Tag Archive - family

Christmas Movie Madness

December 27, 2006 in Links with 1 Comment

Had a great Christmas trip to Oklahoma to spend some time with the family. While I was with family, I was afforded something I rarely get here in Dallas… Free Babysitting. As a result I was able to see three movies this week, and all of them at the theatre no less. If you have children, and live in a city with relatives to watch your kids at various times, then you can NOT relate to my frustration. I have three kids, and paying a babysitter for 3-4 hours so my wife and I can go out is sometimes more expensive than the dinner and the movie. So I enjoyed the presence of grandparents and got away a few times to watch some movies.

Some Random Movie Thoughts:

  1. When did movies start charging $9.00 a ticket? Am I that old? $9.00 is CRAZY!
  2. Is there anything more annoying that sitting by Jr.High students during a movie? I’m sure I was the same way when I was 14, but geesh!
  3. Is it unrealistic that if I go to see a movie that is listed as starting at 10:30pm, that I should expect it to start close to 10:30pm? The movie that was supposed to start at 10:30pm, actually started at 10:55pm after 25 minutes of previews and commercials. When the movies are going on 2 hours long, I don’t want to lose that 25 minutes.
  4. And at $9.00 a ticket, should I be forced to watch Coca-Cola ads and previews for what’s coming on TV in the new Spring Season? Just give me two or three movie previews and get on with the business of the actual movie.
  5. With all the movie trivia that exist out there, couldn’t the movie theatres come up with more than a 7 minute loop of trivia for pre-movie entertainment? Although it can make you look smart when you wife has been in the bathroom, and doesn’t know that you already saw who was the boom mic operator for Citizen Kane.
  6. I saw ‘We Are Marshall‘, and my only question is… Why is the director named McG? In what alternative universe is the name ‘McG‘ acceptable?
  7. Will Smith was great in ‘Pursuit of Happyness‘, but I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a more depressing movie. I mean, even though it ended on a high note, I couldn’t get over all the terrible things that happened to this man. At one point, I started to think that if him and his boy just got hit by a bus, at least their suffering would be over. And I’m not normally that depressing.
  8. And finally, I must say that I was pleasantly surprised by Rocky Balboa. It is truly a great movie. It’s sad that so many will not go see it because it’s Rocky 6. It’s wonderful, and makes you leave the theatre happy. What more could you ask for out of a movie?

I Had No Idea

December 18, 2006 in Personal with 2 Comments

Put this posting under the category of things they don’t tell you before you choose to have children: There are so many wonderful things about having children, that I could post about them for days and days. However, there is one part of the ‘parenting’ thing that I have been made painfully aware of over the past 48 hours. If I had known how horrible this could be, I might have remained a recluse and lived in solitary confinement for the rest of my lonely existence. What I speak of is the dreaded STOMACH VIRUS!! So far three out of the five in my family have been stricken with the horrible virus, including myself.

Why must my children always bring these horrible things into my life? I never had these problems until I started having kids, and letting them play with other kids. I’m thinking of making my kids wear rubber gloves at school now, and forcing them to sanitize themselves every 15 minutes while they are home. (Just kidding, don’t send horrible emails.)

I’ll spare you the details, but every time my family is sick with the Stomach Virus I’m reminded of my favorite book title of all time, “The Stomach Virus and Other Forms of Family Bonding”

What I Think is Dumb

December 11, 2006 in Personal with 2 Comments


Wanna know what I think is dumb?

I think it’s dumb that I personally know people who DON’T celebrate Christmas because they believe Jesus Christ (The reason for the season) wasn’t born exactly on December 25th. These families won’t let their children be in the Christmas Pageant, they won’t put up a tree (because the pagans originally worshiped nature at the Winter Solstice Celebration), and they won’t buy gifts for all their kids (because it’s all so over ‘commercialized’).

This is dumb.

Why not raise your kids to see the true meaning of Christmas, in spite of all the weird Christmasy things around us every day? Of course Jesus wasn’t born on December 25th, but if you don’t believe that how come you don’t celebrate his birth at another point in the year?

Just think this is a dumb stance. I can see the conversation now.

Non-Christian coworker: ” Have a Merry Christmas!”

Christian: “No, I do not celebrate Christmas. Please don’t bring up this word again in my presence!”

Non-Christian coworker under their breath: “He’s weird.”

This reminds me of a time in Bible school when we had a family on campus that didn’t celebrate Christmas. This dad and husband loved it when you’d ask why, because he’d give a big speech about how Christmas being celebrated on December 25th was pagan, yada, yada, yada….
Anyways, I had this friend and his family had noticed that the Christmas-Haters didn’t have a Christmas tree up and no decorations up in their house. They had never asked why, and just thought the family was having a hard time financially at Christmas, so they decided to surprise them! On Christmas eve, they bought them a tree, lights, stockings, and even got presents for everyone in their family. I found out later and told my friend that this guy didn’t ‘believe’ in Christmas. My friend said this guy just acted completely shocked the whole time, but let them decorate his house anyways. He had just wondered why this guy wouldn’t help him do any of the setup.

Family Man

December 8, 2006 in Links, Personal with 0 Comments

Like many others, I’ve been following the story of James Kim. He’s the man who was stranded with his wife and two small children in Oregon on his way home to San Francisco after the Thanksgiving holidays. He was a 35-year old online editor at CNET.com, and owned a few small businesses as well. Reading about his personal life, it seems he was a man extremely dedicated to his family. I know nice things get said about the deceased everyday, but most of the things said about him seemed to ring very true for my own life as well.
While traveling home, they made some wrong turns, and ended up in a terrible snow storm. Apparently after spending 8 days in the car with his family, waiting for help, he decided to head out and find help. Investigators think he traveled over 10 miles looking to save his family. What he did was amazing, in that he covered 10 brutal miles in running shoes and blue jeans.

Check out this site for James Kim’s Path.

In the end his family was saved but he was not. He died less than a mile from shelter and supplies. As a husband of one, and a father of three; James Kim did exactly what I would have done. He risked his life to try and save his family. It’s truly a heartbreaking story of a man trying to save his family. Makes you want to go home and hug your kids.

Back in the Saddle

December 7, 2006 in Ministry, Personal with 0 Comments

Had a trip to San Antonio, TX this week for the funeral of my grandmother. I’ve been to San Antonio many times, and it’s one of my favorite cities to visit. However, on this trip we didn’t get to do any of the many things you can do in San Antonio. No evening walks on the river walk, no great Mexican Restaurants, and no visit to the Alamo. I was only in San Antonio for about 24 hours, and it kinda felt like I just had a long layover. It was good to catch up with family from all over, and weird to think that we don’t get together more often. Isn’t it sad that sometimes death is the only thing that brings us together?

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