January 1, 2019

"You have said, "Seek my face.  My heart says to you, "Your face, Lord, do I seek." --Psalm 27:8 ESV


Happy New Year!

The day dawned a new year with a promising future ahead.  It is like opening a blank book with 365 clear pages for us to write our own story. 

What will it be?  Epic?  A tragedy? (Hopefully not!) A comedy or romance?  It will be fun to watch the book write itself and revisit this first page on December 31, 2019.

As I have said before, my Advent was superb, my Christmas a blessed time like no other before and here I am headed toward Epiphany with a fresh sense of renewal and purpose looking forward to all the new year has in store for me. 

My thought for the new year?  To let the year be what it is meant to be, look at the new day and know it is a gift and be thankful for it.

I have a few plans for the year.  I mentioned before that I have been doing morning devotionals using a book called "Jesus Calling".  There is an entry for each day of the year and I am beginning at the beginning today.  I like the way it feels to start my day with a devotional reading.  It just sets the day off on the right foot.  This is a lovely little book if you would like to check it out -- I have it on my Kindle.

I am still reading "Mrs. Lincoln's Dressmaker " and not enjoying it one bit more than I was two days ago.  I am determined to finish it though.  I have a stack of reads piling up on my bedside table though that I am anxious to get to.  I have never been very successful at trying to read more than one book at a time but as slow as this one is going I might have to try.

 I believe that my first book started in 2019 is going to be "Anne of Green Gables".  It is a title I should have read years ago and didn't so I am playing catch-up.  Also, there is a new title out in the Made in Savannah series that I am just itching to start.

The new year is going to find me cooking more.  In our house, everybody seems to want a couple of dishes -- "I don't know" and "I don't care" -- and I can't find recipes for those particular dishes so I am planning to make the decision of what we will be having.  I mean, since I am the one having to cook it, I should be able to decide what I want to spend my time doing --right?  I think so.

I will be continuing to make cards in the upcoming year.  I am on a couple of cardmaking groups on FB and there has been mention of people being concerned about recipients tossing the cards and how that hurts their feelings.  I think differently about it.  In the first place, nobody has room to store everything that comes into their homes and some things have to be thrown or recycled just out of practicality.  I make these cards because I feel the need to be artistic -- seems I inherited my father's drive and inclination toward art but not the talent.  That is a conundrum.  So, making cards is a creative outlet for me.  It is fun for me.  It is thought provoking to design and choose papers and stamps and such and I get a kick out of it.  If the people I send them to like them, that is the cherry on the top, isn't it?  If they decide to dispose of them, well, it is their card once it is in their hands.  My fun has been had.  So, I will continue with the hobby until I tire of it.

Last week was such fun.  I had the privilege of viewing "The Return of Mary Poppins" with my daughter and granddaughter.  I think the Hubs and I should go to the movie more. I miss it.  It used to be our main activity when we were dating and after we married we just became homebodies.  Admittedly, with all the offerings now on TV with streaming and such, there is little need to venture to a theater but once in a while it would be nice.

I don't believe in resolutions.  I see resolutions as something to be broken.  I do believe in seeing better ways to do things and making the effort to embrace new approaches but the idea of feeling like I have "failed" if I slip just doesn't appeal to me -- so there are no resolutions.  However, Advent has taught me a lot -- how to relax, how to be quiet, how to prioritize, how to be happy with "enough", how to weigh needs and wants and how gratitude is the most wonderful feeling.  For some reason, this holiday season has been a real learning curve for me and I am so thankful for whatever it is that has molded my thinking for the last couple of months.  It has been eye opening. 

So, here is to a new, happy, prosperous year to all of you!  I am looking forward to reading about all of your new years as well.

W.

A couple of weeks ago I received "W." from Netflix. We procrastinated and put off watching it and I finally decided we either needed to watch it or send it back. Last night we watched it.

Horrible movie.

In the first place it was incredibly boring. Incredibly.

In the second place, it was incredibly disrespectful. Regardless of party preference, this movie was hateful and mean-spirited.

I can't wait for "Gran Torino" to arrive.

Unconscious Mutterings Week 330

It has been a while since I have done one of these so I thought I would give it a go again.

1. Lisa -- Rinna -- what has she done to her face?

2. Hope -- Mendez -- miss you!

3. Irene -- My Sweet -- Pete Seeger

4. Tony -- West Side Story -- so sad

5. Anna -- Brazzel -- Bri's god daughter

6. Dolly -- Parton -- who else?

7. Laura -- and Luke -- General Hospital

8. Debbie -- Mumm -- great quilts

9. Wilson -- Owen or Chris

10. Paula -- Abdul -- isn't this obvious?

Tripping Back in Time -- Tonight!

I just love Netflix! It allows me the guilty pleasure of watching all my favorite old movies whenever I want!

I first learned about "Marjorie Morningstar" when JLSHall was reading the book when we were kids. Of course, where Joy went so went Melissa and I eventually read the book as well. Then, I managed to catch the movie during one Saturday afternoon matinee on television. I have never seen it again but I have acquired a copy of the book for my own library -- thank you Ebay. So, as I was making my queue for Netflix, I had to include this movie. It came up, it came in the mail and tonight I am going to just sit back and enjoy!

JLSHall -- you always did have good taste in books/movies -- thanks!

Beverly Hills Chihuahua

BHC came yesterday as I was expecting. So...yesterday morning, in anticipation of a movie evening, I chunked dinner in the crockpot -- well, two crockpots actually, so I wouldn't have to take up precious movie watching time with all that kitchen drudgery. AW came home, we quickly devoured the crockpot gourmet and settled down to watch the movie. One of us was much more excited about the prospect than the other one. Wanna make any bets?

Anyway, it was an adorable movie. MY sort of action adventure movie. A little romance, a few tears, some breath taking moments. Something for everybody -- even Rollie sat and watched the entire movie. I enjoyed it. Now....I want a chihuahua. Of course, she would have to live without a Harry Winston collar.

I can't tell if AW enjoyed the movie or not. He sort of struck his "tolerant yet not smiling" pose for the entire hour and a half and didn't have much to say except ....

AW does NOT want a chihuahua.

Bummer.

Vacation from blogging --

Yes, it seems I have taken a vacation from blogging -- well, writing them at any rate. It seems I have more fun reading blogs than writing them. Almost all of them that I read have better photos (or photos at all!), are more clever and more interesting and definitely more consistent. However, since I have been watching copious amounts of movies lately, I thought a blog on that might be of interest.

AW and I joined Netflix. Well, I joined Netflix and he is just going along with me. I joined it with some apprehension -- fear of the movies getting lost in the mail and me with no way to prove that I actually did send them back. That hasn't been a problem, however. So, when I joined I made a tentative list -- always subject to change with me, of course. I tried to mix AW's favorites -- action adventure -- with my favorites -- classics (both tv and cinema) and girly stuff. So, we have had a variety of things to choose from and our relationship has managed to survive ME choosing the movies.

The first movie we received from Netflix was "The Secret Life of Bees". It was good and I recommend. Even AW enjoyed it. Then we watched some old tv classics -- "The Life of Riley" and "Our Miss Brooks". Ok, so AW didn't fare so well with those. Since then we have viewed "Pride and Glory" and "Bangkok Dangerous". I enjoyed "Pride and Glory" more than "Bangkok Dangerous" because Nicolas Cage was just too weird in "BD". I like him but it seems like he is getting stranger and stranger in some of his movies.

The next movie in my queue is not going to thrill AW at all. He wouldn't go see it in the theater -- neither would DD or SIL (I asked -- he said no). So....by tomorrow I will have a Netflix copy of the newly released "Beverly Hills Chihuahua" to watch and AW is going to watch it with me. He doesn't want to but...hey, I watched "Bangkok Dangerous" and now it is payback time!

Booking Through Thursday

Ok, I recognize that it is no longer Thursday. I am slow, ok? Here goes.

"Books and films both tell stories, but what we want from a book can be different from what we want from a movie. Is this true for you? If so, what is the difference between a book and a movie?"

Well, yes and no. Both books and movies are forms of entertainment so, in that regard, yes, I want to be entertained by both.

Both books and movies have the capability of being thought provoking, insightful, mood altering, shocking, and emotional.

Movies, however, are instant gratification and require very little "participation" from the watcher. They are relatively quick so there isn't much time to languish in the mood, scenery, language, etc. They can be very stimulating visually, obviously, and with today's movies that can be very powerful. I do think that movies based on books are generally lacking -- especially if you read the book first.

Books, on the other hand, are slower and the reader has the ability to linger over passages, re-read sections and visualize the characters and settings -- make his/her own "movie" in the mind, if you will. With books, the impact unfolds over the course of the read rather than have it "in your face" so to speak.

So, I would have to say that I want both to entertain me but my mood, available time, and situation would dictate which form would be more appropriate at certain times.