Tag Archives: Tom Cruise

It’s A Celebration!

“It’s My One Year Blogoversary Everybody!”
 

Party…Party…Party!
 

Whoa! Has it been one year already? Well, actually my one year blogoversary was a couple of months ago, October 30th to be exact, but I was no where to be found. 🙂
 
Yet, something like this is just too important to miss, don’t ya think?
 

So let’s get this party started, shall we?
 

Hey, do any of you remember this?
 

(Don Barlett/L.A. Times)

Ah, good times, good times.
 

I thought it might be interesting if we took a brief look back at all that’s been accomplished here on my blog over the previous year. What was my objective at the beginning of this blogging adventure? To find out, let’s take a peek and see if I even came close to hitting the mark.
 

Here’s what I said, “My hope is that through my writing I will be able to touch people’s lives and connect with others that will in someway benefit them and not just myself.”
 

Was that a load of crap? Well, I don’t know. Let’s see how I did?
 

It turns out I wrote 56 posts over the entire year. Not bad, since there was a whole lot going on as you well know. I had over 2300 comments, which granted some of them I’m quite sure were my replies in response to yours. But all and all, I couldn’t be happier. It’s always good to know that I am not out there talking to myself since I am of the belief that it’s not very healthy. Am I right Louise Biehel and Kassandra Lamb?
 

I also received a lot of visits from gazillions of spammers. You know, those freaky bots that try to invade your posts. And I would like to take this opportunity to personally thank Akisment for that little configuration because if it wasn’t for them, we bloggers would go nuts. 🙂
 

I’ve had some wonderful guest bloggers in the house, starting with Donna Newton, then Colin Falconer, Natalie Hartford, Angela Peart, Barry Crowther, Tim L. O’Brien, Diane Capri, Bob Mayer, Katherine Owen and Julia Whitmore who shared their valuable knowledge and experience about the craft of writing.
 

And any time one of you would like to take a shot at a guest post on my blog, you have an open invitation to join in. We’d all love to hear from you!
 

Okay, so what else happened?
 

Well, I can’t say that anything earth shattering happened here. It’s not like we’re trying to solve all the problems of the universe or bring about world peace. 🙂
 

But we did have some fun talking about animals, both big and small that included a shark attack, a Gorilla and a cute little puppy that got stuck on a runaway train. We had someone stranded as if they were Tom Hanks at an airport for eight days. Tom Cruise jumped out a window from the tallest building in the world while Jon Bon Jovi fed people from a kitchen with a heart full of soul.
 

There were posts about sports, nature, artists, and food. A bittersweet post about making lemonade out of lemons and a very Sexy green leafy vegetable named Kale. *Shivers*
 

Yet, through it all, I tried to bring the gift of optimism to the forefront. That’s not always easy to do with everything that’s happened over the past year in everyone’s life. But even though I may still be “Hanging On For Dear Life”, as was the title of my first post, I feel a great sense of accomplishment and immense appreciation for all of you. For each week you showed up. Each week you came to support me. And for that I cannot thank you enough!
 
 

So grab yourself some cyber champagne…


 

And let’s “Celebrate good times, come on! It’s a celebration!”

*
 
 

“Happy Blogoversary!”

 
 
So what do you think? Can I “Hang” in there for another year? Was there a post over the past year that you particularly enjoyed? Is there a topic that you would like to see me blog about? And what about you? What’s changed since you started blogging and what has helped you on the road to success?
 
 

Thank you so much for dropping by and for all your wonderful comments!
Karen

 
 

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Runnin’ Down a Dream!

Today I thought that I would let you in on a secret fetish of mine. Well, one of them anyway. And for those of you who do not know me, this is way beyond my comfort zone. I do not make a practice of talking about myself. But there is a certain event coming up that stirs my soul with restless excitement.
 

Now before I let you in on this, you have to know that I’ve always been thought of as somewhat of a prissy girl. I love all things primping—the hair, the face, picking out the right clothes and the accessories; the jewelry, the shoes, the handbag, well just about everything that has to do with being a girl. And I did marry the right guy because he has always loved taking me shopping and buying me new clothes. Well, that is when the budget can afford it of course.
 

Yet, it shocks people after they get to know me, especially since at first glance your impression of me might be a bit proper, or prissy. People are always taken back after I tell them this little tidbit of information. Let’s just say that I love to drink Champagne with the girls, but enjoy having a beer with the guys.
 
 

How to explain? I guess the best way to describe it could be taken from a line from a Tom Cruise movie…
 
 

“I feel the need—the need for speed!”
 


 

Yes, the NHRA Winter Nationals are coming!!!!
 
 
I know, I know, this sounds completely oxymoronic! Way out of character for the person that you’ve come to know. Well, all I can say is, there are times in our lives when we must bust the mold, and this is one of them. And in my dreams I see myself running down the quarter mile track in a Top Fuel Dragster.
 

Okay girls, I don’t want to lose you here. Hang in there—I promise it will get better!
 
I think I have some leftover Champagne from my interview with Diane Capri if you need some liquid fortification to get through this, although I think I’ve just peeked the attention of all the guys. LOL!!
 

But why the drags? Why not Six Flags, or Disney World/Disneyland, or some other form of coaster rides for whimsical speed and entertainment?
 

Well, why not? What else is there that compares to the speed and acceleration of an Extreme Motor Sport like Top Fuel?
 

Now I’m not talking about Comp, Pro Stock or Alcohol Dragsters or Funny Cars here—I’m talking Top Fuel. And here’s why…
 

They don’t compare in speed.
 

Let’s take the Dragster for instance. (My personal fav.)They are 25 feet long and weight in race ready at a little over a ton or just around 2250 pounds and can cover a quarter mile in 4.4 seconds at more than 330 mph. These computer-designed wonders have sleek profiles and wind-tunnel-tested rear wire foils that exert 5,000 pounds of down-force on the rear tires with minimal aerodynamic drag.
 

Now that’s what I’m taking about.
 

They’re powered by a 7,000 horsepower supercharged fuel-injected 500-cubic-inch adaptation of the famed Chrysler Hemi engine. (Remember the Cuda?) They can burn up to 15 gallons of nitromethane fuel during a single race and are constructed out of chromoly steel tubing and carbon-fiber composite.
 

Just one Top Fuel Dragster has more horsepower than the first 4 rows at the Daytona 500!
 

Uh oh, did I lose you girls? Hold on, we’ll be done here in roughly 4.4 seconds!
 

I love it when they race at night. The competition soars as two Top Fuel dragsters meet in front of the starting line burning their rubber to promote traction sending a cloud of thick gray smoke to loom over the crowds. Amongst the dark of night their engines roar sputters out through the exhaust raw burning nitrous gas that with each push of the throttle fires off white hot flames into the air like pyromania.
 

It’s time to cover our ears to protect them from the extreme whiny sound that can pierce our eardrums and there is a pounding sensation thuddering against our chest with each hit of the throttle.
 

VAROOOOMMM, VAROOOOMMM!
 

The dragsters crackle as they inch forward to the edge of the starting line. They rock with every vibration due to the power and force from their engines. We stand in anticipation of the green light on the Christmas tree—smoke and flames fill the sky at take-off, our necks turn to follow the rails as they fly down the track. Their Parachutes launch and in roughly four seconds the race is over.
 

Watch this.
 

 

See, pretty cool huh? Gotcha going didn’t I? Girls, are you still with us?
 

Hey this sport isn’t just for guys. There have been many women over the years that have made their presence known. Shirley “Cha Cha” Muldowney is considered the “First Lady of Drag Racing” and became the first and only woman to win a major racing championship and there have been others: Louise Smith, Janet Guthrie, Lyn St. James and Danica Patrick.
 

So as a writer let your dreams run down the tracks of your imagination, let them soar like the undeniable force of the ever powerful Top Fuel Dragster. It may burn up a lot of fuel to come up with these inspiring stories that fill your minds with great suspense and thrilling excitement. But as you do be assured that I will be thinking about my next story as I sit on the sidelines in a crowded stand along the racetrack watching Top Fuel Dragsters run down the quarter mile of my own novel fantasies.
 
 

Yeah, runnin’ down a dream,

That never would come to me,

Workin’ on a mystery,

Goin’ wherever it leads,

Runnin’ Down a Dream.
 
 

So what do you think? What type of mystery are you working on? What things do you find thrilling and exciting? What kinds of ideas throttle your imagination? What lengths would you take to run down a dream?
 
 

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Thank you for your many thoughts and fine comments everyone!
Karen

 
 
 

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It’s A Bird, It’s A Plane, It’s…

…Tom Cruise!
 

Wait a minute… Wait a minute… Wait just one minute!
 

Tom Cruise?
 

Excuse me, but isn’t that Superman?
 

Superman who is faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive, and able to leap tall buildings in a single bound!
 

Take a look at the picture below. Does that look like superman to you?
 

Or maybe I’m getting him confused with somebody else… Oh, never mind…
 


 

The name Tom Cruise might invoke thoughts of movies such as Top Gun, Minority Report and Mission Impossible. Or you might just be thinking Hot & Sexy and “You had me at hello!”
 

To most people he is synonymous with big blockbuster movies, but if you were to ask the actor if this had always been his lifelong dream, he would tell you that as a 14 year old Franciscan seminary student his only ambition was to become a priest. Yet as one of the top 100 movie stars of all time, his career is a far cry from that youthful ambition.
 

Take for instance his new Mission Impossible movie “Ghost Protocol” coming out Dec. 21st.
 

Many movies stars like to brag about doing their own stunts, but this is where Tom Cruise takes the cake, or should I say, walks the walk—especially in his new movie when it came to leaping out of the window of the tallest building in the world. This has made all the other stunts he’s done in the past pale in comparison.
 

The Burj Khalifa is a 181 story, 2723 foot tall mirrored glass skyscraper and is located in the country of Dubai. This 49 year old actor made running up alongside this building look as easy as a cat climbing up a tree. According to producer Brian Burk, Tom may have had a stunt man test out the safety rigging, but every frame you see in the movie is really Tom Cruise. It’s a good thing too because his stunt man as it turns out is afraid of heights, but apparently Mr. Cruise isn’t.
 

Yet it wouldn’t be Hollywood if there wasn’t any movie magic applied to the screen. So what you won’t see are all the wires and safety harnesses he was hooked up to in order to perform all those virtual Mission Impossible stunts.
 

Say all you want, but there is one thing that can definitely be said about Tom Cruise.
 

No Fear!!!
 

Watch this:
 

 

So what do you think? Have you ever seen the 181 story Burj Khalifa building in Dubai? Could you jump out of a skyscraper window and pull a stunt like that? Or are you afraid of heights? And if you’re a Tom Cruise fan, what movie or movies are your favorites?
 
 

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Thank you for your many thoughts and kind comments everyone!
Karen
 
 

And a big thanks to all my new WANA friends and all others that may grace my presence by visiting this post. Take care and make it a great day!

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