I Won't Go Back to How It Was

Make an Altar to the Lord

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey) — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 15:53:00 +0000

I have been going through the Youversion Read the Bible in a Year Plan. In this plan, you read a section of Old Testament, a section of New Testament, a Psalm, and a Proverb. Since this is the beginning of the year, I am going through Genesis right now. It is good to read about our patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, and the like. In these readings, over and over again, God makes promises to his people and asserts that Israel is His nation of promise. He pledges to them that He is giving them a land, and that no one will be able to destroy them. They will suffer, but His promises will endure.

In Genesis 12, he makes the covenant with Abraham to give him a nation and a people, and that through him, all the people of the world will be blessed. Abraham has a son, and God re-affirms this covenant with Isaac, and then again with Jacob. One thing I have noticed is that whenever God makes one of these covenants, there is always a response from the recipient. In Genesis 12, Abraham leaves his home as God commands and then he builds an altar to the Lord at Bethel. In Genesis 16, God comes to Abraham promises that He will have as many descendants as the stars, and Abraham presents a sacrifice and cuts the pieces in two . Again in chapter 17, God makes a covenant with Abraham and introduces the command of circumcision. Abraham circumcises his entire household. This pattern is repeated over and over again. Check out Genesis 22, 26, 28, 33, and so on.

God makes a promise or gives a blessing, and there is a response on behalf of the recipient. An altar is made, a stone is presented and covered with oil, or a sacrifice is made. So what does that mean for us? I was thinking about the times God has blessed me or spoken to me. What do I do with that? Maybe I journal or say a prayer of gratitude, but is there an altar I can make? Should we commemorate when God does something amazing for us? I am thinking yes.

I don't know what this looks like yet, but the concept of ceremony is important. In the Old Testament, we see how God's people often placed stones to mark a spot of special significance. There is something to be said for responding with action when God does something amazing for you. He wants to be desired and sought after. He gives his gifts freely to us and doesn't demand a response, but how he might love it if we did.

Think about it. Who doesn't like to be thanked for doing something nice? When you give a loved one a gift or do something special for them, how would you feel if the person just said, Oh, thanks," and walked on? No, you want to see the look in their eyes. Get a hug or a big thank you. You want to know they appreciated your efforts. How can you show God your gratitude today? How can we build altars to the Lord today?

35 Things about Me on My 35th Birthday

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey) — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 02:49:00 +0000

I saw someone else do this for their birthday this year, and it seemed fun. What are 35 things that will tell you about Lindsey?

1. I was born in Tennessee even though I lived most of my life in Indiana.
2. My favorite two colors are green and purple.
3. My laugh is loud and outrageous. I am not ashamed of it.
4. I have blogged since 2007. I now get paid to write, but only $1.50 for every 1,000 hits.
5. I spent half a year in the United Kingdom.
6. I was hit by a car when I was in middle school. I survived with stitches, a scar, and a lump on my upper right thigh.
7. I was always scared to live alone. Then I lived by myself, got used to it, and loved it. I am now living with my sister, and I love that, too.
8. I am insecure about my looks except for 4 things: my eyes, my hair, my feet, and my lips. I love having big, full lips, and they are from my Mother.
9. When I was growing up, I always thought it was gross that my Mother drank coffee every day. Now I have to have at least two cups of coffee every day.

10. I never learned to ride a bike.
11. I have been on 3 missions trips so far, and I never had to pay a penny for any of them. This still blows me away, especially when the thing that keeps most people from going on a mission trip is that they don't think they have the money.
12. I love the smell of gasoline.
13. Growing up, I knew exactly what I needed in my house to be happy: an ice crusher on the fridge and a porch swing. To this day, if I see a porch swing, I always have to sit on it.
14. I get obsessed with certain movies and want to watch them over and over again. When I was little, I wanted to watch E.T. every day, and I thought E.T. was my best friend. Later, it was the movie Dead Poet's Society.
15. After I watch a really good movie, I can't talk about it or anything else for a few hours. I am busy contemplating. I need time to think through my movies.
16. My favorite thing ever is sitting down one on one with someone and talking to them on a heart level.
17. I think the best biography ever written is Carnie Wilson's I'm Still Hungry
18. I dream vividly. I log my dreams and can remember some of them decades later.
19. I am freaked out that I can say the word "decades" and mean it in an accurate sense.
20. I am trained in the art of Afro-Cuban salsa.
21. I took ballet lessons, vocal lessons, and violin lessons at different times in my life.
22. I won a poster contest for Epilepsy Awareness when I was little. My parents and I were given a room in a hotel for free to attend the award ceremony.
23. My favorite foods (none of which I can eat right now) are sausage pizza, Starbucks Frappucinos, McD's fries, my mom's lasagne, buttered popcorn, and any kind of pie with my Mom's homemade pie crust.
24. I know when a movie is good because I cry. Even I don't cry, it might be good, but it's not that good.
25. I love board games and card games, but I don't like games where the whole point is to screw someone else over, like Monopoly.
26. I really like Mystery Science Theater 3000. The shorts make me laugh so hard I cry.
27. I never had anyone give me a nickname, and that is a point of sadness for me.
28. My name means "under the linden trees."
29. I have been a bridesmaid in 3 weddings.
30. When I was younger, I would rotate the toys in my toybox so that no one toy would ever always be on the bottom. They got to take turns being on top.
31. I got lost in the mountains once. God lead me to a house where I used a phone to call 911. It turned out the house had not been lived in for years, but somehow the phone was still working, even though bill was not paid.
32. Another memory: In the house I grew up in, there was space next to the dryer where we would throw the dirty clothes and sheets to be washed. I always loved to sit on the pile of laundry next to the warm dryer. I now realize how weird that is. But I guess the sheets were always on top so I wasn't near to dirty clothes.
33. We had only a few air conditioning units in our old house. During hot nights, my sisters and I would all sleep in the same room. It was always a lot of fun, like a sleepover, but we would get in trouble for talking too much.
34. Even though I put off thinking about Christmas until the last minute, I still feel that magical excitement when I go to sleep on Christmas Eve.
35. I own pink sparkly cowboy boots.

Cheese and Medifast/Medifast and Cheese

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey) — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 20:26:00 +0000

Dear readers, after about two months of being on the Medifast plan, I heard some blessed news. I was allowed to eat cheese on the Medifast plan! Yes, it's true. I thought I was prohibited from eating one of my favorite things until I had lost the weight, but if you choose cheese with low enough fat, it counts as a meatless protein.

I tell you, what I love about Medifast is that is flexible. There is a box of limitations, but once you find the walls of the box, you can run around in them and climb them to your heart's content. To read the rest of this article, click here.

Medifast Chocolate Peanut Butter Shake

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey) — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 20:42:00 +0000

Want a new treat to make your Medifast dark chocolate shake (or any flavor) extra special? Just add peanut butter. A tablespoon of peanut butter is allowed each day as an optional snack, along with a sugar free popsicle, 3 celery stalks (really?), or sugar free jello. Now tell me, why would you choose 3 celery stalks over a popsicle or peanut butter?????
To read the rest of this article, click here.

Medifast Lean and Green Recipes: Spaghetti Squash with Meatless Meatballs

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey) — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 00:03:00 +0000

So I made another delicious lean and green recipe that is Medifast-compliant. I have had a craving for spaghetti and heard about spaghetti squash from my diet coach. I realized I had to try it. She suggested combining a spaghetti squash with meatless meatballs and some tomatoes. Having no recipe to go by, it was time to be creative.

To read the full article and recipe, click here.

Medifast Lean and Green Meals: Boca Burgers with Sauteed Mushrooms

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey) — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 17:14:00 +0000

I have been on the Medifast plan now for almost two weeks, and I have to say that Lean and Green time is my favorite time of the day. Even though I loved junk food, I could never eat that much of it because of what I termed my "small stomach." After eating so much, I get full and can't fit anything else in there.

On Medifast, because of the low calories I am getting each day (about 800-1,000) depending on food choices, by the time Lean and Green comes around, I am needing to eat, and there are times you get A LOT OF FOOD.

Take my first Lean and Green meal. I didn't have a lot of time or money left for groceries, so my lean and green consisted of either 2 tilapia fillets or 2 Boca Burgers and baby spring mix greens. My Lean and Green allotment called for 3 cups of salad greens. 3 cups!! Now that is a lot of lettuce leaves. Yet I needed every one of those lettuce leaves. I had to put my salad in a mixing bowl because a plate or regular bowl wasn't big enough.

Now that I have been doing Medifast for a little while, I am getting a little more creative with my Lean and Green meals and some of them taste so good and seem way too yummy to be diet food. To read the rest of this article, click over to my Associated Content site.

What We Can Learn From Ashley the Bachelorette

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey) — Tue, 02 Aug 2011 19:57:00 +0000

I am not a fan of the show The Bachelorette. I have watched exactly three episodes EVER. This lastest season I watched three episodes because my good friend is a fan. We often bond over TV shows that she love and I get sucked into without my permission.

I hadn't seen her in a good few weeks so we decided to spend some good quality time together watching the final episode of the Bachelorette, season 7. The finalists were Ben and JP. After watching the finale dates and the meetings with the family I was SURE that she was going to choose Ben.
All of the signs were there. With JP, she seemed like the typical annoying girl, insecure approval seeking. She seemed to be on her best behavior and very uptight. With Ben, she was loosey goosey good time girl. They seemed like good friends with a growing chemical connection. She had more fun with Ben, and she began to feel unsure about JP.

We also learned that the sister did not like JP at all for her sister. She didn't think Ashley seemed happy with him. Everyone kind of pounced on the sister, but I could see her point. She wasn't saying anything bad about JP, only the vibe she was getting from her sister did not seem right to her. She wanted to see her sister in love and happy and with the right guy. Who wouldn't want that?

The family meeting Ben went much better. Ben had let his feelings for Ashley grow slowly over time. JP always seemed very intense, controlling, and like he was throwing a pity party: "I don't WANT to share her with other guys." (insert whine here)

In the end, she chose JP. My friend couldn't believe it, but I could understand why she made her choice. Ashely seems like she has some insecurity issues (do we even have to bring up the Bentley situation again?). She is drawn to the wrong kind of men. I am sure JP is a nice guy, but he is definitely type A, uptight, and controlling. She is looking to have a stressful future, but the fact that he was so eager to possess her feels good to insecure girl. Later on, I predict they will have problems because of his need to control. Once the honeymoon phase is over, he will resent her free spirit attitude. I can just seem him looking to climb the ladder of success or stressin' over the bills to get paid.

I would have chosen Ben for sure. I might be drawn to a guy like JP because I struggle with the need to have someone approve of me. This means I sometimes get drawn to a more controlling guy. But this is a guy you would need to please and never be quite good enough. He is a perfectionist. I have learned I need a more laidback guy. Someone who can help me unwind and not take myself so seriously. Ashley may be a party-time girl, but she gets wound pretty tight. She would have enjoyed life better with a Ben.

That's how I see it. What do you think?

Movie Review: Once (2006)

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey) — Sat, 30 Jul 2011 23:40:00 +0000

I fell in love with this movie last week. Once is a celebration of music, but it's also a celebration of friendship and love and the many forms it takes. A person can come into your life for just a short time and have a lasting impact. You might only meet them once, but sometimes that's all it takes.

Our story happens on the streets of Dublin. He (Glen Hansard) is a vaccuum repairman, who works in his father's shop. In his spare time, he writes music and performs it on the streets for spare change. She (Marketa Irglova) is an immigrant from Czechoslovakia who sells roses on the street. One evening, she hears him performing a song. No one else is listening. She loves his music, but lo and behold, and she also has a vacuum to repair.

The plot is sparse, simple, and the perfect platform for some terrific songs. To read the rest of this review, click here.

How to Get What You Want in Romantic Relationships: Know What You Want

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey) — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 14:14:00 +0000

Sometimes the answers to questions which seem difficult are actually quite simple. How do you get what you want in relationships? It's simple--know what you want, ask for it, and don't settle for less.

Know What You Want--The first step is to know what you want. Ask yourself what would make you happy. Don't think about the other person for a minute. Ask yourself what you want. What type of relationship do you want? What level of commitment do you want? If you struggle with codependency, this can be difficult. Codependent people spend most of their energy on making other people happy and trying to please others. Think about what you want, and then write it down. Admit it to yourself. Sometimes this is the hardest part. Admit to yourself what you want. You have to know what you want before you can receive it. Only you know what will make you happy. When you do this, just think about your wants and needs separate from any other person.

To read the rest of this article, click here.

Book Review: Rot and Ruin by Jonathan Maberry Gives Hunger Games Fans Something New to Read

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey) — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 22:16:00 +0000

Rot and Ruin is the most original book to come out since Suzanne Collins released The Hunger
Games in 2008. I have been a young adult librarian since 2006. I have witnessed book after book coming into the library. Let me tell you--there doesn't seem to be anything original coming in anymore. Now, teens and the adults who read teen books can breathe easy. In Rot and Ruin, Jonathan Maberry has created a novel that takes one of the latest crazes--zombies--and creates a new world that dystopian readers will delve into.

It seems odd to use zombies to teach lessons about humanity. It's the future, and zombies have taken over the world. Some virus has set in, and now it's only a matter of time before every human eventually becomes a zombie. If you get infected by a zombie, you're toast, and even if you die a natural death, you re-animate as a zombie. The only way to avoid being a zombie is for someone to drive a large stake into the back of their head.

Our protagonist is Benny Imura, a teenager who is your typical surly teen. To read the rest of this review, click here.

Movie Review: Blue Valentine (2010): Lessons from the Film

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey) — Thu, 26 May 2011 13:57:00 +0000

Blue Valentine takes two common movies and merges them into one film. We have all seen both of these prototypes. On the one hand, we have the love story. Two people meet and fall in love. Yes, they share an initial attraction, but it isn't until a series of events and shared understandings occur that their lives become intrinsically linked into one. On the other hand, we have a movie about the dissolution of a marriage and about two people who can't stand to be in the same room anymore. They argue, manipulate, scream, threaten, and berate. This isn't a relationship; it's a power struggle. What makes this story unique is that director Derek Cianfrance shows us the same couple doing these things simultaneously. While we are falling in love with this couple, we are also cringing and wishing they would separate indefinitely.

Blue Valentine is the story of Dean (Ryan Gosling) and Cindy (Michelle Williams). We watch them meet, lay eyes on each other, lose each other, find each other again, fall in love, and get married. This story is intercut with the story of Dean and Cindy about a decade later. To read the rest of this review click over to my Associated Content site.

Movie Review: The Adjustment Bureau (2011): More Humorous than Expected

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey) — Sun, 22 May 2011 20:05:00 +0000

The Adjustment Bureau stars Matt Damon and Emily Blunt. Matt Damon is David Norris, who is running for state senator. Emily Blunt is Elise Sellas, a ballet dancer. The two meet unexpectedly one evening and feel an attraction and connection to one another. Despite repeated obstacles and an entire army of individuals who are dead set against them being together, the two are drawn together over and over. Is it fate? Are they meant to be together?

The two meet unexpectedly in a men's restroom on the eve of a very important vote in David's life. He is nervously talking to himself, and she, who just happens to be hiding in a restroom stall, hesitatingly reveals her eavesdropping on his conversation. Despite their awkward first meeting, the two seem to connect almost instantly. To read the rest of the review, click here.

Movie Review: Bubble (2006): Murder in a Factory Town

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey) — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 04:32:00 +0000

Factory towns are the perfect location for a murder. Nothing ever happens. In a non-descript Midwestern town, people get up early, go to work, maybe go to a 2nd job, and then go home to sleep. The next day, they start over again. It's like a hamster running on a wheel. They feel trapped, and all someone needs is a little flame of resentment to ignite into temporary passionate acts of violence.

A factory town in Anywhere, Ohio is the setting of our story in Bubble. Bubble is directed by Steven Soderbergh, who has directed such box office smashes as The Ocean's trilogy (11, 12, and 13) plus Erin Brokovich and Traffic. In his portfolio of work, Bubble is an odd addition. Soderbergh chose unknown actors and used close-range camera work. The result is a film that seems as if it could have been shot by a first-time film school student. The story is upfront and intimate. The actor's performances raw and unadorned.

To read the rest of this review, click over to my Associated Content page.

Movie Review: Angel-A: It's a Wonderful Life with Estrogen?

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey) — Thu, 07 Apr 2011 23:12:00 +0000

When you were watching It's a Wonderful Life for the umpteenth time at home, did you ever wonder how the story would change if the angel Clarence was a tall leggy blonde FEMALE? . . . I didn't think so; me neither.

But, that's a pretty good encapsulated view of the movie Angel-A. It's a French film that I watched with English subtitles. The film was done in a crisp, clear black and white color scheme. Let me tell you, Paris never looked better.

The film was directed by Luc Besson, also known as writer of the futuristic sci-fi opera, The Fifth Element and action-driven frenzied films, Transporter and Taken. There was something very familiar about our heroine, Angel, and that's because she is, in features and temperament, almost identical to Element's Leeloo (Milla Jovavovich).

Unlike George Bailey in Wonderful Life, our main character Andre is not a good guy who has helped out his friends in ways he doesn't understand. Andre is a swindler. To read the rest of this review, click here.

How to Listen to God

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey) — Fri, 25 Mar 2011 00:56:00 +0000

Why Do I Want to Listen to God

This year, my goal is to grow closer to God through spiritual disciplines. The call is clear. My small group is doing a Bible study for the first time, I found a workshop on spiritual disciplines, and my preacher at church is doing a series on spiritual disciplines. One of the spiritual disciplines is the practices of silence and solitude. Silence and solitude are both excellent ways to learn how to listen to God. But they are not easy to attain for the modern day American. To read the rest of this article, click here.

Movie Review: The King's Speech (2010)

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey) — Thu, 03 Mar 2011 23:54:00 +0000

I don't know what I was picturing from the film The King's Speech (2010). I knew it was about British royalty and someone with a stammer. For whatever reason, I pictured a stodgy film about people dressed up in period costume walking around in gloomy British rainy weather. I think it was because of reading Ebert's review, which mentioned the main character was King George VI. Whenever I picture kingly-type people, I picture people dressed in tights and a furry cape, looking surly and uncomfortable.

Blessedly, The King's Speech was about a king who lived in 1939 and didn't wear tights or a cape. To read the rest of the review, click here.

Understanding Movies, Part 3 by Raphael Shargel

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey) — Fri, 04 Feb 2011 15:53:00 +0000

In Part 3 of Understanding Movies, we move from silent pictures to full-sound pictures and learn how storytelling changed as demonstrated with the movie Stagecoach.

In the 1920s, we are ready to move into the world of talking pictures. But, when movies first integrated sound into their soundtracks, it wasn't originally to hear spoken dialogue. Movies with sound first featured sounds of the musical score. Silent films were always accompanied by music, either a full orchestra or even one musician for a small theater. Eventually, they eliminated the live music in favor of a movie soundtrack. During the time when the movie soundtrack first came to be, the method of using pantomime and over-exaggerated facial expressions was still totally acceptable. After watching several of the silent films, I must say that I respect the genre a lot more now.
It is impressive how the silent film actors could say so much with their faces. While it does seem silly sometimes when you watch it compared to the movies today, I can see how screenwriters have come to rely much more heavily on dialogue to tell stories. My favorite director, Alfred Hitchcock, used the term "pure cinema," to identify those moments in film where words are unnecessary because of the power of the shot.

Luckily as we move into the talking picture period, the directors continued to use powerful shots to tell stories. But more on that later. The first move with spoken dialogue was The Jazz Singer (1927). A wonderful movie. It was actually a mostly silent film, with a few talking sequences. Two years after the Jazz Singer came out, the silent movie era was dead, except for a few films by Charlie Chaplin.

As can be expected, the first films with talking sound in them had an awkwardness about them. Directors were working out the kinks of how the talking pictures could be made. Where should they put the microphones? How far could they move away from the microphones and still be heard? What about background noise? Actors who were famous for the silent pictures looked silly talking and using pantomime. Foreign actors and actresses sometimes could not star in the Hollywood pictures because of their accents. Some careers began and some ended.

I watched a couple of these films, but I must admit, did not watch most of them in their entirety because they were not so entertaining. The first I watched was Hallelujah (1929) directed King Vidor. This was the first all-black cast film made. The film was full of musical numbers, which were fun. The people in the film used music as a way to express themselves. It seems perfectly natural to us that they are singing as they work in the fields and go to the nightclubs. This was a fun movie, no doubt. The main character, Zeke, a sharecropper, is supposed to go into town and sell their cotton crop and bring the money back, as well as gifts for the family. Instead, he meets a dancer named Chick and is so smitten with her that he follows her into town and allows himself to be talked into playing a rigged craps game. He loses all the money. The rest of the movie is a traditional redemption story, with Zeke towing the line between doing the right thing and the wrong thing. Which will prevail in the end? This is a clip on youtube of the Swanee Shuffle. The sound for this film is actually quite good when compared to most films made during this period, especially on the musical number.

I also watched Applause (1929) directed by Rouben Mamoulian. This was a somewhat sad film about a mother-pair. The mother works in a burlesque show and in the beginning gives birth to a lovely baby girl. Despite the mother's best efforts, the daughter finds herself drawn into the world of performing and stripping for men. We think the daughter is going to get out because she is good and pure, but forces are against her. To me, this movie was quite a downer, but I can understand why it was mentioned. The story is mesmerizing and we relate to this girl's attempt to stay above the fray. We also see that although momma is weak and ineffectual as a mother, she does love her daughter and tries to protect her the best she knows how. The clip I am sharing here is 8 minutes long and a little disturbing at the end. This is when the daughter first comes to town. She has been staying at a nunnery and goes to live with her mother. She thinks momma is an actor, but finally learned what momma does for a job. The montage at the end makes me very uncomfortable. Things I admire are the picture quality on this very old film and the use of the tight cuts to show the girls' anxiety level rising.

Also during this period, we have the rise of the film studio as a power entity. The film studio was born. Film studios had actors or actresses on contract. They would be assigned certain movies, so actors would make many films a year. The only problem for the actor is that he cannot make movies with another studio until his contract ends. As you can imagine, it was much more financially secure to be under contract. This is why many times an actors also plays a certain type of character, like the belligerent old man, or the stodgy old maid.

As demonstrated by films such as Applause, the first talking pictures didn't always have the cleanest content. To clean up the pictures, film studios created the Motion Picture Production Code, also known as the Hays Code. This was a set of rules that dominated what could and could not be in movies until the adoption in 1968 of the film rating system (G, PG, PG-13, etc.). With the movie production code, studios had certain things they would show and certain things they would not show in movies. For instance, if an onscreen movie couple had a scene in a bedroom, the couple was shown as having two separate beds next to each other, instead of having one bed. Bathrooms did not have toilets. The bad guy could never win in a movie. The good guy always wins. Sexual acts were not shown. Shargel is quick to say, though, when a culture becomes dominated by rules, it forces people to become creative. The films created during this period were wonderfully creative, and, as a bonus, most of them are clean by anyone's standards. Films could be enjoyed as a family. Directors used creative ways to talk about unmentionable things. In the movie Stagecoach, which is the main example we will look at this time, one of the characters is a prostitute. However, this is never said out loud. We just know because of the way people are treating her and they way she is dressed. She is not dressed in anything skimy, just very loud and lots of accessories like feather boas and the like.

Stagecoach is a classic film from this golden age of Hollywood. In the movie, John Wayne and a group of characters from various social circles travel together on a state coach from a town in Arizona to Lordsburg in New Mexico Territory. As they travel in the coach we get to know their weaknesses, as well as their strengths as individuals. Also, as they travel, in general, characters become more sympathetic, and we like them even more. The movie is directed by John Ford, a mastermind. Ford perfected several film techniques that are notable in this film.

One of them is the dissolve. This is a technique where one scene in the movie fades out and another fades in at the same time. Ford was the master of the dissolve. This technique is used to show that time passes. It is often used, too, to show panoramic scenes of nature, like the wide open prairie. For an example of a dissolve see clip below. Dissolve happens 56 seconds into clip.

The other is called separation. Separation is when a director shows two characters together to establish they are next to each other or nearby. This scene lets the audience see how far they are sitting apart to establish relationship. Then the director cuts back and forth between the characters with close-up shots. First one character, then another. Even though we can't see the other character, we remember where they are and how far they are sitting apart. The director has already established the scene, so now he can get closer to the characters and build tension. This technique is usually used for characters that are not seeing things they same. They are divided somehow, either by choice or circumstance. For instance, in Stagecoach, Ringo (John Wayne) is sitting on the floor while the Southern gentlemen is sitting on the coach seat. They clearly don't like each other. Ford uses the technique of separation to allow them to have dialogue while demonstrating, without words, that they are not seeing things eye to eye. It's fascinating, isn't it? We don't realize how our minds are being lead by a director's use of these techniques, but they are universal, fascinating, and fool-proof.

The characters in Stagecoach do most of their relating through non-verbal cues. Dallas, the prostitute, and Ringo fall in love while on the coach. It is not until halfway through the movie that they even speak to one another, and when they do, it is to talk about getting married. Yet, we aren't surprised, because we have seen them looking at each other and instinctively know they love one another. Now that is powerful cinema.

In Chapter 4, we will talk about Citizen Kane.

The Social Network (2010) is the Citizen Kane of our Generation

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey) — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 23:03:00 +0000

I just saw the film The Social Network last week. This is one of the most talked about movies of last year, probably 2nd only to Inception. I did think it was entertaining film, and I can see why so many people enjoyed it. You are watching a film about one of the most prevalent parts of our culture: social networking. These days, social networking is so natural we don't think about it anymore. We do it naturally. There are social networks for books, fashion, music, and anything else you can think of. We all have such a deep need to connect to others. Since most of us are lacking deep, authentic, meaningful connections with the people around us, we forge these online relationships that give us someone to talk to. But, I digress.

Like I said, I enjoyed The Social Network as a film, but at the end, the main feeling I had was sadness. As I pondered this feeling, I realized that the film felt empty. Here is Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook, wealthy and famous. You would think he has it all. But no, at the end of it all, he is just looking for a little love. The closest thing I can compare this movie to is Citizen Kane.

To read the rest of this article, click here.

Relationship Mistakes and Remedies: A Personal List

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey) — Tue, 11 Jan 2011 23:44:00 +0000

As a new year begins, it is natural to evaluate the past year and think about how you want your life to be different. For me 2010 was the year of The Relationship. I found a relationship and lost a relationship right at the beginning of the year. When a relationship ends it is always painful, but this particular relationship, for whatever reason, had a huge impact on my life. I plunged into depression and despair which lasted for eight months. At the time, it was all I could do to wake up in the morning and go to work. It took an amazing amount of energy just to survive. I didn't realize that I was going through a tremendous amount of growth and change. I was in the proverbial cocoon, quite a painful place to be. You don't think anything is happening because the change is slow, but at the end there is a product that is lovely to behold.

At the time, I thought my main goal was to get this man back into my life. I just KNEW we were meant to be together. Even though my thinking was flawed, I knew at least that I needed to focus energy on myself and be healed of my past hurts and hangups so that I could have an improved relationship with him. In the end, our relationship ending was for the best. I learned so much about myself and am coming out of this a renewed mind and a much more confident woman. I am also more aware of my relationship mistakes. I think many of these are common to women and would like to share them here. As I look at each one, I hope to recognize it for what it is, admit how I have made these mistakes in the past, and suggest alternative remedies.

To read the rest of this article, click here.

Book Review: Immanuel's Veins by Ted Dekker

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey) — Sun, 26 Dec 2010 23:21:00 +0000

Ted Dekker has created another thrilling novel that brings God's love for his people to life in vivid colors that will forever stain his readers' hearts.

Toma Nicolescu is a servant of Her Majesty, the empress of Russia, Catherine the Great, living in 18th-century Russia. He is a war hero, acclaimed througout the land for being able to dispatch of any human foe. He and his servant Alek are sent on a special mission to Moldavia (today modern Romania) to watch guard over the Cantemir twins, beautiful Lucine and Natasha. His mission is to watch them but stay away from them, for they are notorious for seducing young men and spitting them out. The Empress wants her soldiers to remain protective but professional. Toma has taken a vow that he will not love either lady.

To read the rest of the review, click here.

The Purpose of Family for a Christian

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey) — Thu, 23 Dec 2010 02:20:00 +0000

Family can really suck sometimes, you know? Families should provide a safe shelter of unconditional love and acceptance--the place where you can always turn no matter what. But reality doesn't always match this ideal. Sometimes, it is our families who hurt us the most. Only a family member can see through the adult image you have carefully constructed for yourself and uncover the real you within in seconds. Only a family member can cause to revert back to your childhood state of whining or arguing over petty things.

Yet . . . it is our families who give us the greatest opportunities for growth and understanding of God's love for us. To read the rest of this article, click here.

So You Had a Bad Day: A Blessing or a Curse for a Christian?

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey) — Tue, 21 Dec 2010 05:59:00 +0000

We've all been there. The car won't start. Your coffee spills in your car, leaving a stinky, soppy mess and no paper towels are in sight. You receive three once-a-year bills in the same month. You are in a fight with your friend/colleague/family member/significant other/pet/neighborhood squirrel. Your heart sinks and you feel frustrated, angry, depressed, or stressed. You've been triggered.

Everyone has bad days. Not only are they inevitable, for a Christian, they are guaranteed. To read the rest of this article, click here.

Book Review: Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey) — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 15:50:00 +0000

The book Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver is like a Groundhog Day for teenage girls. Mean girl Sam hangs with her popular group of friends and treats many of her peers in less than kindly ways. She sneaks out of school with her best friend to get ice cream. She flirts with one of her younger teachers. She plans to sleep with her boyfriend tonight after the big party that everyone will be going to. Only things don't turn out exactly as planned. To read the full review, click here.

Cold Hands Meet a Warm Friend

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey) — Sat, 04 Dec 2010 23:54:00 +0000

Between us there is this thing
yeah, you know, just a little thing
Not sure how it arrived
or where it came from
don't know but it's a-growin'

My hands have been cold
No matter the weather
But your hands are warm
and I feel myself
slowly, so slowly thawing

Warm, you are, oh how,
how do you do, how are
you so warm?
If this keeps up,
I'll be nothing but a puddle
you can kick your boots through

Hold my hand?

How to Make Stovetop Popcorn: The Best Popcorn You've Never Tasted

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey) — Mon, 22 Nov 2010 20:33:00 +0000

Making popcorn on the stove tastes better than microwave popcorn, and it's easier than you think. Here is my secret recipe that will have your friends drooling over your popcorn prowess. Here's the recipe.