The Crab Chronicles

Confessions of a Former TV Junkie

Well, yesterday turned out nothing like what I had envisioned. The school meeting got postponed until Monday, was the big thing.However, I wasn't informed of that until after 10, so it was almost 11 before I got to work.

I ended up working until 5, and what with running errands after I got off work, and it was after 6 before I got home. Friday nights at my house are "sandwich nights." I don't cook.

I decided a few days ago to show Michael the series Moonlighting. He had never seen Bruce Willis with hair.I remember watching the show during it's run [1985-89] and never missing an episode. The writing was sharp, and I was seriously enamored of David Addison, the character Bruce Willis played.

Yeah, I was a serious TV junkie there for a while. OK, I was a TV junkie for about 20 years. I never missed an episode of Murphy Brown, St. Elsewhere, Hill Street Blues, Chicago Hope. To name just a few. I had a VCR and I taped things and watched them later.

My last series addiciton was Ally McBeal. It was completely unrealistic [get the case one day, do depositions the next day, trial the day after - AS IF! LOL]

What changed? I adopted my daughter. Suddenly, evenings were about homework, dinner, and movies to help her acclimate to American culture.

When I was childless, dinner often consisted of peanut butter crackers and a Diet Coke. Evenings were spent watching TV, or reading.

So I missed most everything on TV from 2005-2012. I still watch very little TV. Michael and I do like to watch Ghost Adventures on Friday and Saturday nights. Yeah, I believe in ghosts. What about it?! I'm gonna write a whole blog sometimes about all my REAL ghost encounters.

I also like Diners Drive Ins and Dives. Guy Fieri is a hoot. I watch his cooking show sometimes, too. I do not know how Guy cooks with all the jewelry he wears. Yikes.

Most of the reality shows on TV now are just crap, IMHO. Avoid TV and do something more constructive - read a book! Cook a good meal! [not in the microwave]

Salmon Fishing in the Yemen

After all the excitement on Friday, I needed a comewhat restful day yesterday, and I got it. The entire week was hectic. If I don't take some "down" time at the end of every week I get sick. It's inevitable. So hopefully yesterday was restful enough for me to avoid illness.

I have a friend named Dana who has been my friend now almost 20 years. We met right after I moved here in 1993, both working at the same law firm. We both love movies, so that's been our primary way of getting together over the years. I met Dana at the movie yesterday.

Yesterday's movie was just excellent, Salmon Fishing in the Yemen. A comedic love story, it had a lot of surprisingly clever dialogue and beautiful cinematography. It also had some surprising lessons about faith. I highly recommend it. I put the trailer below because I so want to help this movie find an audience.I want to buy it when it comes out on DVD, I already know, because it's such a gentle, wonderful movie.

 

I love Ewan McGregor because he's such a good actor and certainly easy on the eyes. However, when I read that he'd adopted a 4 year old girl from a Mongolian orphanage after filming a movie there, my opinion of him rose tremendously.

I know there's some backlash against celebrities adopting children internationally, but the more it's done, the more high-profile those adoptions are, I feel the better. He actually went to the orphanage and saw all those children and he adopted one. I don't know how anyone can visit ANY orphanage and not want to adopt at least one child. You give them a chance at a decent life, and sometimes you give them life itself, like my friend Stephanie.

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Michael and I also went for a walk in the mall, late yesterday afternoon. I prefer walking outside but we have a lot of hills around here, and right now I'm getting bitten by mosquitos every time I walk outside, which is maddening. I hate malls - lots of crap nobody needs, at idiotic prices.

Every time Michael would be fascinated by things at the mall, I'd remind him that he did not NEED yet another pair of tennis shoes. He now wants to go buy headphones. I think he should make do with earbuds, but he's determined to spend his money.

For dinner last night I had put pork chops in the oven and accidentally nearly burned them to a crisp. They were edible, barely. I was so glad I had some spaghetti squash to fix, and I bought some hashbrowns at the store. I don't usually endorse ready-made foods because in general I think people should fix fresh food. However, grating potatoes irritates my hands something fierce and Mike loves hashbrowns, so I discovered Simply Potatoes. They are in the same section as the pudding at Publix. These garlic and herb potatoes are terrific. I highly recommend them.

Those are the highlights of yesterday - sort of pitiful, huh?! So be it. Enjoy your Sunday.

The Winner

The winner of the Honeywine Cd by Rajdulari is: shoshanna1776@gmail.com

Congratulations!!

Y'all support Rajdulari. She's awesome! Thanks for playing!

Dee

Adam Sandler Sighting

My friend Judy has a blog I read pretty faithfully, in part because Judy is so funny. I don't remember how I first came across her blog, but she has a daughter adopted from Kazakhstan, so that's probably it. Anyway, I wanted to share the anecdote below [published by Judy on Wednesday] because I think it's hysterical, and it involves Adam Sandler, who is like a god at my house:

"Speaking of doctors, on Monday I took the girls to the pediatrician. No, they weren't sick. We had forms that needed to be filled out. I was trying to get the parking meter to take my credit card (does that work for the rest of you?) and sent the girls in ahead. Here's what happened. Apparently Alina walked into the inner office where she came face to face with Adam Sandler. Alina is our resident TV watcher and she recognizes everyone. We're hardly out when she doesn't point out someone she knows from somewhere. I usually can't verify her sightings because I don't recognize anyone. Anyway, she saw Adam Sandler and was introducing herself and shaking his hand when Celly walked out of the bathroom holding...........a cup of her own urine. No, they didn't shake hands. Her looked at her and said, "So, whas up?' Nice guy."

Michael asked me suspiciously, "Why was Adam Sandler at the PEDIATRICIAN?! Isn't he a little OLD to be going there?"

"He has two children, Michael," I explained calmly. That thought had never occurred to him. 

It's nice to know Adam goes to the pediatrician, just like a regular dad. And he is apparently nice to kids who randomly introduce themselves, even if they are holding cups of pee. I always suspected he was a mensch in real life...

 

A Colorful New Voice

A recent writing assignment brought me in contact with a singer I like a lot, Rajdulari. Below is my interview with her. Her album Honeywine is terrific. Raj was kind enough to send me a copy of her album and if you'll leave a comment here, I will draw a winner of the free CD on Saturday, February 18th.

 

 

A journey to the Grammys doesn’t always begin with a lot of cash and an entourage. Sometimes it begins simply with a huge talent, a lot of perseverance, and a dream.

Rajdulari (she doesn’t use her last name professionally) is a lady who has made it her mission to dream big. She just released her debut solo CD Honeywine and Raj knows it’s her best shot at making that Grammy dream a reality.

Life hasn’t always been a smooth ride. “Raj” as her friends call her, was born in Baltimore, raised by a single mom and spent much of her childhood in Michigan. Although her name is a Hindi word meaning “daughter of a king,” there wasn’t always much money when she was growing up, but there was plenty of music. “My mom always listened to jazz when I was younger.”

“I left home at 17 and worked for ten years before going back to school at age 26.” She was accepted at the very prestigious Berklee College of Music in Boston. On Berklee: “I was really intimidated at first, thinking all these people sang better than I did, but after I went for a while I started to find my own voice. Being around all those musicians actually helped me to be more myself.”

Raj isn’t a tiny lady. She is all about curves, and she’s proud of her body. “Who I am is part and parcel of my music. It’s important for young women to see they can be whoever they are. I embrace my curves! Thank goodness mainstream media is finally starting to promote curvy women – look at Toccara Jones, Queen Latifah, Jill Scott.”

Just like the singers who inspire her, Raj isn’t about easy labels. “I love Diane Reeves and Bobby McFerrin, Jill Scott, Chaka Khan. Those are some of the folks I listen to for inspiration.”

Raj has no aspirations to be a pop singer. She is a jazz vocalist.

Raj recently moved to New York City, completely unfamiliar with the city and knowing only a few friends. It was a huge leap of faith. She knew however that if she answered the call to follow her dream, she would have an “enriched life.” She quickly found her way, and let her voice be heard. She now works in an office during the day, but loves to sing after hours. She’s been appearing a lot at a little club called Billie’s Black.

Her CD was a labor of love. Raj’s musician friends helped her record it, but it’s a polished effort. She wasn’t going to sit around and wait to be “discovered,” either. “I don’t need anybody to hand me anything. This music is my baby. I need to share it with people.”

If you listen to “Honeywine” you will quickly learn that Raj has an amazing voice, and she paints music with a broad palette. “When I decided to branch out, I knew I wanted to do fusion. Music is a language with a lot of colors.”

Raj wrote most of the songs on “Honeywine,” and she is justifiably proud of her accomplishment. Every song has particular meaning for her.  “My favorite song on the album is “Purpose.” It really outlines my mission. It’s important for any dream that you CLAIM it. When I listen to “Purpose” it reminds me of who I am and what I want!”

“America” is a love song for America. What beauty we have here. There is even beauty in our differences. Despite all the problems in the country, we need each other.  We need to celebrate each other.”

Why should someone buy Honeywine? “It’s not something you’ve heard before. I really want people to feel like I’m giving them jewels from my heart and to be as excited about the music as I am.”

The title of her album was a very deliberate choice for Raj.

“Honeywine is actually an Ethiopian wine, very sweet, almost like a desert wine. You take a sip and think, "ok that’s nice", but then you want more and more. I want people to listen to my songs like that, to hear them over and over until the message in the songs sneaks up on them, just like the honeywine.”

Rajdulari may not be an easy name to pronounce, but it’s worth the effort. Some Grammy presenter will have a fun time with it one day. Take a taste of Honeywine – you’ll want more and more, I predict.

 

 

photo credit: Kevin P. Tyson


 Photo credit Kevin P. Tyson

Memphis (the musical)

Really busy, frenetic day, but the highlight was Michael and I got to see a stage show called Memphis at the fabulous Fox Theater. Wow, what a fun show! (You can see a sneak peek of it here.) I am writing a review of it, hopefully sometime tomorrow. Stay tuned for more...

Angels Among Us

These weirdly long holiday weekends this year are nice, but they leave me feeling somewhat discombobulated. I don't know what to do with myself with so much time off.

Bruce took Michael to the new Mission Impossible movie yesterday, and did I get anything done? No, not really. Did some reading. Wrapped some things to mail. Cleaned the kitchen.

We de-Christmasized the house yesterday, in record time. Now our family room looks 50% bigger, but somehow empty without the big tree.Michael was very helpful during the process but I know he's a bit down. He loves Christmas. That's one reason I suggested he and Bruce go to the movie. A good distraction.

I've gotten where in recent years I leave out some of the collection of angels, more and more, because it does my heart good to see them. I believe in angels.

I have spoken to Alesia several times over the holidays. She sounds good, and says she is fine and not to worry. Of course, I worry still. However, she is articulating [without me asking] that she needs to finish school and get some job skills, which is great. She also promised to send me an address where I can send her things. That's a good start.

I finally finished reading There is No Hope Here, the book about my friend Julie Holland and her work with the impoverished folks in Appalachia. I was amazed at how skillfully Richard Biggs wrote the book, capturing feelings and painting vivid scenes. He's not a writer by trade. I admire his ability to tell the story.

Julie sent me an autographed copy of the book to give away, and if you'd like it, leave me a comment or shoot me an email. First come, first served.

There Is No Hope Here

When you see extreme poverty up close, it changes you. You either recoil and try to put it out of your mind, or you resolve to help.

I'll never forget one time my dad taking me inside the hovel where our maid lived when I was a small child. We drove her home every day. She lived in a shack with a dirt floor. I was stunned into silence and clung to Daddy's leg. I was no more than about 3 or 4 but that image has stayed with me.

I will never forget reading depositions when I was a very young paralegal, in Knoxville, and being in total shock. The firm where I worked represented coal companies in lawsuits for black lung. The miners usually lived back in the mountains, in remote areas, and had many children, no education, and often no electricity or running water. They lived without hope, without enough food, or warm clothes in winter, often illiterate, and they were less than 2 hours' drive from Knoxville.

When I saw the tiny shacks in Russia in 2003, with dirt floors and outhouses in the back, I remember thinking to myself, these remind me of the places I used to read about, tiny places where poverty is an everyday ugliness. It doesn't matter the language or the customs. Poverty is universal.

I had no idea I would spend a significant amount of money and time giving two children a decent life, away from that misery. I think of my son, homeless until age 8, and of my daughter, living in just such a shack until age 6, and I want to help other kids like them. I just can't adopt them all.

 

I went to high school with a pretty girl named Julie Burnette. She was a majorette. She was very pretty and very sweet. We didn't "hang out" but we were aware of each other. I was socially awkward and sort of a geeky kid, so we ran in different circles, but my impression was always that she was a good person. She wasn't snobby, like some of the really pretty girls at my school.

I had no idea until we connected on Facebook that Julie has lived an amazing life in the last thirty years.

While I was living the yuppy life, drinking lattes and going to the gym and writing screenplays in the early to mid 90's, Julie Holland (her married name) was reaching out to people in real poverty in Eastern Kentucky.

Borrowing from Amazon, this is the product description for a new book about Julie, There is No Hope Here.

"When, in 1994, Julie Holland heard God’s whispers, she turned to her step-father for help. John Boggs was a wealthy businessman who had escaped the poverty of Appalachia eastern Kentucky by attending a settlement school where he received comfort and an education. Growing up in poverty, he understood how a lack of hope sapped your soul. “Listen to your heart,” he told her. “Your heart will guide you.” She did and her heart led her to travel from Knoxville, Tennessee to minister to the families in those rugged mountains. THERE IS NO HOPE HERE is a true story, marked by humor and sadness, as a glimpse is offered into the eyes and souls of Appalachian poverty. It’s the story of how her love inspired others to follow and led to the start of the Mission of Hope, one of the most respected Christian charitable organizations in the southeast. It’s the story of Julie’s walk with God as He upholds her through the darkness of discouragement and a life-threatening illness. It’s an inspirational story set in one of the most challenging and beautiful places in America."

I am reading the book very quickly and yet slowly. It's so powerful that I often find tears in my eyes and I have to put it down.

Not only did Julie start her own charity, she did it while suffering from Lupus.

I am giving away 2 copies of the book. Leave me a comment or shoot me a Facebook message or email and I will enter your name in a drawing. I will draw the names of the winners December 21 [Wed.].

Thanks to Julie and others Mission of Hope is a thriving organization that helps people who really need it, right here in America. If you have any extra funds and want to donate to a very worthwhile cause, please donate to Mission of Hope.

The Visitor from Afar

It would be nice if we could have a white Christmas but I don't expect it. Right now we are having a cold, rainy spell. We needed all this last summer. Now my pansies are drowning.

It was so stuffy upstairs here last night I actually ran the air conditioner all night, on fan.

About 8:30 last night we had finished dinner and I was just sitting down in the family room to watch a movie, when the doorbell rang. Very unusual.

I went to the door and called out "Who's there?" but there was no answer. I flipped on the porch light and peeked out, and it was Svitlana, all the way from Khabarovsk, Russia.Startled is an understatement.

I opened the door and gave her a hug.

Svitlana is a Baptist missionary who works with kids in orphanages all over Khabarovsk. She was instrumental in helping me adopt Alesia. She met with the orphanage director, who didn't like Americans and didn't want me to adopt Alesia. Somehow, she changed his mind.

We had a good, but brief visit. The first words out of her mouth were "Where is Alesia?"

I had to tell her Alesia is living in South Carolina with a boyfriend. I told her the basic situation. We prayed for Alesia.

She tried to speak Russian with Michael, which embarrassed him. He said sheepishly, I know what you are saying but I can't answer in Russian.[I am getting him some Russian learning materials for Christmas. He wants to re-learn it, which is great.]

My mother said later it was rather rude to just drop in without calling first, but I explained in Russia people drop in all the time without calling. Nobody thinks it's rude. Besides, Svitlana's English isn't perfect, so I don't think she likes to try and speak it on the phone.

She had a friend waiting outside in the car, so she didn't stay long. It was very bittersweet, seeing her.

This was December 2004 in Khabarovsk, at a little going-away dinner for Alesia. Svitlana is in the red jacket and Olga, Alesia's tutor, is on her other side. They were so happy she was coming to America, getting a chance at a better life.I talk about her a lot in my book about Alesia's adoption.

Before bed last night I just cried and cried. All I could think about was my profound sadness at how Alesia is squandering these precious young years of her life. It breaks my heart.

I am better today. I have to just trust God to keep her safe. I pray for her many times a day.

On a happier note...

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I was contacted by a lady who works for a lovely company called Tinyprints. There are some really cool gift ideas, if you're pondering what to get someone.

I'm delighted to say, readers of the Crab Chronicles get a nice discount on the site.

When you order, use this code: 10TPSPECIAL and receive 10% off a purchase. (Excludes gifts & calendars, photo books, stamps, and the William Arthur and Eric Condren products.)

Create custom business cards and custom stationary at TinyPrints.com. Find creative ways to make anything from Christmas cards to graduation announcements. Become a part of the TinyPrints community by visiting the blog for news, trends, creative ideas, promotions and more.

[NOTE: If the above links don't work, let me know.]

Unique Christmas Gift Ideas

I RECEIVED THIS FROM A FRIEND AND I LIKED IT.

As the holidays approach, the giant Asian factories are kicking into high gear to provide Americans with monstrous piles of cheaply produced goods -- merchandise that has been produced at the expense of American labor. This year will be different. This year Americans will give the gift of genuine concern for other Americans. There is no longer an excuse that, at gift giving time, nothing can be found that is produced by American hands. Yes there is!

It's time to think outside the box, people. Who says a gift needs to fit in a shirt box, wrapped in Chinese produced wrapping paper?

Everyone -- yes EVERYONE gets their hair cut. How about gift certificates from your local American hair salon or barber?

Gym membership? It's appropriate for all ages who are thinking about some health improvement.

Who wouldn't appreciate getting their car detailed? Small, American owned detail shops and car washes would love to sell you a gift certificate or a book of gift certificates.

Are you one of those extravagant givers who think nothing of plonking down the Benjamines on a Chinese made flat-screen? Perhaps that grateful gift receiver would like his driveway sealed, or lawn mowed for the summer, or driveway plowed all winter, or games at the local golf course.

There are a bazillion owner-run restaurants -- all offering gift certificates. And, if your intended isn't the fancy eatery sort, what about a half dozen breakfasts at the local breakfast joint. Remember, folks this isn't about big National chains -- this is about supporting your home town Americans with their financial lives on the line to keep their doors open.

How many people couldn't use an oil change for their car, truck or motorcycle, done at a shop run by the American working guy?

Thinking about a heartfelt gift for mom? Mom would LOVE the services of a local cleaning lady for a day.

My computer could use a tune-up, and I KNOW I can find some young guy who is struggling to get his repair business up and running.

OK, you were looking for something more personal. Local crafts people spin their own wool and knit them into scarves. They make jewelry, and pottery and beautiful wooden boxes.

Plan your holiday outings at local, owner operated restaurants and leave your server a nice tip. And, how about going out to see a play or ballet at your hometown theatre.

Musicians need love too, so find a venue showcasing local bands.

Honestly, people, do you REALLY need to buy another ten thousand Chinese lights for the house? When you buy a five dollar string of light, about fifty cents stays in the community. If you have those kinds of bucks to burn, leave the mailman, trash guy or babysitter a nice BIG tip.

You see, Christmas is no longer about draining American pockets so that China can build another glittering city. Christmas is now about caring about US, encouraging American small businesses to keep plugging away to follow their dreams. And, when we care about other Americans, we care about our communities, and the benefits come back to us in ways we couldn't imagine. THIS is the new American Christmas tradition.

This is a revolution of caring about each other, and isn't that what Christmas is about?

For a list of products made in the USA check out this site.