For The Record

Blogging used to be a simple way to share thoughts with others. It's escalated into so much more but I never caught on so back to basics and sharing thoughts just for the record.

Water. Always been my thing. Always been on water patrol everywhere I went.

Waitressing. Loved it all my life. Yup, got the university degree, and from a great school by the way, but stayed out of the corporate world. Just didn't fit my life (and I'm not alone).

Movies. Fun to watch, but never wanted to be in the biz. Still don't and won't ever be.

Why these three things? No idea. Just the way it happened. Now my mission has to do with all three.

You know? I just want to help servers to be seen in a way that isn't degrading. I want to tell the public in a nice way, that they might want to consider changing their opinions about servers. (AND I heard it again on Friday night) "People are waitresses because they can't do anything else."  Really? But I loved my job and made good money, even though I always hated filling out my tax forms and wished I didn't have to put "waitress" as my job. I hate to admit it that I allowed others to influence my feelings, but I always felt inferior, and I'm not alone it that either. "A real job"? Tried them. Made less money. Had more stress. Had less fun. I was miserable. Sure if I stuck to them for years I would have made more money, but it was never that important to me. My freedom and quality of life has always been worth more. Call me crazy that's fine with me--always have been, but it's kept me from goin' insane. Sing it Waylon!

I want to help people know that water is a concern that has to be addressed. We really can't waste much more time on this fact. So how do we address it? Stars! With stars! Not the kind that twinkle, the kind that billions of people have to know what they do. The kind that everyone wants to follow, copy or be associated with. If you put a Hollywood star and a Nobel Peace Prize winner in the same room. Who do you think will get the most attention? Who draws the crowds?

So remake a movie that has already been seen all over the world. Put together a soundtrack that has music that crosses generations (which is easy to do these days), and open it on World Water Day or during World Water Week and get money for water orgs. After that, everyone can make their money.

I haven't written this down, but have told some people: when I got back from Ireland where I lived while I was writing the script, I happened to watch "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" when it was released on DVD. I ended up watching it twice in a row-- listening to the commentary the second time. I had 4 pages of notes. Nia and I were thinking and feeling the same things when we were writing our respective movie and how we hoped people would feel when they watched it! I was amazed and very happy at the time. I was on the right track, and now I know my movie hits a nerve--in a good way.

Is it crazy to think that any good clean movies, fund raising events (outside of politics) or generous group actions can come out of Hollywood anymore? I don't think so. Despite what so many people on the street say, I think there are a lot of good people there who are getting involved in social issues even more in innovative ways. Use up and coming stars. Use interns and film schools to supply the crew. Use the companies that are water conscious to have product placement. Use existing music from musicians who care about water. Have the CD sales go to water. Advertize who is involved and showcase their generosity and concern. We seem to do it with all the bad, why not with some good for a change?

My friend cautioned me as what to write here in this blog, but I just want to shout: IT'S SO EASY, THIS WOULD HELP! IT CAN BE DONE! I ALREADY HAVE AN AUDIENCE! As a Hollywood movie this would be popular. It already is. Here's an idea. We already have: get this free action toy at _________when you buy a ________. Some plastic thing that is played with for a day and ends up in a land fill. Let's try: get this refillable water bottle at ___________ when you buy a  large salad  (promoting healthy eating while we're at it) during opening week. Let's use social media to promote and not spend millions on advertising. Word of mouth works we all know that! There are loads of ideas and ways to make this happen that would benefit so many people.

Being raised in the burbs of Chicago but born on a farm, my dream was always to live in a cabin in the mountains and have a horse. Well I've had that for years so I have to default to one of my other dreams. That was: to do something big that would help a lot of people. Never had a clue how, what or if that was even possible. Well it is and this is it. So crazy as it might be, I will persist. There will be someone who discovers Remake 4 Water and says, hey, she might have something there.

Last Call At The Oasis

Wonderful. Shot beautifully. Very Interesting.

That's the impression from the trailer and the reviews concerning the latest documentary about the water situation in the world. This film however doesn't focus on Third World countries, rather on the US (in particular the Western States), Australia and even Palestine. The Toronto Review states:

The Bottom Line:

Doc about more-urgent-than-you-think water issues wisely focuses on their relevance to the U.S.

Erin Brockovich (remember her... the Julia Roberts movie? of course you do), Peter Gleick (yes I know he's in hot water at the moment) and Patricia Mulroy are the main speakers in this film that is praised by both critics and viewers. Rotten Tomatoes website gave it a great rating --85%. And the info about the movie sounds like a movie that could be interesting: "The global water crisis will be the central issue facing our world this century. We can manage this problem, but only if we are willing to act now. Last Call at the Oasis is a powerful new documentary that shatters myths behind our most precious resource."

It's not all doom and gloom about the world water shortages as many docs are. But even with this beautiful and positive spin on a problem that affects ALL of us, here are the box office numbers for a movie that was screened at 4 film festivals: After 3 weeks at the theatres, it's has earned...drum roll please.... almost $41,000! WOW....

Even "What To Expect When You're Expecting" which was rated at 22% by Rotten Tomatoes earned $22.1 million. Ok, it had a wide release and Oasis had a very small release, but that fact in itself reveals another point of Remake 4 Water. People don't go and see documentaries no matter how great they are. They go and see Hollywood movies, no matter how not-so-great they are! Not everyone in the world is going to get pregnant, but WE ALL ARE GOING TO BE AFFECTED BY WATER! We already are. Most of us just aren't aware.....

Yet.

Time for putting a serious message into a fun movie which by the way has already been seen in 185 countries. (Just added another this week!!) Then people will go and see it and afterwards think about it, and not feel they were hit over the head. "These things must be done del-i-cate-ly....." Quote from a green faced women who scared me as a child... C'mon! Let's Do It!

World Water Day Documentary

It came and went. Did you know? If you're like most people, you didn't.

Many thanks go out to Zoe Slusar and Bailey Kerluke of Untitled Productions who made a short documentary that brings up the issue of water awareness. You can see it on their website. It's a pretty awesome short and you can certainly tell the difference between people who want to be and who are film makers, and someone who had no idea what they are doing--like Did I Say Thousand Island? . But I did know that I would never quit.

So it is with Remake 4 Water.

Did you watch the video mentioned above? Did you notice what was said between 5:43 and 6:15? This was just a regular gal who said exactly what Remake 4 Water is all about! I was there when they were shooting to talk to people after their shot, but not before hand--they had no idea about R4W. How great is that? Sooner or later the right people will find out about this and see the validity and marketability of this concept involving restaurants.

Things are still changing. Movies that are made outside the big studios are being seen by the public in masses. October Baby is one that is doing well. It's a story that touches on a social issue, as does the movie Bully . Both of these are narratives which have higher attendance than documentaries, which is good, but they're not happy movies and some say too political or religious, depending.

We are still in a long era of escapism in the movies and I know that a fun movie that has an important but subtle message that affects all of us would be successful. By combining the subject matters while still being light hearted, it will draw people who want to be entertained. By addressing an issue that absolutely needs our attention, it will serve a purpose. C'mon. Let's Do It!

World Water Day and water.org

It's getting close to that wonderful day: March 22, World Water Day! Celebrate the fact that you have water and don't have to walk 6km to get it. You can just turn on a tap and voila, water! By the way, that's about the average that you'd have to go to get water if you lived in a water deprived area.

I'm celebrating WWD in a new way this year by starting a fund raising page with water.org. They make it really easy to donate and I like what they are doing. Last week I listened  to the presentation about water credit and how great that's going. It's amazing yet sensible what an effect pride of ownership has on the people, wells, and solutions to water and sanitation.


My mission is to raise awareness and funds so I figured that I might as well raise funds in the name of Remake 4 Water. Having discovered that my movie is being downloaded thousands and I mean thousands of times a day for free, I just have to believe that someday, the right person will see the potential in using it to help others. People will want to see the remake out of curiosity at the very least!

These are screen shots of one of the many sites where the movie is available for free. The second one is a close up. Notice the 5th listing that says "added by request". This movie is spread out far more than anyone knows! Check this site out here.

If you'd like to donate to water.org in the name of R4W, my donate page is here, and thank you for any amount you can donate to help. They'll send you a receipt to your email, so you can deduct it from your taxes. We can all do a little bit to help, and hopefully someday you'll be able to do what you already do and not have to reach into your pocket for more. So...C'mon. Let's Do It!

Brand New Website

During last year's Superbowl commercials I thought it was time to leave my website host, but just didn't ever do it. Then this year's commercials prompted me to jump ship. I had been with Go Daddy for almost 6 years, but it was time to say bye. I'm not a prude but I don't appreciate their style.

2 weeks after I returned home from my big trip out east and the great International Water Forum at the UN, I was hit with severe vertigo and am still recovering, so am very behind in what I want to be doing. World Water Day is in one month and there's so much to do. Having hoped to be farther down the path in my mission, I have to be content in knowing that everything happens for a reason, and it's not my timing that matters.

The new website is lots more fun and even reminds me of George Jetson. That was a great cartoon, and when I'm on Skype, I think of Spacely Sprockets. Imagine that we are that advanced and more. Torrent sites and downloading movies to phones. What will they think of next? I'm just glad because the movie is so far spread around the world and the messages are getting out there! Now it's time to work on the water troubles and help more people.

Chuck Fishman says: Water First!   I say: Let's Do It!

They ALL Said It...

Yes sir! They all said AWARENESS. I already went over that in the last blog, but I think you need to hear it from them. It's so crucial to solving the problems, and oh yes, there are solutions. But how can the average Joe Screwdriver or Jane Cupcake try to help when they don't have a clue? By the way you can switch the last names if you want, but please keep it related to restaurants. The point is that the general public really is clueless when it comes to water. Watch this video and see for yourself, and this time it's not me telling you, so please pay attention.

The world really is changing and you just can't help but notice. Like this idea I found the other day: Go Halfsies-helping fight obesity, food waste and world hunger. Check it out! It's ideas like this one and Remake 4 Water that are going to make a difference in the world. And it's such an easy idea: go to a movie and help people get water, and learn about the water crisis in a fun way. What crisis?! We don't have a water crisis in America. Oh yeah, I forgot.

With intentions of spreading the last press release and new videos all over back in November, suddenly and I mean suddenly, a strange creature named Vertigo creeped into my cranium and wreaked havoc. Anyone who has had severe Vertigo can relate. I wish this mission was further along, but as I truly know, everything happens for a reason. Being able to only listen to talk radio, and finding a local radio station with daily Bible studies (don't worry any friends of mine who might read this, I'm not thumping, just living), I am gaining the Strength that I know I'll need for this "impossible" mission. But why is this so difficult?

Well, it really was a great event and thanks again to Jim Thebaut with the Running Dry series for organizing it. To be in a room full of people with the same mission is really encouraging, and even though it can be looked at by others as preaching to the choir, it was a fantastic chance to network and share ideas. Now it's out and into the public with the messages, and who better to influence people than Hollywood, hmmm? C'mon. Let's Do It!

Jane Seymour or Money?

Neither!

You might think it was Jane Seymour because she's so involved with certain aspects of the water crisis. But she wasn't it. You might think it's money because all the water charities are always asking for donations. But that wasn't it either. So what was the main topic at the International Water Forum at the United Nations in September, the main issue that every single one of the speakers mentioned? AWARENESS! That's right. So many people in the world have no idea that there IS a problem with water. And most of the people outside the water sector who know that a Global Water Crisis exists, only believe it to exist in 3rd World Countries.

What do you think of when someone says Global Water Crisis? Chances are that you picture a scrawny child sitting by a mud pool with sadness screaming out of their face. Or maybe you picture a woman walking while balancing a jug on her head with little children in tow. Am I right? Well did you know that there are loads of water issues and troubles right here in North America? Did you know that Georgia and Tennessee are having a "water war"? A dispute over the line between the two states and where the real border is-- which affects the Tennessee River water rights. What about Chicago. What? They have Lake Michigan right there! Really. Well,  read this. Even Canada has it's share of issues despite plenty of fresh water. What about the American Southwest and California? But you probably already know about that.

Jane Seymour certainly does. Yes she's still beautiful and she spoke to me in passing, as I took a photo of her when she was leaving. She's good friends with Jim Thebaut (who organized the event) and was the narrator on his "Running Dry" documentary about the American Southwest. She talked about education and what we as individuals can do, because it's up to all of us to take measures and do our part to help. Sometimes that can mean a small behavior change like turning off your taps, or it can mean a life commitment to something you believe in and are passionate about. Here's a snippet:

During the forum, I kept turning to my new friends Hame and Kadia (who are originally from Africa but who now live in DC) and smiling. I had told them about R4W and my ideas surrounding the project and as speaker after speaker talked about the problem of how to get people outside the water sector to be aware of the GWC, they just returned my gaze while nodding their heads. Get Hollywood involved and people will pay attention. It's such a simple idea and everything I'm suggesting has been done before! In these incredible times we are in, with marches on Wall Street, social responsibility coming to the forefront in corporations and Hollywood making remakes anyway, why not? The difference is that this remake will be new and will help many people in many ways. It's all about AWARENESS! Water and respect. C'Mon. Let's Do It!