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Happy Thanksgiving, watch Welcome to Eden!

Thanksgiving is a time for food and family, but for some of us we would rather be on our digital devices. I have found a perfect way to combine films with Thanksgiving. Most films about Thanksgiving are about the family disaster that happens during the meal. These movies are funny, but you’ve seen them hundreds of  times. What you really need is a film like Welcome to Eden. It has nothing to do with Thanksgiving exactly, it’s a documentary which will make you thankful for every mouthful of food you have eaten. That extra helping mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie will even more appreciated, after watching Welcome to Eden. This documentary focuses on a local urban farm in LA that is being forced to shut down. Many activists, including Willie Nelson, Joan Baez, and Daryl Hannah, were there to lend their support.

Thanksgiving is a time for sharing what you have with those less fortunate. There are 2.6 million children who will die as a direct result of hunger. The native Americans helped the colonists survive the long winter with food. The world has enough food to feed everyone, but it's unprofitable. Try something new this year and get everyone to watch Welcome to Eden, they will be better people for the watching.

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Happy International Aura Awareness Day!

November 22nd is International Aura Awareness Day, a day to help create awareness of the vital role auras have in our lives. Auras exist as an energy field around living things, and there are different types of auras depending on your emotional, or physical state. Many people are still skeptical about auras, which maybe why this holiday was first celebrated in 2002. Aura’s have been a part religions for hundreds of years. In Christianity, auras have been depicted in paintings as a gold halo around an individual's head, like in portraits of Jesus, above. There are many examples of the “holy halo” in the Bible; mostly it is referred to as a light. "The Lord is the source of my light and my safety, so whom shall I fear?" Psalm 26:1 In India, scholars of the Buddhist and Hindu religions think that there’s a link between Auras and Chakras and Kundalini energy. These are specific point on the body that energy flows through and to. There are seven Chakra points on the human body from the The Crown Centre, which is above the head to the Muladhara or Base Centre, at the base of the spine.

Aura’s come in many different colors that mean different things. For example, dark auras are an indication of physical, emotional or psychological problems and trauma. British occultist W.E Butler found that clairvoyant individuals can see and accurately diagnose a person's state of mind, and well being, by the color of their auras. Each color has a positive and negative aspect, for example a red positive aura indicates good health or good circulations, while a negative red aura means anger, anxiety, and/or fear. A positive blue aura means the individual is at peace, and spiritually open, and a negative blue aura is a fear of telling the truth. An orange positive aura signifies a perfectionist, while a negative one means you have a lack of ambition. Getting an accurate reading takes a trained seer and an openness to the spiritual energies. If you are interested about this subject you should watch the documentary Inspired by Angels, which goes into more detail on the angels and auras, distributed by World Wide Motion Pictures Corporation.

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Veteran’s Day : Citizen Soldier

Veteran’s Day is coming up and what better way to spend it than climbing on the couch with a loved one to watch a movie? Dean Stockwell stars in “Citizen Soldier,” a compassionate tale about a Vietnam veteran who learns to deal with his past and gains hope for his future.  If you’re looking for something less dramatic and bit more surreal, catch Stockwell, along with Michael Cera and John C. Reilly in their new film, “Entertainment,” following the life of an old and aging comedian looking to revamp his career. While it won’t teach you much about compassion, it’s sure to entertain. Each movie follows the protagonist in a crucial point in his life, one just returning from war and feeling suicidal, and the other at the end of his career and feeling lost. Despite their prickly pasts and bleak futures, each looks for some sort of change and with the help of family and friends, they may just do that.

Enjoy your Veteran's day, and thank a Veteran!

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Dia de Los Muertos

Halloween is over, but don’t put those candles out just quite yet, because November 1st is the beginning of the two-day Mexican holiday, Dia de los Muertos. A ritual that dates back 3000 years.

Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, is a day to remember, honor, and celebrate the lives of lost loved ones.

Day one is dedicated to, and honors the lives of children who have died. It is known as, Dia de los Inocentes. Friends and family members decorate the graves of children who they have lost with white orchids.

Day two is Dia de los Muertos, and it honors adults by decorating their graves with bright orange marigolds.

Along with decorating graves, friends and families put out ofrendas, which are personal altars that honor a person. People put out flowers, candles, food, drinks, photos, and personal mementos of the person  being remembered.

It is a celebration of life festival that pays respect to the deceased. Much like the Chinese film, “The Nightingale.”

In China’s 2015 submission to the Academy awards, “The Nightingale” tells the story of a grandfather and granddaughter on a journey through China with a bird that they want to set free at the grandmother's grave to honor a promise that the grandfather made to the grandmother before she passed away.

“The Nightingale” is set to release in select US theaters on Friday, November 6th.

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Five Family Friendly Halloween Films to Watch (And Five Not So Family Friendly Movies)

It’s that spooky time of year again, and are you having trouble deciding what movies to watch with your family and loved ones during Halloween? There’s fun, wacky, happy (sometimes even magical) Halloween films out there that make us feel good about the holiday season. But then there are some films that are just filled with too much terror, death, and are way too gross to watch for the young ones. Here are five must watch movies on the list, as well as five movies to avoid viewing with your children, listed in no particular order.

Hocus Pocus (1993)

This movie really proves that any demonic entity (witches, goblins, ghouls etc.) can be portrayed as lovable protagonists.There isn't too much violence, and the witches' magic that takes place is more mischievous and good natured than it is malicious or diabolical. This film is not too creepy for the scaredy cat of the family. Fire this movie up, and cast a magical spell on the little ones with this enthralling tale.

Ernest Scared Stupid (1991)

Ernest is about as goofy as it gets. This movie is so vanilla, even grandma can watch it without being offended by any of Ernest's eccentric antics. This movie is a good tool to get hyperactive children to sit down and watch a character who is more spazzed out than they are.

The Monster Squad (1987)

This 80's film captures what it really was like to grow up during Dracula's rise back into power, which was easily thwarted by a group of Goonies wannabes. The whole family can enjoy this film, especially when the fat kid kicks the Wolfman in the "nards". Nards was probably the first slang word some people learned that described a certain part of the human anatomy. This film was as educational as it was entertaining. Try to watch it at least once with a little brother or cousin!

Casper: The Friendly Ghost (1995)

Casper: the Friendly Ghost. What could possibly be scary in this film, knowing that Casper is friendly right off the bat? Ghosts usually are pretty angry over something they can’t let go of, but not Casper! I don't know, but that fact alone makes this an easy watch with the rest of the family. The audience probably won't remember the plot of it a week later, but it is good harmless fun for the viewers during the month of October.

The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)

If you can't trust Disney to get a family cartoon about Halloween right, who can you trust?Jack Skellington is as lovable as Rocky Balboa, and I really can't think of a character who has cleanly gotten away with ruining Christmas for everyone around him besides the Grinch. There is no reason why families shouldn't watch this with their loved ones. Even if all the clay monsters makes them feel a bit uneasy at first.

 

Five Not So Family Friendly Halloween Films

Killer Klowns from Outer Space (1988)

This movie seems cute and cuddly at first, but it takes a very dark turn when the clowns decide to exterminate all the earthlings. One of the most traumatic moments had to be the cotton candy cocoons the Clowns were trapping their victims inside. Films like this are the reasons why parents and their children develop severe cases of clown phobia.

Hellraiser (1987)

“Hellraiser” is one of those movies that one friend tricks another friend into viewing, just to watch them squirm. Nothing is creepier than intergalactic demons whose sadistic intentions are equally as disturbing as the cinematography and set design. The weird zombie husband protagonist is absolutely morbid. Pinhead might look funny, but there is nothing to laugh about in this film at all.

Halloween - Rob Zombie Remake (2007)

John Carpenter’s original film, "Halloween" was scary, but there was something about mega rockstar/director Rob Zombie's vision of a troubled child's mind was just really unsettling. Malcolm McDowell plays Michael Myers' criminal psychiatrist, and his character added the unusual element that even the protagonists in the film are creepy as hell. Go watch “Friday the 13th” instead.

The Thing (1982)

The fact that a shapeshifter was killing the entire cast in the Antarctic tundra wasn't the part that was disturbing about this film. It was the high quality animatronics which makes this film almost unbearable to watch for small, impressionable children. The human-spider head that runs around like a chicken on fire is a good enough reason to pass on this horror flick. It’s no doubt the most horrible scene in a film ever created with muppets.

Cube (1997)

This movie really did mess up my head growing up. The best way to describe "Cube" to those unaware is a futuristic version of the horror flick "Saw", but very little questions are answered about it. Usually films like this give some sort of closure at the end, but just thinking about it makes me feel as uneasy as the first time I remember watching it. “Cube” is a movie about a death trap filled labyrinth, which random acts of violence happen, underlined by the feeling of no hope of escaping. Family members should not watch "Cube" unless there was something more comfortable to view, like "Hostel" or "The Human Centipede". This film was more mentally exhausting than both those films combined. Don’t even think about watching it.

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Happy Make A Difference Day!

Hopefully we can all be inspired to make a difference in the lives of others, not just on this day but every day. A few movies that are inspirational are The Lovely Patient and Ways to Live Forever. Both these movies demonstrate how important it is to make a difference in others’ lives and to restore faith in humanity. The Lovely Patient (2014), directed by Sylvester Folks, tells the story of a young man who goes to great lengths to get a job in order to support his sick mother. As he embarks on this task, he meets a few other characters too whom he touches the hearts of and lends a helping hand. The boy, Leonard, played by Joseph Glenn is a truly lovable character who will restore your faith in humanity.

The movie Ways to Live Forever (2010) directed by Gustavo Ron, teaches that we have the power to make differences in others’ lives and they can make a difference in ours, even for just a short time. The main character Sam, played by Robbie Kay teaches us what it means to be alive and the impact we can have on others’ lives, especially our parents and friends. So, this make a difference day, show someone you care about them and make a difference in someone’s life. Or just see one of these great movies!