Friday, March 23, 2012

"Hunger Games"

Listening to a couple friends this morning talk about their midnight viewing of the new movie "Hunger Games" was a real treat. They have followed the trilogy in book form and now hope to do the same in video form. "Excited" is so far under their radar in describing their exuberance it's not funny. Maybe ecstatic and downright giddy would be closer. They don't care though how you describe them. A trip into fantasy is what they were after and a trip into fantasy is what they got. A theater owner, back in the day told me the reason so many people liked horror movies is because they wanted to be literally scared out of their wits with something that couldn't happen in real life so they were better prepared when something real and frightening did happen. In listening to the hunger games fans I wondered what they were searching for. Also while listening to them I was sort of envious of their total interest, knowledge and enjoyment of the whole thing.

Funny thing, this business of entertainment. Does it actually create a culture or does it simply cater to an existing culture. Of late it's been "Star Wars" "Transformers" "Harry Potter", all those vampires and werewolves and even angels and centaurs coming together to give us fright, wizardry and the battle between good and evil. Oh, what fun it is too. From my youth visions of Davey Crocket fighting river pirates and grizzly bears was a huge thrill and "Monster from the Black Lagoon" in 3D "The War of the Worlds" and "The Thing" were enough to scare the begeebies out of an entire generation. In going over old archives I have to say that "The Murder's of the Moulon Rouge" and "Count Dracula" in Black and white were two of the scariest ever.

I've never found enough interest to buy advance tickets or wait in line at midnight just to be the first to see a movie. But that's just me. The people I listened to this morning couldn't have been more thrilled if they'd of won the lottery. It was fun just being around them. I wish you a fun day also...................Joe

Thursday, March 22, 2012

Being happy is good for you.

It's good to be back! This year's treasure hunt required a lot of attention due to the increased frequency of the clues and all the new participants. What a blast! I am currently working on a riddle game for a local retirement community. This is very enjoyable as working with limited criteria is always a challenge. Everyone has their own idea of fun don't they?

The world has gone on very well without my complete attention. What a delight! Not being responsible for the entire population is a relief. The presidential candidates are hard at it, or rather each other. The president himself is enjoying a resurgence of employment for whatever reason. I seriously doubt however that it has anything to do with what the government is doing. After all, the American people are very resilient and even if we do complain loudly we usually get on with what needs to be done and get back to work. I am proud of us. Many people of other countries grouse about us but where is the first place they want to migrate to? Then when they get here, they want to change the place into the image of where they came from. Huh! I guess maybe we do that to by judging other countries by our standards, not theirs. Same O', Same '. As I said, I'm happy to say I'm not responsible for what goes on in the world.

Went to a casino the other week. Came back with $5.00 more than I left with and spent 4 hours there. Cheap entertainment. However, sat next to a woman that spent $800 and she was only there for an hour and a half. They don't build those fancy buildings on the winners do they? The warm weather advanced my annual walk to pick pussy-willows up two weeks. I went, picked a few and came home. The bounty was almost finished by the time I was there, even as early as I went. Only a few sprigs and they are close to spent already. I can't remember that happening before. It's always been the best blooms on the 15th of March. This year it must have been closer to the 15th of February. The times they are a changin'.

In my almost weekly meetings with the guys the conversation is leaning towards explaining who is responsible for a lot of our cultural and societal changes lately. We haven't settled on a complete answer yet. I'll get back to that another day. Meanwhile, think about it. I prefer to concentrate on how to live a happy life that spills over onto those around me. Far more enjoyable if you care to ask me. Laughing is a lot more fun than complaining don't you think?

I wish you a happy day. By the way: I've gotten it from a very reliable source that laughing is good for what ails you and strengthens the heart to boot. So there!
 
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