Lucia's Kitchen

At one time, I had grandiose ideas to build Lucia a play kitchen. No, not because she's a girl. Rather, I wanted her to have a play kitchen because so much of her mother's and my lives are focused on food and drink. She needed space to play make believe on her own since our kitchen is limited on space. We're getting her a train set and other toys, but the kitchen was going to be as essential as the real kitchen is to our lives.

I never built that kitchen. Between a busy work schedule and a lack of woodworking skills (although I did build a bed once), I was never able to put anything together. So, to Craig's List we turned.

On Craig's List, we found this "neat" homemade kitchen set. I called right away and had it in my procession within hours of its posting. The only problem is that it's really grungy. The set has obviously been sitting outside for a while, so it will take some TLC to make it usable.

All I've done so far is cleaned some of the dirt and splashed on a fresh coat of primer. The plan is to paint it in bright colors, mostly those used to paint Lu's room. I'll keep you updated.

Here are some of the before pictures.

Be Kind Rewind

Three Hundred Eleven Words: Michael Gondry writes his love letter to film in Be Kind Rewind, but that is not the only message he conveys. Like in his previous films, The Science of Sleep and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Gondry creates dreamy and imaginative scenes using a childlike naivite usually only reserved for amateurs on YouTube. And as with most of his films, an uplifting message sneaks in about human possibility and invention.

The characters in the film, featuring Mos Def and Jack Black, recreate their favorite movies, at first to save their video store (Remember those?) from demolition but they eventually find meaning and value in their own resourcefullness and creativity. This is where the film touches on the greater value of the DIY ethic that has grown as a response to the creativity-stiffling nature of our homogenous, corporate culture.

I got into Readymade, the hipster DIY magazine, when it first came out and have been hooked on it's message that we all have to create something from nothing. I used to be good about creating and inventing, but that has sort of shifted as my responsibilities have changed. Now, I blog. It's my creative outlet that allows me to make my own content and leave my digital footprint among all the ad-riddled websites and social networks that clutter the internets. Be Kind Rewind made me feel good about this. A good film will do that for you. It makes you see your life with fresh eyes and that's when you create your own sort of movie.

Although it has been said that I'm a cynic, I do like a movie that both makes me think and lifts my spirits a bit. Be Kind Rewind did that for me this week. The film runs through April 8th at the Ragtag. Go see it and get inspired to make something of your own.

Scene that makes it worth the $7 admission: Watch these films, Sweded for your pleasure.

What Rotten Tomatoes thought: 65%