Fireworks and Twilight

I experienced my own little miracle this week: my computer has recovered! My amazing superfriend Wyndie not only got me back online, but she also located all my documents and photographs!

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When those documents suddenly reappeared, it was like fireworks began exploding joyfully in the air around me (cue the inspiring music)!

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There are still issues to be worked out, like accessing some of the music we'd downloaded, but I'll happily deal with those minor details!

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I did lose emails I had saved as well as all my email contacts, so I hope you'll each send me an email soon so I can get your addresses back into my contact list. I feel so cut off from the world!

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A word to the wise: NEVER click on "PC Restore (F10)". It is NOT the same thing as the ever useful "System Restore"! And remember, a flash drive can be your best friend. Back it up!

Moving on... Last night Sarah, Jacob, Dylan, and I went to the opening night of the movie Twilight, based on the first book of the series by Stephanie Meyer. There were more than a dozen people in our party, including a slew of nieces and nephews. The theater was packed, mostly with female fans of the book's romance between teen Bella and her vampire love, Edward.

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After hearing the buzz, I bought the first book a few months ago to check it out. It quickly disappeared into Sarah's room, where she devoured it before I even cracked the first page. By the time I finished the first book, she had read all 4 books: Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, and Breaking Dawn. She thought it was terribly romantic.

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I read the entire series, and as a fan of fantasy and science fiction tales I found the books to be enjoyable. However, I have issues that will surely make me unpopular with twi-hard fans.

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The media has gone on about how Bella and Edward's romance is a return to old-fashioned values, and how LDS concepts are found in the books, but I just can't ascribe these attributes to the story. In fact, if I hadn't already known, I would never have guessed the author was LDS--and that's not a criticism!

It seems to me that Bella's feelings for Edward are more like an unhealthy obsession than true love. He's a drug she can't live without, an addiction.

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Her friendship with Jacob is open and equal, a better basis for real love. Okay, so he becomes a werewolf, but that doesn't change the fact that he encourages her to be herself. She feels good about herself when they're together.

In the first books, I was also disturbed by how controlling Edward was in the relationship. He controlled Bella physically and emotionally, a bad thing to link with love in the minds of young girls. As a high school teacher, I see this dynamic in too many teen couples, this belief that control is a way to demonstrate love.

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Thankfully, by the end of book 3 Edward learns to respect Bella's right to choose for herself and take her own risks.

As for Edward and Bella's sexual restraint, Edward's willpower was inspired by fear of losing control and killing Bella, not respect for her honor. Bella herself had no qualms about consumating their love; only Edward's stronger will stopped her. The omnipresent sensuality was a bit too direct for a series targeting young girls.

Like the book, the movie contains melodramatic scenes of smoldering glances, stuttering declarations, and the torrid emotionality of forbidden love. Yet I feel the romance is not too heavy-handed, the sensuality is downplayed, and Edward actually takes pains to refrain from controlling Bella. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked the movie version of Twilight.

The movie remains faithful to the spirit of the book while presenting a more balanced tale. Bella's obsession with Edward is still central to the story, but there is plenty of humor and action for non-fans who want to see a good vampire flick.

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In fact, both my sons enjoyed the film more than my daughter! She liked it, but the boys loved it. They insisted, "Mom, we have to buy it when it comes out on DVD!"

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And hey, ladies, let's just face the facts: Jacob Black is way hotter than Edward Cullen! Pure animal magnetism!