and Erini has gotten in on it too - is going through the "Pixar Checklist." In every movie, a few things are present. One thing that my daughter has started to take notice is the Pizza Planet truck. She will get up and point it out whenever it appears in most all Pixar movies, though some movies it's quite hard to see eg. Finding Nemo, The Incredibles, and Up. But she always says, "The Pizza Planet truck is in Bug's Life!" That one is a bit easier to see and the same shot is used in Monsters Inc. ("Mama! Another 'gator got in the house!" "Another 'gator? Gimme that shovel!") Next, we're going to work on pointing out John Ratzenburger and A113.

Most all scary movies that Erini has watched, I've watched with her, and she enjoys them, and they don't bother her. Just having her daddy near her when she's scared tends to help her deal with the concept of fright. I haven't quite figured out why. It could be my baritone voice that has a soothing effect or some other facet of masculinity that I don't realize I'm displaying. Whatever it is, she does well, when I watch a movie with her.

That being said, I did watch Toy Story 3 with her the first time she watched it. The second time she saw it, I wasn't there, and that's when the sleep trouble started. Perhaps there is an exception to every circumstance, and this is no different.

Movies a Bite at a Time #4 - Jesus Camp

As I mentioned yesterday, I am currently healing from an L1 burst fracture, aka broken back. I was only in the hospital for four days, yet the amount of time that I was awake and coherent enough to watch this movie was very short indeed. Caitlin actually brought eight or nine movies for me to watch, but with all the drugs I was on, and the physiotherapy I was working through to get home when I did, I barely had enough time to finish watching Jesus Camp.

It was a very interesting documentary to watch in the hospital, and I really hope that I didn't disturb my roommates too much. Mind one guy never said a word to me, another guy barely spoke at all, and the third guy was watching his television with his headphones in most of the time. If anyone was annoyed with the "Hallelujah!" and "Praise Jesus!" that was coming from Toshi, they never told me.

I like to consider myself a religious person. I have a strong belief and testimony in Jesus Christ and his sacrifice for us all. But I also believe in personal agency. We all have the power within us to chose what we believe, and to chose whether that belief is right or wrong. For that reason, I strongly believe in a division between church and state, and I don't believe that people should be forced to believe what I do.

At the beginning of the film, a children's Pastor Becky Fisher is interviewed, and she states that she wants to prepare today's children to be Christian soliders, just like Muslims are training their children for Jihad. That sent a very cold chill through me. Some of these children were eight or nine years old, some as old as twelve, but there were all very vocal and firm in their faith.

I've met religious people all over the spectrum. Baptists, Orthodox, Catholic, Muslim, Jehovah's Witness, the list goes on. Living in various cities across the country will do that. The fact is there are good people wherever you go, and there is also insanely passionate people wherever you go. What was presented in Jesus Camp was the closest thing I could categorize to Christian Extremism, and it was a scary thing to see. What was further frightening is that these kids are going to grow up and be a part of the adult community one day. Teaching people to love one another and bear one another's burdens that they may be light, that's a good thing to teach children. Winding children up in a flurry of passionate faith to the point that they'll believe anything makes me wonder how wars will be fought twenty years from now.

Being a father and a patriarch to my family are responsibilities that I still struggle with. Sometimes I can't believe that I'm a daddy, but it's not a matter of belief. I know I'm a father, and my girls are growing up faster than I want them to. The best I can do is adhere to Proverbs 22:6 - Train up a child the way he should go: and when he is old, he shall not depart from it.

Teaching children at a young age is the best thing you can do, but more than that, you need to show them that you care for them. Seems I'm making things up as I go along when it comes to parenting, but I do try to instill important ideas in my daughter's mind. Saying prayers and brushing teeth are still a bit of a battle, and I'm sure she won't remember the exact words to a certain prayer fifteen years from now, but I hope she'll remember saying prayer with her family, and will continue to do so on her own.

Would I watch Jesus Camp with Erini? I'm not even sure if I could watch it again with Caitlin. Perhaps my memories of the movies are tainted from all the morphine I was taking in the hospital. Stupid drugs.

Tomorrow: Movie Project continues with facing a nightmare. And winning!

We're rebuilding!

Might seem odd, and it might seem a little cliche, but there has been a bit of a dearth of postings because I injured myself. A poor excuse, because I broke my back, and I can still write with a netbook on my stomach. It's not like I broke my arms, hands, and fingers. I only broke one bone. L1 vertebra, burst fracture. Most common snowmobiling injury, but every now and again you see it with tobogganing.

I'm working on a full story of the break, the hospital stay, and the triumphant return home. I'll be posting it on my "passion" blog once it's complete.

In the mean time, my bone is knitting itself back together again, and I need to take it easy.

More reviews to come. For now, I need some sleep.