News Details (Posted: December 27, 2004):

Monday's SEASIDE SCOOP By Peggy Fisher

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December 27, 2004 Are You Ready for 2005? The Old Year has gone. Let the dead past bury its own dead. The New Year has taken possession of the clock of time. All hail the possibilities of the coming twelve months! ~Edward Payson Powell Cartoon Cavalcade Cartoon from N. Beach Civic Ass. President Bill Glynn Welcome! Welcome to Seaside Scoop, strengthening our word power and memories incrementally while linking friends and wildlife supporters across Florida and the globe. Seaside Scoop readers span Florida, 35 states, Guam and 15 countries abroad. (Your email address is safe. Seaside Scoop will never sell, rent or disclose your email address to third parties.) A warm welcome on this chilly for Florida Monday to newest reader Martin from Vancouver, Canada, and here December and January, enjoying CoralStone. Left: His photo depicting his favorite daily exercise, looking north from CoralStone toward Disney, Wabasso and Summer Place; agree! ******************************­************ Word-a-Day precatory PREK-uh-tor-ee adjective : expressing a wish [http://www.merriam-webster.co­m/sound/p/precat01.wav] New Year’s Wish Example We here convey our wishes In this precatory phrase: May peace and joy be with you In all the coming days! Did you know? Nowadays, you're most likely to see "precatory" used in legal contexts to distinguish statements that merely express a wish from those that create a legal obligation. For example, if you add a provision to your will asking someone to take care of your pet if you die, that provision is merely precatory. Outside of jurisprudence, you might see references to such things as "precatory dress codes" or "precatory stockholder proposals" — all of which are non-binding. "Precatory" traces to Latin "precari" ("to pray"), and it has always referred to something in the nature of an entreaty or supplication. For example, a precatory hymn is one that beseeches "from sin and sorrow set us free" — versus a laudatory hymn (that is, one giving praise). ******************************­****** Mail Call: New Year’s Cheers From Gladys & Don Gist in North Miami festive graphics and a creative Greetings Card featuring their favorite Little Ones: We hope you enjoyed a Merry Christmas and 2005 is a wonderful year for you and your loved ones. From Laura in Atlanta: We had Bible Study and Church for the FROZEN CHOSEN… although it felt relatively WARM at ? 48 degrees by noontime. Anyway, I’m here slaving away again, hopefully to accomplish a years worth of work in one day! —more input to put Florida’s cold snaps in perspective From Georgina in Coral Gables: Cartoons & Pets: you've hit on the combo to beautifully complement your seaside reporting, conservation, wildlife, keeping your JCI network as intact as possible -- in effect, worldwide camaraderie. And that's what Christmas is all about, right? ******************************­*********************** Peggy’s Pet Parade < Mother Instinct from N. Beach Civic Ass. President Bill Glynn From Carl Peterson in Guam: Pets bring love and wonder: They protect our children.. > From Geri in Ft. Pierce and Laura in Atlanta (Seaside Scoop readers in sync): OVERDOSE VICTIMS I'm sending these graphic pictures of overdose victims not for shock value, but rather in the hope that you will have a frank discussion with friends and family about respecting moderation, understanding limits, and knowing when to just walk away. Remember... Meet new people, even if they look different from you.? If you have digital pics of your pet stars, please email them; once they join “Pets in Waiting,” Seaside Scoop stardom awaits via Peggy’s Pet Parade. ******************************­********************** Attachments/hyperlinks None today, but hoping you’ve been good so Santa brought what you wanted most and you are not out returning it today! ******************************­***************** Seaside Scoop Web News For Seaside Scoops online, check: http://glgs.org/themes/Custom/­1/glg_articleView.asp?pid=68&t­id=14&articleid=29 ******************************­***************** Georgina’s Movie Reviews The Aviator: In this, the year of at least two other great biopics (Ray, Kinsey), Martin Scorsese's latest is sure to be a contender in the Globe/Oscar race. Leonardo DiCaprio grows into his role as Howard Hughes, from daring young mega-entrepreneur, through his middle age, by which time he was both engrossed with and battling his inner demons, and subtly, yet definitively, hints at the darkness that would ultimately engulf this brilliantly eccentric man toward the end of his life. Simply put, Howard Hughes was a visionary. He was a multifaceted genius with many talents, and many passions. His greatest passion, however, was to fly. DiCaprio captures this spirit, and embodies it more and more strongly as the movie progresses: by the end, I felt as if it were Hughes on the screen. The rest of the cast was also superb, especially Cate Blanchett as Katharine Hepburn, the great love of Hughes' life, complete with Miss Hepburn's flippancy, New England reserve, and, yes, that Connecticut twang. The lovely Kate Beckinsale, as Ava Gardner, provides the other female interest. The scenes with Blanchett and Beckinsale, notwithstanding, Scorsese does not let us forget that Hughes was a man's man, too: DiCaprio's interactions with the great character actor, John C. Reilly, as Hughes' business manager, Noah Dietrich; with Alec Baldwin, as Hughes' competitor, Pan American founder Juan Trippe; and with Alan Alda, as the insatiably greedy Senator Ralph Owen Brewster, are rife with emotion, both poignant and riveting at the same time. The Senate hearing showdown between Hughes and Brewster toward the end is downright bombastic: it was by this point that DiCaprio had me totally convinced. Although Hepburn never fully leaves him, and Gardner lends a helping hand at a point when he sorely needs it, Hughes is, at the end, surrounded by only a tiny group of fiercely protective employees. His impending solitude, at the end, is palpable. This projection into the future is augured by so many obvious -- yet subtle -- signs, that you don't mind when Scorsese brings the (two and a half hour) movie to a halt: Howard's back with his mom. He makes three predictions about his future. They all come true. It takes a very special individual for this to happen. Leonardo DiCaprio captured Howard Hughes' fire, his intense zeal for life. It's going to be a tough call come February, but I feel Leo will be a strong contender. Not my shortest. Could say so much more. Read Rodriguez review: he stressed Hughes/Hepburn connection. Very, very important, indeed, but so were his business relationships with men. Above all else: Scorsese stressed Hughes' passion for aviation. Remember trips to Europe in the '60's: New York/Newfoundland/Ireland/Pari­s? Think TWA. Thank Howard Hughes. Holiday Cheers from Vero Beach Peggy Writing by Fisher Vero Beach, FL (772)388-4920 Turn the wheel of your life. Make complete revolutions. Celebrate every turning. And persevere with joy. —Deng Ming-Dao Writer ******************************­************* Seaside Scoop (AKA Word-a-Day) Content Any content may be copied; please credit Seaside Scoop . I would also appreciate your publishing information on subscribing: To subscribe to free Seaside Scoop email: writingbyfisher@bellsouth.net