R.I.P. John Hughes

We'll never forget about you.

Yeah

Wait. Whoa. Chris Isaak's 53??

Enjoyed this short Q&A with Chris Isaak, like the opening banter:

Is it true you were the homecoming king at your high school [A.A. Stagg in Stockton, Calif.]?

No, no, no. [Laughs] I was student council president. I even had my own office. I was a cheerleader, too. I found out about cheerleader camp and heard that there were about six guys and 3,000 girls, so I signed up. It was a precursor for a rock-and-roll career.

And what a wise mom he has:

Well, heartbreak is my forte. But I tried to make it a balance on this record. There's some really upbeat songs like "Big Wide Wonderful World." And "We've Got Tomorrow." You know my parents have been married 60 years and I asked my mom, "How do you stay together?" And she said, "You don't leave." It's really simple.

Probably good to stay away from those who leave from the get-go . . .

'Best Wedding Entrance Ever'

Excuse my fear of my child, or me, getting sick

Apparently, my need for health care coverage is a threat to the comfort of certain 'Christians.'

Refreshingly, Prof. Vigen gets it so very right:

. . . If we are a people shaped by our respect for life and the dignity of the human person, how can we not be at the front lines of health care reform? Even more, why do many of us oppose a public option for health care?

The Gospels overflow with stories of Jesus caring for people in need--not only the fortunate few, but whole gatherings of people--hungry masses, gaggles of children, and scores of the infirm. In one instance, Jesus healed too many to count (Luke 4:40). If we take Jesus seriously, then our obligations to the naked, hungry, beaten, suffering, and vulnerable are hard to deny. This is not new or revolutionary--Christians have understood this duty for centuries; it's why the first hospitals in the West were founded by religious communities and why so many doctors and nurses were also priests, monks, nuns, ministers, or lay members. . . .

Consequently, Christians are called to embody this grace for others--friends, family, neighbors, and strangers alike. Jesus did not favor V.I.P.'s, societal insiders, the affluent, or people with the best paying jobs. But that is exactly what our currently-fragmented health care system does. Significant numbers of people go bankrupt every year because of medical costs. Thousands of others are being cut off of charity care because hospitals and doctors can no longer afford to be generous. Others delay seeking care or are refused care because they don't carry the right or adequate insurance. Jesus cared for whoever needed attention the most--regardless of status, wealth, or employment. The parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10) shines a spotlight on the responsibility to care for the stranger (and to pay the bills!).

Are we willing to put our money where our scriptures are? Health care is not free. I ask only that we shoulder one another's burdens. . . .

On my short list

'Just One Day'

Yeah. I want to see this.

Love Mendes, ever since American Beauty. And after the lack of much original thinking in his non-ground-breaking Revolutionary Road -- saved only by brilliant performances by Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio, and the one who stole the show in a character who almost revealed Mendes's hand too much, Michael Shannon -- I am really looking forward to him showing us what made us love him in the first place: in Away We Go.


Yet, the cliched design of the movie's website and credits, etc., can't help but remind me too much of Juno and other such non-indy indy films. Mendes doesn't need that help to drum up an audience.

Not the ukelele I'm used to hearing

Very cool.


and part two:

A necessary apology

Humbling to admit your past wrongs, and that the opinions or sentiments you once held are not right. While I am pro-life still, I do not believe the issue is handled through legislation -- I believe it's counterproductive, just creates backlash. But I believe Frank Schaeffer is right in that the rhetoric, however unintended, has fueled the wrong passions in the issue.

Compassion and love -- and grace -- should always be the answer. From Frank Schaeffer's column:

Like many writers of moral/political/religious theories, my father and I would have been shocked that someone took us at our word, walked into a Lutheran Church and pulled the trigger on an abortionist. But even if the murderer never read Dad's or my words, we helped create the climate that made this murder likely to happen. In fact, it has happened before. In 1994, Dr. John Bayard Britton and one of his volunteer escorts were shot and killed outside an abortion clinic in Pensacola, Fla., by Paul Hill, a former minister and an avid follower of my father's.

Angry speech has become the norm in American religion from both the right and the left. Words are spoken which, when taken seriously, lead directly to violence by the unhinged and/or the truly committed.

'Up' Is More Real than Corliss Realizes

My daughter and I have anticipated seeing this film since seeing the previews in December before watching 'The Tale of Despereaux.' And after reading Richard Corliss's review, I am anticipating it all the more.

But there's one line in his article where I believe, after reading more of the storyline of this upcoming film, Corliss could not be more wrong: "Up isn't realistic..."

Of course, I know he's referring to the depictions of the characters. But reading the intentions of the storytellers and the background of their characters, you don't have to be a crotchety old widower to relate in a deep and meaningful way.

Can't wait for May 29.

"... or snacks"

Love it.

'Constructive Summer'

Much needed positive thinking at such a time as this. (Thanks, Steve, for the reco.)

Free Roxana Saberi

We need our newspapers and general media to survive, not the least because of invaluable journalists like Roxana Saberi.

Freedom of the press matters.

Free Roxana.(Join the Facebook group.)

Our human battles

' . . . "I loved that idea of animalistic chaos and following our own desires,” Jackman says. “I think Wolverine represents that in its most allegorical sense. He’s a man who battles between the animal and the human, between the chaos in him and the self-control he must have. We all deal with this to some extent. At which point should we let go and do what we want to do, and when should we submit to rules? Coming to terms with our true natures and who we really are has always been a fascination to humans. I know it fascinates me." '

(Hugh Jackman)

'I Believe'

(HT Steve Beard)

Not always 'Linear'

The pizza was the bread, and the wine completed the sacrament I was taking after more than a year since I took my last. The hymn, “At the moment of surrender”; the icons provided by a Dutch photographer.

I was in the midst of seeking Him in a Church called Home, but not yet welcomed back, it had been longer than is comfortable since I took my last communion. I’ve been hungry, and I’ve been thirsty.

And I’ve been at war.

I’ve said to others, I envy Job. Why would anyone, though, envy a man beset by pain on every side? Because he overcame. With God by his side—by placing himself by His side—he overcame.

My son’s father wonders, though not explicitly, how I would pursue a faith he believes is constricting. To begin, I do not find it a trap. I see doors more widely open, and a true sense of reverence for the One with Whom I’m at war. There’s a greater, more humble sense of His grace and of His mystery. And those whose faith is great are not the ones, necessarily, whose lives are squeaky clean and faith unquestioning. But quite the opposite.

That not to say the appeal of coming Home is that it’s easier to live there. But quite the opposite: It forces one to confront all that is uncomfortable about belief. It forces one to relinquish control. To accept that what we think is, is not necessarily so.

And so, He made my Grenache into wine, my pizza dough into bread—and once again confounded my belief, my doubt, my war, and held His arms more widely open again.

And so I continue to walk toward Home, where once again, I can drink of the wine and the bread of His promise.

Some "Party"

From Prof. Benjamin Carp on the "tea parties" last week:

In Boston in 1773, the men who boarded the tea ships had to conceal their identity or risk punishment -- perhaps even being hanged for treason. Last week, the merry protesters chatted with journalists about their complaints, then folded up their "Welcome to the Second American Revolution" signs and went home. The original Tea Party had helped make free speech possible, but these modern protests didn't seem likely to change the world just yet.

A representative government, unlike a monarchy, must listen to the people -- otherwise we are indeed poorly represented. But it should also be careful not to overreact -- either by punishing dissidents or by conceding too much.

Beetlejuice!

My daughter (2nd row, 2nd to the right of the director) playing clarinet last summer at band camp.

Always love a good Peeps show

My personal favorite from the finalists (check them all out):