Sartre was WRONG
Hell is the Island of Sodor. On DVD or On Demand (Myles' preference if it is available.)
Please don't get me wrong, I like Myles' recent obsession with his Brio-type trains. He can play fairly independently and imaginitively with a train set and a tunnel. It started with our frequent stops to Barnes and Nobles where they usually have a Thomas Tank Engine DELUXE setup for the kids to abuse gratis. Myles like playing with the trains, even just after his first birthday, but the brand identification didn't register with him at all. When it came time to provide him his own trains, we actually started out with the cheapy set from IKEA, and then augmented with the Brand accessories as needed. This has included some Thomas the Tank Engine characters from Crispian's own collection, but, again, they didn't really register to him as anymore special than the other faceless trains. Until.....
About two weeks ago we were at Kate's and Myles was unable to sleep or be calmed down at 2 am and I asked him as I scrolled through the On Demand children's shows if he wanted to see a train video. I really didn't feel like committing to a whole hour of Sesame Street, and I had already seen the four available episodes too many times to count.
"Trains?" he asked, getting calmer and a little perkier.
"Oh yes, Thomas the Tank Engine." I said, not knowing what lie ahead.
It only took one 30 minute session with the "Thomas Trains." It's the new crack. We watch these every day, sometimes twice a day. Sometimes at 2 am. We have watched this so much I almost wrote a blog entry last week that was Totally Inspired--when Sir Topham Hatt's hat was blown off his head, it was soooo like when Luke removed Darth Vaders' helmet---until I realized that I was sleep deprived and whacked out of my head. I mean, that is the type of parallel normally found by STONERS!
So not only is Myles completely hooked into this show, he knows all the Really Useful Engines. He recites their names like a Litany of the Saints, even when we aren't even watching the programme. Out of the blue sometimes I'll hear, "Thomas.....James...Henry.....Gordon.......Percy......Toby......Thomas....."
Last week in a coffee shop in Clarion, we met a little boy named Toby. Wouldn't you know Myles' eyes lit up and he went into reciting the names of all the trains he could remember.
Myles has the typical lazy tongue of toddlerhood. He is as inarticulate as he can get away with provided he gets what he wants. These trains defy that, though. The most clearly and correctly pronounced words are part of the Great Litany of Really Useful Engines.
Today, as Myles reward for getting his shots, I told him he could have whatever he wanted. He's not even 2 and he said, "Percy!" So now he has Thomas and Percy. He's working his way toward owning that litany.
I don't care if the original books were written by a minister. So what? The current tv incarnation is the work of You Know Who. I mean, these are trains that talk without moving their lips, and express everything through their beady eyes. If THAT isn't conjuring I don't know what is. And what else but Satanic ritual would get British children to sing in annoying unison?
But more fun than that is the extremely detailed Wikipedia entry for the TV series, which includes spoiler alerts and supposed future plot details for limited-use characters (like Big City Engine)
Please don't get me wrong, I like Myles' recent obsession with his Brio-type trains. He can play fairly independently and imaginitively with a train set and a tunnel. It started with our frequent stops to Barnes and Nobles where they usually have a Thomas Tank Engine DELUXE setup for the kids to abuse gratis. Myles like playing with the trains, even just after his first birthday, but the brand identification didn't register with him at all. When it came time to provide him his own trains, we actually started out with the cheapy set from IKEA, and then augmented with the Brand accessories as needed. This has included some Thomas the Tank Engine characters from Crispian's own collection, but, again, they didn't really register to him as anymore special than the other faceless trains. Until.....
About two weeks ago we were at Kate's and Myles was unable to sleep or be calmed down at 2 am and I asked him as I scrolled through the On Demand children's shows if he wanted to see a train video. I really didn't feel like committing to a whole hour of Sesame Street, and I had already seen the four available episodes too many times to count.
"Trains?" he asked, getting calmer and a little perkier.
"Oh yes, Thomas the Tank Engine." I said, not knowing what lie ahead.
It only took one 30 minute session with the "Thomas Trains." It's the new crack. We watch these every day, sometimes twice a day. Sometimes at 2 am. We have watched this so much I almost wrote a blog entry last week that was Totally Inspired--when Sir Topham Hatt's hat was blown off his head, it was soooo like when Luke removed Darth Vaders' helmet---until I realized that I was sleep deprived and whacked out of my head. I mean, that is the type of parallel normally found by STONERS!
So not only is Myles completely hooked into this show, he knows all the Really Useful Engines. He recites their names like a Litany of the Saints, even when we aren't even watching the programme. Out of the blue sometimes I'll hear, "Thomas.....James...Henry.....Gordon.......Percy......Toby......Thomas....."
Last week in a coffee shop in Clarion, we met a little boy named Toby. Wouldn't you know Myles' eyes lit up and he went into reciting the names of all the trains he could remember.
Myles has the typical lazy tongue of toddlerhood. He is as inarticulate as he can get away with provided he gets what he wants. These trains defy that, though. The most clearly and correctly pronounced words are part of the Great Litany of Really Useful Engines.
Today, as Myles reward for getting his shots, I told him he could have whatever he wanted. He's not even 2 and he said, "Percy!" So now he has Thomas and Percy. He's working his way toward owning that litany.
I don't care if the original books were written by a minister. So what? The current tv incarnation is the work of You Know Who. I mean, these are trains that talk without moving their lips, and express everything through their beady eyes. If THAT isn't conjuring I don't know what is. And what else but Satanic ritual would get British children to sing in annoying unison?
But more fun than that is the extremely detailed Wikipedia entry for the TV series, which includes spoiler alerts and supposed future plot details for limited-use characters (like Big City Engine)
Comments