Dee Hathaway

I was flipping through movie sites on the interwebs today (much like a normal person would flip through TV channels) and landed on a movie called “Stardust”.  it’s about a star that falls from the sky, and the young man who captures her to take her as a gift to his supposed true love.  I don’t want to give away a whole lot more than that, cuz it’s been added to the list of movies that we should see together.  (that’s getting to be a long list!!)

There were quite a few things running through my mind as I watched this particular part of the show (cuz I’m a bit AD… whatever the next initial is… and can’t think of just one thing at a time)…

1. My leg hair is so blond that at times it doesn’t even seem like I have leg hair.
2. My head hair is so blond that at times it doesn’t even seem like I have any thoughts.
3. I don’t know when people first started wishing on stars.

Well I can’t do a whole lot about number 1, except maybe dye my leg hairs.. and that ain’t gonna happen (so just put that mascara away!!).  And there’s definitely nothing I can do about number 2.  So I Googled (it’s what i do) number 3.  Actually I googled falling stars, but you know what I mean.  :)

The answers covered a pretty broad range, as you would expect them to when asking the internet.  There really isn’t any evidence regarding where or when the practice of wishing on a star started, but there are some rather interesting ideas.  So I thought I’d share a little of what I found with you now, mkay?

• Japan has what is called the Tanabata or “star” festival.  According to legend, this is the time when two stars Altair and Vega (I had a sister-in-law who drove a Vega once), which are usually separated by the Milky Way (mmmmm, tasty!), meet.
• The Greeks thought falling stars to be rising or falling human souls.
• Some associate shooting stars with angels, so wishing on a star might be considered the same as offering up a prayer.
• There are a whole bunch of fun-haters who will tell you that they are not shooting stars at all, but meteors or space dust or astronaut poo or the pedal off of ET’s bicycle.  We all know they are not actually stars, but come on!  Have an imagination once in a while (imaginations can be pretty fantastic!)
• In Chile, when you spot a shooting star, you should pick up a stone in the same moment and make your wish then.  If you’re in the Philippines, you should tie a knot in your handkerchief (which would work if you’re in a gang or have a cold, but why else would you be carrying a handkerchief?)
• In The Night Before Christmas, Ma was in her kerchief.  She must be Phillipino, whadya think?

We all need something to believe in.  And we all need more wishes.  One of the more important parts of wishing on a star, falling or not, is the act of wishing itself.  Have you ever noticed that once you get interested in something, you see it everywhere?  Like if you are thinking about buying a CTS, you start to see them all over the place.  It’s the same with everything, including wishes.  We attract what we focus on.  And it’s the very same for things that we wish for.  What is a wish but a focus on something that we want?  The more we wish, the more we focus, the more we attract, and the more likely we are to get what we wish for.

Get so fixated on what you want, that you drown out any vibration or reverberation that has anything to do with what you do not want. — Abraham

To help you out, here are a few handy items from the wish-list of the Dee…

• Always keep a wish handy.  You never know when you’ll see a falling star or birthday candle or tunnel, and you won’t have time to search around for what it is you want. cuz…
• Shooting stars disappear as quickly as they appear. When you see them, grab them quick and hang on tight!
• Keep looking up.  Don’t worry so much about being ‘grounded’.  You’re not going to see any shooting stars if you’re staring at your feet.

Once you make a wish, you can’t just let it sit there.  You have to do something about it.  Your wish is just the starting point.  Embrace it. Believe in it.  Live it.

The very most important part of wishing is… having something to wish for.  Something that you want so very much that it occupies your mind, that you see it everywhere.  It’s so important that you know what it is that you want.   If you don’t know what you want, how do you know you don’t already have it???  I know what I wish for.  I wish for you.  I wish for you and me.  I wish for you and me to be happy.

And I think that maybe my wishes have already come true!!

thank you zannr for some of the ideas here!

Popularity: 2% [?]

Have you ever inhaled peanut butter? Well I think I just did, and I gotta tell ya.. it’s not a fun time. I’ve been coughing peanut dust for about 20 minutes. That’s not an easy confession for me to make.. I’ve been eating and breathing for… well let’s just say a lot of… years. You’d think I’d have it down by now, but no. I always forget that part about stop breathing, then swallow. I should be an old pro at that by now, but it still leaves me a little jiffy from time to time. (get it… peanut butter… jiffy… wow. tough room)

NEwhere…

I picked up a new station on my TV. I don’t have dish or cable or satellite or anything like that. I’m such a cheapskate (it’s all about the Jack value menu for me!) that I just have an antenna. The upside of that is that I have a lot of HD TV, cuz there really isn’t much old school TV left. Ya, my dad was one of those who thought that when he got so lazy that he couldn’t have one of the kids change the channel it was time to get rid of the TV.

(bring it back in, sidetrack-boy. That’s my superhero name. I think we all know why… ahem)

Yes. So. The new channel. I’ve picked up channel 62, which is ABC13 from I don’t know where, but it’s full coverage of the storm moving up the east coast. OK, the ‘hurricane’ moving up the east coast.

Don’t get me wrong (just get me), I’m sure it’s a big deal with the rain and wind and stuff. But I feel really bad for these newscasters. They are doing their best to make this look like it’s a really big deal. They’ve put a reporter out in the wind and rain, and they’ve had him standing in 3 inches of water and shouting (which really isn’t necessary) about how bad the storm is. I mean there are tree branches and pine needles all over the road! (gasp. shock. yawn.)

Right now the reporter is driving down the interstate saying that the most consistent thing they see is that there are not very many cars on the roadway. And they keep flashing back to what is evidently the only roof that has been damaged on the east coast.

I know they just had an earthquake (and the peeps in CA (my recent stop in San Fran made me quite trembly) equate that to what it feels like when a truck drives by), and that the power is out for a few peeps, but watching an interview where someone says “we was just sittin at home watchin’ jeppardy when the powr went out.. I turned to Darrel (pronounced DaRell) and I says we needs to git to the shelter!” just really doesn’t put the same sympathy in me that New Orleans did.

Oh look. Winds at 30 mph.

So as I’ve been sitting here watching the coverage (cuz I’m just.that.bored.), I’m reminded of some dreams that I had when I was young(er). I used to have some very real dreams about disaster. Nuclear bomb, airplane crash… stuff like that. And as I do watch the people in the shelter talk about why they went to said shelter, I think about what I would do in a disaster. Or really bad rainfall, as the case may be.

The big deal for me right now is that, should disaster strike, I might not be able to get to the people that mean the most to me. That I might not be able to get to my girls.

I’ve played the scenario out a few times, cuz I’m morbid like that. I know how to survive. I can hunt and gather and build a fort (especially if I have enough sheets!), but my big concern is taking care of those I love. And being with the people who make my life worth living. I think about Will Smith in “I Am Legend” and I marvel and how he was able to just keep going. Alone. I know you all can take care of yourselves… just look how strong you’ve become! But I don’t want to face disaster alone. (that’s SO weird for me!!!) I used to think that there would be nothing better than for me to be on the show “Lost”, but as the sole survivor. Not so much anymore. (must be the excessive heat… I should take a cold shower) Some things do change!

And so, rather than my usual “let’s make a deal” here, let me pose this question. What would you do if the worst should happen? I know that the east coast has turned into a monsoon-type storm… but what if something really happened?

Oh. btw. If you’re not from the nor’east… you shouldn’t use the term “nor’easter”. Just sayin.

I have my emergency evacuation plan. It involves a fast car, a pillow, a laptop and you. What would you do?

To help, here are 2 (yes, two!) songs.

and… I know this was posted at one time, cuz I remember the comments about it. Evidently it was from when I (foolishly) deleted posts after a few days. Who had the idea to read and delete anyway???

Popularity: 1% [?]

I’ve got nothing on. The TV, I mean. Hey, this is a family friendly blog… what were you thinking?

I’m one of those cheapies who doesn’t have cable/Dish/DirecTV. I satisfy most of my tube-watching desires with a good dosage of Netflix, Hulu and borrowed movies. I also have a HD antenna and, depending on where I place the antenna and where I lay on the bed, I can get a decent number of HD channels.

Evidently this is a pretty popular way of getting your TV (at least here in the ghetto), cuz there have been some new channels pop up lately. Along with the network stations and a dozen PBS channels I now get RTV “random time vortex”, MeTV “moderately entertaining tired videos” and THiS “thank heavens its sfree” (shut up. it’s the best I could come up with). These channels all show old shows. Shows that I remember from when I was growing up. cuz I’m old. :-/

I was flipping through those channels this morning and landed on a show with Justin Bateman. At first I was a little troubled because I know the guy by site, but then I googled him (it’s what I do) and found out that he’s one of those actors that has been in pretty much everything. I like stars like that. Not big flashy money-magnets, but someone who performs consistently.

Anywhoo… at this point in this show, he had just realized that he needed to buckle down and study for his exams or he wasn’t going to graduate. So he ran to the library and had a heart-to-heart with his love interest and she was gonna help him. It was a touching little scene (well, considering how the rest of the movie was) and then I found out there was a really big problem. I was watching a Teen Wolf sequel. (gasp!)

I liked Teen Wolf. You know, with Michael J. Fox. I liked it so much that I watched Air Wolf just to see if it was a show about flying werewolves. (It’s not) People who say that Return of the Jedi was too much like Star Wars have not seen Teen Wolf and Teen Wolf Too. It’s the exact (yes, exact) same story, just with different actors. It was almost more than I could stand (almost). And this is from a guy who really likes twice.

So I watched the movie for a while (the remote was on the kitchen counter and I didn’t want to get off the couch… you know how it goes), until the boxing scene, actually. When the big school bully is beating the crap out of Wolverine Jr, but he made some promise that he won’t go all hairy (he’s says it’s like he has a beard all over his body) and continues to get pummeled. Until he gets a little red-eyed and finds some inner strength from his girlfriend Adrian (no wait.. that’s Rocky) and then, just when you think he’s done, he comes back and wins the day. And then the theme music from Dirty Dancing plays while the credits roll. (ya, bad enough they stole the plot from another show. they stole the soundtrack too!)

What is it with the big comebacks like that? I watched (sort of) The Fighter last night, and the same thing happened there. Kid gets beaten up in every fight, but then in the end decides to get serious and win the world championship. I guess it’s that little-known-hero-fighter-makes-a-comeback thing. Makes for good movies?

And as I sat and thought about those movies and my own life (it’s what I do) I found a couple of comparisons, which I would like to share with you now (also what I do. I just can’t stop.)

The first thought was that it’s not really a healthy thing to hold all that anger/energy/ambition/bad acting inside until it just explodes out of you in a massive pinching punching attack. That’ll leave bruises and stuff… I speak from experience. Too often we don’t speak up about things we don’t like, or even things we do, until that one final thing happens and all that not speaking up explodes like a mentos in Coke. And that was almost the whole purpose of this post.

But I started thinking (a dangerous past-time, I know) that it’s not really them exploding in anger. I like to think that after they had taken about all they could (you know.. the countdown to 9 and a half before they get up and win in 3 punches), they found that ‘something’ deep inside that gave them the desire to succeed. The will and the motivation to stop the bad things that were happening and change their lives. To take control of their lives.

I think that for everyone, and in pretty much any situation, there is a point where what you are willing to take becomes what you can’t take anymore. Sometimes we put up a fight cuz we know we’re right; sometimes we just sit back quietly and say ‘whatever’ because we know we can’t argue with a crazy person, or that the topic isn’t that important to us. Sometimes we remind that person who cut in line in front of us that we’re a society with rules, and sometimes we let it go because Karma will take care of them and it’s not worth getting shot over. And sometimes we have to make a stand. Sometimes we have to set things right. On those rare occasions we have to put everything else aside to do what we know is right, to get what we really want.

We are all champions. And when the right cause, the right reason, comes along we will rise to the fight. I believe that for the right purpose, we can be miracles. Sometimes we need an Adrian in our corner, sometimes we need a good coach. sometimes we just need a mentos. But mostly, we need to believe that we can. And that we are worth it (we are!!!).

I know by now you’re wondering what the heck all this rambling is leading up to. Well hopefully you haven’t had enough and decided to punch that little red X in the upper right corner. What it’s leading to is this….

I’ve seen the change that can happen when someone has had enough. I know how powerful it is to take back our lives… and I know how hard that is, especially if you think you have to go it alone. It’s easier if you have someone there with you. Teen Wolf Too had his girlfriend, his dad, and his professor. Rocky had Adrian. I have you.

We can rally that inner greatness that each of us has to bring about the changes in our lives, in our situations, that will make us world champions, even if it’s only in our own little world. I’ll be your cheerleader (I’m not wearing knee socks… I draw the line there), your coach, your biggest fan. I’ll even be your Adrian. And I’ll definitely be in your corner.

Together, we can make the change, we can win this fight. We can do anything.

Popularity: 2% [?]

the sheer and utter panic that comes from pressing ‘Publish” in WordPress and having the login screen pop up.

It’s like writing a really long, awesome comment on someone’s blog and having it disappear because you didn’t put in the email address.

I’m SO thankful for auto-save!!

Popularity: 1% [?]

Last night I had the strangest dream. No, I didn’t sail away to China (vague Ace of Base reference)… in fact it wasn’t really even last night. It was a few nights ago, I just needed that song hook to catch your attention. And I didn’t really want to admit that it has not only been a month since you’ve read a post here, but it now takes me several days to actually go from mused to posted. (I.am.such a slacker!)

I’ve discovered a new show (don’t worry, we’ll get back to the post in a minute.. I haven’t put anything here in a long time and I have a lot to say, mkay??). No, it’s not the bachelorette. Manly guys like me would certainly never watch something like that, no matter how pathetic Bentley seems. (ahem… moving on)

The new show that I like is Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition. And it’s not just because I feel like I need to be on that show. I love the transformation. I love that they show people who are sticking with something. I’m a huge fan (huge!) of instant gratification, and it really annoys me that I don’t lose 10 pounds after a good workout. And I also am a huge fan of achievement and reaching goals and getting what you want. (oh yes, that will play out quite nicely later in the post.. you just wait. wait for it… wait for it…)

So back to the dream (remember that?)

I dreamed I had to give a talk in church. Oh shut up! I’ve been to church! And I’ve actually spoken in church and (gasp) taught before. That’s right. Somewhere out there are poor lost souls who long, long ago had to have me for a Sunday School teacher. Poor kids.

So in the dream (I swear I couldn’t stay on track if I had rails) I was sitting in a church with amphitheater seating.. you know… sort of a semi-circle around the podium/stage/pulpit thing. I think it might have something to do with that little bit of an ego that I might have (no, really! You probably didn’t notice). As I sat there all quietly waiting for my turn to be called to center stage it dawned on me (still in the dream, btw) that I had left my talk home. Oh crap!

And as I sat there in my dream pew in my dream panic, it occurred to me that I write posts all the time. I could just sit there and write something to you (it’s what I do) and use that as a ‘inspired’ talk for the masses gathered there. And it was really quite calming to realize I could just whip out a piece of paper and my lucky pen and jot some thoughts down and know that some people would actually believe that I knew what I was talking about. I’m the king of fake it til you make it, ya know.

I remember enough about what I was jotting down there to know it was based on the whole “Dance like no one is watching” theme, but not much more beyond that. So when I did wake up, I had some thoughts about that running though my head. And it was one of those dreams that actually made sense (but then, everything seems like a good idea after 2am). And some of the feeling that I had there stuck with me, and kinda turned into (wait for it…) this post.

So I thought I’d share a few of those edge-of-dream thoughts with you here (in true d-list style).

“You’ve gotta dance like there’s nobody watching,
Love like you’ll never be hurt,
Sing like there’s nobody listening,
And live like it’s heaven on earth.”
— William W. Purkey… also attributed to Mark Twain and about half a dozen other people.

Good lines there, Mr Purkey/Twain/Everybody else, but I have a few to add to that. You ready? I need you to be ready. Well, I’m going ahead anyway… you come along when you’re ready.

* Drive like there’s no speed limit. (it’s my fav)
* Sleep like you don’t have to get up in the morning.
* Live like you expect things to go your way.

And it’s the last one that really stuck with me when I woke up. It’s no secret that the D-Meister has it all goin’ his way pretty much all the time. (you can be jealous, it’s ok) And I think that a lot of the secret to my success is that I just expect it. Call it the law of attraction, call it good hair, call it dumb luck, call me a lucky guy (yes that again)… but I’m here to tell you that what you get is up to you. 

There have been a lot of things going my way lately, and I think there are a few reasons for that (oh yay! another list!)

1.  I’m naturally awesome
B.  I expect good things

Ya it’s about that simple.  (shut up, it is!) I’m not sure which of those reasons has more to do with things going my way, but I’d have to say the first comes naturally (that’s why it’s called naturally awesome) and that certainly helps a lot.  And I’ve got to say that I know you are quite awesome (why else would you be here?).  The second part is something that everyone can work on.  Even I need to remind myself to keep expecting good things.  There are a lot of ways to say it.. just plain lucky, the law of attraction, the power of intention, good things come to those who wait (I’m not much for waiting).  But the bottom line is you get what you expect to get. And the more you get of that, the more you get.

Ever had a day when thigs are just going your way?  Well, I’ve had a LOT of those.  And they happen because one good thing happens, like maybe your day starts with someone smiling at you, and that starts your skin humming with goodness (mmhmm!) and then more good things come your way. But when you are having a bad day (let’s not do that), it just seems like everything comes crashing down at once.

The secret to keeping the good things coming is to keep expecting good things.  So let’s find ways to remind ourselves that we deserve the things we want and will always get what we need.  Might I suggest reading some of your favorite uplifting blog sites (like this one, for example!), listening to your favorite music (like what’s posted on here, for example!) and just hanging out with people who love you and lift you up.  (like me, for example!).  Before you know it you’ll be good intentioning like an old pro. 

Your life will be as good as you allow it to be.  Allow it to be awesome.  Expect it to be awesome.  Cuz you.are.awesome.

Popularity: 3% [?]