New Day, New Decade

 

2011 is well under way.  Not only is this a new year, it’s a new decade!  We had our grand finale, wrapping up 2010 with the solstice and coinciding full moon and lunar eclipse, bringing change and a shift in energy.  And now, January 4 welcomes a new moon, signaling new beginnings.

Many of us choose to set New Year’s resolutions, goals that we work towards to better ourselves in one way or another.  This is a good exercise, as it helps us to consider what we want for ourselves, and how we can take action to make things happen.

Of course, we can set goals at any time.  Many people choose their birthdays to do this because it’s a time of reflection.  You might also choose any new moon, or the beginning of any season.  These are all natural times to invoke change.

We know the importance of setting goals, and we know how good it feels when we reach those goals.  But at the same time, we need to remember that each step is an important part of the process.  We need to recognize this, and understand that we are moving forward.  This will keep us invested in the long run.  Breaking down “big” goals into more easily achievable steps is a good way to mark our progress.  We are learning and growing every day.

We can learn a lot about ourselves by looking at our goals and our desires.  There’s a reason why we want what we want.  And we wouldn’t want it if it weren’t attainable.  We learn and grow on the way to our goals.

Desire is our greatest motivator because it spurs us into action! Through action comes experience, achievement, accomplishment, and many great things.  We are busy fulfilling our desires everyday, and sometimes so easily that we aren’t even aware of what we are doing.  So, when setting your resolution, or goal, look at your desires first.  These are the steps you can take to get things going:

1. Recognize that you have this desire.  Label it.  Define it.  Know it.

2. Evaluate the desire – do you REALLY want it?  What is it exactly that you really want?  Explain it to yourself.  Make sure that it makes sense to you, and that you understand why you want this, and what it means to you to achieve this goal.

3. Create an intention to fulfill the desire, to reach your goal.  Make that commitment.  Set this as a priority in your life.

4. Release the desire to the universe – state your intention clearly.  It’s a good idea to write it down, and then burn the piece of paper, or file it away somewhere with the date on it.

5. Give up any attachment to what happens.  Just let it go, knowing anything can happen, the outcome is usually better than we ever could have anticipated. In spirit, there is no time or space. Be flexible, be open, and observe how things unfold. 

6. Let the universe handle the details – don’t try to control or manipulate how things occur. Rather than making demands, leave room to allow nature to take its course in whatever way, shape, or form that might be.  There’s always some reason behind everything that happens, so have a little faith that work is being done even if you don’t see it.  Know that creation and growth takes place every moment.

7. Feel grateful, and express gratitude!  Your emotions electrify the process.

8. Be aware of things that happen that may help you to achieve your goal.  There are no accidents, and no coincidences in life.  When opportunities arise, be ready to embrace them.

9. Celebrate every success and let it build your confidence and warm your heart.  Continue to express gratitude all along the way.

Happy new day, happy new year, happy new decade!

 

 

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Before we start a new year, I think it’s important to reflect back on the year that has passed, and the lessons we have learned during this time. 2006 was a year that I will always remember.  It was a difficult year, one of the most difficult I’ve ever been through.  But through the challenges I’ve grown, and mellowed.  I have a newfound perspective that I couldn’t have achieved any other way. I met my friend Fred back in 1980.  I had just gotten a job as a Page at ABC Entertainment and Fred was one of the first people to make me feel welcome.  He showed me the ropes, and quickly became one of my closest friends.  In 1983 I got married and Fred was at the wedding.  When I had my first son, named Freddy after his great grandfather, Fred was touched that the baby shared his name.  Fred’s mother would babysit little Freddy for me when I took classes.  When my sister moved to Los Angeles I introduced her to Fred, and romance bloomed.  Marci and Fred were married soon after that, and Fred was now officially family. My sister and I were pregnant at the same time, and my son Brian, and Marci’s son Arthur, were both born in 1989.  Our prayers were answered when we finally got a little girl in the family with Marci’s daughter Emma in 1991, with Freddy off at school, the three little cousins spent time at our mother’s house while Marci and I worked together getting my business off the ground.  These were very sweet times, and our families were very close. When the kids started school and Marci went back to work full time, we didn’t get to see each other as often.  But as family, we shared all the life moments, and remained an important part of each other’s lives.  Marci and Fred were there for me when I went through my divorce, and they celebrated with me when Greg and I got married. Fast forward to January of 2006.  The day started out like any other, but phoned me in the morning asking me to “stand by” because Fred had been taken to the hospital.  She didn’t know what was wrong, but it was serious.  The plan was that the kids would go to school, and I’d be there for them when they got home and hopefully we’d know more by then.  Unfortunately nothing that we found out was good.  Fred was diagnosed with an dissected aortic aneurism.  He was helicoptered to Cedars-Sinai Hospital and rushed into emergency surgery.  We were told that this was the same condition that John Ritter died from.  It’s genetic, and for the most part people don’t even know they have it until it’s too late. That was the beginning of three weeks of heavy emotions.  We were never sure if Fred would live or die, if he would walk or not, or what further challenges he would have to endure if he did make it out of the hospital.  Each day was excruciating, with tests, procedures, more surgeries, and more uncertainties.  We cried, and prayed, and hoped, and played music for Fred and talked with him.  I’m still not sure if he ever was truly aware that we were there, he was not conscious most of the time.  Friends and family rallied around.  Many came to give blood, some brought food, or took Marci to lunch.  It was very clear that Fred was loved, and everyone he knew was deeply concerned. Fred’s mother and brother were visibly distraught.  My heart would break for them.  For those three weeks it was as if time stood still.  Nothing else mattered, nothing else happened.  It was so overwhelming and all consuming. Finally the doctors agreed that nothing more could be done, and Fred passed away. Marci and I spent the next few days making funeral arrangements.  There was a moment when we were at the funeral parlor and we just looked at each other, wondering how we got to this place.  This isn’t something you could ever anticipate, or prepare for.  This isn’t something you get over.  More than 900 people attended the service, and Marci gave an eloquent eulogy.  She looked poised and peaceful, but I knew she was falling apart inside.  We had three weeks  to get ready, to say goodbye, to make sense of things, but there were no answers, no resolution.  And we knew that there might never be. A few weeks went by and we did our best to get back to some kind of a routine.  So much had changed but we had to keep going.  Just when I thought I was starting to handle things again, I got a call from my dad’s girlfriend.  She had never called me before, so I knew something was wrong.  She told me that my dad was lying on the floor and that he couldn’t get up.  I told her to call 911, but she said my dad wouldn’t let her, so Greg and I rushed out the door to see for ourselves what had happened.  I called my brother and he said he’d meet us there. When we got to my dad’s place the door was open, and I found my dad lying down on a cushion on his bedroom floor.  He was coherent, and he said he was just resting, but it was clear that he couldn’t get up.  Even Greg and my brother couldn’t lift him, so despite my dad’s protests, we called 911.  A fire engine and a paramedic and a police car arrived at the same time – all the hoopla that my dad hates.  The guys are used to dealing with stubborn old men who insist nothing is wrong with them, so they were able to convince my dad to go with them to the hospital.  Turns out he had a stroke. Although my dad was coherent and aware that first night, the next three days he was entirely out of it, which I learned is typical for people who have a stroke.  I’ve never seen my father so helpless, so weak.  It was awful.  He didn’t know where he was, and he kept trying to get out of bed and he’d fall down.  They had to strap him to the hospital bed to keep him still. Being back in the hospital made all the emotional wounds feel still fresh.  I was amazed and in awe at how strong the spirit can be.  As hard as it was, we got through it.  My sister and I had always been close, but the experience with Fred brought us even closer together.  And now with all this going on with my dad, the three of us kids, my brother and sister and I, were really there for each other.  We had to make big decisions about how to handle my dad’s care.  With a stroke you really don’t know until months later how the person is going to heal.  So many things can happen.  We knew for sure that we didn’t want him living alone anymore, so we would have to go out and research places for him to move to. Of course amidst all of this I’m still working and managing life in general, and one night I’m at Brian’s volleyball game, carrying purse and jacket and baby gift for the coach and I trip in the bleachers.  I knew I hurt my foot badly because I was in terrible pain, but this was the big game and I stuck it out until it was over.  By that time my foot had swollen up twice its size.  A nice dad and Brian helped me to the car, Brian got me home, and Greg took me to the emergency room.  Yep, x-rays showed the foot was broken.  The right foot.  Couldn’t drive for six weeks. My brother and sister drove me around as we toured retirement living places, and I hobbled around on crutches.  My dad was transferred to a rehabilitation hospital and Greg drove me there every day so I could visit my dad and talk with his doctors.  When I graduated to a cane we decided on an Assisted Living Faciliity near my dad’s home, and we all moved his stuff over.  I overdid it walking around so much and sprained my left ankle, so I basically was stuck sliding around on my butt for the next few weeks. My body healed, but it took longer for my mind and emotions to heal.  I went through a kind of post traumatic shock syndrome.  Old emotional stuff from the divorce came up, I just felt like I had so much to deal with all at once.  But again, the spirit is resilient, I made it through, stronger than ever. And thankfully, my dad recovered 100%.  He’s as strong and ornery as he ever was!  I drove him around to his doctor’s appointments for awhile, but now he’s comfortable taking the shuttle at his place so he goes on his own. The second half of the year I worked a lot.  Helped establish the Online Peace Cell and co-produced a Celebration of Peace.  Did The Today Show twice, and MSNBC News twice, and went to NY twice for Satellite Media Tours.  And Greg and I went to Australia for his son Ryan’s graduation from the police academy.  On the homefront, I helped Brian with his college applications, and had a lot of fun helping out during Homecoming week at his school. So what will 2007 bring?  I have no idea!  I know what I would like to have happen, but I don’t know for sure what the Universe has in store for me.  I’ll just take each day as it comes, going about my business, setting intentions, taking action, and then letting go of all of it because anything can happen, good, bad, tragic, wonderful – and whatever happens I know it’s all going to be okay.  Because it just is.
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My stepdaughter, Ellen, is here visiting from Australia. We wanted to show her more of the USA this time around, so I arranged for a little trip to Las Vegas! Dates worked out good for Greg, there was some stock trading expo on at the same, so we booked a room at Paris, where the expo was to be held, and everyone was happy. I’ve been to Vegas many times – when I was a student at UCLA we used to drive and stay at a bargain hotel and it was a cheap vacation given the $2 all-you-can-eat buffets and all. Over the years Vegas has certainly grown, and changed its image to a much more upscale, and believe it or not, family friendly venue. Paris was a great place to stay. Price-wise it was probably about middle of the road, about $110 a night per room. But the rooms were beautiful. It’s a pretty new hotel, and everything was nice, clean, and classy rather than tacky. Some of the theme hotels are pretty over-the-top, but Paris was more charming than ostentatious. The restaurants we ate in were good and reasonably priced. We did have one dinner at the Eiffel Tower restaurant, which I’d say was leaning towards the exhorbitant end of the price range, but the food was fabulous so it was worth the treat. More in my comfort zone is the little crepe cafe where for six bucks I had an apple crepe big enough to feed two people and it was warm and sweet and just yummy! We also took the Eiffel Tower tour, basically just an elevator ride up to the 50th “floor” where you have a 360 degree view of Las Vegas. It’s probably more spectacular at night with all the lights blazing. The first day Ellen and I walked over to the Forum Shops, browsed the stores, and watched the Atlantis show where the statues come to life. Ellen’s favorite part was the new car store they’ve got there – Ferraris, Lamborghinis, Hummers – all kinds of exotic cars on display. She loved it, and took tons of photos. We got a photo of us sitting in a yellow Ferrari, too – it’s one of those things where there’s a green screen and you choose the background – we chose the Las Vegas night background so it looks like we’re cruising the strip. Then we headed over to the Mirage – saw the Secret Garden and all the beautiful animals – the dolphins and all that. We had lunch at the Caribe Cafe and played Keno – 3 games, lost them all. Then back to Paris for Ellen’s first massage ever! I had requested a female masseuse, and she ended up with Chad, a guy, but was a good enough sport to just go with it. Turns out he was really nice – and she loved the hot stone massage. I had the frangipani wrap. Sounds better than it was. My masseuse seemed to just kind of slap through the motions and I didn’t feel I was getting thoroughly slathered. But the 20 minutes of meditation was heavenly – just what I needed after a hectic day and miles of ground covered by foot! That night we headed over to the Venetian, another beautiful hotel, ate dinner at a Chinese restaurant there and then sat in the second row to see The Blue Man Group. We had to wear ponchos, but they were really unnecessary. The show was great, but if I had it to do over again I would have gotten seats a little further back to get a better overall view of the stage. We laughed a lot – it’s really an original, fresh, and very cool show. Then the next day Greg traipsed around with us to see New York New York – Ellen and I took the $12.50 roller coaster ride – that’s $12.50 EACH – and it’s not worth it. It’s a good ride, but I’d say it’s a $5 ride at best. We had lunch at the Italian restaurant there – very good. Then proceeded over to the MGM, where they’re doing major construction – and over to the Mandalay Bay – another pretty, and huge, hotel. There we visited Shark Reef – a really nice aquarium. We were exhausted from all the walking. Oh, somewhere in between there we went to M & M world and Coke World, too – and saw an Elvis impersonator on the street. There’s too much cigarette smoke in Las Vegas. And it’s really cold in the winter and really hot in the summer. Other than that, it’s a pretty fun place to visit!

When it rains in Southern California it’s news. When it rains as much as it has recently, it is history-making news! I am a native Californian. I was born and raised in Northern California and moved to Los Angeles to go to UCLA. Since I’ve been here, I can’t remember more rain than what we’ve had this season. Yes, we needed it. We were dry, facing another drought. Lake Arrowhead was dangerously low, something like 21 feet low. And yet with one fell swoop of a storm that’s all been made up. We’ve got plenty of water – miraculously! But now when will it stop? We’ve already seen devastating landslides in La Conchita and other areas in and around Los Angeles. When is enough really enough? And what does all this water mean in the metaphysical sense? I find it interesting that in Australia, where they are still having their summer, they are having powerful rainstorms as well. And then there’s the recent Tsunami. All this adds up to a lot of water all over the world. Water represents emotion, cleansing, tears. It can also mean a re-birth. So much has been happening that maybe the world needed this bath in a philosophical sense. While it’s not the world-wide flood that Noah endured, maybe it is a signal to us for the need to start over again. What are our priorities? What choices are we making? When politicians are able lie their way into office, and killers grace the covers of best-selling magazines, what does that say about the level of awareness in this world? So many things are just upside-down. We have professional athletes who make an insane amount of money, become role-models for our children, and are found out to have been taking illegal substances to improve their performance in the game. Meanwhile we pay our children’s teachers a pittance, we’ve eliminated programs to keep young people involved in activities, and have let our school buildings run down to poverty level standards. Health insurance is so expensive that many families can’t afford it – and health care in general is such a racket with the pharmaceutical companies and hospitals in cahoots with the inurance industry that doctors can’t pay off their student loans for risk of risk losing their malpractice insurance. We’ve got Hummers clogging up the highways – with one person driving alone inside! Children are hungry. Animals are killed for their fur. The universe is crying, and it’s not difficult to see why. ]]>

The Writers Guild of America, West (WGAW) and the Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE) tonight announced the winners of the 2014 Writers Guild Awards for outstanding achievement in writing for screen, television, radio, news, promotional, videogame, and new media writing at simultaneous ceremonies at the JW Marriott L.A. LIVE in Los Angeles and the Edison Ballroom in New York City.

Her, Written by Spike Jonze; Warner Bros.
Captain Phillips, Screenplay by Billy Ray; Based on the book A Captain’s Duty: Somali Pirates, Navy SEALS, and Dangerous Days at Sea by Richard Phillips with Stephan Talty; Columbia Pictures
Stories We Tell, Written by Sarah Polley; Roadside Attractions

DRAMA SERIES Breaking Bad, Written by Sam Catlin, Vince Gilligan, Peter Gould, Gennifer Hutchison, George Mastras, Thomas Schnauz, Moira Walley-Beckett; AMC COMEDY SERIES Veep, Written by Simon Blackwell, Roger Drew, Sean Gray, Armando Iannucci, Ian Martin, Georgia Pritchett, David Quantick, Tony Roche, Will Smith; HBO NEW SERIES House of Cards, Written by Kate Barnow, Rick Cleveland, Sam Forman, Gina Gionfriddo, Keith Huff, Sarah Treem, Beau Willimon; Netflix EPISODIC DRAMA “Confessions” (Breaking Bad), Written by Gennifer Hutchison; AMC EPISODIC COMEDY “Hogcock!” (30 Rock), Written by Jack Burditt & Robert Carlock; NBC LONG FORM – ADAPTED Muhammad Ali’s Greatest Fight, Written by Shawn Slovo, Based on the book by Howard Bingham and Max Wallace; HBO SHORT FORM NEW MEDIA – ORIGINAL “Episode 4: The Collected Sylvia” (Sylvia Plath: Girl Detective), Written by Mike Simses; sylviaplathgirldetective.com ANIMATION “A Test Before Trying” (The Simpsons), Written by Joel H. Cohen; Fox COMEDY / VARIETY (INCLUDING TALK) – SERIES The Colbert Report, Writers: Stephen Colbert, Tom Purcell, Michael Brumm, Nate Charny, Rich Dahm, Paul Dinello, Eric Drysdale, Rob Dubbin, Glenn Eichler, Gabe Gronli, Dan Guterman, Barry Julien, Jay Katsir, Frank Lesser, Opus Moreschi, Bobby Mort, Meredith Scardino, Max Werner; Comedy Central COMEDY / VARIETY – MUSIC, AWARDS, TRIBUTES – SPECIALS Blake Shelton’s Not So Family Christmas, Head Writers: Jay Martel, Ian Roberts Writers: Alex Rubens, Charlie Sanders; NBC QUIZ AND AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION Jeopardy!, Written by John Duarte, Harry Friedman, Mark Gaberman, Debbie Griffin, Michele Loud, Robert McClenaghan, Jim Rhine, Steve D. Tamerius, Billy Wisse; ABC DAYTIME DRAMA Days of Our Lives, Written by Lorraine Broderick, David Cherrill, Carolyn Culliton, Richard Culliton, Rick Draughon, Christopher Dunn, Janet Iacobuzio, David A. Levinson, Ryan Quan, Dave Ryan, Melissa Salmons, Christopher J. Whitesell; NBC CHILDREN’S – EPISODIC & SPECIALS “influANTces” (A.N.T. Farm), Written by Vincent Brown; Disney Channel DOCUMENTARY – CURRENT EVENTS “Egypt in Crisis” (Frontline), Written by Marcela Gaviria & Martin Smith; PBS DOCUMENTARY – OTHER THAN CURRENT EVENTS “The Choice 2012” (Frontline), Written by Michael Kirk; PBS TIED WITH: “Silicon Valley” (American Experience), Telescript by Randall MacLowry and Michelle Ferrari; Story by Randall MacLowry; PBS NEWS – REGULARLY SCHEDULED, BULLETIN, OR BREAKING REPORT “Tragedy at Newtown” Special Edition (ABC World News with Diane Sawyer), Written by Lisa Ferri and Matt Negrin; ABC NEWS – ANALYSIS, FEATURE, OR COMMENTARY “Lethal Medicine” (60 Minutes), Written by Michael Rey, Oriana Zill de Granados, Michael Radutzky; CBS

DOCUMENTARY “2012 Year in Review,” Written by Gail Lee; CBS Radio News NEWS – REGULARLY SCHEDULED, BULLETIN, OR BREAKING REPORT “Afternoon Drive,” Written by Bill Spadaro; CBS Radio/1010 WINS NEWS – ANALYSIS, FEATURE, OR COMMENTARY “Remembering C. Everett Koop,” Written by Scott Saloway; CBS Radio News

ON-AIR PROMOTION (TELEVISION, NEW MEDIA OR RADIO) The Crazy Ones, “Building a Better Comedy,” Written by Erial Tompkins; CBS TELEVISION GRAPHIC ART AND ANIMATION CBS News Animations: “Brain Injury,” “Pills,” “Bionic Leg,” “Midland Parade,” “Concordia Salvage;” Animation by David Rosen; CBS News

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN VIDEOGAME WRITING The Last of Us, Written by Neil Druckmann; Sony Computer Entertainment *Editor’s Note: There were no nominees in Long Form – Original, Short Form New Media – Adapted, or Children’s – Long Form or Special awards categories this year. The Writers Guild Awards honor outstanding writing in film, television, new media, videogames, news, radio, promotional, and graphic animation categories. The awards were presented jointly in competitive categories during simultaneous ceremonies on Saturday, February 1, 2014, in Los Angeles at the JW Marriott L.A. LIVE and in New York City at the Edison Ballroom. Three-time Emmy-winning Everybody Loves Raymond actor-comic Brad Garrett hosted the West Coast WGA ceremony, which was executive produced by Cort Casady. Presenters who appeared at the WGAW’s L.A. awards ceremony included Oscar nominee Bruce Dern (Nebraska), two-time Emmy and Golden Globe-winning The Good Wife star Julianna Margulies, Oscar-nominated writer-actress Julie Delpy (Before Midnight), three-time TV Guide Award and People’s Choice Award-winning Castle co-star Stana Katic, Oscar-winner and Emmy-nominated Justified co-star Walton Goggins, SAG Award-nominated actor Dermot Mulroney (August: Osage County), WGA-nominated Parks and Recreation co-star Nick Offerman, True Blood co-star Joe Manganiello, Emmy and Golden Globe-nominated actress Amber Tamblyn (Two and a Half Men), three-time SAG Award-nominated Breaking Bad actress Betsy Brandt, Rizzoli & Isles co-star Sasha Alexander, WGA-winning writer and Emmy-nominator actor B.J. Novak (The Office), TV Guide Award-winning actor Jeff Perry (Scandal), and six Daytime Emmy Award-winning Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek. The Writers Guild of America, West presented several special honors during its ceremony: Academy Award-winning comedy director-writer Mel Brooks (The Producers) presented the WGAW’s Laurel Award for Screenwriting Achievement to Oscar-nominated screenwriter-director Paul Mazursky (An Unmarried Woman) for lifetime achievement, two-time Golden Globe and Daytime Emmy-winning Happy Days star Henry Winkler presented the Guild’s Paddy Chayefsky Laurel Award for Television Writing to Happy Days creator Garry Marshall, Oscar-nominated actress Jennifer Tilly (Bullets Over Broadway) presented the Guild’s Valentine Davies Award to The Simpsons co-developer/ and philanthropist Sam Simon for his community service and humanitarian efforts, WGA-winning screenwriter Bob Eisele (The Great Debaters) presented the WGAW’s Morgan Cox Award posthumously to late screenwriter Thomas C. Cook (The China Syndrome) for Guild service, and WGAW Vice President Howard A. Rodman presented the WGAW’s Paul Selvin Award, for written work which embodies constitutional rights and civil liberties, to documentary filmmaker Alex Gibney for his screenplay We Steal Secrets: The Story of WikiLeaks. Attendees at the WGAW’s awards ceremony included Oscar nominated-actress June Squibb (Nebraska), director-actress Penny Marshall, actor Drew Carey, and L.A. City Councilman Paul Koretz. Renowned television star and Emmy Award nominee Colin Quinn hosted the Writers Guild Awards New York ceremony, which was executive produced by John Marshall. Presenters who appeared at the WGAE’s New York awards ceremony included Fred Armisen (Portlandia), Robert Carlock (30 Rock), Ra�l Esparza (Law & Order: SVU), Nelson George (CB4), Terry George (Hotel Rwanda), Kate Mulgrew (Orange Is The New Black), Steve O’Donnell (Late Show with David Letterman), Archie Panjabi (The Good Wife), Matthew Rhys (The Americans), Keri Russell (The Americans), Danny Strong (Lee Daniels’ The Butler) and Beau Willimon (House of Cards). Barbara Rosenblat (Orange is the New Black) served as the evening’s announcer. The Writers Guild of America, East presented several special honors during its ceremony: James Schamus was presented with the Evelyn F. Burkey Award for bringing honor and dignity to writers. His award was presented to him by Dee Rees, the screenwriter and director of Pariah. Schamus co-founded Focus Films, produced the Oscar®-nominated Brokeback Mountain, and wrote award-winning screenplays including Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and The Ice Storm. Wendell Pierce, who starred as Detective Bunk Moreland in The Wire and trombonist Antoine Batiste in Treme, presented The Hunter Award for career achievement to David Simon. A MacArthur Genius Grant Fellow, Simon created the acclaimed television series Treme and The Wire. He also wrote for Homicide: Life on the Streets, which was based on one of his books, and the miniseries Generation Kill and The Corner. Writers Guild council member Philip V. Pilato was presented with The Jablow Award for his service to the guild by last year’s recipient, Bob Schneider, Secretary-Treasurer of Writers Guild of America, East. The John Merriman Memorial Award was presented to Rachel Baye of American University by Michael Winship, President of Writers Guild of America, East. The Writers Guild Initiative’s 6th annual Michael Collyer Memorial Fellowship in Screenwriting was presented to Hennah Sekandary of New York University by Lowell Peterson, Executive Director of Writers Guild of America, East. Attendees at the WGAE’s awards ceremony included Tina Fey (30 Rock), Ethan Hawke (Before Midnight), Terence Winter (The Wolf of Wall Street), Richard Linklater (Before Midnight), Michael Barker (Co-founder, Sony Picture Classics), Emily Mortimer (Newsroom), Alessandro Nivola (American Hustle), Jeremy Scahill and David Riker (Dirty Wars), A.M. Homes (The L Word). Mike Schur (Parks & Recreation), Lizz Winstead (The Daily Show), Franklin Leonard (The Black List), Gina Gionfriddo (House of Cards) and Joe Weisberg (The Americans), among many other illustrious guests. Production credits for the WGAW’s West Coast show included: Executive Producer Cort Casady, Director Joe DeMaio, Talent Producer Carole Propp, Head Writer Dave Boone, Writers Beth Armogida and Cort Casady, Coordinating Producer Michelle Robinson, Line Producer Aaron Cooke, and Production Designer John Calkins. Production credits for the WGAE’s East Coast show included: Executive Producer and Head Writer John Marshall, Producer and writer Bonnie Datt, Writers Bruce Cherry, Ann B. Cohen, David Steven Cohen, Henriette Mantel, Frank Santopadre, and Craig Shemin. Line Producer LBI Audio, Video & Scenic Solutions. For more information about the 2014 Writers Guild Awards, please visit www.wga.org or www.wgaeast.org.]]>

Happy Earth Day!

I am lucky to live next door to Thousand Oaks, California – where the city is named for the abundance of beautiful oak trees found throughout the area.  In tribute to Earth Day, and our beautiful trees, I’m publishing an article written by my dear friend and teacher, Rev. Glenn Hughes.  Thank you, Glenn!

A Thousand Buddhas Among Us

by Glenn Hughes

 

There’s a well-known Zen Buddhist koan that asks the question, Does an oak tree have buddhanature?  Zen, a popular school or method of practicing the Mahayana tradition of Buddhism, is big on koans, especially in Japan and ever growing in the West since popularized by such Beat Generation writers as Alan Watts, Jack Kerouac, and Allen Ginsberg.  

 

The contemplation of these seemingly meaningless mental puzzles can give the student or practitioner of Buddhism insight into the nature of reality.  In reflecting on the oak tree koan, one attempts to find out whether or not the oak tree has the potential of becoming a buddha, one who has reached total enlightenment.

 

The word buddha usually is not capitalized unless it is in reference to The Buddha, the Indian prince who searched for, discovered and taught the nature of all life, its meaning and how to escape its frustrations and suffering.  Although known for his dharma (logic) and sutras (teachings), koans are not associated with Siddhartha or Shakyamuni, two names identifying him, the first before becoming the Buddha and the last afterwards.

 

When meditating on whether or not an oak tree has buddhanature, one is drawn to considering the true character of a tree, or of any reflection of life, whether it be attached to the ground, moving about on land, flying in the air or residing in water.  Buddhism explains the compounded nature of all things and requires the thinker to decide whether or not the entity has five khandas (aggregates of parts). The five are form (physical body), feelings, perceptions, thinking process, and consciousness.  Then one questions the permanence and discovers the ever-changing characteristics of these khandas.  Satisfactorily concluding this analyzing can lead to discovering one’s buddhanature and eventually to full enlightenment, the penultimate to buddhahood. 

 

Those of us calling Thousand Oaks home perhaps have an atypical interest in a koan about the tree from which our city derived its name.  Personally, I’ve loved oak trees ever since I was a kid living among lots of them in the little Northern California town of Diamond Springs.  In fact, in addition to a pig ranch, my family operated an outdoor nightspot with a dance floor built around a huge oak tree; it was called The Musical Oak.  

 

To venerate the buddhanature of not only our beloved oaks, but also our own potential buddhahood, this poem is about them and those of us who love them.

 

The Oaks Among Us

  

There stand my friends, a thousand noble essences of life,

Their many outstretched branches, like those of multi-armed Kwan Yins

Reaching out to me and all who come within their auras,

And freely offering their love, their friendship and compassion

To all varieties of life in all their individual splendor.

 

Here I too stand, encouraged by their unencumbered love, 

My arms stretched out in prayer, like the upper branches of my friends,

In worship of this precious gift of life, ours to enjoy,

And freely offering my thanks and love with ceaseless passion

To all varieties of life in all their individual splendor.

 

Here we do stand, not them and me, but us in our connectedness,

Our buddhanature beaming, like that of lovers sharing tender moments,

Piercing the spheres with gentleness and joy,

And freely offering our essence and our mutual admiration

To all varieties of life in all their individual splendor.

 

Although we speak in many different ways,

Each one as one as well as individually,

Our voices merge in a celestial symphony,

Mine and those of my beloved cherished friends,

These thousand oaks.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Last week I read an article in the Los Angeles Times about an auction that was scheduled through Julien’s Auctions.  They were selling items that had been a part of the household at Michael Jackson’s Neverland.  The next day there was another article, saying that the auction had been canceled.  Michael stated that these items are irreplaceable, and that he never agreed that they would be sold.  The auction company was allowed to keep the exhibit open, and for a $20 admission fee, anyone could come in and take a look.

Being a child of the ’70’s I feel like I grew up with Michael Jackson, and I was very interested to see his awards and costumes.  At the last minute I threw my camera in the back of the car, just in case they let me take some footage.  And guess what?  They did! 

So, here is the video that I made… fascinating stuff!

Michael Jackson’s Neverland Collections

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San Francisco has banned plastic shopping bags.  Same with Oakland, and Malibu.  And Los Angeles just may be next.  There’s a bill in front of California State legislators to tax plastic bags at a rate of 25 cents each.  If that doesn’t go through, the LA City Council says they’ll put a ban in place.  I’ve written to the mayor and city council members of my city (we’re in the county of Los Angeles, but Westlake Village is its own city) to express my support for a ban.  Our mayor e-mailed me back to say that it’s something they’re seriously considering.  Halleluah!  Of course, I would love it if people would see the problem for themselves and voluntarily switch over to reusable cloth bags.  But I don’t see that happening any time soon.  Every time I go to the market I am faced with cart after cart of plastic bags leaving the store.  And the worst offenders are those who say “paper IN plastic” – they get their groceries in a paper bag and then put the paper bag in a plastic bag so they have the handles.  Puh-leeeeeze!  If you’re not convinced, here are some stats I garnered online:

Data released by the United States Environmental Protection Agency shows that somewhere between 500 billion and one trillion plastic bags are consumed worldwide each year. Fewer than 1% of bags are recycled.  It costs more to recycle an old bag than to produce a new one. There�s harsh economics behind plastic bag recycling: �It costs $4000 to process and recycle 1 ton of plastic bags, which can then be sold on the commodities market for $32.�
-Jared Blumenfeld,
Director, San Francisco Department of the Environment It costs California taxpayers about $25 million a year to collect and dispose of plastic bags, according to Californians Against Waste. Where do old plastic bags go?  A study in 1975 showed oceangoing vessels dumped 8 million pounds of plastic annually.  The real reason the world�s landfills weren�t overflowing with plastic was because most of it ended up in an ocean-fill.
-U.S. National Academy of Sciences Bags get blown around to different parts of our lands, seas, lakes and rivers.  Bags find their way into the ocean via drains and sewage pipes.
-CNN.com Plastic bags have been found floating north of the Arctic Circle and as far south as the Falkland Islands.
-British Antarctic Survey Plastic bags account for over 10 percent of the debris washed up on the U.S. coastline.
-National Marine Debris Monitoring Program Plastic bags photodegrade: over time they break down into smaller, more toxic petro-polymers which contaminate soils and waterways.  As a consequence, microscopic particles can enter the food chain.
-CNN.com The effect of all this is catastrophic.  Birds become terminally entangled.  Nearly 200 different species of sea life, including whales, dolphins, seals and turtles die due to plastic bags.  They die after ingesting plastic bags which they mistake for food.
-World Wildlife Fund Report Canvas bags are a good solution to this problem. When we use a canvas bag we can save 6 bags a week, or 24 bags a month.  That�s 288 bags a year � EACH!  In a lifetime, that�s an average of 22,176 bags. If just 1 out of 5 people in the United States switched to canvas bags, we would save 1,330,560,000,000 plastic bags over our lifetime. -Plastic bags are banned in Bangladesh and in Rwanda. 
-Free plastic bags are banned in China. 
-Ireland taxes plastic bag use and has reduced their consumption by 90%.
-Australia, Israel, Canada, India, Botswana, Kenya, Tanzania, South Africa, Taiwan, and Singapore have also banner or are moving toward banning plastic bags.
-PlanetSave.com On March 27, 2007, San Francisco became the first U.S. city to ban plastic bags. Oakland has also banned them.  Malibu just banned them, and many other cities are following suit.
-NPR.org Plastic shopping bags are made from polyethylene: a thermoplastic made from oil.  Reducing plastic bags will decrease foreign oil dependency.  China will save 37 million barrels of oil each year due to their ban of free plastic bags.
-CNN.com
 

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