Egermeier’s Bible Story Book: A Complete Narration from Genesis to Revelation for Young and Old
Favorite Poems Old and New
The Dragon’s Eye: The Dragonology Chronicles, Volume 1
Eragon
Chickens to the Rescue! by John Himmelman
How to Be a Roman Soldier
Vacation Under the Volcano
The Boxcar Children by Gertrude Chandler Warner
Pokemon Adventures Volume 4: The Snorlax Stop
Sunset of the Sabertooth by Mary Pope Osborne
Midnight on the Moon by Mary Pope Osborne
Pokemon Adventures, Volume 3: Starmie Surprise
Stink: The Amazing Shrinking Kid!
Half Magic by Edward Eager
Magic by the Lake
O Thou, far off and here, whole and broken,
Who in necessity and in bounty wait,
Whose truth is light and dark, mute though spoken,
By Thy wide grace show me Thy narrow gate.~Wendell Berry
I saw this at The Bayer Family Blog and I think it makes a good post on a Saturday when I’m too tired to have anything more important to say:
1. Name a movie that you have seen more than 10 times. Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
2. Name a movie that you’ve seen multiple times in the theater. Top Gun
3. Name an actor who would make you more inclined to see a movie. Hugh Jackman, Clive Owen, Matthew McConaughey, Hugh Grant
4. Name an actor who would make you less likely to see a movie. Will Farrell (in a comedy - I liked him in Stranger Than Fiction)
5. Name a movie that you can quote from. Sleepless in Seattle
6. Name a movie musical that you know all the lyrics to all the songs. Singing in the Rain
7. Name a movie that you have been known to sing along with. Any musical or any movie that has a song I know on the soundtrack. It drives my kids crazy.
8. Name a movie that you would recommend everyone see. Cinderella Man
9. Name a movie that you own. Much Ado About Nothing
10. Name an actor who launched his/her entertainment career in another medium but who has surprised you with his/her acting chops. I’ll go with Kev’s answer - Will Smith.
11. Have you ever seen a movie in a drive-in? Lots of times. Our small, boonie-ville town actually has one!
12. Ever made out in a movie? No. But I’ve made out on the couch while watching a movie. Does that count?
13. Name a movie that you keep meaning to see but just haven’t gotten around to it. The Passion of the Christ
14. Ever walked out of a movie? Two that I can remember: Born on the 4th of July and some movie starring Brian Bosworth. My boyfriend at the time wanted to see it, but fifteen minutes in we looked at each other and said, “Let’s get out of here!”
15. Name a movie that made you cry in the theater. Lots, but I particularly remember Schindler’s List. I went by myself and I was wearing contacts - I cried so hard that my contacts were covered with mascara and it took me forever to get them clear enough to see to drive home.
16. Popcorn? Always!
17. How often do you go to the movies (as opposed to renting them or watching them at home)? Once a month. I have a wonderful husband who would rather watch movies at home on DVD and will let me go to the movies with a friend or my parents - or sometimes even by myself!
18. What’s the last movie you saw in the theater? Wild Hogs
19. What’s your favorite/preferred genre of movie? I like almost everything except horror, so that’s a hard one. Drama, comedy, sci-fi, thriller - see what I mean?
20. What’s the first movie you remember seeing in the theater? The Empire Strikes Back
21. What movie do you wish you had never seen? Carrie
22. What is the weirdest movie you enjoyed? Hudson Hawk
23. What is the scariest movie you’ve seen? Carrie
24. What is the funniest movie you’ve seen? Hmmm - lots of funny movies. Recently, Wild Hogs and Music and Lyrics. I do remember laughing so hard I snorted during a showing of Wayne’s World.
What about you? Favorite film of all time? Movie you hated that everyone else loves?
…of the Michael Bublé CD is…. (drum roll, please)
Elizabeth!
Congrats! I’ll be contacting you for your mailing address soon.
You can’t ask me what’s in my pocket, so I decided to post a poem here instead.
The Peace of Wild Things
When despair for the world grows in me
and I wake in the night at the least sound
in fear of what my life and my children’s lives may be,
I go and lie down where the wood drake
rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.
I come into the peace of wild things
who do not tax their lives with forethought
of grief. I come into the presence of still water.
And I feel above me the day-blind stars
waiting with their light. For a time
I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.~Wendell Berry
~Scientists have discovered that the sun’s astmosphere sings. But, we already knew that, right?
“Then the LORD answered Job out of the storm. He said: “Who is this that darkens my counsel with words without knowledge? Brace yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer me. Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation? Tell me, if you understand. Who marked off its dimensions? Surely you know! Who stretched a measuring line across it? On what were its footings set, or who laid its cornerstone- while the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy?”
Job 38:1-7 NIV
~Think Christian has a humorous post about prayer pet peeves.
~This little boy is amazing!
~We can finally watch a full-length trailer of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix!
~Melinda Doolittle is my favorite on American Idol this year - and her song on Tuesday night was outstanding!
~On Wednesday night’s Idol Gives Back show, they featured a hilarious montage of various stars lip-synching to Stayin’ Alive.
Well, that’s it for links. Our weekend will go something like this:
~Play date at Michelle’s this afternoon.
~Movie night tonight - Harry and the Hendersons. I pre-ordered this in January when I heard it was (finally) going to be released on DVD, and it just came this week.
~Clean out the basement tomorrow.
~Possible movie night again Saturday: Night at the Museum.
~Church on Sunday.
Somewhere in there, I’ll find time to practice for the concert next Saturday. Any prayers for that occasion would be gratefully appreciated - specifically, that the sound system will work correctly, that we’ll remember all our words, and that the ladies who attend will be ministered to.
Any big plans for your weekend?
…the work of feeding and clothing and housing,
done with more than enough knowledge
and with more than enough love,
by those who do not have to be told…~Wendell Berry
I just looked at my Thinking Blogger Award post - in which I stated I would name FIVE blogs that make me think - and counted FOUR. Oops! Here’s the other one that I thought I’d put in there:
~ Staci at Writing and Living, one of the first blogs I read back when I figured out what they were. She is humorous, and thoughtful, and writes great book reviews.
Faith at Dumb Ox Academy has graciously named me for a Thinking Blogger award.
Here’s how it works:
1. Write a post with links to 5 blogs that make you think.
2. Link to this post so that people can easily find the exact origin of the meme.
3. Optional: Proudly display the ‘Thinking Blogger Award’ with a link to the post that you wrote. (I’ll put it in my sidebar later when I have more time.)
So, without further ado and in no particular order, here are five blogs that make me think:
~ Jennifer at Snapshot writes about a broad spectrum of topics, including reading, writing, and parenting. I have added many titles to my To-Read list on her recommendation.
~ Janie at Seasonal Soundings: Her Fine Art Friday posts are one of my favorite parts of the week. Plus, her reading challenges have helped me be more intentional in my reading throughout the year. And, she’s been-there-done-that with homeschooling.
~ Carol at Magistramater. The kids started taking a Latin class this year, so I finally figured out what her blog title means! Carol’s reading lists are amazing! I remember last year she was reading something on music and math (or at least that’s what I thought it was about) - and I couldn’t even understand her posts about it! She’s a smart lady and fellow homeschooling mother. Plus, she is as addicted to books as I am!
~ Ron at Atypical Homeschool is a homeschooling dad. He hasn’t been posting as much lately with their work/house situation, but when he does post, he makes me think about learning, homeschooling, and, well, thinking. (Now, if this was a Laughing Blogger award, I’d have to give it to his wife. Not that she doesn’t also make me think at times, but she makes me laugh far more!)
Well, those are my five - highly recommended for your blog perusing pleasure.
“In 1953, when I was an eighteen-year-old sophomore at the University of Wisconsin, I took a course in American history entitled “Representative Americans.” Professor William B. Hesseltine taught it. From his first lecture, I was enthralled. He spoke about presidents, generals, senators, novelists, businessmen. Who they were, what they did, what effect it had.
It was storytelling at its best, about real people whose actions had a direct impact on my life, even if they had lived a century or more ago. Some made mistakes. Some were geniuses. Some were kind, others cruel. They were far more interesting than any character in a novel or actor in a movie.
At the end of his first lecture, on George Washington, I approached the professor - short, bald, pudgy, with a big curved pipe - and told him, as he lit up, that I wanted to do what he did for a living. “How do I do that?” He laughed, then said, stick around and I will show you. That afternoon I went to the registrar’s office and switched my major from premed to history.
A half-century later, I’ve never wavered.”
To America is a love letter from a patriotic American, the last book Stephen Ambrose wrote before dying in 2002.
I first heard of Ambrose when my husband read Undaunted Courage, his book on Lewis and Clark. Band of Brothers, the HBO mini-series, is Kevin’s favorite movie of all time and I decided to read the book to compare the two. I found Ambrose to be a reader’s historian; Band of Brothers read almost like a historical novel, exploring the characters of the men in Easy Company. I knew I would seek out more of Ambrose’s work.
I picked up To America last year at B&N, and finally got around to reading it. Ambrose has written more than 25 works of history, including D-Day, Citizen Soldiers, and Nothing Like It in the World, as well as multi-volume biographies of Presidents Eisenhower and Nixon. He is a man who loves his country and To America serves as his final thoughts. In some chapters, he sets the record straight between what he used to teach in university and what he now believes after years of experience and research. It is fascinating to read his thoughts on topics such as Vietnam, Women’s Rights, the treatment of the American Indians, the War in the Pacific, and many, many more.
Among the chapters you will find anecdotes about Eisenhower, the men of Easy Company, Richard Nixon, and many other historical figures. You will also hear his thoughts on the craft of writing.
“I am often asked what is my favorite book of my own. And I always say, the one I’m working on. I’m a writer by profession. If the one I’m writing isn’t better than those that went before I’d better find a new way to earn a living.
The next question is, “Tell me the secret to being a successful author.” Hard work is the answer. You have got to have an insatiable curiosity, be an avid reader, have a memory that allows you to retain what you have read. Teaching is a great help here….
…That doesn’t seem like much of an answer, some tell me. “What is the real secret?” So I offer the few rules that my teacher Mr. Hesseltine pounded into me almost a half-century ago. Keep your narration in chronological order, as that is the way it happened. Don’t anticipate. Don’t tell your reader what is going to happen by the end of the book. Keep your reader guessing, on the edge of the seat, whcih is just the way it was for Dwight Eisenhower on the morning of D-Day, 1944, or for Richard Nixon the day that the Watergate story broke. Do your level best to avoid all words ending in “ly.” Leave out adjectives - as many as possible….
There are many rules of good writing, and the best way to find them is to be a good reader. Know what you are writing about, whether it is history or travel or political analysis. Choose a good editor. It helps a lot if you show some promise as a writer, because there are many more want-to-be writers out there than there are good editors. Still, if you practice your craft and write often and as well as you can, you will locate a good editor who will take you on. When that happens, never let go. Never. No matter how angry you get. No matter how unreasonable his or her demands may be. And learn to write for your editor.
But the number one secret of being a successful writer is this: marry an English major. Moira did her graduate studies in English, has taught English in high school, is extremely well read, has a marvelous memory, and is never afraid to speak up. At the end of each day of writing, for the past four decades, I’ve read aloud to her whatever I’ve written that day….
…Writing is not the easiest way to make a living - you work long hours, usually all by yourself. It is not a way to make money - good businessmen make far more money than most good writers. Nor is it the quickest way to have an impact on your life and times - politicians are much better at that than are writers. Except for a very few, you almost never become an immediately recognizable face - that goes to the movie and music stars.
What you do get is an opportunity to work at what interests you, for as long as you wish. You get to write about ordinary men and women caught up in extraordinary circumstances - what they did, how they did it, with what effect. I know of no better way to make your own contribution.”
To America is the best kind of book: it taught me many things I didn’t already know, and it made me re-think the things I did know. In a time when patriotism is flagging, and I have many questions and concerns about our government, this book renewed my belief that we truly live in the best country on earth.
5 out of 5 stars.
All that passes descends,
and ascends again unseen
into the light: the river
coming down from sky
to hills, from hills to sea,
and carving as it moves,
to rise invisible,
gathered to light, to return
again. “The river’s injury
is its shape.” I’ve learned no more.
We are what we are given
and what is taken away;
blessed be the name
of the giver and taker.
For everything that comes
is a gift, the meaning always
carried out of sight
to renew our whereabouts,
always a starting place.
And every gift is perfect
in its beginning, for it
is “from above, and cometh down
from the Father of lights.”
Gravity is grace.~Wendell Berry
My haul may not be as great as hers, but I’m still very happy:
And for Natalie:
And what did all this bounty cost me, you ask? A whopping buck-seventy-five! Woo hoo!
(Hidden Secrets was provided to me by Active Christian Media for the purpose of review.)
Hidden Secrets made me think of St. Elmo’s Fire or The Breakfast Club in that it throws an eclectic group of people together and lets the tension simmer. In some ways, the main character of the movie is Chris, a person we never see. A group of friends and family have gathered for Chris’s funeral, and although we never find out exactly why he died, we soon find out that he has had a huge impact on the people in his life.
The group that gathers is full of different people with different struggles. There’s an agnostic, a legalistic Christian, an ex-homosexual, a woman who’s had an abortion - all of these people have been touched by Chris’s life and his faith. They all have secret sins that they’re hiding or - in the case of Rhonda, the hypocritical Christian - unaware of. By coming together, they experience God’s grace and forgiveness and new relationships are forged.
This film is well-done for a Christian production, but would not hold up against a mainstream movie. The main reason is the writing - it is stilted and unrealistic in parts. The acting is pretty good, but uneven at times. In spite of these faults, though, I believe it is a film well worth watching, with a message about grace that many evangelical Christians need to hear.
Hidden Secrets opens in theaters on April 30th, and will be released on DVD in August. You can view the trailer here.
~Vintage Jesus: Timeless Answers to Timely Questions
