Random Thoughts with Will

     When it comes to board games, Chutes & Ladders may not be quite as iconic as Candy Land or Monopoly or have as funny of a name as Don't Wake Daddy, it is a board game that just about every child has played at one point or another. With Chutes & Ladders, getting to the top to win the game is often filled with the highs of moving on up and the lows of moving on down. Landing on the right square can put one at the top in an instant. Conversely, one can work one's way all the way up to the top and land on the wrong square with a chute that sends one back to the bottom. At the end of the game though, each player is further along than when they started, even if they didn't win.      Over the course of this year, I've found that life and improvement are more like Chutes & Ladders (or most children's board games) than I realized. With life, we can be taking steps in the right direction and feel like we're growing...only for us to hit a "chute...

     When you watch enough Disney movies, you'll notice that most inevitably feature a "villain song". Sometimes this song is more lighthearted, like when Le Fou sings "Gaston" to cheer up his friend. Other songs are about the villain deceiving the protagonist, like Ursula's "Poor, Unfortunate, Souls", Kaa's "Trust in Me", or Mother Gothel's "Mother Knows Best". Come to think of it, there's even the rather dark and disturbing song "Hellfire" sung by Frollo which is...well, different. Then, of course, there's the epitome of Disney villain songs (in my opinion), one that cuts to the chase and explain the villain's plot: "Be Prepared" from The Lion King. In "Be Prepared", Scar outlines his plan to kill Mufasa and Simba to the hyenas and enlists their help. As the song suggests, he's telling them to be prepared for what's to come: a coup that will make him king.      While ...

     In a classic early season episode of Arthur , Arthur and his fellow classmates partake in "TV Free Week," agreeing to go a week without watching television. Over the course of the week, Arthur, his family, and his best friend Buster find it really hard to go the week without watching any television (I suppose if this episode were made today it would be about going a week without using social media or a streaming service, but I digress). As Arthur and Buster are on the final night of TV Free Week, they both happen to find themselves outside a friend's house so that they can watch a TV movie special. Just as Buster approaches the doorsteps and is ready to knock, Arthur realizes how close he and Buster - not to their friend's house, but to going a whole week without watching TV. They resolve to stay true to their pledge and go the park instead.      Arthur and Buster found that it was really hard to go a week without TV, but found it gratifying that the...