Thursday, March 20, 2008

Now that I've vented about the loss...

...and mid-terms are over... I feel the freedom to write on more pointless subjects.

My mom, who is visiting from Tucson this week, asked me when I had time to blog seeing as how I have family, church, work, school, and a new house on my plate. I think I just find it therapeutic, so I make the time. It's nice to be able to write/share whatever I want without having to worry about boring other people. You don't like it, don't read it. On that note...

I will never grow tired of the song Frail, by Jars of Clay (see the music playlist to the right).
I'm not sure what the heck the words mean, although I have some thoughts, but that is my definition of absolutely beautiful music. The producer of their greatest hits album is an idiot for not including it on the playlist. Throw a piano into it and it doesn't get any better. There is a piano version out there, but that one doesn't have the strings (violin, cello, etc.). I strongly gravitate towards any soft alternative music that has piano and strings. Deadly combo.



And what the heck is wrong with all of you people who haven't seen The Last Samurai?
I will never grow tired of that flick. I caught some flak a couple Sundays ago when I said from the pulpit that I favor this movie over Braveheart. But c'mon people, seriously, as amazing and manly as Braveheart is, it lacks the relational and spiritual depth that makes Last Samurai so good. Now I do admit that some of the acting could afford to go, but the script is absolutely genius. Give it a try. Especially if you've seen Braveheart. This one skips the sex and most of the gore.


Since I'm on a roll, let me add a book for fathers of boys: The Way of The Wild Heart, by John Eldredge.

I actually haven't finished it yet because of school getting in the way, but the first 2 chapters are sweet. I know Eldredge has as many critics as he does fans, so this one might be harder for me to sell. I'd label myself 75% fan, 25% critic of Eldredge in general. I think he made a mistake by giving this book a title so closely tied to his most popular book, Wild at Heart. That one got so much hype and criticism that many people probably won't even pick this one up. But this one is an easier read because of its practical nature (whereas WaH was more subjective and sometimes fluffy). That's all I'll say on this because now I'm tired.

If you got this far, thanks for reading.

4 comments:

Mimi/Mom/Christy said...

My fave on the music playlist-Never is a Promise-have loved and lived it from the beginning...The Last Samurai, was critically NOT acclaimed, will add to my list of I'm ":meaning to watch but may never get around to"...Would like an update review on the The Way of the Wild Heart book when your done....I suppose people figure I have time to blog and comment on blogs because I am officially an old lady with time...more accurate to say, I am an old lady who doesn't do other things that maybe I SHOULD do because as you so aptly put it...It's therapeutic! LOVE your blog Joel!!

Mark said...

In their request to resolve this colossal quandary, the pirates have pulled out all the stops!

Lindsay said...

Ok...awesome new playlist!! I've decided we both must have some unresolved anger that we release through our music...we have issues! I'll have to check out the book..."wild" is an understatement for Brody.

Janice said...

I can see how "blogging" (is this a verb?) is theraputic, very much like "journaling" in the olden days. And even before that, diaries...(ok, I go back quite a ways). It does bring people together, doesn't it? That's a good thing.