Was it HOT Enough For You?

Now that the heat has THANKFULLY dropped to a happy summery 85 or so degrees and I don't need to run and stick my head in the freezer between keystrokes, here are some of the things your DivaCardista has been up to:

MOVIES:
I went to see the Wayans "Little Man" and laughed out loud for the first time in about a week. (In the heat, too hot to laugh.) It's good to see a Wayans movie every so often. They are so silly. Crafty, too. It was a typical Wayans movie plus a heaping helping of Warner Brothers' Baby Buggy Bunny with a soupçon of Robert Townsend to make the hard edges a bit softer and to bring the requisite tear to the eye.

Plus the theatre was cool.

Also...

In search of something else in my 11x21 manse I found a new favorite: "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes". (Thank you, Mr. Kellogg!) Now by this point everyone knows that Ms. Monroe was actually quite the smart cookie, however breathy. But hardly anyone talks about her dancing.
Girlfriend could move! Jane Russell could hold it down when she had her featured solos, but when she was next to Marilyn, Dear Jane looked like a teamster in drag. (Overly harsh? Maybe. But you watch them together as the film progresses and tell me if you don't see what I see.)

The casting was great, because as soon as Jane got too acidic, here comes the breathy sweetness of Marilyn. And even those with a few lines were on point.

But, um...

What was the deal with the Bondage Girls on the chandelier? Much less the gymnasts in the scene by the pool? & what's with those 1953 pre-spandex/pre-speedo mostly flesh tone shorts? Maybe we are simply too young to fully understand Director Hawks' intentions in those moments, but overall, this classic is funny, fascinating, tuneful and nobody's fluff piece. Of course, I would love to see it done today with a muti-culti cast. Beyonce would make a hysterical Loreli.

HOT THINGS:
There was this tea that called itself "Hot Love" that I tried lately that tasted more like hot socks.

Which brings us, of course to the demise of "Hot Feet" the recently closed Earth, Wind & Fire dance outing on Broadway. I think that one of the reasons it closed so soon is because it focused its title on those who would be moving to/through the music. Not on the music, which would have drawn more people. If they called it "Gratitude" or "Reasons" or "Love's Holiday" DivaCardista believes in her heart that this show would still be playing. If you can say the title and begin humming immediately, well, there's half of your marketing right there.

Ah, me. Well, I have to go upstate to a family picnic. Should be fun.

So long as the Good Lord doesn't decide to turn the heat back to broil.

Stay hydrated!

Blessings,
DivaCardista

Fake PayPal SPOOF Alert!!!

Now you know it is too hot for all this.

And thus I write today.

While taking care of business over at blessedstar cards, I get the following letter allegedly from PayPal. So, not knowing, I take the bait. And I even transfer some money while I'm on the "site". Only to discover PayPal has absolutely NOTHING to do with these e-thieves!

So, here is

• a warning
• a copy of the FAKE PayPal letter. (please DO NOT USE links. ONLY for demo)

"Subject :
RE: Message ID 8101035 - Alert Message

Dear valued PayPal? member,

We recently reviewed your account, and suspect that your
PayPal account may have been accessed by an unauthorized third party. Protecting
the security of your account and of the PayPal network is our primary
concern.
Therefore, as prevention measure, we have temporarely limited access
to sensitive PayPal account features.We encourage customers to get their
information up-to-date and change password often.PayPal has assigned you an
unique tracking number. Unique tracking number :327440471Please review your
information after loging in. Use only your assigned unique URL.Click this link
to access your unique URL (! please read below for security tips) and gain full
access: https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_login-run
For
more information about how to protect your account, please visit PayPal's Security Center.We
apologize for any inconvenience this may cause, and appreciate your assistance
in helping us maintain the integrity of the entire PayPal system. Thank you for
your prompt attention to this matter."

Can you believe this mess? Now I have to take time & energy to do damage control.

Now, to their credit, the real PayPal has responded with great sensitivity and speed.
Still, I pray this doesn't happen to you.

And if you remember nothing else, remember this:
PayPal always addresses you by NAME. Never a number or "valued PayPal member".

Please pass this on so that we all can have a good August, safe internet transactions and, above all, peace.

Blessings,
DivaCardista