Hi neighbors. Another year has ended and obviously enough another one has begun.

2005 was one second longer at the last minute than anticipated by most of us; so I hope you enjoyed the moment, er, second.

It doesn't seem like a year ago that we were making all those resolutions does it? I had hardly begun on mine before it's time to stop (thank goodness!) and start something new.

Do you have your list ready? Have you bought your black-eyed peas and eggnog for your midnight snack? This is supposed to bring you luck throughout the new year Have you found a couple of new pennies or nickels to put outside just prior to midnight in order to bring them in at the stroke of 12? (My mother always said that would ensure you would be bringing in money all year.) Have you ever heard that people and events move forward together on some far-reaching, upward-spiraling cycles that are related to both time and space? I have thought of this theory quite a bit and I think I've found a way to prove it. At least some small part of it.

King Kong. The movie, of course, not the creature, is a splendid example of the same thing becoming more than it once was.

Once an action-adventure slash horror show only, this newest compilation of actors, special effects, background scenes and emotions has evolved into a great "chick-flick." Yes, ladies, you read that right. King Kong is a romance! Oh, don't let the guys in on this. If they want to take you to see King Kong, balk a little because in their minds it is a great action flick.

And it does have a lot of great action! Monster fights, wild natives who seem a little like a cross between zombies and those early "after the bomb hits and everyone gets a bit mutated and nuts" movies.

The special effects and computer graphics are mind boggling and very, very well done. Even Kong is a terrific rendition of an actual silverback great ape. They have the mannerisms and movements down pat.

The time frame backgrounds and location scenes are beautiful and believable.

The guys won't be disappointed. The good news is, neither will the gals who go to see it.

Like all things evolving on an upward spiral, the improvements between this film and it's two predecessors occur on many levels.

As a representative of nature in its pure state, Kong shows both his power and his vulnerability. In his natural state he can be damaged, and even he can't survive without a struggle.

When man assumes he understands nature and can control it with technology, he finds a new respect for the raw power of nature unleashed.

When the inevitable defeat of Kong (AKA nature) occurs through the unfair use of man's technology (unfair because had Kong been able to catch those darned airplanes there would have been a different ending) we realize that our victory was not without a price.

What was once grand, fierce and unconquerable does not die without taking parts of those elements within us all with him.

One scene that happens quickly but is worth some extra thought is when Kong opens his hand for the girl to climb into. It reminded me of the scene in the Jane Goodall movie with Sigourney Weaver. In that movie the wild ape finally allowing her to touch his hand was a symbol of nature and modern mankind finally making efforts to know and trust each other.

The girl's vulnerability in the savage world of Skull Island could represent all of mankind in the sometimes devastating face of nature.

In a year of tsunamis and hurricanes, forest fires, earthquakes and volcanoes, maybe mankind should stop depreciating the power of nature and try a little harder to understand its complexities; instead of thinking we can control a power we have barely understood.

Whether or not you are looking for metaphors and evolutionary concepts, go see the latest King Kong. It's a good movie for everyone. Take some hankies -- take plenty of hankies.

A King Kong remake isn't the only good change in the world in the last year ... but it may be the one we can all share.

Until the next time friends remember; a new year means a new chance to make lots of things better. Let's do it!