As a kid, I loved the Disney animated movie of Alice. She was lost in the woods and being confused by all of the nonsense in her head. The Cheshire Cat, who proudly sits as a stuffed version on my hope chest, smiles at me with his knowing grin. I remember one morning when I was 18, I woke up nose to nose with the Cheshire Cat and I had a close-up view of those big yellow eyes. Much less to say, I woke up a bit freaked out opening my eyes to that, but it made me laugh after I woke up enough to realize what I was looking at. Somehow, he seems so wise, just sitting and grinning the days away.
Another part I love about the animated version of Alice is the Momeraths. Now anyone in my life worth their salt knows about me and my beloved momeraths. I'll never forget the first time I saw them...Alice was in Tulgey Wood lost because a broom headed and tailed dog had swept the path from in front and behind her. She sat crying on a bench singing, "I Give Myself Very Good Advice," but after she dried her tears, she saw this:
Don't step on the momeraths. Did you see what they did? They hopped out of the ground and led Alice back onto the path. After that, it took me a while but I realized I was one of those little guys, helping people get back onto the path again. I need to make myself a shirt that says, "I'm a Momerath." I just love those little guys and they inspired me to draw one.
Yep, and it's my logo for when I work as a graphic artist. I've got so many freehand drawings of these little cuties, from surfer 'raths, teen 'raths and femme 'raths on down. I've drawn so many unique 'raths that I find they're what I doodle when my hands are bored. I give each one character and movement and I love them all, because one day they just might team up and put ME back on the path.
Tonight, I was kind of late getting into WoW because, believe it or not, I was actually watching the Tim Burton version of Alice. It was the first time I saw it. Problem is, I came in half way, so I've still not seen the whole thing. So I'm waiting until Tuesday to take it in in its' entirety. But, I have to say my heart was stolen seeing the white queen's army being chess pieces versus the queen of hearts having her army of cards.
To hear the voice of Christopher Lee come out of the Jabberwock put my jaw on the ground, with Johnny Depp as the Mad Hatter and Alan Rickman's voice coming out of the caterpillar, it just blew me away. I was so tickled when I saw Tweedle's Dee and Dum along with the Bandersnatch and rest of the characters I adore so much. Crispin Glover (ooh is he a weird one) playing the Knave with his gangly body was trippy to say the least. But there they all were, beautiful, odd and funny, each not making a lick of sense in the nonsensical world that I love about Alice.
When I finally got into WoW, I made my apologies for being late by saying, "Sorry, got caught up by a deck of cards, some chess pieces and a bandersnatch." Watching Rel run in front of me in her sometimes nonsensical fantasy world really did make me feel like I had tumbled down the rabbit hole. How I do love the world that Lewis Carroll created in my head...
So, while I was raiding, I took some time to grab a tune to enjoy that seems to fit me to a "T." So while I sat working on the Heroic Lich King fight in 10-man, I got to enjoy some Avril Lavigne...
Here, have a listen...
`Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe;
All mimsy were the borogoves,
And the mome raths outgrabe.
Big smile all, just like the Cheshire Cat...it's a big world...and though it may be filled with nonsense at times...
It's up to all of us to find the path, get on it and live.
Odd that Disney should cast them as guides, as Lewis Carroll described the mome raths as being "lost"
ReplyDelete"`And then "mome raths"?' said Alice. `I'm afraid I'm giving you a great deal of trouble.'
`Well, a "rath" is a sort of green pig: but "mome" I'm not certain about. I think it's short for "from home" -- meaning that they'd lost their way, you know.'"