LOOKING FORWARD TO OSCAR

Movies have always been a huge part of my life. I guess it is no accident that I am living in the LA/Hollywood movie scene of the world. For the past month the TURNER CLASSIC MOVIE channel has been featuring all these fabulous movies which have won Oscars for best picture. It is like getting (excuse the pun) to eat a "box of chocolates" everyday and filling up on a perpetual flow of goodies.

Now it is time for Oscar 2010 and I am looking forward to the Academy Awards tomorrow night. My choice for best actress is Sandra Bullock in her wonderful, performance in the movie BLINDSIDE. Of course I would love to see  JULIE, JULIA win a few of the awards too. I know this is practically "UN-american" but I have yet to see AVATAR, HURT LOCKER, OR CRAZY HEART so I cannot really comment but AVATAR does seem to be a great cinema breakthrough and achievement.

As a side comment, I do not see why a producer for HURT LOCKER got barred from attending the Oscars for saying what he thought was his truth. Seems a violation of free speech to me. This action coming from the movie industry is hard to understand when the movie makers use their own freedoms to create whatever they please regardless of how much violence in words and actions are used to get their own points across.

Anyway, taking the good with the bad, I am still looking forward to what I am sure will be an amazing night. It is suppose to rain as it is right now. Regardless the stars will shine and I will be here watching all the glitter and glamour of "Oscar and friends."

Haiti: A Place Of Pain and Prayers

Dear Friends,

I come from the land of Earthquakes ... California. And as I watch the images on television and the Internet, I keep thinking "This could easily happen in California."

Experts talk about preparing for an earthquake but how do you really prepare - The quakes come in seconds and go in seconds? - if you do survive - how do you use cell phones that do not work? - how do you breath air thick with fumes and fire and dust? - how do you use your preparation kit if it is buried in rubble and so are you? - how do you cover for safety if you are on a crowded freeway and it collapses? - how do you get help if the first responders are dead and the hospitals are gone?

I think, if we have a major earthquake, just like Haiti, we will be in a
place of pain and prayers, waiting for someone to come and rescue us while we try to survive in a hell of confusion, terror, and desperation.

Just a few months ago, only a mile from where I live, I watched an entire mountain go up in fire, people died, homes were destroyed, once beautiful lands were scorched and scarred, the air was filled with toxic smoke, and yet the real help that people needed did not come when they needed it - just like Katrina - and now just like Haiti?

Why? My only answer is we are all in our humanity imperfect, fearful, greedy, forgetful, mistaken, misdirected, angry. So here we go again an unbelievable disaster - the earthquake - very close to home and yet far away.

In the days to come there will be many opportunities to help with money, supplies, food, prayers and hope for a people who wait to be rescued. Some day it may be you, it may be us, for today it is not. So I plan to give to The Salvation Army, The Red Cross, The United Nations. Where and when will you give?

I pray that each and every person in Haiti today receives the help they need in this very moment and in the moments to come.

Light and Love,
Amber Silverstar

A NEW YEAR FOR BALANCE, ABUNDANCE, AND ADVENTURE

Hello Friends,

Happy New Year 2010 - this New Year promises a return of the "light" which I believe means a lighter attitude towards the seriousness of life's issues which you have been learning from for the past twelve months.

However "lightness" does not mean turning away from accomplishments, dreams, and solutions to problems. In numerology the year is a three. Threes are powerful hard workers. Threes are learning, processing, and planning. Threes are focused goals for balance, abundance, and adventure. You might think of the Trident held by the god Neptune, Lord of the Underworld, or the trinity of father, son and Holy Spirit, or the trinity of maiden, mother, and wise woman. The pyramid is a three figure of power. You can think of threes in your thoughts about time; past, present, and future.

This year 2010 also ask for you to be sensitive to the emotions of others, especially family members. This is an excellent time to work harder at understanding how others might feel before you make decisions about proceeding with your own life.

This could be the year you review the past for anger issues and realize the limited power of anger from the past. This could also be the year to truly learn how to live in the moment - using the power of intuition to propel you forward on your path of greatest joy. As for the future, you could work on a vision board for the year, for five years, for ten years. You create your future through energizing your visions.

Remember to take time to review this past year for what you have experienced from the symbology of not only two but the master number eleven. Did you master how to succeed in your partnerships? Were you a good "team player"? Did you double your efforts in understanding the importance of mastering not only the physical but the metaphysical?

Know as you meditate on where this next year will lead you that 2010 is the number one the second time around. You get a new chance this year for balance, abundance and adventure.

This is my revue or the possibilities of the New Year 2010. Enjoy!

Let me know what you think. Write to amber@ambersilverstar.com.

Light and love,
Amber

HAPPY GREETINGS FOR LOVE AND BEAUTY TO EVERYONE

Hello Friends,

I thought I would catch up with all of you with a greeting of love and beauty from Southern California. I have been as busy as possible to finish all the preparations for Christmas and now I have time for a little news and reflections on current events.

1) Brittany Murphy - how can someone so young be gone so soon? Our prayers, light and love go out to her husband, mother and friends. We loved her work in so many films. We know she is already an angel in her new life.

2) )Health Care - I still think finale passage of the Health Care Bill will be sometime in March. This situation is so personal, there is no way everyone will be happy no matter what bill passes and when.

3) Holiday Movies - Go see BLIND SIDE ... the story is wonderful and SANDRA BULLOCK is perfect. Save seeing Disney's CHRISTMAS CAROL for watching on DVD - don't take younger kids - too dark and too scary. I plan to see DID YOU HEAR ABOUT THE MORGANS?, AVATAR, THE BACK UP PLAN, THE BOUNTY HUNTER, UP IN THE AIR, INVICTUS, AND NINE.

4) TIGER WOODS - This guy is so in need of professional therapy or a serious conversation with former president Bill Clinton. How tragic for his children. This whole "sexual addiction" in my view is epidemic in the world. Sexual addiction, drugs, violence, gangs, child and spousal abuse, genocide, war ... all press the same button marked destruction, evil and death.

5) HAPPY EVENTS ... A new president, improving economy, heroes being honored, cities in repair, new technologies for a better world, progress in curing illnesses of mind, body and spirit. New songs and singers, new art and artist, new creativity and creators, new discoveries and discoverers, new dreams and dreamers ... a whole collage of positive choices and changes by individuals who believe in the good life and a wonderful destiny.

Write and let me know what you think!

amber@ambersilverstar

Love and light,
Amber

The design for this blog is a digital art creation by Amber Silverstar 2009.

WATCHING THE TEARS

Dear Friends,

I watched with sadness on television today as President Obama came to Texas to talk to those who had gathered in shock and grief to bury and mourn the dead of the tragic events of Fort Hood.

I remember once a quote, "Beware the man for whom we make life not worth living." How does one man's life become so not worth living that he would make a choice to destroy not only his own but so many of his own soldiers serving to save others?

The choice to be a Muslim today must be a very scary one. The choice to be Muslim, American, and in the military must be even more difficult - all those life issues coming at you for sorting out; politics, race, creed, religion, philosophy, ethics, your very way of life. How fragmenting it all must be to the mind, heart, soul and spirit.

I think when we make a choice for war, we make a choice for fragmentation just like the bullets, bombs, and all the weapons make a fragmentation of each target they make their mark upon. There just has to be a better way. I pray we can each use words of love and tools of wholeness for a world of harmony, peace, and beauty.

Here is a reprint of a blog I wrote after seeing a young man make these incredible efforts to put his life back together after his own tragic wounds in the Iraq war. Read this and ask your self if you could have the courage to go on if your life were to be shattered the way this soldier's life was shattered - and now the lives of so many others. Then pray that we all have the courage to go forward.

How brave the human spirit can be. I saw a young man on one of the morning shows. He had been injured in the war with Iraq; both his legs were amputated. In his eyes I could see the sorrow but I could also see a soul filled with courage and light. How amazing to have so much taken away and yet still focus on making the most of what surrounds him in his quest to survive. He walks, he drives, he dates, he creates a world of opportunities. There is no bitterness in his words, no resentment in his smile, no revenge in his attitude. Instead, he inspires, he jokes about how his "private parts still work" and how he sees marriage and children in his future. He puts on his leather gloves, he manipulates the hardware that replaces the flesh he once could be so sure of.

He talks about "walking on stilts." I do not believe in war but I do believe in the honesty and honor of the warrior spirit and this young man's pure heart who went to carry out his destiny to do what he believed would defend and protect others so they too could follow their own pathways of truth.

Here indeed is the angel messenger, a living portrait of the dichotomy of battle, in seeking to free and protect others, he looses his own life as he once knew it. I ask with all my heart that he will continue to find the wings of support, love and respect for his courage to set the example of what it must mean to live in the moment, trust in spirit and continue going forward one day and then another and then another.

Light and love,
Amber Silverstar

NEW BOOK FROM AMBER SILVERSTAR

Hello Everyone,

I am really happy to announce the launch for my new book: BRIGHT NATURE OF BEAUTY - pictures and poetry for your spirit. You are invited to check out this wonderful coffee table book full of gorgeous pictures of nature along with original and inspirational poetry. The beautiful photography is done by my creative husband, Steven Olson. The book is published by Lulu Studio in association with Silverstar Media Group, Los Angeles, California.

For over two years we traveled the Southern California coast line - from Santa Barbara to Oceanside, the valleys from Pasadena to Thousand Oaks, and the cities from Los Angeles to Palm Springs - just weekend drives to capture the wonder and the beauty of the nature of Southern California.

Then it took another year and several prototypes to create the look and combination of photography and pictures I felt portrays the vision I to showcase a book inspired by nature. I felt so blessed so many times when the perfect scene, the perfect butterfly, the perfect flower appeared just like magic, over and over again. We took over 3,000 pictures and the book contains more than 100 as the final selection grew out of love, trial and error, technical malfunctions, and finally a product we were happy to offer and to share.

BRIGHT NATURE OF BEAUTY is now available on amazon.com under the title or Amber Silverstar as author. The book is the first in the DESTINY BRIGHT LIFESTYLE SERIES which promotes the concept of "living a mystical life in a mainstream world." Companion products are also featured along with a calendar on http://www.lulu.com/ambersilverstar11 http://www.cafepress.com/brightnature http://www.zazzle.com/fierywordbeing.

A preview of the book is available on http://brightnatureofbeauty.com - take a look see and tell me what you think. I will be posting more pictures from the book along with the poetry in the near future with book signings and special events coming up. So far the reviews are beautiful, insightful, true and touching. I would love to know what your impressions are.

Love and light,
Amber Silverstar
1-310-978-6821

"SWEET" JULIE AND JULIA MOVIE

NORA EPHRON DOES A GREAT JOB WITH DOUBLE BIO PIC JULIE AND JULIA. MERYLL STREEP IS PERFECT AS JULIA CHILDS, FAMOUS FRENCH COOKING CHEF AND ICON FOR VIEWERS OF TV COOKING SHOWS.

AT FIRST I WASN'T SURE IF I LIKED HOW THE MOVIE KEPT SWITCHING BACK AND FORTH BETWEEN THE LIVES OF THE TWO MAIN PERSONALITIES OF JULIE & JULIA BUT FOR SOME MYSTERIOUS REASON THE TECHNIQUE ACTUALLY WORKS. IT COULD BE BECAUSE THE PRIMARY SUBJECT ASIDE FROM THE TWO STARS IS FOOD - PREPARING IT, EATING IT, WRITING ABOUT IT, AND MOST OF ALL LOVING EVERY MORSEL OF EPICUREAN DELIGHT ... AND THIS ISN'T JUST ANY FOOD BUT FRENCH FOOD. (I THINK IN SECRET WE ARE ALL FRANKOPHILES AND PREPARING AND EATING FRENCH FOOD "FEEDS" OUR DESIRES TO BE CLOSER TO ALL THINGS FRENCH) -

ANYWAY, I ENDED UP LOVING THE MOVIE. I ALSO BECAME TOTALLY INVOLVED IN THE EMOTIONS OF THE CONTEMPORARY PORTRAYAL OF JULIE AS PLAYED BY AMY ADAMS. BEING A WRITER MYSELF AND TAKING THAT JOURNEY WITH MY OWN HUSBAND OF LIVING "THE VIVA LOCA" IN BIG CITY LA AREA - I REALLY COULD IDENTIFY WITH BOTH WOMEN. JULIE AND JULIA USE DETERMINATION, SELF WILL, AND DISCIPLINE TO TAKE SOMETHING THEY LOVE - FOOD - AND CREATING A SUCCESSFUL DESTINY FROM SHARING THAT LOVE.

THE ENDING IS A LITTLE BIT OF A LET DOWN. I THOUGHT RATHER A SOUR BITE FOR A MOVIE THAT PLAYS SO SWEET IN MORE WAYS THAN ONE. I WON'T TELL WHAT I MEAN IN CASE YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THE MOVIE YET. IF YOU WANT TO SEE A PREVIEW OF THE MOVIE LOG ONTO JULIE & JULIA.COM - LOTS OF BLOG REVIEWS TOO ON BLOGCRITICS.COM.


LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK?
amber@ambersilverstar.com

MICHAEL JACKSON - LITTLE BOY GENIUS & GROWN MAN'S DEATH

Dear Readers,

Living in the Los Angeles - Hollywood area, yesterday will loom in my mind for a very long time. I had just finished a consultation for a client when I turned on the television to find out what people were saying about Farrah Fawcett and her tragic and untimely death.

I thought I heard an announcer on CNN say something about Michael Jackson's father and cardiac arrest. I naturally assumed the Jackson father had a heart attack. Then as I took time to listen more carefully - I realized the news was about Michael Jackson himself.

At that moment I knew he had died. I could hear the helicopters whirling in the sky traveling toward the area of Westwood and Bel Air. I watched countless police officers on television put up yellow tape all around the UCLA hospital. I switched to the local channels knowing they would know sooner than anyone what was going on. Then the confirmed announcement -Michael Jackson was dead. Then like people all over Los Angeles - I cried. Here, now dead at fifty, was this brilliant star. A life begun as a little boy genius now dead as a grown man ... damaged by a traumatic childhood - I do believe Michael Jackson never really recovered from the childhood scars and in the end was destroyed by his painful past.

At least this is how I see it. But I also see that stars are energy and energy can never really be destroyed - and neither can the incredible genius of Michael Jackson's music from boyhood to manhood. Even though the harmony he brought to the world was the same harmony he could never seem to bring into his own life.

In retrospect, I hope the message of Michael's death will be how important it is to treasure each moment of a child's life. How important it is to support and protect a child's creativity. How important it is at any age to intervene when choices to escape pain lead to the abuses of a lifestyle which can only end in the tragedy of confusion and death.

I might go over to Hollywood this weekend to photograph these moments in history as people go to the star on the sidewalk to touch a remembrance of the energy, the harmony, and the genius of Michael Jackson.

Surely the SERAPHIM, the angels of music, and Archangel Michael (his namesake) have taken him to heaven to meet his God, where at last he will have the clarity, balance, and love he always searched for. May he enjoy peace in the "other world" as he gave so much enjoyment to us in this world.

If you would like to share your thoughts and feelings, you can write to me at amber@ambersilvestar.com

With light and love,
Amber Silverstar

PRESIDENT IS RIGHT

Dear Friends,

As we get ready to celebrate the Memorial Day Holiday, it seems like a really good time to remember what the United States of America is all about ... the freedoms, the respect for life, the joy of choosing one's destiny. When I think of the USA, I do not think torture of another human being under any circumstances is a right that I or any other American can claim.

Growing up in the Mid West, I very clearly remember the study in history classes about World War II. I used to say to myself how proud I was to come from a country where people would never torture other people for any reason. Living in a democracy I thought meant respecting the humanity of all people regardless of who they were or what they had done.

When I got older I actually got involved in the prison movement, in the criminal justice system and in promoting humane treatment of all institutionalized persons. This included day care centers for children, nursing homes for the elderly, mental health facilities for the unfortunate, even abandoned children and adults with disabilities. Through organizations, research and personal investigations, I can tell you - people are tortured by others who think they are justified in using any means to get to the end results - they all claim it is for the best. Torture is never, never a justifiable means!

If you want to learn more about what goes on in our country - join Amnesty International, or visit your prisons, or find out how children are being treated in the foster care system of your state. Then you might understand how the former Vice-President Dick Chaney justifies torture and gets away with it. He has a lot of company. Justification does not make torture right.

President Obama really said everything right today in his speech about the evils of living in a democracy like the United States and at the same time allowing torture to exist as our way of "protecting our country." We cannot protect our selves from evil by being the very instrument of evil - any where - in our homes, in our institutions, in our prisons, in our schools, in our churches and justifying the use of torture, beatings, cruel and humiliating actions as a way of controlling other human beings.

Please whenever you have the chance - take the time to refuse to be a part of justifying torture for whatever reason. Let the only instruments we use when we are in charge of another human being - be the instrument of peace.

What do you think?

Write to amber@ambersilverstar.com

Celebrate your country this weekend. Happy Memorial Day.

Amber Silverstar

EARTH DAY IS LOVE DAY

Dear Friends,

Tomorrow is Earth Day, April 22, 2009 ... I will say in the last few years I have seen an amazing turn-around in the number of people, governments, corporations, organizations, art, business and just an abundance of awareness that this whole "save the planet" goal is more than just a passing fancy of "tree huggers."
Whom do we thank for this? - Green Peace, Birkenstocks, Whole Foods, Al Gore or Ed Bagley Jr. I am sure the answer is "Yes" and to many more.

However let us thank the earth itself - this planet keeps crying out to us to pay attention, to listen, to care. The waterways, oceans, rivers, lakes and streams cry out for clarity and respect. The natural realms of mountains, jungles, deserts, forests, beaches, - all places where we seek shelter to make our homes and build our cities - they cry for careful planning and sharing and appreciation. The animal and insect world and all our natural resources cry for and need balance, attention and vigilant caring.

But most of all on Earth Day the earth crys for humans like us to love one another, to love beauty, to love joy. Because when we are loving, beautiful and joyful then we are creative, respectful, caring, balanced, attentive, and sharing. We are the earth.

We can come together this one day and make a promise to make everyday a day we save the world, our earth, our planet with love. Just take one moment tomorrow and each day to send out into the world of earth ... a circle of reflections which will mirror the love in your own heart for a beautiful, peaceful, joyful, abundant and cherished EARTH.

What do think? What do you feel?

Write to me - amber@ambersilverstar.com

Thank you for sharing!
Amber


The above illustration is called Circle Reflections. This digital art design is by Amber Silverstar for Destiny Bright Designs available at http://www.cafepress.com/ambersilverstar - Copyright Amber Silverstar 2009.

GO FOR THE GREEN - AN IRISH DAY

Dear Readers,

Being part Irish myself - I have a strong affinity for celebrating the green on St.Patrick's day tomorrow. I say "This is a great time to go for the green." Being green conscious is actually good for the heart too. Green is the color for self-esteem, creating new ideas, calling up for the abundance of life, for feeling joyful. Surround yourself with the energy of green as you notice the "wearing of the green." Breath deeply the beauty of the emerald island. Embrace the power of green energy.

Think green tea, green trees, green emeralds, green foods, green orchids, green velvet, green glitter, little green men (elves), sink deeply into the green of Spring. This could be the best St.Patrick's day you ever had. Go for the green - an Irish day filled with golden luck and Leprechaun magic.

What do you think?

Have fun all you green-eyed Irish celebrants and share the adventure of laughter!

Amber Silverstar
amber@ambersilverstar.com