Night Sky
serene summer nights
darkness broken by the silver of the moon
carrying my dreams to you
resting in its glow
dreamy eyes turn heavy in the late hour
I allow my heart to fly afar
merging with you amongst sparkling stars
Copyright Claudia H. Blanton 2014
Title: Artifact
Genre: Documentary
Rating: 5/5 Stars
I was introduced to Jared Leto via my daughters love for his band “30 Seconds To Mars”, and was hooked, even more so when I saw him in “Dallas Buyers Club” as the beautiful, transgender Rayon, marvelously brought to live by Jared. If you have not seen “Dallas Buyers Club”, you have missed out. But I regress. What I really wanted to write about today is the documentary “Artifact”
Essentially, this movie is about the band, their struggle to get a fair contract with their recording studio and them being sued for 30 Million Dollars as a result. On a deeper level, this docu shines a light on the world of greed, the status of the music industry and how we as consumers of the music should be aware that our habits of wanting the product as fast and as cheap as possible, make it harder and harder for an artist or a band to make a living making music. It is a wake up call to anyone who wants to be a musician, to become proactive before making any decisions of signing on with labels, and to have a clear understanding of what they are getting into.
The movie is also a statement of perseverance and continuing drive to create songs despite the circumstances. I consider this movie essential to be viewed by anyone who wants to work within the music industry, may it be on the artist side, or on the producing side.
The movie is available on iTunes, Amazon and Google Play. Downloaded, talk about it, play it, but pay for it. Be a part of the solution, not a part of the problem.
There are constantly new self-help books arriving on the market, and while some of them are absolutely questionable, or a simple rewrite of other volumes – I have reviewed some of these gems – there are a few new books, that are worth reading, and emerging yourself into. I will present three of them here for you:
1. The Chakra Wisdom Oracle Toolkit by Tori Hartman: A workbook for those serious about making a change in their lives, and are willing to put in the work required.
2. Manifest Moment to Moment: A spiritual self-help book that transcends the boundaries of a singular belief system, designed to assist you in the creation of the life you always wanted.
3. Habit Stacking by S.J. Scott: A book that emphasizes how deliberate little changes can add up to a profound shift in many aspects of your life.
What are your favorite self-help books? Which “classics” or contemporary self-help volumes do you enjoy?
Daily Prompt asked us today: As a kid, you must have imagined what it was like to be an adult. Now that you’re a grownup (or becoming one), how far off was your idea of adult life?
As a victim of child abuse (mentally, physically and sexually), I don’t remember having a vision of a potential adult life. I was too busy being  scared, too busy hovering in fear of what I would do wrong next time. Was my desk in perfect order? My elbows of the table when I was eating?Did I shuffle my feet when I walked, or cut the onions the perfect size?  Was he drunk, and if he was, how drunk was he – hopefully enough to be passed out, because that meant peace, at least for a little while.
I found my salvation and solitude in books, and he even managed to take that away, allowing me to have one book per month. So I rewrote them, I turned them into scripts, I imagined them differently. They where my only place for comfort.
This and the fact that few years later (at mere 17) Â I met a young man, stationed in my home town, who taught me for the first time how to express kindness, gentleness and love, in a language which, until then I only had spoken during school lessons: English. He taught me, in English how to feel, how to get mad, how to express myself, how to be anything but that scared little girl.
Then he had to leave, his time of being stationed in Germany over. It was time for him to go back home. And I was lost.
A week later he called me, proposed, and told me to jump on a plane. I did.
The last words my Father spoke to me that morning, as I stood in the hallway, a suitcase in my hand were harsh, but nothing new, calling me stupid and  a whore.
24 years later, two kids, and after many years of marriage, some turbulent, others quiet, I found my place. With him, still, always with him. A man who taught me so much, supporting me, believing in me, waiting for me to heal some, if not all of the scars I am burdened with. He taught me how to feel, how to be pissed off, how to fight, how to love, how to laugh, and all that in a language I learned to love. So when people ask me why I chose to become a writer, but not in my mother tongue, it is because of that.
English is my language of love.
Fast forward 24 years later.
Title: Hamlet’s Ghost
Author: Jane Tara
Publisher: Momentum Books
Rating: 5/5 Stars
Release Date: July 24th, 2014
“Rhiannon Dee, a gorgeous witch, moves to a country town to reopen a theater and finds herself torn between the man who owns it, and his father who haunts it.
Kip Daniels has been haunting the Hamlet Majestic for thirty dull years, ever since the stage roof collapsed on him during what was meant to be his piece de resistance: his performance of Hamlet. All he really wants is to get to the end of the play, but that won’t happen while the theater stands abandoned and boarded up. He’s resigned himself to an endless limbo … until Rhiannon Dee moves to town to bring the theater back to life.
Rhi has fled a failed life in New York. She can’t find work as an actress. She’s overshadowed by her mother who has a hit TV show about witchcraft. Rhi is sick of being seen as a witch and intends to turn her back on the craft. But she quickly discovers she can’t escape her gifts, especially when she needs to use them to help one very sexy but sad ghost cross over. Surrounded by new friends and supportive townsfolk, Rhi breathes new life into the Hamlet Majestic, and helps Kip accept his death.
Hamlet’s Ghost is a story about those moments in life that define us, and how to truly move forward we must find peace with the past.”
I expected a unique book, and that is exactly what Jane Tara delivered. Well written, in a modern and fun voice, that made this one of the better reads of the year, Jane managed to grab my attention from the beginning, and never let it go. A light-hearted romance that is a part of the Shakespeare Sisters Series, but can be read as a standalone book (but why would you? This book will make you want to read all of them!) Jane Tara is a fresh voice in the sometimes stuffy world of romance. Well done!
Sometimes you just got to say it out loud (or write it down, putting it out there in the world wide web). Gratitude.
I am grateful for the challenges that have been a part of our business, which allowed us to make necessary changes and allowed growth – and with that a huge potential! Yay!
I am grateful for loyal employees. Never forget those who help you become successful – employees are essential in that process!
I am grateful on a more selfish way, for having discovered yet another deep well of books for me through a service (and I will review that service in a few days). Got to have books in my life!
I am grateful that everyone in my family is safe. After watching the plane crash in Malaysia, my heart broke for those whom lost loved ones in this senseless tragedy.
And last, but not least:
I am grateful for Daily Prompt to choose an open prompt today, which will lead to some interesting blog posts.
Let me share with you what other bloggers wrote today:
http://tombalistreri.wordpress.com/2014/07/19/i-would-if-i-could-but-i-can-so-i-wont/
http://waxyworld.wordpress.com/2014/07/19/dying-young-3/
http://guthonestfaith.wordpress.com/2014/07/19/clueless/
What are you grateful for?
Title: Habit Stacking: 97 Small Life Changes That Take Five Minutes or Less
Author: S.J. Scott
Release Date: May, 2, 2014
Rating: 4/5 Stars
While this book is based on a simplicity that will not shake up your life to the core, it will give you an idea, how easy it is to make time for small changes that stack up to a more profound change. S.J.Scott calls this process “Habit Stacking”, and packages it in easy to follow along advice that can be implemented by everyone. Habit Stacking is a cool book that despite its simplicity in activities should be taken seriously, and can add, if you follow through, a meaningful change in your life.
And if you are already doing many of this habits, you can always congratulate yourself on being on the right path!
Title: Change Your Mind – Heal Your Body
Author: Anna Parkinson
Publisher: Watkins Publishing Limited
Release Date: May 1st, 2014
Rating: 1.5/5 Stars
While some people can learn from the mere telling of another ones healing journey, or find at least comfort within the pages of a book that tells one how the Author overcame the struggle of disease, I am not one of them. When looking for a self-help book, may it be on healing or any other area of life, I prefer to be given a run down of the facts that they learned from their journey, of course with a few anecdotes, but not the other way around. In order for a self-help book to be helpful beyond the giving of hope, it has to be above all practical.
This book fails this aspect completely.
A re-telling of ones healing journey to the fullest detail, as Anna Parkinson has done in this book is actually detrimental to her health, as it rather focuses on the aspects of what was wrong and the struggle of finding a solution, rather than focusing on the solution, which the side note of struggle. We get it. It is hard to over come a disease, as millions of others has discovered. But in order to make that struggle value is to share the lessons learned, not the struggle many of us share.
To me, this is not a self-help book but a memoir of a strong person who wants to tell her story of triumph, and should be marketed as such. If marketed as a self-help book, this volume does not help the person reading it, to overcome their personal struggle.
I would not recommend it as such.
Words Of Power
embracing kindness
whispered words of virtue
help to heal hidden scars
Claudia H. Blanton 2014
This post is a part of the Daily Prompt – Weekly Writing Challenge
Here are some fellow participants contributions for this week:
http://skegnbeyond.wordpress.com/2014/07/14/honey-or-vinegar/
http://marthakennedy.wordpress.com/2014/07/14/6116/
Title: Chakra Wisdom Oracle Toolkit
Author: Tori Hartman
Publisher: Watkins Publishing Limited
Publishing Date: September 18th 2014
Rating: 4.5/5 Stars
This is not a book that is to be read, but a book to be worked with. If you are willing to put in the time, commit to exercises (which are plenty and enjoyable), to make a change in your life, then this book is a worthwhile purchase. Beautifully illustrated and well written, the Chakra Wisdom Oracle Kit is not only for those who have some experience in the subject matter, but is easy enough to use, that it will be a worthwhile workbooks for those who are new to Chakras and Oracles.
As I stated in the beginning this book is one of action, not a book of leisurable reading, and it asks the reader to commit to the entire year journey. Self-discovery is not a fast process, especially when one wants to make a lasting impact on one’s life. As a companion on your journey, this book is a valuable addition in self-improvement.
Have you every worked with Chakra’s of an Oracle Kit before? What is your favorite and why?
Here are some other self-help books I recommend:
A Smart Girl’s Guide To Getting What You Want
Avalon-Media - A LifeStyle Blog 