Happy New Year!

Good Morning! It is a beautiful day out here where I am  - I hope it is the same for you. 

We had a very unexpected but totally fun evening last night at The Starlight Room. Harry invited us up to his suite and to the Starlight Room to bring in the new year. It was the first time that we spent with Harry and had his complete attention for the entire evening. Not that we need to be his complete focus, but he is always so busy flitting around the room making sure that everyone is having a good time that we never seem to be able to converse longer than a few minutes. Last night was very different and very special for me. We were really able to sit down and talk…about life, goals, the next big thing, the future, how we can collaborate again on a project together.  It was very sweet and endearing, and a new year that I will always remember….

….And for other reasons too. This new year is going to bring lots of good change for all of us.  A new year, a new president…a new way of life for many. And hopefully a new earth…by coming up with creative, life sustaining, loving ways to take care of her and all that inhabit it.

Enough said. I just want to be brief this morning. I’ll end with wishing everyone and abundance of happiness and joy, good health and wealth, and peace between all.  I still like my mantra of Peace & Love: “Live it, Give it”, so I’ll stick with that until a new one strikes my fancy. 

Readers: I’ll get back to those of you that blogged me yesterday but in the mean time, tell me what your plans are for the new year. Blog me. Inspire me as you always do. 

Gratefully your blog host,

michelle

Aka BABE: Your Bad Ass Bitch Editor

For archives dated before January 17, 2008 click on my Blogroll:

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It seems I still have ‘words’ on my mind.  And I lied. Well, I guess I didn’t really lie; I just neglected to tell you that I was gifted a few little Christmas gifts this year….so it wasn’t that I didn’t open anything.

I have been telling you all about a few books that I wanted to purchase and now I can with the gift certificate that we got for Borders…or was it Barnes & Nobel? No matter…the point being that I am excited for the new reads.  Did any of you purchase any books that I suggested? It isn’t too late. And just for you I added two more:

• Obama’s Book,  ’The Audacity of Hope’. I haven’t read it yet but Doug is thoroughly enjoying it and as soon as he finishes you can bet I will indulge in a little Obamarama. 

And…

Well…it seems the name of the second book has escaped my memory…and I so wanted to share it with you. I’m bummed. 

Oh..but I just thought of another you might enjoy.

• ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ written by Vikas Swarup.  I just wrote about this brilliant little film yesterday, and it is available in book form.  I have just added it to the carousel above. Although the names of the characters, and the story line are a bit different in the book, it still has the same profound message.  

And ya know I am having an ‘Aha!’ moment…the more I think about it, the more the film speaks to me. We never know just what is going to happen in our lives that is going to benefit us later on in life. Jamal endured so much in his life. I can imagine he was wondering, ‘When is this going to turn around? When is my life going to be what I desire it to be?’ He pursued, and all of his trials led him to that precise moment….when all that he endured, would in the end, help him to achieve his goal.  And it wasn’t the money that he was after. No, that was just the icing on the cake :)

And yes ZL, The scenery in the film is a visual feast, but even more outstanding to me was the music. I’ll add the soundtrack from the movie to my widget in the next few days.  

Huh…I had something to write about in regards to ‘words’ today…nothing that had anything to do with books, but no matter. I decided to just roll with what was on my mind as I was writing.  I’ll share my latest discover with you at another time.    

Madaline: So interesting about the Tno tech. Makes sense. I bet my readers would love to know how long they have been visiting here and if they have taken the form of humans.  

Hello Akuti: How delightful to hear from you when I was just admiring the beauty of your country. And how cool that you have formed your own ‘Girls’ club spreading ‘peace & love’.  I admire you and the girls.

I wish I could answer your question because I ask that same question all of  the time. I have a vision that women will become the super power of this world and men will either perish by their own actions, or change. I have hope for the latter. My goal is that women will spread peace & love and inspire change. I know it’s a big goal, but hey, what is more important that the sustainability of our planet, and the living and giving of peace & love between all that inhabit it?

Readers: Comments? Blog me.

Gratefully your blog host,

michelle

Aka BABE: Your Bad Ass Bitch Editor

For archives dated before January 17, 2008 click on my Blogroll:

or click here: “A Day in the life of…”

All content on this site are property of Michelle Moquin © copyright 2008

" Politics, god, Life, News, Music, Family, Personal, Travel, Random, Photography, Religion, Aliens, Art, Entertainment, Food, Books, Thoughts, Media, Culture, Love, Sex, Poetry, Prose, Friends, Technology, Humor, Health, Writing, Events, Movies, Sports, Video, Christianity, Atheist, Blogging, History, Work, Education, Business, Fashion, Barack Obama, People, Internet, Relationships, Faith, Photos, Videos, Hillary Clinton, School, Reviews, God, TV, Philosophy, Fun, Science, Environment, Design, The Page, Rants, Pictures, Church, Blog, Nature, Marketing, Television, Democrats, Parenting, Miscellaneous, Current Events, Film, Spirituality, Obama, Musings, Home, Human Rights, Society, Comedy, Me, Random Thoughts, Research, Government, Election 2008, Baseball, Opinion, Recipes, Children, Iraq, Funny, Women, Economics, America, Misc, Commentary, John McCain, Reflections, All, Celebrities, Inspiration, Lifestyle, Theology, Linux, Kids, Games, World, India, Literature, China, Ramblings, Fitness, Money, Review, War, Articles, Economy, Journal, Quotes, NBA, Crime, Anime, Islam, 2008, Stories, Prayer, Diary, Jesus, Buddha, Muslim, Israel, Europe, Links, Marriage, Fiction, American Idol, Software, Leadership, Pop culture, Rants, Video Games, Republicans, Updates, Political, Football, Healing, Blogs, Shopping, USA, Class, Matrix, Course, Work, Web 2.0, My Life, Psychology, Gay, Happiness, Advertising, Field Hockey, Hip-hop, sex, fucking, ass, Soccer, sox"

We went to the movies last night and saw an amazing flick called ‘Slumdog Millionaire’. A brilliant little film based in India, about a young man named Jamal who is a contestant on the Hindi version television show ‘Who Wants To Be A Millionaire’ – Yes, the same show that became very popular here in the US.

Jamal exceeds the expectations of the show and the producers suspecting that he is cheating, have him arrested and interrogated. During the interrogation we see flashbacks of his life that explains how Jamal is able to answer the ‘Millionaire’ questions. It is brilliant the way the director Danny Boyle ties together Jamal’s life experiences with his answers on the show.

And yes, there is a love involved; A childhood sweetheart, Latika whom Jamal has been in love with since he was a young boy. I don’t want to give to much of it a way just in case you have not seen it but the film really does run the full gamut of emotions as we see him growing up, falling in love, coming close to death, and escaping from his unfavorable predicament. 

But, what really stood out for me was his unwavering commitment to survive in life and his life long goal to be with his beloved. Through all of his trials and tribulations he did not lose sight of what he wanted in life, nor did he let anything stop him, even when his closest friend, his brother, said to forget about her and move on. 

As always, I am moved by love and the ways that people express their commitment, not through ‘words’ but through the ‘actions’ they take.  Actions always speak louder than words and reveal the true intentions of a person. The words, ‘I love you’ need never be spoken when actions express it so much more fully. And in fact, the words ‘I love you’ can feel empty and meaningless when there is lack of meaningful action. Jamal never needed to say words, as his actions and intentions said everything.

A beautiful, sweet little film, and a must see. 

 *************

Oops got to run – I’ll say hello to all of you tomorrow…..

Gratefully your blog host,

michelle

Aka BABE: Your Bad Ass Bitch Editor

For archives dated before January 17, 2008 click on my Blogroll:

or click here: “A Day in the life of…”

All content on this site are property of Michelle Moquin © copyright 2008

" Politics, god, Life, News, Music, Family, Personal, Travel, Random, Photography, Religion, Aliens, Art, Entertainment, Food, Books, Thoughts, Media, Culture, Love, Sex, Poetry, Prose, Friends, Technology, Humor, Health, Writing, Events, Movies, Sports, Video, Christianity, Atheist, Blogging, History, Work, Education, Business, Fashion, Barack Obama, People, Internet, Relationships, Faith, Photos, Videos, Hillary Clinton, School, Reviews, God, TV, Philosophy, Fun, Science, Environment, Design, The Page, Rants, Pictures, Church, Blog, Nature, Marketing, Television, Democrats, Parenting, Miscellaneous, Current Events, Film, Spirituality, Obama, Musings, Home, Human Rights, Society, Comedy, Me, Random Thoughts, Research, Government, Election 2008, Baseball, Opinion, Recipes, Children, Iraq, Funny, Women, Economics, America, Misc, Commentary, John McCain, Reflections, All, Celebrities, Inspiration, Lifestyle, Theology, Linux, Kids, Games, World, India, Literature, China, Ramblings, Fitness, Money, Review, War, Articles, Economy, Journal, Quotes, NBA, Crime, Anime, Islam, 2008, Stories, Prayer, Diary, Jesus, Buddha, Muslim, Israel, Europe, Links, Marriage, Fiction, American Idol, Software, Leadership, Pop culture, Rants, Video Games, Republicans, Updates, Political, Football, Healing, Blogs, Shopping, USA, Class, Matrix, Course, Work, Web 2.0, My Life, Psychology, Gay, Happiness, Advertising, Field Hockey, Hip-hop, sex, fucking, ass, Soccer, sox"

Michelle’a Holiday Picks!

If you would like to buy any of these, click on any book and you will be taken to Amazon.com.

Brave New Films does it again.  The ‘Psst…Do something!’ at the end of the film? Well this is me doing something by posting it onto my blog and telling all of you. 

Bush’s Christmas gift to us is by making sure that he leaves this country as fucked up as posssible before he leaves his infamous 8-year term. And just how is he doing this? Well he can’t get his Christmas list of favors to his cronies through Congress so he’s jamming as many rules through his executive branch as he can to continue to fuck up this country as much as he can, making it even more challenging for our President Elect Obama and the people of this country to bring about the changes that we need. 

‘Bush’s midnight regulations will allow factories to pollute more, further restrict women’s access to abortion services, cut off aid to needy families in the middle of a recession, and much more — all without Congress’ oversight or approval. It’s wrong, it’s antidemocratic, but, sadly, it’s legal.’

Happy New Year Everyone.  

Can you tell I’m pissed? This shit economy is affecting everyone including me and quite frankly I’m sick of it. And I’m sure everyone else is too. People need jobs and money needs to be circulating. Our economy needs a face lift big time. Getting Obama into office isn’t enough. He’s going to be dealing with so much crap from Bush’s last minute end-run, how is he possibly going to clean up this mess?

Readers:  What’s going on here? Are you struggling too? We all hung in there together during the election…we can’t let the country fall to pieces before Obama even gets a chance.  We’ve lost our momentum and  we need to find it again. I admit, I have been out of it and in a fog myself dealing with my own shit, but the game isn’t over, and I’m back in. How about you? I still don’t have a lot of time on my hands and I’m sure you don’t either but the mood and the energy needs to change here. I know we worked our asses off and we all felt like we needed a breather…I know I did. But we can no longer rest on our laurels. Action needs to happen now, today, the only day that matters, not tomorrow.  Thoughts? Blog me. 

Madaline: Where the fuck are you?  We need some Girl power.  Bush needs to be spanked – he’s been a naughty bad boy in a big bad way, and this santa baby wants to bend Bush over and give him a ‘lil present myself. Get my drift? Maddie, you need to check in with me now, here or on our private channel and throw out some ideas.   This mess needs to be cleaned up.  

That’s all I’ve got time for today…
 

Gratefully your blog host,

michelle

Aka BABE: Your Bad Ass Bitch Editor

For archives dated before January 17, 2008 click on my Blogroll:

or click here: “A Day in the life of…”

All content on this site are property of Michelle Moquin © copyright 2008

" Politics, god, Life, News, Music, Family, Personal, Travel, Random, Photography, Religion, Aliens, Art, Entertainment, Food, Books, Thoughts, Media, Culture, Love, Sex, Poetry, Prose, Friends, Technology, Humor, Health, Writing, Events, Movies, Sports, Video, Christianity, Atheist, Blogging, History, Work, Education, Business, Fashion, Barack Obama, People, Internet, Relationships, Faith, Photos, Videos, Hillary Clinton, School, Reviews, God, TV, Philosophy, Fun, Science, Environment, Design, The Page, Rants, Pictures, Church, Blog, Nature, Marketing, Television, Democrats, Parenting, Miscellaneous, Current Events, Film, Spirituality, Obama, Musings, Home, Human Rights, Society, Comedy, Me, Random Thoughts, Research, Government, Election 2008, Baseball, Opinion, Recipes, Children, Iraq, Funny, Women, Economics, America, Misc, Commentary, John McCain, Reflections, All, Celebrities, Inspiration, Lifestyle, Theology, Linux, Kids, Games, World, India, Literature, China, Ramblings, Fitness, Money, Review, War, Articles, Economy, Journal, Quotes, NBA, Crime, Anime, Islam, 2008, Stories, Prayer, Diary, Jesus, Buddha, Muslim, Israel, Europe, Links, Marriage, Fiction, American Idol, Software, Leadership, Pop culture, Rants, Video Games, Republicans, Updates, Political, Football, Healing, Blogs, Shopping, USA, Class, Matrix, Course, Work, Web 2.0, My Life, Psychology, Gay, Happiness, Advertising, Field Hockey, Hip-hop, sex, fucking, ass, Soccer, sox"

I guess after seeing the lovely ‘ladies’ at Harry’s on Sunday, ‘dance’ has been on my mind…

Once again, women of this world are having to fight for something that should not be an issue and this time it is for the continuation of an art form that has been around for 400 hundred years.  

This art is the graceful and elaborate dance ‘Mujra’ that has flourished since the Mughal empire. And the dancing girls of Lahore, the cultural capital of Pakistan, are on strike in protest against the tide of Talibanisation that is threatening to destroy their art form.

And just why are these women striking?  Simply because the Lahore High Court made a decision last month to ban the Mujra because it is too sexually explicit. And now the theaters where it is performed are supporting the courts.  Okay…so 400 hundred years ago this was ‘the dance’ and it was totally acceptable.  Now, in modern days, they are saying that is just ‘too’ sexually explicit….when hello…

“The Mujra by its very nature is supposed to be a seductive dance,” says Badar Alam, a cultural expert. He recalls that attempts were made to ban it during the 1980s. “Gradually, it returned to commercial theatre, mostly by paying off officials. The question remains: does the government have the right to engage in moral policing?”

Obviously the government and the High Court seem to think so.  

And, in my mind, it is just another way to ‘control’ their women, and to keep them down. The dancers are striking because for some this is their livelihood. They have tried to encourage “family friendly” dances, but that hasn’t been as successful – The once packed theaters are now empty and when they once could charge 300 rupees a seat, they now can only get a mere 25. Some girls were making up to 15,000 rupees in one night. Hundreds of these girls from poorer backgrounds will be out of the work if the crowds do not come back. 

Because of the strike and the lack of enthusiasm over the ‘family friendly’ alternative show, the High Courts have suspended the ban.  Oh…but they still want ‘control’ over these women. In order for the Mujra to continue, the dancers have been ordered to cover their necks with shawls and wear shoes. It seems that dancing barefoot, which is how  the dance was traditionally performed, it is now deemed ‘too erotic’.  Next thing you know they’ll expect them to dance in a burkha! How ridiculous.

The ban on dancing is a symptom of a more dangerous trend in Pakistani society. “If the government engages in moral policing,” says Badar Alam, “it gives vigilantes licence to do the same. It fuels intolerance and de-secularisation by violence and intimidation and opens the door to extreme Jihadi Islamic movements.”

The Mujra dance is a beautiful art form.  Is there not enough violence and intolerance in this world? – do we now need to take away beauty that threatens the livelihood of women? Is there no other issues to be more concerned about in life than a simple dance that brings joy and entertainment to those that enjoy this tradition?  The answer seems simple to me.

Readers:  Thoughts? Are any of you from Pakistan that has something to say about this? Blog me. 

~~~~~~~

Hi Shylo:  Thank you for posting such a beautiful poem. I am so curious as to exactly what you mean when you say that it was ‘found on a huge meteorite’?  What is ‘inscripted’ on the meteorite or ??

Hi ZL:  Yeah, you would’ve gotten a a kick out of the show too. In regards to Anonz: I think you’re doing just fine. You know me…I’ll hold nothing back.

I can see how the thing about your father and you not ‘existing’ would bring up some stuff. I’m glad that you made it through and had a ‘excellent’ day. And I’m happy that you’re here too :)

Hi Linda:  I love the adventures too and I hope that they’ll keep writing in. Thank you for your kind wishes to us GirlZ and Girls.  If you’re serious about going I am sure Maddie will find you.

Peace out…

Gratefully your blog host,

michelle

Aka BABE: Your Bad Ass Bitch Editor

For archives dated before January 17, 2008 click on my Blogroll:

or click here: “A Day in the life of…”

All content on this site are property of Michelle Moquin © copyright 2008

" Politics, god, Life, News, Music, Family, Personal, Travel, Random, Photography, Religion, Aliens, Art, Entertainment, Food, Books, Thoughts, Media, Culture, Love, Sex, Poetry, Prose, Friends, Technology, Humor, Health, Writing, Events, Movies, Sports, Video, Christianity, Atheist, Blogging, History, Work, Education, Business, Fashion, Barack Obama, People, Internet, Relationships, Faith, Photos, Videos, Hillary Clinton, School, Reviews, God, TV, Philosophy, Fun, Science, Environment, Design, The Page, Rants, Pictures, Church, Blog, Nature, Marketing, Television, Democrats, Parenting, Miscellaneous, Current Events, Film, Spirituality, Obama, Musings, Home, Human Rights, Society, Comedy, Me, Random Thoughts, Research, Government, Election 2008, Baseball, Opinion, Recipes, Children, Iraq, Funny, Women, Economics, America, Misc, Commentary, John McCain, Reflections, All, Celebrities, Inspiration, Lifestyle, Theology, Linux, Kids, Games, World, India, Literature, China, Ramblings, Fitness, Money, Review, War, Articles, Economy, Journal, Quotes, NBA, Crime, Anime, Islam, 2008, Stories, Prayer, Diary, Jesus, Buddha, Muslim, Israel, Europe, Links, Marriage, Fiction, American Idol, Software, Leadership, Pop culture, Rants, Video Games, Republicans, Updates, Political, Football, Healing, Blogs, Shopping, USA, Class, Matrix, Course, Work, Web 2.0, My Life, Psychology, Gay, Happiness, Advertising, Field Hockey, Hip-hop, sex, fucking, ass, Soccer, sox"