DVD Thoughts - Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome

Wow. I have not watched this movie in many years. I was shocked at how many scenes I still remembered. This time the film had a different effect on me today then when I watched in the past. I had to really face the fact that world wide nuclear destruction could really happen. 9/11 had not happened when I watched this way back when.

Looking at the devastated buildings of the city skyline reminded me too much of 9/11 and war torn countries in the news today. Of course not on such a huge scale as the movie but it is a sobering thought that we really have to think about terrorists attacks.

On a more positive note, I had forgotten just how handsome the young Mel Gibson was back in the day. I love the Mad Max character. He did not ever give up. Mad Max was determined to survive. It must be true that only the strong will survive.

 It would have been so easy to just give up and go crazy after surviving such a horrible event in world history but the human race pushed forward and adapted to be able to live the best way they could.

After I watched the movie, I thought about how good most people in the world have it in their day to day lives. We take so much for granted: clean water, food, shelter, access to medical care, electricity, and law enforcement. If you think about it, their are countries in which the people live a life that closely resembles the world of Mad Max. Two men enter, One man leaves. I am so glad this is NOT the way disagreements are settled.

Lastly, Tina Turner was so cool to watch on screen. Love strong powerful intelligent female characters. Definitely loved the chain mail dress and those huge hoop earrings.

 Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome gave me a lot to think about and even more to be thankful for.

Thanks for reading!

Did You Enjoy Giving Up Today?

I know the title of this post may sound a bit strange but please bare with me for a moment.

There are important tasks or situations you had to take some type of action on today. Did you enjoy giving up and not doing what needed to be done to complete the task or resolve the problem?

Stop and really think about this.

When we choose not to do things, do we do this because it feels better to not do anything because we didn't want to do the task in the first place?

For example, it felt good to put off exercising because you really are not completely committed to changing your lifestyle. It feels good to complain about being overweight but to actually do a simple exercise movement is too much effort.

Procrastination is so commonplace in our lives. At first putting off things give us a false sense of relief. I have more time to do that difficult thing later you think to yourself. When I delay the activity I had scheduled , maybe the situation will have changed and I will not have to actually make the effort and perform the difficult task. Being lazy can be enjoyable.

Fear of the unknown is so powerful. Fear is paralyzing. Fear can block you from moving forward in your life.

We do this so often, it must feel good at times to just "give up" at times in our lives.

Now for the reality check: You can only put off things for a while until eventually they rise up, come back at the worse time possible and bite us in the butt. That brief feeling of euphoria that comes with giving for a moment, can quickly turn on us and become that horrible nasty feeling of stress. 

I have been watching a Farscape DVD Marathon. In one episode, the character Ka Dargo was talking about finding the son he had not seen for years and he spoke some words of wisdom. He said something to the effect if he stopped trying it DEFINITELY will not happen.

When you do nothing, nothing is absolutely what you will get. When you stop trying, that's it. Game over. Dreams will definitely never come true when you give up.

Push yourself through the easy safe convenient feeling of giving up. Rethink your strategy. Research the problem. Ask for help. Set a timer to make yourself take all the emotion out of getting the task done. Make the effort. Your dreams and goals are completely worth pushing through the scary feelings of uncertainty.

 Is giving up your guilty pleasure?

Thanks for reading!

Picture Tour Of Crabtree Valley Mall - Raleigh North Carolina

A store full of all types of candy.

I always buy something from this store when I go to this mall. A pencil or a small notebook. I have been doing this for years.

Sanrio store - Hello! Hello Kitty you are so cute.

Crabtree Valley is a a beautiful mall with a lot of stores. I love window shopping.

Skylight - blue skies and fluffy white clouds.

There are TWO of Bath & Body Works store in this mall. One on each of the two floors.

J Crew window display - What is the bird in the background about? Strange LOL!

This is the HUGE Forever 21 store.

Forever 21

A view inside Forever 21 from outside front door.

On the left are the massage chairs. I think you have to paid to turn them on.

Looking into the window at the Arhaus store.

I am a office supply/paper/stationary geek so of course I love browsing in this store.

The decor in Tomato Pie restaurant is so beautiful. This picture does not do it justice.

People waiting patiently at Pantera Bread.

I am a sucker for a well done flower arrangement.

The weather was so warm and sunny the day I visited Raleigh.

This mall has two floors.

Here's a previous picture tour post about downtown Raleigh, NC. Enjoy!

Thanks for reading!

Earrings Of The Day - Indian Inspired Brass Star And Moon

Love the simplicity of these lightweight brass metal earrings. The delicate linework in the metal adds such detail and interest to this piece. I have had them for ages - notice the fishhooks clasps are different. LOL! They have been loved very much.

These earrings are in the casual category of my jewelry collection. I would throw these on easily with jeans or shorts and a simple top then head out the door.

Indian jewelry is some of the most beautifully crafted jewelry I have ever seen. Intricately crafted and colorful. My goal is to own as many pieces of Indian and Indian inspired pieces as possible.

Thanks for reading!

Heart Brigade Concert - Excellent Tribute Band for Heart

 I just happened to be going to the library and saw a concert was happening at Festival Park. As I walked to the stage, I thought I was hearing the inbetween band setup music on the loudspeaker. It was a Heart song. To my complete amazement it was an actual real person singing the Ann Wilson (lead singer for the band Heart) part of the song to perfection.

This band was incredible. It is not very often that I am lucky enough to hear such level of talent from a band that is not a famous label signed artist. Not only did the two women sound exactly like Ann and Nancy Wilson from Heart, they looked very similar to the sisters. The band completely complimented the high level of talent displayed by the singers. When you can get the harmonies exactly right, you are a very good cover band indeed.

I was totally mad at myself for arriving late and missing part of the show. They even threw in some Led Zeppelin songs. Hearing Led Zep performed live by such strong vocalist that could do it justice. Priceless.

 How much did I like this band? The concert I attended was free but I would gladly pay to see Heart Brigade play live again. This is huge for me. I don't spend my precious money to see just any band. Yes, they were THAT good.

Heart Brigade is the Ultimate Tribute to Heart. They are based out of Raleigh, NC.

Suzi Nelson - Lead Vocals

Joan Burton - Acoustic and Electric Guitar

Kevin Segrist - Lead Guitar

Amy Hall - Drums

Jeff Reynolds - Bass

David Nodine- Keyboards

*****Scroll Down for Lots of pictures (taken with my iphone) and a VIDEO of the song "Baracuuda"***

Enjoy!

 Heart Brigade - A Heart Tribute Band playing Bara

 Their official website is here.

Amy Hall - female drummer. She was fantastic! I had never seen a female drummer in a band before.

Thanks for Reading! I had a dickens of a time trying to attach the video. LOL! Let you know what you think.