137- LINDA LAVIN...At WILLIAM And MARY'S PHI BETA KAPPA HALL.....

This is a guy who likes and appreciates many of the arts! It was a pleasure and neat experience to attend "An Evening with Linda Lavin...Songs and Confessions of a One-Time Waitress" this past Sunday evening, November 2nd, on the College of William and Mary campus. It was a Musical Revue to benefit the Virginia Shakespeare Festival.
Miss Lavin, with a backup trio, sang and talked about her very first year as a coed at W&M. She was caring and sincere and gave, often, praise for her early professors in the Drama Dept. and to the musicians on stage with her Sunday evening. She was sooo real, down to earth.
I talked with some friends who had had the opportunity to talk with her before the performance, backstage, and also came away highly impressed with Miss Lavin as a genuine, giving person!
This guy learned, too, about her goal to "make it" in the entertainment business. After graduating from our W&M, she left for the Big Apple, struggling to be a success, but always, she stressed, NOT taking the road to any performance that would lower her personal standards of mores. During her little Q & A on stage, I asked her a question.
It wasn't until she, and others, moved to the West Coast where the action relocated, did she get that BIG break...remember Linda Lavin in TV's "ALICE", that lasted for nine (9) years? She has since acted, with kudos, in many productions. When she went to Wilmington, N.C. once, she fell in life with the town and is now living there. She and her husband found an old rundown gas station there and remodeled it into the Red Barn Studio Theatre for their own productions in a place that seats only about 45 theatregoers. Wilmington, by the way, is where "Dawson's Creek" was filmed!!!!
Oh, forgot...Miss Lavin, as a W&M freshman, was awarded the 'star' part for her very first role....Juliet. I seemed to have forgotten the title of that Shakespearean play!

136- TUNES YOU HEAR, ON THE RADIO, THAT BRING BACK MEMORIES!....

YOU KNOW YOU HAVE...heard a song on the radio and remembered what, where, when or who you were with when that song was popular! Let's see...there's "Maggie May"!....."Brandy"......and you?
Our American society, I love it! And music, for most of us, plays a significant part within our pysche, our very being...our soul. Music is our SOUL! And it 'irrigates' (my original word) me whenever a narrowminded person makes a freaking comment about someone else's choice of music and tunes...shows the world how ignorant they really are. Music is also personal. That's why I believe that so many rec center users, joggers and drivers in a car listen to THEIR music. It's also why "respect" for others around is so important. Ever drive past or near someone with their radio blasting way up? "I got a right to play my music loud if I wanna!" Can you say "ignorance"?
Anyway, back to that song that keeps "playing" over and over in your mind...what is it?

135- AGE...IT'S ALL A "FIG NEWTON Of Your IMAGINATION!".....

Age belongs to YOU!
"Uh, how OLD are you?"
"Sorry...that's none of your freaking business! What's age got to do with anything? The audacity?"
Why not ask someone: "What exciting things are you doing in your life, now?...Had another neat adventure, recently?...What have you done to make someone, anyone, a bit happier today, unselfishly?
Some of us wouldn't mind the rudeness, not really, but the intention is to snoop, pry into another's private world. Can you imagine if you did that to the person rudely prying?
That's my story, and I'm sticking to it!

134- A NATTY NIGHT TIME OWL PROWL!...Shhhhhhhh.....

Here's an adventure in our society, in the dark, that you may not have considered...an OWL PROWL!
You have to study for a bit, with pictures and sound recordings, before you go out and about, preferably in a wooded area...and be quiet. You won't be the same, developing an appreciation for the birds that seem to be able to turn their heads 360-degrees.
Pigmy owls can be found out in the desert. In Virginia we have great horned owls for the ear tufts that protrude...the large barred owls. Barred owls make a loud, scary kind of sound for first time adventurers in the woods. Screech owls are the tiny bundle of feathers, with a soft whirring sound, requiring astute listening skills. My fave, however, is the barn owl...tall and with a unique face.
Google to "owls" for a neat entrance into the world of an OWL PROWL, complete with pics and even sounds!
Yes, a time or three have ventured out into a woods to listen to those tiny screech owls, as a kid and at summer camp. And how do owls turn their heads all the way around? They don't...to watch you watching them, and especially for listening for prey, their head will turn around and then very quickly whip back around to the other side. Have seen a slow motion video showing them doing that. They are so fast that it appears as if the owl's head swivels all the way around.
I think, if you google 'owls', you'll like the pics of the barn owls and the petite screech guys!

133- A PEANUT FARMER...A CLOSET SOCIALIST...And A HOARD Of LEMMINGS RACING To The SEA!.....

A peanut farmer...a closet Marxist...and a hoard of lemmings racing to the sea!
Once upon a time, back in the late 1970s, there were American hostages languishing in an Iranian 'prison' for 444 days, because our leader could not act and could not bring our fellow Americans home. Our country, because of his harming lack of experience and leadership, was brought to our proverbial 'knees' by a bunch of government supported THUGS! That lack of national leadership showed the rest of the world...well, you figure it out by reading your History books for the 20th century.
Now, our country, that means me, us, once again could be on the brink of making a catastrophic error in judgment with both the Legistative and Executive Branches of our national government who, together, will control two of our federal branches of government and head us in the direction of an extreme form of socialism for our heartland within a short period of time. But, the most serious element involves a 'closet Marxist' who wants to cleverly be our leader! Be in fear, Americans, that 2008/2009 could mark the advent of an America that YOU, me, will not recognize EVER again!!!
Lemmings...this studied student of History sees, I'm so sorry to say, thousands of lemmings, not thinking, running helter skelter to the sea, listening to a well-planned Madison Avenue sales pitch and 'guru' promising you anything and everything...to perish over the cliffs and into the sea! I KNOW how I will proudly vote on Tueday....NOT to DRASTICALLY change our good old American heritage and system that's been working, with changes, for all of us for over the past 200 years!

132- STEPHEN KING....................

He's sold over 350 million copies of his scary, sometimes horror books, and his personal story only is enough to fill volumes! His father deserted the family when Stephen was just two. His mother, the family, perservered tough financial stress. When his mother became a caterer at a local Maine residential facility for the mentally challenged, in Durham, Maine, Stephen was around the residents.
As a child, he witnessed a friend being struck by a train. When the young boy finally came home that evening, he could not speak and was in shock, and said that he had no memory of the tragedy.
He graduated with an English degree from the University of Maine, got his certificate to teach high school but could not find a position. For a time, he wrote short stories and eventualy got a postion at a private academy to teach. On Mother's Day, 1973, King got notifcation that his first novel, Carrie, was sold, with a $2,500 advance. The publishing house later took 50% of sales as its share. In 1975 Salem's Lot was published. He accepted a position in creative writing, then, at his alma mater, The Unversity of Maine, but his drinking and all types of 'drugs' become worse. When his family and friends confront him one day, strewing loads of 'stuff' out in front of him, King finally realizes he had a serious problem---his family and friends cared deply about him.
Stephen sought help and, with time, WON his personal battle!
But, the story is not over...in the summer of 1999, while walking on the shoulder of a country road, a driver is 'distracted' and hits Stephen, severly injuring the prolific author! Later, it is proven by friends that King WAS walking facing traffic about 4:30p. He strongly wants to use a sledgehammer and destroy the van that hit him after his lawyer and friends bought it to keep it away from the freaking eBay. They, lawyer and friends, however, had the van crushed!
I personally admire his wife, Tabitha, also a grad of the U. of Maine, for redesigning his studio, while Stephen was recovering...for he had no desire to write again. And for her standing by her man!
Their home is in Bangor, Maine, with the home and front gate, uh....you'll have to google and see!
He and his wife very quietly have helped with lots of 'local' projects, especially his alma mater. They have one daughter and two sons

Some of his MANY writings:

-Dreancatcher -The Green Mile -The Dead Zone -Cujo -Christine
-Carrie -Salem's Lot -Pet Sematary -Misery -The Shining -It
-The Talisman -The Tommyknockers -Dolores Claiborne

(You can see that many were later movies - my faves are Dolores Claiborne and The Green Mile)....have any fave King books and movies?
Whether you like his style and subjects in his writing, you'll have admit that he has influenced!

131- BOOOOO....HALLOWEEN...FRIDAY NIGHT!....

And my fave scary Halloween film that continues to give me unabashed SHIVERS to watch it even now? "Halloween (I)"...the music is perfect for the low-budget movie that was filmed with unknowns, then, and quickly, on location! One of my secret ambitions?....to write and produce a scary film that will scare the ?!*@ out of an audience, for years to come, becoming a classic!...he-he-he.....

130- ONCE ONE LEARNS TO READ?...AND WATCH A BABY LEARN TO WALK?.....

Once one learns to read, yes, they can 'go on' any ADVENTURE that they so desire within the neat boundaries of their own mind! READING, then, takes you into your very own personal world. Some pesons, I believe, would rather be entertained with a box in front of them, white earplugs on or cars going around and around in front of them, only! It's a downright shame to hear someone, anyone, claim that they hate to read. Think of all the ADVENTURES that they are missing! Think of all the Classics that they've never explored, like pirates searching for buried booty and birds that talk.
Also, watch a baby learn to walk...from an earlier blog. When the baby is ready, from an automatic signal within their programmed body, they will keep on keeping on keeping on until, standing up for support, they take off across an open space...and fall. Know what? They will get right back up, balancing, and try again...and again...and again...and again. Now, do 'adults' do that? Can you say, "Maybe...sorta...kinda...not always...a few!"

129- AHIMSA...AND WHY I BELIEVE IN IT!.....

This Socratic-style educator will have accomplished my mission if anyone, everyone, who read this blog sought out a defintion before I typed one in, with examples.....hmmmmm. Guess I do 'irrigate' people at times.

128- "THE SECRET GARDEN"..."BRIDGE To TERABITHIA"...."BACK To SECRET GARDEN".....

I hope that enough have read the two books and viewed the films of "The Secret Garden" and "Bridge to Terabithia" from your list of worthy books and films. Friendship is an underlying theme, especially for children. I'm still trying to figure out how the British can create such outstanding films, like the "Secret Garden", year after year, for years. What is their secret?
Took time out from rewriting the last draft of The Serpentine Bond! to view "Back to Secret Garden", another British production

127- The THREE DOG NIGHT Rock Band.....

From 1969 to 1974, they sold more records, sold more concert tickets and earned more Top 10 hits than any other group!
In 2000 they were inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame, with 13 Gold Albums...21 Billboard Top 40 Hits...7 Gold.
And their name? No matter what you read, the name "Three Dog Night" is an Aboriginie term from long ago. The native Australians were nomadic and wandered the outback. They tamed the Dingo for centuries and, at night, often dug a hole to sleep in for the cold desert nights.
If the cold night was a "one dog night?..."two dog night?" But, if the night in the Australian desert was frigid, three dogs were "invited" into the hole with them!
Now you know...by the way, the guys are still going out on the road, singing!
Being a true music lover, I've tried to experience in person many groups and plays and individuals in person over the years. The Beatles!...The Dave Clark Five!...Dave Brubeck Quartet!...Johnny Mathis!...Three Dog Night! Are the Rolling Stones still out and about?
Remember: "One"..."Eli's Coming"..."Celebrate"..."Mama Told Me Not to Come"..."Joy to the World"..."Liar"..."Never Been to Spain"..."Shambala"..."The Family of Man"..."An Old-Fashioned Love Song"..."The Family of Man"..."Black and White"... NOW, do you remember?
Hey, would you believe that MANY teens, now, know and can sing songs like this along with you?

126- DREAMERS And ACHIEVERS #2......

These are the Americans who get up another day, everything seemingly going awry, and try life one mo' day. These are the Ameircans who have a better way of doing something and MAKE it happen, 'cause inch by inch, everythings a cinch!
To those dreamers who refuse to give up your anbitions to make a better you or create a better anything...don't quit...DON'T QUIT!

125- DOES OUR AMERICA, AS A COUNTRY, STILL HAVE A SOUL?......

Soul, involving the vital core of American society...values...ideals...what we are! If you are a student of History, you'll realize that "we" have changed since 1781...we have evolving as a nation. That correlates with an individual's life and relationships, constantly changing, BUT how and in which direction? Change happens naturally, period!...and not in a political ad.

124- A FOX KISS!...PONDERABLE For The WEEKEND!......

A FOX KISS!
A) Enough of us have pushed our exploration buttons to the max to include Nature in its many forms. That includes a Fox Kiss!
B) When foxes meet, they pause and touch, lightly, their noses. I'm still not sure exactly why...yet.
C) As a kid, would ride my bike out Buttermilk Spring Road to my paternal grandparents home up on the hill, walk back along a narrow strip of field owned by them to sit and watch, with binoculars, a family of foxes at their den near my grandfather's big woods. Whenever they met at one of the den's holes, they always paused to greet each other with one of those "fox kisses". D) By the way, foxes always have at least two separate den entrances--just in case they need to exit quickly. Also, discovered that foxes are really clever and intelligent critters...just like Aesop's 6th century B.C. Fables!
E) So....do some humans, that's us, also greet another with a "FOX KISS!" The delightful sensuality would involve a very brief, light touching of both lips!.....
F) And a "SOUL-KISS?" Different...involves, as some of you know, a PASSIONATE, but respectful, more involved kiss with a BIT of sensuality (that's a 'WOW')!

123- "BRAIN-EES!".......?

I called them "Brainees", and they were/are designed to jostle your brainpower, trying to figure them out! If you can figure out all of the "Brainees"? You might be a "brain-ee!"

A) 26 = L of the A......26 Letters of the Alphabet!
B) 7 = W of the A W.....7 Wonders of the Ancient World!
C) 1001 = A N.....1001 Arabian Nights!
D) 12 = S of the Z.....12 Signs of the Zodiac!
E) 54 = C in a D with the J..... 54 Cards in a Deck with the Jacks!
F) 8 = P in the S S.....8 = Planets in the Solar System!
G) 88 = P K.....88 = Piano Keys!
H) 13 = S on the A F.....Stripes on the American Flag!
H) 32 = D F at which W F.....???????????????
I) 8 = S on a S S.....8 = Sides on a Stop Sign!
J) 200 = D for P G in M.....200 = Dollars for Passing Go in Monopoly!
K) 3 = B M (S H T R)..... 3 Blind Mice (See How They Run)!
L) 90 = D in a R A.....90 Degrees in a Right Angle!
M) 4 = Q in a G.....4 quarts in a gallon!
N) 24 = H in a D....24 = Hours in a Day!
O) 1 = W on a U....1 = Wheel on a Unicycle!
P) 5 = D in a Z C.....5 = Digits in a Zip Code!
Q) 57 = H V.....57 = Heinz Varieties!
R) 11 = P on a F T.....11 = Players on a Football Team!
S) 1000 = W that a P is W..... 1000 Words that a Picture is Worth!
T) 29 = D in F in a L Y.....29 = Days in February in a Leap Year!
U) 64 = S on a C.....64=Squares on a Chessboard!
V) 40 = D and N of the G F.....40 = Days and Nights of the Great Flood!
W) 80 = D to G A the W.....80 = Days to Go Around the World!
X) 2 = N it T t T.....2 =Number it takes to Tango!
Y) 216 = N in a C of C C N S.....216 Noodles in a Can of Campbell's Chicken Noodle Soup!

122- "SOUL-LESS FOOD!"...WHAT IS IT, AMERICA?.....

Think...you've hit the bag of chippers...box of cookies...fast-food, with those quickie burgers, roast beefs and Tex-Mex wannabes...a nuked convenience store breakfast croissant stuffed with what appears to be a perfect round egg with crumbly bacon bits. Hmmmm...quality? Or did you simply scarf 'em down out of habit?
When was the last time you dined on macaroni and cheese baked in an oven, eggs and milk and cheddar cheese crumbles on top? Sauteed fresh fish...asparagus tips...a sliced kiwifruit?
All I ask? Ask yourself if, after that burrito in the car, your meal had "soul". If it really tasted blahhh, it was "soul-less".....
Another term to consider is---"Processed?"....

121- MIRACLES...DO YOU BELIEVE IN----MIRACLES?....

Will use The American Heritage definition:
"An event that appears inexplicable by the laws of nature and so is held to be supernatural in origin or an act of God."

120- AMERICA'S SCARIEST FILM CHARACTERS This Coming Late October!!!.....

A) Michael Myers was the boy who grew up in "Halloween", wearing 'that' mask...Dr. Sam Loomis (Donald Pleasance) was the doc looking for him!...and Jamie Lee Curtis was in her first film as the babysitter...1978...around the top as a fave!...music was #1.
B) Hannibal Lecter..."Silence of the Lambs"...Jodie Foster (Clarice Starling)...fava beans...1991...
it's easy to understand how Anthony Hopkins earned an Oscar.
C) Freddy Krueger...1984..."A Nightmare on Elm Street"...dreams...teens not being able to sleep without Freddy getting into their dreams.
D) Jason Voorhees..."Friday the 13th"...1980...over 26 years!...125 victims...we always knew there would be another one 'cause his eye would pop open at the end.
E) "Jaws"...1975...Amity Island...a few scenes are classics!...opening one with girl!...two elderly
guys fishing at night on dock!
F) "Creature of the Black Lagoon"...1954....B&W...my first fave as a kid...excellent 'monster'.
G) "The Amityville Horror"...1979...actual house on Long Island...stopped by there on a trip to
New England...thumbs down on this flick.
H) "King Kong"...1933...notice the dates on a bunch of these films!...and the B&W.
I) "Hunchback of Notre Dame"...1939.
J) "Dr. Jekell & Mr. Hyde"...1931.
K) "Dracula"...1931.
L) "The Wolfman"...1941.
M) "Children of the Corn"...1984...Malachai & Issac...this one has some scare!
N) "Children's Play"...1988...Chucky...did he ever expire?
O) "Psycho"...1960...Norman Bates...the Bates Motel...the shower...B&W adds greatly to the
effects...scenes at the widow from afar...is she real?
P) "Alien"...1979...Xenomonph...this one "sceered" me, gave me the shivers.
Q) "Predator"...1987...'Dutch' (Arnold!)...liked this, too...music was excellent.
R) "The Shining"...1980..."Here's Johnnnnny!"...Jack Nicholson...direction, acting and filming
were tops...the writer's evolution, with facial remarks, are excellent.
S) "The Haunting"...1963...B&W...got to be around the top.
T) "The Mummy...1932.
U) "Texas Chainsaw Massacre"...1974...Leatherface.
V) "Frankenstein's Monster"...1931.
W) "Duel"...1971...we never "see" who the truck driver is...clever.
X) "The Birds"...1963.
Y) "Jurassic Park"...1993...the scene with the glass of water quivering!..."support actors" are so
real!
Z) "Poltergeist"...1982
AA) "Pet Sematary"...1989...this one, like many of the King books and movies, got to me.
BB) "Misery"...1990...two characters with brilliant acting and direction.
CC) "The Exorcist"...1973...you remembered it weeks later.
DD) "The Village"...2004...my fave!...fooled me.
EE) "Carrie"...1976...blood?
FF) "Wait Until Dark"...1967...she was a blind housewife...when two thugs come after her looking GG.... the last scene?...she turns out all the lights in her home to make the
scenerio equal...and?

Have one or three that I missed?

119 ALBERT EINSTEIN's SECRET To His THINKING ABILITIES?.....

He, much later in his life, revealed that the answer was simple...really meaning simplicity! He would ponder with and on the simplest solutions to questions.
And, another secret that continues to fascinate me?---daydreaming! When others believed that he was naping at times in his life, he had truthfully closed his eyes, or left them open at other times, and daydreamed...allowing his mind to wander far beyond his nose. I know that some of you know exactly how to do that, let your mind wander with your eyes open.
I used to try it in class by asking the students to close their eyes and "travel" in their mind way out into space as far as they could go....or to "walk" out past their own physical body, turn around and look at themselves standing or sitting there.
I dare YOU to try it, now...triple dare you!

118- The INDIGO CHILDREN.....AND ADULTS....

I'll work on this subject with descriptions:
"Indigo" refers to their aura colors and energy patterns. And Indigo children (adults) have much indigo color inside their minds, the color of "the third eye chakra". This is the energy center for a person. Chakra regulates clairvoyance...the ability to "see" energy, spirits and visions. It appears that many Indigos, therefore, have the "power to "see" objects or events that cannot be perceived by the senses."
-They can sense dishonesty....
-They know when they're being lied to, patronized or manipulated...like an inner lie-detector....
-Have what often may be a "warrior" spirit...and that threatens some adults....
-They do not seem to have the ability to dissociate from their feelings, pretend that all is well....
-More creative than the average Yogi Bear...and often can access both right and left sides of the brain with ease...therefore, artistically gifted AND technologically competent...ADVENTUROUS....
-They have difficulty with absolute authority, especially when NO explanation or choice is offered)....
-Get frustrated with systems that are ritually oriented, requiring NO creative thinking....
-Often see better ways of doing things...being labelled as non-conformists....
-Do not respond to "guilt" discipline....
-Not shy about letting it be known what they need....
-Possess a strong self-esteem...a sense of self....
-Often refuse to follow orders or directions...become bored rather easily with assigned tasks....
-Are creative...strong intuition...possess either strong or no empathy for others....
-Develop abstract thinking early on...are gifted and/or talented...rather intelligent....
-Are frequent daydreams....
-More than usually psychic or intuitive abilities....
-Multi-dimensionally aware (what we now call multi-taskers)....
-Sense and feel energies from other persons....
-Quite aware of past lives of persons...of scientific, historical, anthropological and spiritual knowledge not consciously learned....
-Extremely empathetic to creatures, even plants....
-Can communicate with the unseen world of spirits and possible even angels....
-Unusally talented with artwork, writing and scripts....
-Seem antisocial unless with other Indigos....
-Have a sense of mission, higher purpose to life and the world around them!
-AND..."It just isn't fair!"...that's what an Indigo may say, and then do something about it, to make it fair!!

Note: often Indigos have no concept of who they are UNLESS they read this, go further on their own or have studied with a mentor or mentors; will, then, their revelations upset them or make them think that they are better than non-Indigos? I DON'T think so! I feel that their revelations will enhance their lives for the betterment of themselves and society......