SimplyMaggies

“The Bucket List”, starring Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman, is a refreshingly excellent film. Being bombarded with action movies, which plots do not require any thinking on the part of the audience, I must admit I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of this film. But then again, what else could one expect out of a movie with such stars?

Anyway, the writing is witty and touching, which only complements the quality of the acting. The special effects are nearly as good as in any movie these days (well, most of them, at least) and the viewer gets a chance to see a bit of the world along with the characters. The plot is not one-dimensional and many times forces the audience to read between the lines. And if you’re good at it, you will probable get more from the film that you thought possible when you picked up the DVD… But I won’t tell you what that is since I really don’t want to spoil the surprise…

The film tells a story of two men in certain age with dramatically different life styles, who find out they have cancer. The two could not be more diverse and have more different values and views on life but as they are forced to share a room in the hospital, they become acquainted with one another and through sharing the same treatment and humiliation that comes with it, they discover how much they have to offer the other person. And so they become friends… And decide to go and do the things on their bucket list before they die…

This is a surprisingly good movie that will force you to look on your own life from a different perspective and perhaps even appreciate the things you have or give you courage to go after the things you want… But what else would one expect from a production including two stars of this caliber?

Who doesn’t want fabulous feet, especially in the summer when you wear sandals all the time? This nearly is the best part of summer, although I must admit I tend to like my boots as well. But feet do need some break from the heavy shoes and winter boots.

However there is nothing more unsightly than neglected feet. It would be a perfect world if all of us could afford a weekly hour of pampering, with a nice manicure and, of course, pedicure but let’s face it… not many of us can find the extra time, not to mention the extra money. So what can we, mere mortals, do to have pretty feet we won’t be ashamed to show off in the new gorgeous sandals?

Here are a few things anyone can do at home and get similar results:

• Exfoliate regularly—the thickest skin is on your feet, particularly on your heels so it’s important to exfoliate them on regular basis. Use a glycolic peel to remove the tough skin and follow with a heavy cream or balm, not your regular lotion. To keep the callus away, I find that using a foot scrub every day when I shower helps.
• Repair the polish—instead of redoing all your pretty toes, buff any nicks or chips with a file and ‘spot treat’ them with the same color nail polish. Do not apply another coat of polish on previously painted nails when you notice a chip because the new coat will only dampen the layer underneath, which causes it to loose the adhesion and start peeling off. And you don’t want that!
• Add a foot massage to your routine—applying pressure to your feet stretches and distresses the muscles in your feet, which helps you to relax. Try rolling a tennis ball under your arches for two minutes or ask your significant other to massage your feet…

So, let’s follow these easy steps and all have fabulous feet without spending hundreds of dollars and hours in the salons. Although once in while, there really is nothing like it…

Linguistics and languages are just two of my passions; English in particular. It may seem a bit out of the ordinary for English is my second language but I’ve come to love it. The more I have learnt about it (and there is still so much more to learn…It’s actually quite exciting), the more I’ve come to appreciate it. And this is precisely the reason why people who use improper language and make basic errors, drive me absolutely nuts!

Sorry to say, Americans seem to dominate this unfortunate category. I often get an impression that either people simply don’t care what kind of language they use or they are not very well educated. Part of me wants to lean towards the former, but the other part realizes that it’s most likely the combination of both. Either way, the effect is the same: too many people speaking improperly for my comfort.

What really ticks me off is when someone (whose English is in general pretty flawed) corrects me on my pronunciation or the use of idioms or other colloquial expressions. Hardly ever are they correct themselves, though. Let me give you an example here. The proper pronunciation of the word ‘herb’ in the English language includes the letter ‘h’, thus the ‘h’ is not silent, contrary to what the popular belief (therefore the pronunciation) is. One thing that gets on your nerves, for instance, is when I read an American book and come across such as this: “an historical event”. This is so incorrect it makes me want to scream: “Where the hell is your editor?!” Anyway, why is it incorrect; you ask? Because nowhere in the rules governing the English language does it state you can put an indefinite article before a consonant! Moreover, using ‘an’ in such a context implies that the ‘h’ in words like ‘history’, ‘historical’ etc. is silent. This, however, is not the case. The ‘h’ in ‘history’ is very much audible!

Well, these are just a few examples of the very basic mistakes Americans make on daily basis, which still makes me ponder the reasons behind such occurrences.