Hunger Games Review

I saw Hunger Games over the weekend, just like half the world apparently.  I made John go with me since my daughter was going with her step-mom.  I was not sure what to expect since there was a ton of hype before the movie came out.  I read the trilogy and absolutely LOVE the books.  If you haven't read the books, you should. 

As far as the movie goes, I think they did a good job.  John, who didn't read the books, thought the movie was only okay.  I found myself explaining some things to him in the movie that were not obvious or explained to those who did not read the book.  I could see where a non-reader would only think the movie was okay. 

I have to admit that I got all choked up with the Rue scene and was touched emotionally a few times.  Jennifer Lawrence did a great job as Katniss as did Josh Hutcherson as Peeta.  I am not sure why they changed some things in the movie, such as where Katniss got the pin, and would have stayed with the original storyline. 

As far as the action, I would have liked to have seen more.  I realize that they were going for a PG13 rating, but they could have made things more dramatic.  The whole game only seemed like it was several days in the movie, whereas in the book it was quite long, so they should have played that out more.  So, much was only touched on that should have been a bigger part, I kinda felt cheated. 

Overall, it was a good movie and worth the ticket price.  It was not anywhere near as good as the book, but that is the case with most movies.  I suggest if you have not read the book, watch the movie, then read the book and then watch the movie again. 

Shameful!

As most of you know, I am currently a volunteer for COTA (Children's Organ Transplant Assoc.) to benefit Dylan Bishop Taylor.  We are putting together some great fundraisers and are plugging along getting a good community response to the fundraising drives.

Anyway, I approached the church that Dylan's family attends to see if they are willing to get on board for any of the fundraising or to help us get the word out about any of the fundraising events.  I was advised that "our congregation is too large to help any individual church members".  I was told that they receive requests almost daily and that it would not be fair to help one if not all. 

I am sorry, but how can a church turn away from helping save the life of a member of its congregation?  Am I missing something here, because I find this attitude shameful!  You cannot help any individual members of your congregation?  Who do they think supports the church other than individual members of the congregation?  They will gladly take your money, but will not help you as an individual if you need it...this just boggles my mind. 

By the way, this is not some little nothing church.  It is probably the biggest church in Brevard County.  If you live here, I am sure you probably know which one I am talking about.  I guess the big church likes it's numbers, but I guess that is all you are to them if something bad happens to you.  God help us all!

Oh the Drama of Middle School

My daughter is in middle school and I must report that it is as drama filled if not more so, than middle school was when I was growing up.  I remember middle school being a time when girls became REALLY difficult.  The whole competition over boys, even when I didn't think I was competing.  The competition over grades, the judgemental comments over how people dressed, the gossip, the DRAMA! 

It was in middle school that I became best friends with a friend in the neighborhood, Kristy.  She lived a block away and went to a different school.  The beauty of that was that I could tell her my stories and she could tell me hers without either of us saying "that is not what I heard" or some other catty comment.  We became best friends, and essentially told the rest of the world to "screw you" and hung out with guys because the girls were just too much work.

Now, my daughter is going through this.  The girls at school are gossip central and it is overflowing onto her soccer team as well.  For years she has had a lot of guy friends and is leaning towards them even more because girls are getting to be too much work.  I wish I had good advice on how to deal with the girl drama, but I don't.  So, I am supporting her hanging with the boys. 

Any advice for dealing with middle school girl drama?

Had a Good Weekend!

It's Sunday night and things have finally calmed down.  John's birthday was on Saturday, so he took Thursday and Friday off.  He just went bed, as did my daughter too.  My son is in the spare room playing X-Box, so it is like not having anyone else awake in the house....and now I can unwind. 

I don't know what it is, but it seems that whenever John is home from work, I don't get nearly as much work done.  It is like having a toddler in the house again that needs constant attention.  If I am on the computer too long, he wants to know what I am doing and why I am not paying attention to him.  If I get something to eat, I have to provide the same for him.  If I do any chores, I have to make sure they do not interrupt whatever he is doing.  So, needless to say, not much gets done when he is home. 

Overall, I would say that we had an okay weekend.  We went out to dinner Friday night and out for lunch on Saturday before my daughter's soccer game.  We did go shopping on Thursday and got all our weekly errands done on Friday, so at least we were productive in that respect. 

I am looking forward to having the house to myself again tomorrow.  We had rain all day today, so my plants are happy, so I am thinking tomorrow will be a good time to pull weeds since the ground will still be loose.  Oh joy, but it needs to be done...

You Have to Watch KONY 2012

Have you joined the Kony 2012 movement? My teenage son asked me to watch the video, Kony 2012, and I must admit that it is brilliant! You definitely need to check it out. The video is almost 30 minutes, but it is a must see for many reasons.

The whole premise of Kony 2012 is to make Kony a household name. If you don't know who Kony is, then you are not alone. He is a terrible guy that runs a guerrilla organization in Africa (Uganda) that abducts children and forces them to be his child soldiers. The acts that he makes the kids commit are horrifying and the African people want him brought to justice. The problem is that the African police/military are so poorly funded and lack training so, tracking down Kony is a huge undertaking. The film producers have created an organization to bring the crimes that Kony has committed to the limelight so that the people of the U.S. and other countries help the African nations find Kony so that he may be brought to justice.

The U.S. did send troops to Africa in the fall of 2011 to help in this mission, due to the efforts of the campaign for the "Invisible Children" campaign. The campaign organizers know that the U.S. will not keep troops on a wild goose chase forever, so they are pushing that Kony is caught in 2012.

The movie is brilliantly done and is definitely for a good cause. But, just as important, this movie is a great example of how social media can bring the world together for a greater cause! This movie has gone viral among high school and college students and the young people are leading this movement. I must say that I am very proud of these young people and plan to support this movement as well.

The movie Kony 2012 is on Youtube, but I am also putting a link below. Let me know what your thoughts are about this movie and movement.

Teenage Years Are Such a Joy (Sarcasm Intended!)

This weekend my daughter wanted to go see the new Dr. Seuss movie with one of her best friend.  I agreed to drop them off and pick them up from the movie theater.  Of course since they are both 13 years old, I gave them the lecture of being careful who they talk to, stay together, behave, etc...  I try to give my kids a little freedom since they will never learn to make good decision if they are never given the chance to make those decisions.

John, my son and I went out to dinner while the girls were at the movie.  After dinner, I dropped the guys home and headed back to the movie theater since I knew the movie was only 1.5 hours long.  I sat in the parking lot until I got a text asking if the girls could stay at the theater in the arcade for another hour.  Of course, I said no, since just letting go to the movies by themselves was all I could handle.  I texted my daughter that I was in the parking lot and would pull around the front of the theater. 

If took a few minutes until I saw my daughter come out of the theater.  I didn't not see the other girl right away, so I started looking around for her.  Well, as it turned out, she was at the door of the theater (which is glass), kissing a boy goodbye.

When the girls got in the car, I tried to be casual and asked them about the movie.  Then, I asked them if they met anyone at the theater.  They said "no".  Of course, by this time, my mind is going crazy, because either they just lied to me or the girl kissed a guy she just met at the theater, both of which are bad. 

I drove the girls to the friend's house because my daughter was supposed to be spending the night there.   Of course I pulled her aside and asked her again if they met anybody at the theater and she said they ran into a guy they know and saw one other person they knew, but they did not go to the movie with them.  I mentioned to my daughter that her friend kissed the boy and my daughter was shocked.  Either she plays a good game or she actually didn't know that her friend kissed the boy.  My daughter was facing the car walking towards it when the kiss occurred, so it is unlikely that she saw the kiss at all.  The question then becomes, was that the only kiss, and is the friend being secretive or is my daughter lying about not knowing.  Either way, it makes me want to create a separation between the girls.  Oh my, the tangled web they weave....

And to think that they are only 13, what will the older years bring.  I think I need a glass of wine just blogging about it..... 

Baseball

As many of you may know, my son plays baseball for his high school.  Unfortunately, I do not get to go to many of his games because I have to take my daughter to soccer practice.  So far this season, I have been able to go to a couple of baseball games and am really happy about how the baseball team is doing this year. 

I must say that my son is doing rather well.  At the end of last season he got his contact lenses, so his hitting has really improved this year.  He was playing first base which he really liked, but just got moved to outfield.  I think watching him at outfield is a little more exciting because he can actually run to a ball and make tremendous catches that 1st base really does not lend itself to. I am kinda torn though about the move from 1st base though since my son just got a really expensive 1st baseman's glove for Christmas.  Figures right?  Oh well, it is what it is....  I just look forward to watching more baseball. 

And yes, that is a pic of my son.....