Black Maria

I attended the 29th Black Maria Film and Video Festival. An amazing production at the Richey Suncoast theatre. The program begins with a history of the Charles Edison Fund and how the Black Maria was born. A history of the New Port Richey theatre and the Thomas Meighan Project. http://www.thomasmeighanproject.com/

Then, it moved on to the award winning Florida student video. Students from Marchman Technical Education Center produced the short clip with the help of their talented teacher Rob Mateja. The students did an superb job with their videos.

A few of my favorites - Sebastian' Voodoo, Banana Bread and Missed Aches. For more information go to - http://www.blackmariafilmfestival.org/.

Schools are for learning and taking students to that highest level where the imagination burst and becomes anything and everything. Keep the arts in our schools. Stop the budget cuts and move forward.

PUUUULLLLLL

Searching for Seven Moons

The sky a strand of smoky pearls around the neck of a movie starlet. Once a full moon - now less than its former self - glows like a seashell washed upon the beaches of the Gulf of Mexico. Stillness blankets the earth against the cool morning mist. The dew is a silence covering the footpaths. On the Eastern horizon the orange lights have missed their calling this frosty morning.

Happiness today.

1. I am happy it is such a lovely day.

2. I am happy for a day off.

3. I am happy for all that I will accomplish this wonderful day.

Spring Break 2010

I feel like an ant. Slowly crawling along Interstate 4 to Orlando. Massive vehicles are passing me by paying no mind at all. I feel like I am living in the land of the lost. Just a speck of almost nothingness - plodding along trying to figure out where in the world I am. And why is everything else so overpowering and humongous.

Giants whizz by leaving their dust and debris to settle in front of me, next to me and on top of me. Somewhat similar to the invisible man or a tangle of dog hair blowing along in the breeze of spring. Towering monoliths blocking out the sun and vitamin D and clogging up the fast lane.

I feel like an ant. Ready to be squished and squashed by the mere act of living. Consequences and condemnations piling upwards into a shaky towering inferno. A little ant trekking off to Orlando and the fun times - oblivious to the surrounding melodrama of the final act.

Spring Break......AAAAHHHHH

Finding Happiness

Happiness is subjective - objective or darn hard to find and capture. We have to work to even get close to happiness. Happiness is subtle, humble and can be found in the most unique places in our lives. Happiness can be elusive, so one must run the golden mile to catch it.

At times I feel like I am in a marathon and have not been practicing. I have no coach so I plunder through life trying to reach my goals that have become transparent or miles from the tips of my fingers. And this morning the fingers are feeling arthritic.

So still searching for the holy grail I count my happiness blessings.

Three reasons to be happy today!

1. It was not my turn to clean up the dog poop on the kitchen floor. (and the mystery is -how did that happen?)

2. I can use my two and a half hours of comp time this morning for missing work - yet again.

3. Today is the last day of school before Spring Break, yahoo!

If you look at your life there is so much to be happy about. If Nemo can find his way back home - I can find happiness in my everyday world.