"And the white line's getting longer and the saddle's getting cold, I'm much too young to feel this dadgum old. All my cards are on the table with no ace left in the hole, I'm much too young to feel this cotton-pickin' old" -- Garth Brooks
So, as I sit here in my easy chair in The Cabana, new big screen playing one of my favorite movies of all time, the time has passed, that time being 815p. I'm now officially 35 years old, officially in my mid-thirties. The years have been good to me, I'm blessed beyond any form of measure, from my upbringing, to my mother taking care of me, to my grandparents adopting me and giving me all that I needed (and a few things I wanted)
So here's my rundown, year by year, of some things I'm blessed with and happy for in all my 35 years.
1975 My mother giving birth. And keeping me. That's awesome.
1976 The year that Stephanie was born. Yeah, I could go with her later on, since I won't meet her for another 25 years, but I'm pretty happy for 1976.
1977 Star Wars is released. What a great film, what a great
1978 "Garfield" makes it debut. Who doesn't love Garfield?
1979 The Muppet Movie. The Muppet Show. And my affinity for the Muppets begins.
1980 The Empire Strikes Back, one of the greatest films of all time, and one of my first real movie-going experiences.
1983 Scarecrow & Mrs. King. Man, I loved this show.
1984 Samson, baby! From Austin, Texas, to what would become my own little home town....
1985 Chris McCall, my first real Samson friend at Samson Elementary School.
1986 Tonya Windham. Had to mention her.
1987 Greg Avant. Completing my Triad of BFFs in Samson, Greg and I go waaay back. I saw a ton of really crappy movies with him, riding in this little LTD Ford that, were you to wash it and remove the clay and dirt, would leave nothing but two seats and a steering wheel.
1988 Rush Limbaugh hits the airwaves as a nationally syndicated radio program. And good thing too, because not only was Clinton around the corner, but He Who Must Not Be Re-Elected was down the pike.
1989 Hollywood Studios! Yay! Even though it was 18 more years before I could visit, at least it was open!
1990 Discovered the Interweb, sitting at Greg Avant's house. He had this thing on his little black screened, orange lettered computer called "Prodigy". We looked up movie reviews. It tapped into his phone line. Completely weird. We were on it for like, five hours. And I'm sure the phone bill that month at the Avant house was larger than normal.
1991 What a year for movies! "Silence of the Lambs"... "New Jack City"... "Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves"... "The Last Boy Scout"... "T2: Judgement Day"... "Beauty & the Beast"... "Boyz in the Hood"... "Dead Again"... and I'm sure I saw a bunch of them with Greg at some point.
1992 "I'd Die Without You" by PM Dawn is released, off of one of my favorite random album, the soundtrack to the movie "Boomerang". This would be my favorite song for the next 16 years, only to be slightly replaced by "Possession" from Sarah McLachlan.
1993 Troy State University! Go Trojans!
1994 Wookiee. Wookiee. Wookiee.
1995 A few days into the year, I met up with Reggie McAllister at a Farmhouse Fraternity Party. And there, the seed was planted... and a few hours later, in my bedroom at 3am, I accepted Christ as my own Savior. And the road has been awesome.
1996 The BCM. And this is where I would meet some of the most important people in my life, like Jenn Mullturp, Shelby, Troy Mac, Rad a Tad, Hinson and more.
1997 Farmhouse Fraternity. Never been a Greek kind of guy, but I did love the social aspect and brotherhood in my frat.
1998 Birmingham! I just figured out, like, just now, that I have lived in Birmingham, AL, longer than I have lived anywhere else in my entire life. Seriously... Orlando for two or three years, Austin for about five or six, Samson for nine, Troy for five
1999 Valleydale BAPTIST Church. It has always been an sbc fellowship, however.
2000 The Deuce is founded. Life changing experience.
2001 Common Ground. It was a church ministry for those in-betweeners who had just left college and really had nowhere to go, and for those in college. I guess "College & Career" would be more like it, but "Common Ground" sounded better.
2002 WalkAbout. The drama team of middle schoolers that have enhanced my life in every possible way.
2003 Starbucks. I loved my job then, I love it now.
2004 Married my life partner, soul mate, best friend.
2005 My iPod. Has revolutionized how I listen to music, and finally introduced me to podcasts.
2006 This site. Now, I know it started in 2005, but it really got going this year.
2007 Dave Ramsey. What can I say? His plan is difficult. But it works. We're proof.
2008 Disney. I loved that job. I miss it.
2009 Steven & Calah Ray. We love these guys, always good for dinner at Mellow Mushroom.
2010 MZ. My manager and very, very dear friend, and I count it a blessing and honor to have her as both.
This is by no means a comprehensive list... there were a dozen things or more in some years I could have listed. So, there are 35 things for 35 years, random things I like, love, count as blessings and favorites.
I'll leave you with this... the video for Toby Keith's "Ain't As Good As I Once Was"...
I used to be Hell on wheels... back when I was younger man, now my body says 'You can't do this boy', but my pride says 'Oh, yes you can.' I ain't as good as I once was, that's just the cold hard truth. I still throw a few back, talk a little smack when I'm feeling bullet proof. So don't double dog dare me now, 'cause I'd have to call your bluff. I ain't as good as I once was, but I'm as good once as I ever was.
Maybe not be good as I once was, but I'm as good once as I ever was...
It's been a few days weeks since I last worked on this particular list, but since its now officially mid-February, I figured I'd better get a move on. Here's the next ten on The 100 Coolest Things of 2009...
70... Pastor Calvin I've been attending Valleydale Church (an sbc fellowship) since 1998. I first went to service at the Larnelle Harris Christmas Concert, and then soon after, in January of 1999, I was baptized. It was this time frame that I got to meet Pastor Calvin Kelly, who, this past fall, celebrated 25 years at the church.
Through the going on 12 years I've been attending the church, I've seen people come and go (and come back), I've seen staff members come and go (and come back), I've watched my WalkAbout kids come into middle school, get to high school, graduate and even get married, and I've seen the entire church uproot and move a mile down the road. I've seen both of Pastor Calvin's daughters graduate (and even went out with one of them once) and get married, and watched my dear Valleydale Church (an sbc fellowship) through its ups and downs. Through it all, there has been one main earthly constant, and that's the pastor of the church.
I haven't always agreed with our church. Sometimes I question its direction, and even go so far as to... well, you know, ask. Imagine that. But I know that there is a backbone of Godly staff behind our church, and at its helm, our pastor. And in that, I rest my hope in our church. Thanks Pastor Calvin.
69... "My Life in Ruins" What a silly little movie, really.
Starring Nia Vardalos, my favorite Greek born actress... well, okay, she was born in Canada, but go with this, okay? Anyway, in the years since "My Big Fat Greek Wedding", a movie high in The Dave100, she's not fared so well with her career. She only managed 7 episodes of "My Big Fat Greek Life" on CBS before it was pulled, and then co-starred with Toni Collette in the what-seemed-disasterous "Connie & Carla"(I say "seemed" because I have never seen it, and don't intend to change that) and managed a few guest spots in the TBS series "My Boys". She even had a bomb, her directorial debut, called "I Hate Valentine's Day", not to be confused with the current "Valentine's Day" film.
And then came her latest film, "My Life in Ruins", which I saw in June of 2009. And really, it kinda bombed too, so her losing streak continues... but here's what I had to say about this movie when I wrote about it last summer...
I had a feeling this would be a movie I would enjoy, but I didn’t realize I would like it as much as I did. I loved it. It’s not perfect, its flawed, and let’s be honest, this is a blip on the radar screen of the summer movies. It spent about two weeks in the big theaters, and I saw it today on the dollar screen…
Nia plays Georgia, a tour guide for a small company that gives week long tours in Greece. She loves the history, she loves the architecture and she loves Greece, but she struggles with being entertaining to a group of tourists, some American, some British, some Australian and some just old and annoying. Her co-worker, Niko, does everything he can to appeal not only to his group, but Georgia’s group as well, being funny, buying them food, skipping the boring history to go shopping and so on.
The movie is about a week in Georgia’s life, and how she figures it out… through a number of sources, including an excellent Richard Dreyfuss playing the typically loudmouth funny old guy, “Irv” and a bus driver who takes a liking to her--a bus driver who's name is pronounced "Poopy Cacas"
The movie is a bit long, and towards the end I was hoping it would come to a conclusion… and finally, it does. “My Life in Ruins” is light, its breezy, its fun and Nia Vardalos is her beautiful, real self.
The Lovely Steph Leann and I watched it again the other night, via Netflix, and I think I enjoyed it more, and entered the "I'm probably going to buy that movie once it goes down to like, $9.99 or less, because I know it will" phase in my mind. Loved it.
68... The Chipotle Mexican Grill This one finished 38th on last year's list, but don't let the drop of 30 spots make you think I enjoy it any less. Perhaps I enjoy it more, and because of that, it was worth a second mention...
I always get the same thing--thats how I am, I like something, I go with it, because I don't want to spend good money on something I'm not sure I'd like when I could have spent that money on something I know I'd like. Hence, getting the carnitas on January 25th, 2009, the last time I deviated from my beloved three soft tacos, no salsa, extra cheese, extra sour cream, bag o'chips and a small Pibb Xtra. Mmm Mmm Mmm.
Simply put, a group of actors are filming a war film, and are unwittingly dropped into the jungle to be filmed in "real life", but there is so much more to this movie. Its raw, its bawdy and the language is terrible. But the movie is hysterical.
Probably the most memorable parts are RDJ as Kirk Lazarus, an actor so devoted to method-acting he has "pigment alteration" to darken his skin in order to more effectively portray a black character--and he never breaks character, taking in a very un-PC accent. The other is Tom Cruise, now at that point in his career when he can take roles like this--he wears a fat suit and is Les Grossman, a foul-mouthed, comb over bald studio exec that steals every scene he's in. Its Rated R for obvious reasons (language).
From the opening song, "I Won't" to the final track, "Breakin' at the Cracks", and everything in between, its like you can imagine Colbie just strumming on a guitar, sitting on a stool, singing her songs. I almost feel like she could have performed at The Deuce back in the day (though I guess in 2001 she might have been underaged... hmm...).
Her biggest hit from the album has been "Fallin' For You", which is such a fun song to hear and sing along to. The video? I ranked it as my 20th favorite video in the as yet unfinished Top 20 Videos of the Decade.
65... ESPN College Football I love college football. I get all in a tizzy and like a little schoolboy when it finally comes on in August, and I grieve like I lost my puppy when it ends in January.
I worked on my 2009 Coolest List for a few months, adding stuff to it all along, and somehow, this was ranked 65th. I'm not sure if there is a specific reason, or just in general... but yay for college football and especially ESPN College Football Gameday!
64... Christian Brothers Auto Here's what I know about this particular mechanic shop... its owned/operated by a guy named Brandon, who goes to Valleydale Church (an sbc fellowship), they have a Honda specialist that owns some of his own Honda equipment (which works for me with Toni Rocki Honda and The Lovely Steph Leann with Isadora, her own Honda Accord), they are reasonably priced and they have the word "Christian" in the name.
Car trouble is something I'm pretty familiar with, and finding a good mechanic that you can talk to and trust is like finding someone to get your hair did... once you find them, you do your best to stay there. Let's be real... just because the word "Christian" is in the name doesn't automatically make them great mechanics--but by putting that word in their name, they suddenly have something to live up to, almost purposely putting themselves under a higher standard to meet. You get bad service at Mr. Goodwrench, you complain and go elsewhere. You get bad service at Christian Brothers Auto, and you not only complain, you say things like, "Well, they are supposed to be a 'Christian' place, I see how that is," which is pretty devestating to a witness.
Either way, they've been great to me thusfar, they are always packed out, and when I can get in, its the source for all my oil repairs and major fixes. You can visit their website here, or give them a call at 205-987-6620. Oh, and their courtesy shuttle is a sweet, sweet ride.
63... "Native Tongue" by Carl Hiassen Sez me on November 13th: And finally, here's one I just finished. "Native Tongue" by Carl Hiaasen doesn't deviate, plot set-up anyway, from most of his other books. Hiaasen has lots of colorful characters he spreads out through the book, and you know somehow, someway, they are all going to cross paths at one point or another in a crucial plot point. And, like just about all of his other books (might be all of them--I have only read four), the story takes place in Florida.
This one actually takes place close to Key Largo, at a Disney rip-off called The Amazing Kingdom of Thrills, and it involves steroid taking security guards, gun shooting baboons, mafia witnesses, mob hits, a professional golfer, a chick who plays Robby Raccoon, a former governor of Florida living in the woods wearing a panther tracking collar, a chick who writes poetry for a phone sex line, and a protagonist who was hired because he writes great press releases. Oh, and it centers around two rat-like creatures who may or may not be extinct--or actually exist, stolen by two burglers who may or may not be complete fools. The book is funny, its fast paced, it does have lots of language, and was a breezy read.
62... "I Love You, Man" Sez me on May 28th: As for "I Love You Man", it was funny enough. Not awesome, not terrible, but good for some good laughs. Great moments, Paul Rudd's delivery is solid as always, and Jason Segel is someone I could get used to laughing at. The appearance of Jon Favreau was a welcome sight, too, as it always is. And somehow, the character playing Zoe, Paul Rudd's fiance, got hotter as the movie went on. Found out later it was Rashida Jones, the daughter of Quincy Jones. Not a clue.
Upon seeing it again, I can honestly say Paul Rudd is becoming one of my favorite actors, and this movie is downright funny. Rated R for language.
61... "Heartless" by Kris Allen Once again, one of those Idol performances that I'll remember for a very, very long time. Sez me on May 12th: The Lovely Steph Leann's Next American Idol Kris Allen is singing Kanye West's "Heartless". This should be a hoot...
Now THIS... rocks. Strumming with the guitar, it reminds me of a John Mayer cover of a hip hop song... or when Derrick Harris covered "Baby One More Time" on guitar at A Very Deuce Christmas Party in 2000... I think Factor 7 performed too, but don't remember, but seriously... this is awesome.
And this will do what few songs will do... make me go to iTunes and download the song. And I might, tomorrow, do what I've NEVER done in all these years of Idol blogging... go and download the performance version. I didn't do that with Ruben, nor McPheever, nor Pickles (I love Pickles!) nor Carrie nor anyone else. But I just might with this one.
By the way.. I did. While the acoustic version is better, its still great.
Coming up... Eating a lamb burger... Timberlake loves his mother... and later, the best picture of the entire year...
The Super Bowl was awesome this year... scroll down or click here to read the annual running diary...
One more note... if you are on Facebook, the numerous videos are not going to show up. Click on over to Clouds in My Coffee, then bookmark the page. Then check it daily. You never know what might pop up.
20. Rhett Barnette He's this guy I know in KidStuf, the children's theater program at Valleydale Church (an sbc fellowship). He's married to Amarylis, he's got a daughter named Catalina, and Rhett, without going on and on, gets the title for Funniest. Guy. Of the Year.
He's dry, he's a hick kinda guy, he's just hilarious in a room. He's the kind of guy that, when watching The Jesus Painter, stood and made quiet jokes about the program while many were in deep worship. Seriously, funniest guy of the year.
And somehow, this picture fits him perfectly
19. ESPN's Pardon the Interruption Podcast Pardon the interruption, but I'm Mike Wilbon... Tony... the Celtics just won the world champion over the Lakers! How hard did party and who did you party with?
Oh, I partied alone... unless you count that tryist with Bea Arthur!
So begins an episode of ESPN's PTI, via podcast. Typically, the hosts--Michael Wilbon and Tony Kornheiser--start off bantering back and forth on the hot topics of the day, mostly sports but sometimes will dive off into other topics of the day. They will spend about 1:30 on each one, but may go over or under. The topics are listed on a scroll on the side of the screen.
Mike and Tony, discussing the woman who tried to use a fake One Million Dollar Bill at Wal-Mart
Next, they'll usually do "Five Good Minutes" with a guest, or they'll just keep talking sports, but in the middle of the show is my favorite. They'll do various bits weekly, sometimes Over/Under (they predict the over/under of a certain number like "Over/Under on the number of home runs Pujols will hit this season") or they'll do Oddsmakers (guessing the percentages of a certain event happening, like "chances that Roger Federer will win two or more Grand Slams before he retires") or my personal favorite, Role Play... they'll play a few beats of what can only be described as "porn music" and one will assume the role of a sports figure--Mike will "be Aaron Rodgers" and Tony will say, "Aaron, how mad are you that you were booed off the field this week at Lambeau?"
I downloaded it every day, missing very few episodes, and would sometimes go back and listen to a day or so old episode in case I missed something. You can get it on iTunes via a podcast... in fact, I very seldom every actually watch the show. Its always on iTunes.
18. "The Dark Knight" Much to the dismay of my friend Lori Land, there are a couple of films I hold in higher regard than this one, but finishing the 18th coolest thing of 2008 is not too bad.
This was an amazing movie. You've heard the hype, you've heard about Heath Ledger's performance, and you've probably heard the mystique surrounding the film. And I am here to say... its all true and its all deserved.
"Batman Begins" was a re-start of the Batman franchise that succeeded on so many levels, and so the anticipation for "The Dark Knight" was only building to crazy heights. When Heath Ledger died in January of 2008, it only further fueled the anticipation for the movie. And the entire time, I was enthralled by what I was watching.
Ledger's portrayal of The Joker is absolutely brilliant. No attempt is made to really discover where he came from, he's just The Joker, a super villain to Batman. If I had any complaints about the movie at all, it is first that I think the Harvey Dent-into-Two-Face story was rushed... I think he would have been a great villain alone, but he did compliment The Joker well. Secondly, that Rachel Dawes met the fate she met. I mean, its Maggie Gyllenhaal... she's awesome!
Maggie rocks
Did you know that Katie Holmes was set to reprise the role of Rachel, a role she did well in in "Batman Begins"... but she dropped out to make... "Mad Money" with Diane Keaton and Queen Latifah. Yes, Katie, how'd that work out for ya?
Anyway, I'm going on the assumption that just about everyone reading this has seen the movie, so I don't much to add to it, other than it was a slambang awesome film, and Ledger is an incredible Joker.
17. FaceBook Connections I wrote about this not too long ago.. well, it was July of last year... and I said simply, "So, on Facebook, somehow I've managed to find almost everyone that I ever met. Well, actually, I've met a ton of people, so the 508 people whom I call friend on Facebook probably doesn't come close to the amount of people I've met in real life."
Well, since that time, 508 has turned into 774 friends, and just when I think that there can't be many more, another one sends me a friend request. I have now decided that I just don't send friend requests anymore, they can find me...
Over the year, as mentioned in the note from July, I've managed to find The Official Clouds in My Coffee Troy State Crush Tiffany Abbott, The Angel (click to read The Angel Mud Boxer Story), Blair Andress, Dixon Brock, Dayla Ellison, Spring Tolson (also click to read The Spring Tolson Moment) and even more, and though the bigger "friend" news lately is the addition of The Official Clouds in My Coffee Samson High School Crush Julie Wise, that didn't happen until about a week or so ago, so it will be mentioned on The Coolest Things of 2009.
But there's more than that. This seemed to be the year Facebook just exploded, at least to me, from my perspective. More local friends joined--Cindy Warner, Melissa Clark, Emmy & Jason Turnbow--and more Troy friends joined--Amanda Hawkins Casey for one--and more Samson Friends joined--Claudia Sorrells, Jennifer Lambert... Jennifer Herdon--and then there was the Great Rejection of 2008, that being Angiejay, who told me after knowing me for 20 years, "I can't accept your friend request, because I don't know you very well". But I'm not bitter.
However, therein lies the danger, as mentioned last week... I will have to make some slight changes to some previous posts, as now I'm aware of who's on the site.
Also have to say a big hello to Mindy D'A, this incredibly cute and at the time unapproachable Alpha Delta Pi at Troy State, who I had spoken about two words to ever... and now she's a Coffee Drinker. Who knew?
17A. The Official Clouds in My Coffee Troy State Crush Tiffany Abbott McCauley She rocks. Through Facebook, not only have I been able to chat with The Official Clouds in My Coffee Troy State Crush Tiffany Abbott, we were able to have lunch a couple of times as she came through town. She's just as short as I remember, just as cute as I remember, and just another reminder of Garth Brooks' "Unanswered Prayers" song. Anyway, she was worth mentioning. Hope to see you again soon, one day to meet The Lovely Steph Leann.
Found this adorable pic of The Official Clouds In My Coffee Troy State Crush Tiffany Abbott, though it was before I really knew her.
16. ESPN's College Football Podcast Like the PTI podcast mentioned at #19, this was also one I listened to daily. A 30 minute show hosted by Andy Gresh, it gave a rundown of the college football headlines and news to know after a weekend's worth of games, and leading up to more games the next weekend.
The show would start with "The Playbook", which was a report from different ESPN bloggers, each giving news of the six major BCS conferences--SEC, Big XII, Big 10, Pac 10, Big East and ACC--and one blogger, Graham Watson, talking about The Independents & More, which mostly, at least this season, gave news on the sorry state of Notre Dame football and the rise of the Mountain West's Utah, BYU and TCU's programs.
Andy Gresh would have different guests on certain days, like Bruce Feldman on Mondays, Ivan Maisel on Tuesdays, Todd McShay on Thursdays and Mel Kiper Jr on Fridays. On Wednesdays, the show would be hosted by Ivan Maisel and would feature the Dean of College Football, Beano Cook. Personally, though I enjoy Ivan and Beano's take on the games and appreciate their love of the history of the games, I liked Andy hosting much better.
It makes me sad, though, that Andy Gresh left the podcast after this past season and will join Sirius Radio's NFL channel for a new show. You will be missed.
The podcast continues even in the off season--it is available for download every other Wednesday all the way through the spring and summer, to pick back up for daily podcasts in August--presumably with a new host. I'm rooting for Todd McShay.
15. Rush Limbaugh Ya know, I'm not going to do into detail on this one. I don't feel like defending him. I know he's right, and I agree with about 98% of what he says. He's critical of just as many Republicans as he is Democrats. He plays the audio of who you need to hear, he gives you the resources to listen to the entire bite, and honestly, listening to three minutes of his show isn't enough. You've got to listen to it regularly. Only then will you get the humor, only then will you understand what conservatism is, only then will you figure out that really, liberalism fails.
And then you'll be free. You won't be a mind numbed, believe everything the media tells you, if its written in the NYTime or if Keith Olbermann says it it must be true, robot. You'll get it. And we need as many people to "get it" as possible.
14. WalkAbout Dinner Theater During the 2006-2007 season, I was highly disappointed that the dinner theater we had planned for that June. I was losing talent like Courtney Maddox and Jess Heckman, and I felt not only defeated, but like a failure.
By that time, I had been doing middle school drama for about 8 years, and we had pulled off 5 dinner theater performances. The reason we didn't do the other 3 years is because either I couldn't, or was not doing drama that summer. Some of the kids grumbled, some of the kids understood, but either way, I had no confidence in our team. We cancelled it because really, many of the kids didn't learn their lines on time.
So, when the new team came around, my "seniors" this time were Hannah Robillard, J Pinky, Grace Mintz, Erin Taliaferro, Davis Reynolds, Grant Adams and Emily Griner... one of the strongest line ups we've had since the murderer's row of Scotty Latta, Jana Blackwell, Laura Posey and the like.
We had a great year, and planned for our dinner theater, entitled "By Faith", in July. And it was masterful. It was a one-night-only affair, done in our middle school area known as "the Big Room", and we had a completely sold out audience. Some of our drama moms, including WalkAbout Mom of the Year Melissa Robillard, helped put dinner together, while the WalkAbout Asst Director and Mom of the Year in 2007, Paula Maddox, helped get the show done.
Awesome. Grace Mintz did this monologue called "Unafraid", and brought the audience to tears, but strangely, I think the skit of the show was a little ditty called "Debbie Gibson & the Foolish Chick", based on the parable of building your house on rock and sand. Starring Kimmy Hasha, Hannah, Emily and a special appearance by Matt McG and Algore, it brought the house down.
14A. Paula Maddox She's was given the 20th Coolest of 2007 rank last year, and I went back and forth as to whether have her appear on this list or not... after all, she did get a rank last year. She was on the list of possible nominees for a Hannah Pruitt Cool Award as well, but I went differently with that.
Here's Paula, singing with a very waxy Celine
Anyway, she's awesome. She was totally my lean-on during the WalkAbout season, and my venting post as well (as she vented to me her own thoughts). I'm proud to call Paula my friend and if WalkAbout opens up to high school as well, as we are discussing, I am excited that she'll be back to help out. Well, she and Melissa Robillard.
13. "American Girl" by Estelle, feat. Kanye West Take me on a trip I'd like to go someday... take me to New York I'd love to see LA... I really want to come kick it with you, you'll be my American Boy, American Boy.
I really don't care for Kanye West all that much... and whoever Estelle is, I'm not really sure I'll dig on her music all the much either. But this song? Love it? Got played a ton on my iPod this year, and its just cool. Here's the Wiki on it.
12. "Ironman" Yes, yes, I thought "The Dark Knight" was great. But I am a Marvel fan through and through, so when I found out that Tony Stark would be played by Robert Downey Jr, I was sold. I was eagerly anticipating the film, and was not disappointed at all.
Its got a perfect mix of humor and action, with a great story and effects, and never gets dark and brooding like "The Dark Knight" was. As a matter of fact, I think I liked just about everything about this movie.
In case you didn't stick around after the credits, here's what you missed. Any comic book fan will be elated at this 35 second scene.
Haven't seen the movie? Here's the rundown... Tony Stark gambles at a Las Vegas casino, leaving his deceased father's friend and business partner, Obadiah Stane (Jeff Bridges) to accept a prestigious award for him. As Stark leaves the casino with his entourage, he is approached by reporter Christine Everhart (Leslie Bibb), whom he charms into a one-night stand at his Malibu house. When she awakens the next morning, she is asked to leave by Pepper Potts(Gwyneth Paltrow), Stark's personal assistant.
Waking up hours later in an Afghan cave, he discovers an electromagnet embedded in his chest, placed there by fellow captive Dr. Yinsen(Shaun Toub). It is powered by a car battery and keeps shrapnel from working its way to his heart and killing him. Stark has been captured by a terrorist group known as the Ten Rings, whose leader orders him to build a Jericho missile for him.
Instead, during the three months of his captivity, he and Yinsen begin secretly building a crude suit of power armor, powered by a miniature "arc reactor" invented by Tony's father, Howard. Finally, the terrorists grow impatient and give Stark 24 hours to finish. Unfortunately, the armor isn't quite activated when the deadline expires, so Yinsen makes a suicidal attack in a desperate bid to buy time. Once the armor is ready, Stark charges through the caves. Near the entrance, he comes across a dying Yinsen, who tells him not to waste his life. Forever grateful to Yinsen, Stark burns all the munitions the terrorists have accumulated and then flies away, only to crash in the desert. Stark survives, but his suit is in pieces. After being rescued by Rhodes, Stark declares at a press conference that his company will no longer manufacture weapons. Stane tells him shortly thereafter that his decision is being blocked by the board of directors of Stark Industries.
Stark focuses his energies on building an improved version of his power suit, while making an improved arc reactor for his chest. Potts gives Stark a gift: his first miniature reactor encased in glass and bearing the inscription, "Proof that Tony Stark has a heart". (courtesy of the interweb)
See this movie!
11. Joining the VCM Way back in the day, Valleydale Church (an sbc fellowship) had an awesome college ministry. It was called Common Ground, and there were, on any given Sunday morning or a typical Monday Bible study night, anywhere from 25 to 40, maybe more, college and career minded folks. This is the place where I met some of my best friends and most cherish people, like McQ, Valdmanis, Shawn Sharp, Jenn Adams, The Good Doctor Earl, Amy McL and so on...
But over time, and a few various events, things happened here, things happened there, and Common Ground was no more. The subsequent attempt at the college ministry following Common Ground wasn't successful, and for years, our church languished without it. You could go all the way through preschool, grade, middle and high school and have a ton of groups and activities to be involved in. When you are in your 20s and single, or "young married" or beyond, you have tons of things to do. But the gap between high school graduation and your single mid-20s, nothing.
So it was exciting when Philip and Jill Waters, Jillip, was going to re-start the college ministry. The Lovely Steph Leann and I had been reading in our church bulletin that it might be starting up, so in service, I looked over and asked her, "Do you want to help? Should we get involved?"
Sometimes, The Lovely Steph Leann gets excited, sometimes she doesn't, but usually when she is excited, it usually involves choir or singing. Imagine my surprise when she says, "Yes. I think we should go!"
We walked down to the new college ministry room, and were excited a few of the kids there already, along with Jillip, who expressed excitement that we were there.
The Lovely Steph Leann and I talked with the group, and just told how much the ministry had impacted our lives--heck, we met there--and how we wanted it to impact their lives too. Over Christmas, we saw attendence leap up to over 20 per Sunday, and the word was spreading of the fact that Valleydale Church (an sbc fellowship) had invested in the college groups.
And so The Lovely Steph Leann and I are here now, in the VCM (Valleydale College Ministry). Its a little sad that we have left the Turnbow class on Sunday mornings, because of how many people there we just love, but we're happy to at least be helping in something that we know is going to grow and make a huge impact! Yay God!
So that leaves 10 more spots. And several events that rank among them... find out the Top 10 Coolest Things of 2008...
I wanted to go to Nashville. I wanted to go to Atlanta. I really wanted to go to Mobile. Perhaps I could go to Knoxville. Or maybe Savannah. Best laid plans work out, sometimes... and sometimes, they don't.
As much as I'd like to say that it was fate that led me here, or that it was chance, or a job, or something else, I really have to put the blame on two entities in my life... God and Amy Wible. I thought Birmingham was terrible. It was a big, convoluted city, comprised of about two dozen small towns crammed together to make one big metropolis. I didn't want to be here. But I kept feeling it. And finally, about a month before the move, I was driving down I-65... actually in Birmingham, for some reason, and it just clicked. I nodded my head, and said, "Okay, God. I'll do it. This is what You want, and I guess I'll have to comply."
Here's what I wrote, in an essay called "A Love Story In Three Acts", and this was Act Two, Scene Two. (for the whole thing from the beginning, you can click here... its quite a great story, methinks).
June passes and July is almost over. Though I really, really want to go to Mobile, I feel God is calling me to Birmingham. I'm fighting it in my prayerlife, not wanting to admit this is what God wants for me, even though it was pretty evident, since none of my interviews in Mobile was going to lead to anything. Through some random conversation with Amy, I mention a possible move to Birmingham, possibly working for this new Christian station starting up called Reality Radio 101.1. She tells me how great that would be, because with her in Tuscaloosa, I'd only be 45 minutes away, not two hours, and how great it would be dating the DJ for a Christian radio station. Much like God led me to Christian drama through Chrissy, God finally sealed the deal with me for Birmingham through Amy. --July 7, 2006
So, randomly, Claire Baldwin and I drove up to Birmingham to find me an apartment, and I managed to find a small, two bedroom loft apartment for only $475 per month. I'm imagining this apartment's rent has gone up slightly. Anyway, I paid the deposit, and was excited to finally move!
So, on August 17th, 1998, Shelby Logan, Eddie Hamner, Troy McConnell, Allyson Guy and a select few others helped me load up the vehicle(s), drive to Birmingham, unload the stuff, drive BACK to Troy, then drive back to Birmingham to unload the rest of it. My friends rocked. They still do. Allyson, I still miss you, friend...
Anyway, they stayed the night, Eddie and Troy at the Loft, the girls at Allyson's home in Alabaster, and they left early the next morning. And... I was alone. It was hard for the first few months... the job that I thought would be my ticket here in Birmingham ended up being a disaster, after a week....
And that led me to the Adecco Temp Agency, where I met a temp consultant named George Marling, who, after hearing I had just moved to Birmingham, said, "Have you found a church yet? (I nodded my head no) Well, here... (setting down a green pen in front of me)... this is my church. Valleydale Baptist. You should give them a call. You might like it."
I tried it a few times over the course of the next few months... and liked it. I was officially baptized in January of 1999, and for the first time in my life, I became a church member. Several of my closest friends--Troy, Allyson, Shelby, AmyAlex, Melanie, etc--were there, and it was amazing.
I still didnt have a lot of local friends, though, as I made frequent weekend trips to Troy, staying with Joey Hinton and Tad Roose (whom I know I annoyed after a while, crashing on their couch...), but I did have one friend that I grew close too... a chick in my singles class, Rebecca Jourdan.
I met her not only at Valleydale Baptist Church, but also figured out we worked together at Parisian Corporate, the job I took after being hired on through Adecco. She was five or six years older, but so darn good looking. In October of 1998, I had my wisdom teeth removed, and Rebecca volunteered to take me to the dentist, wait for me, and drive me home. It's important to note that I had quite a crush on Rebecca at that time, so when she took me, full of drugs and gauze, home, and helped me to my couch, I vaguely remember expressing my true devotion to her, and I vaguely remember her smiling.
Not too long after that, early 1999, I was hanging out with the high schoolers and Big Eddy Mac, and Downtown Jerry Brown at the house across from the church, when I met the high school intern, Tom Johnson. It felt like a "Anakin... this is Obi Wan Kenobi" kind of moment. Unbeknownst to the church, but beknowst to many of us, Tom was liking this chick named Stephanie Nipp.
It was at a party that I first heard about Michael Nipp, who went to school in North Alabama, and was managing a band called Soul Pilot. His parents told me that I should meet him, and not too long after that I did. And it was Michael who took me to Sybil Johnson's Bible Study, where I met Meredith Quintana, Shawn Sharp, Jill Berthon, Amy Valdmanis, Jennifer Pritchett, Ty Coffey and so many more, people who would add to the backbone of influence already given by Troy, AmyAlex, Shelby, Claire, the BCM, Cristie Wright, Chrissy and so many more.
Michael and Tom decided to move in together... they invited me along. I jumped at the chance. So for the summer, it was Michael in one room, Tom in the other, and me on the couch of our apartment in Pinebrook, on Little Valley Road. When September came, Tom moved to Samford, I moved into Tom's room, and Shawn Sharp moved into Michael's room, with Michael still there. When Christmas rolled around (and we had our first Apartment party, a precursor to big parties to come) Tom moved to the couch. It was here that I met Tommy McLeod, mostly because I came home one night and he was randomly sitting on our couch, watching tv. I'm not sure Mikey was even there, or if he was, he might have been asleep.
And then... one day in May, Michael came home and said, "Hey Dave... I found this four bedroom apartment not too far from here, over behind Ellis Piano. What do you think?" And so it was. The Deuce was born. The legend was made. Common Ground was born not too long after that.
Passion One Day was in May of 2000. Incredible event. Will never forget it, or the fact I spent a month going out with Jill Berthon.
My dad passed away in 2000... it was a devestating blow to me in so many ways. The hardest part was that I didn't cry at the funeral. I had so many mixed emotions. And I remember, a week later at Thursday night Bible study, when Nathan Tutor was teaching, we were in prayer... and I just fell apart. It was terrible, and yet, wonderful. I remember Ty Coffey putting his hands on my feet, and Amy Valdmanis and Meredith Quintana both leaning over and touching me while we prayed. It was beautiful.
Speaking of beautiful, Wookiee, Yours Truly, Michael, Shawn, Tom, Jennifer Hudson, Tommy, Brook DeRamus (our downstairs neighbor--he was an oceanographer who spent alot of time in Mobile, so we didn't see much of him), Matt Latta, David Mark Osborne and Daniel Powell started this football game... we called it The Deuce Football Championships, or The DFC, for short. We figured we'd do it this year, and just have fun... I mean, who expects this to go past a single football season?
I let go of Amy Wible in 2001. The closure wasn't there, at least all the way, but it was finally over. My heart begun to heal... and I had already been introduced to Stephanie Campbell. That was a saga over the next two years I won't recount fully, but during such time, The Deuce lived, survived, and stayed strong. I witnessed Stephanie Nipp break up with Tom, which was rough on all of us. We watched Ginger and Matt get married, which was blessed on all of us.
I started a new job in May of 2001, hired away from Parisian to Cox Radio, to work with 106.9 Oldies, WZZK and Rock 97.3. I met Michelle Carr, who would quickly become one of my heroes. Plus, she's a great chick.
WalkAbout was going strong too... started in 1999, it had begun to be a major part of my life, as it is now. And in 2001, the first ever WalkAbout dinner theater was presented, starring Meredith Osborne, Andrea Brobst and Katie Noland, among others. Sometime around 3 in the morning, on July 4th, I also had my first kiss with Stephanie Campbell. She was, and still is, fantastic.
September 11th happened. It was tough on everyone, as we all sat mesmorized by the footage. I wrote about it here (part one) and here (part two), and then again in 2006, here and here.
In 2002, we knew The Deuce was bigger than itself when I came home to find Mikey sitting on the couch, watching tv... nothing unusual here, except for the five or six Samford students sitting around the kitchen table, playing cards. "Dude, who are they?" I whispered to Mikey, sitting down beside him. "I dunno... I thought you knew them..." he replied.
I went out with Amy Vos once, on a single date. Seriously, she was just so awesome. I was quite disappointed, at that time, that things didnt lead to a second date, though I look back and see all the things going on at that time in both of our lives was truly God making sure she would end up with Tommy... a relationship I saw born in and around The Deuce, just like I had seen Justin and Jennifer's relationship born in a conversation on The Deuce floor.
My friendship with Melanie Dill grew, and then, over the course of the summer, faded, just like my friendship with Allyson had done a few years go. My friendship with Stephanie was still there, though. I went on the toughest mission trip ever, to NYC, with Melanie, Alex, Fish, Liz, Chad, Mark and several others. And when I came back, my head was spinning. I sat down with the guys during our weekly Bible study, and said, "Um... I think I'm going to go out with Stephanie Campbell. Like, seriously, chase her. This is what I'm supposed to do."
Once the meeting was over, I was in my room, and Michael came in, closing the door behind him. He told me how happy he was about me and Stephanie. He told me that he had been praying for us, how he had--and all the other guys--had been hoping that something like this would happen. And it did. Tom had already started dating Jill Berthon, Tommy and Amy were together, Michael had already met Ashley O'Neal, Justin and Jennifer were going to be together forever by now, and somehow, it was my turn.
Our final Deuce Christmas bash was in December 2002... it was a grand gala, complete with performances by Ben Caver and Joel Blount, and we had an attendance of over 70 people. This success was truly why we never planned a DeuceFest Eye Vee (IV) or a Christmas bash in 2003... I actually didn't want to face the idea that we might not have that many people come. The Deuce was beginning its slow decline, a graceful, gentle drop. We knew when to stop, and we did.
February of 2003 is when the Challenger exploded. It was also my very first day on the job at Starbucks. I was hanging out with Katy Scott, one of my favorite people ever, and a possible first ballot Dave Hall of Famer (when I finally open the doors) and we were at Starbucks in Mountain Brook. Her friend Kerry Walls was working, and being d$, I had to admire that Kerry was really quite cute. Kerry says, "You should apply for the new store... in Vestavia!" So I did.
I worked four nights per week, for over a year, earning money for debt, comic books, a possible proposal, and more. April 2003 found me in kinda hot water, though... I had an expired license. And a ticket from 2000 that I somehow forgot about. No, I'm serious, I actually forgot about it... and the officer who pulled me over for the tag reminded me.
Mind you, I am headed to work at Starbucks. I get pulled over, then quickly arrested and put into the back of a police car. Randomly, Ty, Mikey, Wookiee and Tom are leaving together, and pass by, only to see me on the side of the road in the backseat of a police car. No kidding, the officer looked like Eddie George, and I told him so. For the next twenty minutes, I sat in the back of a car, handcuffed, talking through an open window to the arresting officer about the Titans chances that fall.
Yes, yes, I was taken to the station, fingerprinted, and booked. I never saw the inside of the cell, though, as the Dolla' Posse, made up of several of the guys, bailed me out quickly. Laughing. I went to work, ink still on my hands. Boy, I learned alot from my time in prison. Don't drop the soap.
Summer came, and I was able to save up enough for a ring, to which I quietly and unceremoniously gave to The Lovely Steph Leann. And now we planned for a wedding, while attending Tommy's and Amy's in the fall. Wookiee was now engaged. Tom was now engaged as well. Mikey and Ashley were heading that way.
And this is where we'll leave it... a quick recap of the first five years in Birmingham, with the next five to come later... Sunday, August 17th, 2008 celebrates 10 years in the city, after a plan of only being here 1 to 3 years somehow doesn't work out like I planned.
For research purposes, really, I tried watching Hannah Montana the other night. Not only did I feel sort of creepy, the show wasn't really that funny. I know, I know, I shouldn't be expecting Emmy worthy acting, but still, Billy Ray Cyrus is a pretty terrible actor. How he made all those years of "Doc" on PaxTV (now ION) is beyond me.
Miley Cyrus... I can't look at her without thinking Courtney, one of my WalkAbout alumni. She and Miley look much alike, though truly, Courtney is and will be much prettier. And with her mom, Paula, I don't expect many Vanity Fair cover shoots in Courtney's future.
If your a 15 year old boy, what do you do? One is richer. One is prettier. The answer? You do nothing because, alas, both are out of your league.
Also watched The Wizards of Waverly Place. Thought it was rather funny, actually. The whole concept is that there are this family of Hispanic kids who are also wizards, and they are in training to take some life test (which I can only assume will be in the final episodes of the series). Now, while the show is also poorly acted, it was still rather clever.
Watched the cartoon Phineaus & Ferb... now this show is hilarious. Two step brothers who go one impossibly ridiculous missions (Hey Ferb, they closed the mini-golf course! Let's just build our own! I'll get the crane), their sister Candice, who's life mission it is to get them in trouble, and Perry the Platypus, who is not only Phineaus & Ferb's pet, he's also a secret agent--Agent P. Ridiculous, but its quite clever. It might be worth the whole episode just to hear Ferb speak.
Weirdest feeling, ever... walking through the mall, towards the food court, and glancing over to see one of your middle school students in Victoria's Secret. I shuddered. I threw up in my mouth. I ducked the Dateline crew, headed towards Libby Lu, and went to lunch.
Let me answer the question that is on everyone's... okay, well not everyone's, but many people's minds. Okay, maybe not many people, but a few have asked...
"How are things at The Happiest Place in the Mall???"
And my answer typically is... "Magical."
The truth is, it has been magical. Its been wonderful. Its been so great to not wake up three or four times per week at 4am, or get home at almost 11pm. Its been great watching the kids play, or trying out the new Wall-E foam rocket launcher, or tossing the Power Rangers soccer ball around with another Cast Member, or even doing stock in the back, which is like Christmas sometimes.
The challenge is, that The Happiest Place in the Mall recieves anywhere from 40 to 100 packages of shipment... per day. Per day. And our backroom is not very big. So many a'day I am out there, sweat pouring off my face, box cutter in my hand, cardboard stacked around me, opening up Mickey Lunchtotes, or Cinderella backpacks, or Dalmation snowglobe tumblers, or whatever. So, the organizational skills come in handy.
There is alot to learn, though. The cash register is not as up to date as I'm used to, with Starbucks's systems. So, doing a refund is alot of work sometimes, but I'm getting it. The Cast Members are great--I've taking a liking to Audrey, whom I've enjoyed picking on (those of you who know me know if you get picked at, that means I genuinely like you) and our managers have been very welcoming and helpful and gracious. Another I've taken a liking to is Crystal, whom I've worked with several times, is great on the floor as well.
There are several I haven't worked with, or worked with much to get an impression of, but I'm usually pretty good at reading people. I tossed a beachball at one girl, not aggressively, not mean, just fluttered it up playfully. She swung wildly and tried to duck and looked affronted. I could see I had to be on eggshells around her.
Of course, there's Stephanie... not The Lovely Steph Leann, mind you, but another Stephanie, that I really need to come up with a nickname for, if she's going to make the blog on a regular basis. I thought of "My Friend Stephanie", only I had a feeling that most people wouldn't remember that as the name of a Christian rock band from about 14 years ago. I'll come up with something. Anyway, she's just a... well, a really cool chick.
The other day I was back at Plush Mountain, the big pile of stuffed characters--which sits on a shelf, mind you, so don't let any child just run and jump it, because they could hurt themselves--and I was straightening a rack... this cute little girl, maybe three or four, comes running up. She stops, suddenly, and stares, open mouthed at what must seem like a fifty foot high mountain of Mickey, Minnie, Nemo and all her favorites. She then yells, "MOMMY!!! I'VE HIT THE JACKPOT!!" It was precious.
I frequently see friends of mine come into The Happiest Place In The Mall. Jeremy Jones, and his wife Chrystal, came in last week. Got to say hello to them, and their two little girls. Not too long after that, here comes Vaughn Barron, and his wife Currie, and their kids. A day or so later, I see Jaime Echols... all friends of mine from college. A few days ago, I get a message from Tiffany Abbott McCauley, saying she's swinging through The Ham, and wanted to stop in and say hello. So she did, she did, and it was awesome.
This is Tiffany and me, after 12 years of not seeing each other. She hasn't really changed much since Troy. By the way, you can see another version of this pic, with a better pic of me, in my Facebook "Me and..." album. Now, if I could just get The Angel to come visit.
Perhaps its just the "honeymoon" period, because I did have that at my last Starbucks store. Leaving there was difficult, but I think it was the right time. I'm working now, part time, at Starbucks in Homewood, the SoHo area (stands for So Homewood). Its a beautiful store, and its a shame its closing too. I was there last Tuesday night, and at that point, had gone about 13 days without making a single drink--the longest such drought since I started in 2003.
I stood there, behind the counter, steamed milk pitcher in one hand, making a latte, and it felt... strange. This wasn't Vestavia, this wasn't 280, this wasn't Cahaba, this wasn't 20th Street... this was a different store, but not only that, this was a different role. I'm not manager, I'm not assistant manager and I'm trying not to be either. I'm just a simple barista making a simple drink. And it was so freeing. I was just able to make drinks and not worry about anything else.
Where was I? Yes, The Happiest Place in the Mall. Did you know that Christopher Robin has been replaced? I'm rather torn by this, because while I was never a CR fan, he's been there a long, long time. My guess is, he grew up and left 100 Acre Wood, because they have this chick named Darby there now. I haven't gotten used to Darby yet. I'm currently watching her and the Pooh crew in "My Friends Tigger & Pooh", and the animation is weird. Its not 2D animation, and its sort of CGI... like, cheap CGI, I think.
I've got a button on my Facebook page with Pooh on it. He's dressed all gangsta, and the caption says, "Tigga, Please". Its hilarious.
Saturday night was my 33rd Birthday Extravaganza, and you can tell you are getting older when the party is over around 930 or 10. Lil' Sister Ashley stayed until about 1030, watching the Olympics with The Lovely Steph Leann and myself, then left. We were just getting up to go to bed, around 1105, when I flipped the channel to The Happiest Channel on Cable, and Camp Rock was on.
I've been meaning to watch Camp Rock for a week or so now, having it on DVR, because we're currently pre-selling the DVD.... only 19.95, and you get the Jonas Brothers folder set that you can't buy in stores, plus a 15% off coupon you can use... but we kept it on. And maybe it was because we were tired, maybe it was because The Lovely Steph Leann took a liking to Joe Jonas, maybe it was because I took a creepy glance at Meaghan Jette Martin... for whatever reason, we stayed up to watch the whole thing.
And its rather fun. There weren't as many songs as I thought, and most of them fit into the movie (rather that just randomly bursting out in song, like we do in real life). Some of the songs i knew already, having heard them about 13,000 times in The Happiest Place in the Mall.
