daily prompt

You Better Promise Me I’ll Be Back in Time

~ theveryspecialblog ~ 5 Comments

I’m writing this as the sounds of PYT drift through my mid-morning ear drums. I borrowed a quote from a Huey Lewis song in order to come up with a title. So when asked whether I would use a time machine to travel to the future or to the past, it must be pretty obvious which one I would chose. Well, the subject matter was probably a dead giveaway.

Reasons I would travel to the past instead of the future:

  1. I’m not comfortable with unknowns: What if the future is some weird dystopian bummer land? Or what if everyone has plague? Or what if everyone I like is dead? Ick. I’m cool with dealing with uncertainty as I live my life in the present time and gradually move into the future, but I think that if there is anything we can learn from Back to the Future: Part II, it’s that the future can be pretty grim. No hover board or self-strapping shoe can erase from my mind that is the travesty of seeing Lea Thompson looking like a hot mess.
  2. It’s quite possible that I could be the coolest kid ever in the late 20th Century: I was not a cool kid in the late 90’s. I know, I know. I blog largely about the 90’s so how is this possible? Well, I LOVED pop culture in this gigantic gestalt even then and my classmates could not understand my passion for All in the Family or The Facts of Life when those shows were not “hip” or”relevant.” I listened to disco in the third grade and I was weird. I liked bubble gum 60’s pop while everyone else was listening exclusively to The Offspring. And frankly, while I looooved early/mid 90’s film/media/fashion, I just was not into whatever was happening in the late 90’s. Thus, after much analysis, I think I could have owned the 80’s through early 90’s with my vast knowledge and appreciation for culture and style. Unfortunately, it’s not considered acceptable behavior to take a three year old to a Madonna concert, though there was a plan to take me to see the B-52s when I was two. (My parents thought better of it at the last minute.)
  3. I want to wear Jellies non-ironically. I know they make your feet sweat and create weird blisters where you think it would be impossible to get a blister, but I think these shoes rock. The light pink color is my favorite because it has the leg-elongating effect of a nude shoe (results may vary based on skin color) AND allows you to look like you are so care free and breezy that you do not even have to wear a sensible shoe. “Oh I’m just roaming around, taking life one minute at a time in my leg-elongating, care-free jellies.”

Would you travel to the past or the future if you had a one-way time machine? You can check out other responses here.

The Secret World of Alex Mack: The Switch

~ theveryspecialblog ~ 1 Comment

I don’t usually see prompts on the daily post that fit this blog, but today’s post caught my eye. Today’s prompt is to imagine that you have had a reverse-Big experience. I’m not sure if it’s possible to exist on this planet and have NOT seen that classic Tom Hanks movie, but– in case you’ve missed it or your memory is a bit rusty–Big is a movie about a little boy who wishes to be an adult. His wish comes true and he turns into this twelve year-old man-child. 

Normally, I am of the opinion that being an adult is way cooler than being a kid. I feel more self-confident, I have more freedom, and I’m not forced into awful adolescent growing pains around kids I don’t really like. But recently, I’ve been feeling pretty overwhelmed with “grown up problems,” so the idea of being twelve years old again feels very welcoming. There would be so many things I wouldn’t have to worry about–like paying my bills and always eating a well balanced meal. Plus, believe it or not, I actually loved middle school. I thought it was a blast. Sure, sixth grade was definitely an adjustment (and full of the most heartache by far) but my memories of seventh and eighth grade are definitely some of the most fun of my life. Those memories are full of people I adored, but who I know nothing about these days. There were a few falling outs along the way and others I simply grew apart from. I guess being a reverse man-child (so child-woman?) would suck in the sense that I would have all of this foreknowledge. And being an adult in a child’s body seems much less innocent than being a child in an adults body. So I don’t know if I could honestly participate in all of the ridiculous things I did as a kid if I was suddenly “Zoltar-ed” back to childhood. But it sure would be fun to pass notes in history class and steal my best friend’s lip gloss again. 

So how does this daily prompt relate to The Very Special Blog, you ask? Well, everyone always seems to think the grass is greener on the other side, including Alex Mack and her mom, Barbara. The Secret World of Alex Mack was a cool suburban sci-fi show that always managed to be a little spooky without being scary. Alex Mack is just an average girl who happens to be the victim of a chemical spill, which gave her special powers. These special powers include telekinesis and being able to dissolve into a mostly transparent goo. Alex’s mom gets caught up in her goo at the most timely manner (they have just been arguing about who has it harder college-student-mom or high-school-student-daughter) and the two switch bodies. Alex is lucky in that she has a super-smart sister, Annie, who is the only one who knows that she can morph into liquid. This also means that she has one person who will believe the utterly ridiculous fact that she has switched bodies with their mom.

Alex “morphing” into liquid.

Meanwhile, Alex’s mom tries to get back home, but she is forced into going to school when one of Alex’s friends finds her trying to sneak away from campus. Alex’s mom seems to know that she is in a child’s body but this does not keep her from challenging adults and calling herself a “grown woman” even though she’s like fourteen at the moment. That definitely is the suck-y part of being a kid. You are pretty much always at the mercy of other people. Sure, you grow up and you go to work and you cannot “ditch” work just like you cannot ditch school, but people never question it when you say you have to go to the bathroom or that you need to go home sick. I’m sure plenty of adults are fakers too…well I mean I know for a fact that they are…but you can’t be like “excuse me, it’s RUDE to leave the meeting to pee. Sit down and raise your hand before you speak.” On the flip side, Alex realizes how little time her mom has for herself because she’s super busy trying to run a family and also be a person. Also, Alex’s mom finds out she has super powers, the chemical plant that spilled stuff all over her sends out creepy men to take her away, and then it all turns out to be a dream! But just because it was a all a dream does not mean we failed to learn a very special lesson. 

Very Special Lesson: Kids should be kids and adults should be adults. The grass will always look greener on the other side…but I really would like a break from decision making and fending for myself once in a while. Also, what’s the harm in a little chemical spill now and again? 

Want to figure out what you’re own age-switch would be like? Check out the daily prompt here: Zoltar’s Revenge