Go See This Movie

I went to see End of the Spear yesterday, and it was very good. I've heard/seen/read the story of the five missionaries who were killed in Ecuador many times, but the movie was really a fresh perspective on it. They told the story of the natives as much as the story of the missionaries. Not only is the story very inspiring and moving, but the movie was very well made also. It's great to see a Christian film that's really good quality but doesn't compromise the message.

Humuhumu for Short

Just in case you were depending on me for wacky and pointless internet links, here's one about Hawaii's state fish. News must be slow today over at Fox.

Elephant Cage (sort of)

Ebay Item of the Day

Hockey Game

I went to a game of the Houston Aeros Saturday night. I hadn't been to a hockey game before, so I decided to try it. It was fun, but not as fun as baseball games. It was interesting that even though hockey is a fast-moving, intense game, it can actually get a little boring. It's all kind of the same the whole time. It was exciting when our team got a goal, though! It was also amazing to see how fast the players were.

Hockey is also so violent. The game I saw was actually quite tame, but it still had one small fight, one broken stick, and two injured players. I think you have to be more than a little crazy to be a hockey player.

One thing I never could figure out is why on earth do hockey fans ring cow bells?

Glass Armonica Part 2

And here's a picture of it!

Ben's Glass Armonica

I just read a fun news story about Benjamin Franklin. It points out that his inventions included much more than the kite and the key. Their description of the glass armonica reminded of when I was in Philadelphia several years ago and got to see one of those. We even got to hear someone playing it. I thought it was fascinating, and the music was very unusual and very beautiful. I wish I had one!

How Dependent Should We Be?

I Thessalonians 4: 10-12
But we urge you, brothers, to aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you, so that you may live properly before outsiders and de dependent on no one.

I read this verse the other day and started thinking about how hard it is to practice this principle. Most people go to one extreme or the other. Some are overly independent and proudly self-sufficient. They have a very hard time admitting weakness to anyone. (That would be me.) Others are too dependent and have the attitude of being a victim of everyone and everything. They can be a drain on those around them because they always want to be served. The interesting thing is that both of these attitudes are based in pride and selfishness.

So, the goal is to be productively minding our own affairs, but also being willing to admit our need for help when the time comes.

Any thoughts on this?

No, I Didn't Fall Off the Face of the Earth

Okay, okay, my sister, Anna, reminded me this morning that it's been almost a week since I posted anything on my blog. My mother then told me I shouldn't be in bondage to it. If you don't have anything to say, don't talk, right? That gave me the perfect opportunity to use on Anna an insulting phrase that we resurrected from old literature: "A pox on you!" Nevertheless, she was undaunted and must have given up on me coming up with anything today, so she just emailed me these fantastic pictures of Seth. I feel sorry for people who don't have a brother like this. Don't you wish you had a pipe-cleaner goatee?

THE SEVENS

At the suggestion (request, urging, demand?) of my friends Lindsay and her mother, Lora, I put together my answers to the sevens quiz. Here goes.

Seven Things I Cannot Do Well
1. Say no.
2. Cultivate deep friendships
3. Cook without making a big mess
4. Stop laughing at my own jokes
5. Keep from blushing when I’m embarrassed
6. Get up in the morning without snoozing the alarm
7. Avoid killing houseplants


Seven Things That Would Attract me to a Future Husband
1. Age 10: male
2. Age 20: dark hair, tall, muscular, rich, excellent dancer, romantic, British accent
3. Age 30: kind, good job, doesn’t mind that I have gray hairs already
4. Age 40: doesn’t smoke, still has some hair
5. Age 50: has teeth
6. Age 60: remembers who I am from one visit to the next
7. Age 70: alive
Just kidding. Sorry, people, my REAL list is confidential. There’s no telling who might be reading this blog! But if anyone really cares, it’s possible that there might be a tiny bit of truth in this. In that case, it’s noteworthy that I’m almost halfway between twenty and thirty. And for anyone who really, REALLY cares, don’t worry, my real list is much more significant than this nonsense.


Seven Things I Say Often
1. Hi and How are you? (They mean the same thing.)
2. Please and Thank you (I’m very polite.)
3. Okay (I’m agreeable, too.)
4. What!?! (I guess I’m not always agreeable.)
5. Yeah, right (Sometimes I’m sarcastic.)
6. This is one of those things that requires balance. (when I’m waxing eloquent)
7. Ummmmm. (when I’m the opposite of eloquent)


Seven Authors, Books, or Series I Love
1. John Piper
2. Janette Oke
3. James Herriot
4. Charles Swindoll
5. Tale of Two Cities
6. Christy
7. Ben-Hur


Seven Movies I Watch Over and Over Again
(I don’t know about over and over again, but I do own all of these)
1. Phantom of the Opera
2. Lord of the Rings
3. Sound of Music
4. You Can’t Take it With You
5. Batman Begins
6. Wild Hearts Can’t Be Broken
7. Left Behind

Seven Things I Hope to do Before I Die
1. Go on a hot air balloon ride
2. Get married and have children
3. Hike the Grand Canyon
4. Ride a motorcycle
5. Visit a castle
6. Go skiing
7. Lead someone to the Lord
8. See the Great Wall of China
9. Start a business
10. Have a porch swing
11. Get a piece of writing published
12. Learn to stencil
13. Read David Copperfield
14. Go through the Panama Canal
15. Drive a Mini Cooper for a day
16. Tour Israel
17. Save someone’s life
18. Plant a tree and have it stay alive
19. Wear a formal gown
20. See an iceberg breaking
Oh wait!! It was only seven things! Okay, add to the list of things I can’t do well: “Follow rules.”

Seven People I Want to do This
1. Are
2. There
3. Seven
4. Who
5. Read
6. My
7. Blog?
I’m not sure about this. ;-)

In Search of Thrills?

If one of your New Year's Resolutions was to do something adventurous, you might like to take a look at this list of vacation suggestions. I would go for the sailplane flight over New Zealand, I think. Maybe someday I'll actually do it, along with hiking the Grand Canyon and going on a hot air balloon flight (my formerly secret wishes).

Welcome to 2006

Happy New Year!!