February 26, 2013

 1. With colleges and universities emphasizing online courses more and more, I think my grandchildren will be much better writers than those of us educated in colleges and universities in the last half of the 20^th century. By definition, online courses require more writing from students. More writing means more practice writing. More practice writing means better writing. Better writing means better writers. And come to think of it, better writers means less cheesy repetition that the readers will be forced to endure.

2. Last Wednesday night, somebody in Bible class mentioned they had read that Saturday Night Live had a skit portraying Jesus in a sacrilegious way. People everywhere were talking about it, so I decided to check it out. The skit was filmed and depicted Jesus coming out of the tomb, with guns-a-blazing, shooting up the bad guys. It was sacrilegious. And unfortunately, it revealed the way many in the world view American Christians who claim to be followers of Jesus. Consequently, they view Jesus as being somewhat like those who claim to be his followers.

3. I think the cover story in this week’s Time magazine is worth reading. It is a detailed and understandable look at why health care in the United States is so expensive. To me, the two most eye popping sentences were these: “We may be shocked at the $60 billion price tag for cleaning up after Hurricane Sandy. We spent almost that much last week on health care.”

Read more: http://healthland.time.com/2013/02/20/bitter-pill-why-medical-bills-are-killing-us/#ixzz2M3jhA4ea

4. I was surprised but not shocked that Lincoln lost best picture to Argo. Personally, I cannot imagine anyone doing a better job than Spielberg taking an essentially dry, factual story and making it compelling—not to mention coaxing academy award caliber performances from his cast. Then again, Hollywood seems to want to keep him in check.

5. Here are my sports thoughts for the week:

            A. I pray that like Manti Te’o, Oscar Pistorius is proven innocent. I heard that Te’o has impressed many NFL scouts at the NFL Combine with his character and personality. Some say that after interviewing him they understand why he was “catfished.” They found him to be one of the most trusting human beings they have ever met.

            B. Tom Brady may have solidified his legacy by agreeing to a contract extension for far less money than he is worth on the market. He wants to win, so he left $10 million per year (or more) on the table so the team can sign more players of excellence.

         C. Something I had forgotten, Alex Rodriguez was willing to walk away from his historic $252 million contract with the Texas Rangers and sign with the Boston Red Sox in an arranged trade, but the players’ union nullified the deal. A-Rod wanted to win and make less… and the union stopped him. That says a lot about baseball a decade ago.

             *Thanks to Peter King for the inspiration for this title.

November 27, 2012

1. I think you don't build sons simply in the house; rather, you build sons hunting on the creek, working in the yard, or playing on the football field. Likewise, you don't build disciples simply in the "House of God." No, you build disciples hunting on the Creek, at the work place, playing on the football field, or in YOUR house.

2. Sorry to see last week that we lost actor Larry Hagman; I guess this was no shock considering he cheated death a couple of times before. While acutely aware of the DALLAS spectacle, I must admit I have never seen an episode in my life.

3. While I’m no fan of Notre Dame, I’ve got to salute the Fighting Irish on their season—really remarkable. I think they have a chance to defeat either Alabama or Georgia in the BCS title game.

4. My daughter, Haleigh, and I saw the movie LINCOLN last week. We both enjoyed it very much.

         I found it different from what I expected it to be. Steven Spielberg so often directs movies that generate a lot of emotion: think E.T., or SAVING PRIVATE RYAN. Emotion was what I was expecting with LINCOLN. Instead, it was a much more analytical movie. The plot focused on Lincoln’s intense effort to get the 13th amendment passed by Congress. That was thought provoking, but not very emotional. Nevertheless, there were some very poignant moments.

         For example, scenes of Lincoln walking around the White House during the middle of the night… pondering his next move in a chess match in which he appears to be beaten.

         Also, I found the portrayal of the intense personal atmosphere of the White House of the 1860s to be touching. People flocked in constantly. There were very few places the First Family could go for respite. You have the sense that the whole world was closing in on the Lincolns. (I’m sure that was a big reason Lincoln would often retreat to the Soldiers Home—outside Washington—during the summer.)

         Daniel Day Lewis does an incredible job as Abraham Lincoln. I would not be surprised to see him garner his third best actor Oscar. Furthermore, Spielberg would be no surprise as best director and LINCOLN would be no surprise to win best picture.

         I think you should go see the movie.

5. I think that if you like popular music, the song “Little Talk”, by the Icelandic band, OF MONSTERS AND MEN is a whole lot of fun.

*Thanks to Peter King for the inspiration for this title.

November 6, 2012

1. I pray for the folks on the east coast. “Sandy” killed people and caused billions in property damage. Yet, I think I am grateful to live in the day and age we do--when people can receive plenty of warning. Thousands of lives would have been spared in New York in 1938 and in Galveston in 1900 (to name two major storms) had there been more advance warning.

2. Today is Election Day. I think the posts I have seen advocating turning this day into a national holiday have it right. Surely that would encourage more turnout, jog our memories as to how blessed we are, and remind us that “[W]e the people” are responsible for our own government. This last point is so important. Ultimately, in terms of making a difference, it’s not the politicians; it’s the people. Politicians always listen to their bosses—otherwise known as their constituents.

3. We are halfway through the NFL season and I am sticking with my preseason Super Bowl picks-- San Francisco and Houston.

4. I know everybody has jumped on Dallas’ case lately, including myself; however, last Sunday night, they showed me something in their loss to Atlanta. They played very well in the harshest of environments against the team with the best record in football. Dallas is facing adversity at just the right time—now. Four of the last five Super Bowl champions had similar records this time of the season. They all peaked at the end. Mark my words: barring injury, Dallas will make the playoffs this year and play very well. If they peak and catch some breaks—they will make it to the Super Bowl. You heard it here first.

5. Did you see the TIME cover story on Spielberg’s new movie LINCOLN? The movie opens this weekend. I think this is a must-see movie.

*Thanks to Peter King for the inspiration for this title.

August 14, 2012

1. November will get here soon enough, but I am eagerly anticipating the November 16^th release of the movie LINCOLN. Stephen Spielberg is directing this motion picture, and he is focusing strictly on the last four months of the 16^th president’s life. Word is LINCOLN is based upon Doris Kearns Goodwin’s award-winning-book TEAM OF RIVALS.

2. This may be a good sign for the future of the space program–more than 23 million people watched NASA’s live streaming of the landing of the “Curiosity” on Mars. I would love to see humans land on Mars in my lifetime.

3. Judy and I got a chance to take three of our four kids to NASA the week before last. Let me tell you, if you have kids, it is a great place to go.

            Don’t miss the tour that takes you to the old Mission Control.             

            Timothy and I obsessed over trying to a land space shuttle simulator, which is a lot harder than you would think.

            Of course, I’m an old-school junkie, so I loved looking at the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo space capsules.

            Meanwhile, my kids were mega-impressed by the 363-foot-long Saturn Five rocket. Inside the building where they housed the rocket, NASA has posted nice summaries of each Apollo mission. This allowed me to sow the seeds to show Timothy and Annie the Tom Hanks’ miniseries FROM THE EARTH TO THE MOON, which I hope to do soon.

            Last night, our family watched APOLLO 13 together. (If you have younger kids, be aware of the language… and a couple of scenes you’ll want to fast forward. The scenes are no worse than commercials you see today, but who says the commercials today are good for television?)

            I loved the movie and the book it is based upon. Here’s a little behind-the-scenes nugget–Ron Howard created much of the crew’s conflict in the movie for the purpose of dramatic tension. The real-life crew was much more calm than the portrayal. As for Hanks’ miniseries, based upon the Apollo space program, it is much more kid friendly, much cleaner, and much more spiritual.

4. If you ever get the chance, tour the BATTLESHIP TEXAS located near Houston. On the NASA trip, Judy and I took the kids to see the old vessel commissioned in 1912. I am amazed at how far below deck the ship extends. You can tour the depths of the ship, and the heights—all the way up into some of the crows’ nests. It staggers me to think about sailors traveling on that ship 100 years ago.

5. In addition to what I wrote two weeks ago, here are some of the things I liked about the 2012 Olympics:

A. Michael Phelps. I feel like he is the greatest Olympian of all time. He’s won more medals than anyone else and more gold medals than anyone else. Moreover, for someone who is so obviously competitive, he seems to have a balanced view toward life.

            In 2009 and 2010, Phelps barely trained. After his first loss in this year’s games, Phelps did not pull his hair out and lament his misfortune. He took responsibility and announced that, considering the work he put in, he got what he deserved.

            For example, Phelps through the years has also demonstrated more of the Olympic Spirit than I have given him credit for. I had not remembered that in the 2004 Olympic Games, Phelps gave up his spot on a relay team (sure to win a gold medal) to allow an older swimmer the chance to win his first gold medal. Gold medals are hard to come by. (I know; I still have not won my first.) Yet Phelps was willing to sacrifice for a teammate.

B. Oscar Pistorius. How did he do it? How did he run on those prosthetic legs? And the speed with which he ran… amazing!

C. Kirani James. Yes, he won the gold medal in the 400 meters. However, he also reminded us of the original dream of the Olympic Games: athletes competing at their highest level in the spirit of sportsmanship. It was moving to see James, after his semi-final win, ask Oscar Pistorius to exchange identification tags. Furthermore, he then symbolically removed himself from the Olympic Stadium spotlight and placed Pistorius in it. Truly touching. 

*Thanks to Peter King for the inspiration for this blog's title.