Win! Shop! Buy!

 

These 2 had a busy time shopping and spending, what can I say?😁  this week, over at Monday Music Moves Me, it is all about spending because November has all the nuts come out on Black Friday fighting over a toy that will end up in a garage sale 5 years later. Black Friday is the day after American Thanksgiving watching the batshit crazies punch each other out fighting for that stuff we think we want. They keep trying to bring this to Canada, but it doesn’t seem to have the same nuttiness as south of the border. I have been dealing with people in credit issues for over 35 years and have seen numerous reasons why people use credit: Spending; lack of education; job loss; illness; relationship breakdown; addictions; gambling; scammed plus more so let’s go…

1. WE’RE IN THE MONEY SUNG BY GINGER ROGERS-1933

This song was written by Harry Warren with lyrics by Al Durbin for the musical, “ Golddiggers of 1933”  where Ginger introduces this song and even sings Pig Latin. I have had many, many clients who  are enticed to make a lot of money. The person, on the other end of the phone or internet, tell them they will make a ton of money if they invest in crypto currency. I have had young and old, people on pensions as well as people earning a very good income all succumb to the hope they will make it big. These scammers are experts learning what will lure them in which can be  loneliness, wanting to have enough money for the childrens’ education to wanting to make more money. The end result, any money they have saved is gone plus they used their credit line and all their credit cards plus going to finance companies and the horrible payday loans. They end up at our office, either doing a Consumer Proposal ( they pay part of the debt off) or Bankruptcy ( unable to pay any of the debts). FYI- most people who have won it big on the lottery, have lost it all in about 5 years. Sad, but true.

2. BIG SPENDER SUNG BY THE GALS-1966

This song was composed by Cy Coleman and Dorothy Fields for the musical and film, “Sweet Charity” . The dance hall girls which includes the great Chita Rivera entice their patrons with a striptease and it is a great dance number choreographed by Bob Fosse. People can get into financial trouble in all sorts of ways. This was not my client but another counsellor’s and it is still one for the books. This elderly man came in with his wife, of over 40 years, due to his debt of over $25,000. The reason? He spent all this money at the stripjoint. It was not only a surprise that his wife was beside him but that he was…blind! Yup, he was completely blind, not even shadows! I wondered if he took to braille reading to a whole new level. I am certain lap dances abounded. 

3. KA-CHING SUNG BY SHANIA TWAIN-2003

I heard this song on other blogger’s posts and knew I had to choose this song because it relates directly to what I deal with every day. Canadians love credit! We use more credit, per capita, than the States and many other countries. It is very normal to see someone with a huge vehicle loan( $950/mth +), a credit line, 6 credit cards, a Finance Co., an overdraft and even a payday loan. I don’t blink an eye seeing $60,000 to $80,000 in debt, not including the secured debt, their car Loan. The one that stays in my memory banks, were a couple that were wanting to consolidate their debts but all the banks and 2 Credit Unions ( not knowing that every time the Banks and Credit Unions looked at their credit report, their score decreased) declined their request. You see, they were up to date with all their  credit- they had a credit line plus each had 23 different credit cards. Yup! 23. In Canada, you can have from each bank a regular card, a silver, gold and platinum card. They had 4 cards from each bank plus an American Express, Costco, Canadian Tire, Canadian Tire Gas card, GM Visa, Petro, Esso, Home Depot, Capital One, MBNA, Sears, The Bay..plus more. They made great money but they owed over $150,000 in unsecured debt ( they each had a car loan). I know I didn’t get the real reason they spent the money but I would not rule out gambling. 

Bonus…

MONEY, MONEY, MONEY SUNG BY ABBA-1976

I had to put an ABBA song here and it fits. I have seen many women struggle with 3 or 4 children who can hardly make ends meet. They end up going with a man, I believe, for security reasons, to being more money into the household. Unfortunately, many women choose the wrong man who end up abusing them, taking their money and credit, racking up their cards before leaving or the woman, with her kids, leave and must stay at Woman’s Place. So many women, and men, have been dealt a bad hand going with a very bad person who uses them and spits them out. Now, they must look at a Proposal or Bankruptcy because the debts are in their name even though they never used the cards. 

Have you known someone who ran into financial trouble? Don’t judge these people because most of them are not like the blind man or the credit card couple but people struggling. People will do what they can to keep their head above water using credit. I have seen people be in great shape one day, suffer a stroke and no longer be able to walk never mind work. Many people who lose big at the casino commit suicide by diving into the gorge in Niagara Falls. It is sad, so don’t judge as most never thought they would end up at my office. Waych this episode from our Canadian TV show that has been on the air for over 50 yrs...

Angels are Needed

 

52 Christmas Cards- Sketch 

Simon Says- Bling It

Heart's Quest Fantasy- Anything Goes as Long as it's Fantasy

I miss my mom a lot right now and, strangely, I have been finding dimes  which may indicate she is near  I decided to create an angel card. I stamped my angel and embossed it in gold embossing powder. I coloured parts of her in tombow markers and then, using my glue pen, I took glitter in yellow, light green and white and sprinkled it all over the angel. I took a small bucket, made that semi-circle and cut it out. I used a nice shimmery, gold cardstock  and adhered the semi-circle onto the gold card and took my glitter border stickers placing it around the white cardstock. I coloured the gold sticker sentiment in green and placed it on the card and finished it in 4 red stars plus light and dark gold stars to highlight the angel. I have had this angel for over 10 years and it is one of my favourites. 

Ever think about a loved one and you start finding dimes? Who is your angel?

All or Nun…hehehee

 

There are quite a few movies about nuns and priests and some are very famous like “The Sound of Music” which I do love. I have spoken, many times about “Black Narcissus”  which is brilliant but I chose 3 films about nuns and here they are…

1. THE NUN’S STORY-1959

This film stars Audrey Hepburn, who must be a very sweet and true angel to children now, but when she was on Earth she was a huge film star and made this film with Peter Finch who plays a doctor in the Congo. Her character comes from an affluent  home in Belgium  and she renounces her riches to become a nun and help the needy. She is sent to the Congo and she is happy believing she will be administering to the poor so she was quite disappointed when she must help this Doctor who administers to the wealthy. She helps but becomes more and more disillusioned with her role in the world since she vocally questions everything. This is quite a beautiful film and well acted. You totally believe Hepburn as a Nun who dares to question why! I need to see this film again.

2. LILIES OF THE FIELD-1963

I love this endearing film that won Sidney Poitier his Oscar and the head nun, played by Lilia Skala, was nominated. There are these group of East German nuns who wish to build a Chapel in the Arizona desert. This wanderer, played by Poitier, comes to their small abode and the head nun feel he is their answer to their prayers since he is a handyman and can help build them a place to live and a church. He does not want to be pinned down but it is pretty hard to say no to this stubborn nun. The music, from this film, is also quite memorable ( by Jerry Goldsmith) and helps the film along. It is, to me, more a comedy, than a drama but not a laugh out loud one, just one that makes you smile. Hmmmm, I never thought Nuns and smile could be in the same sentence. 

3. AGNES OF GOD-1985

I saw this when it first came out and I still remember it more for the questions raised than any answers it gives. Jane Fonda plays a court-appointed psychiatrist who travels to this convent to find out if this young nun is crazy as shit. ( oops, did I just swear?) She meets the Mother Superior, played by Anne Bancroft who is none too happy that her place is under the nosy eye of Fonda. From there she meets the nun who may or may not be crazy, played very well by Meg Tilly. You see, Meg gave birth to a child that died under malicious circumstances, but Meg has no memory of giving birth or what happened to her now dead baby. In fact, young Meg, along with most of the Nuns, had no clue she was even pregnant. It is up to Fonda to figure out WTF happened. To complicate things even more, Meg shows the signs of the stigmata and I can’t recall why. This was a controversial film by the great Canadian filmmaker, Norman Jewison, that  garnered mixed reviews. I felt it deserved better reviews than it received but I should watch it again and see if I still think it is a really good film or not. 

What Nun movies can you think of?

Love These Songs!

 

It’s freebie week over at Monday Music Moves Me and  I have been wanting to place these songs on my list for quite a while. These are songs that I don’t hear that often, but were big back in the day. In some ways, it reminds me of a huge love in my life that could not be, despite us wanting to be, acknowledged but not more than that which is, now, a distant memory, but, still, a piece of my heart. So here are my 3 of my favourite songs from long ago….

1. IMAGINARY LOVER BY ATLANTA RHYTHM SECTION-1978

I love this song so much, the style, the lead singer, the whole thing I always thought was great and back then, when I was a teen, the only lover I had was imaginary.

2. IT’S JUST A FANTASY BY ALDO NOVA-1982

How I love this song  especially when the lead singer “whispers” the title of this song. This is supposed to be more hard rock which… I guess is true, but I just enjoyed the style of this song from this Canadian and his one-hit wonder. Just an FYI, Aldo was a co-producer of Celine Dion’s album, “Falling Into You” and co-wrote 4 songs for the album, “UNO” by La Ley. He won Grammy Awards for both.

3. EBONY EYES BY BOB WELCH-1978

Here is another song that I have not heard much since the initial hit times back in the 70s. Bob Welch had a tough go. He started on his own, he would be part of bands he would start or helped like Fleetwood Mac. He didn’t start the band but he was part of them early on. Sadly, their relationships were up and down with Welch suing them for royalties he felt he deserved. When they were inducted into the Rock N’ Roll Hall of Fame, he was excluded which seems cruel. Sadly, after kicking a major drug habit and marrying the love of his life, he had back surgery which was not a success. A few months later he shot himself leaving a lengthy love letter to his wife. What a sad end to such a talent but, I bet, his pain was just too much to bear.

Any songs you love that you rarely hear?

Star Of The Month-Dean Jagger

 

DEAN JAGGER

BIRTH: November 7, 1903

DEATH: February 5, 1991

AGED: 87 years

DIED FROM: Heart disease..he died in his sleep

MARRIED: 3 times to Antoinette DuPre Lowrence, Gloria Jean Ling and Etta Jagger

CHILDREN: I daughter with Ling

OSCAR WINS: 1 for Best-Supporting Actor for “12 O’Clock High

TALENT: His oratory style which left many captivated. Very early on, he won many competitions.

KNOWN FOR: Dean Jagger had a very noticeable lisp when he was not working. This lisp disappeared when he was on the stage or in front of a camera. I find this fascinating. 

I always liked this character actor whom we know from the Christmas favourite, “White Christmas” as the General who is in a financial crisis with his Inn and it is up to Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye( along with Rosemary Clooney and Vera-Ellen) to save the day. He did so many more films, mostly in supporting roles but he did do a few as the lead, which I still need to see. It was funny to learn that he wanted to be an actor since he was quite young, practising oratory to the cows on the farm he grew up on. He left school many times and, somehow ended up in college, only to drop out the 2nd year. Not only that and, not sure how, he ended up teaching all 8 grades in a grade school…yup, he became a teacher for a while but that wasn’t his calling ( no kidding!). He left so he could become an actor and started on the stage making quite the name for himself before going into film. He seemed perfect for  film and really made it when he starred as Brigham Young in the film of the same name. George D. Pyper was a consultant on the film and knew Young personally. He mentioned how Jagger not only looked like him but sounded like him and had similar mannerisms. This movie changed Jagger’s life who studied Young’s life and the Morgan faith finally becoming part of this faith in 1972. He was an intensely private man so we know that he married 3 times with the 3rd one, to a ballerina, lasting until his death. His 2nd marriage was to a Chinese lady but when they went to get married, they were denied due to a Californian law prohibiting a Caucasian from marrying someone of Mongolian descent….yup, racism, big surprise. They married in New Mexico but divorced 20 years later..oh well. The one blemish is his solid support behind Senator Joseph McCarthy to the point where he had a director, Joseph Losey, fired because Losey was being blacklisted by these horrible Witch hunts. This actor also appeared in many TV Shows starring in Mr. Novak, winning 2 Emmys as the Principal of this school ( I never heard of it). What’s funny is he talked about the demise of Television back in the 1960s…he must be spinning in his grave! This man gave stellar performances in many films and TV often creating heart at the centre of the films.

FILMS- I saw the first 6 and ranked them. The last 4 I chose as ones yet to see…but there are more

1. White Christmas-1954

2. 12 O’Clock High-1949

3. Bad Day At Black Rock-1955

4. The Nun’s Story-1959

5. King Creole-1958

6. Elmer Gantry-1960

7. I Escaped From The Gestapo-1943

8. Western Union-1941

9. Brigham Young-1940

10. It’s a Dog’s Life-1955

Yeah....just a few Cards

 

Addicted to Stamps-Any Occasion 

Alphabet Challenge- Nocturnal Animals

This is my Halloween card that I made by accident. To be honest, I can’t remember how I did the background. I know I brayered something and used this paper to get rid of the pink and the black but unsure how or why I had 3 “windows”  left. I came up with the idea of using those windows to showcase some Halloween images which I stamped in black ink. I glued it onto black cardstock and finished it off with some Victorian-looking beading. 

Tic, Tac, Toe- middle row- animal, glitter, square card tttc304

12 Months of Christmas- Anything Goes

Crafty Animals-Anything Goes with an animal 

52 Christmas Cards- Mini Scene with Shaped Dies

We bought a mini cake and the mini-cake was on this golden piece of cardboard. It looked pretty so I kept it and used it as the backing for my mini scene of the cardinal. I used my cuddlebug and embossed this image. I coloured it with these watercolour pastels. I glued it all in place and  applied it to this other background I happened to make by chance using paints and stencils. I cut it down and applied it to the cardstock to create my card.

Colourful Options- Fall Colours

We Love Stamping- Shades of Autumn

I tried something new and…it didn’t work but I still liked it. I used alcohol inks and a straw. I watched YouTube videos on how to create a flower by blowing the alcohol inks in a way that create a flower, like a lily. It didn’t work and I ended up with this but I still saw flowers in this and gently highlighted it with water marker and smudging it with my finger. I pasted on gold and black cardstock. I stamped the saying and attached it. I hope it works

CCAYR- V for Vibrant and W for Winter green and Warmth

Simon Says-Anything Goes 

Retro Rubber- Be-Leaf Me rrcb283

Sparkles Monthly- Use Dies/Die-Cutting

I loved that design stamp where I can put anything inside that frame. After stamping it and embossing it in green tinsel powder. I finally used my candle stamp that I bought 2 years ago. I coloured it with my tombow markers using it in a watercolour effect. I glued it onto the mirror card and used ribbon to set the card off nicely. 

Heart’s Quest Fantasy- Anything Goes Fantasy

Try It Tuesday-Make It Magical

I bought my fairy stamps a good 3 years ago and haven’t used them much. I decided to change that and create a Christmas theme with the fairy, bathed in glittery white (I stamped and heat embossed her in my snowflake white powder). Oh yes, I created the background using my powders… I forgot the name but you just take the small bottle and sprinkle a little powder onto watercolour cardstock. You spray water onto the card and watch the colours come alive! I used green, blue and even a bit of purple. It was shimmery so you can see it in the light which I can’t get here. I stamped trees and other grasses and holly. I took my stickles in red and added it to the trees and the holly berries. I took my Tim Holtz distress ink and sponged on some darker blues around the edges to create a vignette. I stamped my poinsettia 4 times, coloured them in and fussy-cut them out. I added it to the card to create a nice Christmas vision. 

Eerie…..

 

Boo! Of course I will  talk about some eerie films. They are not shock scary movies or gory which is not my bag anyway, but they are eerie. They bring a tension that evokes fear and so many questions and here are my 3..

1. VAMPYR-1932

This is about the eeriest film I have ever seen. It’s from the great Danish director, Carl Dreyer, who creates an unsettling, dream-like atmosphere with shadows and soft-focus lighting to enhance the eerie quality. There is very little dialogue and that works because it brings more tension and dark, fairytale quality to this film. A man wanders into an inn at the edge of a small town. In the middle of the night he is visited by an old man who brings him a box and leaves. The man follows the old man out and sees an old woman who seems to have control over other people who appear as if they are not part of their own bodies. This man ends up at a home, meets the old man and his 2 daughters one that is bedridden. The old man is killed and the police and doctor come. Soon, this man, who is a student of the occult, realizes there is more than just illness but as if something holds the town hostage. This film was not a success when it came out but, now, it is considered one of the best films ever made.

2. CARNIVAL OF SOULS-1962

This is a B movie made on a shoestring budget. Long forgotten, it is now considered a gem in the horror film franchise. We see girls in one car, boys in another and they decide to drag race and whoever makes it across the bridge first, wins. Unfortunately, the girls’ car ends up in the river below. From the river comes one survivor, who is, understandably, confused and muddy. She is an organist and gets a job at a nearby town as a church organist. Since, surviving the accident, she feels odd and keeps seeing this freakish man with a white face and menacing look. At times, she hears nothing and the silence freaks her out. She speaks to a psychiatrist about all these events and he is concerned for her. While playing music in the church, her playing deviates to a macabre number that sounds the opposite of holy. She is also drawn to this old palace by the seaside where she sees a bunch of people dancing but they all look like that man who keeps following her. This is one creepy, but excellent film.

3. HIGH PLAINS DRIFTER-1973

This is a Western film starring Clint Eastwood, who also directed the film, who comes into this sad looking town with all the townsfolk staring at him wondering who is this guy? He comes into mean, dusty and horny taking the town slut into the barn and, essentially, raping her but she doesn’t mind. He ventures to the barbershop for a bath and shave and, while in the bathtub, the slut shoots multiple times into the bathtub. Clint is unhurt and she is subdued. Oh yeah, he kills all the members of this gang and then takes his bath. This happens in the first 10 minutes of the film! From there, he takes over the town with the local midget, played so well by Billy Curtis, as his right-hand man. The townsfolk don’t like him and send word to convicts who are coming to this town. Clint just seethes with menace even though he has nightmares of the former sheriff whipped to death by these convicts as the town just watches. Clint prepares the town for these convicts by forcing the townsfolk to paint the town red and calling it Hell. This was a film I always wanted to see but never had a chance until 20 years ago and was floored when the film ended. It left me questioning, “What the Hell!?” It’s dirty, grimy and you dislike most of the people in the town save the midget and the wife of the hotel owner, who knows who this man with no name is. I think Billy Curtis should have been Oscar nominated for best supporting actor, but that’s just me.

What films do you find eerie?