The State of New Mexico should be listed as an additional star of this movie. Filmed entirely within its borders, the locations, from the Rocky Mountains to the beautiful but forbidding desert, are as much a part of the story as the characters themselves.

I’ve never been much for symbolism and frequently think it’s drummed-up by folks bent on finding deeper meaning behind words and settings. Nevertheless, even I could draw a parallel as the characters battle the ‘hell’ of deadly freezing temperatures in the mountains and searing heat in the desert, all the while also battling the ‘hell’ of their inner fears and hatreds toward one another. Either threat can ultimately end in death, the one physical and the other spiritual.

Pierce Brosnan’s character flees with his demons to these mountains, far away from the deeds he has committed as a soldier ‘on orders’ during the Civil War. He is alone when the story opens. He has no one. Out of nowhere comes Liam Neeson’s character, who has employed five men to help him track and capture Brosnan alive. He is a very harsh and hardened man with only one reason to exist – settling things with Brosnan. We do not know what terrible thing Brosnan could have done, real or imagined, that would incite such hatred. Eventually, of course, we learn.

Be prepared. This movie is all about the relentless chase, and it is one long, long chase. It is not an action movie and it does not move fast in that sense. It has some gore, and that part is not for the faint of heart.

This movie has tremendous appeal on several layers: The parallels drawn between the harshness of nature and the harshness of man. The eventual promise of healing of broken spirits. The wonderful characterizations of Brosnan and Neeson. The beautiful scenery which is more than a backdrop to the action. I thoroughly enjoyed it. I think you might, too.

Once again we had no trick-or-treaters come to our door. I guess most of the kids are going to the malls, or school and church parties. Can’t say that I blame the parents for trying to keep their kids safe. Disappointed not to see any little goblins, though. I love the very young kids. Their costumes are so cute, and they are so innocent and thrilled to be going. And so many of them aren’t quite sure what it’s all about. I hope you and yours had a fun and safe Halloween!

Don and I just returned from casting our ballots early for the November 4 election. Early voting occurs at the County Election Board offices in Oklahoma, and ours was open from 8-6 today, from 8-1 Saturday (tomorrow), and again on Monday, November 3, from 8-6.

We had a good experience. Although it’s a 20-minute drive to the election board offices, once there we were in and out after only one hour. There was a steady stream of people coming in, but overall the line remained about the same length, so I’m guessing everyone will experience about an hour total time. That’s really pretty good, I think. Everyone is anticipating a record turnout for this election, and if past experience is any indication, the waits on Tuesday will be horrific.

There are 31 states, including Oklahoma, that allow early voting and do not require an excuse to allow it. Check to see if your state is one of them! You might be able to save yourself from waiting in long lines to cast YOUR ballot on Tuesday!

CLICK ON THIS LINK to find out if your state allows early voting. The page you land on has a list of states and links to info about their election boards and where to go!

Five more days! No matter where you live, your vote DOES count. Plan to go to the polls Tuesday, November 4 and vote!!

Seriously. Don and I have to lose some weight. It isn’t funny any more and we are out of excuses. No more waiting on one crisis or event to be behind us to start being responsible about our eating habits. The truth is the ‘problem’ is ME. If I don’t buy the bad stuff, I won’t cook it and we won’t eat it. Our combined laziness always trumps our food cravings and we NEVER (well, almost) make special trips to the store so we can munch on something fattening. This is true, even though I get such serious cravings in the evening that I THINK about going. A lot.

I am remembering, however, two, no, FOUR years ago when we went on the South Beach diet. Don lost about 30 lbs and I lost about 15. We felt so much better and we were pretty proud of ourselves, too.

So yesterday we started South Beach again. I wanted to make it through the first day successfully before I posted about it. Oh, and I have some photos of myself that I was thinking about posting and doing a ‘before’ and then I would take some ‘after’ photos to show the changes and post them as we go along. That was before I looked at the ‘befores’. There is no way I could put those out for anyone else to see. Absolutely gross. I guess I could never be on a show like ‘The Biggest Loser’ where they let it all hang out for the world to see. Don’t know how they do it. So, I’m not sure how I will do this, but at the very least I’ll post little updates on our progress. Written. No photos.