Film Friday: Woman in Gold

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Posted on March 27, 2015

Coming to theatres April 1^st! Woman in Gold is film I’ve put on my Gotta See List. It stars Academy Award winning actress Helen Mirren and it is based on a real story of a case that was taken to the Supreme Court. It is about the magnificent painting “Portrait of Adele Boch- Bauer” by Gustav Klimt. The artwork, hailed as the “Mona Lisa of Austria,” was taken during the Nazi regime and the movie is about a family’s desire to have the painting removed from a museum in Vienna and returned to its rightful place.

Check out this film trailer, and put this on your list of upcoming movies to see if you are a person who loves book to movie adaptations and if you appreciate art history.

Have a great weekend, everyone. See you back here on All Things Fulfilling on Monday.

This blog is brought to you by award-winning author Sue Batton Leonard.

Love Indomitable Seniors

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Posted on March 26, 2015

“Spirit…has fifty times the strength and staying power of brawn and muscle.” ~ Unknown

On this Thirsty Thursday the topic is curious seniors who are opening themselves up to a whole new world of information by learning about computers.

In the documentary film, Cyber-Seniors, teens pair up with elderly people to teach them the most popular ways of communicating digitally, how to search the internet for information and about Facebook and You Tube. It open ups new avenues to explore and things to talk about with their grandchildren and family. As you will note, for most seniors the only challenges in using computers lies between their ears in their attitudes.

But, that’s no different than all of us, is it? No matter what stage of life we are in!

On this Thirsty Thursday, meet some Cyber-Seniors who are bridging the gap between generations and having a little fun doing it.

You’ll enjoy these one minute videos and the full length documentary is available here.

This blog is brought to you by award-winning author Sue Batton Leonard.

Letter to the Editor

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Posted on March 25, 2015

Have you ever written a letter to an editor of a monthly circular or a newspaper? Some people become regular contributors to magazines or “rag sheets” by writing letters to editors. This usually occurs when a publication features articles that an individual feels passionate about.
I recently wrote a letter to the Editor of Colorado Country Life Magazine, published by the Yampa Valley Electric Association. The YVEA is “a business owned by the people it serves.” It is a not-for-profit cooperative providing energy and power resources. The YVEA lights up many parts of Colorado.

What prompted my communication to the magazine was my heartfelt thrill at seeing in their November 2014 magazine an article about “The Love of Books.” In this article they shared information about a few Colorado authors.

When an author puts their heart and soul into writing yet their books don’t land on the top seller lists sometimes getting recognition in the media beyond social media and websites can be challenging. I wanted to let the editor know how nice it was to open the magazine and learn about books that are not on NY Times best seller lists, but still very worthy of reading.

Thank you, YVEA for posting my letter to the editor in the Colorado Country Life Magazine. I do appreciate it and I hope you will continue to feature authors and books penned here in Colorado by independent publishers.

I encourage anyone who has positive thoughts about their love of books or reading, to please post your comments on All Things Fulfilling. Hearing from readers is a good thing because “we are what we think. All that we are that arises with our thoughts. With our thoughts we make the world.”

This blog is brought to you by the author of Gift of a Lifetime: Finding Fulfilling Things in the Unexpected and Short Stories: Lessons of Heart & Soul.

Out of the Deep Freeze

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Posted on March 24, 2015

“It is not the mountain we conquer but ourselves.”– Edmund Hillary

When you live in the mountains, spring can be forever in coming. Mother Nature loves to torment and taunt with fickle weather for a long, long time.

One day it is sunny and warm, the next day we are thrust back into winter leaving us confused as what to put on for clothing in the morning. Just when you think you should leave behind the winter weight clothing and spring ahead into lighter, brighter garments, the cold temperatures return again. Makes you feel like climbing back under the covers.

This is how I look and feel this time of year. The beginnings of growth and renewal of spirit have begun to creep over me yet, part of me is still frozen in the previous season.

Today on All Things Fulfilling, I’d like to share with you an article about 21 Things to Do This Spring to Lift your Beaten Down Spirit.

What’s the first thing I’m going to do to start ticking off the list? My husband just filled my bike tires with air. A slow, meadering bike ride through the neighborhood dreaming of when the landscape turns green with colorful flowers will do much to lift the spirit. It will also begin to build the muscles I’ve neglected all winter when my only form of exercise was walking.

See you back here tomorrow on All Things Fulfilling. This blog is brought to you by award-winning author Sue Batton Leonard.

Moods Trace the Season

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Posted on March 23, 2015

Did you know March is Optimism month? March has never been one of my favorite months because if you live in the mountains, it’s usually still winter. But the third month of the year is useful to my mindset. March winds transport my spirit into my favorite seasons of the year – spring and summer when I am more inspired and motivated.

In March vague ideas that I had a few months previously get sparked and fired up which means I’ve gotten over the hump of winter. Thoughts of renewal, awakening and rejuvenation start streaming.

Just as many other people experience, the seasons do affect my moods and demeanor. Being aware of that fact helps me to march forward knowing brighter days are coming and to remember ~

Happy Beginnings of Spring, Everybody!

See you tomorrow on All Things Fulfilling. This blog is brought to you by Sue Batton Leonard. The award-winning author of Gift of a Lifetime: Finding Fulfilling Things in the Unexpected and Short Stories: Lessons of Heart & Soul.

Are You Tweeting with Happiness?

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Posted on March 20, 2015

A few weeks ago as I drove 388 miles south along I-25 between Denver, Colorado and Albuquerque, New Mexico I heard a story on National Public Radio’s (NPR) All Things Considered about human behavior and social media that peeked my interest. It was a timely delivery of a story because it gave me something to ponder in my boredom.

Did you know social scientists are studying the mood of the planet through individual’s activity on Twitter?

Rises and falls in biochemicals which affect circadian rhythms may have something to do with how we feel throughout the day. Scientists say by reading an individual’s tweets, they can follow people’s mood changes throughout the day. There is a rise in positive tweets first thing in the morning and then late at night .

If the research proves to be correct, pollers and marketers will find this information valuable – “as a great way to get a pulse of what’s going on in the country,” says Scott Golder at Cornell University. Golder and his colleagues look for positive and negative words used in the tweets such as “awesome, outgoing, pleasing” or negative kinds of feelings such as “afraid, fury or fear.”

Do you think reading people’s emotions through their activity on Twitter is constructive or destructive or just a time waster? In my opinion, also tracking seasonal differences in atttitudes would make the research more credible because seasonal affective disorder has very real symptoms.

I’d like to hear from you about the validity of a study about Twitter “tweets.” Post a comment.

This blog is brought to you by award-winning author Sue Batton Leonard.

Life Through Iris’ Eyes

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Posted on March 19, 2015

Today’s story on Thirsty Thursday is about a woman who has not spent one extra minute of her life worrying what others might think. Enter Iris Apfel – the woman who says “happiness is more important than what you look like.”

Despite her words, she’s garnered plenty of interest in the fashion world over the years – enough for documentary filmmakers to want tell her story.

Enjoy the film trailer I’ve posted. The two minute clip has important messages about life which if we are open to the thoughts, can be gifts for us all. The film critics call the movie an “exuberant portrait.”

Moral of the story:

That’s all for today on this Thirsty Thursday! I look forward to your return to All Things Fulfilling tomorrow. This blog is brought to you by the author of Gift of a Lifetime: Finding Fulfilling Things in the Unexpected and Short Stories: Lessons of Heart & Soul.

7 Things You Didn’t Know About Me

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Posted on March 18, 2015

As a nominee for the Versatile Blogger Award – there are 7 things I must share with my readers that you may not have known about me:

#1 When I was about 10 or 11 I did something very silly. I put a chicken leg bone in my hair to make me look like Pebbles Flintstone. Yeah, I know – hairbrained idea! But, you know, anything to make my twin sister laugh was double the fun. I hope there were many other things I did to reveal that I was just another “goofy kid” in the family.

#2 – I answer to the call of

“Mommorson!”

That’s what I’ve been called by my son since he was a tween. What a kids’ definition of a mommorson is, I have no idea. But, nevertheless, I am very proud to be his “Mommorson!!”

#3 I am the world’s worst Clarinet player – other than my twin sister. My father nearly went bankrupt having to buy so many reeds for my musical instrument. And I couldn’t keep it from squeeking.

#4 Although I have lived high up in the mountains for 44 years. My heart belongs here:

#5 In college (the early 1970s) I drove my car up the Long Trail (extension of the Appalachian Trail) rather than hiking it. Yeah, well, what can I say. Students get weird ideas that make parents cringe!

#6 I can walk well on stilts! I had a pair just like these that my Dad made for me.

#7 Back in 1974 (or was it 73?) I caught me a leprechuan.

I have been with him ever since !

Now it’s time for me to pass the Versatile Blogger award on to a few more bloggers and they are Sally Edelstein, Renee Rivers and Sarah Ward.

I follow Sally Edelstein’s blog because I like nostalgia. She writes about things baby boomers appreciate. I enjoy visiting Renee Rivers’ blog because she goes places I have never been before. I can travel through her via my armchair. I tried following Renee on my stilts but my hands got too calloused.

And lastly Sarah Ward’s blog, Stars and Rainbows, I nominate because I like her ponderings on life and the honesty and openness with which she writes.

This blog is brought to you by award-winning author Sue Batton Leonard and a many would say a “Versatile Blogger!”

Gods, Generals and Irish Ballad

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Posted on March 17, 2015

May the sound of happy music, And the lilt of Irish laughter, fill your heart with gladness, that stays forever after. ~ Unknown

Happy St. Patty’s Day. Today’s blog is about an Irish ballad called Kathleen Mavourneen. The composer of the song is someone who I hold near and to my heart, even though I am several generations removed from him. I only know him through my father’s side of our family story.

A rendition of Kathleen Mavourneen was filmed as part of the movie Gods & Generals but unfortunately it got cut in the editing process. The story take place during the Civil War era and it was filmed in many different places in the region where I grew up. Scenery from throughout the mid-Atlantic States of Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia and at the site of the battle of Antietam are in the movie. The film is based on the book by Jeffrey Shaara.

If you wish to learn more about my ancestor’s connection to the ballad Kathleen Mavourneen check out Gift of a Lifetime: Finding Fulfilling Things in the Unexpected. You can read all about it in Chapter 16, My Beloved.

Have a great St. Patricks Day, everyone! And remember to go out and ~

This blog is brought to you by award-winning author Sue Batton Leonard.

Motivated Independent Publishers

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Posted on March 16, 2015

Thinking of writing your story?

“Like anything in life when the right time comes along, and when you are fully and completely committed to the project you will find the personal resources like commitment, determination, enthusiasm, confidence and energy within to carry it out. The will to make it happen becomes much greater than your desires to let your dreams go by the wayside.” ~Independent publisher, Sue Batton Leonard

~Sue Batton Leonard, award-winning author of Gift of a Lifetime: Finding Fulfilling Things in the Unexpected and Short Stories: Lessons of Heart & Soul.