Happy Easter & Happy Earth Day!

I know its way early, but I wanted to post this before I pulled the plug on my PC…

April 1st is “April Fools Day”
April 4th is Easter Sunday
Earth Day; “A Global Day of Action” is April 22nd.
It’s also “National Humor Month” and “Stress Awareness Month”. [Probably due to taxes]
Here are some other holidays celebrated during the month of April, you may wish to consider…

Did you know that April 2nd, is “National Peanut Butter & Jelly Day”?
If you read last month’s St Patties Day post… You’d be partying with the Goobers by now!

April 14th is “International Moment of Laughter Day”?
Seems appropriate, as the 15th is tax day.

How about April 15th is “Rubber Eraser Day”?
Seems appropriate also, as it’s tax day.
Odd that there’s not a “Cry in Your Beer Day”, right after the tax-filing deadline?

Did you know that April 19th is “National Garlic Day”?
So if you prefer using it as a vegetable, herb, a medicine, to ward off evil spirits or just in your favorite pasta sauce, today is the day to enjoy!
April 19th is also “Patriot's Day” [Big on the east coast] it commemorates the Battle of Lexington and Concord and it honors the ride of Paul Revere.

April 26th is “National Pretzel Day”?
Seems only fair as National Potato Chip Day was last month…
Pretzels date back to 610AD in Southern France. Monks baked thin strips of dough into the shape of a child's arms folded in prayer and presented them to good students as treats.
One soft pretzel and pass the yellow mustard please!

Did you know that April 30th is “National Honesty Day”?
There are a few rules to be followed to properly observe this day…
#1 Just be honest!
[Scratching head…]
Why can I not help but feel, politicians and lobbyists not only do not celebrate today, but also are completely unaware of it?

Don’t forget to fill out, complete and return your 2010 Census form…That way we’ll be able to be represented by the proper number of Bozo’s in Washington DC… Don’t care for the District you’re registered to vote in? Give em a chance… they’ll change that too!

I’ll be off line for a while as I relocate [move] back east… Hope to be settled in, back up and running by late April or early May. So search the web for April, May, etc Holidays and find the link for Holiday Insights. It’s on the web, so it has to be true! Have some fun with it!
Happy Easter and Happy Earth Day.

“The first of April is the day we remember what we are the other 364 days of the year.” Mark Twain

An Irish Blessing

Beagán agus a rá go maith
[Say little but say it well]

My lineage can best be described as “Heinz 57”, but I do proudly lay claim to at least being 1/8 Irish, hailing from the clans of McGlinn and McBride on my father’s side.

So in honor of my father and my 1/8 claim to Irish fame…

An Irish Blessing

May there always be work for your hands to do

May your purse always hold a coin or two

May the sun always shine upon your window pane

May a rainbow be certain to follow each rain

May the hand of a friend always be near to you

and May God fill your heart with gladness to cheer you.

Happy Saint Patrick’s Day!

“A best friend is like a four leaf clover: hard to find and lucky to have.” Author Unknown

And the Winner is…

Once again its time for The Academy Awards, also know as the “Oscars”.
An annual presentation by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry.

H-m-m-m-m… I wonder what else is on?

I can’t seem to get all that worked up about Hollywood’s show for self-gratification and stroking of inflated egos.
There was a time it meant something, but that time has faded like the movie luminaries of days gone by.
Watching the commercials leading up to tonight’s presentation… Even they seem strained to find some value in a point of tuning in to watch.
Why bother?
Sound bites and video clips will be polluting the airwaves for weeks afterwards.

Maybe its because we don’t really have actors, actresses and directors with a collective body of works that reach into our hearts, minds and souls. There doesn’t seem to be any thought provoking story lines; nothing to feed grit, determination, joy and sorrow into our imaginations.
A while ago there was a mystique about those few individuals, where just enough information was provided to entice us to crave even more of the adaptation of their craft.

What we have now are “entertainers”, with some “name recognition”; cheap and scandalous publicity stunts and new levels of improper behavior.
Whereas the special effects can boggle the mind, there’s nothing left to feed the imagination. There is no longer a mystique, because somewhere in a tabloid or on the Internet, there are nude pictures and grocery lists of tawdry affairs and dealings… Pointing to the inevitable fact that these people have weaknesses and similarities pretty much like everybody else.

I guess I’m finding myself longing for those golden days when an actor or director’s name alone, would stop us in our tracks and there would be instant recognition or recollection of ALL their preceding good and spectacular works.
I miss the “Giants” of the film industry!
That handful of Legends!
Those few names that even today, across the generational pool of audiences everywhere are still recognized…








Bogart, Davis, Wayne, Hepburn, Hitchcock…
Just to mention a few…

These people were recognized for their work and dedication to their craft, not for how much their last project “raked in”, who they are currently sleeping with or what rehab they’re in…

Not one actress or actor today seems to carry that clout!
Some maybe come close, but it seems to be just out of their reach.
The only director… The only “Story Teller” that seems to focus attention to the craft of film making on a continuing bases would be Ron Howard!

Let’s not forget those rising stars of the entertainment field…
That get their big break, their “Breakout Piece of Work”… that show a spark of that seemingly long lost talent, commitment and promise to the craft…
Who unfortunately in some cases will be dead by next year from an accidental drug overdose or who were stalked and murdered by an obsessed fan.

What have we got this year?
Technical advances in the film industry… 3-D cartoons.
Technical advances are good. They provide an increase range of what can be done with the craft, imagination and the storyline.
Those technical advances should be a new “Tool” and not be the actual storyline!

So I guess the winner is, “The Process” and those actors, actresses and directors will be given their commemorative statuette for supporting that process.
We’ll listen to their acceptance speeches, as they thank a litany of faceless people, who they may or may not actually be able to pick out in a lineup and gawk at their costumes worn especially for the presentation or possible shock value.

In weeks to come new ad campaigns will ply us with, “Winner of…” or “Nominated for…” which will have to justify the price increase of a bucket of popcorn from seven to ten dollars… or get us to punch it in on Pay For View.

The winner may be The Process…
The runner up may just be the art...

“What does the Academy Award mean? I don't think it means much of anything.” Sally Field-1980

Spring is in the air…

I’m certain that in parts of the US, still digging out, or digging out again from Mother Nature’s latest winter reminder, there would be a handful of folks ready to, “Take me out back and put a whoopin on me” for the mere mention of such blasphemy! Probably using snow shovels to complete the task.
At the very least, I’m certain there would be more then a few very colorful replies.

According to the almanac and calendar we’re at 16 days and counting…

First, I honestly don’t think that Mother Nature even looks at the calendar anymore… Then again, perhaps Mother Nature has put El Nino in charge of the seasons, similar to the air traffic controller in New York, who brought his son into work and allowed the little lad to direct, although “Supervised”, aircraft arriving and departing the airport.

Second, my comment about spring was principally from my perspective and locale, here in Arizona. We still have cold nights here in the desert, but the daylight hours have begun to warm, provided of course the sun actually puts in an appearance. Yes, Arizona has had snow this winter too, but the clincher is that this year, we’ve had a flood of rain, with more forecast in the next few days.

The Chambers of Commerce here in the Phoenix dust bowl area, tout 360 days of sun each year! They also tout housing, education and economy as receiving high marks overall.
So much for truth in advertising!

The rains we’ve received will launch a bumper crop of desert wild flowers throughout the Sonora Desert and will briefly add a whole new dimension of color to the usual browns and grays common to the spectrum.

So from my perspective, spring is in the air…
All sorts of weeds have begun to make their appearance, popping through the “desert landscaping”.
That landscaping being rocks! Cracked granite.
Notices have already gone out from the KGB, also referred to as the HOA [Home Owners Association] along with notice being served that the exterior of the houses need a fresh coat of paint! Such a “Frank Burns” mentality!

So I’ve begun to do my part… pulling the weeds and running the lawn mower for the first time in 2010.
Not missing a beat, my sinuses kicked right in, providing me with a nasty sinus headache to go to bed with last night and awake with this morning! 3:30 am is one hell of a time to awake in the morning! So spring is in the air here in the desert and currently up my nose!

Other locales will have to hold on to the idea that spring is right around the corner… If you require proof of that and have lost trust in the calendar too, just note how many new commercials are appearing on the TV, that guarantee if you use their little miracle pill or new break through exercise device, not only will you lose weight, but you’ll have sex!
At the very least, you’ll undress with someone.

The seasons are the seasons!
Eventually spring will arrive, then summer, then fall and again winter.
As the recent earthquake in Chile has experts pondering how much the earth has been tilted off its axis…
They’ll get here, when they get here.

Enjoy today, they’ll be something new to ponder about tomorrow.

“In the Spring, I have counted 136 different kinds of weather inside of 24 hours.” Mark Twain