Apocalypse … Later

Posted on
10

By Judy Berman

Mayan Calendar Doomsday folks are convinced that there won’t be a Dec. 22nd. But they’re wrong.

If you can’t believe Marty McFly of “Back to the Future,” who traveled to 2015, well, then who can you believe? But, suppose for just a nano-second that the Doomsday Sayers are right. What would you do differently? Quit your job? Jump out of a plane? Mend old fences?

Some might want to throw or attend an ongoing party until Dec. 21st. That’s the end of the Mayan Long Count calendar which some believe signifies the end of the world. Or, maybe they want to pack their bags for an out-of-this-world experience by hitching a ride on an intergalactic ship to a new galaxy.

“According to the ancient Mayan calendar, next year’s winter solstice marks the end of a 144,000-day cycle. This cycle, which begins at the mythical Maya creation date, has already been repeated 12 times. The 13th will end in 2012, capping a full 5,200-year Mayan cycle of creation,” according to Space.com’s Charles Q. Choi.

Apocalypse … now … in 2012? I don’t buy it. Astronomers’ findings support my lack of concern. Mayans also say that Dec. 21st only ends one cycle and then a new one begins.

But to get back to the question I posed: If … if you thought this was true, what would you do or change in your life? You don’t need the threat of the end of the world to shift gears and get going. Actually, this could be motivation to make that transformation you’ve considered, but hesitated to follow thru on.

Here’s some thoughts on life-altering decisions and bucket-list activities:

  • Don’t just follow thru on your desire to run into the boss’s office and shout, “Take this job and shove it,” before running off to see the world. This bold move takes money or ingenuity – or both. If you have a short supply of either, you can plan      now on how you can fulfill that dream.
  • Does skydiving top your lists of things to do before you die? Or kayaking on a raging river? If you have a fear of flying or drowning, there’s still time to work this out. Be fearless.
  • Chuck out old grudges. Let go of the past. That way you’ll have fewer – or no – regrets when that person is no longer a part of your life. Hurt feelings often melt away once communication begins. Mend fences now.
  • Reach out to someone you haven’t talked to or seen in a long time. It’s amazing how time flies by. I once went to write a thank-you note to a teacher who had been very supportive of me in high school and learned that he had passed away. So I wrote a letter to his widow telling her about what a great teacher he was and what he meant to me as I set out on my own. She was delighted to hear from me. I only wish I could have said those things to him. Don’t delay.

The end of the world shouldn’t be trivialized. But I think it’s a great beginning for all of us to start thinking how we want to live our lives now.

Unlike Marty McFly, we can’t change the past. But we can swap out for a new, improved future.

Photo credit: Wikimedia  

Michael J. Fox (as Marty McFly), Christopher Lloyd (as “Doc” – Dr. Emmett Brown) and the DeLorean Time Machine in “Back to the Future:”

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:DeLoreanmachine.jpg

Titanic: Final Destination

Posted on
12

By Judy Berman

Do you want A Night to Remember? A night on an ill-fated cruise ship?

I’d bail on this “voyage of a lifetime.” But others apparently are eager to board the 100th anniversary 12-night Titanic Memorial Cruise. The cruise on the MS Balmoral will follow the same route as the RMS Titanic.

First of all, this heartbreaking news bulletin: Neither Jack Dawson nor Rose DeWitt Bukater will be on board to greet you. Both characters in director James Cameron’s 1997 movie, “Titanic,” were fictional. There is, however, an effort to resuscitate Jack for a sequel. More on that later in this story.

While the Balmoral is already full, chances are there might still be some seats left on the eight-night Titanic Anniversary Cruise aboard the Azamara Journey. That’s set to sail from New York on April 10, exactly 100 years to the day the Titanic departed Southampton,England.

For a mere $14,850 a person, you can book a Club World Owners Suite. Some space still remains in the less pricey Interior Stateroom, for $4,900 a person.

Why the interest? The “Titanic” movie renewed fascination with the ship’s maiden voyage. Walter Lord, author of “A Night to Remember,” also portrayed the wrenching, human toll taken. He wrote that there were only 20 lifeboats for the 2,207 passengers aboard. Of those, 1,517 passengers and crew sank along with the ship after it hit an iceberg.

No word on how many lifeboats will be available for this trip. One flaw aboard the original cruise that I’m certain will be remedied this time around will be communications. Wikipedia states that, in 1912, the wireless radio operators were “paid primarily to relay messages to and from the passengers. They were not focused on relaying ‘non-essential’ ice messages to the bridge.”  (Read: also known as “iceberg ahead.”)

The cruise has booked Titanic historians and lecturers, offers a chance to experience the same dining pleasures offered in 1912 on the Titanic, and a chance to wear period costumes.

There will be a time for reflection to honor the victims on the Atlantic Ocean. “On April 14 at ll:40 p.m., Balmoral is scheduled to arrive at the spot where Titanic struck an iceberg, and a memorial service will be held at 2:20 a.m. on April 15, to coincide with the time the massive ship went down,” according to http://failuremag.com.

The Azamara Journey also will have a memorial service.

I don’t know about you, but I’d rather watch the movie and avoid a freezing trip aboard a ship.

As for a movie sequel, there’s a fake trailer of “Titanic 2: Jack’s Back” or “Titanic 2: The Surface.” Clips from various movies featuring Leonardo DiCaprio are used to update the original. With the help of modern science, Jack comes back from his watery grave only to discover that much has changed since the ship he was on went down in 1912.

To read more Titanic facts and to see the fake movie trailer, click on:

http://www.titanic-facts.com/titanic-movie.html

A “Reel” Christmas and Cherished Moments

Posted on
2

by Judy Berman

Are your Christmas memories based on “reel” life or real life?

When I think back — w-a-y back — a golden-brown turkey is roasting in the oven and a freshly baked apple pie cools on the kitchen counter. Their scents waft thru the house down the corridors of my mind. They stir up memories of my Mom fixing our holiday meal.

The plate of cookies and glass of milk I left for Santa are both empty. Only his note to me remains. A treasured memory.

Lately, I’ve begun to question these idealized moments.

This might be the result of one-too-many reruns of the 1983 classic film, “A Christmas Story.”

Parts of this movie, set in the 1940s, bear more than a passing resemblance to some events in my life. One example, take the kid’s tongue stuck on the freezing flagpole. Our youngest daughter, Jenn, did that, and I don’t think even a triple-dog-dare was involved. But there were similar unfortunate results.

In the movie, 9-year-old Ralphie (played by Peter Billingsley) wages a relentless campaign to get “the Holy Grail of Christmas gifts: a genuine Red Ryder 200-shot Carbine Action Air Rifle.”

His Mom shoots that idea down with “the classic mother BB gun block: You’ll shoot your eye out.”

Ralphie, who’d been scheming for weeks to get his “mitts on one of these steel beauties,” is not easily discouraged. He just switches tactics.

Fortunately, I don’t recall our girls bombarding us with pleas for a special toy. I do remember a frustrating 2-year search for Cabbage Patch Kids just before Christmas. Each time, no luck.

Then, after one Christmas, after we’d paid exorbitant prices at a flea market … Then, the dolls are flooding the stores.

Our daughters still have the dolls, and we have another great story to tell.

What I wish is that everyone finds their own special moments linked to this holiday season. Ones that will linger long after the wrapping paper has been ripped from the gifts and trampled underfoot.

May they be quiet, joyous moments that sneak up on you and leave you grinning throughout the year.

Photo: family/Nutcracker Suite performance

Jimmy Stewart’s Bedford Falls Comes to Life

Posted on
14

by Judy Berman    

The actors packed up long ago. The cameras and props are no doubt in storage. But I believe the setting for “It’s a Wonderful Life” remains intact.

Many believe that Seneca Falls, N.Y., is the inspirational backdrop for Bedford Falls. That iconic movie is now celebrating its 65th anniversary. As I walked the streets of Seneca Falls with my family one Christmas evening, I was convinced it was as well.

Amid a gentle snowfall, angels playing trumpets light up the village’s main street. Streets named “Bedford Falls Blvd.” and “George Bailey Lane” reinforce the connection to the movie.

Another indicator that George Bailey and his guardian angel, Clarence Odbody (played by Henry Travers), might be just around the corner is the village’s steel truss bridge over the canal.

We took this road trip – about an hour from our home – to stroll along the streets that we believe Jimmy Stewart (George) ran down in the movie. We stopped on that bridge and looked over the icy-cold water below. There, it’s easy to feel Stewart’s/Bailey’s anguish about wanting to end his pain. George, who had always put everyone else first, now feels the world would be better off without him.

It’s Christmas Eve, and it’s up to Clarence to change George’s mind. If he succeeds, Clarence will earn his wings. Clarence’s plan is to show George what life would be like if he’d never been born.

As Clarence tells Stewart, “Strange, isn’t it? Each man’s life touches so many other lives, and when he isn’t around, he leaves an awful hole, doesn’t he?”

George comes to realize that, despite some bad turns in life, there really is much to enjoy. The movie’s message – since it first came out in 1946 – is that we just need to stop and consider what we really value. For George, it was his family and friends.

What a wonderful legacy for a community to have. While some dispute that Frank Capra had Seneca Falls on his mind when he made this movie, there are some amazing coincidences.

The script mentions Rochester, Buffalo and Elmira. They are close to this village which was – like Bedford Falls – a mill town back in 1945 when this movie was shot.

There’s one other intriguing note. On that bridge that I stood on, there “was a plaque honoring Seneca Falls resident Antonio Varacalli, who had leaped into the icy waters of the canal in April 1917 to rescue a girl who had just attempted suicide by jumping off the bridge. Varacalli saved her but was overcome by fatigue from the rescue and drowned,” according to The Real Bedford Falls website.

That’s not a huge leap for a director to make from one heroic gesture to George jumping in to save Clarence, who pretends to be drowning.

Whether or not Capra did, we felt like we were part of movie history when we were in Seneca Falls. That night, we felt that Jimmy Stewart and Clarence were there with us. Maybe it was just wishful thinking, but I’m sure it was him who shouted “Merry Christmas” as he ran by.

Photo credit: Margaret McCormick

For more information on The Real Bedford Falls “Too Many Coincidences to Ignore,” click on the link below:

http://therealbedfordfalls.com/therealbedfordfalls.php

“Downtown” and December

Posted on
4

by Judy Berman  

There’s a jukebox in my head. When a certain tune plays on that virtual soundtrack, it takes me back.

Some songs are like worm-holes. They take you to a time and place you don’t want to return to. I won’t mention them for fear that they will be like an endless tape-loop in your brain. Oh, what the heck. “It’s a Small World After All.” I’ve seen grown-ups run from the room screaming in anguish, knowing that they will be mindlessly humming that tune all day because it’s now imbedded in their head.

Others may stir up memories that deposit you gently in a nostalgic setting and lift you out of a bluesy-funk. For me, December and Petula Clark’s “Downtown” will be forever intertwined. Both link to my first apartment when I moved away from home. The tune was upbeat. It made me feel less lonely and very hopeful about my new digs.

Envision this: I moved from the country into an apartment in Syracuse, N.Y. At night the old, run-down house looked like the one behind the Bates Motel in the movie “Psycho.”  Uninviting, foreboding. I would have to share the bathroom with some stranger – some unknown tenant who would live across the hall from my third-floor, walk-up apartment.

Why was it, again, that I was making this move? That question, among others, raced through my mind that December evening as I trudged up the stairs carrying my belongings.

At a small table, in my sparsely decorated one-room apartment, I watched sadly as my Dad backed up his Volkswagen. Snowflakes fell more furiously as he drove off. It was about two weeks before Christmas, and my parents would be moving to another state in less than two months.

A tiny snow globe on the table was my only holiday decoration.

I was 21 and eager to be on my own. But I was torn between celebrating my newfound independence and leaving the security of my parents’ home. It’s the flight that most of us feel we have to take to really be considered grown up.

The thought of partying the nights away sounded exciting. But I also was savvy enough to know I’d pay for that as I sleep-walked, bleary-eyed around the office the following day.

Yeah, that sure would get old real fast.

As I sat there, considering the abrupt change in my life, a song on the radio intruded into my thoughts.

“Just listen to the music of the traffic in the city, linger on the sidewalk where the neon signs are pretty,” Petula Clark sang.

“Downtown, where all the lights are bright. Downtown, waiting for you tonight. Downtown, you’re gonna be all right now.”

I dismissed the nagging thought that I might be spending Christmas alone and began to sing along. Downtown was less than a mile from my apartment. Time to view the brightly decorated Christmas trees.  I cheered up as I began to weigh the endless possibilities and adventures that lay in wait.

Now, when I hear that tune, a wave of nostalgia floods over me. While it dredges up some sad times, it also reminds me that opportunity beckons. All I need to do is open the door, remember the wonder of discovering something new and embrace the change.

What song sparks a special time of year for you?

(Click the link below to hear Petula Clark’s “Downtown”)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rZSklx9wKdY

Tap Into the Kid Inside Us All

Posted on
2

By Judy Berman

The rain subsides. People began to shed plastic raincoats or peek out from protective awnings before they continue their stroll thru the park.

One man runs his hand along the railing, brushing aside tiny pools of water. My daughter, Jenn, said: “That’s funny. I thought that’s something that only kids do.”

Sometimes, the daily grind wears us down. A mental – or physical – escape is a way to really appreciate the day and use it the best way you can. To recharge, just tap into that kid inside us all. Look at the world again thru new eyes.

So, what triggers your inner child to bust loose? Swinging high above the treetops? A light-as-air, sticky- sweet pink cotton candy that takes you back to a fun-filled day at the circus? For me, it’s sledding downhill on a tiny disk.

One crisp, cold winter day, my husband, Dave, and I grabbed our daughters’ plastic flying saucer sleds and headed for Onondaga Lake Park in Liverpool, N.Y.

While many adults shivered on the sidelines, we did a full-body slam on the sleds and squealed with delight each time we sped downhill. At the bottom, we’d playfully toss a few snowballs at each other.

We told the parents that our girls were off at college and the sleds were all we had left. They laughed. Soon, some joined us on our short ride down the hill. We swapped sleds and we’d race back to the top of the hill for more.

Exhausted, our faces tinged red by the cold and exertion, we decided to return home and said our good-byes.

A hot cup of cocoa sounded mighty good. Maybe even a fire crackling in our fireplace.

Then, we relaxed and admired the view of a fresh blanket of snow from the warmth of our kitchen.

In my time machine, that snowy day is just a memory away. When I reach for it, I can easily recall the kid inside me and the exhilaration I felt.

So, whether it’s having a nostalgic look at the old TV show, “Happy Days,” or skipping stones across the lake, get your kid on.

Come on in … the water’s fine. You’ll feel recharged after your brief escape and ready to tackle and conquer any challenges that might lurk in the shadows ahead.

 

 

 

Photo credits: photos of girl swinging and boy skipping stones taken by Danielle Wallace; man sledding from Morgue file.com

 

An Unexpected Detour

Posted on
7

By Judy Berman

A hectic week at work and a mound of chores at home made a quiet retreat sound real appealing.

I was taking a leisurely drive thru the village on the way to my favorite nature center when I spotted an elderly woman walking along the side of the road. She’d stop, turn and look at each of the cars – either concerned she’d be hit or looking for a ride.

The latter, I thought, as I drove past. A few blocks later, I decided, “what the heck, check it out” and turned around. I made a U-turn in a side street, stopped and asked if she’d like a ride. She said yes.

“It’s just a ways up, about a mile from here,” she said, referring to the corner of the street she lived on.

She told me she was 81 and gave up driving years ago.

On one of her feet, I noticed an open cut near the top of her blue moccasin. Maybe the blister was from an ill-fitting shoe.

As she got out of my car, the woman thanked me just before she headed toward her home.

I had more to be grateful for. That short ride just reminded me of that.

Photo credit: morguefile