Melissa's Idea Garden

When I saw previews for The Changeling, my ears immediately perked up to listen because one of my favorite scary movies is The Changeling with George C. Scott. I thought at first this was to be a remake.

But, as I listened and watched, I realized that this was a different animal all together. It was based on a true story and directed by Clint Eastwood. So last night, Daniel and I sat down to watch it. If you enjoy true story movies, you will probably like this movie. Let me tell you that it is not for those weak in the stomach and if you absolutely cannot stand anything with violence to children, you may want to skip it.

The story starts out with a mom and her son and very soon the son is missing. Months later, the LAPD brings this woman another child who she says is not her son and despite the overwhelming physical evidence, the LAPD says she is mistaken. The way the system treats this woman is an appalling story. I was on the edge of my seat throughout the movie and we give it two thumbs up or five stars:)

Posted by Melissa Markham at 7:38 AM | Permalink

I don't know if it is because warmer temperatures are in the air or if it all started with a lucky find at the local Goodwill, but the kids and I have been busy this last week.

The carpet in our den is old and frayed. It is a main thoroughfare for the house, it is 15 1/2 years old, and quite honestly it is threadbare:) But the den is one of our fullest rooms. There are four filled floor to ceiling bookshelves, three desks (one for me and one for each of the kids), a piano, a printer tower, a recumbent bike, and a couple of other smaller shelves. And since our domicile is overall on the small side, the thought of where we were going to put all of that stuff while new carpet was put down was a bit overwhelming and then of course there was the whole moving of the stuff. So, I found an area rug that covered the worst of the bare spots for 20.00! And now I can look at my den floor without cringing.

Well, once something like that happens other things start happening. I picked up a new chair for Katrina at the Goodwill. Then when we went to my dad's this weekend, we came home with a desk with 7 drawers for Katrina...7 drawers, people! My daughter, who loves to keep everything is sooooo happy! The problem was that where we wanted to put her desk was a horizontal filing cabinet that was no longer in use and a small white telephone type shelf that holds our telephone books and other asundry items. Well, we found new homes for those items, one in the den, and one as a replacement to an old tv cart that sits between our living room and dining room. Now all of our karaoke stuff fits inside the old filing cabinet and it won't be dusty anymore either:) And the tv cart, which still had some life in it was wheeled into Jack's room to help organize a pile of stuff.

So then the outside shots...some cleaning of the sidewalk needed to be done (I should have taken before pictures, but so often I don't think of that until I am taking the after pictures). So the kids went out and picked up dozens of sticks that the dogs had left laying on the sidewalk, and they picked up the remnants of some doggie toys, and they pushed rocks back to where they were supposed to be. Doesn't it look grand (see shots above).

So, now things will settle down for a bit, though I am looking for more area rugs and bookshelves for Jack and Katrina's rooms....

Posted by Melissa Markham at 3:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

I always love to hear good news in the animal kingdom. There are two stories so far this week that I thought I would share.

1. A picture of a Jaguar in the U.S.

2. a picture of a giant stingray

Posted by Melissa Markham at 3:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

I was sent a link to this video. At first I started watching it, and I thought it was a little inane. But as I continued watching, I began to smile. It is a marvelous testament that around the world, there are people who will join in a project and have some fun.

We live on such a wonderful planet full of wonderful and loving people. Too bad, that we spend so much of our time focusing on the bad. Thanks for the smile, Matt (and your cast of thousands!)

Posted by Melissa Markham at 1:17 PM | Permalink

My experience with vitamins goes back over 30 years. I remember spending the night with a friend in school who had a mother who only made homemade bread (and let me tell you it was some of the best bread I have ever tasted), who didn't let her eat doritos (WHAT???) and who gave her vitamins every day! At the age of 10, I was thinking this was pretty kooky behavior.

Fast forward about 15 years. My hubby began researching the whole vitamin scene. And he began taking vitamins. Lots of them. I chuckled. We joked about how when he died that he would be a miracle to modern scientist because he would have the best internal organs. Did I mention that my hubby rarely gets sick...hmmm....

Slowly, I have incorporated some vitamins into my diet. The obligatory calcium, flax seed oil, glucosamine (which has worked miracles on my bad knee), a daily vitamin, and Omega 3. Daniel takes way more than that and I am always amazed at the continuing evidence that shows up supporting his choices. I knew he was smart when I married him, but it gets reinforced just about every day.

Anyway...today he sent me an article about Omega 3 (which was recommended to me to take by my doctor due to high cholesterol last year). And it is a long article. Anyone who knows me knows that I run away at the sight of long articles on the computer, but I read it. Every word. And I was amazed! For some people who have made the move to free range chickens and beef, this will be further evidence that they were making the right choice. For the rest of us, it is a wake up call. We are what we eat, and even if we have been trying to eat healthy, the industrialization of agriculture is conspiring against us. So take time, read this article and then make some changes! You, your family and your descendants will be glad you did!

Posted by Melissa Markham at 8:40 AM | Permalink

Last night the kids and I watched an oldie but a goodie! They had never seen Bedknobs and Broomsticks, but it was a favorite of mine when I was growing up along with Mary Poppins and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. So I had put this in my handy dandy Netflix queue and this week it arrived.

Angela Lansbury does a lovely job as always in this entertaining Walt Disney film where we are treated to a juxtaposition of animation and real life special effects. The story is an enjoyable one and the kids laughed at all the right spots (you worry about that sometimes with these older films). The movie is 2 hours and 19 minutes long, but the kids sat there, enraptured, through the whole thing.

So if your children haven't seen this age old film, I highly recommend it for your next family movie night!

Posted by Melissa Markham at 9:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

National Geographic is reporting about "Nanofoods" that may be just over the horizon. Nanofoods could be a nutritional break through in that they allow for us to have the flavor of the foods (isn't that what we are after when we eat) without as many calories. There is still a lot of research to be done, but it is a very interesting concept. Slip over to National Geographic to learn more!

Posted by Melissa Markham at 5:18 AM | Permalink

Check out this 16 foot tall Pharoah made with over 200,000 Legos! Amazing!

Posted by Melissa Markham at 9:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

After reading Randy Singer's book, Directed Verdict, I was eager to have the opportunity to read more of his work.

By Reason of Insanity is excellent! Mr. Singer catches court room drama at its most intense. When a person was accused of horrific crimes, I just knew it had to be a set up, but when I found out the rest of the story, I was blown away! I didn't even see it coming! This is a story of justice, sacrifice and a gift from God. It is fast paced, extremely well written and will keep you turning pages until you reach the satisfying ending!

So if you would like to read this awesome book and you live in the U.S., go ahead and leave a comment below and I will have a drawing bright and early Monday, March 2, 2009.

You can just say something like...hey, I'd love to win, or you can leave a more in depth comment to make me laugh or ponder (those are always appreciated)! I will choose the name using a random number generator!

Posted by Melissa Markham at 2:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (16)

Well, the changes continue. I hate coding! I was so tickled when I first switched style sheets that my blog still had all of the links I had put in and everything. I had saved the information off to the side in notepad just in case. But when it was all still there, I said 'great' and deleted it. But I couldn't get my picture out of my header. I worked at it and worked at it and I found two symbols that shouldn't be in the header code "> so I deleted them and then the picture was gone, but dang it so was everything else!!!!!!

GRRR! Plus my header isn't as large as it should be for some reason as you can tell by the cropped city photo and I still don't have captcha set up (which was one of my main reasons for doing the upgrade because I am sick and tired of the pornographic spam that I have to peruse looking for good comments). So, it is still a work in progress. If I was linked to your blog before, send me an email (melissa markham at take the mat period com) for your button and I will try to get those back on my blog once I get the rest of this nonsense sorted out.

Posted by Melissa Markham at 10:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

We have upgraded to a new version of MT. There are going to be some changes and we are working out some bugs, so bear with us. This post is so I can see if I can:)

Posted by Melissa Markham at 12:12 PM | Permalink

"We aren't going to Guam, are we?" - Frank, the pilot.

Posted by Melissa Markham at 8:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

I acquired this book during our visit to Chicago last summer. I had read years ago about the horrible Dr. H.H. Holmes and I wanted to read more about it and about the World's Fair that took place in Chicago. Erik Larson's book did not disappoint and in fact I have become a fan of Mr. Larson and plan to read more of his books in the future. This book is chock full of historical information. I was amazed at all of the things that came into being because of the World's Fair. What a feat that its very existence was. And then mixed in with the thrill and frustrations of one of the most famous events to ever take place in America, was the madness and cunning of a very evil man. The juxtaposition of evil and goodness, ugliness and beauty makes this book a fascinating read. I highly recommend it if you are interested in history or the criminal mind. But if you are squeamish, you might want to steer clear of this book about this famous serial killer (or just read the chapters about the fair and Larson goes back and forth throughout the book).

Posted by Melissa Markham at 7:57 AM | Permalink

Here is another treasure I found on Netflix. I really enjoyed this movie. I found it to be interesting and suspenseful. It is a long movie, clocking in at 172 minutes.

From the Netflix movie jacket:

Television Armand Mastroianni helms this faithful adaptation of Phillip M. Margolin's best-selling novel, co-startting Brooke Shields, Lou Diamond Phillips and Marilu Henner. When an Oregon woman disappears without a trace, the only clue is a withering black rose with a note that reads 'gone but not forgotten' Now it is up to a tough female attorney to follow the evidence, find a missing private eye and unravel the mystery.

I am not sure about the Oregon part since the story takes place in Sacramento and New York. This is a story of heinous crime, injustice, and how the past comes back to kick us in the butt. I also enjoyed seeing the way the lawyers and paralegals were at work, though I have no idea of how accurate that part was.

Not everyone likes the movie Gone But Not Forgotten, so you will have to check it out for yourself.

Posted by Melissa Markham at 5:27 PM | Permalink

Ginger got neutered last week and after a very long 10 days of having her under our feet, she is now back outside with Plato (thank goodness!)

I took my first Family Law test Wednesday. I was worried about it, but I am pretty sure I got an A.

The kids got all of their school work done this week.

We are making good progress with their science projects, Art Show projects and 4H Photo Projects.

I took the Xterra today for its yearly inspection and there was nothing wrong with it (hey, it doesn't get much better than that!)

Battlestar Glactica is awesome.

Last week I signed up for Facebook after several of my highschool classmates invited me. Since then, I have reconnected with about 3 dozen high school classmates, a dozen college friends, a babysitter from when I was a youngster, and a couple of co-workers.

Tonight I finished a 5 1/2 hour game of Civilization with Jack. Jack loves playing Civilization. And he knows all the tricks. His strategy is pretty much to rule the world. My strategy is to build all I can and be friends with everyone and win a diplomatic victory. So tonight, I was ahead by about 500 points. I was getting all the wonders built, some just turns before Jack, so he started sending in spies to infiltrate my cities and destroy my advances. Then, he got really frustrated and just decided to bomb me. And since each of my cities only had a couple of military personnel in them, I was falling quickly. So I did the only thing I could in such a situation. I gave all of my cities to Frederick of the Germans....(showed him, didn't I)? LOL!

Posted by Melissa Markham at 10:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)