Door's Howl - Movie Review of Toy Story 3

Been wondering for a while about reviewing movies for some time seeing as I watch so many. Took Kevin to his first ever movie on Sunday. We went to see Toy Story 3. His face was a pure delight as he sipped an Icee, stared at the screen and took it all in!

Synopsis

Toy Story 3 continues the story of the famous toys of Andy - Woody, Buzz Lightyear, Jessie, Mr and Mrs Potato Head and the rest. Andy is heading off to college and the big debate is that he no longer plays with his toys. They are concerned that he will throw them in the trash or place them in the attic. They end up at Sunnyside Daycare - a prison for toys (you'll need to see the movie to understand)! The rest of the story deals with them coming to terms with life change, escaping from "jail" and finding a way home.

The cartoon work is great - even though we saw it in 2D. The storyline and "acting" is tremendous and there are plenty of incredibly funny sections for kids and adults. Who would have thought Buzz Lightyear could be such a great Spanish dancer. Usually third part installments are terrible - just see Shrek the Third. But, Toy Story producers have pulled off their best one yet. I think it is well worth seeing and even better, worth owning. The wonderful truisms of life change are done very well and even had the adult women in my aisle in tears at the end.

Score

Door's Howls scores Toy Story 3 as a New Moon

Scoring System

Wolves are thought to commonly howl at the moon. So, the better the moon, the greater the howl. Description of scoring system below.

Full Moon - best you can get, must watch and must own
New Moon - great movie, worth seeing and buying
Crescent Moon - average to above average, good to watch, but may want to wait for DVD
Sliver Moon - below average, not worth seeing and only get it on DVD when you have nothing better to do, like having a root canal
Moonless Night -not even worth mentioning - avoid at all costs!

Keep listening for further howls.

The Panera Problem

I am sitting at Panera listening to the beautiful sounds of smooth jazz on Pandora, sipping coffee, slowly melting in the heat as I watch those around me...and reading from Ruth Haley Barton's book Strengthening the Soul of My Leadership.

A thought occurred to me as I watch plates and plates of food go past, portions so large that most people are taking home or throwing away the leftovers. I see large, stunning full color slides of Tomato, Mozzarella and Basil Salad as well as Strawberry, Poppyseed and Chicken Salad. There is water on tap, coffee constantly percolating and all I can think of are those unfortunate human beings that do not have access to these things...the starving, thirsty, dying people in third world countries who are far from any food, let alone choice.

I fear that we all may be looking to a troubling conversation with God when He asks us what we did with our blessing of excess. I don't have a clear answer for myself...just troubled thoughts that this is not right. This world and its brokenness is so hard, so devastatingly unfair. Why, because I am born in the southern hemisphere, or born of another color than white is my life filled with hardship and despair. Not everyone, but clearly so large a majority that it makes it cultural for those races.

I simply call out to God and wonder why...even as I feel myself tempted to have a great salad despite not being hungry at all.

'Ard Boyz

Been ages since I wrote on the blog. Been a busy year so far, but I was able to play in the 'Ard Boyz prelims and Semis recently. Both rounds were loads of fun. I qualified for the Semis in third place and ended up coming second in the semi and qualified for the finals. However, I won't be able to go to the finals due to a few conflict issues. Nevertheless, it was a blast and thoroughly enjoyed it. I have since then become a little hooked on all the painting and battle reporting on the internet. Anyway, that's a super quick update.

Great Message

Bryan delivered a great message yesterday at church. The drama set him up and he spiked the ball hard (excuse the volleyball analogy) to motivate all of us to think differently about the random encounters with other people we experience. Using Jesus' own life and some thoughts from a book called Consequential Strangers both Ingrid and I were challenged to rethink our finances.

We did some work and cut back in places to make space for some money that can be used to bless others. So now its up to God to tell us where to use the money he has provided to bless others.

Thanks Bryan for a challenging and thought provoking message. To hear it go to http://www.grace.org/audio and listen to the message Consequential Strangers.

Fall, Falling, Fallest

Fall is definitely here and with so much going on at work and at home, whose got time to blog, let alone read them.

But thought I would give a quick update: Kevin at school for his first pre-school year, Connor is turning one and Ingrid and I have celebrated our 10th Wedding anniversary at L'Espelier. I highly recommend it. We booked the chef's table (in the kitchen) and enjoyed an 18 (yes 18) course dinner. The courses were small in size but we left the evening solidly full and having eaten a range of dishes for the first time:

caviar, frog's legs, oysters, cucumber foam (yummy), rabbit, escargot and more. Check it out as it is worth every cent for the memory (but it is way, way up there in price!)

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all the two mothers I am proud of - my own mom, whose constant sacrifice for others is inspiring and frightening to behold. She truly lives beyond herself. To my wife and mother of my children - whose ability to engage our boys in constant enjoyment and laughter despite exhaustion and a million other stresses is amazing.

I grew up surrounded by strong women who lived for others and today I find myself trying to teach my boys what it means to be strong men together with strong women. The next few years should be interesting.

God bless each of you as you continue the never ending task of mothering.

Economic Woes Become Consumer Annoyances

I find myself wandering the malls these days trying to keep one toddler happy and an infant quiet. We almost never spend anything and have become aware of a few mall rats like us.

1. The Walk Zealot - these are people who use the malls as their personal gyms walking at brisk paces in laps around the mall. Usually a bad idea to get in their way.
2. The "Mom and Stroller Group" - a group of moms walking sedately pushing any number of children in strollers around the mall - often taking up the entire passageway.
3. The "Business Professional Playing Truant" - any professional looking person, often a man, wandering around the mall talking on a cell phone trying to look like he or she is doing business, but actually they are just avoiding the office.
4. The "Do You Have a Minute Retail Clerk" - my personal all time worst. This person stands with some sort of "freebie" trying to entice all of the above people to come into their store and spend money. They are annoying, invasive and often oblivious to body language and their environment. I was stopped by the same person inside 5 minutes as I walked past a store going one way and back past the store going the other way. I, especially, hate it when they stop to ask you if you are interested in beauty products and try to make up for the obvious mistake by asking if you have a special woman in your life. IT'S NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS!

I personally fall into the "Leave Me Alone, If I Had Money I Would Hire a Personal Shopper" Category. I go to the mall because it's warm, offers choice and provides places for kids to be fed, changed and played with. I do most of my shopping online - not in the mall. So, while the walkers walk and the strollers stroll, and the wanderer wanders, retail clerks - leave me alone!