GOOD-BYE JOE...

Kicking the Habit

I wanted to feel better and had recently become sensitive to caffeine. Furthermore, every article I was reading regarding a health issue I was concerned about said to eliminate caffeine. Wait a minute…how would this coffee lover do that? So, instead of saying I would do it, I simply did it. I knew that I would feel better and be more relaxed without coffee in my system every day. So, I kicked the caffeine habit just like that. I am so happy and feel so good. 

This feat is a lot easier than you might think. I had some help from a guy named Peet. I discovered Peets’ Water Processed Decaf and it’s truly fantastic. When you get superior coffee, like from Peet’s, or Beanstock, you can trust it’s the best. When the decaffeination process is done with water rather than harsh chemicals it becomes safe to drink. The best part is it tastes exactly like regular coffee. I am amazed at how good my new brew is. We all know about coffee addiction. It’s real. Imagine having your coffee without any jitters, anxiety, headaches, and raised blood pressure.

Mr. Smiley after his Decaf

Without the caffeine in my diet I sleep better, and have lowered my blood pressure. That in itself is no easy task. It feels more like a miracle. And my mother is happy too (for some reason she didn't like me having caffeine).

So, I want my readers to know that if you give up regular coffee and switch to decaf you don’t ever have to give up the taste of fine coffee! With these extraordinary water processed decafs I feel like I have the best of both worlds…. And, let’s face it…how often does that happen!

See Peets

I suggest Mocca-Java Decaf, Water-process decaffeination makes this rich, ancient blend of Java and Ethiopian Mocca a discerning decaf. It’s fabulous! And I was told it was organic.

Or try Beanstock Coffee Roasters: http://www.beanstockcoffee.com/

And get their Sumatra Organic Decaf~ heavenly is the only way to describe it!

Here’s to your health…….

TAKE A DIRECTOR TO LUNCH...

with Jud Wilmont

 

Are you looking for something exciting, or something different to do this summer….well, how about taking a director to lunch?

If you are like me you love to support the arts. Take movies for instance, many of us are intrigued by filmmaking.  I happen to know someone whose son made a film. I went to a local screening of the film and was enthralled by its mystique. The story is called Return to the Mountain. This is a journey of a father who travels to China for the first time to join his son and to find the origins of Taiji Quan also known as Tai Chi. Along the way we get to see  some fascinating backdrops and learn some of the history behind this ancient Mind, Body, Spirit exercise.

Our late great Aunty

doing Qigong (three years ago today)

 

This film is a fabulous quest. I would love everyone to have a chance to see it (not to mention consider practicing Tai Chi or Qi Gong as well). I was so excited about it all, especially since I recently started doing Qi gong again, that I asked the director to lunch.  He accepted. We talked about films, music, and food, what it’s like to live in China. I told him I would be glad to help him promote the film. And I am…

 

With any luck this film will be shown at some film festivals next year and maybe eventually television too. Keep your eye out for Return to the Mountain A Taiji Journey.

If you have any desire to get behind the scenes of filmmaking, and, or, would enjoy an opportunity to talk with directors, screenwriters and actors,  get yourself to your nearest film festival. Its all about promoting and connecting. And if you are so inclined and feel you can help promote the film in any way….well then take your director to lunch! Directors are people too. They love coffee….really strong and well-brewed. At least when they are in the states.

And, if you don’t know any directors to dine with you can still help promote your favorite films the old fashioned way… just go see the movie and then tell all your friends. There is always the possibility of taking a gaffer to brunch or a First AD to tea… 

To see clips of the movie (hold/hit control and then the link) https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10151543674269488&set=o.379325872159276&type=2&theater

 

AND SUDDENLY BOOM...

Literally my path...

Do you ever find yourself wondering if all your hard work and efforts to make good positive changes in your life and to heal any pain are working and paying off…

Well, I am here to let you know that they are!

 After hearing this from others I can tell you that it has happened to me as well. So, that is why I like to say, And Suddenly Boom!

 Several years ago when I experienced tremendous adversity and subsequently some troubling family issues, it affected me so badly I reached an emotional low. I realized there were three things I could do. I could do nothing and most likely nothing would change. I could continue feeling awful and crying to all my friends focusing on the negative and end up feeling worse.  Or, I could take the high road and literally rise above it. I could  put on a pair of what I call spiritual stilts, and with patience I could rise above all the negativity around me with the hopes of renewing my spirit and psyche.  I choose the latter. This may not have all been completely conscious but I knew there had to be a better way. I could not stay down for long.

 

A few months later, in June of 2006 I embarked on a glorious path that I am still on. I started with an intro to Meditation which has evolved into a daily sitting and group practice. I got involved with Kundalini Yoga where they instill in you how radiant and beautiful we are within and how infinite possibilities abound in every moment.  I continued Deepening my own Faith where the focus is on forgiveness. I prayed. I spent more time in nature. I aligned myself with positive, loving, and kind people like Aunty. Each and everything I did was from a place of healing and evolving, and transcending. These are not just words but these were things I envisioned for myself and knew were possible for me if I stayed on this path. Each day I put one stilt in front of the other. Many good things started to happen. This blog bloomed during that time. Trusted friendships were made and sealed. That’s also when I started listening to Snatum Kaur! Her voice alone can heal a village.

 

All the while every now and again I would still let other people's behavior bring me down and I would ask myself is all this working on myself working? But, I continued on the blooming green path because it was so tranquil and peaceful and full of promise. Even though (given all the hurt I was dealing with) at times there were patches that felt more like a bumpy dirt road. It wasn’t always easy. And, with only the truth to hold on to I traveled on and miraculously little by little (and I can only say this now) Suddenly Boom! All of a sudden (it seems all of a sudden but it was a several years all of sudden) things started to get better. I woke up one day and realized how strong I really was and the more inward I would go the more peace I would get and the more clarity on things I would find. It’s miraculous.  With continued and devoted work most of the pain and hurt dissolves and simply floats out of you. When you practice things like Qigong which I still do, you can’t hold on to any negative energy for long. When you stay positive and stay in the light you end up lighter, in a better place, and state of mind, and much more empowered then you were when you started.  You can forgive and move on. You can even get to a place when serious healing has taken place and pray for those who harmed or hurt you.  Possibly even become friends again! And, there is more Good News...

 

 The energy and focus we give things has a cumulative effect. And that is what is most amazing here! That’s why each time we do or even think the right thing, and come from a place of loving kindness,  over time it will yield you an abundance of right thingness to wake up to. And, if you ask me, That’s Bliss! Forgiveness and Love is what Aunty taught me over and over and over again….and how she lived until her last breath.

She died peacefully I might add, carried over by angels

and surrounded by LOVE

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

IF I FELL...

Falling, yes I am falling and they keep calling

me back again...

One of my all-time favorite films is A Hard Day's Night, starring of course, the Beatles. By most accounts the words to describe this sensational film are: jubilant, effervescent, buoyant, fun, and just crazy good!

I remember the first time I saw it in the theater I was so excited that I threw my entire box of buttered popcorn in the air. The line to get in was around the block, and Uncle D dropped me off and said, "Be careful." I cried and screamed the whole way through.

I have spent my entire life since mildly obsessed with the fab four. Very few things in life give me the ultra natural high and rush that I still get from listening to the Beatles.

It's hard to believe that this highly enjoyable film turns fifty this month. W-O-W!
I am celebrating with friends tonight when we all gather at the Coolidge Corner Cinema in Brookline, Massachusetts for a special screening of the film. For me, it's thrilling. Being at the movies is always exciting. Movies genuinely move me. But, when you combine the fact that this is an extraordinary film, a celebration fifty years in the making, friends sitting beside you singing every word in tandem to a phenomenally great soundtrack.....well, it really doesn't get much better than this! I am exuberant and effervescent myself.

 A man named John Gerber from a site called COS talks about A Hard Days' Night:
The older I get, the more I appreciate just how off-the-wall and non-mainstream A Hard Day’s Night really is. I agree, Leah, that their awkward laughter really sells how likeable they were. For instance, there’s Ringo’s unnatural laugh at his own joke in the train car, which is followed shortly thereafter by Lennon’s strange blinking at the stuffy man sitting beside him. I think The Beatles were hip enough to realize how ridiculous it was that they were starring in a major film and were just going to enjoy the ride- embracing the fact they were movie stars for the time being. This could have been another KISS Meets the Phantom of the Park, but fortunately the band had more than enough charisma and were deprecating enough to sell the ever-loving hell out of it. 

I couldn't agree more! See you there....
Coolidge Corner Cinema, Brookline, Massachusetts, Monday evening, July 7th at 7p.m.

If you can't make it you can always rent or buy the DVD. I promise you wholeheartedly, you will NOT be disappointed! This is celluloid bliss! I am in my glory.......I LOVE YOU PAUL!!!

Bre, and G-bro, I will save you a seat!

OH SAY CAN YOU SEE....

I am so proud to be an American and I get great joy and pride  holding our flag. Here I am on July 4th, 2007. As many of you know I got enormous joy and pride all my time with Aunty (pictured here). She was my Fourth of July, my Christmas and my New Year too. These days carrying on in her honor I still celebrate (hopefully with style) and will always be honored and humble to be an American...exactly like Aunty was. One of my many fond memories of her (and her sister, my Nana Ruth) is how they particularly loved to sing and pronounce every patriotic word of the Star Spangled Banner and America the Beautiful!

A look at some of my past Independence Days....

With my Sisters

Wearing the Red, White, and Blue forever

 

Even in High School

We want you to celebrate too!

And always with someone you love...

I'LL TAKE NANTUCKET...

And You Might Ask Yourself How Did I Get Here

 

When I say "I'll take Nantucket," I actually did! The pass I am wearing around my neck,

and spot where this picture was taken prove it. You'll never guess whose house this is?!

 

This photo was taken at a posh and private after party for the Nantucket Film Festival. And, I simply had to be there...

 

I promise to share it all with you...after all it is all for you!

We are in this together. So, please come back tomorrow for all the fabulous details of what it's like inside a well-established and well-run film festival. And in this case....on a "faraway" island with parties galore!

 

Who Loves You Nantucket?

Girl About Town...