Can bad spelling ruin your chances of landing a job?

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://emj.cbdr.com/artieimages/32/ar5m6wy6g90zp1rppc32.gif?time=3/8/2011%206:14:33%20pm" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://emj.cbdr.com/artieimages/32/ar5m6wy6g90zp1rppc32.gif?time=3/8/2011%206:14:33%20pm" /></a></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px;"><b><span id="cbArticle_lblByLine">Rachel Farrell, CareerBuilder.com Writer</span></b></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px;"><b><span id="cbArticle_lblByLine"><br /></span></b></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px;"><b><span id="cbArticle_lblByLine"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"></span></span></b></span><br /><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Almost every time you hear about mistakes to avoid in your résumé or cover letter, you see the same things: lying about your experience, providing too much information or using the same generic résumé for every application. We also preach about spelling.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">If the job you're applying for doesn't require that you have killer writing skills, it doesn't mean spelling errors will fly in your résumé or cover letter, says Barbara Roche, lecturer at The Wharton School and executive coach for Right Management.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">"Job candidates do themselves no favors when they claim to have an attention to detail and then spell it 'atention to detail,'" she says. "Most hiring authorities see typos and spelling errors as an indication of a candidate's performance on the job: low quality and not caring about the impression they make on others."</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">While some hiring managers may be more forgiving of minor spelling errors, the majority agree that they just can't happen when it comes to your job application materials -- or otherwise.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">"Quite frankly, there is no excuse for misspelled words, even in BlackBerry messages. It's just lazy," says Roy Cohen, career coach and author "The Wall Street Professional's Survival Guide." "Spell check is available to everyone. Words that are incorrectly spelled or abbreviations often are difficult to decipher [and] can slow down the reading rather than speed it up. It may be more efficient for the sender, but it presents bigger challenges for the individual who has to translate the cryptic language for meaning."</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Error-free résumés and cover letters suggest to employers that your communication skills are spot-on -- a vital skill in today's competitive job market.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">"Excellent communication skills can pave the way to promotions for employees," says Sharon Armstrong, president, Sharon Armstrong and Associates. "If you are a life-long learner, you'll continue to work on the skills that will help you grow and develop."</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Good spelling (and grammar) also implies intelligence, Roche says. "You are a capable, educated candidate who will represent the organization well."</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">And that might be what employers care about the most.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">"Any company that cares about their 'brand' will be put off by bad spelling. A company that cares about the details will want to always show a professional image," Armstrong says.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Generation GapSome experts agree that spelling has gotten worse with each new generation of job seekers, especially with the increased amount of texting and abbreviations younger folks tend to use. While running an internship program at Penn State, Roche ran into this problem often.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">"It's a real problem. College juniors and seniors simply have no awareness that they write in slang and shorthand in all instances until it is pointed out to them. They seem to split into two groups: those that are grateful to receive the feedback and remedy the situation. And those that give you the 'thousand-yard stare' as if to say, 'So?'" Roche says. "This is how stark the difference can be: 'Please accept the enclosed résumé for the entry-level administrator position' and 'Dude, hook me up.'"</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">The advents of social media and forums where you only have 140 characters to express yourself aren't doing spelling-challenged job seekers any favors either, says Cohen.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">"Social media has given a lot of people carte blanche to abuse spelling and grammar. In a world of tweets and texts, there's no room for padding," he says. "Words and sentences shrink to symbols and acronyms and have almost become a new language. Think: BFF or LOL."</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">When all is said and done, the standard in your job search should be spelling-error free, says Cohen.</div>"Everyone's entitled to an occasional mistake once you're on the job. Not that anyone among us is perfect," he reminds. "The goal is to demonstrate that at least for the purposes of job search that we care enough about the job and our candidacy to pay attention to the details. Although a typo is inevitable even for the most diligent among us, sloppiness at the start usually means the potential for carelessness later on. That's not an acceptable standard for anyone in job search in a highly competitive market."

Can bad spelling ruin your chances of landing a job?

Rachel Farrell, CareerBuilder.com Writer Almost every time you hear about mistakes to avoid in your résumé or cover letter, you see the same...

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EN ROUTE TO ELYSIAN FIELDS

<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0aJXwQuxWCPOIY1ZCUfJxWf87zgroqgih7_D0TcXFOFUcTqNHHpP8S9wIG27Z-bj9oNJXEyiX6zFsbLPs3Hqzvn5Q5WTM439zEw1DZsyjyLtZWC_OGFSv0Km9wTVGA9t_wA3KrddE_5xD/s1600/tennessee+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" j8="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0aJXwQuxWCPOIY1ZCUfJxWf87zgroqgih7_D0TcXFOFUcTqNHHpP8S9wIG27Z-bj9oNJXEyiX6zFsbLPs3Hqzvn5Q5WTM439zEw1DZsyjyLtZWC_OGFSv0Km9wTVGA9t_wA3KrddE_5xD/s320/tennessee+2.jpg" width="305" /></span></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">When playwright Tennessee Williams decided to pick up where he left off on the play-in-progress he called <i>The Poker Night</i>, it was 1946 and he was comfortably ensconced in New Orleans in a French Quarter apartment overflowing with fine antiques.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Less than a year earlier, Williams's <i>The Glass Menagerie</i> had opened on Broadway. With this play, in the words of playwright Arthur Miller, Williams "lifted lyricism to its highest level in our theatre's history." But Williams struggled before this success came, suffering lean years after winning a special prize given by The Group Theatre in 1938. Though he had received grants, gotten a play produced and even been under contract as an MGM screenwriter during those years, none of it had panned out. His play <i>Battle of Angels</i>, starring Miriam Hopkins, previewed in Boston to good reviews, but created a furor and closed. He flopped at MGM, unwilling or unable to create "a celluloid brassiere for Lana Turner."</span><br /><a name='more'></a><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikSXqEcEfxqPqupOXBM9izq1LQdZHgxN6MHW2x2EwQfl2m-iE9ENHhIECoy3MuLvOpUK_HVc5tiRJaeg5i4be0VUnjvJOz8MPZZroMzts0GhYDVVHFhHHmPAO7NXiMyJXaEKLT-KmuGx30/s1600/laurette+as+amanda.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" j8="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikSXqEcEfxqPqupOXBM9izq1LQdZHgxN6MHW2x2EwQfl2m-iE9ENHhIECoy3MuLvOpUK_HVc5tiRJaeg5i4be0VUnjvJOz8MPZZroMzts0GhYDVVHFhHHmPAO7NXiMyJXaEKLT-KmuGx30/s200/laurette+as+amanda.jpg" width="155" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Laurette Taylor, star of <i>The Glass Menagerie</i></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">It was in 1943 while visiting his family in St. Louis, that Williams began work on a play he called <i>The Gentleman Caller</i>. He became the toast of Broadway in 1945 when the play, retitled <i>The Glass Menagerie</i>, opened to rave reviews and was voted the best play of the year by The New York Drama Critics Circle. During the play's run Williams put together a poker game in order to learn and understand a game that would figure in a story that had begun to form in his mind.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">A lifelong wayfarer, Williams had spent time in The Big Easy before and found it a most congenial city. When he returned to linger for a while in 1946, he quickly settled into a regular routine. Writing throughout the early part of the day, he would need a breather by afternoon and head for a favorite nearby watering hole. There he indulged in the bar's specialty, a Brandy Alexander, and played the jukebox until it was time to get something to eat and, later, go for a swim.</span><br /><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAAj5DML0LiJ4XNh6dj8_jKwsdeW747yAFTbIXy3SGTnYs4_a_ayFcX9mOhGeqjvQ6u2mjDxLOONik2GXK2fsFy9OKgm_0ZE3yFg0XwUNghcnm_70EYN_ClB2M1Fuy5-E6m7CoBu40qafC/s1600/La+Concha+Old.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" j8="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAAj5DML0LiJ4XNh6dj8_jKwsdeW747yAFTbIXy3SGTnYs4_a_ayFcX9mOhGeqjvQ6u2mjDxLOONik2GXK2fsFy9OKgm_0ZE3yFg0XwUNghcnm_70EYN_ClB2M1Fuy5-E6m7CoBu40qafC/s1600/La+Concha+Old.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hotel La Concha, Key West</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Williams was in the midst of his work on the play when his grandfather, the Rev. Walter Edwin Dakin, arrived in New Orleans for a visit. Widowed, nearing 90 and nearly blind, the beloved old man had been living in some distress at the home of Williams's parents. The playwright decided to take a break from dreary weather and go on a motor trip to Florida with his grandfather. They eventually reached Key West and took a suite at the top of the Hotel La Concha. Here Williams continued to work in earnest on completing his play. Exuberant spirit that he was, he took time to party with friends in the area, Miriam Hopkins and Ernest Hemingway's ex-wife Martha among them. It wasn't until he returned to New Orleans that Williams completed his final draft of <i>The Poker Night </i>and sent it to his literary agent.</span><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">~</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Irene Mayer Selznick had been a true Hollywood princess. Her father, Louis B. Mayer, was the head of MGM for more than 25 years, and Irene and her older sister Edie were the only children of L.B. and his first wife, Margaret. The girls' lives were incredibly charmed as well as profoundly sheltered.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Irene and Edie both married in 1930, their weddings only weeks apart. Irene's husband was David O. Selznick, the movie-making wunderkind who later headed his own studio and masterminded the production of <i>Gone With the Wind</i> and the career of Jennifer Jones.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">L.B. Mayer had famously remarked that Irene could've run MGM...if only she'd been a boy. What Irene did run for many years was the complex Selznick household, the at-home version of Selznick's studio...an opulent, frenetically busy 24-hour operation. Selznick may have lived to make movies, but he also gambled, womanized, popped speed and swilled alcohol at a breakneck pace. By 1945, Irene had had enough. Late one night her husband turned to her in bed and asked why she was still awake - she blurted that the the jig was up and she wanted out...then promptly rolled over and fell asleep.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5s5OOWcTMoMZQ9AVijCpiz-DFFJKqvReVPPd1JCPmC_qVDlodc3bG9ZtQOw-RaO3Mvu3Eaa9fJ-qN8eOuzZbj4mGqEVWTQ7GSKrnMLVhZ0i2ihS_aLN5GywXfbvp_R4_MUH2gwaIfKvQB/s1600/irene+and+david+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" j8="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5s5OOWcTMoMZQ9AVijCpiz-DFFJKqvReVPPd1JCPmC_qVDlodc3bG9ZtQOw-RaO3Mvu3Eaa9fJ-qN8eOuzZbj4mGqEVWTQ7GSKrnMLVhZ0i2ihS_aLN5GywXfbvp_R4_MUH2gwaIfKvQB/s1600/irene+and+david+2.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Irene and David Selznick</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Though she and David Selznick didn't immediately divorce and her father tried to induce her to stay on the West Coast with a high level job at MGM, Irene relocated to New York. She had dreams of becoming a theatrical producer and, on the advice of good friend Moss Hart, rented an office and hired a general manager. Her first outing was the production of an Arthur Laurents play, <i>Heartsong</i>, starring Shirley Booth. The play closed in Philadelphia but evolved over the years (and with another title) into a Broadway hit that still later became David Lean's <i>Summertime</i> (1955) with Katharine Hepburn.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Irene's first production may not have made it to Broadway, but she was noticed. Soon after, she heard from literary agent Audrey Wood who told her, "My most cherished and important client has a play I would like to put in your hands. It is his best play yet. His name is Tennessee Williams." Irene received the script on her 40th birthday.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Wood, aware of Irene's inexperience but appreciative of her taste, dedication and connections, cajoled and coaxed and eventually arranged for her to meet Williams in Charleston, South Carolina. The playwright asked the up-and-coming producer if she preferred the play's original title, <i>The Poker Night</i>, or the one he was presently considering. And he asked her about the newer title - did she prefer "called desire" or "named desire"? The encounter had begun with both parties ill-at-ease, but in the end contracts were signed and the pair was set to embark on the original production of <i>A Streetcar Named Desire</i>.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">~</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD6hi7Zrvx5Ys-9qPd7SOrEQIDCxMp3fZeBrj03rNkMzWjKrL6PnDW-m2YCGVzYB8majOx2xuw2sSXUWQuAI56fSrlJkSPRh9XTI7M8S0D_WzSGSnWXOWsKN8i4v3NTYeGmYE061H-yWOk/s1600/irene+gadge+and+tennessee+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" j8="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD6hi7Zrvx5Ys-9qPd7SOrEQIDCxMp3fZeBrj03rNkMzWjKrL6PnDW-m2YCGVzYB8majOx2xuw2sSXUWQuAI56fSrlJkSPRh9XTI7M8S0D_WzSGSnWXOWsKN8i4v3NTYeGmYE061H-yWOk/s320/irene+gadge+and+tennessee+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Irene Mayer Selznick, Elia Kazan and Tennesee Williams</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Irene returned to New York and Tennessee soon followed. Once he arrived he methodically made his way around to town to check on the latest plays. After he'd seen Arthur Miller's <i>All My Sons</i>, his heart was set on Elia Kazan, the play's director, for <i>Streetcar</i>. Irene was originally familiar with Kazan as an actor, having seen his breakout performance in the 1935 production of Clifford Odets's <i>Waiting for Lefty</i>. Kazan had begun to direct major stage productions in the early 1940s. Irene sent him the <i>Streetcar</i> script and he turned it down. Influenced by his wife, Molly Day Thacher, who had been instrumental in discovering and championing Tennessee Williams, and the lucrative contract he was offered, he reconsidered.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Bette Davis was Irene's first choice for the role of Blanche Dubois, the female lead, but she was unavailable. Margaret Sullavan was considered, but Williams didn't think she was right for the part, he "kept picturing her with a tennis racquet in one hand." Fay Bainter's name came up and Kazan apparently mentioned Mary Martin, but it was through Williams that the play's leading lady was found.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgnOSz-_ieyvHEuONGNtd-aUgyiSNGYpeYpfHmHcIZBjdPyo97aLdTqSrO2LUyUgCMBPxy18hBsgQ0y8sYgMJmmdm7VpIpTuG8XcuH2FYKBBwBKwwz0LOa-G0WDo2gLxJVe5aTeAM_-vfT/s1600/Jessica+as+Blanche+1947+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" j8="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgnOSz-_ieyvHEuONGNtd-aUgyiSNGYpeYpfHmHcIZBjdPyo97aLdTqSrO2LUyUgCMBPxy18hBsgQ0y8sYgMJmmdm7VpIpTuG8XcuH2FYKBBwBKwwz0LOa-G0WDo2gLxJVe5aTeAM_-vfT/s320/Jessica+as+Blanche+1947+2.jpg" width="207" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jessica Tandy as Blanche Dubois</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Actor Hume Cronyn, a financial supporter of Williams in his early days on the scene, had recently produced and directed four one-act plays at The Actor's Lab in Hollywood. Three were by Williams and one of them, <i>Portrait of a Madonna</i>, starred Cronyn's wife, Jessica Tandy. Cronyn arranged to have this play staged for Williams when he, Irene and Kazan were on the West Coast. All three attended and were astonished by Tandy's performance. She was quickly signed to play Blanche. For the primary supporting roles, Karl Malden was the only actor considered for the part of Mitch, and Irene suggested Kim Hunter for the role of Stella.</span></span></span></div></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">John Garfield was everyone's first choice for the male lead, Stanley Kowalski. The actor had worked steadily on the New York stage before venturing to Hollywood in the late '30s. His screen career began with a star-making turn in Michael Curtiz's <i>Four Daughter's </i>(1938). In 1947 Garfield was about to begin production on Kazan's film adaptation of <i>A Gentleman's Agreement</i>. He would be available afterward and was interested in the play - but his demands proved to be too great.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Next to be offered the role was youthful Burt Lancaster who had just debuted onscreen in Robert Siodmak's <i>The Killers</i> (1946). Though Lancaster didn't take the role, he later told Irene that he'd "yearned" to. Other actors considered for the part included Van Heflin, Edmund O'Brien and...Gregory Peck.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"> </div><div style="text-align: left;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilYQvrJp_nNpSTbMT9P8BWiGsCdmYc3Y3ogBJSxzeBQe0SqJzWbg2OlIe6DHYXzKql5GZ3yNvR5O7qyrXDlT2hYfqFSnnbDs3VseOHqEvvqfAjDLUwknXy3VBjQgVTiWoGSJS2rzODnjHH/s1600/i_remember_mama+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="185" j8="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilYQvrJp_nNpSTbMT9P8BWiGsCdmYc3Y3ogBJSxzeBQe0SqJzWbg2OlIe6DHYXzKql5GZ3yNvR5O7qyrXDlT2hYfqFSnnbDs3VseOHqEvvqfAjDLUwknXy3VBjQgVTiWoGSJS2rzODnjHH/s200/i_remember_mama+2.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Marlon Brando (center) in<i> I Remember Mama</i></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">23-year old Marlon Brando had been a busy young actor since his first major stage role in <i>I Remember Mama</i>. He appeared in <i>Antigone</i> with Cedric Hardwicke, gained notice in Maxwell Anderson's <i>Truckline Caf</i><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><i>é</i>, co-starred in a revival of <i>Candida</i> with Katharine Cornell and appeared in Ben Hecht's <i>A Flag is Born </i>with Paul Muni. In 1946 he was voted Broadway's Most Promising Newcomer. According to Brando, Harold Clurman, who directed him in <i>Truckline Caf</i><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><i>é</i>, suggested him to Kazan for <i>Streetcar</i>. But neither Kazan nor Irene were completely convinced and the final decision was left to the playwright. After spending time with Brando, Williams was ebullient and the actor was hired; he was the last of the principals to be cast. Williams later compared the "luminous power" of Brando's onstage charisma to that of Laurette Taylor who had dazzled as the star of <i>The Glass Menagerie</i>.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />When the play opened in New Haven, Louis B. Mayer was there. Irene hadn't wanted to be distracted by his presence and tried to discourage him - to no avail. Despite technical difficulties, the consensus was that <i>Streetcar</i> had played well. But Irene was disappointed at the lack of excitement expressed by the group gathered in her hotel room after the show. She recalled that there was "too much respect floating around and not enough enthusiasm." Then her father asked to speak with her privately. He told her "you don't have a hit, you've got a smash...you wait and see," then he told her to go back to her guests - but not to listen to them.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /><i>A Streetcar Named Desire </i>premiered on Broadway at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre on December 3, 1947 and was an instant sensation, receiving a standing ovation that lasted for half an hour. Jessica Tandy, who was universally singled out in the opening night reviews, won a Tony Award, the play was voted the best play of 1948 by the New York Drama Critics Circle and Tennessee Williams won the 1948 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. <i>Streetcar </i>ran for two years and 855 performances and it was the last play of Marlon Brando's theatrical career. The actor soon left for Hollywood, enormous fame and a long, erratic, if often brilliant, film career.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />In 1949 Laurence Olivier directed <i>Streetcar </i>on London's West End. Vivien Leigh starred as Blanche with Bonar Colleano as Stanley. </span></span></span></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhObNT0hrGexOzV6R-xeaXRU9NtIHTxSUw0tGwOz9wa-Nlz9ejAr95RPr9_juR2MMPWpUfo3bdf3bZXpHa9nkxJXiIFsIkNENrXXrTQDiI1eWNDB_S0ni6top6N30aVmFhrXjIbz4hyphenhyphenOHk3/s1600/Marlon+and+Vivien++film.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" j8="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhObNT0hrGexOzV6R-xeaXRU9NtIHTxSUw0tGwOz9wa-Nlz9ejAr95RPr9_juR2MMPWpUfo3bdf3bZXpHa9nkxJXiIFsIkNENrXXrTQDiI1eWNDB_S0ni6top6N30aVmFhrXjIbz4hyphenhyphenOHk3/s1600/Marlon+and+Vivien++film.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Marlon Brando and Vivien Leigh</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />When the play was adapted to film in 1951, all the Broadway principals were retained except Jessica Tandy. The role of Blanche went to Vivien Leigh. Years later Karl Malden observed, "If Jessica had played it, I wouldn't have been in the movie and neither would Kim Hunter. Because Jessica was no star, and neither was Brando. But Vivien, who after <i>Gone With the Wind</i> was the biggest thing you ever saw - she could carry us all." Kazan, who accepted the casting of Leigh, remembered, "She had a small talent, but the greatest determination to excel of any actress I've known." Brando thought Leigh was a perfect Blanche because, "...in many ways she <i>was</i> Blanche." Kazan allowed that her emerging psychological problems may have been an asset to her performance as the disintegrating belle, and Leigh later said that the grueling role had tipped her into madness.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Elements of the play, particularly the seamy details of Blanche's past, were toned down or altered for the film, but Kazan was able to preserve the integrity of Williams's creation, masterfully translating its dark poetry and palpable sensuality to the screen. <i>Streetcar </i>was much celebrated, nominated for twelve Academy Awards and winner of four - including a Best Actress award to Vivien Leigh. It is considered the classic among film adaptations of Williams's work.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">~</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">More than 35 years later Irene Mayer Selznick would look back and reflect on that spectacular evening when <i>A Streetcar Named Desire </i>opened in New York. For all that the play's success meant to her that night, she did not foresee the impact it was about to have. With her first Broadway production, she became an established, sought-after theatrical producer. The play, she remembered, made Elia Kazan "a king" and changed forever the lives of all four of its principal players. Most fittingly, she wrote, "it gave Tennessee enduring glory."</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i><span style="color: #660000;">March 26, 2011 marked the 100th anniversary of the birth of Tennessee Williams. The University of Texas at Austin, home of the Williams archive, is presenting "Becoming Tennessee Williams" from February 1 - July 21. The exhibit includes manuscripts, correspondence, photos and artwork.<b> </b></span><a href="http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/2011/williams/"><b><span style="color: #660000;">Click here</span></b></a><span style="color: #660000;"> to learn more.</span></i></span><br /><br /><br /></div><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/o_lToyPAUyE" width="425"></iframe><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Sources</b>:</span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;"></span></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><u>Memoirs</u> (1975) by Tennessee Williams</span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><u>A Private View</u> (1983) by Irene Mayer Selznick</span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><u>The Kindness of Strangers</u> (1985) by Donald Spoto</span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><u>Songs My Mother Taught Me</u> (1994) by Marlon Brando</span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><u>Elia Kazan</u> (2005) by Richard Schickel</span>

A Streetcar Named Desire Elia Kazan Irene Mayer Selznick Jessica Tandy Karl Malden Kim Hunter Laurette Taylor Marlon Brando Tennessee Williams The Glass Menagerie Vivien Leigh EN ROUTE TO ELYSIAN FIELDS

When playwright Tennessee Williams decided to pick up where he left off on the play-in-progress he called The Poker Night , it was 1946 and ...

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Walking a tight rope (and falling off the rope) / 186.8

For me, a fat woman trying to become a normal, mentally balanced woman and be at a healthy weight, my life is like walking a tight rope, and I keep falling off the damned rope.<br /><br />My last post on Saturday was about enjoying food. Well guess what? Stupid, stupid, stupid idea! I went crazy, trying new recipes, all Weight Watchers or from weight loss blogs. There are many wonderful recipes out there that are healthy. The trick, though, is to eat just one portion. When the food is delicious and I really enjoy it, I struggle with the portion size.<br /><br />I made Weight Watcher Chicken Tortilla Soup from the new Weight Watchers cookbook (from Costco). I've had the book for months, since the PointsPlus program came out. I hadn't even cracked it open. The soup is wonderful, but a serving is 1 1/4 cups with 1/5 of an avocado. Not three cups with a whole avocado!<br /><br />I tried several other recipes since Saturday. I've been a cooking machine. I've also been an eating machine. <br /><br />Sometimes, I'm my own worst enemy. I get what I think are brilliant ideas that lead to my downfall. It's very frustrating.<br /><br />Wednesday's weigh-in at my at-work Weight Watchers meeting was 186.8. Tell me, who belongs to TWO Weight Watcher groups and actually GAINS weight?! Oh, right, that would be ME.<br /><br />Good grief, what is wrong with me? <br /><br />Okay, so enough with the self-pity? What's next on my agenda? How am I going to turn this around, and quickly?<br /><br /><b>1. Back to exercising.</b> That's right, in the last four days during my cooking/eating frenzy, I decided I was too tired/lazy/bored/busy to get my butt to the gym. What the hell was that about? As soon as I hit the "publish post" button on this post, I'm out the door and to the gym.<br /><br />There's a little kink in my plan. I'm officially on vacation starting today and through next week. I'm leaving for Fairbanks tomorrow to visit my sister. My 72-year old sister, the gym rat. The one that goes to the gym five days a week, every week.<br /><br />Sadly, she's recovering from pneumonia and hasn't been to the gym for seven days. It's unlikely she'll be returning soon since she was really sick. I have to figure out how to get in exercise while I'm visiting. She has a treadmill at home (that she never uses), so as much as I hate the treadmill, I might have to get on the thing. If the weather is good, I could walk outside, but she lives out in the middle of no where (thirty miles from Fairbanks), and walking by myself is a tiny bit scary. I'll just have to figure this out.<br /><br /><b>2. Food</b> - gosh, what can I say here that hasn't been said a thousand times on this blog about me and food? There's just no way around it, I have to really limit what and how much I eat. This isn't a free-for-all. I can't eat just because I "think" I'm hungry. I can't eat how much I really want to eat. I know what a portion size looks like, I know how to eat healthy. I know what to order when eating out. None of this is new to me. <br /><br /><b>3. Mindset</b> - Exercise and food are of course the key to losing weight, but more important is having your head in the game. If I don't have that, nothing else matters. I have to be 100% in the game. Period. Doing this halfway, not giving it my all just doesn't work. <br /><br />My one saving grace here is my sister is a health nut. She's been one for decades, before it was really popular. She's been making her own homemade, whole wheat bread for over twenty years. She eats like a bird and oddly, is never hungry (I sometimes wonder if we're even related!).<br /><br />The only bad junk in her house is for all the grandkids, yes, she has cookies and candy for the grandkids. She never touches the stuff, but it's there for the kids. This is going to require major willpower.  <br /><br />I won't be posting until I get back, next week on Thursday. Of course, lately, that's sort of normal posting for me. Once or twice a week. I really need to pick that up a bit. :)<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</div><div style="text-align: center;">Awesome things </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div>I leave you with a few "awesome" things in my life. The guy that wrote 1,000 Awesome Things was on the Today show a couple days ago. It got me to thinking that even though as much as I complain about my life, there are lots of awesome things that happen to me every day. I wrote out some of the earlier this week, intending to post them, but I never got around to it. Speaking of the word "awesome", it sort of annoys me because it's so overused. Regardless, these things were pretty awesome to me.<br /><br />Diana's short list of awesome things this week:<br /><br />Written on Tuesday, May 2:<br /><br />1. Talking to my sister in Fairbanks on my way to work today. Discussing how I'll be in Fairbanks this Friday and staying for a week, and how we can't wait to see each other. I just LOVE her!<br /><br />2. Arriving at work and a group of my favorite people from another team are in the lunchroom. We chat for about ten minutes. One guy that's hysterically funny and has always had a beard says "well, if I shave all this off I'll look like a hairless cat". Cracked me up because I could totally picture him as a giant, hairless cat (he's 6' 4").<br /><br />3. Last night, reading this on my niece's Facebook page, posted by a male friend of hers: <i>Nothing like killing a terrorist leader to get people to shut the hell up about the royal wedding. </i>So true!<br /><br />4. At first, I was a little disturbed by all the celebration over bin Laden's death. Of course I'm glad that he's no longer on this planet, but the dancing in the streets over the death of another human being didn't feel right to me. Then I read how the United States handled bin Laden's burial, and I smiled to myself. Even though bin laden was a dreadful, evil person, the United States handled his remains with dignity. It made me proud to be a citizen of the United States.<br /><br />From the <a href="http://beaconnews.suntimes.com/news/5147948-417/how-the-u.s.-found-killed-osama-bin-laden">Chicago Beacon-News article</a>:<br /><br /><i>Bin Laden’s body was taken to an aircraft carrier, the USS Carl Vinson, and his burial quickly was done in accordance with Islamic custom. His corpse was washed, then wrapped in a white sheet and placed in a weighted bag, according to news reports. As a U.S. military chaplain read religious rites, which were translated into Arabic, the body was placed on a board, tipped up and dropped into the North Arabian Sea.</i><br /><br />5. Last Friday, taking my favorite kitty, Mickey, to the vet because he was doing a weird drooling thing and acting odd. He's never drooled and he acted like he didn't feel good. This is the same cat that four years ago had a 106 degree fever in the middle of one of the worst snowstorms ever. I made my husband drive through foot deep snow on the I5 freeway so we could take Mickey to the emergency vet, where after fluids and a $1,200 vet bill, he was fine.<br /><br />At the vet visit Friday, she told me all the things that could be wrong with Mickey: kidney failure, some weird kitty virus that can cause death (drooling is a sign), and numerous other things I can't even pronounce. All of them with devastating consequences. He's only six years old. He's my baby. After taking his blood, and waiting 24 hours for the results (and I was just sure he was dying), I get the phone call. All results were perfect. He's perfectly healthy, perhaps just a cold. That could cause the drooling.<br /><br />6. Waking up this morning with my kitty, Mickey, sitting on my chest and staring at me, purring (and not drooling anymore!). <br /><br />7. Getting this comment from Christine on my post about Marianne Williamson's stupid weight loss book. This made me laugh out loud:<br /><br /><a href="http://christinemarxoriginals.com/">Christine </a>said:<br /><i>I bought the book and went with a friend to see her speak. She's a self-indulgent, pompous loon who talks down to people. What she says makes no sense and I agree with your assessment of her book. Don't waste your time reading it. </i><br /><br />8. Walking in the sunshine at noon with a work friend. Everything is emerald green from all the rain the past several months (the rain which I've cursed every day for at least six months). All the trees are budding out and our walk down the Des Moines Creek Trail near work was gorgeous. We saw a bald eagle soaring above us with six tiny birds chasing it and acting like they were trying to attack it. The eagle could have cared less, they were like little pesky mosquitoes to him. The eagle's wing span was a least eight feet across. Beautiful.<br /><br />9. Truly awesome thing for today, May 5:  waking up and knowing I was off work for eleven days. Woohoo!

Walking a tight rope (and falling off the rope) / 186.8

For me, a fat woman trying to become a normal, mentally balanced woman and be at a healthy weight, my life is like walking a tight rope, and...

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Hungry Girl Cooking: Tutti Frutti Crunch Yogurt Parfait

Breakfast this week has been amazing for me thanks to <a href="http://book.hungry-girl.com/recipes/search?q=tutti+frutti+crunch+yogurt+parfait&b=1">Hungry Girl's Tutti Frutti Crunch Yogurt Parfait</a>.  When I think of a parfait, I think of vanilla yogurt, strawberries, blueberries and <i>granola</i>, right?  <br /><br />Granola can often be the doomsday ingredient in this little berry concoction because granola is typically high in calories.  For example, in only a 1/4 cup serving of <a href="http://www.bearnaked.com/fit-granola/vanilla-almond-crunch">Bear Naked Fit Vanilla Almond Crunch Granola</a>, there are 120 calories!  So what ends up appearing like a healthy, low calorie meal, it can actually be a huge caloric bomb waiting to go off on your waist by the time you tie all the ingredients together.  <br /><br />Enter <a href="http://www.quakeroats.com/products/rice-snacks/quakes/apple-cinnamon.aspx">Quaker Apple Cinnamon Quakes</a> - the perfect crunchy substitution for the high calorie granola - thank you Hungry Girl!  In 8 cakes there are just 60 calories, but we're only using 6 in this recipe, so about 45 calories in total.  Just crush up these bad boys and add those into your layered berry goodness and voila! - an extremely filling breakfast entree.<br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjju09CVC5Tn8Lmv7E8W75kUr6MtxYlzSjBlpdSkzZ8ifrxVjpc5wkKRRUokuYAqeOJl0yMwj5yYRmfu1IJZ7Xcoz8tTIE3k0lqBt6pM_25z0pFxvnHw0rCjdhgFe_WDWTAk3a7edgsNy4/s1600/yogurtcrunch1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjju09CVC5Tn8Lmv7E8W75kUr6MtxYlzSjBlpdSkzZ8ifrxVjpc5wkKRRUokuYAqeOJl0yMwj5yYRmfu1IJZ7Xcoz8tTIE3k0lqBt6pM_25z0pFxvnHw0rCjdhgFe_WDWTAk3a7edgsNy4/s320/yogurtcrunch1.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">this honestly kept me full all morning until lunchtime!</td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq7HQcV-imVczq8buFiMKADnH1AK_kKN3L4M5o9AXa16d2acpChX5cEkAkwyFSZQK2xZLtxV2lKcn8dTTOsFnCKfYv0Sr91_5nplxRmhHpAuQkHcVdLowNF9d3yJ7yFYHcRcqvqhYxv-Y/s1600/yogurtcrunch2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq7HQcV-imVczq8buFiMKADnH1AK_kKN3L4M5o9AXa16d2acpChX5cEkAkwyFSZQK2xZLtxV2lKcn8dTTOsFnCKfYv0Sr91_5nplxRmhHpAuQkHcVdLowNF9d3yJ7yFYHcRcqvqhYxv-Y/s320/yogurtcrunch2.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">hard to see my layers, but they're there!</td></tr></tbody></table><b><u>Hungry Girl's Tutti Frutti Crunch Yogurt Parfait</u> - <i>5 Points+</i></b><br /><i>Ingredients:</i>   <br />6 oz  fat-free vanilla yogurt   <br />6 pieces apple cinnamon soy crisps or mini rice cakes, crushed   <br />1/2 cup sliced strawberries   <br />1/2 cup blueberries <br /><br /><i>Directions: </i>  <br />Place one-third of the strawberries and blueberries in the bottom of a tall glass. Add half of the yogurt. <br />Top with another third of the blueberries and strawberries. Cover with half of the apple cinnamon crunchies. <br />Spoon the remaining yogurt on top and cover with remaining fruit and crunchies.

Hungry Girl Weight Watcher Recipes Hungry Girl Cooking: Tutti Frutti Crunch Yogurt Parfait

Breakfast this week has been amazing for me thanks to Hungry Girl's Tutti Frutti Crunch Yogurt Parfait .  When I think of a parfait, I t...

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March of Dimes - March for Babies 5K

The mission of the <a href="http://www.marchofdimes.com/">March of Dimes</a> is simply stated:<br /><blockquote style="color: #674ea7;"><b><i><span style="line-height: 11pt;">"We help moms have full-term pregnancies and research the problems that threaten the health of babies."</span></i></b></blockquote>Though the actual mission itself is nothing short of being simple.  I'm sure that you know someone who has had a miscarriage or has had a child born prematurely - I know several women who have been affected by this.  Participants in the walk on Sunday who have directly been affected by the issues mentioned above wore beads around their necks - purple beads signifying that their baby was born prematurely and had to fight for their life early on, and white beads signifying that their beloved child did not win the battle.  My heart went out to those people wearing the white beads - how tragic, how sad, how life shattering.   <br /><br />Even though I'm 99.9% certain that none of my donors are reading this blog, I'd still like to let it be known how grateful I am for their generosity toward the March of Dimes-March for Babies walk that was held this past Sunday (May 1) in La Plata, MD.  I successfully raised $455, which was $255 over my goal!  <b>THANK YOU!!!!!</b><br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQpevr9P7aXKDBHUoLpxzEMWxlHeIcSWMYzbej7Hn6uGBlT4KVYI049f9UWgINpE1f8UFOWXXsoXNT40aaSZuDTqGfTqEBlZ4XBAF-l4oZPiel4zNGeoGHlNtkpS6cnYiK_RF7-Rs5h0U/s1600/dimesmarch4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="163" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQpevr9P7aXKDBHUoLpxzEMWxlHeIcSWMYzbej7Hn6uGBlT4KVYI049f9UWgINpE1f8UFOWXXsoXNT40aaSZuDTqGfTqEBlZ4XBAF-l4oZPiel4zNGeoGHlNtkpS6cnYiK_RF7-Rs5h0U/s320/dimesmarch4.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />I was pleasantly surprised to learn a few days before the walk that we would have two options for the race course.  We could either do the standard 5K (3.1 miles), or actually go ahead and do 5 miles.  I knew ahead of time I'd being doing 5 miles - there's no reason why I couldn't!  <br /><br />I've also learned enough by now from the last two 5K's I've done that I wanted to position myself near the front.  When a race starts, it takes a few minutes to get your own momentum going because of the shear number of people clustered together.  And afterall, this was a noncompetitive walk, so there was no harm in me plopping myself within the first few feet of the start line.  It took me a few minutes to get around the slower people, but I finally did and was on my merry way.<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9VVIHNqkBBv1FoUKlHWaDhn9e0vAFqklqO9JkDNGLaD-QZe6EoLYPTstUbimC2rG2OTqeCLgUpBPUz6N05HqdQXUCfQVrruLfrsTBQzbc9PuZs_tcurKDGChUKGh1-c5sHbtQ9oBIpAY/s1600/dimesmarch5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9VVIHNqkBBv1FoUKlHWaDhn9e0vAFqklqO9JkDNGLaD-QZe6EoLYPTstUbimC2rG2OTqeCLgUpBPUz6N05HqdQXUCfQVrruLfrsTBQzbc9PuZs_tcurKDGChUKGh1-c5sHbtQ9oBIpAY/s400/dimesmarch5.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The starting line</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXivXjT6G9HzMnxEPihJZgKDVdLdBCxM2AW45DW3M1LXZlduoUIp_hcFg_plATPGxrlPHTTAhrhQflC8LPGuoNN9pzhdv7JIn8luIQ6EfUVkzbuDLZ2Y1KF3yeJv_JkHWFZrDnviSdwNk/s1600/dimesmarch1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXivXjT6G9HzMnxEPihJZgKDVdLdBCxM2AW45DW3M1LXZlduoUIp_hcFg_plATPGxrlPHTTAhrhQflC8LPGuoNN9pzhdv7JIn8luIQ6EfUVkzbuDLZ2Y1KF3yeJv_JkHWFZrDnviSdwNk/s400/dimesmarch1.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">look how cute this team is with their pretty outfits!</td></tr></tbody></table><br />There were about 7 people in front of me for a long time and then a few people started running and subsequently passed me.  Running was not an option for me Sunday due to the recent back pain I've been experiencing, and I definitely wanted to do the entire 5 miles - pain free if at all possible.  But I husseled in my 5 mile walk.  There was this one lady who ran ahead of me in the beginning.  I ultimately caught up with her and I wanted to finish in front of her.  That ended up being my little race goal - I wanted to beat this lady who had actually jogged for parts of the walk when I only walked the entire thing.  I was able to pass her with about 2 miles left!  <br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjohokAq7gDBBVVMLrIJtkcL2Nz-O1LQnCPy1TGx6HwNeYP_a959yTE1QmWUxYy1deT91UozQH3tgF1KJgVJu9Y5VHrfY-O7PRqzUDlGyEd5Fc82Gor0JQNyEa1IzzpvyUMY1CS5hVgrrY/s1600/dimesmarch2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjohokAq7gDBBVVMLrIJtkcL2Nz-O1LQnCPy1TGx6HwNeYP_a959yTE1QmWUxYy1deT91UozQH3tgF1KJgVJu9Y5VHrfY-O7PRqzUDlGyEd5Fc82Gor0JQNyEa1IzzpvyUMY1CS5hVgrrY/s400/dimesmarch2.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">signs posted along the route to help you understand what your donated money goes toward..</td></tr></tbody></table>As I was coming in to the final stretch, my right heel started hurting and I felt like I had a pebble in my shoe beneath the front of my foot.  Then I realized - crap!  I'm getting blisters!  I was shocked - these shoes are not brand new and I was wearing my typical cotton socks.  Sure enough, I developed an inch long blood blister (gross!) on my heel and 2 blisters started to form on my other foot.  Oh well - the exercise was well worth it!<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoapanYiFZlY_YLjReKFZNYrHt24hDjcQiF_YxxiFHee26xf1UziL711EdfsQTz4a51e8yVgFG5Fyooxvdro8APrWN9u_KbPbmq4lLn111gdJBk1tKEDAqa8VTdhs-KYPrTW7HWgiqCao/s1600/dimesmarch3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoapanYiFZlY_YLjReKFZNYrHt24hDjcQiF_YxxiFHee26xf1UziL711EdfsQTz4a51e8yVgFG5Fyooxvdro8APrWN9u_KbPbmq4lLn111gdJBk1tKEDAqa8VTdhs-KYPrTW7HWgiqCao/s400/dimesmarch3.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I estimate I was in the top 20 of walkers at this point - I was actually passing a huge crowd of people on my way back as they were still on their way to finishing this part of the course.</td></tr></tbody></table>It was on this leg of the course (pictured above), as I was personally feeling proud for staying ahead of this entire crowd (from a fitness standpoint), when I passed a lady who was walking by herself pushing an empty stroller.  My first thought was "Her child must have ran ahead to join the other dozens of children" and almost as soon as that thought ended I saw her white beads and I knew.  I knew that this woman was pushing the stroller of her child that did not win his/her battle for life.  This woman and I made eye contact, and I felt like she read my mind and the expression on my face as I pieced together what I was seeing, because she gave me a sympathetic nod and kept going.<br /><br />That, folks, is why <i>we </i>walk for the March for Babies.

5K Inspiration March for Babies March of Dimes Success March of Dimes - March for Babies 5K

The mission of the March of Dimes is simply stated: "We help moms have full-term pregnancies and research the problems that threaten t...

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Friend Making Mondays: Are You A Bookworm?

<i>I just recently started following <a href="http://alltheweigh2009.blogspot.com/">All the Weigh</a>, a weight loss blog written by a woman from NYC. I love her idea regarding "Friend Making Mondays".  You simply answer the questions below and <a href="http://alltheweigh2009.blogspot.com/2011/05/friend-makin-mondays-are-you-bookworm.html">go back to her blog</a></i> <i>and post a link to your answers.... read a few of the participants blogs and comment on theirs and then hopefully you've made a few friends!  </i><br /><br />Today's Friend Making Mondays post is: Are You a Bookworm? <br /><br />This FMM was written just for me!  Boy do I love reading - I actually have a whole different blog, titled <a href="http://prittygoodbooks.blogspot.com/">Pritt-y Story To Tell,</a> devoted to just that!  <br /><br /><blockquote>1) <b>How often do you read?</b>  I read everyday Mon-Thurs on my commute to/from work.  I wish I read more though!  <br /><br />2) <b>What's the last book you read and loved?</b> The last book(s) I read <i>and </i>loved was the the entire Twilight series.  I especially loved "Twilight" itself - what a great book!  <br /><br />3) <b>What book(s) are you currently reading?</b>  I'm currently reading "The Shack" by Wm. Paul Young.<br /><br />4) <b>Share a few of your favorite authors.</b>  James Patterson, Jennifer Weiner, Jodi Picoult, Joel Osteen<br /><br />5) <b>What's next on your list of must-reads?</b>   That has yet to be determined because I ask my friends on Facebook and await their votes.  However, it will be between <i>Angels & Demons, The Kite Runner</i>, and <i>Snow Flower and the Secret Fan</i>. What do you think?</blockquote><br />Thanks for stopping by my blog and I hope you come back!

Friend Making Mondays Pritty Story to Tell Friend Making Mondays: Are You A Bookworm?

I just recently started following All the Weigh , a weight loss blog written by a woman from NYC. I love her idea regarding "Friend Ma...

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8 Tips for battling job search fatigue

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://emj.cbdr.com/artieimages/xk/ar5m6ww64xgdcx3wp2xk.gif?time=3/25/2011%203:28:14%20pm" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://emj.cbdr.com/artieimages/xk/ar5m6ww64xgdcx3wp2xk.gif?time=3/25/2011%203:28:14%20pm" /></a></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px;"><b><span id="cbArticle_lblByLine">Rachel Farrell, Special to CareerBuilder.com</span></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px;"> </span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px;"><br /></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px;"></span><br /><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Job searching for any length of time can be frustrating. But when your search has gone on for months or even years, even job seekers with the most endurance can get tired.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">It doesn't help that many job seekers are looking for work under the notion that the recovering economy means automatic work -- and now.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">"The economy is on the rebound but the job market is still very slow to respond," says Caroline Dowd-Higgins, director of career and professional development at Indiana University Maurer School of Law and author of "This is Not the Career I Ordered." "Candidates should be cautiously optimistic."</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">But sanguinity in times of dejection is easier said than done. Job searching for long periods of time can not only make job seekers tired -- it can affect them emotionally, too.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">"There are so many emotions that go along with long-term unemployment -- feelings of inadequacy, anger, terror, shame. You name it. And when these emotions get a lock on a job seeker, they can be nearly paralyzing -- or totally paralyzing," says Jenny Foss, owner of Ladder Recruiting Group.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">To manage those emotions, you need to acknowledge that your search methods aren't working and commit to adopting a new strategy or plan, Foss says. And it's important to tap into your resiliency skills so employers know you can handle stress and change, adds Dowd-Higgins.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">But part of the problem is that even after long-term unemployment, many people still rely on the passive search methods that used to work well -- but just don't anymore, says Foss.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">"The game has changed dramatically in the past few years. Unfortunately, a large number of job seekers who find themselves suddenly on the market often panic," Foss says. "They don't take time to catch their breath, craft a job search strategy that leverages a variety of search and networking tools, and then execute on that strategy in a focused, systematic way."</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Tried and true methods of simply applying to jobs online, searching through job boards or even enlisting a recruiter just won't cut it, especially after a long period of job searching. You simply cannot conduct an effective job search from behind your computer, says Dowd-Higgins.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">"You must get out and be seen and heard in your job search. People hire whom they know and trust and employers are using their network more than ever to make new," she says. "When jobs do become available, employers are hesitant to post because they know they will be inundated with applications. The networking job search continues to be the most effective technique."</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">If you're looking to revitalize your job search, here are eight tips from Foss and Dowd-Higgins.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>1. Consider your job search a full-time job</b>.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>2. Catch your breath.</b> Calm down before you scramble to find a new plan, says Foss.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>3. Know what your strengths are.</b> "Develop your special sauce story so you can illustrate why you are a value-add to an organization," says Dowd-Higgins.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>4. Focus on your competencies not just job titles.</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>5. Polish your interview and storytelling abilities.</b> "A great interview is a fluid conversation -- not stock answers," says Dowd-Higgins.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>6. Explore social media techniques for job search like Facebook, Twitter, a personal blog and Linkedin.</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>7. Craft a formal game plan.</b> "Don't flail your way through every day. Have a plan, and a schedule for each day," says Foss.</div><b>8. Stop playing the blame game.</b> "I can't find a job because I'm too old, I'm too fat, I'm under qualified, I'm over qualified," says Foss. "Really? You can play this game all you want, but at the end of the day? Figure out what is not working and then craft a strategy around it. If you can't find your way in through the front door, find the side door. It's all about being creative and strategic today."

8 Tips for battling job search fatigue

Rachel Farrell, Special to CareerBuilder.com   Job searching for any length of time can be frustrating. But when your search has gone on for...

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The HilJoe Competition - Week 1

Friday was Joel & I's weigh in day and here are our official weigh in results for Week 1:<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Joel</b> <b>(6')</b>: 240</div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Hilary (5'8")</b>: 259.4</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.beautyandwell-being.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/weight-scale-400x400.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://www.beautyandwell-being.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/weight-scale-400x400.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>Joel's strategy is to simply count calories, while mine will continue to be following Weight Watchers and visiting the gym (or doing some variation of activity) at least 5 days/week. <br /><br />At one time Joel and I weighed exactly the same (a few years ago) and I felt grotesque THEN, but now I weigh more than him and that is simply not right.  I am not going to allow this to go on any longer and I look forward to updating you as I continue to lose weight and surpass Joel! :)

HJ Competition Success Weight Loss The HilJoe Competition - Week 1

Friday was Joel & I's weigh in day and here are our official weigh in results for Week 1: Joel (6') : 240 Hilary (5'8"...

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33 weeks

<p><strong><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvyC4CidgBi5u6dsG-XPWuOvYRBLGxwRJbJ2BWLwB_ZitmNRKjZaGrE-4yIEqlG88IEJEECmOOiI5UUczjYqrMMf-qW3sW3_FfKfOpJ-haaSo5c0AOWp-N1yPZwKWsoHIA9QSUZIhgzTF3/s1600-h/_DSC4797%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="_DSC4797" border="0" height="526" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipzBUvTtVjSDytI2f5ArBKYkz2SbeteF9XN_jgLrnbzpl8Y6RP0Oizphon-_5Q5C9yEdrk0viygtgNrcvG_nhqgXr955S5dmK2e0UrcmQGztMjeivDupoYaGrUpNqNY4eIcQHx4I_SnrpN/?imgmax=800" style="border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-left: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-bottom: 0px" title="_DSC4797" width="354"></a>  </strong> <p><strong>How Far Along:</strong> 33 Weeks, 3 days! <p><strong>Size of baby:</strong> Baby Bangert is the size of a pineapple, over 4 pounds, and over 17 inches long from head to heel. <p><strong>Maternity Clothes:</strong> I wear maternity jeans, pants, and I’ve recently started wearing a few shirts I got from my sister. I’m still squeezing into a few regular things though! My regular shirts are getting much shorter though! <p><strong>Gender:</strong> It’s a girl!!! We’re still working on names…Kyle & I put a deadline…we have to have one picked out by May 10th! <p><strong>Movement: </strong>She is a busy little girl and I think her movement has increased even more this week. I feel her moving around all throughout the day. I love it though…there is a tiny little life inside me! <p><strong></strong><strong>Sleep:</strong> Eh, it’s progressively getting harder to get to sleep & stay asleep! I’m not the best side sleeper and I wake up on my back quite a bit. Plus a few bathroom runs! <p><strong>What I miss:</strong> Sleeping on my stomach, a bigger selection of clothes, and buying regular clothes (the maternity section needs to expand)! <p><strong>Cravings:</strong> No major cravings this week. I am quickly finding out the bigger she gets the less I eat…I get full SO fast! <p><strong>Symptoms:</strong> Feeling well for the most part, just <u><strong>very</strong></u> achy & tired by the end of the the day. <p><strong>Best Moment this week:</strong> We spent last weekend with both sides of our family for Easter! Unfortunately I didn’t get any pictures. :( Kyle and I also had our last prenatal class this week. Makes it seem so much more real!! My sisters also hosted an amazing baby shower for me yesterday, but I’ll do a separate post on that later this week!</p>

33 weeks

  How Far Along: 33 Weeks, 3 days! Size of baby: Baby Bangert is the size of a pineapple, over 4 pounds, and over 17 inches long from he...

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Finding joy in food / 183.6

I've been following this young <a href="http://ohsheglows.com/">lady's</a> blog for the last couple of years. She follows a vegan diet and eats very healthy. She maintains her prefect healthy weight through eating natural whole foods. <br /><br />What amazes me is when you look at the food she prepares it doesn't look at all like "diet" food. She uses wholesome ingredients and never mentions calories. She eats real food.<br /><br />Since obviously what I've been doing isn't really working for me lately (like the last year or more), I thought it's time I take a different approach to my eating. Instead of constantly going for the totally non-fat, sugar-free, lowest calories food, I'm going to try eating more whole foods and fewer processed foods.<br /><br />I'm going to stay with Weight Watchers and will still count Points and track my food, but I want to eat different food. A woman (or man) cannot live by chicken breasts and Brussels sprouts forever.<br /><br />I attended two Weight Watcher meetings this week, one on Wednesday (at-work meeting) and one today. The topic for both was the same, about having a variety in your food. If you eat the same thing you'll get bored and start overeating, trying to compensate for the boredom. I'm living proof of this statement.<br /><br />This is exactly where I've been for the past year. I couldn't even remember the last time I tried a new food. My breakfast for the last three years has been the same almost every single day. A couple of times I'd try oatmeal (yuk!), and immediately would go back to my same boring (although delicious) breakfast.<br /><br />In case you're wondering, my breakfast was a healthy egg McMuffin type meal: one egg, 28 grams 2% sharp cheddar cheese, 4 thin slices Canadian bacon, 1 sandwich thin. PointsPlus = 8. Full of protein and cheesy goodness, but after three years, extremely boring. <br /><br />After Wednesday's Weight Watcher meeting, I tried Fiber One pancakes. Thursday and Friday I had a mashed banana added to the Fiber One pancake mix and sugar-free pancake syrup (Smuckers). It was okay, but not fantastic. I didn't like the sugar-free syrup, although it tasted okay, I try to stay away from artificial sweeteners and usually have Stevia if I must have something sweet. It just didn't seem healthy. Processed Fiber One mix and sugar-free syrup, not exactly natural or a whole food.<br /><br />Today I decided to break away from my usual practice of figuring out the Points before I eat. I know, scary idea isn't it? Breakfast today was really breakfast/lunch at 12:30 p.m. so I knew I had a lot of Points to play with (I get 29 a day and still have 44 of weeklies to use this week, plus all my activity Points).<br /><br />I saw a recipe on Angela's blog that looked and sounded wonderful. <a href="http://ohsheglows.com/2010/10/07/spiced-up-stacked-pumpkin-butter-pancakes-for-one/">Spiced-up Stacked Pumpkin Butter Pancakes For One. </a><br /><br />I couldn't make them exactly as she said because I couldn't find the Kamut flour at the nutrition center of my local Fred Meyers. Instead, I used Bob's Red Mill Organic High Fiber Pancake and Waffle (a combination of several different types of organic whole grains). I added only a teaspoon of baking powder to make them fluffier, but not as much as Angela added since the mix already contained some baking powder.<br /><br />I purchased my first jar of <a href="http://www.naturesway.com/Products/Energy-Endurance/15659-EfaGold-Coconut-Oil.aspx">Nature's Way EfaGold Coconut Oil</a>, pure extra virgin. I cringed when I looked at the calories, but I was determined to make the recipe as close to Angela's as I could. You can read about the benefits of coconut oil <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-mercola/coconut-oil-benefits_b_821453.html">here</a>. I've been reading about it on several blogs but sort of blew it off. I mean, it's an oil and very high in calories. However, I eat olive oil since it's healthy and it's high in calories too. I think it's time I try something different in the oil department. <br /><br />Angela has a <a href="http://ohsheglows.com/2010/10/05/happy-thanksgiving-homemade-pumpkin-butter/">Pumpkin Butter recipe</a> that I'm going to try, but this morning I didn't want to take the time. Instead I purchased R.W. Knudsen's Organic Apple Butter (one PointsPlus per tablespoon).<br /><br />I made the pancakes using the Bob's Pancake mix and substituted the store-bought apple butter for the pumpkin butter as the topping. I added one tablespoon pecans on top of the apple butter and had one egg on the side (for extra protein and I'm a big egg lover).<br /><br />This meal was fit for a king. I'm not kidding you when I say this was the best pancake I've ever eaten in my entire life. The total PointsPlus for everything was 14. That's a lot for one meal, but it was my breakfast and lunch together, and it was delightful. Worth every Point.<br /><br />I'm going to stop by the health food store and pick up some Kamut flour, but I doubt it can beat the pancake I had today. I also plan to whip up the <a href="http://ohsheglows.com/2010/10/05/happy-thanksgiving-homemade-pumpkin-butter/">Pumpkin Butter</a>. I'm not sure if the Points will be that much different than the store-bough Apple Butter, but I'd like to try it anyway.<br /><br />Since I put away the book by she-who-shall-not-be-named I feel 100% better about myself and my life. Looking back at the past and dwelling on unpleasant situations really doesn't work for me. I'd rather look towards the future. I'm feeling very positive and happy today (it helps that the sun is shining).<br /><br />Taking joy in our food isn't a bad thing. In fact, I think it's a much  healthier way to look at food, rather than think of it as the enemy. We need to grab our joy where we can find it, as long as it's good for us and healthy. I really believe it's okay if that joy is in our food.<br /><br />~Diana<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Picture from this morning, on my way to Weight Watchers</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3pybRSbfr4LOwdDB4LtSLH236uiNvWbKaPolZfHyGNo6mP3awj6p7TjPo6RC9JKuBD916FZQsQtePK4wc4WHpDWQ8WHYl-7k2Z9l2ZVnaNRK-IploO74E9prFBy4-53iipf_SjMav_Prw/s1600/P1020815.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3pybRSbfr4LOwdDB4LtSLH236uiNvWbKaPolZfHyGNo6mP3awj6p7TjPo6RC9JKuBD916FZQsQtePK4wc4WHpDWQ8WHYl-7k2Z9l2ZVnaNRK-IploO74E9prFBy4-53iipf_SjMav_Prw/s400/P1020815.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"> Beautiful sky</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsVx9TNGq6JZcyx7Ja6AiwQHozhSGSsL6wUTw5ngx1mXPhBWrgUTVPw4f6Jv57Bw6yBbPuW6qdBngSqlE90NdmhY3qCbCrWGHK8CUGBgNcankPCtSN0FM1ph2fdubutHJQEDBWP_iHX7Cs/s1600/P1020824.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsVx9TNGq6JZcyx7Ja6AiwQHozhSGSsL6wUTw5ngx1mXPhBWrgUTVPw4f6Jv57Bw6yBbPuW6qdBngSqlE90NdmhY3qCbCrWGHK8CUGBgNcankPCtSN0FM1ph2fdubutHJQEDBWP_iHX7Cs/s400/P1020824.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUIKx-zGdNF-UDXaKWoiS6OeenpcRQcnUz6UxtIQTmMi9MWcFglhXoX7Y3DVIAu_-5pO3jvKDPchDJluG2kklaiqPKJ9om_aoVg1KCWng6vrgq3NC3qR1KMIqVv8Cr5Jw4oUp1ct9_8j_9/s1600/P1020820.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><br /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Close up of the flowers that are just starting to pop out on our tree int he front yard.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUIKx-zGdNF-UDXaKWoiS6OeenpcRQcnUz6UxtIQTmMi9MWcFglhXoX7Y3DVIAu_-5pO3jvKDPchDJluG2kklaiqPKJ9om_aoVg1KCWng6vrgq3NC3qR1KMIqVv8Cr5Jw4oUp1ct9_8j_9/s1600/P1020820.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUIKx-zGdNF-UDXaKWoiS6OeenpcRQcnUz6UxtIQTmMi9MWcFglhXoX7Y3DVIAu_-5pO3jvKDPchDJluG2kklaiqPKJ9om_aoVg1KCWng6vrgq3NC3qR1KMIqVv8Cr5Jw4oUp1ct9_8j_9/s400/P1020820.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>

Finding joy in food / 183.6

I've been following this young lady's blog for the last couple of years. She follows a vegan diet and eats very healthy. She mainta...

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A Little Pilgrimage: To And From The Sacred Lake

Whenever I have driven to Pyramid Lake, I have taken I-80 through Fernley and Wadsworth. This afternoon, for the first time, I took Pyramid Lake Rd. out of Sparks. Unlike I-80, it does not pass alongside the mountains but goes through them – rolling hills, with sharp vertical mountains jutting up among them, the road rising, falling, and winding its way deeper into the high desert.<br /><br />It was an interesting enough drive, but I did know the road having driven it the opposite direction toward Sparks. I knew the road going one way, but had never driven it into the Rez. As I came around one of the mountains, the Lake was suddenly there. I found myself headed directly toward it. The water was huge. It doesn’t look that big from any other vantage point. A vast expanse of water the most striking emerald color I have ever seen.<br /><br />I was awestruck and afraid. Why afraid? It felt like when you stand at the edge of the roof top of a tall building or on a high bridge like the one at Royal Gorge and you are afraid of falling but also have a terrifying urge to jump. Rudolf Otto said that experience lies at the root of religion. He called it the “mysterium tremendum; mysterium fascinans” – an encounter with something that at once frightens and fascinates – the kind of terrifying beauty from which you cannot look away. That’s what the Bible means by “fear of the Lord” – not dread of punishment but a trembling in the presence of something immeasurably strange and wonderful.<br /><br />There are more spectacular places in the way the Rockies are spectacular. But no place on earth touches me in this Rudolf Otto way half so much as Pyramid Lake does. On a completely different dark and windblown day three years ago, I visited the lake and described that encounter this way:<br /><br />SHELTER<br />The wind,<br />resolute, indomitable,<br />swoops over bare snow mountains<br />down, down onto Pyramid lake,<br />blue water skidding<br />away from shore, not to.<br />Windblown vapor,<br />mist twin, not spray,<br />races across, above<br />the breakers<br />toward island peaks – how far?<br />I stand,<br />then kneel<br />at the edge,<br />dip my fingers<br />into mysterium tremendum<br />and cross myself with fascinans.<br />Then turn,<br />boots sinking<br />in wet sand,<br />face wind-grit stung,<br />straining toward<br />any shelter<br />I can find<br />from God.<br /><br />It turned out to be one of my very few published poems.<br /><br />In a completely different way today, I drove around the mountain and found myself suddenly, abruptly (like that word “immediately” that begins so many sentence about Jesus in the book of Mark) and unexpectedly face to face with holiness. It felt as if I might drive off the hillside and sail right into that green water the way I hope someday to fly into God.<br /><br />After the meeting of Paths Crossing, I drove home along Sutcliff Rd. The sun had set but the sky was still light in places though mostly covered with clouds. A light rain was falling. Clouds covered the mountain tops and swirled slowly in the wind. It was mysterious rain cloudiness with the lake beside me. It wasn’t startling now. But I was intensely aware of is deep presence even when I could not see it. God is rarely glimpsed but impossible to forget.

A Little Pilgrimage: To And From The Sacred Lake

Whenever I have driven to Pyramid Lake, I have taken I-80 through Fernley and Wadsworth. This afternoon, for the first time, I took Pyramid ...

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A Little Competition Never Hurt Anybody :)

A few years ago, Joel joined me on my weight loss journey.  We set up this competitive game, though today neither of us can remember the exact details of the 'game', but each week whoever lost the most 'won' something (money, an item of the winner's choice? We cannot remember!).  This strategy really worked for me.  It helped me drop about 30 lbs (though I did have more to lose).  Eventually though, we fell off the wagon and were simply never able to get back on.  <br /><br />Once I reached my highest weight ever (263.8 lbs) I told myself I just had to get it together.  You'd think that seeing that number alone would be enough to motivate someone to get their butt moving to lose some poundage, but that was not the case for me.  It took seeing my grandmother pass away to really drive the nail in hard.  I must do this... NOW, not next Monday when I'll promise to 'start over', not next month or next year, but NOW.  So I have been on this journey seriously since November 2010.  <br /><br />And now, Joel has decided to join me!  <br /><br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.lifesip.com/images/competition-6.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://www.lifesip.com/images/competition-6.gif" width="191" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Listen here buddy, I'm gonna win this!"<br /><i>Courtesy of <a href="http://www.lifesip.com/competition.html">here</a></i>.</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr></tbody></table>This Friday will be our official weigh in day to kick off the new competition between us.  We will mimic the Biggest Loser and will be basing the competition off of percentage of weight lost.  The weekly loser then has to pay $10 per percentage point difference.  So if I lose 4% of my body weight, and Joel loses 2%, then he will have to pay $20 total - $10 for every percentage difference.  After a period of time, that has yet to be determined, the winner will then get to choose an activity they want to do, using the earned money toward that activity, and the loser MUST join them. <br /><br />I'll be posting our results each week! Stay tuned! :)

HJ Competition Success Weight Loss A Little Competition Never Hurt Anybody :)

A few years ago, Joel joined me on my weight loss journey.  We set up this competitive game, though today neither of us can remember the exa...

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Eat What You Love: Breakfast Pizza

This week's breakfast inspiration is brought to you by <a href="http://www.marlenekoch.com/books/eat-what-you-love/">Marlene Koch's Eat What You Love</a>.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhctzzzglrVr3L_BpnAGVQDABQHvINAoMH8kWL7JSlofL9RhYeMtmj_xYwNH4Y7qHATaf4GGREd-_qVhVTc0E7jSeh8g3Fg7BvL-zUBdGKvdnlQx4UjicyLpeD6rwrNJA6ZHXZzKx5tud8/s1600/eatwhatyoulove.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhctzzzglrVr3L_BpnAGVQDABQHvINAoMH8kWL7JSlofL9RhYeMtmj_xYwNH4Y7qHATaf4GGREd-_qVhVTc0E7jSeh8g3Fg7BvL-zUBdGKvdnlQx4UjicyLpeD6rwrNJA6ZHXZzKx5tud8/s200/eatwhatyoulove.jpg" width="166" /></a></div><br />I initially made the exact recipe below, but I wasn't much of a fan of it, so I made my own version.  I cut out the salsa, onion and pepper and added turkey bacon & spinach instead.   SO good, SO easy, and a perfect, freezable and packable-for-work breakfast item!  I calculated mine at 7 Points+.  <br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiy3XaGDQjXXGXpiydxHMXGtQoK3XvYDeBFxqVdGkcJm6oRVO5QuPOkCt0AVdSBJwzNdsY3tT2BrG-l31T5eeGdTg5vcc9YP2JsYkaLqckbo9sOrUBfmOh5GRz0pALjD1nSn8EFgTf19Q/s1600/breakfast+pizza.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="296" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiy3XaGDQjXXGXpiydxHMXGtQoK3XvYDeBFxqVdGkcJm6oRVO5QuPOkCt0AVdSBJwzNdsY3tT2BrG-l31T5eeGdTg5vcc9YP2JsYkaLqckbo9sOrUBfmOh5GRz0pALjD1nSn8EFgTf19Q/s320/breakfast+pizza.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Click on image for larger size.</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgESZNcRDW4U5kt29oDSthIosqaSpwAdJ94-UsqHV_BCtzHdJPBPLnS9hOLdazol5_GJPnoprmWfYlsXKeE7aK4pSH3tjBPax53AsdZPsLBuOVDaPPpYcvh5kaNiVANgyYt4q6SW-xZdKc/s1600/breakfast+pizza+mine.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="307" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgESZNcRDW4U5kt29oDSthIosqaSpwAdJ94-UsqHV_BCtzHdJPBPLnS9hOLdazol5_GJPnoprmWfYlsXKeE7aK4pSH3tjBPax53AsdZPsLBuOVDaPPpYcvh5kaNiVANgyYt4q6SW-xZdKc/s320/breakfast+pizza+mine.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>

Weight Watcher Recipes Eat What You Love: Breakfast Pizza

This week's breakfast inspiration is brought to you by Marlene Koch's Eat What You Love . I initially made the exact recipe below, b...

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Proving your age is an asset in a job search

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://emj.cbdr.com/artieimages/vp/ar5f5lc6cszpnkdpcnvp.gif?time=3/8/2011%205:52:00%20pm" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://emj.cbdr.com/artieimages/vp/ar5f5lc6cszpnkdpcnvp.gif?time=3/8/2011%205:52:00%20pm" /></a></div>Beth Braccio Hering, Special to CareerBuilder <br /><br />Worried that age might be a strike against you when applying for a job? Present yourself the right way and experts agree that you can turn that potential negative into one of your selling points.<br /><br />"The key for older job seekers is to embrace rather than hide from what they have to offer future employers," says Tamryn Hennessy, national director of career development for Rasmussen College. "A lifetime of a variety of employments, household and family obligations and volunteer accomplishments can be assembled into a résumé and interview that a younger job seeker simply cannot offer."<br /><br />So get set to put your experience to good use by doing these three things:<br /><br />1. Concentrate on the job<br /><br />If you spend your time demonstrating how you are the right candidate for the position, age need not even enter into the equation. "Never be defensive about your age or even focus on it at all," states Martha Finney, a Santa Fe-based employee engagement and career management consultant and co-author of "Unlock the Hidden Job Market." "Focus on who you are and how what you bring to the table would meet the company's strategic objectives."<br /><br />Hennessy suggests highlighting your suitability right from the start by looking at the key action words from the job description (such as "analyze," "design," "inspect," etc.) and matching them to your history. "Focus on your past experiences -- including non-industry, volunteer and family obligations -- where you have demonstrated accomplishments under these action word categories. Use the exact same action word and apply it to your experience, always being sure to offer quantifiable results."<br /><br />2. Have confidence in your past<br /><br />Lavie Margolin, author of "Lion Cub Job Search: Practical Job Search Assistance for Practical Job Seekers," advises older job seekers to get in the mindset that age is a strength. "As opposed to a recent college graduate filled only with potential, the mature worker can demonstrate a track record of accomplishment throughout his career."<br /><br />Let your years of real-life experience shine by presenting evidence of qualities employers value. These may include:<br /><br /><br />The ability to meet deadlines<br /><br />Loyalty to a company, industry or cause<br /><br />Flexibility and adaptability<br /><br />Problem-solving skills<br /><br />A strong work ethic<br /><br />Leadership<br /><br />Teamwork<br /><br /><br />To generate ideas, look at past performance reviews. Not only will this help provide concrete examples, but select words of praise can be incorporated into your application or interview to add credibility (as in, "My direct supervisor at company X noted in my evaluation that my thorough research on our three main competitors was instrumental to selecting the launch date of our newest product.").<br /><br />3. Having equal confidence in your future<br /><br />If worries over new methods or technologies are putting a dent in your confidence, take a class or two to get up to speed. Since one of the greatest fears about hiring older workers is that they are too set in their ways and unwilling to learn new things, this action also can show employers your enthusiasm for continual growth.<br /><br />By law, age should not be a consideration for employment, yet many job seekers receive subtle (and not so subtle) clues that it may be an issue. If concerns about age do come up, try to tactfully redirect the conversation back to your abilities. Another tactic is to show that you are comfortable and happy with where you are. "Stress the great stage of life you are entering, one with fewer family distractions that will allow you to be the most reliable and dedicated employee possible," Hennessy suggests. Also worth pointing out: "Younger workers may have less understanding of what they want to do exactly in their career," Margolin notes. "An older worker has a better understanding of his interests and how they fit best into the market."<br /><br />Watch, too, that you aren't blaming age when there is actually a different problem. "Don't assume you're increasing your chances of landing a job by applying for jobs that are beneath your experience level," Finney notes. "Overqualified for the position' isn't always code for 'too old.' Hiring managers wisely want candidates who are appropriate for the job level, so if you're experiencing a long string of application rejections, don't lower your sights, raise them. Only go after jobs that appropriate for your skill sets and experiences."<br /><br />Finally, remember that employers want to hire likeable people who fit into company culture and can do their job. Treating interviewers as friendly equals and relating to them with relaxed confidence never goes out of style.<br /><br />Beth Braccio Hering researches and writes about job search strategy, career management, hiring trends and workplace issues for CareerBuilder.com. Follow @CareerBuilder on Twitter.

Proving your age is an asset in a job search

Beth Braccio Hering, Special to CareerBuilder Worried that age might be a strike against you when applying for a job? Present yourself the r...

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Marlene Dietrich Gets Personal in Charlotte Chandler's New Biography

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWqT5xMUzvfuoskrE1oYJZirvPmMu4Lx_nJnfzUY9cE2Gnwe4Ov-4d054059j5CkCqzmKPL6eMuqt3yW0zKgce3exOYyhlDiAgAvguW_rZgNqbsPTPQ6VkYJlBcszzbJyUGQOj0xRedQOY/s1600/dietrich-hat-desire+a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="313" i8="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWqT5xMUzvfuoskrE1oYJZirvPmMu4Lx_nJnfzUY9cE2Gnwe4Ov-4d054059j5CkCqzmKPL6eMuqt3yW0zKgce3exOYyhlDiAgAvguW_rZgNqbsPTPQ6VkYJlBcszzbJyUGQOj0xRedQOY/s400/dietrich-hat-desire+a.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Prolific biographer Charlotte Chandler has written on the life of a different film legend every year for the past 6 years, beginning with <u>It's Only a Movie: Alfred Hitchcock</u> in 2005. Her latest, <u>Marlene</u>, has just been published by Simon & Schuster.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC3BHcYpOMMpE1XztFTKE__nggcm-5u8r3uHCwTgstg3c9O9YwnG3Yfew58sRnWlhecngnKdR_d8TafFnV7gbEyqvKCxXVYFrvlDfzIPa7MlW7DSSaAqzZaGKw0TpVDuNP1nsbrHzQlrAm/s1600/400000000000000350608_s4%255B1%255D.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" i8="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC3BHcYpOMMpE1XztFTKE__nggcm-5u8r3uHCwTgstg3c9O9YwnG3Yfew58sRnWlhecngnKdR_d8TafFnV7gbEyqvKCxXVYFrvlDfzIPa7MlW7DSSaAqzZaGKw0TpVDuNP1nsbrHzQlrAm/s200/400000000000000350608_s4%255B1%255D.png" width="130" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Chandler's biographies are based on personal interviews. She includes filmography and career details, but her style is to convey the story of a life in the first-person as much as possible, using the subject's own words. This conversational approach gives the reader a sense of being in the room, listening in, as the story of a remarkable life unfolds. </span><br /><br /><a name='more'></a><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSaDCSVfKbkQExeQ0-EszJ2y8RaiB2Mu1DLVYoUq_HbEh_h4AHCHxylY6yxxmhliLa7muNx4EGcy4zZRrak2MERtimQgDdnYgBiswWahtXJjdo6ppp-iJYM3ghG-w1WQdipq_NSA29H7B7/s1600/groucho.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" i8="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSaDCSVfKbkQExeQ0-EszJ2y8RaiB2Mu1DLVYoUq_HbEh_h4AHCHxylY6yxxmhliLa7muNx4EGcy4zZRrak2MERtimQgDdnYgBiswWahtXJjdo6ppp-iJYM3ghG-w1WQdipq_NSA29H7B7/s1600/groucho.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Groucho Marx</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">The author's career as a biographer began with <u>Hello, I Must Be Going: Groucho and His Friends</u> in 1978. Written during Marx's lifetime but published not long after his death, it became a bestseller. Chandler returned to the genre years later with her 1995 Fellini biography, <u>I, Fellini</u>. But it was with her first book for Simon & Schuster in 2002, <u>Nobody's Perfect: Billy Wilder</u>, that Charlotte Chandler’s biographies became frequent and consistently titled, each with the annotation "A Personal Biography."</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Who is Charlotte Chandler? Her Simon & Schuster bio is sketchy - we are told that she has written many bios, lives in New York and is on the board of the Film Society of Lincoln Center. The back cover of <u>Hello, I Must Be Going</u> includes a picture of Chandler with Groucho who sits at a piano. Her biography of Alfred Hitchcock contains photos of Chandler with the director as well as his daughter, Pat. The dust jackets of Chandler’s biographies are strewn with the praise of film world luminaries: Isabella Rossellini, Michael Caine, Jack Nicholson, Pat Hitchcock, director Michelangelo Antonioni, producer David Brown and others. <i>Vanity Fair</i>, which has published excerpts of many of her books, proclaims that Chandler “sets the gold standard for celeb bios.”</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">In a recent interview with <i>Kirkus Reviews</i>, Chandler was asked how she managed to gain access to so many of the most famous, and often famously difficult, stars of Hollywood’s Golden Age. About Groucho Marx she recalled that someone had given her his phone number, she called and, though Groucho refused to be interviewed, he invited Chandler to dinner. Then, over dinner, Groucho asked why she hadn't been taking notes on their conversation. It was Groucho who later introduced her to Billy Wilder.  </span></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Henri Langlois, film archivist and founder of the Cinématheque Française, introduced Chandler to Hitchcock, Mary Meerson, also of the Cinématheque Française, introduced her to Dietrich, director George Cukor introduced her to Katharine Hepburn…and Bette Davis, ever the formidable outlier, called Chandler herself, the only one of the author's subjects to do so.</span></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">  </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4qSAXmtoGpmHW2Szn3_pMWZwm7n299CRgkecQ6jm5fQx4n_KqIHpAoy0_FF_iPmIlGifHA1uKvZaWK_uFg1emIvW7IFxUAyKXxjGkFXHZLc3QL9ppE4Ui1KLFBpFQXb3x6ybmbT8Jt8dB/s1600/Douglas+Fairbanks+jr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" i8="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4qSAXmtoGpmHW2Szn3_pMWZwm7n299CRgkecQ6jm5fQx4n_KqIHpAoy0_FF_iPmIlGifHA1uKvZaWK_uFg1emIvW7IFxUAyKXxjGkFXHZLc3QL9ppE4Ui1KLFBpFQXb3x6ybmbT8Jt8dB/s1600/Douglas+Fairbanks+jr.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Connections abound between Chandler's subjects, most of whom knew and worked with each other, and occasionally one story will overlap into another. For example, Marlene Dietrich and Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. had an affair that lasted for years, and the gentleman had many memories of her. He told Chandler about a series of miniature nudes he sculpted of Marlene and how he eventually decapitated all of them to protect her reputation in the event of his demise. This anecdote is told in detail in the Dietrich biography. It is also woven into the Hitchcock biography, in abridged form, in a section on <b>Stage Fright</b>.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Fairbanks was the friend of many film legends and a substantial resource for Chandler; he is quoted in each of the biographies of hers that I’ve read (Bette Davis, Dietrich, Katharine Hepburn, Hitchcock). Equally well-connected and forthcoming was George Cukor, who is quoted in the Davis, Hepburn and Hitchcock books. What I wouldn’t give to have access to the stack of notes and tapes Chandler must have made over the years…</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Charlotte Chandler met Marlene Dietrich in 1977, when the legendary star was 76 years old and living in Paris. Dietrich’s greeting to her future biographer was, “I don’t mind meeting you because you didn’t know me before, when I was young and very beautiful.” Moments later she added, “It can be a curse being beautiful, after a certain point, as it slips away…” </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiftABVvSa6MuXETbboSw_NLl5walI2PbAZvvMEn-em7QwoEWk0TunOb-ELtAfhM0CFKXid1sS2rpA_h0jixgNRtfvxx2ra-55ats9FW6xaz3NsyJwC39A8pRIhGNQ_rpvMrxHfoYvwDOlu/s1600/dietrich+in+the+40s+a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" i8="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiftABVvSa6MuXETbboSw_NLl5walI2PbAZvvMEn-em7QwoEWk0TunOb-ELtAfhM0CFKXid1sS2rpA_h0jixgNRtfvxx2ra-55ats9FW6xaz3NsyJwC39A8pRIhGNQ_rpvMrxHfoYvwDOlu/s200/dietrich+in+the+40s+a.jpg" width="165" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dietrich in the 1940s</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">I have read and watched much about Marlene Dietrich, from her memoirs (<u>Marlene</u>, 1990), to various biographies, including her daughter Maria's lurid opus, to Josef von Sternberg’s eccentric autobiography (<u>Fun in a Chinese Laundry</u>, 1965), the page on the CIA’s website about Dietrich’s work during World War II and Maximillian Schell’s Oscar-nominated documentary (<b>Marlene</b>, 1984). I have to admit that I had something of a “tell me something I don’t know” attitude before I sat down with Chandler’s book. She did.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">There are revelations large and small of all kinds...Dietrich's mad plot to kill Hitler, details of her introduction to Ernest Hemingway on the <i>Île de France</i><i>,</i> the lie she told JFK about his father...Dietrich's memory of her grandmother’s lavender eyes, her habit of giving her hand-me-downs to husband Rudi's mistress...her hatred of knitting because it reminded her of World War I in Germany.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Chandler knows how to set a scene and tell a story. She nimbly leads the reader through Dietrich’s early years, the arc of her career, her personal life and into her late years, when she “closed the door” and retreated inside the rooms of her small apartment across from the Hôtel Plaza Athénée in Paris. Among the many voices heard of those who knew Dietrich at different points in her life and career are her one-time arranger and accompanist, Burt Bacharach and her friend and fellow Paramount star, Mae West.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">  <br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkhV2cJInf9Udbh8Z_2zmrVzwEeYEY-Vlq0i62zRFoPOaTjzAM_Ffb-4aa31veQDBcJdByUoQa0JLCzeM2plQrvrF88jpAjpT0Vghly50GGSSmjJjGuTrRNmIs6PVaUWqCuR2_m0ySXt5a/s1600/dietrich+%2526+maria+50s+a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" i8="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkhV2cJInf9Udbh8Z_2zmrVzwEeYEY-Vlq0i62zRFoPOaTjzAM_Ffb-4aa31veQDBcJdByUoQa0JLCzeM2plQrvrF88jpAjpT0Vghly50GGSSmjJjGuTrRNmIs6PVaUWqCuR2_m0ySXt5a/s320/dietrich+%2526+maria+50s+a.jpg" width="217" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Maria and Marlene, early '50s</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Maria Riva is Dietrich's only child, and Riva's own sensationalistic 787 page version of her mother's life was published shortly after Dietrich's death. Maria is not a direct source for Chandler's book but her youngest son David, who produced and directed a documentary on Dietrich in 2001, speaks at length. His references to his mother as an "Emmy-winning actress" caught my eye - I'd not heard this before and checked the Emmy website. Maria is listed as having been nominated for a Best Actress Emmy in 1952 and 1953. However, Imogene Coca won in 1952 and Helen Hayes won in 1953.</span></span></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Charlotte Chandler remarked to <i>Kirkus Reviews</i> that Marlene Dietrich had originally been perceived as "another Garbo" very early in her Hollywood career. It happened that <span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Dietrich came to Hollywood as talkies were coming in and MGM was carefully transitioning Garbo, its great star, to sound. When <b>Morocco </b>and <b>The Blue Angel </b>struck box office gold, Paramount saw in Dietrich its opportunity to trump MGM and Garbo. The two actresses were to have distinctly different careers, though both were deemed "box office poison" (along with Katharine Hepburn and others) in the late '30s. However, no one imagined that Dietrich’s film career would outlast Garbo’s (or anyone else's) by several decades or that she would successfully reinvent herself as a high-ticket stage performer.</span></span></span></span></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Chandler told <i>Kirkus</i> that though she didn't interview her, she did meet Garbo. Her impression was that Garbo was too bitter about the past to make a good interview. Asked if she thought Dietrich also became bitter, Chandler responded, “not at all. She loved what happened to her," adding that Dietrich hadn’t expected any of it and “she felt she owed her great life to Josef von Sternberg,” her mentor and the director of seven of her most memorable films.</span></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana;">I enjoy Charlotte Chandler's uniquely readable biographies. I've read more heavily documented books (the fascinating Barry Paris tome on Louise Brooks comes to mind) and books concerned almost solely with a life on film </span><span style="font-family: Verdana;">(David Thomson's excellent "Great Stars" series entry on Bette Davis), but for a pleasurable foray into legendary firsthand memories, Chandler is hard to beat.</span><br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij7H9ALMGn0pRU7mjtGXaYrarl7UnuIQTFEqAcXQ-ZJ-cqDcd_vHLZxMvob51LLzGw6nhIZjPJvzut3AASBown_4DEyb7WQnQQu9Yonv2I2UX6Im0oMRdJ0FTpCevgQMCInJ59MG4Ls98/s1600/Marlene+sculpture+by+Hanford.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij7H9ALMGn0pRU7mjtGXaYrarl7UnuIQTFEqAcXQ-ZJ-cqDcd_vHLZxMvob51LLzGw6nhIZjPJvzut3AASBown_4DEyb7WQnQQu9Yonv2I2UX6Im0oMRdJ0FTpCevgQMCInJ59MG4Ls98/s400/Marlene+sculpture+by+Hanford.JPG" width="258" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Marlene Dietrich sculpture by <a href="http://dolls.clarkhanford.com/"><b>Clark Hanford</b></a></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: x-small;"><b>Biographies by Charlotte Chandler</b>:</span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: x-small;"><u>Hello, I Must Be Going: Groucho and His Friends</u></span><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: x-small;"><u></u></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: x-small;"><u>I, Fellini</u></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: x-small;"><u>Nobody's Perfect: Billy Wilder, A Personal Biography</u></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: x-small;"><u>It's Only a Movie: Alfred Hitchcock, A Personal Biography</u></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: x-small;"><u>The Girl Who Walked Home Alone: Bette Davis, A Personal Biography</u></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: x-small;"><u>Ingrid: Ingrid Bergman, A Personal Biography</u></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: x-small;"><u>Not the Girl Next Door: Joan Crawford, A Personal Biography</u></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: x-small;"><u>She Always Knew How: Mae West, A Personal Biography</u></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: x-small;"><u>I Know Where I'm Going: Katharine Hepburn, A Personal Biography</u></span><br /><u><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: x-small;">Marlene: Marlene Dietrich, A Personal Biography</span></u><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: x-small;"><i>Thanks to Simon & Schuster for a review copy of <u>Marlene</u></i></span></div>

Burt Bacharach Charlotte Chandler Classic Film and TV Cafe Douglas Fairbanks Jr. George Cukor Greta Garbo Groucho Marx Josef von Sternberg Mae West Marlene Dietrich The Lady Eve (author) Marlene Dietrich Gets Personal in Charlotte Chandler's New Biography

Prolific biographer Charlotte Chandler has written on the life of a different film legend every year for the past 6 years, beginning with It...

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