GOSSIP FROM THE GIRLFRIEND GATHERINGS

Learning from YOU to empower ME !

Girlfriend Gathering Movie Review – The Legend of Hercules

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Today, a couple of girlfriends and I went to see the movie, The Legend of Hercules.   As a reader of Greek Mythology since childhood and a follower of the old Hercules movies with Steve Reeves, I was excited when I heard about this new movie.   I wondered what actor could adequately portray this hero for a new generation.    I was unfamiliar with the actor Kellan Lutz (Hercules) but he was definitely great for my eyes and his physical presence was more than adequate for Hercules.   Also, the actor (Liam McIntyre) that played my hero Spartacus from the STARZ series of the same name was in this movie, too, which was an additional bonus.

Overall, the movie was entertaining with some great (but not too bloody) fight scenes which I really enjoyed.   We saw the 2D version but I am sure the 3D version was really awesome on those fight scenes.   As for the storyline, I would have preferred a deeper one and some more characterization but then the movie duration would be longer.  Perhaps the movie budget did not allow for this level of depth.

If you want a good entertaining action movie with some scantily clothed good-looking men (which I enjoyed!) then this movie is for you.    Grab a bag of popcorn and enjoy!

QUESTIONS:

Do you like these type of movies, i.e., Gladiator, Spartacus, Hercules?   If so, what do you enjoy about them?

A Girlfriend Gathering Day Trip – At Dickens on the Strand 2013

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On December 7th, I was able to mark off another item from my Bucket List.   The item was to attend the annual Dickens on The Strand in downtown Galveston, Texas.Even though it was only 39 degrees, which is cold for us in Southeast Texas, we did a girlfriend day trip to Galveston to check out this event.

For the past 5 years, I have attempted to attend but either work schedule or family schedule prevented it.    This year my calendar was completely open for the date and I called up a few friends to join me.   We were all newbies to this event so we were excited about it.   So, we bundled up and made the nice drive to the end of I-45 South – Galveston Island.

We arrived and joined the other attendees in boutique shop hopping, tented booth perusing, people watching and gathering for displays of animal feats like a man with a falcon.  After walking around several of the blocks of the festival area we soon arrived at a spot to watch Queen Victoria’s parade while drinking hot chocolate.    After the parade, we were at a lost to find more to do as the average attendee.

This leads to my summation of my attendance to this event.   I know that I would have been more enthralled had I splurged and booked a hotel room at The Tremont House Hotel, dressed up for the period in a pirate woman’s outfit from Boss Wench (https://www.facebook.com/pages/Boss-Wench/361704803919844), made a reservations to have tea with Queen Victoria /dinner with Dickens and finish it off with a sunset sail on a tall ship.  But, since I did not participate at that level, my experience at Dickens on The Strand was not all that it could have been.   My friends felt the same way.

Here are a few photos from the event:

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The Best Things In Life #2 – Good Conversation

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One of the things I love to do is talk.   Any subject will suffice as a conversation starter for me.   Then that conversation may generate other questions and lead to an entirely different subject.   Also, I can start a conversation with anyone in any place.  I have met some wonderful people in this manner.

Today, I brought 12 fabulous women together in our annual holiday brunch at the Hotel Galvez in Galveston, Texas which is one of our favorite brunch spots.   Some of these women met each other in prior outings and some of them were joining us for the first time.   Everyone was a great fit in the group.   The conversation flowed the entire time and we covered subjects from the endearing nickname of Nelson Mandela to a recipe for bread pudding.    At some points we had one conversation that included the entire group and then at other points there were several mini conversations.   I enjoyed walking around the long table sticking my ears in all of the different conversations.    I really enjoyed watching the newcomers bonding with the regulars as if they were old friends.

We laughed a lot, ate some great food, and drank mimosas which really ” loosened the lips” and added flavor to the conversation.    Also, I am always amazed at what occurs during these conversational moments.   Some experience shared by one person is always a healing moment for someone else.     Through good conversation, a person can open their life and help another.

It was a true “girlfriend gathering”.   (And, yes, we were responsible and had designated drivers.)

To learn more about the beautiful Hotel Galvez in Galveston, Texas read my earlier blog post:

https://gossipfromthegirlfriendgatherings.com/2011/11/01/a-girlfriend-gathering-%E2%80%93-on-the-road-at-the-hotel-galvez/

QUESTIONS:

How do you feel about conversation?

Are you a talker?   Listener?     Equally both?

Have you ever gained insight through a good conversation?

“12 Years A Slave” – A Girlfriend Gathering Movie / Book Review

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12 Years a Slave

On October 28th, my girlfriends and I attended the opening of the movie “12 Years a Slave” in Houston at the historic River Oaks Theatre.    This was the only theatre in Houston showing the movie on the second limited opening across the nation.    As the “unofficial” coordinator of our girlfriend gatherings, I was really excited about getting my great friends together to attend.    We are a multi-cultural group of single, divorced and widowed women who strive to reach across stereotypical boundaries to truly know and understand one another.   Whenever we are together I think of that old Marvin Gaye song “What’s Going On?” and the verse “Talk to me, so you can see, what’s going on.”

Our group had attended the movie “The Butler” a couple of months ago and saw the preview for “12 Years a Slave” at that time.   It created a buzz among us especially when we discovered that only one of us had ever heard of Solomon Northup and she is Anglo-American!   She learned about him in school in upstate New York whereas those of us who grew up in the South had never heard of him.   This is another testament to the sad state of our country’s educational system and the travesty it teaches named American History.   It is my hope that one day the historic journeys and contributions of all of America’s citizens will be included in the history books but until then I guess we will discover it in bits and pieces.   These were my thoughts as we waited for the start of the movie on that day.  Since October 28th, I have seen the movie twice more and read the book that Solomon Northup published in 1853.   I waited to read his book before blogging about the movie.

The movie was brutally honest.   It accurately depicted the grave injustice and inhumanity that was done to Solomon Northup, as a free citizen, and to the enslaved African-Americans he encountered on his journey.    In my opinion, director Steve McQueen was very deliberate in bringing this disturbing subject to life for those of us who can never imagine the impact of slavery on a human being.    The superb performances of Chiwetel Ejiofor (Solomon), Lupita Nyong’o (Patsy), and Michael Fassbender (Epps) evoked such a range of emotions in me that my heart actually raced.  There were many moments during the movie where my thoughts could not process what was happening on the screen.   I was compelled to view it multiple times until my soul was satisfied.   I am grateful to the director, producers, and actors for bringing this troubling and painful story to the forefront.

The reading of Solomon Northup’s book took me to an even deeper place.   Reading his own words written in 1853 about what happened to him and his thoughts about it brought me to a level of sad discontentment.   Every word he wrote was a contradiction to all that I had been taught as a student in my history classes.   I wanted justice for him so badly and wondered what can be done for him in this present time.   The only act I think that can be consolation for me is to encourage others to see the movie and read his book.   Also, I want for others to encourage their friends and family to spread the word, too.

I think that every American should see the movie and read the book because Solomon Northup’s journey as an American citizen is worthy to be known by all.   Slavery in America is a subject that many of us do not want to acknowledge, discuss, and review.   Some descendants of former slave owners and former slaves want to continue to ignore this past because it is uncomfortable for them.   However, the historical fact is that America was founded on the economic benefit of slavery and America had the largest slavery system in the history of the world.   These facts are a part of our dark past and our laws have evolved beyond that past.    But, if we continue to exclude the truth about slavery and the impact on American citizens from the history classes in our educational system, how can we truly determine that we have evolved beyond our dark past?   What does it say to the memory of those who suffered through it and fought against it?    These are the questions that our American society, in the present time, must answer.

QUESTIONS:

Have you seen the movie?   If so, please share your thoughts/experience.

If you haven’t seen the movie, do you plan to see it?     Why?

Would you consider reading the book?

How do you feel about the history that is taught in American public schools?

NaBloPoMo #20 – The Way I Feel About My First Blog Post Is………

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I just re-read my first post from January 2009 and I admit that I am still excited about that blog post.    Here is a link to it:

https://gossipfromthegirlfriendgatherings.com/2009/01/05/the-mystery-of-girlfriend-gatherings/

I recall working very hard on it because I wanted it to set the tone and voice of my blog.   I designed very beautiful post cards with that blog post on the back of the card.   I passed those cards out wherever I went and encountered a group of women “gathering”.     I received positive feedback from my efforts with that post.

If I was starting my blog now, I would still start it with the same post.   I would not change one word of it.   I think it set the goal and direction of my blog.  I am still writing and working to achieve those goals that I defined in that post.