Here in the United States this is the time of the year that the networks roll out all their new shows, while premiering a new season of previous hits. This year has brought with it a new and, for some, a disturbing dilemma…..what shows do we watch? and, when???

For example: This week at various times I too have fallen victim to “clashing shows.” America has gone crazy for a show that I have touched on before….called, “Dancing With the Stars,” a weekly show where a champion dancer is partnered with a celebrity, who has very little dancing experience. This is all fine and dandy, unless another one of your favorite shows is on a different channel, at the same time. In my case, it is the Fox Network’s “House,” and also Sci-Fi’s new series “Eureka.” So what do I do? I watch “Dancing With the Stars,” which is now a two hour show, and videotape “House,” and “Eureka.” If this dilemma of having different shows on different networks at the same time starts to repeat itself on multiple nights, by the end of the week you begin to accumulate a nice stash of shows to watch over the weekend.

What kind of effect does this have on your life? I kid you not, some of my friends and I have talked about this….you start to schedule your life around finding time to see all these accumulated shows! Yes indeed…there truly is “only 24 hours in a day!” Tell that to the networks! The scenario gets even more complicated when one or more people in the same household begin to make their favorite shows known also. Moms, Dads, and kids all wrestling with a perilous thought, “What do we watch?” and “When can we watch it?”

I have found it is not a problem taping or tivoing these assortment of shows….but trying to find the time to watch them starts to become a ridiculous problem. It reminded me of a conversation with a college student a number of years ago, where she mentioned that quite a few students were addicted to soap operas, and they would schedule their classes around the ability to be able to watch their favorite soaps! (this was before the days of video). Let me ask you this…how many people do you know videotape their favorite shows during the day, while they are at work, to watch them when they get home? Many do.

T.V. Time, in many of our lives, has become profound and real. More and more, we are determining what we want to watch, and when we want to watch it. Mornings, afternoons, and evenings….for many households the videotape is running. We change our lives, shuffle schedules, and buy popcorn to make sure we don’t miss our favorites. As the old saying goes, now more than ever, “The Show Must Go On.”

Don’t touch that dial!:)

love, Jennifer Avalon

© 2006 Jennifer Avalon

There is a strong belief that throughout all corridors of life eventually, in a free society, the best and the brightest rise to the top. The cream, with all its weight and determination, sits at the threshold of the coffee cup. Is it so? Or is it just as easy for the stench of the corrupt to take that position?

Time and time again, be it countries, corporations, teams or clubs, the corrupt and self-centered can quite easily take over any institution and wield their power. Can the best and the brightest still rise, or has today’s society set out to destroy anyone with new and noble ideals? I can’t for the life of me believe that in the 2004 National Election in the United States the best two people we had to pick from was either George W. Bush, or John Kerry. That’s it? The best and the brightest? Surely there had to be somebody else? Could the answer be that the best and the brightest are no longer willing to allow themselves or their families to be dragged through the mud of politics? The minute someone of either high status or strong integrity announces that they are interested in running for office, within moments the vultures start swarming to see what kind of meat they can pick from their bones. Instantaneously, reporters are summoned to dig up the dirt by any and all means, so that they can have the lead story on the evening news. No wonder the best and the brightest, when asked, say “Thanks, but no thanks.”

For those that do make it through, they better have some personal money, because if they don’t, the Money-Mongers will be banging on the door saying “Without us, you won’t get elected, and one last thing….we own you.” Democrats against Republicans….Republicans against Democrats…the Money-Mongers don’t really care who gets elected, because they give money to both parties…that way, they can’t lose. This November we Americans cast our votes for our candidates of choice…unfortunately, we’re never told who the Money-Mongers are behind some candidates, and when push comes to shove, do those candidates represent Us? Their Party? Or, the Money-Mongers?

Until things change, most, if not all of the best and the brightest will never seek office. I’m sure where you live, whatever country that is, you too have seen examples of how large sums of money can corrupt and control a society. The United States is an incredible country, if it is just left alone to be what the Founding Fathers intended it to be. The 24 hour cable news cycle has shown us that politics has become one of the most lucrative professions ever. The amount of advertising dollars that have been spent by both parties could feed the homeless for years.

So next time you see a Senator or Representative of the Congress debating the contents of a bill before them, think to yourself, who’s words are they saying, their own, or the Money-Mongers? So do we have a Two Party System? Or Three? Democrats, Republicans, and Money-Mongers. If the Democrats hate the Republicans and the Republicans hate the Democrats, guess what? We’ve just elected the Money-Mongers.

Let Freedom Ring,

Jennifer Avalon

© 2006 Jennifer Avalon

The search engine Google makes available the ability to access a satellite and zoom in on a destination of your choice. I kid you not, it is absolutely remarkable and fantastic what you can do and see with the touch of a mouse.

Every few days I type in a location from my past to see how things in the neighborhood have changed. Sometimes I’m surprised, sometimes shocked, at how little Time can change a place. Google Earth allows a person to hone in on any location, be it city or town, or countryside….London, New York, Paris, or Rome….one click and you’re there. Seeing the world as a globe spinning through space, wherever you roam on planet Earth, one cannot help but feel how small Earth really is. Be forewarned, these little trips with Google Earth can be quite emotional. Memories may rush back, or excitement beckon, as you think about future trips you could take to a chosen location. One has to wonder, what’s next?

It’s quite amazing to sit in front of the computer and gaze upon the city of Paris, inch by inch, or as a friend of mine said, taking a look at the elementary school she attended while she lived in South Wales, UK. It’s all there…all ready for us to just click and gaze. How about you? what would you like to see? Do you have a favorite city or country?

Traveling can be quite expensive….yet Google Earth, except for photographs, is the next best thing to being there. I’ve included a link to Google Earth at the bottom of this essay…if you’re interested, pay a visit. Although it may not replace a one week vacation to a favorite spot, it can bring the flavor of a place to your home.

Bon Voyage,

Jennifer Avalon

Download Google Earth

© 2006 Jennifer Avalon

There is a grand illusion to us mere mortals that most of us grow to a ripe old age, and we lose a few along the way. Many perhaps do live into their eighties and nineties….but realistically, are the percentages based on fact, or fiction?

I recently had a conversation with a neighbor of mine who shared with me an interesting experience of hers. She attended her 25th High School Reunion where she had a graduating class of 125 classmates, and was shocked to find out that 25 years later, half of the class was deceased. That’s right….only 62 were still alive! She thought about her graduation day when the principal of the school gave an incredible speech on how they all should strive to the limits and climb the mountain of success. In reflection, she said to me, “Jennifer, one little part the principal left out was that in hindsight, he should have told us to put a little time aside each day for staying alive!” President Bush recently turned 60, and a reporter mentioned that over one third of the people born on that day never made it to 60. In my area, I read that a local baby boomers group got together and celebrated the fact that many of them would be retiring next year at 62. What shocked them was also the amount of boomers their age that never made it…one wrote, “Thank God we’re still here.”

So how many of us truly live to a ripe old age? Is it as many as we think? Or is it “Survival of the Fittest?” One thing’s for sure, as busy as our days may be, if we plan to be around for the long haul we’re going to have to find some valuable time to put aside for our maintenance and well -being. If it’s good for the car, it’s good for us!

As I was thinking about this essay over the past couple of days, it was quite interesting that every day I was coming across stories on the subject matter of life and longevity…some of which I was surprised at. Did you know that more people worldwide commit suicide then the amount of people who die from murder and war? I didn’t! As much as we like to think we are indestructible, Life has a strange way of reminding us that we are all just flesh and bones.

I don’t find the truth depressing…because after all, it’s what we don’t know that can hurt us. We are born on this planet and we need food, clothing, and shelter to survive. That’s the physical part…..spiritually we need Love. Everything after that is gravy, totally created by humanity…money, transportation, jobs, etc. Many spend their lives accumulating material goods until one day they realize, do I really need all this junk? when I just need a little to make me happy? Accidents may happen every day….but we have to stay fit physically and spiritually to survive.

Grow old along with me,

love, Jennifer Avalon

© 2006 Jennifer Avalon

This past week I set out to totally revamp my living room. It has been five years since I shifted around the furniture and splashed on a new coat of paint, so it seemed fitting to give my favorite room a new look. It’s quite amazing how we begin to feel comfortable in our surroundings, and after a while we subconsciously start zoning out highlights of a room we spend many hours in. It could be a painting, a couch, or a simple rug…I kid you not, as the months roll by our eyes can easily start factoring them out….until one day when we decide to make some changes….we then look at every square inch to see what stays, and what goes. For me, that time was this week.

As I went about moving the furniture, repainting the wood floor, and repositioning pictures and paintings, it was as if, after a while, the living room itself started to have a conversation with me. Each change I made I felt was done in agreement with the room. This process took two days…the room was transformed, bright and new, while still retaining its original character. I only wanted to give the room a fresh look….while not erasing the memories.

How about you? Have you ever gone through this experience? Possibly so. When you go out to run errands, and return home, the difference can be striking and gratifying. So many of us feel we have to move on to a new house after five years or so….forgetting that it is quite simple to just re-invent the house that we have. A friend of mine who was considering selling his house and moving, fixed it all up to put on sale, and it was at that point he looked around and said, “What, am I crazy? The house is now the way I wanted it all along! So why move?”

As we enter each room in our home, the walls speak back to us of all the time that we have spent in that surrounding. In this day and age, it is so easy to get bored in the shortest span of time. While we forget the history that we are personally creating, revamping our surrounds gives us the opportunity to look back and plow ahead.

If home is where the heart is, it too needs a little tender loving care to let it know how much it means to us.

Home Sweet Home,

love, Jennifer Avalon

© 2006 Jennifer Avalon

Right or Wrong, Up or Down, Good or Bad, Rich or Poor, Left or Right, Love or Hate, War or Peace, God or Godless…these are a few examples of choices that we have to make daily. Each predicament or scenario that stands before us, sometimes at a moment’s notice, in an instant we sometimes have to choose one way or the other. In some cases we don’t get to have the luxury of time and reflection…in these moments we go by gut decisions. Such is Life.

It’s quite amazing, when you think about it, how we humans are able to get so many things right, with the obstacles that we have to overcome. In the year 2006 surprise, surprise, so many are still here! If one was to turn on the evening news and see the havoc that is revealed on a daily basis…a person could easily come to the conclusion that it is nothing short of a miracle how we all can continue to exist together. Each day always brings with it a new set of choices.

Isn’t it strange that most of the answers to complicated problems can be answered quite simply…not complicated, not cluttered, at times with just one line. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if an independent force could intervene in the war between Israel and Lebanon and just say “STOP, put down your weapons, and go home to your families.” It’s as easy as that, STOP killing each other…there can be no winners. The independent force would round up all the weapons and say, “ENOUGH.” I don’t know about you, but I don’t need to see any more children getting killed for whatever reason….because next year it’ll be something else. Some other place….someone else’s choice….for whatever reason….to kill.

May we all make the right choices, may we find the peace that we so desperately need in this world, may we never forget the light in a newborn’s eyes, may we never forget the last words before someone dies. Perfection may not be obtainable, but growth and contentment can be found within our hearts. As we sail through life, the direction we choose can either leave us lost at sea, or headed for home. We are what we choose.

Choose wisely,

love, Jennifer Avalon

© 2006 Jennifer Avalon