THANKSGIVING – More Holiday Tips

Saturday, November 21st, 2009 | Our Best Advice | No Comments

For all children everywhere, according to Franklin, The Thanksgiving Turkey (from Animal Crossing games), Thanksgiving is the worst day for Turkeys. Thanksgiving (United States) is celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November, so people will be having a feast to give thanks. Before anyone else knows it Franklin realizes he’s actually the main course. Should he “duck” for cover (cute), or find a way to steal the silverware so you won’t eat him. But the actual story of the holiday as told is fraught with factual error. According to Dr. Benjamin Ehrlich, former exec VP of the Plymouth Plantation Museum in Massachusetts, the first Thanksgiving didn’t take place in November, and they didn’t eat Turkey, they ate eel.

Our advice for this Thanksgiving, a good TIP will do instead. Don’t eat the Turkey, let it remain plump and Gobbly, and celebrate a future of thanks for creative new holidays to come. Towards a new future view futurist/inventor/artist/architect Jacques Fresco as he envisioned. Working most of his adult life to create The Venus Project as an example of new possibilities, Fresco is a student of several inter-related fields. A prolific inventor, (now 92 years young) he conceived and devised inventions on various scales which entail innovative technology, along the lines Bucky Fuller and Paolo Soleri also invented for their future cities.

With his multi talented abilities Fresco imagined a new Earth, created in his conceptualized theories in all aspects of cultures and resources on this planet. See futurist Jacque Fresco and his compelling vision to inspire your Thanksgiving. Director William Gazecki presents a brief intro of his film as a wonderful appreciation to behold.

Sometimes it’s good to remember and be grateful for quotes preserved that come down to us. Such as: “The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.” -Alvin Toffler.

The great 20th century scientist and patent holder of the geodesic dome, Buckminster Fuller, was one of my deep inspirations growing up. One of Fuller’s greatest quotes is truly appropriate for our current times: “Neither the great political and financial power structures of the world, nor the specialization-blinded professionals, nor the population in general realize that sum-totally the omni-engineering-integratable, invisible revolution in the metallurgical, chemical, and electronic arts now makes it possible to do so much more with ever fewer pounds and volumes of material, ergs of energy, and seconds or time per given technological function that it is now highly feasible to take care of everybody on Earth at a ‘higher standard of living than any have ever known.’ ” I know that’s a lot of reading for a blog post, but rather then just doing more ritual…

Learn another way to celebrate, by becoming proactive with your imagination, and go GREEN. As Bucky put it in so many memorable quotes from his book Critical Path: “Within the crises times immediately ahead – into which we have already entered the computer is soon to respond. “We must integrate the world’s electrical-energy networks.”, and, “World Gaming discloses that humanity will perish on this planet if the sovereignty of nations is not abandoned and if the World Game’s world around computerized time-energy accounting is not forthwith inaugurated. The first step in bringing about the desovereignization will be the closing of the gaps in the world electric power grid. The world-unifying electric power accounting will be the beginning of the omnienergy accounting for world economic management.” (Page 202)

** There are now about 200 countries on our planet.

All of us at ISA share thanks for the planet we live on and a future thanksgiving tomorrow. This holiday we will be giving extra special thanks and gratitude to The Beverly Hills Fire Department, an amazing team of truly heroic men and women. Happy Thanksgiving!

Serving Los Angeles, West Hollywood, Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Brentwood, Bel Air, Benedict Canyon, Torrance, Hancock Park, Laurel Canyon, Los Feliz, Marina Del Rey, Malibu, Pacific Palisades, Melrose. Santa Monica, Sherman Oaks, Studio City, Encino, Woodland Hills, Topanga Canyon, Westwood, Hollywood Hills, Pasadena, San Mareno, Santa Barbara, Orange County, Ventura County, California, New York, & the greater United States…

Our Best Advice has been brought to you by www.ISAstaffing.com, renowned Best of The Best in Household Work and Domestic Help staffing. Visit often for other great ideas, use our Tell A Friend featured link to this blog, and our Domestic Staffing website to pass our HOT TIPS and renowned services. THANKS!

Tags: Buckminster Fuller, Bucky Fuller, CHEFS, Cooks, domestic help staffing, events, Events Staffing, Franklin The Thanksgiving Turkey, GREEN, Holiday, Jacques Fresco, Natural Health and Cooking, Paolo Soleri, Party Planners, Planet Earth, sustainable resources, Thanksgiving, Thanksgiving 2009, The Venus Project, William Gazecki

GREEN HALLOWEEN – Great Tips

Saturday, October 17th, 2009 | Our Best Advice | No Comments

HALLOWEEN (also spelled Hallowe’en) is an annual holiday celebrated on October 31. Also known as All Saints’ Day, it is considered a secular (non-religious) celebration, but some people feel the holiday has pagan religious overtones because of its roots. Halloween is also called All Hallows or Hallowmas in celebration of saints associated with Christianity. It’s become a universally loved holiday that many use as an opportunity to dress in their favorite hero character outfits. For others (as it was originally intended), Halloween is time to deal with “evil spirits”, archetypal dark images symbolic of human history’s shadow side. This includes dressing as characters from Science Fiction and Horror films. Today, Halloween is celebrated in many countries East and West. Our TIP is to have a Green Halloween and encourage everyone you know to do the same. For more information about our services as it relates to our ISA TIPS BLOG, visit our Domestic Staffing website).

The colors orange and black with symbols like JACK-0-LANTERN PUMPKINS carved out, is strongly associated with this holiday. Along with wearing costumes of ghosts, skeletons, whatever “terrifies”, going with children around the neighborhood to “trick-or-treat”, attending costume parties (Universal Studios hosts Halloween Eve), ghost tours, bonfires, visiting haunted attractions, acting out and reading aloud scary stories, and watching horror films to “scare oneself” (or each other) to take the edge off whatever fears might “plague”, by using our creative imagination to dissolve them.

If you’re in Hawaii on Halloween Night, the highly experienced John McCreary (who played at Saint Andrews Cathedral for decades and performed at Notre Dame in Paris), will play at Hawaii Theatre in accompaniment with the wonderful 1923 silent film The Hunchback of Notre Dame (see 1939 trailer starring Charles Laughton as Hunchback) For Halloween’s chocolate loving folks (like me), chocolatier Oliver Kita created several goodies including individual colorful bon bons, great organic ghosts, and my favorite; shoes: one for The Wicked Witch of the West, and one for The Good Witch, to satisfy several versions of your preferred chocolate treat (see our post  Organic Flowers floral shoes)

This fanciful holiday celebration was traditionally done to remember there is a thin line between humans and evil spirits that might come to haunt. The need to ward off harmful spirits led to wearing costumes and masks as part of the rituals practiced, their purpose to disguise oneself as a harmful spirit, thereby avoiding harm (reminds me of the film Orpheo Negro, a classic Brazilian movie with a hot samba soundtrack; hear jazz-bossa-nova main theme version Paul Desmond recorded in 1963). There is no better way to go Green Halloween then with Organic Materials supporting that message to others. One of the classics is making a HALLOWEEN SCARECROW from hay, straw, pumpkins, and old used clothing, like this clever one above (my nephews would like this one…) Don’t forget using recycled crayons for decorating your pumpkin, or for organic clothing for baby, available at Habitots (link: Have an Earth-Friendly, Etsy Halloween)

Although HALLOWEEN is mostly a holiday for children to make believe (I know people who do this all year long), many adults go to great lengths creating costumes and holding competitions or giving themed event parties. However you celebrate, encourage everyone to play in a safe and green way, make/buy organic treats, wear costumes that don’t contain harmful plastic or other toxic materials, and remember fire laws wherever you are, including having on hand a quick to get to Fire Extinguisher in your home and office.

Starting as a kid I’ve made masks from food, natural materials, found objects, stage and fx makeup, whatever let my imagination soar (also guaranteeing nobody else will have the same mask). Stores are filled with mass-produced costly Halloween decorations that aren’t very original. Why spend money on plastic junk when you can use things you have around the house to make your own creepy concoctions? GO GREEN by skipping the shopping spree; instead have a fun-filled weekend craft marathon with friends, family, kids, and pets too.

Another great TIP? Having a party? Our suggestion is put a green hand in your punch bowl.

Make a Green Ice Hand

Things You’ll Need:

• Latex Gloves
• Water
• Green vegetable food dye
• Punch Bowl or container of choice

PREPARATION: Fill a pitcher with filtered water to which you added green vegetable dye. Fill your glove with the green water and tie off the end really well by folding it over a couple of times tightly, then clipping it shut securely. Place the glove into a bowl (for any dripping) and put into freezer for 24 hours. Remove glove and voila! A GREEN hand to go with your brew (you can also add green dye to the liquid of your choice if it’s light colored). Each time someone dips into the punch, a green hand will float, and keep your liquid cold.

Finally, let’s not forget the amazing art for scary story book covers. Some of my favorites are by ED VALIGURSKY (who I learned died on Sept. 7th at age 82). We wish Valigursky a peaceful passing to The Other Shore, and thank him for his contribution of images to science fiction art work– well known by those of us passionate about Sci-Fi. Valigursky (or “Valla”, as he signed his artwork), is an important science fiction artist. His art covers created for magazines (Amazing Stories, If, Fantastic Adventures), and paperback covers (Ace and others) during the 1950s-1960s, were an integral part of SF history illustrations. I love his Dance Macabre series (selling on eBay among other science fiction works). Valla was known for his images of robots and machines, but went on to an even more successful career in historical and military illustration. To fans of science fiction he’ll always be known among the great SF artists of the 50s-60s period.

HAVE A HAPPY GREEN HALLOWEEN!

Serving Los Angeles, West Hollywood, Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Brentwood, Bel Air, Benedict Canyon, Torrance, Hancock Park, Laurel Canyon, Los Feliz, Marina Del Rey, Malibu, Pacific Palisades, Melrose. Santa Monica, Sherman Oaks, Studio City, Encino, Woodland Hills, Topanga Canyon, Westwood, Hollywood Hills, Pasadena, San Mareno, Santa Barbara, Orange County, Ventura County, California, New York, & the greater United States…

Our Best Advice has been brought to you by www.ISAstaffing.com, renowned Best of The Best in Household Work and Domestic Help staffing. Visit often for other great ideas, use our Tell A Friend featured link to this blog, and our Domestic Staffing website to pass our HOT TIPS and renowned services. THANKS!

Tags: BEVERLY HILLS, California, Celebration, Chocolate, Costumes, Dance Macabre, events, film, Ghosts, GREEN, green hand recipe, Halloween, Halloween Chocolate, Halloween Eve, Halloween Fashion, Holiday, Holidays, Hollywood, Hunchback Of Notre Dame, Jack-O-Lantern, Masks, movie, Oliver Kita, organic, Organic Chocolate, Organic Halloween, Orpheo Negro, Pumpkins, Saint Saens, Scarecrow, Sci-Fi, Science Fiction, secular holidays, SF, Skeletons, Soundtracks, TIPS, Valigursky, Valla, Witches