Petite and Mari have had a busy week of classes and work and homework... oh my. Petite is finally putting the finishing touches on a huge group project that she's been working on that is due at midnight. The project has consumed all of her time and energy this week (that the youth group hasn't), and had us both hard at work today to get it all snazzy-looking and functional enough to turn in. It turns out to be around 25 pages of colorful, hyper-linking madness in Microsoft Word, made to approximate a web site.
At least we got outside in the sunshine yesterday when we did some grounds maintenance at church. My Sunday school class and the youth group worked together to spruce up the church property and the old parsonage. The grounds look nicer now, but ol' Mari is pretty sore on account of the usual routine not requiring particular work outside of the thinking, talking, and button-pushing varieties. Grocery shopping is about the height of my normal workout...
Anyway, Mari Bébête seems to be suffering from a case of Blogger's Block lately. A couple of politically-themed essays were composed but didn't make it to "post" status. Nothing much else comes to mind. Maybe i am too old for this stuff. Maybe inspiration will strike soon. Apologies to my loyal readers for the lull.
Enjoy the last week of March!!
Sunday, March 25, 2007
Saturday, March 17, 2007
Couch Potato
As Petite Américaine's readers apparently already know (uh, thanks Petite), Mari Bébête has had some time to entertain himself at home recently. Here are some recommended viewing suggestions should anyone else be looking for some worthwhile entertainment.
Oh -- coincidentally, it was Spring Break and Petite was able to partake of the movies as well. So we've got up to four thumbs between us for the ratings. :)
The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio
Four thumbs enthusiastically up.
I, personally, would never would have picked this up off of the shelf at the video store, but it was recommended to Petite by colleagues turned out to be fantastic.
Based on a true story as recorded by one of the main character's children, the story takes us back to the 1950s. A housewife supports a family of ten kids and an irresponsible, alcoholic husband with her indefatigable spirit and a knack for writing jingles. Apparently it was common back then for large companies to sponsor contests to promote their products -- contests that involved more cleverness and wit than the "blind luck" of most promotional contests/sweepstakes these days. (A change which some characters in the story lamented as they saw it changing.) Any time the family needed something, this woman would enter a contest to win it. For example, her son wrecked his bike; she entered a contest offering a bike as a prize. It so happened in this case, it came with $5,000 and a washer and drier as well; which was fortunate because when the prize was announced, the family was being evicted from their apartment and were now able to buy a house.
The way she kept the family afloat and looked for the best in things in spite of difficult circumstances and the nonsensical mores of the times was inspiring.
Amazing Grace
Four thumbs way up (and Mari's big toes, too).
Still in theaters, this is the first movie we've gone out to since Casino Royale last November. Well worth the price of admission.
It tells the story of the hard-fought but ultimately peaceful abolition of slavery in England. Inspired by pastor John Newton (writer of the hymn "Amazing Grace") to oppose slavery, William Wilberforce introduced a bill to Parliament every year, and every year it was defeated for nearly a decade. This movie chronicles the political challenges he overcame to finally pass the bill to end the slave trade in England. The quality of both the story and the film-making surpassed our expectations. Albert Finney (of "Daddy Warbucks" fame in "Annie") was great as Newton; most of the rest of the cast was unfamiliar but quite good.
Yesterday
Four thumbs up.
A beautiful independent movie, in Zulu with English subtitles.
This is the story of a woman "Yesterday" living in a small village in South Africa with her daughter "Beauty", while her husband works far from home, under ground, in the mines of Johannesburg. The story begins with Yesterday's efforts to simply see a doctor in a clinic several hours' walk from home; after weeks of trying to get in -- and being turned away because the line was too long -- she is diagnosed with HIV.
In order not to reveal any "spoilers", we'll not say much more except that Yesterday's quiet determination and dedication to her daughter's future makes the story heartwarming despite the tragedy that surrounds her.
Casino Royale
Three thumbs up (of four)
The 21st James Bond adventure is now out on DVD. It is grittier (à la "From Russia with Love") and may be the most realistic that the series has been. On first watching, it is very suspenseful. Being based (fairly closely, they claim) on the first Bond novel by Ian Fleming, it shows 007 earning his "00" and gives some insight into what makes the character the way he is.
One Night with the King -- Two thumbs up (of four)
Based on the Biblical story of Esther, this movie either involved quite a bit of research into the historical story that's not in the Bible, or took some liberties. (We're guessing the latter.) Brings life to some subtler elements of the story, perhaps, but doesn't do the story justice.
If anyone would like to borrow any of these, especially if you can't find them at the library or the video store, we have the DVDs available for loan. Except "Amazing Grace" which is still in theaters, but give us about four months. ;)
Oh -- coincidentally, it was Spring Break and Petite was able to partake of the movies as well. So we've got up to four thumbs between us for the ratings. :)
The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio
Four thumbs enthusiastically up.I, personally, would never would have picked this up off of the shelf at the video store, but it was recommended to Petite by colleagues turned out to be fantastic.
Based on a true story as recorded by one of the main character's children, the story takes us back to the 1950s. A housewife supports a family of ten kids and an irresponsible, alcoholic husband with her indefatigable spirit and a knack for writing jingles. Apparently it was common back then for large companies to sponsor contests to promote their products -- contests that involved more cleverness and wit than the "blind luck" of most promotional contests/sweepstakes these days. (A change which some characters in the story lamented as they saw it changing.) Any time the family needed something, this woman would enter a contest to win it. For example, her son wrecked his bike; she entered a contest offering a bike as a prize. It so happened in this case, it came with $5,000 and a washer and drier as well; which was fortunate because when the prize was announced, the family was being evicted from their apartment and were now able to buy a house.
The way she kept the family afloat and looked for the best in things in spite of difficult circumstances and the nonsensical mores of the times was inspiring.
Amazing Grace
Four thumbs way up (and Mari's big toes, too).Still in theaters, this is the first movie we've gone out to since Casino Royale last November. Well worth the price of admission.
It tells the story of the hard-fought but ultimately peaceful abolition of slavery in England. Inspired by pastor John Newton (writer of the hymn "Amazing Grace") to oppose slavery, William Wilberforce introduced a bill to Parliament every year, and every year it was defeated for nearly a decade. This movie chronicles the political challenges he overcame to finally pass the bill to end the slave trade in England. The quality of both the story and the film-making surpassed our expectations. Albert Finney (of "Daddy Warbucks" fame in "Annie") was great as Newton; most of the rest of the cast was unfamiliar but quite good.
Yesterday
Four thumbs up.A beautiful independent movie, in Zulu with English subtitles.
This is the story of a woman "Yesterday" living in a small village in South Africa with her daughter "Beauty", while her husband works far from home, under ground, in the mines of Johannesburg. The story begins with Yesterday's efforts to simply see a doctor in a clinic several hours' walk from home; after weeks of trying to get in -- and being turned away because the line was too long -- she is diagnosed with HIV.
In order not to reveal any "spoilers", we'll not say much more except that Yesterday's quiet determination and dedication to her daughter's future makes the story heartwarming despite the tragedy that surrounds her.
Casino Royale
Three thumbs up (of four)
The 21st James Bond adventure is now out on DVD. It is grittier (à la "From Russia with Love") and may be the most realistic that the series has been. On first watching, it is very suspenseful. Being based (fairly closely, they claim) on the first Bond novel by Ian Fleming, it shows 007 earning his "00" and gives some insight into what makes the character the way he is.
One Night with the King -- Two thumbs up (of four)
Based on the Biblical story of Esther, this movie either involved quite a bit of research into the historical story that's not in the Bible, or took some liberties. (We're guessing the latter.) Brings life to some subtler elements of the story, perhaps, but doesn't do the story justice.
If anyone would like to borrow any of these, especially if you can't find them at the library or the video store, we have the DVDs available for loan. Except "Amazing Grace" which is still in theaters, but give us about four months. ;)
Thursday, March 8, 2007
Very sweet man
So i was in a planning meeting today for a publication i edit, and a guest adviser from a local organization was talking about an award show that they put on annually, in which they give a really nice hand-crafted limestone trophy to each of the winners. Someone asked where they get the trophies made; he said they get them from (so-and-so), "who is just such a sweet man". He said some more about the craftsmanship of the trophies, the reasonable price, and kept coming back to "a sweet man -- very sweet man". Out of the blue, he perked up and added:
"Very sweet Christian. I mean, it's like God blesses you every time you talk to him. And I can use that."
This was a professional meeting that is generally pretty secular. In this case, (besides me, a bit of a Methodi-Baptist) there was someone i think is Unitarian; the other two -- whose spiritual beliefs i don't know -- are more strongly associated with their activity in the homosexual community than any religious involvement that i'm aware of; although i'd only just met one, who was the speaker. And whatever his personal beliefs, he was obviously very impressed by the person that he went out of his way to call a "very sweet Christian." Everyone in the room sensed the genuine appreciation that he felt for the trophy vendor.
I felt a little blessed myself to observe this. But i am also saddened by a couple of things here. For one, i'm saddened because from many other things i observe, it's got to be fairly difficult for the homosexual community to have a positive impression of Christians these days. i'm also saddened by the fact that i doubt that people i serve in my job go around telling people that i'm a very sweet Christian. My "workmanship" is sometimes good, sometimes lacking. My prices are sometimes good, sometimes just what my predecessor set or the computer comes up with. And i'm not effusive about my faith at work. Bottom line: my witness is not anything like this "very sweet" gentleman.
But i'm happy that this gentleman is such a good example. I hope i can come to be more like him. If there were more Christians like him, perhaps there would be... more Christians, as a result of the positive "buzz".
"Very sweet Christian. I mean, it's like God blesses you every time you talk to him. And I can use that."
This was a professional meeting that is generally pretty secular. In this case, (besides me, a bit of a Methodi-Baptist) there was someone i think is Unitarian; the other two -- whose spiritual beliefs i don't know -- are more strongly associated with their activity in the homosexual community than any religious involvement that i'm aware of; although i'd only just met one, who was the speaker. And whatever his personal beliefs, he was obviously very impressed by the person that he went out of his way to call a "very sweet Christian." Everyone in the room sensed the genuine appreciation that he felt for the trophy vendor.
I felt a little blessed myself to observe this. But i am also saddened by a couple of things here. For one, i'm saddened because from many other things i observe, it's got to be fairly difficult for the homosexual community to have a positive impression of Christians these days. i'm also saddened by the fact that i doubt that people i serve in my job go around telling people that i'm a very sweet Christian. My "workmanship" is sometimes good, sometimes lacking. My prices are sometimes good, sometimes just what my predecessor set or the computer comes up with. And i'm not effusive about my faith at work. Bottom line: my witness is not anything like this "very sweet" gentleman.
But i'm happy that this gentleman is such a good example. I hope i can come to be more like him. If there were more Christians like him, perhaps there would be... more Christians, as a result of the positive "buzz".
Tuesday, March 6, 2007
This just in...
Folks, an update has been received Petite Américaine. In response to a previous post (23 Feb), she has conducted exhaustive research to learn what types of cookie personalities are available on the test mentioned. Unfortunately comments don't seem to allow picture links, so instead of commenting she e-mailed the HTML code to me to post.
So... a "guest post" from Petite follows:
And that's all she wrote. Of course, these are in addition to the previously reported personalities of "Chocolate Chip" and "Fortune Cookie". As this story unfolds, if you become aware of cookie personalities that have been missed, please write in and let us know. Until then, let's all keep an eye out for the elusive "Thin Mint" woman that Spocktongue (the male Fortune Cookie) seeks for a possible LTR.
So... a "guest post" from Petite follows:
OK, so I took it upon myself to do some cookie-personality research. Here are my results (scroll down for pics):
Available personalities include:
Oatmeal Raisin
"Black & White" cookie
A "Jam Cookie"
And one other you have to see to believe...it's at the bottom.
You Are an Oatmeal Raisin Cookie
"On the surface, you're a little plain - but you have many subtle dimensions to your personality.
Sometimes you're down to earth and crunchy. Other times, you're sweet and a little gooey."
You Are a Black and White Cookie
"You're often conflicted in life, and you feel pulled in two opposite directions. When you're good, you're sweet as sugar. And when you're bad, you're wicked!"
You Are a Jam Cookie
"On the outside, you project a straight-laced, innocent vibe.
But on the inside, you're complex, exotic, and full of flavor."
Last but not least, the scary Happy Face Cookie:
You Are a Smiley Face Cookie
"You're happy go lucky. So happy, in fact, it's a little past the point of normal sanity. You usually make those around you smile ... when you're not creeping them out!"
I think I'm scared...
And that's all she wrote. Of course, these are in addition to the previously reported personalities of "Chocolate Chip" and "Fortune Cookie". As this story unfolds, if you become aware of cookie personalities that have been missed, please write in and let us know. Until then, let's all keep an eye out for the elusive "Thin Mint" woman that Spocktongue (the male Fortune Cookie) seeks for a possible LTR.
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