5 posts tagged “buffy”

Video: Share a video that makes you laugh every time you watch it.

Of course I have to use a clip from Buffy. Don't worry if you can't hear any dialog, there isn't any. In this episode, titled Hush, Joss Whedon did the unheard of and filmed an episode with almost no verbal dialog. This clip shows how even without voices, the writing and the acting on this show was still incredibly funny and layered.

Ever since Bubble Toes started noticing the TV about 3 months ago we have tried to keep her away from it as much as possible. That means no TV on while she is awake. The one time recently that we tried to watch a movie while she played on the floor in the same room, we had to block her view of the screen with toys because she was straining so hard to watch. I would like to keep her from watching any television at all, at least until she is 2 (doctors seem to recommend no TV until that age), but really I would like to keep her TV-free for as long as possible.

I grew up without a television in my house, until I went to college. Instead of sitting in front of the TV my family read a lot and probably went to bed earlier than most families (or maybe it was just me). This didn't really cause me any problems growing up (aside from a few missed pop culture references from that era) and it wasn't like I was banned from ever watching TV. I watched at friends' houses, and on vacations my mom would have to, sometime forcibly, pull both me and my dad away from the idiot box so that we could go outside and explore the exotic locale that we were visiting. I am very glad to have not grown up with a TV and I would love to give my daughter the same experience.

Here's the problem....I don't think that either Chris or I could give up TV at this point (he would have a hard time living without at least some baseball). Although a lot of the TV that we watch now is on DVD (Buffy, Wonderfalls, Angel, Firefly, etc) there still are a few shows that we do enjoy on primetime, namely Veronica Mars, and.....ummmm, not much else actually, maybe it wouldn't be so hard ;0}.

So the plan for when Bubble Toes is old enough to watch is still a work in progress, but right now we are thinking that we will try to keep the TV locked up and only allow her a very limited amount of watching each week. A DVD every once in a while will be OK, too. Of course, as soon as she is old enough to appreciate Buffy... ;0}

So what are your thoughts... TV, yea or nay?

Happy Thanksgiving!

We had a very fun and relaxing holiday. Bubble Toes had her first non-cereal solid food of sweet potatoes. Everyone else (me, hubby and my mom) had lots of mashed potatoes, stuffing, pumpkin pie, green bean casserole, and a little bit of turkey. Aside from eating we also continued our tradition of watching the Buffy Thanksgiving episode which is chockfull of quotable lines.

Here are some of the best for your reading pleasure (although I really recommend you just buy the complete series on DVD, and give in to the awesomeness that is Buffy).

Willow : Yeah. Thanksgiving isn't about blending of 2 cultures. It's about one culture wiping out another. And then they make animated specials about the part with the maize and the big, big belt buckles. They don't show you the next scene, where all the bison die and Squanto takes a musket ball in the stomach.

Buffy : Ok. Now, for some of that, you were channeling your mother?

Willow : Well, yeah, sort of. That's why she doesn't celebrate thanksgiving or columbus day-- You know, the destruction of the indigenous peoples. I know it sounds a little overwrought, but really, she's...She's right.

Buffy : Yeah. I guess I never really thought about it that way. With mom at aunt darlene's this year, I'm not getting a thanksgiving. Maybe it's just as well.

Anya : Well, I think that's a shame. I love a ritual sacrifice.

Buffy : It's not really a one of those.

Anya : To commemorate a past event, you kill and eat an animal. It's a ritual sacrifice, with pie.

And some more:

Spike : I just can't take all this mamby-pamby boo-hooing about the bloody indians.

Willow : Uh, the preferred term--

Spike : You won. All right? You came in and you killed them and you took their land. That's what conquering nations do. It's what Caesar did, and he's not going around saying, "I came, I conquered, I felt really bad about it." The history of the world isn't people making friends. You had better weapons, and you massacred them. End of story.

Buffy : Well, I think the spaniards actually did a lot of-- Not that I don't like spaniards.

Spike : Listen to you. How you gonna fight anyone with that attitude?

Willow: We don't wanna fight anyone.

Buffy : I just wanna have thanksgiving.

And finally:

Buffy : Do I have to gag you? Because I am not gonna listen to you whine all the way through my dinner. It's gonna be a nice, quiet, civilized--

Suddenly an arrow pierces the decrotive scarecrow on the table. We see Hus in the window with a bow and arrow.

Buffy : You. Listen, maybe I wasn't clear before about how terrible we all feel. 'Cause we're trying to help.

Spike : What's going on?!

Giles : It isn't working.

Buffy : Uh, you can have casinos now.

So Chris and I are just a little bit, not clinically or anything (don't worry I'm a psychologist and I'm keeping an eye on it), obsessed with Buffy the Vampire Slayer. This leads some people to the mistaken conclusion that we named our daughter after a character from the show, namely Anya.

I know, I know, I can hear you now, "But, I thought the kid's name was Anya?". It is. But my point is, we didn't name her after the character in Buffy... although I do envision yelling, "Anyanka Elizabeth, get over here right this minute!" when she's older and gets in trouble. Anya is actually an Americanized spelling of the Gaelic name Aine. We knew we wanted an Irish name and we like the sound and meaning of Anya:

Ancient Irish name from the noun aine that means "splendor, radiance, brilliance." Aine is connected with fruitfulness and prosperity. The queen of the Munster fairies was called Aine as was one of the wives of Fionn Mac Cool (read the legend). Aine appears in folktales as "the best-hearted woman who ever lived – lucky in love and in money."

Coincidentally, after we had decided on Anya we met a native Irish woman on our trip to New Zealand who was named Aine. She had even grown up speaking Gaelic at home.

So I hope that puts this issue to rest. Yes, we love Buffy. No, we didn't name our daughter after an ancient reformed vengeance demon.