2.29.2004

Passion
Saw Passion last night. It was really an indescribable experience overall, but I'll try to explain some of it.
It's a great movie for Christians and non-believers, but also for just plain movie lovers. It's very intense and brutal, but graphically there nothing much worse than Saving Private Ryan or some other movies out there. It's just more intense in the fact that it brings to life something we (as Christians) have sugar coated for so long.
The cinematography is spectacular. Some of the best I've seen. It's would be great as a film alone. There are some great artistic things done, and the acting, even in Aramaic and Latin (there are subtitles) is really good. It also has the single best makeup job (Jesus during/after the flogging) I have ever seen.
I highly recommend this for Christians or non-Christians. I think everyone should see this in a theater, just to get a taste of what really happened, whether you believe it happened to the Son of God or not. This isn't a silly Christian thing. This is very real. It's not like other Christian movies out there. If you haven't seen it yet, I urge you to. It will be like nothing you've ever experienced before.

2.27.2004

Return
David is back to blogging. Check it out!

2.25.2004

Absence
I haven't posted/probably won't post for a while because the residential network have been shut off because of another stupid worm. (Quiet, Chuck)

2.23.2004

Great, Great, Great Site
Go here now.

Book Quiz


You're Watership Down
by Richard Adams
Though many think of you as a bit young, even childish, you're actually incredibly deep and complex. You show people the need to rethink their assumptions, and confront them on everything from how they think to where they build their houses. You might be one of the greatest people of all time. You'd be recognized as such if you weren't always talking about talking rabbits.

Take the Book Quiz at the Blue Pyramid.

2.20.2004

Runnin'
So much to do, so little time. Nothing really too interesting going on, just a lot of stuff to take care of. The Germany trip is coming up in 27 days, there's the ever-present wedding planning, this was/is a newspaper week, there's intramural basketball games, we have a big project we're working on in American Advertising Federation, a Community Service project for one of my classes, and oh yeah, there's all that school stuff, too. All things I enjoy/are looking forward, too. It's just a lot.
I'm also working on finding an internship for the summer. I'll have an interview at a great looking Advertising place at the beginning of April, I'm applying again to Nazarene Publishing House in Kansas City, and I just sent a resume to Smuckers. I'd love to work at any of these places. We'll see what happens.

2.18.2004

A-Rod Schma-rod
I already put most of this on Abe's Blog, but I'll post it here, too. Since it was requested.

The Top Ten Reasons the A-Rod trade doesn't matter
10) This deal will add a ton to baseball's highest payroll which is paying mostly people who won't be around in 3 or 4 years and they have no farm system to back themselves up. They'll be out of money and talent. It has to happen sometime.
9) The Yanks have been defeated too many times. They've lost their intimidation factor. Other teams just aren't as scared of them as they were a few years back.
8) They won't be able to beat Houston or the Cubs if they make it to the series. Those teams are just too good.
7) A-Rod isn't a absolutly fantastic defensive shortstop and I (and the people I've talked to) think he'll have trouble at third. At least to start. He'll see a lot more hard hit balls and have a lot longer throw to first.
6) The AL East is too good. It will be hard to win a ton of games for anyone in that division.
5) The Yankees have no pitching. A weak bullpen, and three very questionable starters (Lieber and Brown due to injuries and Contrearas because he has no long-term experience).
4) The Yankees are old. Brown, Giambi, Lofton, Sheff, and Bernie Williams will all miss time due to injury, almost guarenteed.
3) Enrique Wilson is their projected 2nd baseman.
2) They gave up a 35 HR/35 steal guy to get him. A-Rod isn't that diverse. I'd give up 8 or 10 home runs for 20 steals any day. PS - The big knock on Soriano is strike outs, he only have four more than A-Rod last year. Their batting averages is comparable, too.
1) Boston is still all-around better and younger. As long as the blown A-Rod deal doesn't destroy their chemistry. Boston will finally get the East, New York will be the wild-card.

2.16.2004

This one's for Chuck

2.15.2004

Frappe
What a mixed up turned around weekend.

2.14.2004

Fighting Heart Attacks
I decided to post my two cents about Valentine's Day. Why? 1) I don't want to do homework. 2) I want to. So deal with it.
I'm sick and tired of people complaining about how stupid Valentine's Day is. It is not a Hallmark holiday. It's been around for a lot longer than Hallmark has. Sweetest Day is the Hallmark of equivelant, which I do no celebrate.
Now you may be thinking I don't have a right to stand up for Valentine's Day because I'm enganged and it's easy for me, because I have a designated Valentine.
I don't want to hear that either.
Before I was single, I had fun with Valentine's Day. Getting together with single friends and having a good time. It's just supposed to be fun. It's not about self-loathing, or making a point of the fact you are single. It's about taking a day to celebrate love. Love of friends, love of family, and yes, love of significant others.
It's about showing people they are special. Not about what people's current dating status is.
Make the best of things. Don't let them make the worst of you.
That is all.

2.13.2004

Reminicing
I'm listenting to the soundtrack of Your a Good Man, Charlie Brown. It really is a great musical.

Oh, and I might be getting back into the world of quartets. We'll see what happens.

Finally
Don't you hate it when you're walking through a yard and you need a towel and there's just not one to be found? Don't worry, a new product from Target will be coming your way soon.

*UPDATE - Same goes for a shower.

Weekend
Got a busy weekend full of both things I'm looking forward to (a date, a gathering of friends, watching the b-ball game) and things I'm not-so-looking forward to (article writing, thinking up the basis of an ad campaign). It all kicks off tomorrow morning at 8 am with a test, followed by a test at 9:10. I think I better get to bed.

2.11.2004

Quotable Quotes
One: "Passengers said the remarks had made them deeply uneasy and that many on board had reached for their mobile phones, fearing the pilot might take some sort of drastic action." What better weapon against a Christian than a mobile phone. Gotta fend us off some how.

Two: "Less than a week after filing a proposed class-action lawsuit in federal court because of her outrage over the Super Bowl's halftime show, Terri Carlin believes she's made her point." Yes, Terri, you made your point. You're a lazy idgit trying to take what isn't yours.

2.10.2004

Good Feelings
It's always a great feeling when people turn out to be much cooler than you expect them to be. I was a hesitant about some of my group members in one of my classes, but after our first "meeting" today, it seems like it's going to be fun. That makes me very happy.

Which Doesn't Belong
Oreos and Milk, Peanut Butter and Jelly, Ohio Winter and Nasty Weather, Popcorn and Cinnamon Rolls (with Frosting??)

2.9.2004

Bad Marketing
Diet Coke is coming out with Lime Diet Coke. So naturally they use the "put the lime in the coconut" song and change coconut to diet coke. Which worked. But then the voice-over comes in and says, "That's right, we put the lime in the Diet Coke" as if the listeners are completely stupid and couldn't understand it. And it's really, really, terribly bad. They completely ruined a good thing.

All-Stars
Ah, it's the traditional February Monday when everyone says, "Oh, the Pro Bowl was yesterday?" We even said at lunch yesterday that there wasn't any sports on to watch. Nobody remembered about it. The NFL needs to change something.
Speaking of football, just heard a funny joke on the radio.
A guy gets a free ticket from his company for the Super Bowl. He gets to the stadium and finds out his seat was way in the back. He looks around and sees an empty seat up in the 4th row on the fifty yard line so he decides to go check it out. He asks the guy in the next seat, "Is anyone sitting next to you?"
"No the seat's empty."
"Wow, I can't belive someone wouldn't use their seat at the Super Bowl! Why would it be open?"
"Well, actually it's my seat. Well, my wife's. She passed away, this is the first Super Bowl we haven't been to together."
"Oh, I'm terribly sorry. But couldn't you find someone to take the seat? A friend, a reletive or someone?"
"No... they're all at the funeral."

2.8.2004

25 Favorite Movies
I was bored, so I decided to make a list of 25 of my favorite movies that don't fit into the "normal" catagories (action, comedy, drama). Some catagories are more recognizable than others. A carrot, "^", means I don't own it.

Sports Movie - 61*
Christmas Movie - A Christmas Story
Satire - Spaceballs
Teaching Movie - Dangerous Minds^
Music Movie (serious) - Mr. Hollands Opus
Music Movie (comedy) - Almost Famous
Sci-Fi - The Matrix Trilogy
Guy Movie - Fight Club^
Chick Flick - Notting Hill
Mafia Movie - The Godfather Triology^
Political Movie - All the Presidents Men^
Musical - Moulin Rouge
80's Comedy - Ferris Bueller's Day Off
Recent Foreign Film - Chocolat^
Old Foreign Film - Jean de Florette^
Dance Movie - Center Stage
Gross-out Movie - There's Something About Mary
Work Movie - Office Space^
Relationship Movie - High Fidelity
Crime Movie - Ocean's Eleven
Car Movie - Gone in 60 Seconds^
Comic Book Related Movie - Batman Forever
Alien Movie - Independance Day
G Rated Movie - The Rookie
Disney Movie - Lilo and Stitch^

2.7.2004

Stupid Americans
Sometimes, as I think I've blogged before, I am thouroughly embarrased to be an American. This is one of those times. "It’s clear that the exposure of Janet Jackson’s nipple during the Super Bowl halftime show offended millions of people. It’s clear that many of those people were angered and outraged." Terri Carlin, a 47-year-old bank employee from Knoxville, wants money from Viacomm, CBS, MTV, Janet Jacket, and Justin Timberlake for damages caused due to the Super Bowl "incident". The lawsuit could soon have 80 million plaintiffs. "The complaint alleges that by being exposed to the “sexually explicit conduct” viewers were caused to 'suffer outrage, anger, embarrassment and serious injury.'" Look, I was as shocked by this as the next person but come on people a nipple is not sexually explicit! Everyone has nipples! Most of us have two! Some more! Has this woman never looked at her own or anyone else bare chest ever? Some people are so lazy and stupid, trying to get other peoples money so they don't have their own, it makes me sick. Yes, the stunt was wrong because people weren't expecting to see it, but it was one bare breast for like two seconds. It's not the end of the world.

2.5.2004

Cashtastrophy
I've never been good about keeping track of money. I usually just know how much is in my checking and savings account and how much is on my credit card. I've always been fine. Well, a few days ago, I decided to stop this. I paid off my credit card with the mindset that I'd start fresh with my next paycheck (on the 15th) and start with a budget, keep track of my spending, save more, etc. Well I checked to make sure everything went through ok tonight. It didn't. Turned out my grandma hadn't cashed the check I'd written her yet and did it after I cleaned out my checking and savings (above my min. balance) to get everything ready for my new start. So now I have to borrow more money and fix that mess which will throw off my first months budget... Why did I decide to be good with my money again?

Skchewl
Well, I've had one class of each course now. Looks like this semester could be the most work I've ever had, but I don't think it should be too hard of stuff. It's just a matter of staying on task. I've set a goal to get back on the Dean's List. We'll see if it happens.

2.3.2004

Here we go again
Well, tomorrow starts my last spring semester and the second to last semester of my college career. Four business classes and a comm class. Should be.... interesting.

Football
I guess I'll do my American duty and post something about the Super Bowl.

Commercials - sucked. where was Terry Tait? The Sierra Mist ones were good and the Budweiser Donkey one was funny. But that was about it.

Game - Awesome. Not a circus or a broadway show, it was football. Real football.

Halftime - I see this as really positive because we now don't have to sit through any more stupid MTV halftimes. Bring back the college marching bands!

Misc. - Congratulation, Tom Brady. You're now the only person I like to graduate from U of M. In fact, you're one of my fav. players now. The TD pass to the ex-OSU linebacker put you over the edge.