This Side of Heaven... where angels love to tread!

This was how Colin Firth was described in today's show of Sunday Morning... and I got a big kick out of it. This image of Colin Firth taken from A & E's version of Jane Austen's movie "Pride and Prejudice" has forever been indelibly etched in most of women's memory... after all, don't women who are smart and savvy yet sensitive and romantic wish for a dashingly handsome, rich and smart Mr. Darcy in their lives?

Although Firth has been around for some time now acting in movies and theatres in his native Britain, he gained popularity here in the US after the television version of Pride and Prejudice came out in 1995. Though, he gained international popularity through the movie Bridget Jones' Diary, nothing could compare the women fan frenzy that was created after P&P. This TV show was created as a television series and for me, as well as for most fans, consider this version as the best of all the P&P movies ever made. For one thing, the creators of this movie stayed true to the Jane Austen's story and if they ever made any changes to the story, it was so minimal, that it didn't matter so much. Another factor is the tremendous combination of talented actors and actresses that made the story come to life. All the chosen talents aptly played their parts so well that it endeared them to their audiences... Though other films have come out since then, the latest in 2005 starring Keira Knightly and Matthew MacFayden, nothing will still compare to the 1995 version with Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle.

That catapulted Colin Firth to bonafide heartthrob and spawned online websites dedicated to Colin Firth as well as P&P blogs, forums, etc... which are still in existence to this day. After this, he got more movie assignments though in most of them, he was not in a major starring role. But like a real trooper that he is, he accepted those roles, big and small and always gave it his all. Now, his latest movie "A Single Man" directed by Tom Ford, an American fashion designer, is creating Oscar buzz. Though he plays a gay person in this role, I don't think that his women fans will lose their admiration for the man who truly gave Mr. Darcy a face. After all, he is the "thinking woman's heartthrob" and we know that Colin Firth is just showing his range as an actor honed by his years in theatre.

Friday, the 22nd, I got from the mail a package and at first thought that this was the book which I have recently ordered online. However, I was surprised when I opened it and found a totally different book instead. The book is titled "2012 and the Shift of Ages: A Guide to the End of the World".



This came as a total surprise to me for I have never encountered this title during my online browsing and knowing that a lot of books have been cropping up like crazy lately on this very significant topic, I would not be surprise that I would have miss this one. However, I am quite baffled why I received this book and as to who would have sent me this. So far, I know of only one person who shares the same interest with me and there is a possibility that she would have sent me this book.

The package had the author's name and address on it and the book in itself is signed so this is truly special.

Saturday, (the 23rd) my hubby, daughter Karrol and I decided to watch the movie "Avatar" at Hadley, MA while waiting for daughter, Dominique, until she gets off work.



I will not expound too much on the movie's storyline for there are more better reviews out there that one can find online and besides, it would be best to watch the movie itself in theaters to experience the achievement of its seamless use of technology. All I will have to add is that this movie brings to a notch what Star Trek in the 60's and Star Wars of the 70's has done in regaling the viewers with tales of out of this earth possibilities. Though for many, this might be a form of entertainment but for some, this is a reality less known and understood.

Movies like these have gained a certain following thru the years, perhaps, it is because it has called to the inner spirit of those who appreciate it... so don't be thinking of those "Trekkies" out there as out on a loop, for they might help save the world from a galactic catastrophe like in that very entertaining movie "Galaxy Quest".



However, beneath the entertainment as well as the technological marvel, there is also an underlying message weaved within the theme in the story. As the saying goes, "For those who have eyes to see can see and those who have ears, listen...I believe that the messages they have shared is that no matter the physical reality we may find ourselves in, there is always a connection to worlds within worlds and realities within realities... there are endless possibilities that our little minds can ever perceive nor understand unless we open our hearts and spirits.

I will end this blog entry with my book's description found at the back cover:


Last thoughts: I am wondering if ever James Cameron ever read any books written by Erich Von Daniken, Zecharia Sitchin, and other similar authors to get his idea for this film. If so, there a lot of material out there for a good storyline.... if not, then he might be tapping into his inner resources.

My friend Susan B. always sends me the coolest and most heartwarming as well as realistic quotes and timeless truths... This is one of them and I love what it says that I'd like to share this with you. Maybe, this will help us assess what is really important in life and not be caught up with all the glitter and glamour of what we know as "life" in this day and age...








I would never trade my amazing friends, my wonderful life, my loving family for less gray hair or a flatter belly. As I've aged, I've become kinder to myself, and less critical of myself. I've become my own friend. I don't chide myself for eating that extra cookie, or for not making my bed, or for buying that silly cement gecko that I didn't need, but looks so avante garde on my patio. I am entitled to a treat, to be messy, to be extravagant.

I have seen too many dear friends leave this world too soon; before they understood the great freedom that comes with aging..

Whose business is it if I choose to read or play on the computer until 4 AM and sleep until noon? I will dance with myself to those wonderful tunes of the 60 &70's, and if I, at the same time, wish to weep over a lost love ... I will.



I will walk the beach in a swim suit that is stretched over a bulging body, and will dive into the waves with abandon if I choose to, despite the pitying glances from the jet set.

They, too, will get old.

I know I am sometimes forgetful. But there again, some of life is just as well forgotten. And I eventually remember the important things.

Sure, over the years my heart has been broken. How can your heart not break when you lose a loved one, or when a child suffers, or even when somebody's beloved pet gets hit by a car? But broken hearts are what give us strength and understanding and compassion. A heart never broken is pristine and sterile and will never know the joy of being imperfect.



I am so blessed to have lived long enough to have my hair turning gray, and to have my youthful laughs be forever etched into deep grooves on my face.

So many have never laughed, and so many have died before their hair could turn silver.




As you get older, it is easier to be positive. You care less about what other people think. I don't question myself anymore.
I've even earned the right to be wrong.

So, to answer your question, I like being old. It has set me free.. I like the person I have become. I am not going to live forever,
but while I am still here, I will not waste time lamenting what could have been, or worrying about what will be. And I shall eat dessert every single day(if I feel like it).

MAY OUR FRIENDSHIP NEVER COME APART ESPECIALLY WHEN IT'S STRAIGHT FROM THE HEART!

Twins Darius and Demetrice performed on Ellen's show today about a few minutes ago. They sang one of the Jackson Five's hit "One More Chance" and their performance surely reminded me of Michael Jackson when he was also that age. Of course, no one would ever replace MJ, but it is always a treat to be reminded of something good that it still gives you goosebumps to hear it once again though it may not be the original performer.

Enjoy the video of these talented boys.....

PBS channel is featuring in their "Independent Lens" show a film about a group of seniors from Northampton, MA who belongs to a choral group called "Young at Heart". You can learn more about this group by clicking here. Please check with your local PBS listings for showtime.

I would like to thank my colleague from work Jamil for sharing this video. Though this is titled “Known Universe” but the video went out further to outer space where there are vast yet unknown universes that is endless and infinitesimal. That is why I do not understand why humans have to cling to only one dogma, or religion, politics or philosophy when there is so much to learn. We end up in wars within ourselves and with our own fellowmen just because we fail to understand the reality that the answers to life can be found within our own inner universe…

This video created by the American Museum of Natural History is part of the exhibit at the Rubin Museum in Manhattan, New York called "Visions of the Cosmos: From the Milky Ocean to an Evolving Universe" through May 2010.