Where Have All the Good Movies Gone?

This past weekend Lee and I were trying to decide what to do. It seems like every weekend we consider going to the movies, but can’t find one worth seeing. Sometimes if there is a decent movie, it’s too “girly” for him or too “manly” for me.

These movie previews come on TV and make you want to see the movie. They make their movie look funny. They don’t let you know about all the unnecessary things they put in their movie to give it an R rating. I haven’t seen a comedy in a long time because all the new comedies are dirty (for a lack of a better word). There have been many movie previews that have looked good to me, but I’ve changed my mind when I read up on them.

Something that God has been working out in me over the past few years has been this idea of watching movies and other things. As Christians, we are called to live different from the world. There are obvious things that people think a Christian shouldn’t do, but people don’t often think about the kind of things they watch, look at, read, or listen to. What you put in your mind affects what comes out in your words and actions.

“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” Philippians 4:8

I have found that I personally feel better when I don’t pollute my mind with things of this world. Am I saying I’m perfect? No. Am I saying I never watch, read, or listen to something I shouldn’t? No. However, I am trying. I do check www.pluggedinonline.com before I go see or rent almost any movie. It is a great resource to tell you EVERYTHING negative you could possibly hear or see in a movie. It also tells you about TV shows, video games, and music.

I just wish some more people in Hollywood would make some decent movies. Most of the stuff that is in the movies to make them “bad” is completely unnecessary to the plot. Anyway, we ended up renting “Soul Surfer.”

Time Machine

I wrote this blog 2 years ago, but decided to revisit it for a new link up I found. Football games have been a big part of my life for many years. I have very fond memories involving football. 

I often think back fondly on memories I’ve made over the years. A certain song or movie will remind me of fun times with friends. Something will happen that reminds me of an inside joke I’ve shared. A picture or souvenir will remind me of a vacation I took. However, I try to be a person who lives in the present. I like to plan for the future without dwelling on it and I like to remember the past without living in it.

I can remember being so ready to graduate from high school. Over the years, I’ve had many friends say they wouldn’t go back to high school for anything. I don’t necessarily want to go back to high school either. I was definitely glad to leave classes and drama behind. On the other hand, there are some things about high school that I really do miss.

Most of those things that I miss revolve around being in band. My first 3 years in band were spent playing the clarinet and then my last 3 years were spent in color guard. Those are some of my fondest memories of high school. I met so many people and made so many great friends. The bus rides to away games were always eventful. I can remember passing around CD cases to see what CDs other people had that you wanted to borrow and sometimes we had bus-wide sing-alongs. Playing and cheering at football games was always fun and exciting-even when our team wasn’t doing very good. Performing at half time was always a rush.

 

Now that I’ve lived in and experienced a bigger city, I feel very blessed to have grown up in a small town. Back home, there was only one of each school (elementary, middle, and high). So from the time you started kindergarten, you were a Ram. School spirit was felt from kindergarten to 12th grade. Also, school spirit could be found throughout town. Everyone came to football games and parades. Homecoming was a community wide event. I miss that sense of school and community pride.

I was also lucky enough to get to experience color guard during my first year of college. I was a member of the SOUND OF THE SOUTH! (That's from Troy University in Alabama for those of you who aren't familiar.) That was also a great experience. How else would I have ever been able to perform at an FSU game and in the Louisiana Superdome? My favorite performance with the SOTS was at a band competition near my hometown. Performing in front of hundreds of high school band students who love the SOTS was an awesome feeling. Plus…my high school band was there.

The videos below are from the year I was in Troy's band. I am out there waving a flag somewhere.





Basically, I have very fond memories revolving around football. I miss going to football games and being a part of the whole experience.

If you had a time machine, what moment or moments from your past would you want to relive?

I Heart Harry (& other updates)

Here are a few updates on our life:

When I wrote my last blog, we had just moved into our apartment in Wake Forest. We have now been here for 3 weeks. I have also been working at my new job for about 3 weeks-although the students have only been there 2 weeks. It’s difficult having to adjust to a new school again this year. This school is also very different from where I was last year. It is so much bigger. It’s hard at times and discouraging. I have to keep reminding myself that it will get better once I am more used to it and in the routine. It’s just frustrating because we have experienced so many changes in the last year.

Speaking of the last year…last Sunday marked mine and Lee’s one year anniversary. We didn’t really do anything special that weekend because our Disney World trip was our anniversary trip. I also was exhausted from work. We did go out to eat a few times and we went to a movie.

Speaking of a movie…Lee and I went to see Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2. However, the whole week leading up to our anniversary weekend, we had watched one or two Harry Potter movies a night. Lee had never seen them, so he wanted to know what was going on when he took me to see the final one on Saturday. It was sad to know that there will be no more movies, but I think I was sadder when the last book came out. I always prefer books to movies.

Speaking of Harry Potter….my love for this series started Easter 2000. I only know this because my mom wrote the date in the first book when she gave it to me. I immediately loved the books. I believe the first three books were already out when I started reading them. Since then, I anxiously awaited the release of the subsequent 4 books. Every time a new book came out, I read the previous books to refresh my memory. Then, I quickly devoured the new one. They always left you wanting more. I was in Panama City when the last book came out. I woke up early that morning and drove to Walmart. I had no trouble finding and buying the book. Then, I spent the rest of my time at the beach reading it. I believe JK Rowling is a brilliant author. She created a whole new world. She created characters and a story that millions of people love. Since the release of the last book, I have reread the entire series one or two times and I am in the process of reading them again. It never gets old. No matter how many times I read it, it still sucks me in and I can’t put it down. That to me is the sign of a good book-one that you can read over and over again and never grow tired of the story. Now, onto the movies-I will admit that I liked the first two movies (they followed the book pretty well), but after the 3^rd one my interest kind of died a little. It picked back up when I began to go to the midnight showings with friends. I had to just tell myself to enjoy the movie and not try to compare it to the book. I know that a movie will never compare to the book. It was kind of sad this year that I did not get to go see the final movie with friends who loved them as much as me. However, I am thankful that Lee was a good sport and showed interest in them. Thank you for taking me Lee!

Well…our live are kind of boring right now. Lee is out of school for the summer. I am working (and counting down to September when I get my first break). We’re just trying to get ourselves into a new routine in our new environment.