n+1

Well, if pictures are worth a thousand words, then...

2007 was:


Here's to 2008.


Happy New Year.

Thrice - Open Water

I wanna tell you...

I'll say it simply: I thoroughly enjoyed Juno. It was easily one of the better movies I've seen in the past few years. This film is like a Ferrero Rocher...it's got a hard, nutty shell, but beneath lies a genuinely soft core, and the whole thing is absolutely delicious. Juno is very subtle in its delivery, and by the end I got choked up without really understanding why. I think that's a mark of a great film.

Juno MacGuff: I think I'm, like, in love with you.
Paulie Bleeker: You mean as friends?
Juno MacGuff: No, I mean, like, for real. 'Cause you're, like, the coolest person I've ever met, and you don't even have to try, you know...
Paulie Bleeker: I try really hard, actually.

---

It's not often that a major death covered by the news makes me feel sad, but when I read about Benazir Bhutto's untimely assassination my heart felt very heavy. This is most likely due to the fact that Pakistan's recent turmoil has been a story that I've kept up with for the past few months. Part of it is also stems from the op-ed pieces that Ms. Bhutto wrote for various publications, including The Wall Street Journal, a few of which I've read. In a strange way, I think I felt a slight personal connection with her and the agendas she pushed for, and this was forged and strengthened through reading her very own words printed on paper.

If this can happen with Ms. Bhutto, a lady that I have never met, how much more can this be true of someone that I actually have met? I'm ashamed that I have forgotten how important and wonderful it is to read the Bible, daily, with precise focus and intent. It's obvious and trite to say, but my connection with God is contingent upon my reading of his very own words.

---

One thing that was certain for Ms. Bhutto from the very first day she returned to Pakistan was that she was putting her very own life at risk in order to bring about change to her country. Death was in hot pursuit of her since October 18th, and it finally got her on December 27th, 2007.

We feel this kind of deadly pursuit, too. Something dark is hounding us with a relentless lust, and we try our best to avoid it. Seat belts, helmets, and vaccinations all go to drive this reality home. Since the great Fall, we have been forced to spend great amounts of energy and time avoiding death and any kind of punishment that must follow sin.

But I think too many times, God's pursuit of his people is overshadowed by this. Even more than the ominous end that seems to await us at every turn, God is inexorably pursuing us, not out of wrath but out of love. The whole Bible is an account of God seeking his people out in order to love and save them. This has been true since he called to Adam in the garden: "Where are you?" (Genesis 3:9)

Even beneath the hardships that he may send our way is his love and fierce desire for our best, which we never seem to know but always think we do.

I think that this is also why "waiting" and being "still" is mentioned so often in the Bible. We may pause and give God his due every now and again, but after that it's back to doing our best to avoid anything and anyone that might appear to disrupt the specious peace that seems to be reflected in our small ponds. Little do we know that underneath lie terrible things that must be drawn out, and what little peace we may have on the surface must many times be disturbed if we are to be rid of them.

You can't stop what's comin'. It ain't all waitin' on you.

At first, I read this line from No Country for Old Men with a negative, fearful perspective. But now, in light of my salvation in Christ, I can read this with a smile, because I know that what's comin' is good, and that (thank God) it ain't all waitin' on me.

In 2008, I will be praying for God to hammer this deeper into my head and my heart. I will do my best to sit still and embrace this truth, that he is ever pursuing me, to love me, regardless of me.

"Yet I know that good is coming to me - that it is always coming; though few have at all times the simplicity and the courage to believe it." - Anodos, from Phantastes, by George MacDonald

"God cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from Himself, because it is not there. There is no such thing." - C.S. Lewis

---

Cat Power - Sea of Love


Come with me
My love
To the sea
The sea of love

I wanna tell you
How much
I love you

Do you remember
When we met
That's the day
I knew you were my pet

I wanna tell you
How much
I love you

Come with me
My love
To the sea
The sea of love

I wanna tell you
How much
I love you

The Simpsons: Goose Bumps and Duffman

Steve Nash + Chipped Tooth = Crazy Delicious

No Country For Old Men

I wanted to see this movie ever since it came out because it got great reviews.  And, as Lady Fortune would have it (totally kidding...sheesh), I was asked to choose a movie for some of us to see tonight, so I chose No Country For Old Men.  The time was good, the place was good, the movie seemed to be good (one of the year's best), so I selected this movie for my friends and me to watch tonight.

Well, most of the people I saw it with didn't seem to like it, but I walked out satisfied.  I thought it was a very good movie...not one I'd immediately place into my "Top 10" list, but one that definitely kept my attention from beginning to end.  To those interested in seeing it, it's a really tense movie.  It has a lot of blood and violence, and there are surprising moments, so if you don't like either of those you might want to stay away from this film.  However, in my humble, ignorant layman's opinion, I thought that this was one of the stronger movies I've seen lately...in the sense that the acting, cinematography, and script, along with just about every other technical aspect was airtight, stellar.  In that sense, it reminded me of Road To Perdition.

So, I walked out of the theater with an admiration for what I saw.  But, as I talked and thought about it more, I started to like it more and more.  I won't reveal it here, but I think the central message of the movie was conveyed quite wonderfully.

When I came home, I do what I always do after I've seen a movie I liked or admired: I went to IMDB and looked at the quotes.  As I read through the listed quotes for No Country For Old Men, I found myself growing to absolutely love the movie.  It's like listening to a great album, but it's so great that you don't grasp the lyrics on the first listen, so you go and look up the lyrics and after reading them you grow to totally adore the CD.  Oh, man, some of the lines in this movie were so great...

As with all good movies, there was a hint of the Gospel.  I'll admit, in this movie it was very small (there was a much more prominent nod to Ecclesiastes here)...but it was there, particularly in this exchange:

Anton Chigurh: You know how this is going to turn out, don't you?
Llewelyn Moss: Nope.
Anton Chigurh: I think you do. So this is what I'll offer - you bring me the money and I'll let her go. Otherwise she's accountable, same as you. That's the best deal you're gonna get. I won't tell you you can save yourself, because you can't.

I won't sully this gorgeous allegory (though, like all illustrations, it is imperfect), but if you don't see it, just replace "Anton Chigurh" with "Satan," and "Llewelyn Moss" with "Jesus."

See it?  Please tell me you do.  I want you to marvel at our salvation with me...

How beautiful is our Savior?

Ellis: You can't stop what's comin'. It ain't all waitin' on you. That's vanity.

Effeminate Basketball Jelly

I had to exchange something at a store today, and the man that initially helped me was quite effeminate.  But, that was fine.  I am no stranger to gay men.  Yes, that statement is misleading, but I won't take it back.  I'm just saying that after living in New York and near San Francisco for a bit, I've seen my share of them.  That's all I'm saying.

Anyhow, apparently he didn't have the managerial authority to conduct the exchange for me, so he had to call up the manager.  "She'll be right here," he told me.  A few seconds later, he reassured me that "she" was coming soon.  After about a minute, the manager finally appeared...only, she was a he...another effeminate man.  Needless to say, I was taken aback with shock, disappointment, and confusion.

Then I wondered...if someone were to introduce me as a "man," would people be shocked, disappointed, and confused when I strolled out from behind a curtain?  Do I exhibit the qualities of a genuine man?

Then I wondered...if someone were to introduce me as a "Christian," would people be shocked, disappointed, and confused when I strolled out from behind a curtain?  Do I exhibit the qualities of a genuine Christian?

One thing's for sure: so many foreshadowing incidents and prophets in the Old Testament pointed to the arrival of someone higher and better.  They said, in essence, "The Messiah is coming, the Messiah is coming," and their words did not lie.  When Jesus came, he was who they said he was, and he did what they said he would do.

This world is filled with disappointments, empty promises, and misleading statements...shes are hes, for crying out loud!  But this is not so with our Lord.  His 'Yes' is always 'Yes' and his 'No' is always 'No.'  He will never, ever introduce a he as a she.  And if this is true, then every single promise in the Bible becomes infinitely more comforting, hopeful, and joy-giving than if it were not true.  It makes an eternity of a difference.

---

I love fantasy basketball.  I just wish it had another name.  A man who says that he loves "fantasy basketball" sounds...effeminate.  Anything with the word "fantasy" conjures up notions of private bedroom activities or some kind of card game involving heroes and monsters with esoteric names, known only by pubescent boys with sweaty palms, thick glasses, and nerdy friends.  Still, I can't deny that I absolutely love fantasy basketball.  Seriously, I love it.  My palms sweat (yes, I realize the irony here), my heart beats a little faster, and my eyes get wide as I peruse box scores and examine trade scenarios.

But hell hath no fury like a man who loves fantasy basketball staring at a horribly disappointing line from one of his starters.  This is a glimpse of what I feel during these times:

Business School

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