So much to do, so little time - 2009 in review

The year went by quickly, again. It seems time flies after you turn 15, and hits the speed of light once you turn 30.

2009 started with a blow - my grandfather passing away. And it ended really well, with Sean Goldman returning to the US and the fact we were able to spend the Holidays with my family in Brazil (something I hadn't done since 1998).

One of the highlights of the year certainly was seeing Cate Blanchett live doing a Streetcar Named Desire at the Kennedy Center, in November. Okay, I'll rephrase that: one of the highlights of my life!!!

I also bought a new car in July and have been driving around quite a bit - all the way to Toronto, for example. Spent Memorial Day week at the theme parks in Orlando, went to NYC and had a blast with friends, been around quite a bit. Oh, that includes my first time ever protesting - at the Bring Sean Home rally in March, in front of the White House; first time at a press conference - Congressman Chris Smith introducing HR 3240 in July; and my first Congressional Hearing - Left-Behind Parenting testifying before Congress in December.

Of course, let me gush over my little T, who started kindergarten and turned 6 in a great Spongebob-themed birthday party prepared by yours truly.

I am also happy to report I read more books than in 2008, which included the Twilight Series (not Saga), which I have a love-hate relationship with.

Push (Sapphire)
Water for elephants (S. Gruel)
The Weight of Silence (Gudenkauf)
Middlesex (Eugenides)
Breaking Dawn (Meyer)
Kabul Beauty School (Rodriguez)
Eclipse (Meyer)
New Moon (Meyer)
Twilight (Meyer)
The Other Queen (Gregory)
A Reliable Wife (Goolrick)
The Virgin's Lover (Gregory)
Color me Butterfly (Marlow)
A Long Way Gone - Memoirs of a Boy Soldier (Beah)
Fahrenheit 451 (Bradbury)
Watchmen (Moore)
The Vampire Lestat (Rice)
The Sleeping Beauty Proposal (Strohmeyer)
The Queen's Fool (Gregory)
Letters to Ebay (Farkas)
Smoke Screen (Brown)

Seen in theatres in 2009, but not written about due to lack of time...

New Moon
Couples Retreat
Toy Story 1 & 2 (3D)
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs
Julie & Julia
Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs (3D)
The Proposal
Up! (3D)
Night at the Museum 2
Monsters vs. Aliens (3D)
Coraline (3D)
Marley & Me

It was about one movie per month, which is pretty good for a parent. Best movie was Up! Pixar does it again, and Carl reminds me so much of my husband's late Grandpa. I was in tears during the beginning of the movie - who wasn't?

Well, Happy New Year, everyone! Health, Peace, and $$$ in your pockets as well (cause we need it, right?). Here's a wish for better days!

How cool is this?

LOST'S LAST SUPPER

My Christmas Gift

WHEELS ARE FINALLY UP!

Congratulations Sean & David Goldman! Father and son, reunited, spending Christmas at the Happiest Place on Earth. What else could I wish for?

Goldman case update

TRF-2 will judge the appeal tomorrow. A panel of 3 judges will decide.

I'm freaking out just a little bit. I'm not concerned about the outcome, I'm pretty sure the judges will rule Sean to return to his Dad. I just want to know whether the ruling will be enforced and the kid will be allowed to go home.

AP story - Ruling Due Wednesday In Brazil-US Custody Dispute

There's something wrong with me

I have been reading Lipstick Jungle for the past couple of days (in the train) and I'm bored out of my mind. I'm on page 28 for crying out loud. I read 10 pages and fall asleep. I guess I'm getting tired of average Chick Lits. Perhaps Candace Bushnell's novels are better on screen than on paper, or was it just SATC that was good? I read One Fifth Avenue when it came out. It sucked.

Anyway, I've decided to move onto something a bit darker, such as the Carrie Fisher memoir. That's probably funny too.

Hey, what's the purpose of this post again? Just rambling... I know!

Exhausted

I'm really tired of everything.

If I put an effort to do something nice, people overlook the good in it and quickly point out the "mistakes". One can have many qualities but it's the one little defect that stands out.

You know what? I'm done. I'd rather do the bare minimum - or nothing at all - and get the same treatment.

"He has my blood running through his veins"

This past Wednesday I had the privilege to attend a Congressional Hearing on International Child Abduction and it was one of the most heartbreaking things I've ever witnessed. Left-Behind Parents pleading Congress to pass a bill in order to impose sanctions on countries that fail to uphold an international treaty they signed, called The Hague Convention on Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction. In the case of non-signatory countries, such as Japan, it's a bit more complicated.

There were four LBPs at the hearing: Tom Sylvester, whose daughter Carina was abducted to Austria in 1995 when she was only 13 months old; Navy Commander Paul Toland, whose daughter Erika was abducted to Japan (the only living parent after his ex-wife committed suicide); Patrick Braden, whose daughter Melissa was abducted to Japan; and David Goldman, whose son Sean was abducted to Brazil. I suggest you read all the testimonies. The stories are very hard to read, but those are things that must be told.

After volunteering for many months at the Bring Sean Home Foundation, I had the opportunity to meet the Goldman family. One thing is see them on TV, another is to see their pain up close. I had tears rolling down during David's testimony. Only someone who's a parent can try to understand what those parents go through, but can only have a tiny idea of how much pain they're in.

I'm afraid this case is being pushed to the back burner. Not much has been reported lately. The Brazilian media was at the hearing and recorded interviews, but other than a small note on a couple of newspapers, no other media outlets touched the case.

At this point, we're waiting on the decision of the TRF-2. The iron-clad verdict from June 1st was issued a stay while the courts examine the appeal. The decision could come any day now. Someone said it was to come in September. Well, it has come and gone, as well as October and November. Each day lost is a victory to the abductors, who get to brainwash this child, for it will take much longer to "de-program" Sean once he's back into his father's arms (read the transcript the Wolf Blitzer interview here).

It's interesting the different ways Brazilians react to this case. Some will side with the abducting family, either because they came were abandoned by spouses or father, or because they're unhappy in their marriages and would love to flee with their kids, or because they have a very old-fashioned notion that a man cannot care for a child alone, or because they believe the biased reports that say the child was abandoned. Others will be on the fence, saying the mother is no longer around to give her version of the facts (despite 4 years of court records of her testimony on file that never discredited David for being a loving, dedicated father). And there are the ones that agree that say it was a crime to take the child away but he is now used to the environment and should be left alone, despite the fact that has been proven over and over that the 9-year-old has been brainwashed and the environment where he lives is not healthy. Thankfully the majority of Brazilians I know are outraged by this travesty, the corruption behind-the-scenes, the lies, and the slowness in the judiciary.

The needs of a 9-year-old boy and his natural father are being ignored by a family that is holding him hostage in Brazil.

It's time to make some noise. Write to friends and family about it. Blog about it. Post about it on message boards and forums. If you have a twitter account, please use the tag #bringseanhome when writing about it. Together we can Bring Sean and all the other abducted children Home.

Run, Liesl, Run

My life has been so frantic. I have been working my butt off, planning T's 6th birthday party, having my mother as a guest and preparing to go away during the holidays.

I am so glad I've read a lot this year. I have no books in my queue, which is so unlikely...

So, how about "V", huh? I'm a little disappointed, not nearly as good as the original... It may get better, we'll see.

Luxo Jr, what have you done?

Pixar Intro Parody - not for kids

If the embedding doesn't work properly, you can view the video here

Slice of Heaven

I'm in love with Flake Chcolate Bars made by Cadbury.

One of my managers just returned from the UK with a Cadbury Sampler. SO GOOD! It reminded me of the days I spent with my sister in London 11 years ago. But I had never tried Flake. YUM!!!!!