Hottie to Nottie

     Isn’t it sad to see someone who was once considered beautiful, sexy, popular and much sought after turned into an empty shell?  In other words a hottie turned into a nottie?  One of the big misconceptions that the media portrays on men and women is that all you have to do to be successful is to be attractive, popular and available.  If a person falls into that trap and doesn’t develop some deeper qualities and values in life…eventually, the emptiness turns a person into a sad, shell of a person who seeks attention in the only way they know how; displaying what they consider to be their only value…their body.

        You see this all of the time in the world of celebrities…but everyday people often fall into that trap as well.  Beauty, youth, and popularity all pass away in time…what’s left is the spirit, the mind, and their purpose in life.  If those aren’t developed along the way…the search for meaning is sometimes mis-directed onto meaningless relationships, trendy pseudo-religions, drugs/alcohol abuse, and endless dramatic attempts to seek attention. 

         As a society we need to devalue the attention that the media puts on empty pursuits by public role models.  We need to encourage those sports figures, politicians, and celebrities who are doing positive…purposeful things in life.  Quite giving time and attention to those who are living on the edge and doing nothing more with the gifts in their lives than pursuing selfish and destructive behaviors.  In raising our children, we need to develop character building, self esteem, and goals of reaching out to others. 

          We do this by teaching them to discover how to connect to others, give back to those who are less fortunate in life, teach them spiritual fulfillment, and to value their bodies by encouraging modesty and healthy self- esteem building techniques. 

           I dont like seeing young guys or gals flaunting their bodies or their finances to gain attention; I like it even less when i see a 40-60 year old who talks, acts, spends, and dresses like a teenager…because that is the only way they know to attract members of the opposite sex.   Let’s encourage an attitude of growth, respect, confidence, and personal development as a way of life!

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Yes, Britney Is Talented…But…

        Yes, Britney Spears is talented…but, after the roller coaster year she has had and the struggle to pull her life together…i guess I expected a bit more of her.  She is beautiful, she is talented and she has the drive to become anything she wants to be.  That is why i was disappointed by her appearance on Good Morning America this morning for her 27th birthday celebration.  I know that all of this media attention is merely publicity for her upcoming tour and album release; but, I was hoping for something a little more.  After all, she has revamped her body, her legal standing, and she has regained some control of her well-being over the troubling last year.

        She is twenty seven years old…and she “recreated” her past image.  I really thought that she would re-invent her image by pulling it together instead of trying to hyper-sex her image.  Who of us wouldn’t have responded positively to a more grown up version of the Britney Spears entertainer?   Come on…for heaven’s sake…she has the pipes; she doesn’t need to strip down to expose herself by wearing outfits that leave little to the imagination.  (For the record, i have the same problem with other talented people like Beyonce who recently introduced her audience to her alter ego, Sasha Fierce).  There are audiences who will eat this stuff up; but do they care about the entertainer as a person outside of what is given them on the stage?  The performer doesn’t have to live with the audience; they only have to live with themselves when they leave the spotlight.   Is the public adulation enough for you?  Does the fame help you to live a fuller, happier life when not performing?

        It’s bad enough that the music/television business pushes the hyper-sexed robots that sell shows/concerts to the public…but, why in the world do the celebrities exploit their own images?  They already have the industry contacts, they have the skill set, they have supportive fans…why do they feel the need to sell their images this way?

        I really take issue with Britney’s performance on Good Morning America; as her very young sons and mother were in the audience.  Is this necessary to expose your young children to the visual of their mother strutting around on stage in the barest essentials, singing about things like serial womanizing? 

         Where is the inside soul of Britney?  Is she gone?  Sometimes when you look at her eyes in photographs …you see such emptiness, vulnerability and sadness.  Does she think that this version of her talent is ALL that she has to offer us?   I can’t help but think back to the young girl who was beginning her career; the girl who had such a genuine look in her eyes and talked about positive traditional values…she has been missing for a long time.  Britney genuinely seemed more like a happier person at that time, more then she does today.  Today she has children, she has more material things, she has more money and fame than she did back then.  So what’s missing? 

        I figured when Britney exploded back into the public eye, professionally, we would see a more mature version of her; one that combined who Britney was before she turned into such a hot commodity; and, the person who battled her way through the fire this past year.  I know she has it in her to be using her talent in a way that is in alignment with her formerly acknowledged Christian values.  Maybe Britney needs reminded that she is a young woman, a mother, a daughter, a sister and an aunt…someone who has a responsibility to represent herself as a positive influence to those around her.

          Remember Britney when you talked about keeping yourself pure?  Obviously you have had children and adult relationships…but, in that maturing process it appears as if anything goes in public now.  How do you want your children to conduct themselves in the next 7-10 years?   Are we going to see your children performing as Chippendale-like dancers before an audience of screaming female fans; stripping down to G strings, when they are in their teens?  Will you be ok with that?  Because that is the example you are putting before the eyes of our young sisters-brothers, and sons-daughters. 

         And Britney, you are making it appear irresistible…you are rich, you are famous, you are beautiful and, you have the career that many would be thrilled to have.   If only you would channel your career into something that is more acceptable in the way of traditional family values; in a world that is craving positive, musical role models.  I don’t think that you realize the impact that you have on your young fans. 

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Lazy Day of Fall With a Touch of Winter

     Today has been one of those lazy, do nothing and enjoy it kind of days.  Those are few and far between…but, so very necessary for the soul to rest and build up strength to do what must be done every other day of the week. 

      It has been cold and wet.  We woke up this morning to a growing blanket of fluffy white snow…the first of the season, to lightly coat the ground.  Of course, it did not stay there because the ground is not frozen yet…so, the warmth of the earth melted the brilliant, white snow early in the day.  This is just a mini preview of what is to come in the next few weeks.

       The snow brought joy to my child’s face…and, a look of acceptance to mine 🙂  Now is the time to contemplate making a nice homemade, chunky sort of comfort meal…like maybe a hot, hearty chicken noodle soup with homemade dumplings…or maybe a rich, smooth, smoky pea soup, or possibly a filling fall harvest kind of soup with some happy orange carrots, and some limey green cabbage surrounding floating chunks of the all american staple of potatoes in a nice rich broth of ham pieces or some pieces of bacon. However, this is work…and, cannot stand alone.  One must complement the meal with some fresh- from- the- oven homemade doughy, buttery rolls.  This is the treat that we offer ourselves when the reality of 6 months of cold, wet, dark and dreary winter comes sneaking upon us.  Oh, if that sounds ominous…then you will have to come back on another day when the snow is cherished and given glory…just not today when i have to grow to appreciate it’s beauty.

       Golly, you will just have to check back in a few weeks, when i paint the picture of a cheery morning; when the snow crystals sparkle in the sunlight and underscore the weight of the evergreen branches that bow under the weight of the heavy flakes of snow that have fallen overnight, much to our surprise.  Then you will see that the human spirit is flexible and has the wisdom to recognize all of the gifts in life. 

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A Negative Legacy

       When a person passes away…you wonder why kind of epithet (description) others would use to describe that person.  A person’s reputation…legacy…is important.  Most people want to be remembered as someone who other’s genuinely liked, respected and wanted to spend time with.

        Most people don’t want to be remembered negatively.  Today, i heard that Mr. (Richard) Blackwell has died.  Do you know who he is?  I bet when i jiggle your memory cells you will recognize his legacy…it was extremely negative.

         Mr. Blackwell was famous for his very harsh, negative, and biting descriptions of what people in Hollywood and the world of celebrity wore out in public…their fashion sense.  He often said that he wasn’t condeming the person…just their fashion choices.

         He was known for his lists of the 10 worst dressed people of each year.  I was sure that there was so much more to this man.  So i did a little digging.  His celebrity was that he was an author of two books, he was a child actor, he was a television/radio personality, journalist, an artist and a talented fashion designer.  But what is he best known for?  His negativity…that was his claim to fame.  That is such a waste of spirit.  Obviously, he was much more talented that the world knew…however, he put negativity into the world.  Regrets are something that most of us try to avoid…i wonder if he had a few when his time came.

         Mr. Blackwell died of an intestinal infection.  He had been hospitalized for quite some time…and was in a coma, at one point, i believe.  He was born Richard Sylvan Selzer.  He lived in Brooklyn, NY in a poor lifestyle.  He says in his autobiography that he was a thief and a prostitute.  He had a difficult early life.  That might explain why some of his negativity carried over into his professional life as an adult. 

         I think that no matter what…we have to be aware of how we present ourselves to the world.  We all have difficulties…some worse than others.   People can get caught up in trying to one -up-manship in the area of who has had it more difficult; but…at some point, you set aside childhood ills, and YOU take the reins of your destiny as an adult.   At that point, you and you alone, are responsible for the direction that your life takes.  I want to work hard to make sure that the legacy that i leave behind is more heavy on positivity than negativity. 

        What obstacles have you had to overcome to take your life in a positive direction?

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Starting Out In Marriage

         Did you ever go to a wedding and just observe the Bride and the Groom closely?  Today, i did just that very thing.  Oh, to be sure…the Bride was beautiful and full of smiles; and she looked the picture of what a Bride should look like.  Youth, beauty, joy and excitement poured forth from her face as she, who is normally very shy, looked everyone in the eye and took her vows.  This was her testiment to her pledge of love and commitment.

          The Groom also looked young and full of love and pride in the bride of his choosing.  There were awkward moments in the ceremony…such as a very loud train rumbling by the church…just as the bride was speaking her vows. Then, they did some wonderfully, unique things in their ceremony.  They took communion during the ceremony which was lovely.  The poor bride got a larger piece of the bread put into her mouth by her groom; which took her several minutes to chew and swallow…which caused her to be somewhat embarassed and caused some good natured laughter in the crowd.

          Part of the unique ceremony took place when the bride was given in marriage by her father to her groom; at that point…the bride and groom took the elevated platform in the front of the church; and the minister then, came out into the congregation and stood with his back towards the back of the church…he faced the bride and groom; who stood facing the spectators.  This viewpoint gave the advantage of watching the bride and groom as they spoke their vows, lit the candles, and smiled into each other’s eyes as they whispered affectionetly to one another.  Then, the groom played the guitar while one of his groomsmen sang a tribute to their love for one another.

           All in all, it was a trusting, loving, innocent step into the future as husband and wife…not knowing what the future holds for them…just knowing that they were taking the beginning step forward, together!  Hopeful for a lifetime journey.

        

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Bye Bye September

       Bye Bye September…tomorrow is October…Fall is truly here and making it’s presence know.  That only leaves one more season left this year…and it isn’t going to be pretty what with the rising cost of living… I hate to see winter come.  With any luck, winter will be mild. 

        With all of the financial uncertainty hanging over the United States…thinking about heating homes is the last thing anyone wants to do.  Yet, i can’t help but admire the beauty that is Fall.  The golden yellow, the burnt oranges, the flaming reds and the burnished brown of the leaves as they glisten in the mellow fall temperatures.  The evenings are pleasantly cool enough to be enjoyed and yet not bothersome enough to turn on the furnace.  This is the beauty of fall.  Reaping the bounty of the earth’s growing season and preparing it for the winter.  It is all a gift. 

        Even the beauty of the first heavy snow fall as it coats the trees and the ground with it’s sparkling diamond dust is a work of art.  It is knowing that it wont be the last snowfall that wears on the novelty of it all…calculating the financial cost of removing all of that frosty diamond dust!  OH well, it is time to enjoy the moment.

        Time to walk in the leaves, smell the warm earth, gaze upon the fall flowers in a final burst of color…stand around a roaring campfire…heat up some tarty spiced apple cider…roast a few dogs over the open flame and stare at the glittering silver white stars as they twinkle in the deep blue black of the night sky.  This is a moment to remember and to treasure.  Bye Bye September!

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Gone But Not Forgotten-Princess Diana

          She is gone but not forgotten, the fair princess; Lady Diana Spencer.  It has been 11 years since her death in a car accident in Paris. Her youth, her beauty, her energy has been frozen in time through the photos we view.  So much has happened since that time.  Her beloved boys have grown up, her ex-husband Prince Charles has remarried Diana’s nemesis, the world has continued to move onward. 

           Still, no one has ever been able to take Diana’s place of purchase in the hearts of the public who loved her so.  She who was able to accomplish so much in so little time here on the Earth.  Can you imagine how much more she would have been able to do in a world full of hurts because of her ability to leverage her legacy?  She set a great role model with the work that she did for charities…that does not have to end.  People can follow her example and achieve much in the world, through donating time and money to those in need.  So we remember her today…full of smiles, and a heart that bent towards those in need, those who suffered, and those who were meant to overcome.  How can you be a light in the world?

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Good Girl Barbie Teaches Bratz A Lesson

       Ok, here we go…a few months ago, i heard about a lawsuit on one of the ABC news programs between Mattel, the makers of the Barbie doll empire, and MGA Entertainment, Inc the makers of the Bratz doll line.  The issue seemed to spring from Mattel’s allegation that the designer Carter Bryant was working for them when he came up with the concept for the Bratz doll line; and therefore, they felt that it infringed upon their copyright since he was under contract to them at the time of the design; the jury seemed to agree.

         The jury awarded Mattel $100 million dollars in compensation today.  Wowie…that would pay for a whole lot of Barbie cars, Barbie swimming pools and certainly alot of Barbie mansions.   Now that $100 million, was nowhere near the amount that Mattel was seeking; it was more in the area of $1Billion dollars that they felt MGA should owe them with the success of the Bratz dolls,  toys and other assorted items MGA endorsed with the Bratz line. 

          I don’t know if you have ever seen the Bratz dolls but their heads are large…and they wear exceedingly seductive outfits and they have long hair and heavy makeup on these dolls.  They are very sensualized dolls that have been marketed to young girls and preteen girls as the heighth of fashion dolls.  In comparison, Barbie has been a mainstay in the toy market for years..but, since the sales began on the Bratz line…Barbie sales have fallen.  The competition seemed to pit the “good girl image” with the “bad girl image”…what image do you think young girls in a hurry to grow up wanted mom and dad to buy them?  Their choices are influenced by the things they see in our culture as “grown up”.   With growing concerns about body image and a healthy attitude towards their self concept…we need to understand the connection that takes place in a child’s world view and how that affects their emotional development! 

           Teaching young girls to value their bodies as something more than window dressing to get attention used to be the norm; that is no longer true.  Experts have been dealing with an increased awareness that young women are not happy with their bodies and will go to extremes to try to achieve the “look” that is in vogue.  We have young women (and young men) who are tortured with anorexia, who are struggling with obesity, who pay for plastic surgery to get their bodies to fit a certain mold, putting foreign substances such as botox into their bodies, breast augmentation, etc.   Educating them to the truth that the images they see in magazines and on television are adjusted with the magic of photo retouching and airbrushing techniques…that no-one has a perfect face or figure.  It is time to stop and teach young people the importance of self acceptance.  Stop allowing them to think that they don’t measure up to someone else’s standards of what is the ideal.

           We really need to examine the culture that we expose our children to from magazine articles, to television shows, to media advertising, to fashionable clothing lines that seem to say it is ok to dress our young girls in clothing meant for older teens or young adult women.  Everything is sexualized or sensual in it’s design…this marketing technique needs to be addressed.  We are allowing this, when we purchase these types of products for our children and then wonder why behaviors seem so out of synch with the type of behaviors that should be appropriate to their ages.

           Parents are the ultimate stop gap for their children…it is their money, for the most part, which purchases these items.  If we raise the bar on what we expose our children to…then, the industries that our dollars support will have to adapt to the demand for a more traditional age appropriate level of decency in the children’s clothing, toys, accessories, music, television programing, advertising, etc. 

            In an age where we try to protect our children from predators on the streets, in our schools and in every other area of life; we need to understand that if we send the children mixed messages about what is appropriate role modeling; how can we expect them to know when someone inappropriately crosses the line in their conduct?  Children learn their boundaries from the adults in their lives who set limits…so we need to re-examine how we condition our children by the choices that we make. 

            Children may still want the Bratz dolls over the Barbie dolls…who knows…children don’t always know what is in their best interests; however, the adults who care for them should know…shouldn’t they?

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Dance Machine

       Wow, last night’s Dances with the Stars was good.  It is never a dull show.  From Adam Carolla’s interesting display of a paso doble in a cape an performed in the beginning on a unicycle.  Hmmm…entertaining yes, dancing…not so much.  I know he has a following and he is funny…up to a point..usually at the point where he crossing the line into uncomfortable…and then…well…it is his night to leave i should think!  So Sorry Julianne Hough…i do love to see you dance…but…you don’t have much to work with this season, i am afraid.

        Priscilla Pressley was beautiful and graceful.  However, she was spotted by Len and Carrie Ann as doing a “lift”.  Although…it didn’t seem to hurt her score overmuch a 22 out of posssible 30.  Carrie Ann also complimented Priscilla on her facial expressions…some people definately disagree with that assessment.

          Mario, partnered with Karina, i thought did a decent job…i see him improving a bit each week.  He seems to definately have a desire to conquer the challenges put before him.  His scores weren’t impressive but they were improved over his scores of a week ago.

          Jason Taylor the football player is large but his footwork is improving.  He seems to be Trying to be graceful with his hands..however…at times it seems awkward.  But i have to say…wow…is there chemistry between him and Edyta.  Their dance, besides a stumble and awkward hand motions by Jason…seemed so filled with passion and attraction that it was almost hypnotic.  I sense something brewing here.

         Shannon Elizabeth did a great job for not being able to have much practice time with Dereck.  He is such a smooth dancer…i think he makes his partners shine.  However, Dereck was injured last week and had to be taken to the hospital because of a neck injury.  So Shannon had to practice with Jonathon…who i also adore.  But, still when it comes time to actually perform…it had to be difficult to transition from one partner to another.  Shannon looked beautiful and did a nice job.

          Christian de la Fuente who is Cheryl Burke’s dancing parnter was awesome.  He did a nice job.  Seems to be a bit of ego though going on between him and Cheryl about who needs to listen to who.  Both strong partners..if they can find a good working pattern they could be very high on the list of scores.

            Marissa Janet Winokur i loved watching perform.  No she isn’t a size 4 and watching her practice getting tossed around by Tony was almost painful.  But, she put all of that aside and tackled the practices with gusto.  Her performance was very good indeed.  However, i do wish the costume department would put a little more time and effort into “presenting” her costumes in a lovely way.  Her outfit this week looked like someone didn’t spend a lot of time trying to make her look good.  Marissa has the potential of becoming one of the better dancers strictly because of  her relationship with Tony.  She is like a sponge…he says it and she focusses her attention on attaining that goal.  I like her energy and her excitement when she is able to do what he throws at her.   Out of all of the seasons…i am truly enjoying watching Tony taking pride in Marissa.  He seems to be loving working with her.  Some of his other partners seemed to irritate him….he was all smiles last night with her.

          Marlee Matland is a marvel at what she has been able to accomplish.  When she said that she was having trouble with her balance last night during the turns…i could see that it was definately throwing her off.  There were some genuine oddities during her dance.  I love that she puts herself out there and for the most part has been a positive role model in reaching out and doing something just because she can.  She doesn’t let her deafness define who she is.  Balance is truly controlled in a large part by the inner ear…so i dont know how she will be able to fair throughout the whole competition if and when they get to dances that require many spins and turns…i hope she can find a way to counteract her off balance feeling.

          Kristi Yamaguchi is a dance machine.  She is very precise in her steps and for some reason seems to have to work hard at connecting to the judges on an emotional level.  I think she has been doing very well…in fact she got a 29 on her scores in spite of those criticisms of her lack of ability to conveyher emotional character in dance.  When she is able to do this to the judges approval she will have a perfect score…but it does seem that her dancing skills are being judged at a higher level than the other contestants.  She came out from the start with very good skills…but they are using her performances to compare the other dancers to her level of skill. 

          It will be getting harder on out from this point…because i think after tonight…those with lessor skills will be starting to leave the show.  The bar will keep being raised each week demanding improvement in all areas.

       

        

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