Graduation '07??

It's that wonderful time of the semester once again, pre-registration. I've been looking rather closely at my curriculum chart recently and it has come to my attention that I may be able to, with some finagling, graduate next semster. Finally. It's not that I have been taking longer than normal for my Masters Degree, just that I went right from my Undergrad into Grad. I don't know about you, but 7 years of anything, let alone papers, tests, summer school, 3 hour classes, etc., is too much. Having said that, I've been throwing around the idead of doing a Th.M because I'm a glutton for punishment. I've also thought about the D.Min but some schools like Talbot want you to have 3 years of ministry under your belt before they will accept you. I guess that's not a bad thing, otherwise you're giving someone a Doctorate who may never have spent day one in the ministry.

I mentioned that some "finagling" is necessary, let me explain. I am going to see about getting a class written off because I had it as an Undergrad but only got a "B" so it didn't transfer. I will have to take a class this interterm. Then I am trying to get into 14 units of classes for the Spring, two of which are Greek classes. I should add that 3 of these Spring classes are already closed, and the Interterm one may be as well. One other tricky matter is a 2 unit internship class that I can only take in the Fall, which means I have to get that figured out with my Academic Advisors. If by some chance all these things get done, then I will be graduating this Spring.

The unavoidable question arises, "What will you do after graduation"? Sadly, that is a question I am still unable to answer. I like working at the church, but will that turn from a part-time job to a full-time job? That's the million dollar question.

Wii Will Rock You

3 hours and 40 minutes until the Wii is finally released. I will be buying mine tonight at midnight from Toys R Us. Rejoice!

Unveiled!

The warranty was expiring on our A6 so we decided on a change of wheels. Introducing the newest member of the household, the 2007 Audi A4 2.0T. Yes, it's bright red. Quite a change from the sleek, but melancholy, black beauty the A6 was... may she rest in peace.

Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

Here in my car
I can only receive
I can listen to you
It keeps me stable for days

In carsHere in my car

The image breaks down
Will you visit me please
If I open my door
In cars

Here in my car
I know I've started to think
About leaving tonight
Although nothing seems right
In cars

I know I've started to think
I know I've started to think

"Cars" by Gary Numan

Well What Do We Have Here?

There's nothing quite like tucking two beautiful cars in for the night in their cozy garage, while the truck stays out on the curb. I guess cars are a bit like animals, or more specifically pets. We give them names, which ought to always adhere to the unwritten rule that states a car must retain the first letter of either the make or model e.g. "Pete Porsche" or "Cindy Civic". Jeff broke the rules when he named his Toyota Camry, "Jen". Then you have the inside pets and the outside pets. My 914 has always stayed inside, it's barely seen the light of day. On the other hand, my Tacoma has spent the majority of it's short life outside due the fact that it... well... it's a truck!

The new pet.
What in the world is this? And in red??

Mmmmmmmmmm... "Turbo" is a word I like to see when I 'm looking at the engine.

Duh da, duh da, duh da.... she's a shark. *Rawr*. Yea that's right, the shark said, "Rawr." Got a problem with that??

More to come...

1 Star: The Bible

I have had a request for the next 1 Star Classic, the #1 bestselling book of all time, The Bible. Although from many of these reviews, you may be wondering how it got that way.

The Holy Bible

"This is the worst book I've picked up since Christopher Castile's 'Being You is Most Definitely Cool'."

"I think we all can safely say that this book has been pretty much debunked by Science. I would put the Bible on the same shelf as books like 'The Odyssey'. Basically, fictional tales told by primitive men in a primitive time in human history."

"I find the plot hard to follow, the writing style is pretty rough and the characters lack emotional depth. God turns out to be a pretty mean guy when kicks Adam and Eve out of the garden for simply eating an apple and then tries to trick Abraham into killing his son ... just kidding! He does do a good job of flooding the earth and killing most everyone which is kind of cool, but again, kind of mean. The new testament stuff is better ... Jesus is a pretty cool dude with a good message about loving people and turning the other check and all that ... but it seems to get lost in translation somewhere in the modern world."

"its thickness, its weight, and its sexy black imitation leather covering makes this book an ideal doorstopper. Very useful."

"I feel that this book started out well but lacked something of an ending. The writing styles change intermittedly and seem to lack something of a finesse, blatantly stating things that cannot be taken literally or figuratively well enough to purvey a superior understanding of the text. I found it about as entertaining as flipping through a T.V. guide but not owning a T.V. seeing all the shows that you could be watching explained in a summerized detail that never quite lets you know what it's really all about. A true literary flop."

"Reading the reviews of this bible has inspired me to contribute.
Leviticus 25:17 - 'Thou shalt wear a shirt woven of two type of cloth'
Pure Cotton is the only way. All praise Saville Row."

"God sure sounds unhappy. Maybe he should seek professional help for his anger. Hell, it worked for me."

"This book is in very poor taste. Between the rape, torture, murder, mass murder, and latent themes of homophobia this book is not for the faint of heart. Only the mad or abusive would allow a child anywhere near this, it would scar them for life."

"Frankly, I was disapointed. I expected more from God. Definetly not his best work."

1 Star: To Kill A Mockingbird

This may upset some folks I know. There was a lot of unhappy people at Amazon, but it seems the "haters" came to a general consensus in their reviews. It was boring! My own personal comments will be denoted in red, just like Jesus. And as always, the reviews are cited as posted on Amazon, in all their grammatical glory.

To Kill A Mockingbird

"I was completely bored reading this book. A court case is hardly a thrilling idea."
Don't tell that to John Grisham.

"Once you have read one book like this one, you have read them all. A classic american piece of caca"

"Say what you will, but this never picks up. It starts out with Scout talking about how her brother once broke his arm. Who cares? The book's most exiting part is extremely confusing, and don't tell me I'm stupid; I have an IQ of 140. I personally prefer books that have something called action, such as Michael Chricton or Stephen King novels."
Yes, of course, the genius doesn't understand the most "exiting" part of the book. Big surprise.

"I was assigned this book for a reading assignment and me and the guy who sat next to me seemed to be the only ones who hated the book out of the whole class and we sit right infront of the teachers desk so we gave her heck all day! lol anyway... I seriously dislike this book!"
When I read this I can picture some of the high school kids I work with actually saying it... quite disturbing.

Well if this is a classic then so could the Charlies Angel's movies. All the book consists of is a middle-class family in the south with a few weird neighbors. I mean come on. Who really cares about a little girl that goes around the neighborhood doing things like spying on her albino neighbor. If that makes a book a classic, shame on you. Atticus against all odds is always fair and never makes anyone mad. He deals with all disputes perfectly. A wee bit too good to be true. Don't you think? Finishing this book felt like the equivalent of fighting in World War II with nothing but an army of G.I. Joes. If you have been given this book as a present I give you my deepest condolences."

"this book is to long and there arent eny car chases or bombs going off and i wuz bored and it would make a lowsy video game."
This has got to be a joke, but still priceless.

It is a very interesting and great book!!!!! I expecially liked how they talked of people standing up for what is right!! NOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This suit is NOT black. That was for you, Eric.

"This book is very nasty. It depicts scenes I would not care to see if I was being PAID. It's just a sick book. Dont read it, kids"

"THIS BOOK IS BORING!There's no other word to describe it.I just wasen't interested in this book.And they call this a "timeless classic"!Bah,humbug!If I had a cookie for every time I heard that, I'd be a very fat kid!"

"In our most humble opinion we think this book could use some work. Half the book dose not appeal to the readers eye, but on the other hand the other half of the book is completely different from the first half. This is a story that may have touched the hearts of some, but for the many that don't understand it. We agree with them because it doesn't make any sence to us."
Let me see if I got this right. So half the book didn't "appeal to the readers eye", and then you are upset that the second half is completely different?

"I'm sorry everyone. I don't see why this book is so fabeulos. I would give it a zero. I find no point in writing a book about segregation, there's no way of making it into an enjoyable book. And yes i am toataly against segragation. Thanks to all my friendswho had to tourchure threw reading this disgrace and supporting me in not likeing the book. By the way, DO NOT BUY, because if i find it in your house i won't think to kindly of you."
I think he secretly is a fan of segregation and "tourchure".

All Are Welcome

It recently came to my attention that my blog was set so only registered members of blogspot could comment. I just wanted to let everyone know that I have changed it so anyone can make a comment anonymously so our anti-bloging friends can make their voices heard as well.

And for your enjoyment, the work of Katsuhiro Otomo. Bonus points to those who know what this is from without googling... ERIC.

1 Star: Dr. Strangelove

Today we take a look at what the public think of one of my top ten favorite movies of all time.

Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb

"If I know the film recorded black and white styl, I didn't bay it."

"Slim Pickens riding the bomb is a reference that is part of the American culture. Other than knowing the origin of this reference, this movie is a waste of time."

"THIS MOVIE IS PRETTY BAD. GOOD ACTING THOUGH"

"I have no idea why people say this is the funniest movie ever made. I don't get it, and I love comedies. I have seen it four times and I still do not get it. Maybe it is because I don't get Kubrick movies. I have seen several of them and don't get any of them."

"This movie is lame. There isn't one good laugh in it. It is tiresome. The only good thing about it is that it warns us against right wing lunatics who might start a nuclear war because they are crazy. Fine. It is politically correct. But that doesn't mean that the movie is any good, and it isn't."

All these people who don't understand the movie make Dr. Strangelove a sad panda.

1 Star Classics

I've been busy of late and haven't had much to really blog about, but I have been coming up with some new ideas to post about. The first is going to be a segment called "1 Star Classics" in which I will focus on a book, movie, or album that is highly regarded as a classic and qoute Amazon.com reviewers that gave them 1 star. The first edition goes to:

William Shakespeare: The Complete Works

"Shakespeare may be a genius, but cmon, this is the worst reading material i have ever seen."

"Guess what! This is a great book! JUST KIDDING! It's HORRIBLE! IT IS BY FAR THE WORST BOOK I HAVE READ IN MY ENTIRE LIFE! I would never, ever, ever, ever buy this book. NEVER! Oh, did I mention how bad the writing is? The writing is HORRIBLE! IT IS THE WORST WRITING THAT I HAVE READ IN MY ENTIRE LIFE! If you are bored enough to read this book, you have way too much free time and don't deserve to have the money that it costs to buy it. I really don't know why everyone says that Shakespeare is such a great writer. He isn't."

"Hello Shakespeare, is anyone home? Most people will say that I didn't understand this, but I totally did and it still stinks. It cannot equal the feeling I got from reading abou Frodo and Sam climbing mount doom. And the fight scenes were totally unrealistic. I'm into suspending disbelief and all, but Hamlet? Hello? Like, a ghost living? Give me Mount Doom anyday."

"The only ones who seem to like ol' Shakes are drama department queens. His plays are essentially empty souled affairs with emotions that are either shallow or excessively melodramatic. There is not a single recognizable flesh and blood human being in his plays. He lacks any consistent viewpoint so that his output all adds up to nothing. Don't waste your time."