Depression and Feelings of Unloved

I ran across this quote today:

“The most terrible poverty is loneliness and the feeling of being unloved.”
— Mother Teresa

And I can honestly say that it hit me hard, those suffering depression often feel unloved, even when love and friendship is surrounding them. They need "more" from those who aren't dealing with depression then ever before. They need that extra hug, that extra praise, that extra five minutes of your time. They need that ear that's tired of hearing the same sob story to hear it just one more time. And most of all they need your compassion and unwavering love. They need to know that someone is there to lift them up when they cannot lift themselves up.

Depression is NOT a choice. It's not something you wake up one day thinking you'd like to have. It's not a personality choice. It is a chemical imbalance in the brain.

If you asked a depressed person, on one of their good days, if they'd ever like to go back to depression, the answer would be a resounding, "No". It's true that there is some comfort in the familiarity of depression, but it's no way to live one's life. It takes more than it gives.

So the next time you encounter a person suffering from depression, don't turn your back. No matter how tired you are of the same old "sob story", don't leave them alone. You don't have to be there 24/7, but be there.

Mr. Troop Mom

When I first heard of about Mr. Troop Mom I thought, “Boy, George Lopez is going downhill fast!” But then the video arrived and I found myself thinking, “It’s not one of the better movies George has made, I but it’s not all that bad, either.”

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The problem with the film, as I see it, is that it is too cut and dry. You pretty much know what is going to happen before it happens. And Jane Lynch’s character as the head mistress of the camp gets old really fast—probably because she plays the same character—only with a different job title—in all her films.

George plays, Eddie Serrano, a widowed father, trying to raise is tween daughter alone. During the day, he’s a fast-talking, successful attorney. At night, he plays catch up by trying to become an involved parent. The problem is that his refusal to talk about his deceased wife has put a wedge between Eddie and his daughter.

Then the unthinkable happens, a troop mom has to back down from her duties and Eddie must take her place as leader. At first, Eddie is reluctant to go along with the camp’s rules as he’s not accustomed to living in the woods or working as a team. But as the film progresses, he begins to understand the importance of adapting to his circumstances and in the end, bonds with his daughter.

If you have children under the age of twelve, they’ll find this film innocently entertaining—which is quite refreshing considering many of the films being produced these days try to balance the delicate line between child and adult and often miss the mark when it comes to films for the tween sector.

The DVD comes with special features like: additional scenes, Daniela Bobadilla’s views on playing George’s daughter, music by the Naked Brother’s Band, and a gag reel.

A Plumm Summer

I had absolutely no intentions of reviewing, let alone watching, “A Plumm Summer” staring Henry Winkler, Lisa Guerrero, Chris Massogolia, and William Baldwin, but then it arrived on my doorstep. At first, I couldn’t bring myself to watch it—mostly because I was burnt out with writing and reviewing and just needed a break and I knew once I watched it, I’d have to review it. Then my daughter saw the cover and said, “Hey, isn’t that the guy from that old show you had me watch a while back? What’s it called, ‘Happy Days’? Let’s watch it!” So in went the DVD.

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Before the film even began I thought to myself, “This is going to be another one of those films where I say good-bye to my brain cells but I’ll try to keep an open-mind.” Perhaps it was because the lack of publicity, or perhaps it was because I didn’t want to see Henry Winkler playing another dumbed down character—as seems to be his motto in his older years, but I stereo-typed the film without really knowing anything about it.

Boy was I embarrassed and surprised when the film was over and I found myself saying, “That wasn’t half bad! It kept me entertained. I laughed. And it had a good, strong storyline.”

The film is about two boys named Elliott and Rocky Plumm who, during the summer of 68, help the FBI solve the case of the missing frog, Froggy Doo. The boys live with an alcoholic father who resents having to give up his life as a fighter to care for a family and a mother who is at her wits-end and ready to move on with her life. Tired of dealing with the family drama, the eldest boy decides to make his little brother feel better by finding his favorite television character, Froggy Doo—who just happened to go missing in their hometown!

Some critics argue that the side-story dealing with the boys’ family life has no place in the film and that might be so, but it in no way distracts from the overall plot of the boys playing private detectives (or sleuths). Since it is, after all, the key ingredient in waking up the father who decides his kids are more important that a bottle of booze and lost dreams.

The film is based on a true story and the DVD comes with special features like, an audio commentary, a gag real, deleted scenes, and behind-the-scenes footage.