Just Like Heaven is heavenly!

Guys, feel free to breeze right through this one, okay? This review is like the movie, for the ladies! And what an awesome movie it is! Okay, so maybe guys will like it too. After all, it does have Reese Witherspoon in it, and I'm told that guys like her. I have to be honest, though. Mark Ruffalo is my newest obsession. He is absolutely precious! Seriously, that's the kind of guy I want to meet one day.

But back to the movie... It's the classic story of boy meets girl, but with a little twist. This time, the girl can walk through walls. She also spends a lot of time at the beginning of the movie ordering the boy out of her apartment. Only it's his apartment. But not really.

See, I told you there was a twist.

Just Like Heaven is funny and heartfelt, with enough angst, love, joy, laughter, and romance to satisfy the fans of even the cheesiest romantic comedies, but without being cheesy with a side of cheese itself. It's actually not very cheesy at all, considering. It is simply a delightful piece of escapism on film that will cause you to walk out of the theater with a giant smile on your face and faith in the future and the possibilities of love.

Political Identity

So I've been debating with people about political issues a lot lately, mostly online. And I thought about something I had never really thought about very seriously. I have no political identity. I don't really agree with any particular party or movement because there are parts of each one that I don't agree with and parts with each that I do agree with. So how does one find a political identity?

It's probably not the most scientific of answers, but I found one I'm reasonably satisfied with. I found this site: The Smallest Political Quiz

And I found in this quiz that I'm defined as a Centrist. I guess you could say that means I'm wishy-washy, but I choose to believe it means I take the best parts of each party and sort of mix them into my own little ideology. And maybe that won't help me save the world or anything, but at least I know where I stand. Below is the information I found on the Web about Centrists.

Centrists are ideologically flexible. Centrists recognize the complexity of public policy choices and look to many kinds of solutions. Which solution depends on the circumstances, the problem, and the public interest. Ideologues repeat their slogans with little regard to the specific policy problem at hand. Conservatives shout "private good, public bad." Liberals shout "public good, private bad." By contrast, the centrist movement can show politicians how to use both the private and public sectors (often in combination) to creatively solve problems that we would otherwise just shout about.

True Christians

I just have to say, I have more faith in my fellow Christians than ever before. With all the stupid groups out there calling themselves "Christians" and then bombing abortion clinics or picketing Disney World because of Gay Day, I know a lot of people out there think that Christians are just a bunch of narrow-minded, bigoted, intolerant idiots. But we're not. I promise!

And I've seen things in the past three weeks that refute that claim better than anything else. Yes, there are people out there claiming to be Christians that are really not living the way they are supposed to, but there are also Christians out there who are really doing what Jesus would have them do. They are serving their community and beyond. They are coming to the food bank where I work and picking up food to take to hurricane victims all across the coast. It really is a beautiful thing to see, when churches get together and do what they are supposed to do, which is minister, help, and love others.

I've been taking a lot of heat online lately about being a Christian. So many of my online friends are not believers and, because I am one, they often feel the need to tell me why my beliefs are wrong and why Christians are horrible people. Well, I'm just a little irritated by that in light of the way I live my life and in light of the hundreds of churches that have stepped up in this time of disaster. Christians are not the bad guys. I wish there was a way for me to convince people of that. But I can only live the way I know I'm supposed to live and hope that helps. I really hope that helps.

To my visitors...

Hi! I've noticed that I've gotten a few visitors lately and I'm so excited! I would love to know what you think of my blog or who you are, or anything you want to tell me! And if you have a blog, I'll be happy to visit and comment on yours! So feel free to leave a comment on this post if you want me to visit your blog. And thanks for coming to mine. I hope you enjoy your time here!

There are no words...

I just don't know what to say about this. I took this picture on the Saturday after the storm. If you look carefully you will see that there was a house there once. The stairs lead to a foundation and nothing else. And the house in the background, while it fared better, is probably ruined as well. This was in Biloxi, MS, just beyond the casinos. It's just unreal what nature can do. I've been avoiding posting this picture, mostly because it disturbed me so much. But now I feel it is a story that can be told. Imagine being in this house when it was destroyed. That's why it's important to evacuate. Note the fire hydrant and sattelite dish still standing. Unbelievable.

So tired...

I am exhausted. It appears that working long hours and not having weekends off is finally catching up with me. I'm just glad I get this weekend off. I need to recharge. I think I might sleep all day Saturday. What a loser, right?

Something funny happened at work today, though. It was nice to laugh. My intern was helping me take photos of the food bank employees who are helping us out during the disaster, and one of them was driving a fork lift around the parking lot, loading up a truck that was going to distribute some hurricane relief supplies. She said, "So I need to talk to the guy on the go-cart?" The warehouse guys and I laughed for ten minutes after that. I dunno, I guess you had to be there.

In other news, I'm making my final car payment tonight, which is great. Rhea and I are still talking about getting a house, perhaps in November. I don't think we're going to find a house that soon, due to evacuees finding jobs and places to live in Mobile, but we'll see. I'd rather not take a house that an evacuee needed anyway, but hopefully that will even out by November and there will be some places to live available. I am sooooo ready to move. I don't want to drive anymore.

Okay, my tiredness is really catching up with me, and I need to check the Weather Underground site to see if the tropical disturbances out in the water will pose a threat to us. I hope not. We can't deal with another one right now.

Incidentally, tomorrow is the one year anniversary of Hurricane Ivan. Seems like a mild thunderstorm compared to Katrina, but there are places in Pensacola that have still not fully recovered. No more hurricanes, please!!! :)

Bayou La Batre

This boat is supposed to be in the water, but it's not, due to the floods from Hurricane Katrina. It's in Bayou La Batre, Alabama... the town made famous by Forrest Gump when he and Lt Dan were able to shrimp after a hurricane when no one else could. Bayou La Batre is primarily a fishing and shrimping town. This boat, The Integrity, seems to have fared the storm better than many of the boats in Bayou La Batre, except for the fact that it is now on land. Hurricanes in areas like this are terrible for the local economy and many people are now without jobs and homes due to the flood waters. See, it's not just New Orleans and Biloxi/Gulfport that suffered. Here in Alabama, we are also struggling to put our lives back together. Do keep those in Bayou La Batre in your thoughts and prayers as you are thinking of the other hurricane victims. And give donations to the Bay Area Food Bank because the people of Bayou La Batre, and the people in Mississippi will need the food bank's help for many months.