Practically Perfect in Every Way

For the last few days I've been listening to my Mary Poppins soundtrack at work and it's been amazing. I'm ashamed to say I got this CD as a gift a few years ago and I honestly never listened to it until I began my Julie Andrews phase a few months ago. As it turns out, it's fantastic.

It's this 2-disc special edition with all kinds of extras, and I've especially been enjoying the instrumental tracks that are included. I have to say, this is some of the best movie music ever. Yes, the songs are kind of for kids, but really, they're brilliant. The music itself is excellent and the lyrics are clever. I love that I can listen to it as an adult and find humor in things that went completely over my head when I was a child. And it's nice when Julie Andrews reminds me, "In every job that must be done, there is an element of fun" while I slave away in my cubicle (kind of).

The only issue with listening to it at work is I am sometimes overcome with an uncontrollable urge to burst out into song. How can you not want to sing Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious? And sometimes I fall asleep during Stay Awake. Also, I cry sometimes during Feed the Birds. Especially during the instrumental version when Mr. Banks gets fired. It's rough.

Since I'm on the subject, here are some of my favorite childhood memories of Mary Poppins:

- I don't remember ever wondering how they did the special effects. Mary flying and pulling ridiculously large items out of her carpet bag seemed perfectly possible to me, I guess. The only thing I was ever baffled by was when Dick Van Dyke stretched his pants out so he could dance like a penguin. How were is pants normal one minute, and huge the next? I was intrigued. The sad thing is, this is one of the few things in the movie that isn't a special effect in any way.

- It really creeped me out when Mary's reflection in the mirror sings back to her. And I had no idea what "cheeky" meant.

- I thought the mother was Miss America. The first time you see her, she's wearing her "Votes for Women" sash, and at the time I apparently couldn't read and the only other person I knew who wore such a sash was Miss America. I obviously did not take into account the fact that she was 1.) Married, and 2.) not in America.