Posts tagged relationships
December 16, 2011 · Filed under My Book: BookMark, News, Personal · Tagged abuse, alcoholism, career, healing, inspiration, Jerry Sandusky, Mike McQueary, mother, optimism, pedophilia, Penn State, physical health, positive thinking, rape, relationships, self awareness, stepfather, therapy, trauma
Brutal news week.
I used to draw down a wall between my life and the news. As I anchored the news, reading about others’ pain, I didn’t feel my own. I was inured from the intrusions of decades of sexual abuse. I could focus on WhoWhatWhenWhereWhyHow and script the stories, read my own words, tell the story. That’s over. It’s actually been over for a few years until I could finally break down that inviolate partition. I was healed. I thought.
But this was a brutal news week. Read the rest of this entry »
October 14, 2011 · Filed under Movie Reviews · Tagged dancing, friendship, happiness, inspiration, relationships
Footloose – the one with Kevin Bacon – was the first movie my older son ever saw. He was weeks old at the time. He smiled and laughed and bounced in the dark theatre. So did I.
The music – Footloose and Let’s Hear It For the Boys– kicked ass then, and it does now, along with the eight new songs on the soundtrack. That baby is now 27-years old, and, with a start in life like Footloose, you bet he can dance.
Suffice it to say I have fond memories of the original, but for someone who never sees a movie or reads a book twice, I am delighted with this remake. I’m easy – give me a fast pace, slices of humor interspersed with tragedy, and dance dance dance. I’m there. And, usually, memorizing the choreography so I can dance it when I get the soundtrack.
But I wanted more dance from this new Footloose. More singing. And, those red boots Ariel wore – oh, yeah, I wanted those, too.
I didn’t miss Kevin Bacon or Lori Singer – the maverick out-of-towner and the preacher’s daughter – from the earlier Footloose, because Kenny Womald as Ren McCormick and Julianne Hough as Ariel, dazzled and crackled. They demonstrated dimension even while dancing.
And I loved the conversion of Ren’s sidekick. Not talking religion here. Though, you may recall Footloose is about a big-city boy, Ren, who gets stuck in a small-town where a three-year ban is instituted by the preacher/councilman (Dennis Quaid in the 2011 film) after his only son is killed in a head-on after a booze-fueled dance. No, we’re talking about the conversion of a slow-talking Southerner to learn how to dance.
Sometimes I wanted Director Craig Brewer to hang onto the scene longer – and more singing and dancing – but, you know what? I would go see Footloose again. And, next time bring my firstborn son.
***
Actually, we just came back from Redbox, and noticed the old Footloose on the display.
He said we should see the new Footloose.
I said I did.
Without me? he asked.
Guess I’m going to see the new Footloose again.
May 12, 2011 · Filed under Author Interviews, Book Reviews · Tagged Conquer the Odds: Pursuing Your Passion, fearless, friendship, happiness, inspiration, media industry, relationships, self awareness, trauma
The Four Purposes of Life: Finding Meaning and Direction in a Changing World
By Dan Millman
PublishedApril 14, 2011 (Hardcover) H J Kramer
Dan Millman’s life looked spelled out. A trampoline artist, his next stop was the Olympics. But, weeks before he was to leave, another life plan intervened – Dan was in a motorcycle accident. And it shattered his leg in forty places.
The story is told in his Way of the Peaceful Warrior, and adapted into a feature film Peaceful Warrior, starring Nick Nolte. All that came before our first meeting, when I interviewed Dan about his book Everyday Enlightenment. It was a good ten years ago, but he remembered me, graciously saying that he had enjoyed that interview.
Despite the rain, Dan had walked to the studio where we met. The cameramen still fussing with lighting and gear, Dan and I sat on a bench, reconnecting. There was no hurry to Dan. No rush. Just as in his book
The Four Purposes of Life, Dan lives in the moment. That’s the fourth purpose, by the way, a blend of the first three, living in the moment.
The first purpose is learning life’s lessons. Much like his motorcycle accident derailed his Olympic dreams, life often has grander plans for us. Dan is a teacher, sweet and humble, admits he doesn’t always get it right, but, well, that’s what life is for, it’s a classroom. Fortunately, it’s pass/fail, and we get to try again. Let me rephrase that – life will hit us again, harder each time, till we get the lesson. The second purpose is finding your career and your calling – which may not be the same thing! The third purpose is discovering your life path. You can find that on Dan’s website, it is akin to numerology. Mine is 35/8. The three is for expression, the five for freedom, and the eight pertains to recognition.
After editing, the interview will be posted on the
Earth2World network – a new venture for me. It’s video – and I’m open to attracting the perfect sponsors for my show,
Conquer the Odds: Pursuing Your Passion. After the interview, Dan signed my book “for my respected friend, media angel, Diana.” I may have blushed.
The main takeaway for me? Just enjoy life – whatever comes at you – and realize that it’s all on purpose. It’s a faith thing. One of my lessons.
May 6, 2011 · Filed under Personal · Tagged abuse, career, father, fearless, film, healing, inspiration, mother, movie, optimism, pedophilia, positive thinking, rape, relationships, self awareness, stepfather, storytelling, The Kings Speech, therapy
It’s been awhile since I’ve blogged. And, this is, in part, an apology for not having checked in. I’ve been making my own art, and making a living. I’ve been interviewing and reading – just haven’t written here.
I decided to take tonight “off,” and not produce the 30-minute podcastor, not prep for my next appearance on KOIN-TV’s Studio 6, not rework the last two chapters of my memoir. Instead, my housemate, who is leading me into learning how to “play,” watched with me the Academy Award winning movie, The King’s Speech.
The film struck me deep. Read the rest of this entry »
January 21, 2011 · Filed under Events · Tagged acting, Ashton Kutcher, film, fuck-buddies, FWB, inspiration, movies, Natalie Portman, no strings attached, passion, relationships, screenplay, self awareness, storytelling, writing
I saw the trailer for No Strings Attached a few months ago with a date, igniting my desire to see the film. He mumbled, with an edge to his voice, “No Strings Attached? That never happens to me!”
“Does to me,” I whispered softly, so no one could hear. “A lot.”
Now that I’ve seen No Strings Attached, Read the rest of this entry »
November 29, 2010 · Filed under Book Reviews · Tagged cooking, destiny, family, happiness, inspiration, law of attraction, lightness, optimism, passion, positive thinking, recipes, relationships
Inspired Destiny: Living a Fulfilling and Purposeful Life
By Dr John F Demartini
Published July 2010 (Paperback) HayHouse
Total Law of Attraction: Unleash Your Secret Creative Power to Get What You Want!
Dr David Che
Published May 2010 (Paperback) Blue Note Publications
I’ve been a student of Law of Attraction for close to three decades, gravitating toward metaphysical authors from the very first interviews I did for whatever media outlet would use my work – AP Radio Network, mostly, and a fiercely conservative news-talk station where I called my first book series “New Ways.” At the time, the phrase New Age was emerging. I thought I was being clever.
I read every kind of book there is, and about that same time, I picked up a book on witchcraft. A phrase jumped out at me – and it stayed with me all these years. The phrase – used when you screw up – is “I take it out of the Law.” Only recently did I understand what was going on. Read the rest of this entry »
November 9, 2010 · Filed under Author Interviews, Book Reviews · Tagged family, fiction, inspiration, novel, passion, relationships, self awareness, storytelling, writing
Great House: A Novel
By Nicole Krauss
Published October 5, 2010 (Hardcover) WW Norton
My glass desk seems suddenly boring. Although, it is the one where my iMac gleams, where two mics suspend over it, where Nicole Krauss and I discuss her book, Great House.
Brilliant book. A magnificent painting of lives with brush strokes that don’t tell all. Only haunt. Read the rest of this entry »
October 17, 2010 · Filed under Book Reviews · Tagged abuse, beautiful, diet, fashion models, father, fearless, goals, happiness, healing, healthy diet, inspiration, media industry, positive thinking, relationships, self awareness, stepfather, trauma, workout
Rock What You’ve Got: Secrets to Loving Your Inner and Outer Beauty From Someone Who’s Been There and Back
By Katherine Schwarzenegger
Published September 14, 2010 (Hardcover) Voice
“When did life turn into a constant beauty pageant?” Katherine Schwarzenegger asks in her book Rock What You’ve Got. Smart book. Substantive. So before you start hearing her father’s voice saying “I’ll be back,” in your head, listen up. If you’ve got a daughter – maybe even if you just are a daughter – you’ll relate to a lot in her hot pink and purple book. I’m interviewing Katherine tomorrow about her book at my home studio.
Only two percent of women describe themselves as beautiful. Which may mean that those women are the models you see in fashion magazines. The average fashion model is over six feet tall and weighs far less than 120 pounds. The average American woman is five feet four inches tall and weighs 140 pounds. Less than five-percent of all women have the body they see in those mags. Read the rest of this entry »
October 11, 2010 · Filed under Author Interviews, Book Reviews · Tagged abuse, angels, dancing, fearless, fiction, happiness, healing, inspiration, mother, motherhood, novel, optimism, pedophilia, positive thinking, rape, relationships, self awareness, stepfather, storytelling, trauma, writing
Room
By Emma Donoghue
Published September 13, 2010 (Hardcover) Little, Brown and Company
If you have a five-year old, you know how pivotal that year is. A bridge between fantasy and reality, between playing with anything and going to school where you play with what you are given, between trusting just nearby adults and trusting an expanding world. Trust. What is really real.
Five is a touch-point. You remember being five in your own life. What happened then may have altered your direction in life. It did for me. It did for Jack, in this bestselling novel by Emma Donoghue. Read the rest of this entry »
September 20, 2010 · Filed under Book Reviews · Tagged business, career, fearless, goals, happiness, inspiration, manifest, marketing, optimism, pitch, positive thinking, relationships, self awareness, selling, storytelling, writing
The Go-Giver: A Little Story About a Powerful Business Idea
By Bob Burg and John David Mann
Published December 27, 2007 (Hardcover) Portfolio
Nearly always I share reviews and interviews with you about the newest books on the market. But sometimes books just show up, and they’re not necessarily new, maybe they’re even ancient.
Like Bob Burg’s three-year old book The Go-Giver. It’s a sweet little parable with five resounding lessons. A newer book just hit – Go-Givers Sell More - driving home those key points.
Go-Givers Sell More
By Bob Burg and John David Mann
Published February 18, 2010 (Hardcover) Portfolio
The books comfort. Success, the authors say, doesn’t come from the hard sell. It stems from kindness and caring, thinking of the value, you, individually, can deliver. I’ll give you the five lessons in a moment. The wise old character in The Go-Giver gently urges his so-called secrets to be given away. We’re all better for it. Read the rest of this entry »
