Aggravations! Why is it That......

Aggravations! Why is it That......

When the price of oil rose dramatically, gas prices rose just as dramatically, but when it is dropping like a stone, gas prices still stay really high?

 When you are a Substitute Teacher, you get remarks like, "I don't gotta listen to you, you aren't a REAL Teacher" or "My Teacher would let me"?

 Like drivers, who forget how to drive in snow, returning students forget the rules and have to be reminded of what you told them in June, at least 10 times during the first 3 days of school! ?

When I am not in a hurry, I get the road to myself, the parking lot is empty, everyone is ahead of their schedule and people pay in cash....BUT when I am in a hurry, the traffic stinks, there are no close parking spaces, and people are paying by check or credit card! ?

On the Hottest Day of the Year, ALL of the Cooling systems in EVERY building I go to are not functioning properly! OR on the Coldest Day of the Year, the Heating goes on the blink! ?

If I didn't need something, I would be stumbling over it for months, But when I specifically go looking for it, it has mysteriously disappeared! ?

My new and favorite socks get lost in the dryer, but , my holey pantyhose can be found stuck to everything! ?

When my teenage son wants or needs something, he is underfoot till he gets it, BUT when I ask him to do something small for me, he is the invisible boy! ?

NO one needs me or talks to me UNTIL I get on the phone! ? GO FIGURE!

Writing is an art form that chooses YOU!

Writing is an art form that chooses YOU!

Writing, for me, is like breathing, I have to do it to survive.  

Word Pictures are basically the foundation you build on to create a buzz - if you can make someone see a picture in their head, they GET YOU, and your poem, Blog, or article. If it makes them think, feel, even get emotional, then you have done your job to the best degree that you can. Create, Motivate, Compromise, Improvise, Relate, Communicate - All Action Words - Turn that Passion for all of these into Action and Put Down the thoughts that will help others to do these things as well.

Sharing your gift, gives a gift to others who, hopefully, will in turn give back to you and others in their path, some call this Paying It Forward. To really move someone, is to reach into the deepest part of their mind, soul and secret dreams and give them something that they are searching for - something real that brainstorms ideas and creativity within them. Motivational speakers use different tools to get people going, humor, incentives, advice and guidelines.

Writers use the written word to produce the same results. We give of ourselves, our hopes, our goals, our vision. Creative people are the souls with the most Optimistic, Sometimes Pollyanna approach to life - we play that glad game in our hearts and spill it out onto the paper.

Now, don't be thinking that we don't have bad days, creative though we are, we hit walls, have frustration and blockages, come up against rejection and doubt often enough to make some want to quit. But as I have said, we need to write, as though we were a plant and writing was the energy we feed on. Sometimes it is our Sun, Moon and Stars, Magic and Mastery.My advice to all that want to do this is to take your love of writing to a level that exceeds your comfort zone - try a style that you have never done before - get out there and show yourself and the world that you can do anything you set your mind to!

What writing feels like

Diamonds in the Rough Edges of Life

SoCalMediaSurfer-MiccilinaPiraino

Life is like a diamond in the rough.  There is hidden potential there; you just have to put pressure on it, let it ride for a time, evolve, change and grow and before you know it the true worth is revealed.  Every life has its rough edges, its un-shiny moments, where we feel that we will never overcome and get to be the sparkling gem that we could and should be.  How do we get there, what can we do?

Patience is the key – it takes a lot of time – sometimes generations for a priceless gem of a life to emerge from what looks like a worthless hunk of coal. There are bright and shiny “Diamond” moments to every season- when we are looking at a long, cold winter that hangs around for months of dreary skies and cold, icy wind – We can look at the beauty of a rare sunny day,  sparkling on the new fallen snow or the trees looking ghostly white  with a winter coat, icicles winking from branches.

While we are waiting for the beginning of our summer fun, we can listen to the birds joyfully singing in the spring days and watch the leaves unfurling in bright green banners of color.  While we wait on vacations to far off places, we can see the wonders of our “Home Place” with new eyes, open to the possibilities.

When we are lamenting about the shortness of vacations or the end of our summer activities, we can look forward to the pretty colors of autumn and the coming holidays to be spent with family and friends.  Each cloud has that “Silver Lining”; we just have to look for it – Each piece of coal has the potential to be a priceless diamond.

Each person, if motivated and open to the unlocked recesses of their own worth, can be a diamond in the rough edges of life.  If given the chance to evolve, grow and change in engaging, upward ways, each soul is a valuable asset to themselves and to others.  If we look hard enough, we can turn every negative into a positive and every rough edge into a smoothly polished work of art.   


Take Life As It Comes and Be Flexible.  Enjoy!  Micci 

Glitches, Gadgets and Gremlins!

SoCalMediaSurfer-MiccilinaPiraino (This Post is Meant to be Satire!)

Did ya ever have one of those days?  LOL  Yeah, I had one of those days today!  Everything that I tried to do to new designs, new pages, new blogs, just went wonky on me!  I found that pages I was designing came out with errors on them, gadgets I tried to download, just suddenly stopped working and some things moved on thier own, I swear – I got Gremlins!

My writing means alot to me, when I write things, I write from the heart and I really don’t rehearse,  or write from notes, so it is all off the cuff and original to that moment.  So when the glitches happen and I have been writing non-stop for an hour and suddenly everything disappears and can’t be rescued, that old saying that should be drummed into every writer’s brain – SAVE and SAVE OFTEN – came to mind – ayup, was supposed to do that, but I was on a roll….uh huh! 

It is never the same twice, so when I rebuild it from scratch, it’s a whole new Blog – I feel as if something precious was lost.  Live and Learn, Ok, so I am a recent convert at some of this Techie stuff!  I admit that I AM NOT smarter than a Fifth Grader and be done with it!  My eighteen year-old runs rings around me in what used to be my area of expertise!

YES!  I was a designer of web pages when geekiness was not cool!  Don’t want to date myself, but Rick Springfield was playing Doctor on General Hospital and LoverBoy was struttin their stuff in Hot Red Leather Pants!  Okay, it was the 80′s, so I am sadly out of date on alot of new design, gidgets, no, midgets, awww heck, I mean widgets!

I learn fast so I actually had my teenager give me some pointers, now if I could just find the post it he left for me…..Shoot and Sugar, bet I threw it away with my left over sandwich.  Oh well, back to the drawing board  Tomorrow, I will tackle and conquer that silly techie stuff if it kills me and it just might, lol. 

I am having as much trouble with this as I did learning the IM lingo, but I did get that finally – OMG, my BFF has been LHAO at me all this time, I just didn’t know it!  Sooooo….now I get to get some rest and try not to dream of widgets, gadgets, web pages and design error messages – Good Luck on that one!  Run Away, Run FAR Away and Be Afraid, Be VERY Afraid!  For if there is a power outage on the Eastern Seaboard, the West Coast or a big computer crash at some whosit corporation tomorrow, you may just have gotten my Gremlins!  They multiply with feeding, you know.  CYA! Micci

Gadget Gremlins!

POETRY AND PROSE - SUMMER 2014

FULL MOON’S GRACE

Lovely Lady, Light Up The Dark,
You Show Us Many Moods Each Phase;
Shine On The World To Make Your Mark,
Float Above Us In Starlit Skyways.
Golden Huntress, Lonely And Blue,
Ever Changing In Wondrous Duty;
Trusting Minds And Hearts Speak True,
Loving Eyes Gaze On Your Beauty.
Wolves Howl By Your Bright Yellow Glow,
You Watch Eager Lovers Embrace;
You Rule The Tides, Both High And Low;
Always With A Smile On Your Face.

RAINBOWS

Multi-Colored, Jeweled Tones, Faceted With Light,
Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo & Violet;
Sunshine & Rain Combine To Form The Arch;
Each One A Miracle, Gladdening The Heart &
Creating A Feeling Of Joy Within The Soul.

LUCK

Wishing Stars, Pennies In A Fountain, Promises Made, Vows Spoken; Wishes Granted, Dreams Woven, Fantasies Abound of Legend & Lore;
Poetry and Song – All Speak Of The Power – Mythic Rhyme;
Magic, Odes & Epics, Good, Bad, Indifferent, Ever Present & Changing.

WAVES

Waves Can Be Good, Waves Can Be Bad,
Waves Can Make You Feel Happy, Or Make You Feel Sad;
Waves Can Make A Sound That Seems So Alone;
Waves Rush To Shore – Searching For A Home.
Waves Of Destruction Can Flatten Your Life,
Waves of Rage & Anger Can Only Cause Strife;
Waves Of Emotion Can Conquer Your Heart,
Waves Of Devotion Can Be A Great Start.

Social Media, Like Elvis, Is Simply EVERYWHERE!

Social Media - Like Elvis, Is Simply EVERYWHERE! 


This post was written when I was first starting with Social Media/Marketing

It seems as if everywhere you go, you will see someone on an i-phone, an i-pad, a laptop or some other electronic device.  Most, if not all, of those using these devices will be checking in with a social site, either Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, Google Plus, MySpace or other site.  


There is texting being done on buses, trains, planes and in restaurants; phones being used in every place they are allowed and yes, even in a few places they aren't.  Sometimes all of this "social-ism" is a bit much to take.  Life takes on a frantic pace and before you are aware of it, you are spending hours in front of your computer or with your phone!  It has only been a couple of decades that we have had this stuff, but it has become an integral part of our everyday routines.


Some of us have become aware that we can actually make a living by doing the very things everyone around us is doing for nothing. As a Social Media/Marketing Strategist, I spend time on the internet, surfing, blogging, doing research, emailing and "checking in" with all the social sites out there. The difference is that I now get paid to do all of that.  


A client based business is not easy, there are a lot of variables, but, if you like dealing with social media and have an intuitive personality, Social Media Management may be for you.  There are many great ways to get started, but the most important is to have a web presence and brand yourself as well as your chosen business name.  Find a group that will give you advice and help you along the way.


Be proactive and take charge of your income, your life and your future - Be your own Boss!

"IMAGINE" by SoCal Media Surfer

I wrote this a few years ago, I still stand by it today.

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLgYAHHkPFs

Recently, I watched a BBC Documentary from 1988.  it struck me so strongly that I had to sit and watch it again.  It was “Imagine” John Lennon, and it was in his own words, apparently filmed in 1971 and pieced together with interviews from Yoko Ono, Julian and Sean Lennon, as well as the aunt that raised him, his producers and his former wife.

I was 20 when Lennon was killed and I had opinions about him and his music, as well as opinions on the Beatles break-up, Yoko, his post Beatles music and other things about him.  Watching this documentary really changed some of those opinions, making me take a personal look back at that time in my own life.  I was born in the year that the Beatles went to Hamburg, Germany; spending time playing and recording there.

I remember my mom playing the radio in the late 60’s and hearing Beatles songs, I fell in love with the music.  I was just 12 when they had their last year together and in my pre-teen way, I felt that it was the end of something really interesting.  I did not experience that “Beatle Mania” stage that older kids had gone through, I was, after all, only 4 when they came here for the first time.  My mom, at 21, was not into the hysteria and hype of it all.

I thought of myself as a bit of a rebel as a teen, my parents were strict.  I was the eldest and therefore the babysitter and help at home while my parents worked 2 and 3 jobs to support us.  There were 6 of us by 1972.  That year I was 12, I lost both of my grandfathers, a traumatic thing for me.  I rebelled by trying to wear mini skirts, face makeup and talk back to my parents, typical stuff.  Music for me was an escape and Elvis, the Beatles and others were my saving grace during those years. 

Like most teenagers coming of age in the ‘70’s, I was “against” the Vietnam War, while not really understanding the whole mess.   Having to watch it all on the news was surreal.  I had an MIA/POW flag and bracelet that I wore faithfully.  Protest music was popular and even though I was not allowed to date or go to parties, I heard the music often.  John Lennon’s “Peace” songs were known to me, but I really did not take the time to absorb and truly understand the thoughts behind them. I was too busy having crushes on boys in my High School and trying to spend as much time away from home as I could to assert my independence.

As I watched the documentary, the songs played behind the scenes and I really LISTENED to them, reflecting on what I was seeing AND hearing.  “The Ballad of John and Yoko” suddenly made sense to me!  Before, I had sung along with it, not really knowing what it all meant.  Seeing the song through John’s words and the home movies made me look at it from a different point of view.  He really did love Yoko; was devoted to her and the Peace movement.  I never understood how he could be with someone so obviously different from anyone else in his life.

I never appreciated the words to “Beautiful Boy” before seeing the home movies of John with his son Sean.  What an eye-opening thing it is to hear and see a father’s love in a song written for Sean.  I had thought John to be a horrible father for abandoning his son Julian; he admitted that in this film, he never really got to know his older son until he married Yoko.  I had, like so many others, attributed the troubles of the Beatles to the pairing with Yoko.  I am still a bit convinced that she was a controlling person, but I did see that she loved John from what was shown in the film.

I think that I never really liked her because she seemed to always be in the forefront of every aspect of their lives; he sang almost every song for her or referenced her in a lot of his speech.  Watching the interviews he gave with reporters and other media, as well as his protest speeches, was enlightening to me.  He honestly believed that he was doing the world a favor by trying to let them see him as a real person instead of the icon that was sitting atop the pedestal that the world had placed him on as a Beatle.  I find Yoko annoying in general but really can’t explain exactly why.  For me, something has always been off about the way that she is; hmmmm, have to figure that one out eventually.

Imagine by John Lennon

I have always been deeply offended by John’s atheistic and pessimistic approach to life in the realms of religion and politics.  He did not seem to believe in God, seeming to prefer a world without a deity of any kind, with the ensuing (as he put it) peace that a religion free world would bring.  I find that very notion to be appalling – without faith in a higher power, no matter what you call it, there is no optimism, no hope and no way to comfort the dying or the living left behind.  If John’s words from his songs post-Beatle years are to be believed, we escape into nothingness and just disappear. 

It is, IMHO, ironic that a man can write such beautiful words of love to his wife or his children on one hand and such hopeless and bitter tinged songs about religion and politics.  He preferred to believe in a world without God’s love or in human goodness in government anywhere, including his home country.  It is now over 30 years since his death and it has been asked how a man of peace could be so cold blooded-ly gunned down with a loving God allowing that. It is not ours to wonder, we are all given this life and it is but a grain of sand in an hourglass of eons, borrowed for us to make a difference in whatever time we are given. I believe that John really did that.

I recently attended a “Imagine There is No Hunger” benefit at the Hard Rock Café, Hollywood.  I went for lots of reasons – I believe in the cause, feeding the hungry.  I also wanted to help in my own small way with a donation of food and my support.  Yes, getting to see Ringo, Dave Stewart, Joe Walsh and Edgar Winter was a plus, but the whole thing made me wish that I had, in that before time of the 70’s, paid more attention to the words behind the music and the thoughts of the song-writer.

I find that I can put aside my feelings of disappointment in one  side of John to say that he was one of the most talented song-writers of modern times, going from the innocence of “Love Me Do” and “I Wanna Hold Your Hand” to “Woman” and even to the song I still have a love-hate thing with – “Imagine”.  I love the idealism behind the words while hating the pessimistic tone.  I don’t remember where I was or what I was doing the day John died, I was pregnant with my daughter, that I do know, and I was in Germany.  I was 20 years old and I was still, in many ways, a very young girl, not a grown-up yet.  The world would have no chance to know what he may have accomplished in his later years, but I know with all my heart that he was wrong – there is a heaven above us and a hell below us.  I hope he realized that in time and is in “Peace”.