Join me at Seek God With Me for a look at how to find peace
after the chaos of fun gets to you.
Rest from Vacation
We’re back from our family vacation, and we’re enjoying a
few photos and videos that we took. The images remind us of all the fun we had.
Frankly, we need that reminder while we’re doing all the laundry and cleaning
up and getting back into the routine again. It’s a lot of work to come home
from a road trip.
Blue Hawaii, 1961
This film lets you vacation in Hawaii with Elvis Presley as
your tour guide. Blue Hawaii thrilled Elvis fans with plenty of songs and the
famous left-sided smile.
This movie did a good job of taking us on a brief highlight
tour of Hawaii’s magnificent landscapes. I enjoyed the beach scenes on Oahu,
the horseback riding on the shores of Kauai, and even the night time car chase.
The first thing Elvis does, as the charming Chadwick Gates, is try to make his girl jealous
by kissing another girl. He explained to his girl that he was just having a
little fun, but I was getting a little ticked off at him. Thankfully, the
playboy attitude stopped after the first section of the movie. And I really
must say that Chadwick was a gentleman after all. He had plenty of
opportunities to go for other women during the rest of the movie but, being a
gentleman, his role with the other women was one of Protector and Guide. Tour
guide, that is.
Although born in London, Angela Lansbury worked hard on her
performance as Mrs. Gates (Chadwick’s mother) a woman from Atlanta, Georgia.
The movie was certainly all about Elvis, but Joan Blackman (as Maile Duval) put
in a great performance as Chadwick’s girl. I especially liked the fact that Edith
Head designed the costumes.
Everyone who loves Elvis movies loves the songs. My two
favorites were “I Can’t Help Falling In Love With You” and the last song of the
movie “Hawaiian Wedding Song”. I read that Elvis himself felt the wedding scene
was so real that ten years had passed before he realized he wasn’t married to
her. He sings well and has a sense of humor.
Speaking of songs, Elvis’s character got into a brawl at a
luau and ended up in jail – with his Hawaiian buddies AND their instruments.
How convenient. Elvis admits in a quote found on imdb.com, “I get tired of
playing a guy who gets into a fight, then starts singing to the guy he’s just
beat up.”
Elvis was nominated for a Grammy award for his performance
in Blue Hawaii.
Rest from Struggles
Have you been dealing with personal struggles so long, you
just don’t know what to do? Many people have personal struggles. Parents
struggle with raising kids to be a consistently kind and productive member of
society. Single adults struggle with finding the right spouse. Jobless people
struggle with finding the right employment.
Working hard to achieve a worthy goal takes dedication. But
when your goal is met, there will be an enjoyable rest. Join me at Seek God With Me to find out what God says about resting.
Do you know what resting has to do with trusting God? Check
out my devotional blog today.
The Great Escape, 1963
When you feel like escaping from your daily routine, check
out this classic film set in a WWII German POW camp. One of the prisoners was
called The Cooler King because he was given many opportunities to rest in the “cooler”
when he was caught doing something wrong.
In this film, POWs from several Allied forces work together
to attempt an escape from an “escape-proof” German camp. Aided by various
experts like The Scrounger, played by James Garner, and The Tunnel King, played
by Charles Bronson, the men stubbornly persist in their plans. They require
some to work on the tunnel system and some to work on distracting the Germans
so they won’t be found out. With help from The Forger, played by Donald
Pleasance, and The Manufacturer, played by James Coburn, many were able to
leave the camp. The Cooler King, played by Steve McQueen, was able to steal a
motorcycle and lead the Germans on a chase that includes a famous leap over a
barbed wire barrier.
This film was based on the book by Paul Brickhill, who
participated in the most famous WWII POW escape, the escape from Stalag Luft
III. It took the real POWs over a year to prepare for the event. Having built a camp similar to Stalag Luft
III near Munich, Germany, the crew did what was necessary to recreate the
setting and film the entire movie in Europe. The cast members even helped build
set pieces by tying rubber strings together to make the barbed wire.
Several cast members brought their experience to the film.
Donald Pleasence, among others of the cast, was actually held in real POW camps
during the war. Playing a chief tunneler was easy for Charles Bronson, who had
been a coal miner before working as an actor.
Even Steve McQueen brought his motorcycle experience to the
film. He not only did most of his own stunts, but he also played one of the
German motorcyclists in his chase scene.
According to imdb.com, the real escape actually occurred on Steve
McQueen’s 14th birthday.
Rest from School
Is there someone in your home who just finished a year or a
semester of school? Whether you’re a teacher or a student, you need a break
from all that hard work. Join me at Seek God With Me for permission to rest
from months (or days) of hard work.
I have good news. It’s okay to rest when you’ve given your
best.
Volunteers Rest After A Good Day
Volunteers give their time and effort because they believe
in the organization they’re helping. My family and I have chosen to volunteer
occasionally throughout the year at a Habitat for Humanity ReStore. We do our
best to help out in whatever way we’re directed, but we’re not there every day.
So on those scheduled volunteering days, we devote ourselves
to helping others. The volunteer coordinator explains jobs for us to do and
makes sure we have any tools necessary to complete the task.
We work hard. But at the end of the day, we are able to rest
with a contented sigh. We know we were able to improve the store in our own
little way, and that makes us want to return and help some more.
This month, let’s consider a well-deserved rest.
What are you resting from?
I Had A Plan
I’m usually pretty regular on my blogs. However, I recently had an unexpected challenge when my computer decided to take the month of May off. Being decidedly despondent, I needed help. I asked my techie hubby to help me get it sent off for repairs. Now I’m back online.
My blog plan has to be updated and reconfigured, but I’m okay with that now that I have my computer back.
After making sure all important emails were responded to, I checked out my Twitter account to see what was happening while I was away. I follow @duncanphillips on Twitter. One of the last retweets I posted before my computer went down was his, “You'll be way happier if you focus on the things you can change and let go of the things you can't! #music #newsboys” Interesting concept.
I like that quote because it applies to so many things in life. As a parent, I can get caught up in the little distractions or let them go and focus on the big picture. Kids don’t really care about the big picture. It’s my job to help them focus on things that matter, whether they agree with me or not.
That quote also applies to my struggles with technology. I do a good job of focusing on the things I can change, but there is so much of that for me to keep up with. The things I have to let go of are the unexpected challenges like a motherboard which needs to be replaced. I can’t stop riding a horse just because I fell off. It’s important to get back on that horse and move forward.
What I love about this time of waiting we all have to go through occasionally is that God never left me. He was always there, loving me, guiding me through it. No need tear out hair in frustration. Trusting God is always enough
Cover Girl, 1944
Gene Kelly plays a night club owner in the theater where Rita
Hayworth, who plays Rusty Parker, dances. She’s also his girlfriend. When she
finds out that a major magazine is looking for a fresh face for their new cover
girl, she applies for the job. She feels a little outnumbered when she sees the
many beautiful ladies applying for the same job. When the publisher of the
magazine sees her face, he remembers a very similar face from his younger
years. He knew the girl’s grandmother.
Rusty Parker gets the job, and overnight, her face becomes
famous. The owner of a Broadway theater tries to convince her to leave her old
night club for a place on his stage. The new opportunity meant better costumes,
more money, bigger stage, and a much different crowd. She wasn’t easily
convinced, even though he sent flowers to her night club. He sent so many
flowers, they weren’t romantic, but rather a nuisance.
This film stands out as the perfect place for Gene Kelly to dance
outside on a sidewalk with his own reflection.
Some of the gowns were designed by Travis Banton, who also
designed costumes for Carole Lombard in No Man of Her Own. Banton was one of
three costume designers for this movie. Because of the rare opportunity to dress
the many standout beauties in a variety of styles for magazine covers, they
needed three experienced designers.
Bathsheba
I cannot imagine being Bathsheba’s friend, hearing her
confide in me about her troubles. How could she say no to King David when he
sent for her? He was the king. Her husband, Uriah, was at war. She had no one
to stand up for her or protect her. She had to submit to the king on a night
that would change her life forever.
Today at Seek God With Me, I’m taking a look at another
beautiful woman of the Bible, Bathsheba. She couldn’t have known what would
happen to her just because she took a bath one night.
Bathsheba was so beautiful that it made her stand out. Her
beauty changed her address. Her beauty changed her whole way of living. Let’s
meet at Seek God With Me and consider the changes in Bathsheba’s life.
No Man of Her Own, 1932
Imagine catching the eye of Clark Gable as you fulfill your
duties in a small town library. Carole Lombard plays the librarian beautiful
enough to be noticed. Because of her obvious beauty, the writers could fill the
dialogue with catchy little pieces like this: (He) “Do your eyes bother you?”
(She) “No. Why?” (He) “They bother me.”
This classic movie stars Clark Gable and Carole Lombard, who,
during filming, were both married to other people, so their romance was
strictly on film. They met again later and fell for each other, eventually
becoming known as one of Hollywood
Babe Stewart gives up his gambling to hide from a cop on his
trail. Before buying a train ticket out of town, he picks the perfect hiding
place at the train station by closing his eyes and putting a finger on a random town name. But, being the perfect hiding place, the town of Glendale
Carole Lombard plays Connie Randall, the librarian. She gave
the role the vivaciousness it required.
Her costumes were designed by Travis Banton. I liked his
style choices in this film. He’s mentioned on imdb.com as a mentor who influenced
Oscar-winning designer Edith Head, who was his assistant in 1928. He once said
about Carole Lombard, “You could toss a bolt of fabric at Carole Lombard and
however it would land on her, she would look smart.”
Sarah
What would you feel like if you were a single guy dating a
girl introduced to you by a friend, but your friend didn’t tell you she was
married? This happened (sort of) in the book of Genesis where Abraham told a
king that Sarah was his sister. Genesis 20:3 explains what happened. “But God
came to Abimelek in a dream one night and said to him, ‘You are as good as dead
because of the woman you have taken; she is a married woman.’”
Did Abraham lie? No. Abraham was a redneck. Sarah really was
his sister because his dad was Sarah’s father with another mother.
Join me today at Seek God With Me where I’m sharing the
happy ending and the real reason behind Abraham’s actions.
Beautiful Women
Today is the first day of May. I’m a mother, so I look
forward to celebrating Mother’s Day in May each year. Also my sister and my
grandmother have birthdays in May. So naturally, I think of women when I think
of the month of May.
That’s why I’m celebrating beautiful women on my blogs this
month.
There will be links to my devotional blog, Seek God With Me,
so you can join me there honoring specially selected beauties of the Bible. I’m
also reviewing movies starring classic beauties of Hollywood, starting with Carole Lombard this
week.
So stay tuned and see who shows up this month. Enjoy!
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