Kitchen Table Blogs
Name: Jeanne Wieland
Kids: daughter, age 13; son, age 10
Works: editor, MilwaukeeMoms.com
Favorite part about being a mom: Built up my tolerance for bodily fluids of all sorts.
Least favorite part about being a mom: Constantly telling my kids to turn off the TV.
Famous for: Not caring who started it.
When my son was little he had a brief interest in Thomas the Tank Engine. It must have fallen around Christmas time, probably around age 3, I'm guessing, because I remember buying him this battery-operated Thomas train about the size of a shoebox that made a lot of noise and was generally a horrible toy.
This is in direct contrast to Thomas' other image, which, if you've never had kids who are into Thomas, is this: He's a really useful engine. That's not my spin on things; they actually refer to him that way.
Because my son's interest in all things Thomas was short, I think we only checked out a few videos of the show from the library. But even with that limited exposure, I remember that Thomas' strong suit was his usefulness.
Other characters on the show had more obvious lead characteristics: Percy, as I recall, was kind of naive; James, a little vain; and Diesel 10 was the bad guy. But Thomas, while also being a little naive himself and maybe over-reaching, was mostly known for being useful.
I remember thinking at the time that a concept like "useful" could easily be lost on the pre-kindergarten set. What do you know of "useful" at age 2 or 3? I watched some of these shows with my son and found the whole thing mind-numbingly dull.
Strange thing, then, today to stumble upon news of an upcoming event called "All Aboard! Day Out with Thomas," which is being held at the National Railroad Museum in Green Bay June 10-14.
The first thing that popped into my mind: He's a really useful engine.
And then I remembered that soothing voice from the videos that told the stories and the simplicity of the stories and the characters. A bad train had a perpetual frown; a friendly train was all smiles. Thomas and his metal buddies definitely got themselves in a lot of trouble at times, but they always worked it out and the benevolent Sir Topham Hatt, director of the railway, was always there to handle the problems in a kind way.
Odd -- but I felt a little nostalgia for the Thomas show and its plodding storylines. I almost wish I had one of those Thomas videos at home to just listen to while I make dinner tonight. In hindsight, the Thomas stories hold up nicely when pitted against some of the stuff that passes as TV shows for kids today. (Ever watch "The Suite Life of Zack and Cody"? Oh, brother. Not even remotely useful.)
I still think "useful" is an unusual way to refer to a child's storybook character, but you know what? It really does work for Thomas.
And I bet a lot of little kids are going to be really happy to see that useful engine next week in Green Bay.
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