Ticket for one, please.

Yesterday I committed a social blunder.

and it wasn't the first time.

I, Elishia Lynne Hazelton, boldly went to the movies, alone. and it was wonderful.

Let the shocked intake of breath cease.

ok. done?

Before you pass judgment and automatically call me "LAME" let me explain.

 

I worked at a movie theater in High School. It was fun, I met exciting people, plus I got to see movies for free while eating free popcorn and pop. While working in "box" ( code name for Box Office) I would pity those who were obviously buying a ticket for one. Yes. I judged them. Do I regret it? No, because it made me question...

" Can I do it? Do I have the confidence to walk into theater, squeeze into an empty seat that is sandwiched between two hand holding couples?"

It took me years to answer this question.

I was 19,  I had just moved to Kansas City, on my own. Even though I was in a new relationship with Mr. Danny Nguyen, I hardly knew a single soul. On a Friday night after Danny went out with his friends, ( hey he was 22, I was still too young to party at the clubs, so don't blame him for this adventure!) I wanted to watch "Little Miss Sunshine", great movie btw. I contemplated my strategy for hours. I mean HOURS.

Should I show up 5 minutes before the movie? Should I get a snack? God what if I run into someone? Do I lie and say I was on a date and he was in the bathroom? What if people notice that I'm alone, I would notice if some poor sap was by herself, at the movies. On a Friday night.

Then I mentally slapped myself. "Man-up, Elishia!"

So, I nervously walked up to the ticket counter, stood in line by my lonesome, and waited for people to pass judgment. and while I was in line it dawned on me, who cares? Then I was pissed.

It astonished me how much society has molded us into creatures full of anxiety to be alone in a social setting.

How dare society make me feel in-superior because I chose to have a life on a Friday night that didn't involve a TV dinner and whatever was on TV.

I was 19 years old, living on my own. I constantly told my parents how independent I was, but don't have the confidence to watch a movie by myself? Puh-lease. I am fixing this problem.

I confidently bought my ticket.

I  entered the PACKED theater, scanned for an empty seat. Now I'm not going to lie, I searched for a seat next to an older couple...

and Bingo! I found it. 

I sat down, pulled out my store bought treats ( hey the concessions stands are stupid expensive. 6.00 for small popcorn? no thank you.) and enjoyed the movie.

I left that theater with a smile on my face. Not because the movie was good, but because I did it. I got over the social stigma of going to movies by yourself

I felt Confident.

I felt Inspired.

I felt Awakened.

I felt Free.

I gave caution to the wind, and it was invigorating. I did it for myself, and I honestly feel like it changed my outlook on life. I'm not afraid of doing things alone. It made me less dependent on others and that itself is an award in my eyes.

I constantly recommend people to go see a movie by themselves, do they give me the side eye? Yup they sure do. But I guarantee you will come out of that theater a different person.

So after going to the movies alone over the years, I have a few tips!

• Buy the tickets online. It's easy, plus you can avoid being embarrassed if the ticket teller yells " ONLY ONE TICKET" which, btw, he did not yell.. it was in your head. stop being paranoid!
• If you live in the KC area, many theaters now allow you to reserve your seat online! So you can walk into the theater 10 min. late, miss the lights and previews and walk directly to your seat and no one will notice.
• If your theater doesn't offer reserve seating, arrive 5 minuets or less before the previews.
• Get a snack. It will give you feel more at ease.
• Pick a movie you will love! You don't want to sit there bored, I've done this and it's no fun.
• Sit back and relax, no one cares that you are alone, maybe you are inspiring someone to put themselves out there!

So with my half day off from work, and Danny still stuck at his job,what movie did I watch by myself?

The Adjustment Bureau

Synopsis by Universal Theaters

Do we control our destiny, or do unseen forces manipulate us? Matt Damon stars in the thriller The Adjustment Bureau as a man who glimpses the future Fate has planned for him and realizes he wants something else. To get it, he must pursue the only woman he's ever loved across, under and through the streets of modern-day New York. On the brink of winning a seat in the U.S. Senate, ambitious politician David Norris (Damon) meets beautiful contemporary ballet dancer Elise Sellas (Emily Blunt)-a woman like none he's ever known. But just as he realizes he's falling for her, mysterious men conspire to keep the two apart. David learns he is up against the agents of Fate itself-the men of The Adjustment Bureau-who will do everything in their considerable power to prevent David and Elise from being together. In the face of overwhelming odds, he must either let her go and accept a predetermined path

My review. 

Matt Damon started out great. I love his character. He's a young Politician with a rough and tumble past. Everyone loves him, but his past catches up with him and while the votes are coming in,  it is obvious he is losing, so he prepares to make his bowing out speech. In the privacy of the mens restroom he discovers Elise. After the plot is laid out, and you start to fall in love with the characters and the story, it unfortunately takes a wrong and silly turn. The Adjustment Bureau, the men in hats. You see them open doors into different parts of the cities, in order to step in and make sure people are on the right and predestined path. They try and convince Damon's Character that not matter what, their plan will never fail and there is nothing he can do about it. But how they execute this in the movie is what frustrated me. You would think that men who essentially work for "god" would have a stronger ability to keep people in line . Open doors with a magic hat? Eh. It made the story comical. But with that aside, I really did feel the love between Damon and Blunt. I wanted them to win and change their fate.

Blunt was fantastic. Her emotions rang true to how anyone feel in the situation. She was frustrated, I was frustrated- she was sad, I was sad. It was refreshing. Matt Damon's character could have been developed a little more. Seeing into his past a bit more would have helped tremendously in figuring out why he needed the public attention.

So all in all, am I going to tell you to rush and watch the movie? No. But when it comes out on DVD, rent it.