|
|
February 4th, 2012 Lately I’ve had this idea, in the light of so many books coming out as movies, that I would read the books, then go see the movies. It all started with The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. That was by far my most favorite book I ever read. I was a little nervous to go see the movie, because a few years ago I tried the same thing with the Twilight series and ran into some horrible disappointments when I went to see the movies. Dragon did not disappoint me. The movie was well representative of the book and Mara Rooney was portrayed exactly as Lisbeth in the book.
Last week I read Janet Evanovich’s One For The Money. I fell in love with Evanovich’s character, Stephanie Plumb. I wanted to be her. She was so vulnerable, running around after bad guys in black spandex shorts, tee shirt and tennis shoes. She had no money, no food, no phone and no car. She was as inept as my daughters would be if I gave them a gun and sent them out to shanghai drug dealers. In the book, Stephanie was no more a vigilante or a Marge Helgenberger than one of my daughters would be. The movie Stephanie? Highly disappointing. They dressed up Katherine Heigel in tight jeans, high leather boots, tank top and leather jacket. She appeared as a seasoned cop straight off the set of CSI. Evanovich’s Stephanie couldn’t possibly afford that outfit or become an expert marksman or lock picker in the short week the story takes place within. It was so sad to see such an imperfectly perfect character completely pushed aside for one that is polished, sleek and tough.
The movie Stephanie made the film very commonplace and a bit boring. Evanvovich’s Stephanie was completely lost in the screenplay.
Upon leaving the theater I was telling my husband maybe it’s not good to read the book first. By the time we got home I decided no, it’s still best to read the book first, then see the movie. Right now I’m reading Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, and then plan to see the movie. So far, I don’t even see how they are going to make a movie out of this book. I tend to think it’s going to be one where the character is not changed as much, but the story will be. This question seems a little similar to the chicken/egg conundrum. In any case, I think I’ll need to do quite a few more book/movie movie/book combinations before I decide which way is better.
And so, as another day goes by, the whole movie thing tonight was really to keep my husband’s mind off the Super Bowl tomorrow and his heart somewhat calm, (lol), and I have written. Go Pats!
February 3rd, 2012 Today was travel day. I spent the afternoon driving to NY – Giant Country – leaving Patriot Place to go home and watch the Super Bowl with my husband and dad. My dad is a staunch Giant fan, and my husband and I couldn’t be more Patriot if you handed us a musket. Some of you might ask why I am doing this. After all, being a Pats fan in New England this weekend just adds to the hype. The newspapers, special programs on WBZ both Friday night and Saturday, and not to mention the party atmosphere in the local Stop N Shop should’ve been enough to hold such die hard fans in town, but tonight, here we sit right smack in the middle of G-Men nation.
Our reason? My dad. Losing mom so suddenly over a year ago put precedence on what is important in life. Tonight when I drove in the driveway there was my dad in the window with the biggest smile on his face. That right there told me suffering it out in the grocery store here tomorrow is well worth it. We are making great food, my brother is coming over (yes, another staunch Giant fan – at least the teams are even) and my dad is so proud of his new tv we all got him for Xmas, that this just might be the most fun Super Bowl ever.
I guess you could say today I’m practicing Super Gratitude for this time with family, and most especially my dad. We never know how long we have to enjoy those that mean the most to us, so we must make the most of the time we have now.
And so, as another day goes by, nothing like being Patriots in the land of the Giants, and ….I have written.
This is what greeted my husband here in NY at work this morning: (they stole his Patriot hoodie after he got to work)
Photo dedicated to my friend Stacey! 🙂 (yes, another staunch Giant fan!)
February 2nd, 2012 I had a perfectly wonderful blog written in my head for today about my philosophy of life and people. Then I sat down to watch The Talk. Since the show changed two of the hosts this season I have been so unhappy with it that I couldn’t even write about it yet. I sit here and keep trying, after five months, to “give it another chance”. Today sealed the deal. Cheryl Underwood just makes a joke out of everything and never gives an honest opinion of anything. On the other hand, Aisha Tyler is so overly critical and cynical on so many topics that it’s hard to learn from and respect her opinions.
Today Julie Chen (and we’ll save discussing her hand in this for another day), read an email Giselle, Tom Brady’s wife, wrote to her close friends and family asking for prayer for Tom’s team to win the Super Bowl this Sunday. She remarked that he and his team worked so hard to get where they are that she would ask for prayer and positive energy be sent their way. Immediately Tyler went off on “Oh please God put aside all the hunger and war and terror and babies dying in the world, and have my husband’s team win the football game!” Her criticism was that Giselle and Tom are so well off, lead charmed lives, and how dare they pray for something like winning a football game.
I’m sorry, but no one, and I mean no one, has the right to criticize in any way what another human being prays for. The life they lead and the money they have does not preclude them from loving each other and praying, out of that love, for things that are important in each other’s lives and careers. Also how presumptuous of Tyler to think she can vocalize what is important to God. The mere fact that she thinks God is not omnipotent enough to have to prioritize the things he cares about and blesses in our lives leads me to believe she doesn’t have an intimate relationship with God.
The Super Bowl is the most important event in the lives of Tom and Giselle this weekend and they have every right to ask for prayer for important events in their lives just as much as you and I do. The money we make and the state of the life we live does not dictate the prayers we are allowed and not allowed to pray.
In my earlier Tim Tebow blog, where a Boston clergyman basically said the same thing about Tim, I alluded to Mrs. O on The Talk agreeing with me if the topic were brought to the table. Now, here we are three weeks later, and the very same topic did make it to the table. Today Kelly Osbourne was sitting in for her mother, and she didn’t disappoint me. She told how she once prayed for a Coach bag and just the fact that Giselle even seriously prays is a great thing. She told how she prays for insignificant everyday things that are only important to her, the point being, she prays and has faith God works in everyone’s life. Kudos Kelly.
It’s sad that there are people that actually are so far away from God that they think the tiny pieces of our lives are too insignificant to bother Him about, and the only things we should pray about are the big global problems. Tyler was not being mean. She just means she’d feel guilty bothering God about a trivial football game as opposed to world peace. Sadly, she misses the point.
It’s not about WHAT we pray for. It’s about what the focus of our prayers mean in our hearts and in our personal lives. That’s what God cares about. He cares that we come to Him with the things that touch our souls, regardless of our status in society. He uses whatever is important to us to grow and change who we are and to bring us closer to Him.
If anything, I hope people walk away from that show today questioning their own intimacy with their Higher Power. Thinking, “Can I really enlist God to help me balance my checkbook? I mean, He’s gotta be busy with world peace and all…does He really want to hear about my dented fender, sick cat, and broken washing machine? Shouldn’t He focus on curing cancer and saving the economy?”
And so, as another day goes by, just had to get that off my chest, feel much better now, and….I have written.
February 1st, 2012 February is the traditional month of love, as if the tv commercials and store displays would ever let us forget this. I got hit over the head with the message while doing valentine shopping today. I’ve had my share of pink and red hearts – enough to last all month long. During my browsing I came to see that LOVE is a word that can be written and seen everywhere – and I mean EVERYWHERE.
Tired from my browsing, sitting for afternoon coffee, I wondered how we’d see love if there wasn’t a word to describe it. Ah…looking up from my coffee some love was walking right in front of me. A young couple holding hands was ambling into the movie theater. Behind me a mother was carefully breaking up a donut to feed to her toddler. The “good morning” text I get faithfully at 7:30 am every morning from my husband is still sitting on my phone. Love is visible even without that four letter word.
But….what if we couldn’t even see love? Would it still exist? I found something a few minutes ago that answers my question. (Shared below) It assured me that the love I share with those across miles, without a written word, without FaceTime, exists. Heart to heart, spirit to spirit, connected, without the use of an iAnything, love speaks. Connected to another, with a strong thread, that at times might get twisted and tangled, but never breaks. Even in complete silence love can be heard.
Such is the enigma of love – it can be seen in the word, tasted in the donut, smelled in the coffee, touched hand to hand, and heard in the silence across miles.
And so, as another day goes by, love is in the air – and in the store windows, and on the coffee cups, and in the shape of the donuts, and hard to miss for the next 28 days – happy February, and …I have written.
January 31st, 2012 Resetting the Compass, the Final Day – Day 31
How fitting that on the final day of my compass resetting, Victoria Azarenka, who just this week became the number one tennis player in the world, was on Ellen. I had just written the title of today’s piece when I was drawn to the interview going on in front of me. Ellen asked her about almost quitting tennis last year. Azarenka said, “Yes. I was quitting and then I changed my perspective and everything turned around. It was a pivotal moment.” Then Ellen said, “Last year you were quitting tennis and here you are one year later, number one in the world. That goes to show it’s never too late to change direction.”
As I said, for me, today, how fitting. We must remember IT IS NEVER TOO LATE TO CHANGE DIRECTION. We can change the direction in our career, our thinking, our relationships, our health…and the list can go on…but the important thing to remember is it’s never too late. It’s never a done deal. We can always turn ourselves to face a new horizon. We have the power within us to move ourselves either physically to a new job or home or emotionally to a new perspective or spiritually toward a calling we have been resisting.
Yesterday I learned there is power in tackling the difficult things life hands us. When there is a mountain in front of us, a change of perspective, a slight compass adjustment, unleashes a power we may have not known we possessed, as Azarenka found out.
And so, as the last day of January goes by, dare to nudge the needle, look at things from a new angle, discover the power you harbor within, and …I have written.
January 30th, 2012 Resetting the Compass – Day 30
The last few days of resetting the compass for 2012 are slamming. (me, that is, with “life changing” wisdom) The latest gem that flew across my Twitter was:
“Never beg for that which you have the power to earn.”
I can’t walk around that one today. It is another splat in my path that there is no way around. Again, I must pick it up and take it with me in order to move on.
I would never want anything that I didn’t earn, but I never thought about considering whether or not I had the power to earn it. In a job or career I would never attempt to gain anything without earning it because that would negate the learning that would take place while doing the earning. Without having had the learning experience, the job would be a lot less fulfilling because I wouldn’t be as good at it as I know I would be had I done the work necessary to deserve it. In a relationship I would never beg for love and respect. That would be called manipulation. I would never want a person to be in my life because I begged them to love me or caused them to feel sorry for me. If someone doesn’t want to be in my life because I didn’t earn their love and respect by the content of my character, I don’t want them there either. I think God kinda feels the same way. He doesn’t want anyone accepting Him by being nagged or badgered. We all have free will and He wants us to come to Him of that free will, not be strong-armed into it. I think most would agree.
All of that said, it’s the part about realizing I have the power to earn certain things in life that intrigues me. The power to earn it. A power that resides within and I might not even be aware that I possess it. Sometimes this power is disguised as a difficult thing that I must do, but I never see it as “power”, only as something that is going to be very, very hard.
I think, in 2012, when difficult things cross my path, I’m going to readjust my attitude. I just may be missing unseen power that I possess to accomplish what might seem impossible.
And so, as another day goes by, February is a day away and I can’t wait to find out what the month of love has in store for me, and ….I have written.
January 29th, 2012 Resetting the Compass – Day 29
The other day I saw Katherine Heigl on daytime tv talking about her role in the movie One For The Money. She said she read Janet Evanovich’s book by the same name years ago and always envisioned herself in the role of the bounty hunter Stephanie Plum, and now finds herself playing the role on the big screen. Her enthusiasm for the part and the book prompted me to want to both read the book and see the movie.
Today I settled down with the book. The opening line is “There are some men who enter a woman’s life and screw it up forever.” Right there I was hooked. How could I not keep reading a book with an opening line like that?
I was immediately captivated by the character Stephanie Plum. Any woman who reads this book takes on the role of the rollicking bounty hunter. It’s impossible not to, so I can see how Heigl jumped at the chance to play the part in the movie. I decided to read the book first, then see the movie. I usually do it in this order because the book gives me much more to bring to the movie as I watch it.
I spent the better part of this afternoon and evening reading the book because I couldn’t put it down. Stephanie is very entertaining and engaging. The writing moves the reader along quickly and before you know it, you’re half way through the book. This story makes an excellent screen play and I have high hopes for the movie.
This is actually the first fiction book I’ve sat down with in 2012. My time has been spent in non-fiction and memoir and the stories have been deep and slow. I forgot how much fun it is to sit down with a “beach read”.
Fun. Something I’m going to try to have more of in 2012. I’ve taken a lot of things too seriously for so long now, the simple pleasure of fast moving fiction has been lost on me for some time. This year join me in resolving to have more fun. “Research shows that play is just as important as diet, hygiene or sleep and deprivation of it has negative health consequences,” says Stuart Brown, M.D. author of Play: How It Shapes the Brain, Opens the Imagination, and Invigorates the Soul. The concept sounds like my “artist dates” I take with myself on occasion.
And so, as another day goes by, I can’t think of a more pleasant or worthwhile resolution than making sure we all have more fun in our lives this year for our own health and well-being, and…I have written.
January 28th, 2012 Resetting the Compass in the last days – Day 28
There are things that go bump in the night and things that go Whomp! in my life. Some things that cross my path can be put away, left to niggle around the brain for another day. Once in while something is dropped splat in the middle of my path and there is no putting it away for a rainy day. The only way to move on is to pick it up and carry it with me.
Today I was glancing through yesterday’s paper and there it was, smack in the middle of my horoscope. Lovely Leo laid a real gem on me today:
“A new beginning is possible if you are willing to work with another person’s thought process.”
Subtle, simple, but there’s no skirting around this one. Remaining quiet and doing nothing when a problem arises is the hardest thing for me to do. For others, that is the easiest thing to do. Two people, different MO’s to deal with life’s issues. Sometimes I need to stop thinking I know it all, see the big picture, know all the reasons and the whys and the wherefores, and therefore it’s easy to clean this up and put it away, so let’s get going. Maybe I need to enter into the other person’s thought process. For once, do more good by putting “me” and my MO aside. “Work with the other person’s thought process.”
I took my new found wisdom on a beach walk. Rounding the horn of Scorton Creek, a most beautiful place where the marsh empties itself into the bay, an old familiar song came on my iPod. For over a year I directed the words of this song at another person. Suddenly, today, I let the words come at me from this other person. The perspective changed as dramatically as the shifting sands in front of me move about with each new tide.
Further along, walking down the beach turning for home, I began my usual beach glass search. Today I found two pieces. They still had some jaggedness to their edges and by rights I should have given them back to the sea for further polishing. I decided to pocket them for what they told me today – it’s okay to be unfinished and retain a few rough edges. I am a person who loves everything neatly tied up in packages. I love closure. I love everything set neatly in boxes and categorized on the shelves of my mind, no loose strings hanging anywhere. Yet, other people are perfectly happy in a haphazard closet. They don’t care about neat, organized rows. They like things unfinished, boxes open and overflowing. It gives them a sense of freedom, while it just gives me a headache. Maybe I need to let some boxes stay open for awhile. Let some strings hang. Really try to understand the sense of freedom in that. “Work with another person’s thought process.”
Do you think this is really what’s meant by “walking in another person’s shoes”? I always thought that meant just having some empathy and understanding for what others are going through. Maybe there is another, deeper, level to this old overused cliche.
And so, as another day goes by, I’m wrapping my arms around “A new beginning is possible if you are willing to work with another person’s thought process.” and carrying it home with me (it’s damn heavy and I keep having to stop and reposition it, but I’ll get it home one way or another), and…. I have written.
January 27th, 2012 Resetting the Compass – Day 27
On the Boston news this morning there was a report on a publication coming out that touted yoga as being very dangerous. There is also a book coming out soon that discusses the dangers and rewards of yoga. A few months ago at a blog meeting, someone at the table was asking me about Bikram yoga, while another person at the table was googling deaths in Bikram hot yoga and telling her tale of how she went once and passed out.
I sit, listen, read, and take all of this in. Now it’s time for me to speak my piece. My philosophy of life is “Life is a Bell Curve” and anything not done in moderation, according to the directions and guidelines, and taken to extremes is detrimental to one’s health and well-being.
That being said, let us consider yoga. I have to agree with the nay-sayers to a point. There are many different types of yoga out there and hundreds of studios. With the yoga craze crossing the country, more and more people are entering into the practice. The increased numbers alone will increase the number of yoga related injuries, but it is the reasons for these injuries that we must address. First of all there are many self-proclaimed yoga instructors who put a string of poses together based on nothing other than a good stretching opportunity. There are many instructors that are either not qualified to give proper instruction or just don’t take the time. Being the yoga advocate that I am, I wouldn’t just go to any yoga studio and take a class. There are “yoga dangers” out there and we do need to be careful when deciding to try yoga. I myself, did not know this a few years ago and have subjected myself to classes where the poses were random, different each week, done in a freezing cold gym on a hardwood floor, and I never thought to question the training of the many different instructors. Having had these experiences, I am not quick to discount some of the negative reporting coming out on the whole practice of yoga.
I have become smarter after starting Bikram yoga. The first thing I learned was Bikram yoga is not like any other yoga I’ve ever done across two states. First, yoga, Bikram or not, is not a sport. There is no push to become perfect in the poses. It’s not like shooting baskets, or scoring a goal and perfecting your technique to do those things. Yoga of all kinds, is a practice you do each day, to the best of your ability, which, just like your emotions and feelings, will be different everyday. Bikram yoga’s main purpose is medicinal. It is a well-researched set of twenty-six postures, each done twice, in a particular order to warm up and then work the entire body system both inside and out fully and completely. The room is 105 degrees with 40% humidity. The teachers have to be trained in LA by Bikram himself. The training is nine grueling weeks and costs around $20,000. Every studio all over the world that has the Bikram name on it guarantees certified, knowledgeable teachers. A Bikram class in Cape Cod is no different than a class in Florida. Same twenty-six postures, taught exactly the same way, by a Bikram certified teacher. This is not the case with all other forms of yoga. Any other yoga class, not in a Bikram studio, is random and can be taught by unqualified instructors. I, personally, will not attend any other yoga because I do not want to risk some of the injuries reported in the media.
Proper, correct instruction, AND the careful following of the directions given by the instructors is paramount to a safe, successful practice. There is preparation required two hours before every class and during the class careful instruction on how to deal with the sweat and heat cannot be disregarded – or – yes, you will probably faint. Bikram yoga is as much as a mind discipline as it is a body discipline. In thirteen years of gym, dance, aerobic, cross-fit, and random yoga classes, have I ever seen anything that teaches you to take such entire control of both your mind and body, meet challenges in way that requires concentration and both works out and heals your body and mind at the same time. There is something about doing the same 26 poses in the same order everyday that lets you compare yourself day to day and raises awareness of how every body part you have is doing on any particular day.
People always ask about the heat. The heat is necessary to do any kind of yoga to avoid injury to cold, stiff, muscles. Since doing Bikram yoga, I would never even consider doing any kind of yoga in an unheated environment like I have done in the past. I only now see the danger I was placing myself in – just as bad as battering my body in a cross-fit class. Our bodies are not made to be slammed about and stressed to the breaking point. Our bodies are supposed to be revered and carefully exercised and maintained.
So, when listening to the upcoming news reports and books warning of the evils of yoga, I advise you to heed them. If you are contemplating getting into yoga, I urge you google the nearest Bikram studio to you, and begin there, heeding and following the instructions given to you before coming to the class, and once in class, do what the teacher tells you to in order to manage the heat and breathing until you begin to get accustomed to it. Bikram yoga is for ages eight to eighty and beyond – it’s a life-long practice. You are never too old or too tired or too sick or too injured to go – in fact, those are the times you should go.
And so, as another day goes by, I ask only one question: If you don’t take care of your body, where will you live?….and I have written.
* artwork – my own, of a plant I liked on the counter in our studio
January 26th, 2012 Resetting the Compass – Day 26
Today was my first day back to yoga in five days after being laid up with a cold. On the way there I was thinking I felt pretty good and I could handle this today. When I got there, I found a new teacher I’ve never seen before. I checked in and she asked my name then I said I come everyday, but this was my first day back after being sick. (I wanted her to know this may not go well today.) I put my mat down and thought I better get some tissues just in case. Even though I felt fine, I didn’t trust my nose to not suddenly stuff up and suffocate me in the heat. Clearly I had shaky expectations of how I was going to do today, especially with a new teacher. I did fine. She was excellent on all counts – even on window opening. I had one of the best classes I ever had. After class she told me because I came in with the attitude that I was just going to relax and take it slow, I actually did more than if I had come in anxious and was going to give it my all.
Getting in my car I got to rethinking that conversation. After almost a year and a half of Bikram yoga, I learned to “check in” with myself daily. It occurred to me I always check in with how I feel and how I’m going to approach the class everyday on my drive there. After I get home that continues. Going downstairs to switch the yoga laundry everyday I go around the bottom of the stairs and as I head to the dryer I say to myself, “Wow, I feel great today!” or “Man, I’m wiped out today”. Then I use these cues to decide food, exercise, and activities for the rest of the day.
I never remember in my whole life ever pausing to check in with myself during the day. I certainly never used how I felt to assess what my body might need in the way of food or exercise. I wouldn’t realize I was exhausted until nine at night and all day I’d grab whatever was around when I was starving. I’ve learned, without trying, to become more aware of how my body “works” and reacts to the things I do everyday through this year and a half of yoga. Another positive, long-term effect of my Bikram practice that has made my life better and healthier.
This morning, a magazine blurb entitled “Cure for the Crankies” caught my eye. Seems that when we deprive our body completely of carbs it affects our mood in a negative way. I totally agree with that because when I was doing the P.I.N.K reset and could only eat vegetables and protein, it really had an adverse affect on my mood by 2pm. I made a simple change and solved the problem. I have one slice of whole grain bread for breakfast, have their protein shake for lunch after yoga, a healthy vegetable and protein dinner, and Greek yogurt before bed and not only is my sugar level stable throughout the day, but so is my mood, along with no hunger or cravings. Without being so “linked in” with myself, I would’ve never picked up on any of this, or known how to adjust it. I just would’ve thrown in the whole program and resumed couch potato position. Being “linked in” has taught me to pay attention to how food affects the way I feel, not only physically, but emotionally, too.
And so, as another day goes by, I need to stay “linked in” to myself this year to continue to make positive health changes, and ….I have written.
|
|
