Wisp Has Been Brought To You By...

I've been thinking about my childhood more lately. Remembering the different people that shaped who I am. Obviously, my family had a big impact. =) But, there were also others. Like Mr. Rogers. =D Fred Rogers affected me a lot - I believed he could actually see me. lol It really felt like it to a 5-year-old. And when he would sing "It's You I Like" it made me feel so special. I related to Daniel the Tiger a lot, because I was always painfully shy. Also, Lavar Burton was another role model for me. Reading Rainbow reinforced a love of reading in me that seemed to always be there. I remember my mom teaching me to read my Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs book in my room, helping me to sound words out. I could read before kindergarten and the library at Cherry Hill Elementary was my favorite place at school. I learned from the Bernstain Bears, Nancy Drew, and other books. My favorite childhood book was No Flying In The House. It's about a little girl with a tiny tiny dog who finds out that she is a fairy. It was always checked out of the library at school. In all the time I was there, I only got the chance to check it out once. :)

I also was affected by Bob Ross. I mean, he's this gentle-voiced man with a fro and a pet squirrel sitting on his shoulder. How could a child not be drawn in? I would watch him make happy trees and happy clouds and it looked so easy. However, when I tried to paint, I got angry trees and miffed clouds that looked awful. My mom and my grandma are both amazing painters. I missed the art gene a bit... I got creativity, just not art so much. My sister, Maren, is amazing in the same way. She can make anything beautiful and she does. :) Maybe I'll write a story and make my happy trees that way. XD

I also diligently watched Today's Special. I knew all of the songs and plots. It was about a department store with a manikin that can come to life if you but a special hat on his head and said, "Hocus Pocus Alamagocus." Hahaha. And he and the security guard and the night display worker and a mouse that lived there would sing all night. It sounds a little weird now, but it seemed perfectly plausible to me as a child. Oh, and the security guard (Sam) had a fluffy gorgeous cat named Penelope and I still wish I could bury my face in that fur and cuddle Penelope til the cows come home. (Btw, Sam also had a smart computer: the TXL talking computer.) They just don't make shows that weird and cool anymore. Purple dinosaurs came along with their idiocy and ruined the legendary ways.

There was also a Christmas special called Santa Bear about a polar bear cub that gets separated from his family and ends up helping a little girl and her sick grandfather before being taken home by Santa Clause. And there was also the Ugly Duckling cartoon Disney made... which made my sensitive self cry every time I watched it. I felt so bad for the little signet all alone and not fitting in. I felt like that a lot at school and church as a child. But then his family finds him and loves him. :)

And then there are John Wayne, Elvis, Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly, Cary Grant, Walter Matthau, Jack Lemmon, Audrey Hepburn... all the greats from the old movies I'd watch growing up. ...It's actually little wonder I'm as weird as I am. Hahaha. You don't grow up watching Some Like It Hot to be normal. lol "If they catch us there's going to be blood everywhere - Type O!" XD