Thoughts about a film

This may sound silly, but I am so happy after reading Adam's latest film review. No, I'm not astonished at his writing (after all, I have lived with it for a very long time!). Rather, I am feeling a sense of gratification to see him grappling with issues that have, at times, taken over my life. It all started yesterday when he and I went to see The Reader. Naturally, I wanted to see it because of the World War II plot woven throughout the story, and, happily, it did not disappoint. Once again, something has reminded me how much I truly love my thesis/research topic. It can be doggone depressing at times, and I have seriously wondered why in the world I am drawn to this. Truth be told, I have no answer, except to say, it captivates my very being. I can't say too much more since I am at risk of spoiling the movie for those who haven't seen it. Suffice it to say, the story takes a valid historical argument (Primo Levi's "gray zone") and shows ,how in the Third Reich, not everything was/is black and white. Simply brilliant.

(and, no, I'm not getting my PhD!)

O' Christmas Tree, O' Christmas Tree

Finally, some decent pictures of the Christmas tree!!

This is exactly what I was going for...with the exception of

the bright light. What's up with that!

Christmas Cheer

I'm wrapping Christmas presents!!!! (and taking photos of my favorite packages!)

Christmas Lights

In honor of my mother's birthday we went out looking at Christmas lights, and I thought I would share a few of the pictures I took.

This is a view of Old Town Orange. The center tree is gorgeous,

but thanks to being in a moving vehicle, the photos did not turn out.

I hope to go back before Christmas and take a still.

One neighborhood in Old Town is beautifully decorated.

Here is one example of a front yard display.

This is a side view of our neighbor's house. Please excuse the street sign. It's not easy taking a picture without looking like you're gawking at the immensity of it all.

The car was moving at this point, but you get the picture.

Christmas Cheer

Christmas has arrived at the office!!! I was talking with a co-worker last week sharing my desire of how I wanted to decorate the El Toro office for Christmas, and the next day she brought two bags of snowman themed decorations. Hurrah! Coupled with a trip to Michaels I have So today, I spent some time decorating and wanted to share some of my Christmas displays. Naturally, after I took the photos Trish brought me some more things, but I didn't have time to take pictures of them.

My so called, Christmas table. I have candy canes and

candy kisses in the basket. Yum!

I had to do something with the pencil holder!

To top it off, I finally found decent picture frames for my sunset photos. I need to frame a grand total of 5 pictures and am starting with 2. When you have to provide your own private funding for office "improvements" it takes time to scour local establishments for good deals!