Beautiful Autumn Weekend w/ Movies!!!

Hello All!

(Warning: this entry goes all over the place! My mind is full & jumpin' this afternoon, enjoy the journey with me.....)

It is me, Sarah Liz! I don't post here often anymore, but the last few days, my brain has been alive with ideas and creativity! Lots has happened to me recently, and life is sure an adventure if nothing else! I'm loving it!

This weekend, I decided to curl up on my couch and watch movies! So far, I've watched "Into the Wild," "Waitress," "Martian Child," and "Expelled". All quite good!

Colin & I watched "Into the Wild," on Friday night and we enjoyed it. It was a really good movie that made you think about the effects and consequences of growing up in a very dysfunctional/abusive home. It's a true story about a young man named Christopher who takes off into the wilderness of Alaska. It's kind of a slow-moving movie, but it's worth sticking with. Colin and I really enjoyed it. For me, it made me think about the battle between good/evil, nature/nuture and so on. Emile Hersch was excellent in it and is a really good actor, so if you get a chance to watch this movie, and have the patience for it, I would reccomend it.

Last night, I watched "Waitress," which is honestly one of the best movies I've ever seen. It is kind of a chick flick, but it's got a bit of everything; laughter, tears, romance, reality, strong women. It's a cute little story about a southern woman who works in a Pie Diner and is in an abusive marriage, she ends up pregnant and has an affair with her OBGYN. It's hysterically funny in certain parts and incredibly inpsiring in others. I would highly reccomend this movie! Kerri Russell is a fantastic actress and it's so sad that the movie's director/writer, Adrienne Shelley, was murdered in her home back in November 2006. What a tragedy, she was a great filmaker and a female director I would've liked to watch for years to come! May she rest in peace! But, this movie will probably end up on my favorites list, it's just so good! :) I'd definately reccomend it!

On a side note, I also really want to see "August Rush," also with Kerri Russell, and although I never watched Felicity on the WB back in the day (the late 90s, when I was in High School), today, I think she's a great actress! "August Rush," also has Robin Williams in it and he's just fantastic, so you can't go that wrong with those two in a movie! That's next on my list to see!

This morning, I watched "Martian Child," with John Cussack. What an excellent film! A touching, true story about a little boy who thinks he's from Mars (literally) and gets adopted by a single-dad who's a science-fiction writer. It is an incredible story and I'm so glad I watched it. It was a little slow moving as well, but so very worth it! I cried at the end and it was definately a very touching film! I've always liked John Cussack, he's really good! I liked him in "Seredipity," "Must Love Dogs," and this "Martian Child," is probably my favorite film of his that I've seen. Yes, I know in the early 1980s he was huge in teen movies and was part of the BratPack, I think, but I was too little the to remember much of that! The point is, this is a great movie and if you love kids, have them or want to have them, especially adopt them, you should see this movie! :) I especially loved that the story centered around the relationship between a dad and his son, and not a mother/child. So ofen in movies it's the maternal relationship that is highlighted, and while I'll always believe that's important, it's refreshing to see paternal relationships highlighted as well. I think they can be just as moving! This movie reminded me of "I Am Sam," and "Simon Birch," also very good movies!

Right now, I'm watching "Expelled," and then Colin & I are going to watch "Iron Man." "Expelled," is more of a documentary and is quite interesting. But I'm more into writing. If you're into science or the battle between creationism/darwinsim, this is a very interesting and important film to see. I think this movie highlights the narrowing freedoms we now have in America. The idea that Intelligent Design (www.intelligentdesign.org) is being tossed aside and completely overlooked kind of ticks me off. I've always considered myself more spiritual than scientific; I can see the begining of earth/human beings BOTH ways, I don't think anything is 100% true or 100% false. So, perhaps it's my own pscye that's interfeering with my attention span to this film (Expelled). But I still think this is a great topic and I have to say the layout of the film is nice. It has a lot of black and white clips from the 40s/50s/60s and is presented well. It's basically a blacklist of professors and other educators who have wanted to explore the possiblity of Intelligent Design, and have been ostrasized and shut out of their academic communities/jobs because of doing so. It's qutie sad. It's a good movie if you like Documentaries, which I do, I love them. But this weekend, I'm more into stories....

I don't consider myself a movie buff, but lately, I'm just into them. They're a great probe into further thought, laughter and tears. I've heard that during the Depression or times of recession, (financial hardships) movie attendance goes up. I agree with that, I think they're a great escape!

The other night while laying in bed I was thinking of book titles and ideas for essays that I could possibly write. I was thinking about how ego-driven our society is and especially my own generation. How we think, myself included sometimes, that we deserve a prize for simply showing up for life or work, when the reality is, we don't. We're doing what everyone has done for generations on, and life wasn't supposed to be easy or a breeze! We have to work for and earn things; I think the problem today is that we're working harder than ever, and earning less than ever! (That's not be being a bitchy entitled Generation Y snob, it's the damn truth, look it up!) Most people I know are "the working poor," those, myself and my family included, who are too "rich" to qualify for Government Assistance, but too poor to live comfortably. I know, our standard of living in America is high and "luxurious," and commodaties such as the Internet and Cell Phones are practically necessary now, but still. I know the middle class of America is still better off than a lot of people around the world. But, the middle class is dying folks, and it's a very sad thing. And our healthcare, OH MY GOD! What an absolute tragedy! Seriously, a horrible tragedy! People can't afford to buy their own health care, Medi-caid/Medicare are cutting covergae by the day and oh, you cannot have a productive, "rich" and inspiring society...or anything at all in this life, you cannot have those without HEALTH! It's too important to overlook! That's a soapbox I'll return to another day when I'm more in the mood to hash it out, but not right now. Anyway, becuase of the economy and people losing their homes (which I agree banks shouldn't have lended them the money to buy in the first place!)...it really hurts my heart how people my age are forced to continue living at home or vice-versa. Or how people work hours upon hours upon hours now, at a job they usually don't love, just to get by. Everything is so expensive now (except gas, that's gone down, see my P.S.S. below!), it's disheartening to walk into the grocery store now....even though I still love grocery shopping! I'm skilled at it, it's an artform, it really is, or at least, it can be! Anyway, with the current election going on, the battle between hanging on to our known past/ways and/or embracing new ones, different genders/races, it's quite interesting to watch! I'm really enjoying the process here, but the prospect of either one of these canidates scares me a bit! Why we have only ONE President is beyond me, when truthfully, it's a job for many, many people and Congress has more power anyway--most of the time.

Where is all of this coming from, you may ask....Women's Studies! My WMST class is really making me think. It's not about Women's Studies specifically, it's about how Race/Class/Gender all intertwine and form the threshold of our society/culture in America! It's really eye-opening! I might have preferred to keep my ignorant, idealistic ideas about my country, but I'm glad I'm learning and opening my mind, I'm expanding my horizions with this class and becoming a more informed, more aware person. College is supposed to make you a better citizen of the world, in my opinion, and this WMST is doing just that.

Anyway, I was also thinking of ideas for poetry yesterday, I even wrote one about me & Colin. It was great. I always love writing, poetry, essays, anything, it's such a joy for me! It's a wonderfully fun, and sometimes frustrating (I won't lie), creative outlet! I really do believe that I have what it takes to make it as a real full-time writer, I just need the discipline to do it. I would love sit at home and write my butt off and make money at it, I think I have a lot of things figured out and a terrific mind and a lot to say! That's not to toot my own horn, there's certainly PLENTY of stuff I don't know and will NEVER figure out. But I am smart. I was never the popular, in-crowd girl. I was never the party-girl or any of that. I've always been the smart one. And I used to resent that, but now I love it. I'm not necessarily book smart, really, I'm not. But I like to think, and I love to learn! It keeps me young and fresh and real! Learning is so important, even if it's not done in a college and/academic environment, learning is crucial for our enjoyment of survivial. And sometimes, learning sucks. But, I really believe if we're not learning, we're not living.

Anyway, so like I said, I've been writing a lot and watching cool movies and just thinking. It's been nice to kind of take a hiatus from the world and its troubles and just think. I think a lot. But lately my thinking has not been centered around me, and that's nice!

The weather here in Vegas lately has been absolutely wonderful! It's jsut gorgeous and beautiful and amazing! October is one of my favorite months anyway; February and July also, but I think that October is the most beautiful & perfect time of year in Las Vegas! It's been warm and even hot at times, but not a sweltering, melt-you-the-moment-you-step-outdoors kind of heat! It's been chilly in the evenings and fall is definately in the air! It's a beautiful and lovely thing!

Last week, my best girlfriends, Tessa & Claudia came to see me. And I cried so hard when they left. Claudia left a week ago today and then Tessa left last Monday. I cried my eyes out. And hoenstly, seeing them just made me miss the more. I miss my girlfreinds. I have more friends and family in my life now than I ever have before, or quite frankly, ever thought I would! I am so beyond lucky & blessed! I really am! But, I MISS my friends & family terribly! I miss someone different everyday! But it was so fantastic to see them! Oh, it was just the MOST FUN I've had in a LONG time! I love my Colin, we have fun together everyday, we really do. I'm blessed to have him and we're happy! But, a girl needs her girlfriends, you know. Men are lucky, I think, I don't think they need as many, or any, friends as women do. We women wear so many damn hats in our lives; woman, wife, mother, daughter, grandaughter, neice, worker, chauffer, chef, maid, student, girlfriend, best friend, etc..... but I've noticed, the older I get, (and I'm not that old) the more my friends mean to me. It's weird, in going to get married, I've come to appreciate everyone else in my life even more! No one comes into your life without impacting it in some way, and for me, the journey into marriage, has taught me that every single person in my life has added to it in some way! They've made me who I am and prepared me to marry this wonderful man I've been blessed with! He's truly a sweetheart and such an angel for sticking by me, although, I do the same for him!
My mom made a comment the other night that Colin & I live like we're about 20-30 years older than we actually are; that we rarely go out, spend out nights turning in earlier than others our age, and pretty much, live a very settled, low-key life. At first, it bothered me, but then I thought about it and I like it that way. I relish the fact that I've found someone who is a lot like me; low-key, not a partier, not a drinker, doesn't mind being home. Granted, we do get the urge to go out and went out ealier this week, we went and had a great time on the Strip, it was great! We really enjoyed ourselves, but that was our outing for the month! First of all, we don't have a lot of money, and well, we can have fun just being together without doing anything specific! But my mother is right in some ways, we do need to act our age occasionally. We need to go out, take each other to dinner and find ways to keep this relationship new. I'm good at that and so is Colin. It's the little things that make love last, and we're also good at that, so I'm not too worried about us as a whole. But I have to admit, it would be nice to go out a litlte more often than we do. Even if we don't go anywhere specific or spend any money, it'd be nice to go out a little more. Being out with Tessa and Claudia last week was so much fun! It was so fantastic to be with my girlfriends, have them in our home and show them Las Vegas! It was so fun! My girlfriends are like my life line and they, along with Colin, keep me real and sane! I think every woman out there knows what I'm talking about. After "my girls," left, I felt like we all knew each other a little better. I knew the girls better, they saw me with my man, in our real everyday life, and Colin got to see me in front of my friends, something he'd never been able to see until now. It was great! My favorite part of the weekend last week was shopping on the Strip with Tess...I didn't buy a dang thing but she did! She shopped her butt off, but that's okay, because Vegas is certainly the place to do it! (We beat New York is shopping now!). We ate at an Italian Restruant I'd wanted to eat at for months now, it was delicious! And we went to the local (indoor) Flea Market, it was so fun! We wore our butts out, but it was worth it! That part and then Saturday night! I sat around my kitchen table wtih Tessa, Claudia, Colin, Jerri (Colin's mom) and Bobbi (Colin's grandma) and I watched my man navigate his way through a conversation with 5 women! Now there's a brave man, and a very strong one too! What a guy I have, truly! Anyway, everyone chatting and gettin gto know everyone was truly a pleasure! I enjoyed it so much! After Mom & Grandma had to leave (I call them mom/grandma too!), Tessa, Claudia & I made Nachos w/ my salsa on them and pigged out! We had this big plate of nachos on my kitchen table and just sat and gabbed! It was so low-key, relaxed and FUN! Tessa and I talked about country music (which we both grew up on and understand), while Claudia & Colin talked about singing and chours--which they were both in, and Claudia still is! It was such a joy to watch two of my very best friends (my Colin and Claudia) talk and get to know one another! What a treat! Then we all piled on my couch, Colin to my left, my best girlfriends to my right, and watched SNL! What a blast! I got up super early Sunday morning to take Claudia to the airport and we had some time to sit and chat in the baggage claim before she caught her flight! That was delightful as well! I enjoyed the entire weekend so very much; being with my girlfriends, getting a chance to miss Colin (being the gentleman that he is, he left us to ourselvse and spend the weekend relaxing and catching up on video game, what a guy, I'm tellin' ya!). It was so much fun! It's a weekend I'll never forget, that's for sure!

Anyway, the point here is that it made me miss them more! I miss my sisters and my grandma/grandpa too! And I know Colin missses his own family/friends everyday too! Even though we are now each other's first family and first priority, and glad/proud/grateful to be, hanging out with others and maintaining healthy/active relationships with others is actually quite good for romantic relationships! It renews them, balances them and reminds you how lucky you are to come home to one another!

And I am certainly one lucky, blessed young woman! Man, even though times are tough in the world today, we're on the edge of a big change, I can feel it! Like I mentioned earlier, the Election is just over a week away and I'm feeling some trepadation about it. I kind of think we're screwed either way, but still, I'm going to pray about it and VOTE. Yes, I may be conflicted at the moment about who I'm going to end up voting for, but I will for sure be VOTING! Why? Because I can! Because I'm free and able to do so; because thousands of women fougtht and died so that I could (and men too, I know!) and because it's a freedom I still have! And I'm going to take advantage of it and cherrish it! Even if it doesn't count in the long run, it counts from a moral standpoint, you know! And no matter what happens, I'm proud/happy to be an American! And above all, no matter what, I'm just stinkin' blessed! I have this wonderful man, fantastic friends, a beautiful home, a car, my health (for the most part, or at least as much as I'm ever going to have), a supportive family, a creative mind, and great food downstairs in my kitchen! (Always important with me, folks!) So, despite the financial crissies, and the hard times in this country and around the world, I'm choosing to focus on the positive! It's not always easy, but it's a lot easier than the alternative. There's simply no point to being miserable and negative all the time! We can be honest and real and acknowledge the crapiness of the way some things are, but at the end of the day, I've got way too much to be grateful for to be sad/angry for too long!

So, thank you Lord, for all of these blessings! Thank you for my life and all of the abundance in it! Please bless it and keep it coming! And especially, please bless of my beloved friends/family!

In Light N' Love,
-Sarah Liz :)

P.S. My Colin is sick today, he came home early from work, so I sure hope he feels better soon! Time for lunch! I think I'll go make me & my sweetheart some soup! Yum! :) -SL

P.S.S. TRULY FANTASTIC NEWS, Praise the Lord! They found that little boy that was missing last week! They found Cole Puffinburger last Saturday night here at a bus stop in town! He had been kidnapped the Wednesday before and was missing for 3 days! He was found alive & in good condition! God knows I prayed for him along with so many others! I'm so glad and relieved and thankful he's back at home and had a safe, happy return! Too many stories don't turn out the wonderful way this one did, so that's just fanstastic news!

Oh, and also fantastic news; GAS PRICES ARE DROPPING!!! Yay! Even in this troubled economy, gas prices here in Vegas have dropped into the $2.90 range, I've even seen it in some parts of town for around $2.85...WHAT A RELIEF! It's so great! Now, people can afford things a little more, it's just wonderful! So, see, good news all around! :) Now, really, I'm going to go take care of my honey and make us some lunch! :) Love & Blessings, -SL