A Few Ways in Which the FILM "Tommy Boy" Has Influenced my Life

That's right, I called it a film, which I know Kacy will balk at--see her blog about how much she hates it when people say the word film instead of movie--but in the case of Tommy Boy, I have to use that word. It really is a masterpiece.



For one thing, it has influenced me to the point that every time I struggle with something (opening a jar, getting the last corner of the sheet to fit on the bed, etc.) I make Tommy-esque noises--a grunting "da," or a "dee,"and so forth. I try to scrunch my face up like Chris Farley, too. It's just a little thing I do every day to remind myself of the film.



Also, every time I hurt myself, my automatic response is " ow, son of a--that's gonna leave a mark!" I have tried to rid myself of the bad habit of saying "son of a" (I never swear, of course) because now Holden says it. One time he said it in front of another adult, who was totally shocked. Gotta stop that.



In addition, I like to tell people to "let it go" in that breathless way that Tommy tells Richard when he finds out about the toupee.



I also like to say things like this: "You've pinpointed the smell. Step two is washing it off."



One time when I took Math 97 at BYU I got a D+ on an assignment and I went around bragging: "They give out a lot more D's than D+'s, I'll tell you what. I'm just saying, it's not a grade they like to give out."



Then this other time, my friend Robyn and I made a video called "How to Pass the GMAT" for my bro-in-law. It was a parody of Tommy Boy and I actually got to play Tommy. I did "fat guy in little coat," the "chicken wing" scene, and the "is there a mark on my face? It really hurts" bit. I wore sweats stuffed with pillows--the uniform for playing people like Tommy Calahan and Tonya Harding's bodyguard, Broc, in reinactments.



And then, from watching the movie over and over again, I became so connected to Chris Farley (cosmically speaking) that I actually knew that he was going to die. My mom can attest: we were watching Xtra! one night and they did a story about Chris Farley and Marlon Brando eating their weight in pancakes at IHOP and I says to my mother, I says "Chris Farley should be careful. If he keeps this up, he may die." My prophecy was fulfilled weeks later (much to my sorrow, by the way).



On a professional level: every time I start to think about a lesson plan for my English 115 class, this is what goes through my mind: "It will be fine. I'll just get up there, throw a few peanuts at them, and it will be over before I know it."



I harmonize with "Eres Tu."



When something really horrible happens to me, I like to say "coulda done without that" like Tommy does when the park bench he's sitting on breaks.



I also try to say "if we're going to hit anything, my guess is it's gonna be a mountain" when I am on airplanes.



Clearly, I could go on and on, and for those of you who haven't seen this movie (or just don't remember every little detail like I do) sorry for the waste of your time. But I have to own the fact that Tommy Boy is now a part of my subconcious. It's an integral part of who I am. Let me put it this way: when Mike married me, he married a little bit of Tommy Boy, too.