A Little Friday Humor

The Onion, that oh-so-funny, slightly-irreverent news parody website, has a really funny piece this week.

Check out New Religious Fiction. A couple of examples:

The 860 Billion People You Meet In Hell
Job and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

You gotta love it!

Questions, comments, concerns? Please feel free to E-mail me!

"You Can Say A Lot In 100 Words"

For fans of the written word, this site is a must see. The idea is to write 100 words, no more no less, every day. It looks like a user account is required, which makes it basically a 100 word blog.
But what is neat about it to me is the way that writing in exactly 100 words makes the writing more expressive, yea even poetic. I think it would be a good idea to "journal" in 100 words every day, just to get your thoughts down and to foster creativity.

And, at the risk of looking ignorant, can anyone tell me where those first 3 examples come from? The first is from A Tale of Two Cities, no doubt. But the other two?

Special thanks to my wife for sharing this discovery.

And if there are any creative cats out there who would like to share with me your 100 words, send them to the email address below. I'd like to see what you can do!

Questions, comments, concerns? Please feel free to E-mail me!

Paris and Mother Theresa

You know, I honestly think some people sit around and just try to come up with controversial ideas. This is incredible.

Paris Hilton is on the short list of possible actresses to play Mother Theresa in an upcoming film.

This is just taking the idea of stunt-casting to a whole new level. British web site Life Style Extra is reporting that Indian director T. Rajeevnath will be taking a trip across the world to try to convince socialite-turned-actress Paris Hilton to star in his feature biopic of the late humanitarian Mother Theresa
Rajeevnath hopes to begin shooting his Mother Theresa film early next year with a budget of about $11 million.

Considering how various groups are quick to cry foul when they believe they have been offended by art, movies, media, etc., I can't imagine there not being an uproar over this one.

Questions, comments, concerns? Please feel free to E-mail me!

The Benchwarmer(s) In the Movies and A Girl In the Castle?

Be sure to check out The Benchwarmer(s), the blog from whence I came. Not only did my boy Brad hook us up with a killer baseball poem, but Denelle has now joined him in talking about all things sports and all things, well, all things.

And who would have believed they would make a movie? Great look Denelle!

Questions, comments, concerns? Please feel free to E-mail me!

Curious Jack

I made a fascinating discovery Monday night. Rather, the discovery made me.

My good friend and cousin Datha (and her husband Mark) sent us the Sing-a-Longs and Lullabies for the Film Curious George for our two and a half month old son. He is a little young to fully appreciate it, but he soon will.





The wonderful discovery is this. The artist performing these songs is a guy named Jack Johnson. I thought I was pretty savvy on the music industry, but apparently I live in a cave. I did not know this artist, and tis a pity. He's excellent! He has a real folky sound with acoustic guitars and smooth vocals.

As great discoveries often do, this one mushroomed. Last night we were in a particular store and his music video came on in which he sings the first song from the cd, Upside Down, to Curious George!

Tres cute!

More on Jack Johnson from Wikipedia.

Johnson had been a professional surfer until an accident, in which he broke his nose, had his front teeth knocked out and received more than 150 stitches to his mouth and forehead. He learned to play guitar at age 14, but did not seriously pursue a career in the arts until his college years at University of California at Santa Barbara, where he graduated with a degree in film.

Questions, comments, concerns? Please feel free to E-mail me!

It's A Croc!

I purchased some Crocs last night. More specifically, I purchased the knock offs.

Not sure what Crocs are? You may not know them by name, but I'm sure you've seen them. It is the increasingly ubiquitous shoe that looks like it belongs on an ER doctor or nurse.

The Croc:



I decided to go with the knock off over the original because after testing both I found very little difference and there was a 50% price differential. For a fashion accoutrement that is not critical (i.e. will be worn around the house), I didn't think it would matter much.

I was surprised to find out how this whole trend got started.

It all started in July 2002 when three Boulder, Colorado based founders decided to market an unusual shoe developed and manufactured by Foam Creations, Inc.

Originally intended as a boating/outdoor shoe because of its slip-resistant, non-marking sole, Crocs introduced it's first model, the Beach, in November 2002 at the Ft. Lauderdale Boat Show. From there, popularity mushroomed. Sales poured in. By 2003 Crocs had become a bona-fide phenomenon, universally accepted as an all purpose shoe for comfort and fashion.

Questions, comments, concerns? Please feel free to E-mail me!

Narnia

Narnia was released on dvd yesterday. Fans can choose from the single disc widescreen version or the two disc set with bonus material.

We were in the mall last night and purchased a copy for our library. I'm really looking forward to seeing it and will let you know what I think about it once I have time to sit down and absorb it.

Since I am a dedicated blogger and am always thinking about bringing you the best information, I thought I would do a little investigative reporter work last night by asking the clerk if Narnia was selling fast.

Oh yes, she said. I've sold lots of copies today.

That's great, I replied, I'm curious to know how the numbers come through on what will surely be a best seller.

If you wait a moment, I'll tell you exactly how many I've sold today, said she.

Ahhhh, yes. The loyal readers are going to be happy with this inside scoop, I thought.

We've sold 27 copies today not including 14 pre-orders.

WHATTTT! That's it? At the Mall of Louisiana? In the Disney Store? Where are the lines of people wrapping around the building? Where is all the pushing and shoving and name calling while they clamor for a valued copy of the movie?

Friends, I refuse to believe that Narnia will go that quietly.

Must have been an off day.

Questions, comments, concerns? Please feel free to E-mail me!

W.H. Auden at Ninety and Nine

Be sure to check out Ninety and Nine this week, particularly the ibid piece. We bring to you an epilogue written by W.H. Auden (that I'm willing to guess you've never read before-unless you are and English phD).

And as a bonus, you will also get a reader's analysis and thoughts on the poem.

Don't miss it!

Questions, comments, concerns? Please feel free to E-mail me!

New York and Paris

New York magazine has an interesting piece by Kurt Andersen predicting the possible denouement of our society's fixation with celebrities.

Like other American social tides, the fascination with celebrities has been cyclical, and after several decades of rising (as it also did from the twenties through the forties), perhaps it will now (as in the sixties) ebb. However, one difference this time is the fractured nature of mass culture: Because Americans no longer all watch the same TV shows and listen to the same music, they may feel a more desperate need to immerse themselves in the private lives of a few,almost arbitrary pseudo-superstars (Jessica Simpson?) to feel the glamour by stalking the performers, since the performances don't matter so much anymore.

And how about this little known fact (at least by me):

Nicky Hilton, the great-uncle of Paris (and namesake of her sister), dated Mamie Van Doren, Natalie Wood, and Joan Collins, and married Elizabeth Taylor. By the time he died druggily in 1969, however, the public couldn't have cared less, and the celebrity media that had made him briefly famous were dead or dying as well. So perhaps we won't always have Paris.

One can only hope.

Questions, comments, concerns? Please feel free to E-mail me!

The GMA

The Gospel Music Association began their annual convention on Saturday, April 1, in Nashville, Tennessee. This is the big week in which everyone who is anyone in the Christian Music industry gets together to share ideas, promote the genre, and perform their act. The festivities culminate on Wednesday when the GMA Music Awards will be rationed out.

Some of the artists you could see if you happened to be there are the likes of Lincoln Brewster, The David Crowder Band, and Chris Tomlin.

And you would not want to miss Kevin Max. He performs on Tuesday, April 4, at the Red Iguana (his website says Club NV). Most exciting is that his latest collection of poems, titled PO.ET.RY, will be first made available at the festival tomorrow.

If anyone in the Nashville area happens by the Red Iguana and just stumbles into the book table and thinks to pick up a copy and send it to me, I'd be most grateful and promise to give you blog kudos and a book review.

Otherwise, I'll purchase it online and save you all that trouble (and shipping)!

Questions, comments, concerns? Please feel free to E-mail me!

The Macro and Micro: A Devotion

I love Psalm 36:5-9 in The Message. It's a poetic reminder that we serve a really big God, and He is more than willing to allow us to share in His vastness.

God's love is meteoric,
his loyalty astronomic,
His purpose titanic,
his verdicts oceanic.
Yet in his largeness
nothing gets lost;
Not a man, not a mouse,
slips through the cracks.

How exquisite your love, O God!
How eager we are to run under your wings,
To eat our fill at the banquet you spread
as you fill our tankards with Eden spring water.
You're a fountain of cascading light,
and you open our eyes to light.

Wow! He's an out-of-this-world God, but still approachable enough for us to obtain a relationship with Him.

I'm going to walk this week in God's "meteoric" love!

Questions, comments, concerns? Please feel free to E-mail me!

Folio

First Folio
A 1623 First Folio of Shakespeare's work is going to auction on July 13th and is expected to sell for up to 3.5 million pounds. That's exactly....how many dollars?

Behold the Folio:

The First Folio preserves 18 of his plays, including some of the most major, which otherwise would have been lost for all time," English literature specialist Peter Selley said as the volume was put on show on Thursday.

Relatively complete copies of the Folio in contemporary or near contemporary bindings very rarely come to market. There is only one copy recorded as remaining in private hands," he added.

Now I have to figure out how to raise enough capital to get in on the ground floor of this, er, investment?

Questions, comments, concerns? Please feel free to E-mail me!

Let's Get It Started

Let us go then, you and I,
When the evening is spread out against the sky...
Let us go, through certain half-deserted streets,
The muttering retreats
Of restless nights...

T.S. Eliot
The Love Song of J. Alfred
Prufrock

Introduction
Well now hello to everyone. Indeed, let us get acquainted and prepare for our journey together over the next month. Some of you know me from Ninety and Nine's sports blog, The Benchwarmer(s). I'm David, the one who knows relatively little about sports considering the fact that I landed the big sports blogging job with Bradley McDonald for one of the most well read web zines in Apostolicdom.

My wife, a 5th grade school teacher, often has her kids do what is called a bio-poem on the first day of class. By way of introduction, I thought I would give you my bio-poem.

Note: It's only good for up to 7 days and all sales are final.

David
Relative of T. Thadeus Toad
Passionate, curious, driven, bohemian
Insurance underwriter
Lover of Christ, my family, all things intellectual
Who feels compassionate, moderate, fortunate
Who has been high, low, and to NYC
Who needs love, time, and more energy
Who would like to see a live Kevin Max performance, Ireland,

and all of us come together
Poet
Resident of The Bungalow in Baton Rouge
Bunch

A Month in My Life
So what will we get into this month? Well, besides letting you know me and my daily thoughts, ramblings, and goings on, I plan to bring to you the best cultural, intellectual, and religious brain candy that I can find. We may even work in a devotion or two, perhaps on a weekly basis, yes? And I know that it is hard to imagine, but I'm very much into poetry. As it happens, April is National Poetry Month. We'll have lots to present and discuss on that subject as the month unfolds.

Tiger by the Tail
Before I leave you this evening, allow me to put my sports blogger hat back on for just a moment. Our (Lee Ann, Bradley, Me) LSU Tigers took it on the chin Saturday night. Bradley and I watched the game together along with our lovely wives, my son, and his dad, and there were only long faces and second guessing all game long. A week ago I didn't think the Tigers could be beat. Last night I was reminded that there really are 3 freshmen and a sophomore in the starting line up. It's truly incredible that they made a Final Four appearance, and I'm proud of that.

Special thanks to Bradley who saved the evening by brewing some freshly ground Starbucks coffee.

And In Conclusion
Thanks to Wendy who did a fantastic job driving this blog during March. I appreciate your kind words. Also, let me make one more plug for The Benchwarmer(s). I may have removed the sports hat for a month, but as you will see, I am replaceable. Check it out!

Questions, comments, concerns? Please feel free to E-mail me!