Am I A Bad Influence...?

I have come to the conclusion that I may be a bad influence. My mother used to say, "We are all born with a little larceny in us..." but I think I have more than a little. The other day I took the Munchkins to see "Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian". I had taken the Munchkins for Japanese sushi first, at their favorite sushi restaurant, and I desperately wanted a latte. However, if I had stopped for one, we would have been late for the movie, so I decided to buy one to take to the movie with me. The young man taking the tickets at the movie theatre was not much older than Phinnaeus, and he informed me, in no uncertain terms, that "No outside food or drink was allowed in the theatre." I looked around and people were hauling in mega-sized buckets of popcorn, soft drinks, chocolate bars, ice cream, and there was I -- with my teeny tiny little latte. Anyway, the young man chased me out to the lobby to finish drinking my latte, just as the movie was about to start. Phinnaeus, Marigold and I sat in the lobby, and then I had a brain wave. I looked at my drink, I looked at my tote bag, et voila! problem solved. My latte fit very nicely into my tote bag, the three of us strolled into the already darkened theatre, we sat down, and I enjoyed my latte in leisure. Phinnaeus and Marigold didn't say a word, although they did look at me with a twinkle in their eyes. I hope I was not a bad influence on them.

The Munchkins enjoyed "Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian". I thought it was even better than the first one; the special effects were wonderful. The famous statue "The Ballerina" by Degas came to life and danced through the museum. Jeff Koons' balloon puppy bounced and pranced through the halls; the people in Edward Hopper's painting, "Nighthawks" came to life. I loved it. Hank Azaria was wonderful as Egyptian pharaoh Kahmunrah -- complete with a lisp. But if you're looking for high drama, this isn't it. It's a kids' show, and kids love it. The Munchkins were even asking me about some of the art work, which clearly was in the movie to educate children. It was an interesting concept.

I enjoyed the movie -- and my latte -- very much. Have I led the Munchkins down the path to ruin by smuggling a latte into the movie? Oh, gosh, I hope not. When I was a little girl, my parents and I used to go to Beacon Hill Park in Victoria. It was against the law to pick any of the flowers there. My mother used to get my father and me to cause a distraction, while she took out a small pair of scissors and took a cutting of some unusual plant she saw. When we got home, she would write to the gardeners at the park and ask what it was, and how should she grow it. She always received a wonderful letter back from them. She had a little larceny in her, and I suppose that is how I became such a hardened criminal.