Hi! I’m Ben But You Can Call Me Benny!

Yes, we are (but not surprisingly) late to the “Lego Movie” party.

I just saw it two weeks at the Cinemark (it’s the cheapie movies, lest you be questioning my staunch stance on how wasteful movie theaters are). 

This was the first time viewing for me. My 11yo saw it when it first came out (at a friend’s birthday party) and my 13yo had not experienced it until 2 weeks either.

And then it came out on DVD last week.

And my parents bought it. For us. Them. Whoever may want to watch it.

I have seen it (or at least heard it in the background) approximately 537 times since then. I have most of it memorized. My 11yo has all of it memorized.

That may be slightly exaggerated. 

Slightly.

Anyway…I thought it was a cute little film. I could appreciate the Lego humor because I was very-much a girl who grew up playing with Legos (you know…when you actually had to use your imagination to build something and not simply follow directions in a booklet…which has its own place and don’t anyone send me some hate mail saying that I devalued Legos.)

Now, I will confess that as I got older, there were Legos sets available with instructions. I remember clearly getting the King’s Castle (#6080) when I was in fifth grade and I thought it was the coolest thing.

Don't judge.

I took that photos from this blog which gives many views of this same set…should you be so inspired/interested/bored and care to take a gander.

Anyway…I liked Legos. I still like Legos. My 13yo….never been too much into Legos.

My 11yo, on the other hand…very much so. He has all my childhood Legos (and for the time, I actually had a lot…nothing compared to his current haul, but still.)

And now we have Legos coming out our ears. And yet we continue to buy more.

And by “we” I mean “he”…he has his own money and that’s what it’s for: discretionary spending. So if some fun event comes up and he has spent all his money on Legos, well then so be it; he does not go to said fun event.

But I digress. This is not a diatribe on how to teach my children to spend their money wisely and save even more wisely. It is about Legos.

Kind of.

One of the things I found most amusing in The Lego Movie was the character Benny.

You know Benny…the 1980-something Space Guy. And he is funny to me for a reason you can surely guess: I had a Benny.

Mine was not blue…I believe he was red (they also came in red or white, as I recall…and Google confirms it. If it’s on the Internet, it must be true.)

And since my 11yo has my Legos, hence…he has my Benny.

At least he SHOULD have my Benny.

And today, a friend of his was over. They have been playing Legos for the past 3 hours.

They did take a break to eat a quick lunch. And (of course, this goes without saying but I shall state it anyway in my quest for thoroughness) that they watched a bit of The Lego Movie while they ate.

Duh.

But they have been amused and entertained and I have not heard a cross word between them. I love Legos. 

Have I mentioned that?

And because they are so into The Lego Movie, they were attempting to re-create some of the scenes.

Enter stage right: Benny, the 1980-something Space Guy.

I happened to wander into my son’s room as the search was underway. I could tell they were voraciously searching for something, so (because I’m kind of nosy like that) I asked

Me: What are you guys looking for?!?

Friend: We’re looking for Benny, that old Space Guy.

Me: Ummm did you just say he’s “old”?

Friend: Yeah, that old Space Guy.

Me: Surely you did not mean “old” because he is actually younger than some individuals who live in this house. And I know you wouldn’t be calling anyone who lives in this house “old,” would you?

Friend: Umm, no I didn’t say “old”.

Me: Yeah, I didn’t think so. A 1980-something is NOT old.

Friend: No, I didn’t say “old”.

It’s this particular friend’s first time over...I’m not for sure that he’ll be invited back.

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