"REST EASY MY BROTHERS, PEACE AND FAREWELL"

Marion Pellicano Ambrose

Rest easy, sleep well my brothers.

Know the line has held, your job is done.

Rest easy, sleep well.

Others have taken up where you fell, the line has held.

Peace, peace, and farewell...

 You may be interested to know that these wreaths -- some 5,000 -- are donated by the Worcester Wreath Co. of Harrington, Maine . The owner, Merrill Worcester, not only provides the wreaths, but covers the trucking expense as well. He's done this since 1992. Also, most years, groups of Maine school kids combine an educational trip to DC with this event to help out. Making this even more remarkable is the fact that Harrington is in one of the poorest parts of the state. So, hats off th Merrill Worcester and the school children of Maine for finding a perfect way to honor our American heroes!

DRL wants to wish all veterans and active military, and their families, a very happy, healthy,and peace-filled New Year! God bless you and thank you for your service!

MAURICE SENDAK; AUTHOR, ILLUSTRATOR, EXHIBIT DESIGNER

Marion Pellicano Ambrose

Maurice Sendak, author and illustrator of childrens books, has created an exhibit for the Jewish Museum in New York City. The exhibit, called “An Artist Remembers:Hanukkah Lamps Selected by Maurice Sendak” is on display through January 29^th, 2012. Sendak, most famous for his story “Where the Wild Things Are”, the tale of little Max and his journey to the land of the Wild Things, selected 33 menorahs from the museums extensive collection to put on display.

In an interview, Sendak stated that the simplicity of the exhibition’s menorahs reminded him of the Holocaust. Sendak was born in Brooklyn, New York to Jewish immigrants. He described his childhood as “ a terrible situation” since much of his family died in the Holocaust.

According to Susan Braunstein, one of the organizers of the exhibition and curator of Archaeology and Judaica at The Jewish Museum

“For Maurice Sendak they (the lamps) are powerful repositories of memory, embodying stories that illuminate the past for new generations,” Braunstein told JointMedia News Service. “The lamps speak to us of their survival through time and of the people that once made or owned them.”

Braunstein said visitors will be able to understand the deep connections between the emotions they evoked in Sendak and his aesthetic choices, and selected visitor memories will periodically be posted on the museum’s website at www.thejewishmuseum.org.

Maurice Sendak is 83years old and his career has spanned over 60 years. He has won every important award given for children’s literature. He is a true American Treasure!

MICHAEL JORDAN ENGAGED!

Former Chicago Bulls star Michael Jordan is engaged.

According to publicist Estee Portnoy, Jordan popped the question Christmas night. His fiancée, Cuban-American model and girlfriend of three years, Yvette Prieto have not set a date as of yet.

 Jordan was married to Juanita Vanoy for 17 years before they split. Jordan has 3 children from his first marriage: Jeffrey 23, Marcus 21, and Jasmine 19.

HAPPY 75TH BIRTHDAY MARY TYLER MOORE!

TEEN'S VIDEO GOES VIRAL AFTER HIS DEATH ON CHRISTMAS DAY

Marion Pellicano Ambrose

Ben Breedlove, an 18 year old young man with HCM (hypertrophic cardiomyopathy) a serious and dangerous heart condition, recently posted a homemade video about how he cheated death 3 times. On Christmas Day, he failed to cheat death a 4^th time.

Do you believe in Angels or God? Perhaps watching this video will affect your answer.

                                                                                         

http://gma.yahoo.com/video/news-26797925/sick-teen-s-videos-go-viral-after-death-27729605.html#crsl=%252Fvideo%252Fnews-26797925%252Fsick-teen-s-videos-go-viral-after-death-27729605.html

Read the story from abc news:

http://abcnews.go.com/US/texas-teen-ben-breedlove-posted-powerful-videos-christmas/story?id=15248385

RIP Ben Breedlove

BURGERS AND BEER....

Tony Walker

Did you hear the solution to the world's overpopulation problem?

Some fast food restaurants are going to start selling beer!!

Half the United States will be wiped out in no time!

Let me explain.... most of us are always on the run. Work, shopping, driving the kids to their activities, etc. What's more convenient than grabbing a quick burger? But as we all know these things we call "burgers" are the most disgusting things to eat. Yet we go back for more all the time. Between those things & now beer? Our cholesterol levels will skyrocket & we'll be dead!

Serving beers at the fast food restaurants is a great example of how smart we are. Think about it. Most of the fast food places close around 11PM-12AM but leave the drive thru open practically all night long. SO GRAB A BEER AT THE DRIVE THRU!!! Fast burgers, fast beers, fast DWI's!!!

How soon before we hear about the drunken moron who bought a beer at Burger King then slams into something as he's pulling out of the drive thru?

SOUL FOOD

Barbara Ward-Finneran

Miracles occur all around us. It can be as simple as an act of compassion, a kind word, something unexplainable, or as grand as a defining moment filled with light to break up the dark. 

Sometimes it's fostering the power to believe in yourself enough to move forward. 

Look for your miracles. They happen if you hold onto faith and hope. 

They are all around us... Just believe!

Keep the promises that you make to yourself!

©  All Rights Reserved

DISNEY DOES IT AGAIN!

Marion Pellicano Ambrose

Disney Nature had done it again; they’ve produced a nature documentary that educates, moves and entertains! Past successes include Oceans, Earth and African Cats. This year Disney Nature presents Chimpanzee, in theaters Earth Day (April 20, 2012).

In this documentary, we travel deep into the forests of Africa to meet Oscar, a young Chimpanzee and his family. His antics and adventures lead us to discover the intelligence and ingenuity of this amazing species.

A 100 page educational guide is available and contains lesson plans and activities geared towards grades 2-6. All lessons are aligned with National Standards and include audio and visual clips and ready made PowerPoint presentations on topics like: Animal adaptations, habitats and Ecosystems, Animal behavior, use of tools and communication. Also covered are the important topics of protecting and making a positive difference for wildlife worldwide.

When I was an assistant principal, I made arrangements and took grades 4-8 to see Earth and Oceans on two different Earth Days. It was a great way to celebrate and reinforce awareness of global issues. The kids loved both movies and felt it was a real treat to go to the movies on a school day. The theater made special arrangements and gave us a wonderful package of ticket, soda and popcorn for $5 per student.

I’m especially excited about this year’s movie Chimpanzee. As you may know, I volunteer at the Center for Great Apes in Wachula, Florida,  which is a sanctuary for Orangutans and Chimpanzees who were formally in the entertainment industry, non accredited zoos, research facilities or were exotic pets. In all cases, once they became bigger and more dangerous, they were no longer wanted. The Center provides them a safe, enriching environment in which to live out their natural lives in as close to the wild as possible. The love and care they receive is inspiring and the people who run the Center are awesome, dedicated people! It’s a privilege to volunteer there.

I’m hoping every parent will bring their children to see this movie. I hope adults will see it as well. It’s so important that we become aware and involved in the humane treatment of animals. Watching Disney Nature allows us to see these creatures in the wild and within their family groupings. We can come to know them and understand the universal interconnectedness of all living things.

For more information visit:

http://disney.go.com/disneynature/chimpanzee/#/movies/chimpanzee

http://disney.go.com/disneynature/chimpanzee/#/videos/chimpanzee

http://www.centerforgreatapes.org/

ANGRY BIRDS

Marion Pellicano Ambrose

Angry Birds; they’re everywhere!  Since the release of the app Angry Birds in December 2009, people everywhere are flinging these little birds at pigs and knocking down structures in an effort to rescue stolen eggs. Over 12 million copies of the game have been purchased from Apple's App Store, which has prompted the company to design versions for other touchscreen-based smartphones, such as those using the Android operating system, among others. The developer, Rovio Mobile has supported Angry Birds with numerous free updates that add additional game content, and the company has even released stand-alone holiday and promotional versions of the game.

The game has become so popular, that one of this Christmas season’s top selling toys is the Angry Birds Plush toy. You can also get Angry Bird toys for your dog. I bought the red bird frisbee for Dudley, our Corgi! I also bought a bird and some pigs to put in my husband’s stocking since he’s addicted to Angry Birds!

According to Wikipedia, (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angry_Birds)  several updates and special editions of the game have been released.

Angry Birds Seasons:In October 2010, Rovio released a special Halloween edition of game. Angry Birds Halloween, exclusive to iOS at the time and a separate application from the main game, included new levels with Halloween-themed music and graphics. In December 2010, Rovio released Angry Birds Seasons to iOS, Android and Symbian^3 devices. Seasons introduced 25 Christmas-themed levels, one for each day leading to the holiday, similar to an Advent calendar.All versions include the previously-exclusive Halloween levels and are offered as separate, stand-alone paid applications, with the exception of the free, ad-supported Android version; Angry Birds Halloween users on iOS received the Seasons levels as a free upgrade.  The Halloween version was given the episode title "Trick or Treat," while the Christmas episode was entitled "Season's Greedings." In February 2011, Rovio released a new Valentine's Day update to Angry Birds Seasons, entitled "Hogs and Kisses," complete with new themed levels and graphics, as well as the option to send Angry Birds-themed Valentine's Day messages through Facebook. In March 2011, Rovio released a new St. Patrick's Day update, entitled "Go Green, Get Lucky," followed by an Easter update, entitled "Easter Eggs," in April 2011 and a summer update, "Summer Pignic," in June 2011. In September 2011, "Mooncake Festival" was released in conjunction with the Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival. In October 2011, "Ham'O'Ween" was released and introduced a new orange bird, known as the globe bird. In December 2011, "Wreck the Halls" was released with 25 Christmas-theme levels also arranged in an Advent calendar setting.

 Angry Birds Rio: Rovio launched Angry Birds Rio in March 2011. In this version, based on the 20th Century Fox animated film Rio, the Angry Birds characters appear in Rio de Janeiro and interact with characters from the film. Angry Birds Rio initially included two chapters including a warehouse chapter entitled "Smuggler's Den" and a jungle chapter entitled "Jungle Escape", but it has been updated with additional chapters and levels including a beach chapter entitled "Beach Volley", a carnival chapter entitled "Carnival Upheaval", an airfield chapter entitled "Airfield Chase", and one more chapter as Smugglers Plane. Since release, Angry Birds Rio has been downloaded more than 10 million times.

 Angry Birds Magic: A special version of the game, called Angry Birds Magic, will be developed exclusively for Nokia's NFC-enabled Symbian devices. This version of the game will include functionality that will unlock game levels upon contact with another NFC-enabled phone running the game. A free version of Angry Birds Magic will come preinstalled with all NFC Symbian devices to be sold in 2011, starting with the Nokia C7.

Angry Birds has been praised for its successful combination of addictive gameplay, comical style, and low price. Its popularity led to versions of Angry Birds being created for personal computers and gaming consoles, a market for merchandise featuring its characters and even long-term plans for a feature film or television series. With a combined 500 million downloads across all platforms and including both regular and special editions, the game has been called "one of the most mainstream games out right now", "one of the great runaway hits of 2010", and "the largest mobile app success the world has seen so far”

It seems that these angry little birds will continue to be flung from slingshots to destroy funny little pigs for some time to come!

MAKING MARIJUANA LEGAL

Marion Pellicano Ambrose

Washington State has already made marijuana legal for medicinal purposes. If they get their way, initiative 502 will make marijuana legal for all, but production and distribution will be strictly controlled by the Washington State Liquor Control Board.

Supporters of the initiative are scheduled to submit a petition to the Secretary of State’s office in Olympia on December 29^th. The measure needs 241,153 valid voter signatures to guarantee a position on Washington State’s 2012 ballot.

In a statement of purpose, supporters wrote:

“We are united in the belief that Washington should stop wasting law enforcement resources on adults who use marijuana, and instead create a tightly regulated system that generates tax revenue for our state and local governments,” If I-502 qualifies for the ballot, it will be sent to the Washington state Legislature.”

The Legislature can enact it into law, or refer it to the ballot, or reject it. If not enacted, the proposal goes to a vote of the people.

 What do you think? Should Marijuana be legalized for medicinal purposes, for everyone, or not at all?