It's All About the Hair...and Music!

What does my hair and music have in common? Curious? Yes? No? Oh, c'mon. You KNOW you want to find out...so...read on, my friend!

There are so many volunteer opportunities out there but I think I definitely found the one that suits me. I'm working with the RI Music Hall of Fame, a non-profit organization whose aim is to recognize the state's musicians and industry professionals. I love that! And if you know me, you know how much music means to me. No, I'm not a musician. Can't play a note. Can't sing either. (Though I wasted many a wish hoping and praying that I would suddenly wake up one day and find that I had become Joan Jett!)

This past Sunday was the highlight of the year for the Hall when it inducted its second class of inductees:

Rebirth of Boston - Peter Pan and the Red Sox Lead the Way

Enough has been written to fill dozens of volumes. We've heard and read every angle of every story to come out of the recent tragedy in Boston, an event that will take its place in the annals of U.S. history. TV. Radio. Online. Newspapers. Magazines. They've reported on every minute detail.

I don't think there's a need for yet another blogger (i.e. Me) to lament, rant, rehash and pick apart what happened on that fateful day at the Marathon and its aftermath. We all know. We have formed our opinions. We have speculated on what will come out of all this.

So instead I'll tell you about my week. Three events I've attended in Boston in the past week. And what I've observed.

My Cinema - The Crude Croods

I mentioned in a previous post I recently got to see the new animated film from DreamWorks, "The Croods". Saw it with my grandkids (it's the only way to see animated films!). The perfect barometer to tell if its a winner or not.

So if you haven't seen it yet, let me fill you in
(no spoilers, I promise!).

The official premise is:
"The Croods is a prehistoric comedy adventure that follows the world's first family as they embark on a journey of a lifetime when the cave that has always shielded them from danger is destroyed. Traveling across a spectacular landscape, the Croods discover an incredible new world filled with fantastic creatures -- and their outlook is changed forever."              

The comedy adventure film stars Nicholas Cage as the voice of "Grug", the patriarch of the family, and Emma Stone as "Eep", his willful, curious older daughter. Judging by the giggly reaction of my grandkids, I think they loved best "Belt" a pet sloth, and the silly antics of "Sandy", the baby daughter. However, the cackling, cantankerous character "Gran", voiced by Cloris Leachman, had my vote! I admit to chuckling along with the grandkids when "Belt" would sing out "duh-duh-DUH" in the cutest voice at just the right juncture; always set the kids off on a case of the giggles!

While I can't say it's the best animated movie I've ever seen, it made for a pleasant afternoon. The storyline kind of just wanders along. It basically has the family following "Guy" who is searching for the land of paradise called "tomorrow"; along the way the family's mindset slowly evolves as their world expands. (The scenes about fire and shoes are some of the best in the film.) The humor isn't the really laugh out loud type. Mostly snickers and guffaws from the audience. But when I saw the way all the kids in the audience laughed and cheered during the movie, I knew it was just right for the demographic the movie makers were trying to market to.

If you're looking for a feel-good movie you can see with your little ones, I highly recommend "The Croods". But I think I can safely say you can skip the theater and wait for this one to be released on DVD.

 

Have you seen "The Croods"? What did you think?

What is your all time fav animated movie?

 

B STRONG - A Hope For Mankind

Sometimes in the darkest hours, I am encouraged when I see

mankind lift themselves above evil and hatred.

When I see my fellow man join together in solidarity of optimism.

Of goodness.

Of selflessness.

When what's truly important in this life comes into focus, into perspective.

I am hopeful.

No Stone Unturned - My Ongoing Job Search

Photo Credit - Sean MacEntee (Flickr)

 

April, 2013.

Time for an employment update to my loyal readers.

Yeah, you!

And...nothing new to report.

I must say this whole process has been quite the journey. And an eye opener. A mind opener. Finding a job has become my job.

Looking for work is so much more than knocking on doors. Gone are the days of just filling out applications and submitting resumes. Job search strategy has elevated itself to an art form. And I've done everything I can to educate myself on what I need to do to locate that elusive job.

But mostly, I've stepped WAY outside my comfort zone, outside my box. And I must confess, it's a very uncomfortable place to be. But I can do this. I have followed every piece of helpful advice I've received from my career counselor and my loving friends and family. I've followed up on every lead sent my way. I have tried not to leave any stone unturned. For I'm learning that you just never know where that good fortune may be found.

Thank you one and all for your support, advice and encouragement.

Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow - Boston Marathon 2013

SPEECHLESS. NUMB. SHOCK.

A myriad of emotions tore through my brain. Searing pain ripped through my heart.
"No!" screamed quietly round and round in my mind.

I couldn't pull my gaze from the horror unfolding before me on the tv screen.

"This can't be happening!"

I clasped my hands in prayer. I lifted my eyes to the heavens.

"Dear God please tell me this is a dream. Not another terrorist attack. Dear God, no."

Terrorism. Evil. Hatred. Why?

There are no answers. There are no words to explain these senseless, cowardly acts.

Yesterday...the world witnessed an unfathomable tragedy.
Today...tell your family you love them, hold them tight.
You never know...there may not be a tomorrow.

 

April 15, 2013

2:50p.m.

Florida - Redux

Welcome back...I'm glad to see you. I just KNEW you'd be curious to come back to read the second part of my latest travel adventure.

And here it is............................

We left our oldest son behind and hit the road to the panhandle to visit our youngest and his wife and children.

Have you ever had the pleasure of being greeted after a long absence by little children? It's heartwarming, overwhelming and simply...grand! We got the best reception - lots of hugs and kisses all around.

The following days were fun but relaxing. Perfect combo. It was school vacation week - our son took a few days off so we could have plenty of time together. There were a few occasions to celebrate too - our son's and granddaughter's 3rd birthday, and Easter!

It didn't take long for the fun to begin:

On the Road Again - Exploring Florida

Can't help myself. Traveling is in my DNA.

Last week found me on the road again. This time Hubby and I made our way to Florida. Again. (I know. I know. I just went there a few months ago...but come on. This was for family - my boys - my grandkids. They need me!)

 

But the way we were looking at it, hopefully we'll both have jobs real soon. And with that comes the looong waiting period before we'll be able to vaca again. So we decided we better get some rambling done before we get tied back down. (Also didn't want to lose any points we've built up from previous trips.)

Our trip got off to a bizarre start...

Pay What You Weigh - A Heavy Dilemma

Travel. It's my passion. My hobby. From my backyard to Tahiti. And everywhere in between. I've probably been there or drove by the place or flew over it.

 

I try to keep up on the latest news about my obsession. And this week came this headline:

"SAMOA AIR TO CHARGE PASSENGERS BY WEIGHT"

Now we all know that there's been lots of discussion in recent years about expanding passenger girth versus shrinking seats and passenger space on board aircraft. I think we can all agree that airlines shouldn't discriminate on the basis of a persons size. But on the flip side, we've all probably experienced the tight squeeze when seated next to larger passengers and, truth be told, silently seethed in our misfortune. Don't deny it!

To date, the airlines' response has been to offer coach seats with more leg room, for a fee. Or they've demanded that our larger brethren pay for 2 seats instead of one.

Enter Samoa Air with an alternative approach to this situation. Set the fare price by the weight of the passenger and his/her luggage. Um, really?

What is your take on this latest attempt to address this weighty controversy?

Is this merely discrimination against larger passengers disguised as a business decision? Do you think other airlines will follow suit? I'm fairly certain this has captured their attention. We've read similar articles where one airline begins charging for something and others follow suit. There's a good possibility we'll be hearing more news stories about something like this in the future.

Or do you think this is an isolated situation - that comparing Samoa Air with the major airlines is like comparing apples and oranges? Is this honestly just a sound corporate policy? After all, the planes used by Samoa are very small and as the article states the weight variance is definitely a bigger concern for Samoa than for the major airlines. The article even suggests that passengers on this airline - under this policy - may even pay less for passage than they did before.

All I know is that this is yet another wrinkle in the cost of air travel.

Ok. Let's examine this closer.

Can you imagine? Instead of waiting for a sale on airfare, passengers will have the option of dropping a few pounds to lower their airfare. What a deal! With an added benefit - it could be just what we need to fight the nationwide obesity epidemic. At least for the frequent fliers among us.

Well, this is my wake-up call. Time to finally drop those 20 pounds that have been hanging on to my hips for dear life. I need to be ready, fit and trim that is, for when all the airlines jump on the "pay what you weigh" bandwagon. Now this is what I call incentive!