Oh my. This fall is seeming a little gloomy to me. Not very much sun shining out there on the northeast side of the planet. There was a pretty surprise when I got up this morning – a coating of snow on the grass and fence posts. The world looked as if it were sprinkled with powdered sugar – like a giant Christmas cookie. But then the early morning sun whisked itself to parts unknown and we were once again surrounded by gray skies. Sigh. 

     Great movies coming up – really great movies! This week (as I’m sure you know) we open the final film of the Twilight series. Although I’m not a big fan of the series, I absolutely love to see the audience come in. Truly, it warms the heart. Moms and their daughters are everywhere, and they enjoy the shared experience in such a joyous way.   I think that going to a movie with your daughter is one of the best ways ever for the generations to communicate. You share watching the movie (and the popcorn, of course) and then you get to talk about it for hours, days, forever, -- and you know, if you can get a teenager talking about one subject its sort of like giving a mouse a cookie – one thing leads to another, and pretty soon you’re having some pretty meaningful conversations. So if you have never come to see one of these movies with your kidlet, give it a try. You know, there can never be too much dialogue between a mom and her teen.

     Right before Thanksgiving we will open The Rise of the Guardians, an odd little animation about Santa that I think the kids will love! I have to say that it is odd, but it’s Dreamworks, and you know that Dreamworks knows how to make kids laugh. This particular Santa has tattoos and a heavy sort-of Russian accent, so he’s not your standard Mr. Claus, but I think the kids will get a real kick out of it, as will the adults. And you know, anytime you are out with the kids to see a holiday movie is a good time. Sometimes, when I see the families coming in with their little ones to see a movie, I can’t help but think back to when my Shannon was little and we’d go to the movies together. Wouldn’t it be so fine if we could just go back, say, for one day, and have them be little again? Just for a minute in time. To take that little hand in ours and walk down the street with them, to cuddle them close to read a bedtime story, to listen to them chatter about their day in school or ask if Santa really really has flying deer? 

     If your child grows up to be strong and healthy and happy then that’s a grand thing and you have much to be thankful for. But still, wouldn’t it be so nice? Sigh.

     Jeffrey wrote me today that The Hobbit is booked! I’m so glad, because these movie companies are so whimsical in what they are letting us have or not. We have tried and tried and tried to bring in Lincoln, but to no avail. However there is a good chance we will have it for the Christmas holiday. As well as Silver Linings Playbook which looks wonderful, simply wonderful! 

     Which brings me to a subject I haven’t talked much about lately, but used to harp on all the time. I promise you we will bring in Lincoln. I promise we will bring in Silver Linings Playbook. If you can possibly find it in your heart to do so, please wait to see it until we get it. I say this only because the movie companies are making our lives so hard for no reason other than that they dislike small town theaters. We don’t have enough screens or enough seats to interest them. They wish we would go away. But we don’t intend to go anywhere! We love this business and this town and we’re here to stay. But we need you to wait for us sometimes, because if you don’t come to the movies it plays into the corporate movie companies stereotype about small town theaters – that they are unnecessary and people will go to a multiplex if they can’t see a film in their home town. Help us prove them wrong. They are so not nice. We need to teach them some manners!

     Can you believe my next column will be about Thanksgiving and how my sister and I looked through about a zillion new recipes and then made everything Mamma did?

     See you at the Dietrich.