Look Back on 2010

Most people write about, think about, and ponder upon a year during the final weeks of that year. Most "Best of" and "Worst of" lists come out during the last two weeks in a year. Local television stations have a clip broadcast of the year in review a week before the year ends and many newspapers run their top stories of the year a week to two weeks before the year is over. I never understood that. I get the idea of reflection because I reflect and think constantly; one of my most difficult challenges in life is getting quieting my mind. So, during the last few weeks of a year, I'm looking back at it, too. However, I think it's premature to make a "Best of List" or run your "Top Stories" feature before the year is completely over. There might only be a couple weeks left or just the day of December 31st left, but the biggest story of the year might not happen until December 31st. That's why I don't write about these things until way into the next year.

So, 2010. Personally, 2010 was just an okay year. 2009 was one of the crappiest years of my life. My Dad unexpectedly passed away in Autumn 2009 and it through my life so far off balance that I still don't know if I've gotten back on track. There was a lot of other stuff that happened, too. I had looked forward to 2010 with great hope and optimism. On January 1, 2010 I believed the year would bring healing, a fresh start, and new opportunities.

It did bring those things. I still miss my Dad and cry at the most unusual times and there's still a scar in my life where his presence and influence were ripped away. That will always be there, but it's a scar now and not a scab or open wound. I began 2010 working more than I did in 2009 and that was good and the friendship I had with a woman whom I had fallen in love with was back to the way it was before I began my pursuit of her. There were a lot of new opportunities in 2010. I went skydiving. I went parasailing. I had the chance to visit Florida, a state I haven't been to since 1994. I produced my first play and, though audiences weren't huge, it was a success and earned a profit. I starting writing again (though I'm still terribly, terribly undisciplined). I helped a good friend open a museum. I went to a Cardinals baseball game for the first time since they began playing in the new, new Busch Stadium. I became introduced to geocaching. There were a lot of good things.

Despite all of these good and wonderful things, there was one huge negative that has thrown a negative pawl on all the good: I lost my job. Granted it had only been a temp job and one that beginning in February 2010 my hours were slowly cut back from. I spent 22 months at that temp job and they never offered to raise my salary or let me pick up more hours working in the warehouse. Still, it was a job. I have always given my best effort to every job I have ever worked, working as to God and not to men. After a year of being there, it became clear to me that they were never going to bring me on as a regular. I could have quit then, but I didn't. I looked for other jobs, but kept hoping maybe they would change their minds and bring me on as a regular, even if it was part-time. The job wasn't exciting and there were a lot of negative people there, but it was a job. I knew what the economy was like and was happy to be working. But at the end of April, after 22 months there, they let me go. I haven't been able to find regular work since.

I've applied all over. I have a stack of around 150 copies of cover letters I've sent out. I'm registered with three different temp agencies. I call each of them almost every week and have become on a first name basis with some of the workers at each place. I've had a handful of interviews, but nothing promising. I've done some consulting work and odd jobs for friends. I send out 2-10 applications each week, but I've yet to find work. Unless you've been in this situation you have no idea how draining it is.

I try to stay optimistic, but there is a weariness to this whole thing. I knew it has been affecting me, but I didn't know how much until I recently watched part of the remake of DICK AND JANE. I was flipping through the channels in the afternoon before I began to work on my latest stack of application letters and came across it. I remember when I first watched the movie a few years ago and enjoyed it. However, this time was different. I've never had a high-paying job like Dick(portrayed by Jim Carrey) and long ago the possibility of me ever owning a home evaporated. However, I found myself really relating to Dick. The parts that were funny when I first watched the movie weren't funny anymore because they were too lifelike. Unlike Dick, I began my job search immediately and in earnest. I didn't waste time sitting around fiddling. Yet, we're almost in identical places. When I went back to college a few years ago I made a little extra money doing medical tests. I've gained weight since then and because of that, the research facility won't use me. I applied for the United Farm Workers "Take Our Jobs" initiative. I thought that if nothing else I could get a couple months of labor at the end of summer. They turned me down. They tell you in school that a college degree will let you get ahead, but what they don't tell you is that a college degree also knocks you out of a lot of entry level positions. I spent 2 1/2 years substitute teaching, but because of new bureaucratic regulation, I'm having difficulties getting back on the sub list of the district I worked for most. I've been through difficult spells before, but none of it has been like this. It's all really starting to get to me. My spirit is restless and my soul is weary.

I know what I want to do in life. I've been given some very unique gifts and talents. I want to use them and earn my keep through them. In order to do that, there are some things I need to do. In order to do those things, I need some cash. What little savings I had has long since evaporated so to get some cash, I need a job. It's a vicious cycle, but one that I hope I can break away from soon.

On a completely different note, about halfway through 2010 I uploaded some statistic tracking software to this blog. I was curious as to how many visits I was getting, what people were looking at, where they were coming from, etc. In 2010, from the time I uploaded the software in May until the end of the year, I had over 4,000 visits to this blog. Nearly half of those came from a little picture I posted of Snooki when they parodied her on South Park. I knew she was popular, but I never knew how much. My original writings that I've posted here received the least amount of visits. That's kind of a downer, but it's nice to know that the 2nd most visited post of mine is a video I found on the Internet with Brian Welch and his testimony of how he became a Christian.

I've never really been concerned about becoming a famous blogger. If I was, this would be a much more "focused" site devoted to one topic or area. But, it's not. It's a blog about me, the things I like, enjoy, find interesting or thought-provoking, etc. As long as I keep blogging here, that's the way it will be. Cheers.

Best Video Game of 2010

Red Dead Redemption

I'm really not a very big gamer. Most gamers I know play some sort of game almost every night and at least every day during the weekends. They really get into the multi-player levels and stay up into the wee hours of the morning playing Call of Duty, Modern Warfare 2, or the latest Halo installment with people from all over the country. I only play once every few weeks. I've played the online multi-player stuff a few times, but after a few times I get bored with it. Personally, what I like most about modern video games are the stories (aka campaign modes). Graphics are important, but if a game with just average graphics has an amazing story then I'll probably really enjoy it. It's even better if the game has great graphics and a great story.

For me, Red Dead Redemption was the best video game I've played since Kingdom Hearts (back in 2002). I got caught up in the story of John Marston the same way I've gotten caught up in reading the Chronicles of Narnia or The Lord of the Rings or watching the original Star Wars for the first time. I was swept away. I became emotionally invested and emotionally tied to the story. The story is a great one and as the title says, it's all about redemption (a theme I feel strongly about). If I had access to the right amount of cash, I'd buy the rights from Rockstar and begin writing the screenplay. I'd like to see this game made into a film someday. I'd like to do it, but if I'm not able to I hope that whoever does will do the story justice.

Most Overrated Movie of 2010

What's the most overrated movie of 2010?

Black Swan

I really wanted to like this movie. I had a choice to see either Black Swan or The Fighter. I had just got done hearing a couple of rave reviews on the radio for Black Swan so I chose it. I should have watched The Fighter instead. Natalie Portman gives an Oscar-worthy performance, but even with that I could barely keep watching the movie. You probably won't read this in any film reviews, but the movie is vulgar, trashy, disturbing, and at times completely incomprehensible.

SPOILERS: Stop reading if you don't want to know what happens.

And seriously, do we really need a female Fight Club? The whole split personality thing that Hollywood is so fascinated with has gotten stale. For the next several years, if you make a movie or write a story and the only way it makes sense is that the protagonist is also the antagonist because of a split personality, then you probably should just stop writing because your story is probably crap. There are only a handful of people in the whole world that have split personalities but if you believe and are influenced by Hollywood you'll be thinking there are thousands and thousands of people like that.

Best Movies I Saw in 2010

Here is my list of the best movies I saw in 2010. It isn't a Top 10 List because I quite honestly, I didn't see enough good movies in theatres in 2010 to get a Top 10 List. There are a couple of films (The Fighter and 127 Hours), that I believe I would have added to my list, but I haven't seen them, yet, so I just had to go based on the movies I actually saw in movie theatres in 2010. There's one exception to this and that's my only honorable mention. Unlike most critics, I've included movies I actually enjoyed and believe are worth watching, even if they are popular movies. Just because a movie is hugely popular doesn't mean it can't be one of the best movies of the year. So, without further ado, here are the Best Movies I Saw in 2010.

Honorable Mention:

The Silo Project

In full disclosure, the director of the documentary The Silo Project is a friend of mine. However, I think even if I wasn't friends and I had stumbled upon this short documentary, I would have been impressed. In the Fall of 2008 a young musician collaborated with several other musicians and recorded a folk album in the center of an abandoned grain silo. The director, Joel Hager, was there to record the process. I have the album that was recorded there and the music is fresh, vibrant, catchy, original, fun, and at times thought-provoking. However, I'm a film buff and I like the documentary even better. It's rather short (around 40-45 minutes), but Hager has talked about perhaps lengthening it in the future. Besides the stories and some of the interesting quotes by the people in the movie, what I find most fascinating are the visual images. This wasn't a staged mockumentary or a recreation and this stuff really happened. Kudos to Joel Hager for being there and capturing these images on film and sharing them with the rest of the world.

9.

Devil

The story in Devil is from M. Night Shyamalan and he's also the producer of the film. The premise is that a group of people find themselves trapped in an elevator. Unnatural occurrences happen, people are killed, and it becomes clear that one of the people in the elevator is actually the Devil. Shyamalan has worked in a lot of drivel lately and taken a lot of crap. I know he didn't direct Devil, but his handprints are all over this movie. The film is a classic, nearly Hitchcockian thriller with a little bit of visual gore thrown in for good measure. It's also a Renaissance morality tale about the nature of good and evil, light and dark that explores if a person's soul can be redeemed.

8.

The Other Guys

Comedies are rarely considered by critics on their "Best Of" lists. I guess it's because if something is funny it can't be taken seriously. However, I'm not like that. The funniest movie I saw in theatres this year was The Other Guys. It's a spoof of all the American buddy action films that have ever been done with a storyline focusing on white collar crime that's never been more relevant with just a little bit of Will Ferrell thrown in for good measure. Seeming to parody a version of himself that he played in Stranger Than Fiction, Ferrell is an accountant that also happens to be a cop. He's the exact opposite of what a cop is supposed to be. Surprisingly, Ferrell is the straight man in this movie and his partner, played by Mark Wahlberg, is the funny man. Wahlberg has had a mixed bag of roles, but he's a better actor than he's usually given credit. The Other Guys allows him to shine as well as displaying some comedic acting chops. There's not really much bad language in this movie, the violence is either realistic or cartoony, and the sexuality has really been toned down. It's one of both Ferrell and Wahlberg's best movies in years.

7.

Despicable Me

2010 was a great year for animated movies. Three of my favorite films are animated ones. The first is Despicable Me with Steve Carell. With my father's sudden passing 15 months ago, I've become a real sucker for movies about Dad's, even funny animated movies about a man who's an evil genius and just wants to be the biggest villain in the world. The story is charming, but the added bonus are the Minions. You should watch this movie for these creatures alone.

6.

Megamind

Megamind is another quality animated movie about an evil supergenius is wants to rule, except Megamind isn't really interested in ruling the world, just the place he lives, Metro City. Except, Megamind was never supposed to be a villain. He was supposed to be a hero. The movie is full of vibrant colors and strong voice performances. It's a movie about redemption and fulfilling one's potential. Dreams delayed are not necessarily dreams denied.

5.

Book of Eli

THE BOOK OF ELI probably isn't making a lot of "Best Of" lists. It came out in the dumping grounds of Hollywood (January/February). It wasn't received by critics very well, it didn't reach that magic threshold of a hundred-million dollars, and there were complaints about how violent the movie is. With that said, THE BOOK OF ELI is a good movie and one of the best movies I have ever seen about faith. The movie is filled with religious symbolism, some of it overt and much of it subtle. If you're a person of faith, it's a movie you should see.

4.

The Social Network

The Social Network is a movie that's at the top of a many critic's lists, it's won all kinds of awards, and right now it's the odds-on-favorite of taking home the Best Picture Oscar. Some have even hailed it as being "the Citizen Kane for the Facebook Generation". I completely disagree. I grant that The Social Network is a good movie. It has a solid script with some great performances. However, Jesse Eisenberg, a talented actor, is basically playing the same character he played in The Squid and the Whale, Zombieland, etc. He's once again the geeky man with a childlike demeanor. The movie breaks no cinematic barriers and beyond a few incidents, the story is rather dry. After watching the movie and hearing the critics rave beforehand, my initial response was "That's it?". It's a good movie, with some wonderful direction, and solid acting but it's really not the grand masterpiece so many are claiming it to be.

3.

True Grit

When rumors of the Coen brother's production of True Grit came out the word on the street was "Did you hear they're remaking a John Wayne movie?". That's not really true because the Coen's didn't remake a John Wayne movie; they made a movie based on a novel that had already been made into a movie that starred John Wayne. Wayne's starring turn in True Grit was a movie that was all about Rooster Cogburn. The Coen's True Grit is truer to the spirit of the novel and the story is one seen from the perspective of Mattie Ross. There are similarities between the two films and some of the dialogue is identical. Where those similarities exist it is because both films take them directly from the novel. True Grit has done rather well at the box office and has become the Coen's most profitable picture. Still, the movie hasn't garnered as much respect among critics. I think the reason for that is that most critics have a bias towards Westerns, just as they do towards sci-fi, fantasy, and animation.

2.

Inception

No matter how you look at it, Inception is one of the best movies of 2010. The film has a great script (it's really not that difficult to understand), excellent acting, and ground-breaking cinematography. Decades from now people will look back on Inception as the movie that set a new standard. I liked everything in the movie but the ending. When a filmmaker leaves a movie that has only one of two outcomes and so much depends upon that outcome, but then it's never resolved, that is bad filmmaking; have the guts to finish the story that you told and don't give some bull crap answer "it's up to the audience". Give the audience their money's worth and finish the story. Still, even with the open ending, Inception is a ground-breaking movie and one of the best of 2010.

1.

Toy Story 3

Pixar is the best filmmaking studio in the world. Their films might all be animated, but every single one of the Pixar movies is an achievement in storytelling, direction, character development, cinematic vistas, and ground-breaking cinematic techniques. Bring all that together as well as one of the few cartoons you'll ever watch that'll make most grown men cry and you have Toy Story 3. Sure, at face value it's the last part of a trilogy and is a movie about toys. But, it really isn't. The Toy Story movies were never intended as a trilogy. They just happened that way. That's why each movie stands on its own. Unlike most trilogies, it's not necessary to have seen the previous installments to understand the movie. Beyond that, Toy Story 3 is a movie about what it takes to be a hero. It's a movie about friends, family, growing up, growing old, and finding your place in a world that doesn't want you. The movie has villains and despite this being a cartoon about toys, one of the toys is a would-be murderer. The movie is about faith, joy, and love. It's a movie about all that is good in the world; it's a modern fairy tale. All of that in about ninety minutes in an animated movie featuring a bunch of toys. That is a fantastical feat of filmmaking that makes Toy Story 3 the best movie of 2010.

Best Books I Read in 2010

What follows is a list of the best books I read in 2010. A few of the books were published in 2010, but most were published in previous years. This is a list of the Best Books I Read in 2010. There's a wide variety in several different genres. If nothing else, I hope this list encourages you to check some of these books out.

Honorable Mentions:

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

You really can't go wrong with a classic. I reread this a few years ago when I was teaching. The story is still as fresh, exciting, frightening, and challenging as it was when I first read it in high school. In a society where we seem intent on creating different monsters everyday, it will always be relevant.

Catalog #439: Burlesque Paraphernalia Edited by Charles Schneider

This book of oddities is a reprint of a catalog that was first published in 1930. Today's readers might find it difficult to imagine that such devices of humor were ever constructed, but they were, at a small plant in Greenville, IL by the DeMoulin Brothers. The company still exists, but they produce band uniforms. However, you can see some of the unique devices of Americana found in this book at the DeMoulin Museum in Greenville, IL.

Shapes and Colors by Richard Thompson

"Cul de Sac" is a comic strip that I have become familiar through the collections and online. The strip has some real imagination to it and I think it will become very popular in the next few years. The strip revolves around little Alice Otterloop and her family. Bill Watterson wrote the introduction to the first collection of strips and hailed the strip. This book is only the third collection of the strip and having read the previous collection, I can see some real growth in the strip. Check out "Cul de Sac" before it becomes the next big thing.

10.

The Deranged Stalker's Journal of Pop Culture Shock Therapy
by Doug Bratton

About two months ago, I was introduced to the one-panel online comic "Pop Culture Shock Therapy". I found it hilarious. This book is a collection of some of the earlier and most popular of the strips. The format of the book is that this journal was found in the home of a psychologically deranged stalker of the author, Doug Bratton. The concept is, albeit a bit disturbing, makes for some funny reading.

9.

The Talisman by Stephen King & Peter Straub

The story of a young boy who finds he has a magical gift and sets out on a journey into a fantasy land as well as across real-world America, mid-1970s to heal a queen and save his own mother. The conclusion is a little weak, but the overall story is an engaging and powerful one. One of the better King books I've read in the past few years.

8.

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum

Baum's masterpiece was the first modern American fairy tale and it's as imaginative today as it was when I first read it as a child. The 1939 movie whitewashed some things and left others completely out. The original book is more dark and magical than that famous movie. I was in a production of The Wizard of Oz last year and read several Oz books as well as a biography about Baum as part of my preparation. Re-reading the book again after all of that made me appreciate this story even that much more. In many ways, the book is a parable of Baum's life. And now I know why Dainty Chinaland exists.

7.

The Dumbest Generation by Mark Bauerlein

As anyone who works with youth and young adults know, despite having more opportunities before them than any other generation in history, overall the under-thirty generation in American is dumber than any before. The Dumbest Generation illustrates why this is and what can be done to prevent the oncoming disaster that could happen as a result. I read a wide variety of books, including several nonfiction books and The Dumbest Generation is the most statistically supported nonfiction book I have ever read.

6.

On the Blue Comet by Rosemary Wells

Out of all the children's and young adult books I read in 2010, On the Blue Comet was my favorite. The illustrations in the book are lavish; there might not be many of them but with the few there are it's like walking through an art gallery. The story is set in the Great Depression in Cairo, IL and involves time travel and trains. The protagonist of the tale, a boy named Oscar, meets several larger than life historical figures who are just normal people to him.

5.

Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C.S. Lewis

The Chronicles of Narnia are my favorite series of books of all time. I've read them several times. With the advent of the new movie, I thought it was a good time to go back an re-read the 3rd (yes, it's the 3rd and not the 5th) book in the series, Voyage of the Dawn Treader. Paralleling the historical acts of the Church, Caspian and crew set out from Narnia to travel beyond the edges of the world to find the 7 missing Lords who served his father. They are suddenly joined by Edmund and Lucy Pevensie as well as their dastardly cousin, Eustace Clarence Scrubb. The book has one of the greatest opening lines in all of literature and the tale is just as magical and memorable as the previous two books, but with even more spiritual and theological depth.

4.

The Dark Tower: The Fall of Gilead by Robin Furth, Peter David, et al

I have yet to read "The Dark Tower" series by Stephen King. However, I have been keeping up with the graphic novel translation of the origins of the story produced by Marvel. Fall of Gilead is the second to last collection of the books that tells the origins of Roland Deschain and how he began his lifelong quest to get to the Dark Tower. This book tells the story of how Gilead, the fabled city of good and righteousness and home of Roland, was attacked, conquered, and destroyed. If you know anything about the Dark Tower, you know that Roland is the last of his kind and the only living survivor of Gilead. However, even with that knowledge the tragedy of the story is not diminished and in some ways makes the heart-wrenching scenes between fathers and sons even more poignant.

3.

In a Pit With a Lion on a Snowy Day by Mark Batterson

Simply the best book on Christian living that I read all year.

2.

The Unlikely Disciple by Kevin Roose

There is a cultural conflict brewing in America. The divide is between two completely different ways of living. Kevin Roose went undercover and spent a semester at Liberty University to see how the "other side" lived. For Kevin, the other side are fundamental, evangelical Christians. Other than writing a book and really trying to understand a lifestyle unlike his own, I don't think Roose really had an agenda while at Liberty. His book presents an honest look at what someone who isn't an evangelical Christian thinks. There were certain beliefs that Roose wasn't going to change no matter how much everything at Liberty showed him otherwise (his beliefs about homosexuality and the creation of the universe, for instance). However, he did try to be open and he came away from the experience being able to be a person who could at least hold a dialogue with someone from the "other side". This is a book I think both Christians and non-Christians could benefit from reading.

1.

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter by Seth Grahme-Smith

I'm a sucker for a good story. I'm especially a sucker for a good story seeped in history. Even though Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter is a work of fiction, I learned more about Lincoln, his adversaries, and certain aspects of the Civil War than I did from all my other studies and growing up in Illinois combined. The story is imaginative, exciting, and gripping. I will admit that the ending almost ruined the book for me. Still, I was so impressed by how much the author used real historical events and people to fit into his fictional universe that the ending wasn't able to ruin the rest of the story. I read a lot of different books in 2010 (over 100), but Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter was my favorite.

My Top 10 Facebook Statuses in 2010

I filled out a survey on Facebook recently. I usually try to avoid those things. However, I thought this one was worth it. It showed you what your top 10 Statuses were for Facebook in 2010 based upon comments & likes. Here is my list.

1. Skydiving and finding a little bit of treasure along the yellow brick road. It's been a good day.

2. Saw Will Ferrell, Mark Wahlberg, Don King, Ozzy Smith, and a bunch of Rams football players tonight at the Other Premiere of THE OTHER GUYS in St. Louis. Was less than 5 feet away from them. Got some really good photos and video. Don King unexpectedly showed up before any other celebrities arrived. I think it’s the most attention he’s had in months.

3. Is saddened that TOY STORY 3 will probably lose the box office race this weekend as that movie about a young woman’s choice between necrophilia and bestiality opens.

4. Enjoying passing out Halloween treats.

5. HARVEY tonight (Oct. 8) and tomorrow night (Oct. 9) at 7:30pm, 1800 Lindenthal Ave., Highland, IL. Come out and see a classic American comedy with heart and a star-turning performance by me as Elwood P. Dowd.

6. To Celebrate Valentine’s Day, Change your Profile Picture to a picture of you alone in some secluded location. If you want you can tell people how long you’ve been alone. Copy and Paste this to your profile.

7. On my way to the Emerald City.

8. Last night of VBS. 134 people were there last night. Night bad for a town of 600.

9. “This hasn’t been a good day for me. Maybe if I’m lucky tomorrow will be a better day.” –--Charlie Brown.

10. “Faith is embracing the uncertainties of life.”—Mark Batterson