Thanksgiving

One of the neat things about working in a variety of hotels over the past decade has been seeing the different traditions in place in each area.  In Sedona they had a pumpkin carving competition every year and really got into it, in Branson we decorated a Christmas tree with ornaments donated by the local performing groups, and here in Pickwick TN they have a big pot luck style meal in place of the monthly staff meeting (I will post a picture of this at the end).  While shopping for a few odds and ends to complement the meal I couldn't help but notice the proliferation of Christmas décor/items for sale and the relative lack of Thanksgiving anything.  And so I have decided to give Thanksgiving a bit of time this year on my blog.  It is a unique holiday, one where the gifts that are shared have more to do with time and talents than money.

I have distinct memories of Thanksgiving as a child.  As I have thought back on these memories one thing stands out in my mind... while I know we had tons of food, and really good food at that (lots of exceptional cooks on all sides of my family!), I remember more the time spent with people.  I remember sitting around the pool table at Grandma/Grandpa Loveridge's home.  I remember playing with my Hansen cousins.  I remember long drives with my Brothers, and later my Sisters although the drives were not very long at that point in my memory for some reason.  The memories that are the strongest involve people.  Correction... they include family.  Perhaps this is a part of why we see so little of Thanksgiving in the stores nowadays.  Somewhere in the not so distant past the family unit has become unpopular (just take a look at the current T.V. programs available if you think this isn't true).  And yet, to me, Family is more important now than ever before.

And so, if I had to list one thing I was Thankful for at this time of year it has to be my Family.  I am blessed with a Mother and a Father who love each other and, while not perfect, do a pretty good job of caring for each and every one of their children.  I have 3 wonderful Brothers and 2 very special Sisters.  I have Sisters-in-law, a Brother-in-law, Nieces and Nephews, Cousins and Second Cousins.   Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles, and some friends that while not "blood" related deserve to be included as a part of my Family.  When I look at them all I have to admit I am blessed. 

And so, this Thanksgiving when I am at work allowing my employees to spend time with their families, I want everyone in my family to know how thankful I am for you.  Each and every one.  The picture below includes all of my staff save for two who couldn't make it.  As you can see on the table, the food portion of Thanksgiving is well handled here in the South.  I will avoid commenting overly on the family portion save to say this: it is broken.  There isn't a single person in this photo who can say their family is happy together.  I see this more and more.  Divorce, infidelity, perversion, death, abuse...  the list goes on and on... do not under value your own family unit and its importance.  If you are not actively working towards improving your own families relations, they can only be deteriorating.  I could go on with my "advice" but I think I am getting a bit too preachy and that wasn't the purpose of this, so instead I will finish the post with the promised picture and my wishes for everyone to have a very happy Thanksgiving!

Tis The Season

I apologize in advance for skipping ahead to Christmas and I do promise to give Thanksgiving its due in a future post, but seeing as how multiple members of my family and friends have asked for information on my Holiday plans and what I want for Christmas I figured I would hurry and get that information shared.  I also apologize to any for whom this post is irrelevant or a waste of time.  I never said my blog would be all that exciting and since I don't have kids to write about you are stuck hearing about me and my life.  Just be thankful I don't post pictures of myself in a bathing suit without a shirt on.  There, I was able to tie in a little bit of Thanksgiving.   ;)


First and foremost!

I will be home for Christmas this year!  It has been close to 5 years since I was able to celebrate Christmas day in Utah and I am looking forward to it.  I fly in on December 17th late, and fly out on the 30th early.  To everyone who may check out my blog, here is your chance to schedule time with me!  If there is something you want to do, some time you want me to spend with you, some children performing Christmassy stuff...  please let me know!  This link will connect you to my Calendar, I will do my best to keep it updated with any requests/information.  You can text me, leave a comment here, or email me at Daniel.Loveridge@hotmail.com. 

Here is the link (assuming it works): https://cid-31bdf444f9f606f8.calendar.live.com/calendar/private/6e145d08-9fde-4c0c-a1b8-eda80fa5f73e/5ad21a4a-72fc-4899-b9cc-8f0adced4ab7/calendar.xml (Sorry, it seems this isn't working properly no easy calendar view).


Now, for those that have wanted to know what I want for Christmas (if this is not you, don't bother reading any further, you have been warned).

I hate doing this.  I know the value of a Christmas wish list when it comes time to shopping and love getting them from everyone else so my shopping time isn't as challenging... but when it comes to putting down what I want, it isn't so easy.  Generally... when I want something... I buy it and don't think to wait for someone else to get it as a gift.  It is just this habit of mine that makes it so hard for everyone else to shop for me for Christmas.  I honestly prefer not to get gifts.  I don't turn them down mind you, but I would rather give them than receive them.  I will write a little more on gifts and my attitude towards them later, maybe after Thanksgiving, but for now I will swallow my pride and provide a list.  In no particular order, just throwing things out as they come to mind:

Cookies - fresh, home made, no nuts. 

A new wallet (mine is still good, but getting close to needing to be replaced)

Books - Fantasy is my favorite Genre but I am not opposed to trying something new.  Churchy books are also always acceptable and, probably, should be my favorite Genre.  I should work on that.

Sunglasses

Any DVD of Hayao Miyazaki (my collection of his works vanished during one of my moves)


Sorry if the list is rather small, and maybe I will add to it later if I can come up with anything else, but I did say this wasn't very easy for me to do.

Movie Review - Ender's Game

It goes without saying that I am a bit of a movie buff.  I tend to go to the theatre at least 2 times a month to see the newest movie that has caught my interest.  Since I have no kids to post pictures of, or a wife to wax poetic about...  you will get some regular movie reviews from me here.  I will try to limit the number of spoilers, or give warnings before posting them, but if I fail in doing so you have been warned in advance.

And so... Today's movie was Ender's Game.

I need to preface this by openly stating I have read the book, and recently.  I am not what I would call a fan of Orson Scott Card.  While I find his writing to be entertaining and in some ways creative, he crossed a bridge with a series I read decades ago that completely turned me off.  The movie's trailers got me to read the book which I found to be decent enough but disturbingly violent when you realize the age of the main and supporting characters.  So, enough about the book and on to the movie.


Overall the movie wasn't too bad.  But neither was it very good.  On a scale of 1 - 10 I would give it a 5.

The good:  Special effects were great and I was pleasantly surprised at their handling of the youth violence without skipping it.  It really is a key part of the story and they didn't skip it but neither did they overly focus on it.  The main character did a great job of looking sad.  Too bad there was little other emotions visible.  

The bad:  One of the biggest challenges all movies based on a book face is deciding how to condense all the story capability of a book into a 2 hour (sometimes 3) movie without making it feel overly rushed or choppy. Then there is the artistic license people use to change the storyline even further, not to mention the producers who want to make their own changes and by the end of it all very few movies every fully represent the book.  This was very much the case in this movie.  Choppy/rushed?  Check.  Artistic License used to change the storyline?  Check.  Producers messing around?  Check.  If you are a fan of the book... don't see the movie or tell yourself the movie is named something else and not related to the book.  My biggest disappointment with the movie was the pacing.  If you haven't read the book I fear you would be lost in the movie and yet having read the book I found the storyline still to be choppy and, at times, confusing.

This movie has no nudity and very limited foul language but does have a lot of violence, adult topics (genocide), and some psychological abuse themes.