Day 967: Jo Bear’s Heart

Well, this is officially my forth post about my old Teddy Bear Jo:

 

1) Day 813: Take Your Teddy Bear to Work Day

2) Day 849: Have a Party with Your Bear Day

3) Day 891: The Best Christmas Present EVER!

 

I’m pretty amazed that I’ve been able to get this much mileage out of Jo Bear… being that I’m a grown man and all, but as I’ve said before, there is a very special bond between a boy and his bear.  And if anyone out there wants to pretend teddy bears are uncool… well, I would beg to differ.  Han Solo is the coolest person in the world and he had the coolest teddy wookie in the world!  So there!

 

Yes.  I am a total nerd… but I’m cool with that.

 

Anyway, as strange as it might sound, being reunited with Jo Bear this past Christmas was really awesome and I was actually planning to bring him back to Pakistan with him… just to have a friendly face in my big lonely house.  But, as it turns out, Jo Bear and I were reunited for a reason and he was unable to make the trip because he had a much nobler mission to attend to.

 

Well before I ever posted about Jo Bear on SchutzHappens, I had spoken of him as legend when Grayson asked me if I ever had a teddy bear when I was a little boy.  And Jo Bear must have made an impression because Grayson has two teddy bears named Jo-Jo and Jo-Gee, in honor of my, then, lost Jo Bear.

 

On Christmas morning Grayson was super excited for me to open Jo Bear and after the joyous reunion Grayson took to sleeping with Jo Bear and named him daddy of all his stuffed animals. 

 

Now, I never openly declared ownership of Jo Bear and I never told Grayson that the idea of taking Jo Bear with me to Pakistan was floating around in my head… mainly because I never had too.  Even though Gray was getting pretty attached, he would always recognize Jo Bear as mine and not his… and a couple times in conversation Gray would refer to ‘when Daddy and Jo Bear go back to Pakistan”… he just knew.  Jo Bear is dads, so it makes sense that he goes with Dad.

 

Well, when it came time to pack may bags in anticipation of my trip back I found Jo Bear in Grayson’s bed... and I left him there.

 

While I packed, Grayson came to visit and we talked for a while, which it was really nice and at some point Grayson left to get something from his room… then he shouted, “DAD!”  And I heard his little footsteps running back into my room, “Dad!  You almost forget Jo Bear!”

 

Me: “Oh thank Godness!  Thank you buddy!”

 

Gray: “Silly dad, you can’t leave Jo behind, he’s your bear!”

 

Me: “I know, right?  Do you think he’s going to like Pakistan?”

 

Gray: “Yeah… I think he’ll like it a lot because you’re going to be there and you are friends.”

 

I put Jo Bear aside, not in my luggage… I still hadn’t decided what I was going to do with him… but then my mind was made up for me…

 

Gray:  “Dad?  Can I ask you a question?”

 

Me:  “Sure buddy.”

 

Grayson:  “I know that Jo Bear is really excited to go to Pakistan because he loves you and hasn’t seen you for a long time, but you know?  Jo Bear loves me a lot too because I’m your son.”

 

Me:  “I know, Jo Bear and I have known each other for a really long time and he was so excited when he came back and found out I had two amazing boys for him to play with.  He told me that.”

 

Gray:  “I know… dad?”

 

Me:  “Yeah buddy?”

 

Gray:  “Dad, I think I’m going to be really lonely while you and Jo Bear are in Pakistan together.  I’m going to miss you both a lot.”

 

I stopped what I was doing and picked Gray up onto my lap.  “Hey man… I’m going to miss you too.  A lot!  But you know what?”

 

Gray:  “What?”

 

Me:  “Well, last night I was talking to Jo Bear and he said he really liked you… a lot.”

 

Gray:  “I like Jo Bear a lot too.”

 

Me:  “Well, Jo Bear told me if you wanted, he’d like to stay here and keep you company while I’m away.”

 

Gray:  “Really?”

 

Me:  “Yeah, would you like that?  If Jo Bear stayed here with you?”

 

Gray:  “Yes, I would like that a lot.  Then I won’t be so lonely while you are away.  When I miss you I can just hug Jo Bear.”

 

Me:  “Yeah, you can totally hug Jo Bear when you miss me… and you know what?”

 

Gray:  “What?”

 

Me:  “You know how Jo Bear and I have known each other for a REALLY long time, right?”

 

Gray:  “Yes, he was your bear when you were little.”

 

Me:  “Yeah, he was my bear and when I was little I used to hug Jo Bear all the time.  And you know what happens when a little boy hugs his bear and loves his bear with all of his heart?”

 

Gray:  “What?”

 

Me:  “Well, when a little boy REALLY loves his bear with all of his heart something magical happens… part of that love floats out of the little boy’s heart and into the bear, where that love grows into a real heart for the bear.”

 

Gray:  “Like the Velveteen Rabbit?”

 

Me:  “Kinda, except the Velveteen Rabbit became completely real and could hop around the forest… but for Jo Bear, it’s only his heart that is real… he might not be able to hug back, but his love is real because Jo Bear and I share a heart.”

 

Grayson gave Jo Bear a big hug, laughed, and looked at me, “I’m hugging you!”

 

True story… one I had actually forgotten for a while.  But, I remembered it this week while talking to Grayson on Skype.

 

For the last month, since right around his 5^th birthday, Grayson has become more and more melancholy regarding my absence.  Generally, for the past eight months or so, Grayson only actively participated in about two of my seven (plus) Skype calls per week, at which time I was lucky to get 10 minutes of his attention.  Which is totally understandable… he’s really young.

 

But over the last month, he’s been THE active participant every day.  Even if he has a friend over he drops everything to come talk to me.  When his friends aren’t around he wants to talk while working on a puzzle or legos.  He has become partial to having the computer all to himself, away from Serena and Gilliam, so we can talk uninterrupted and our conversations are now lasting between 30 minutes to an hour. 

 

He has started initiating the ‘Squeeze’ and the ‘Computer Hug’, two special “I love you” signs I made up for us over Skype.  I had always initiated and we had stopped doing them for quite some time, but Grayson started using them again out of nowhere and he uses them a lot, having now invented the ‘Double Squeeze’ and the ‘Super Computer Hug’.

  

He has even started asking Serena to initiating calls at odd times, like when I’m still at work, and from what Serena says, he has gotten pretty mad if he can’t talk to me.  I’ve told her to let him call my cell phone, I’m working 12 hour days… I would love a break to talk to my son, who wouldn’t?

 

AND, Serena told me his prayers have started to become more aware of his feeling, “Dear God, please help me be happy and have fun with my friends even though daddy isn’t here…”  Yeah, that one cuts deep. 

 

Serena says not to worry, “He’s still the same happy, fun loving negotiator he’s always been… he’s just hyper aware and really missing his dad… He’s not depressed; he’s just hit that ‘enough is enough’ wall, and is ready for this year to be over.”   

 

I tend to agree… I LOVE the fact that Grayson is expressing himself so well.  I hope this is a level of communication we’re able to maintain for the years to come.

 

But, as for now, I’ve only got one more month before my next R&R and after that, only 10 more weeks.

We can do it buddy!  We’re almost done! 

(Picture: Me and Gray working on a puzzle)

Day 966: Thundercats, The Movie

Don't get too excited.  It's not real (although when Chris Nolan is finished with his Batman Trilogy, I have a suggestion for his next project.  ;)


Honestly, this fan trailer is pretty goofy looking, but it's pretty fun at the same time.  I love how many movies were sampled to create it: 'Troy', 'Lord of the Rings', 'Planet of the Apes', 'X-Men', 'Garfield', 'The Fast and the Furious', 'xXx', 'Spy Kids', 'Star Gate', 'Farscape', and probably more... it's pretty impressive actually.

Day 965: Gnomeo & Juliet

Oh my GOD!  Who cares about the Oscars?  An animated version of Romeo and Juliet using Garden Gnomes?  Starring Jason Statham, Emily Blunt, Michael Caine, Maggie Smith, Hulk Hogan, Dolly Parton, and Ozzy Osbourne? 

2011 Oscar Prediction: Best Picture!

The only thing that would make this movie better is if it was called “Kenneth Branagh’s ‘Gnomeo and Juliet’”.  Seriously, why isn’t Ken attached to this movie?

All joking aside, this movie is directed by Kelly Asbury.  He directed ‘Spirit – Stallion of the Cimarron’ and ‘Shrek 2’.  In addition he wrote ‘Beauty and the Beast’ and ‘Chicken Run’… and additionally, he was an animator on ‘The Little Mermaid’, ‘The Nightmare Before Christmas’, ‘The Prince of Egypt’, ‘Kung Fu Panda’, and ‘Madagascar 2’.  This guy knows how to make quality animated movies... and I’m excited!

Day 964: SchutzHappens, February 2011: 'The Saga Begins'

Day 963: Grayson and the Oscars

 I know!  I promised I was done with my Oscar coverage, but I have to share and brag on my son Grayson, because he enjoyed his FIRST Oscars!  And it’s been really cute listening to him talk about it.

Honestly folks, distance doesn’t really get in the way of father/son bonding at all.  We Skype everyday and if you think my blogging about the Oscars was on the excessive side, just imagine my daily conversations with Serena… and as my fellow parents out there know, kids are sponges.  So, it was no big surprise when Grayson said, “Hey, dad?  Can I ask you a question?”

Seriously, this is how Grayson starts every conversation with me… I’m not sure why or when he started doing this, but he always does.  “Hey, dad?  Can I tell you something?”  “Hey, dad?  Can I ask you a question?”   We could be the only two people involved in an epic 30 minute non-stop conversation, but when a new subject hits him, he’ll always transition by asking permission.  

Anyway, on the day in question he wanted to ask me a question:

Grayson: “What are the Oscars?”

At which point, the clouds parted, the sun beamed down, and a choir of angels began singing.  And as I wiped the tears from my eyes, I said, “Grayson?  How much time do you have?”

Via Skype, Serena and I gave him a rough explanation and of course, since it was something daddy really liked, Grayson was really interested in hearing more about it and he kept asking very thoughtful questions… questions that were pretty hard to answer… self explanatory if he had actually seen an Oscar broadcast, but hard to describe to a person who had no point of reference.

Finally, Serena said, “You know what, Grayson?  AFN is going to show it again at five o’clock today.  I was thinking about watching it, would you want to watch it with me?”

Grayson: “Sure!”

Honestly, I didn’t think much of it.  The Oscars are a big show for a five year old and as an Oscar obsessed father, I was just super excited he showed some interest… I had very little expectation of him actually watching it, so I never bothered to follow up on the subject.

Imagine my surprise, a few days later while Skyping, when Grayson said, “Hey, dad?  Can I tell you something?”

Me: “What is it buddy?”

Grayson: “I watched the Oscars and it was pretty good.”

Double take.

Me: “You watched the Oscars?”

Grayson: “Yeah… I like it.”

Serena:  “He really did… almost the whole thing.”

I was astonished.  According to Serena, Grayson intently watched the first two hours of the broadcast… then got a little bored and worked on some of his craft projects while half watching/listening to the rest.  Way more than I ever expected.

Anyway, Grayson told me all about it.  He really enjoyed the songs, especially the ones from ‘Toy Story 3’ and ‘Tangled’… and he was really excited about ‘Toy Story 3’ winning best Animated Movie… although he was a little torn because he was also sad that ‘How to Train Your Dragon’ lost.

And Grayson even brought up our poor parenting skills… it crossed my mind to warn Serena about the ‘Best Makeup’ category… the broadcast featured the transformation scene from ‘The Wolfman’, but I really didn’t think they would be watching it, so I reach out to her.  I know!  I should know better.  I should have warned them.

Anyway, Grayson was very a matter of fact, “Yeah dad… that one was pretty scary, like when mom showed me Michael Jackson in that scary video on the computer.”  Yes, Serena inadvertently let Gray see the Thriller video about a year ago.  As I said, we’re bad parents.  Thank goodness Grayson is a pretty tough kid, “But it’s not real dad.  It’s just an actor wearing makeup… but it was still pretty scary.”

And you know what?  It was pretty scary… I feel horrible… however, having a five year old who understands the concept of actors playing make believe is AWESOME!

Now, the thing that tickled me the most was listening to Grayson talk about Helena Bonham Carter.  That’s right… Helena Bonham FREAKIN’ Carter!

A long time ago I shared a story about Grayson recognizing Julie Andrews while watching ‘The Sound of Music’… “Hey!  It’s Marry Poppins!”  Which I thought was awesome… it was the first time he made that kind of connection and started understanding the concept of an actor.

Anyway, Grayson recently saw Tim Burton’s “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” at a friend’s house and it’s currently his favorite movie… go figure.  And while watching the Oscars he got really excited when he saw Charlie’s mom (Helena Bonham Carter) in the audience. 

In addition, he got really excited when he saw clips from ‘Alice in Wonderland’, where he not only recognized Helena, but also Willy Wonka as the Mad Hatter (Johnny Depp).  And, by the time we skyped, Grayson was throwing around their real names like he was his old man… although he was super cute about it… “Dad, I saw Helena Bo… Bo… mom, what’s her name again?”

Serena: “Helena Bonham Carter.”

Grayson: “That right, I saw Helena Bonham Carter… I like her; she is a very good actress.  I also like… umm… mom, what’s his name?”

Serena: “Who?”

Grayson: “The guy… the one who always wears the big hats.”

Me: “Johnny Depp?”

Grayson: “Mom, is that his name?”

Serena: “Yes.”

Grayson: “Yeah, Johnny Depp… he’s good too.  I would like to see more movies they are in.  Can I see ‘Alice in Wonderland’?

Too cute, right?  Well, just wait… it gets cuter… at least to me.  And Helena’s heart would probably melt if she ever stumbled across SchutzHappens and read the words my little five year-old said about her:

As our conversation continued Serena asked, “So, what was Helena nominated for?”  (Serena never keeps up the Oscars… why would she?  She’s married to me!)

Anyway, I never got a chance to answer.  Grayson, that little bugger beat me to the punch, “The King’s Speech mom, she was in The King’s Speech… but she didn’t win though.  I was pretty sad for her, it would have been really nice if she had won… but she didn’t win, right dad?”

Me: (Absolutely beaming!)  “That’s right buddy… but you know what?”

Grayson:  “What?”

Me: “If you liked Helena in ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’… you’re going to love her in ‘Harry Potter’.” 

Grayson’s face was priceless.  It was a mix between excitement and torture.  He’s seen the first two Potter movies and he’s aware of all eight… however, he also knows that I’m not going to let him watch the third movie until he’s six.

I know… I’m a bad parent.  ;)

Day 962: Learning Cricket… if at All Possible

So… as we all know the Cricket World Cup is the most watched sporting event in the world… er… well… as we all know, everything reported on the news is 100% true and apparently Futball doesn’t exist in the alternate universe I’m living in.

However, I must give credit where credit is dues, according to my research; Cricket consistently ranks within the top four most watched sports in the world.  And that’s not too shabby.

But that doesn’t really answer the burning question we all have.  How in the world do you play Cricket?  Honestly, I’ve read about it multiple times… and I’ve watched a couple matches, but I still can wrap my head around the game.

It has taken me less time to learn how to play Snooker, the billiards game where the balls are all different colors and aren’t numbered.  THEY’RE NOT NUMBERED!

Anyway, over the last six months I’ve been trying to figure it out.  And I just can’t.  I don’t know… sometimes it seems like a team wins because they have the most runs and sometimes it seems like a team wins because they have the most wickets.  How is that even possible? 

Perhaps I’m just not visualizing the sport properly.  Maybe a video can help explain the nuances of the game:

Ummm… nope.  I’m still lost.  Perhaps you could slow it down a little more for me:

Zzzzzz… huh?  Umm… maybe with a little more personality?  Perhaps a well known American speaking German?

Hmmm… that didn’t help much either.  How about English with a lot less production value?  (The last 5 seconds of this video is actually VERY funny).

Good, good, that’s the kind of low production value I’m looking for… now, how about ruining my self-esteem by having children explain it to me:

You know… what I really need are a couple cartoon characters trying to explain it:

Perfect.  I now know everything I need to enjoy this year’s Cricket World Cup!

Go Pakistan!

Day 961: SheenHappens

First, I’m not a fan of celebrity gossip.   I could care less about who’s dating who, where a person has been ‘seen’, or how many times a celebrity has gone to rehab.  Honest to God, I don’t understand America’s fascination with Paris Hilton or Lindsey Lohan, or any other such overexposed celeb.

Second, I have never been a Charlie Sheen fan and frankly, I don’t understand why ‘Two and a Half Men’ has been so darn popular.  It’s a horribly ugly show full of immature, sophomoric humor delivered as a series of punch lines… it’s just not my style and its popularity makes me worry about my fellow man.

So… why am I so fascinated with the self-destructive crater that was once Charlie Sheen’s career?

 I don’t know!  Well, I guess I kind of know. 

Even though I don’t like Celebrity gossip, I am fascinated by the entertainment BUSINESS.  I love following the actual day to day operations that go into making movies and television shows.  Actually, it’s more like an obsession.  And Charlie Sheen’s breakdown, although inevitable, has actually triggered by a business decision.

I think Chuck Lorre, creator and executive producer of ‘Two and a Half Men’, deserves the badass of the year award for standing up to Charlie Sheen.  Let me tell you… dealing with an erratic actor who publically humiliates you is one thing, but to cancel production on the #1 sitcom on television and to do so with the networks blessing takes a special pair of… well, the guy has guts.  And I take my hat off to Chuck Lorre.

I would do the same thing.  If an actor I was trying to help grabbed a microphone and bragged about trying to embarrass me in front of my kids I would kick that actor to the curb so fast he head would spin.  And guess what?  Sheen’s head is SPINNING.  Spinning fast… too fact.  He’s spinning F-16 fast.  His head spinning only has one speed, it’s ‘Go!’.  Lol.  (If you haven’t figured it out, I’m sampling Sheen quotes.)

Anyway, what is the REAL catalyst to Sheen’s breakdown?  Drugs and Alcohol?  Sure, they are fueling it, but there is a deeper issue…

Because Chuck Lorre suspending production until he felt Sheen was ready to come back?  And refused to go back into production until Sheen had actually checked into a legitimate form of rehab?  Partly, but not really…

So… what is the catalyst? 

I think it’s because Jim Parson’s (The Big Bang Theory) won the Emmy and Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Comedy Series… and I’ll tell you why.

Sheen has always confused popularity with good.  For years he has shared his frustration openly for not winning awards for his work on ‘Two and a Half Men’. 

In 2009, The Emmy Awards expanded their Best Comedy Series field from five to seven, and guess what?  ‘Two and a Half Men’ wasn’t nominated.  Sheen took this very personally and openly questioned how the most watched comedy on television wasn’t nominated.  He even made comments like, “they shouldn’t even be holding a competition, there is no competition, we’re #1, just give us the award.”  He even said something like this while presenting at the Emmy’s that year… or Golden Globes, one of the two.

However, Sheen’s not as dumb as he acts sometimes.  ‘Two and a Half Men’ is one of the few Multi-Camera/Studio Audience Sitcoms on the air right now.  In turn, the current fad for Comedies right now is Single Camera/Non-Studio Audience shows, shot like dramas: The Office, Arrested Development, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Scrubs, Entourage, and Ugly Betty.  In fact, from 2006 – 2008, the three years Two and a Half Men received nominated for Best Comedy, they were the ONLY Multi-Camera show in the field, and Sheen knew this, and would express his disappointment is terms of being the odd show out, or considered to be ‘behind the times’… discriminated against for being a Multi-Camera Show.

Although, in 2009, it became more difficult to make the claim that critics didn’t like ‘Two and a Half Men’ because it was a Multi-Camera show… mainly because ‘How I Met Your Mother’ was nominated for Best Comedy Series AND John Cryer won Best Supporting Actor for ‘Two and a Half Men.”

However, Sheen was still able to claim he was the odd man out because in 2009 he lost Best Actor in a Comedy to an actor from a Single Camera Series… for the fourth year in a row.  And for two of those four losing years, Sheen was the ONLY actor nominated from a Multi-Camera Series, (Kevin James was nominated in 2006 for ‘The King of Queens’, and Jim Parsons was nominated in 2009 for ‘The Big Bang Theory’).

That said, in 2010, Sheen’s fifth consecutive nomination, he was up again Single Camera comedians Alec Baldwin (30 Rock), Steve Carell (The Office), Larry David (Curb Your Enthisiasm), Matthew Morrison (Glee), and Tony Shalhoub (Monk)… and once again, he was sharing the Multi-Camera spotlight with Jim Parsons (The Big Bang Theory)… and as we all know… Jim Parson’s won, making him the first actor from a Multi-Camera Series to win Best Actor in six years; since Kelsey Grammer won for the final season of ‘Frasier’.

Also, keep in mind.  Back in 2005, Charlie Sheen became the last actor in a Multi-Camera Comedy Series to be nominated for the Golden Globe… at least until 2010, when Jim Parsons was nominated AND won.

Yes, Sheen has a history of alcohol and drug abuse, however, I think Jim Parsons double win in 2010 sent Charlie Sheen over the edge for the following three reasons:

1)  He could no longer claim that he was being passed over because he was on a Multi-Camera Comedy.  And furthermore, I don’t think could fathom why Jim Parsons was getting all the recognition when Sheen was the highest paid actor on television AND on the #1 Comedy.

2)  The creator and executive producer of ‘The Big Bang Theory’ is non-other than Chuck Lorre; the creator of ‘Two and a Half Men’.  I think Sheen took Jim Parsons win VERY personal… almost as a betrayal on Lorre’s part.  As if Lorre was giving his best material to Parsons instead of Sheen, who is a much bigger star (in his own mind).  If you read transcripts of the nasty things Sheen says about Lorre, it almost sounds like Sheen is describing the cast of ‘The Big Bang Theory’.  Take a look.

3) Sheen started 2010 by entering rehab and getting clean.  However, after the Emmy Awards were held on August 29, 2010 his behavior started becoming erratic again… and then after the Golden Globes were held on January 16, 2011, Sheens behavior reached new horrific levels.  And based on this hateful behavior, I can’t help but think that there is more going on in Sheen’s head than just drugs and alcohol.  He’s a man who thinks he’s been legitimately betrayed… and the booze is just fuel to his fire.

Then again… this is only a theory… a Big Bang Theory?

In closing, my favorite Charlie Sheen quote so far is “Yes, I’m on a drug, it’s called Charlie Sheen.”  And it inspired me to get a little creative: