After not seeing Star Trek, even refusing to pay attention to the trailer, I have this simple review.

Don’t see it. It  just encourages them to make more.

That is all.

Here are five movies I recommend you watching to truly understand the heart of the human soul.

- The Godfather, part 2, part 3

- 50 First Dates

- Talledega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby

My family isn’t one that will likely go around the table and share what they are thankful for. But that doesn’t mean I am lacking gratitude this Thanksgiving. Here’s a few things I’m especially thankful for.

#1 I am thankful for my red hot smokin’ wife, who is a stone cold fox, and two kids, Walker and Texas Ranger. (Oh wait, that’s Ricky Bobby…) I am thankful for Kristen, Megan, and Paul. They bring immense, intense, wild, fight-club-worthy joy to my life.
#2 I am thankful for all things San Diego. From our neighborhood, to our new church family, to my friends at YS, to the beachy goodness, to all things Mexican food and sushi.
#3 I am thankful for getting to invest in the lives of so many youth workers around the globe. Marko expressed this much better than I could, check out this video.
#4 I am thankful for Youtube, who just started offering widescreen video and all the fun I will have with that.
#5 I am thankful for Steve and all my friends at Apple Computer, I’m glad I finally saw the light.
#6 I am thankful for Snickers. Dang they are good.
#7 I am thankful for Facebook and all of the old friends I’ve reconnected with.
#8 I am thankful for Andy Marin. I praise God that He has raised up a man willing to stand in front of 5,000+ people and proclaim himself, “The gayest straight man in America.” I’m happy to call him a friend and I join him in praying that the church would continue to love the GLBT community.
#9 I’m thankful for Free Speech, that I don’t have to worry about getting sued if I call someone’s ideas stupid.
#10 I am thankful the thousands of “mmm’s” I heard at NYWC this fall as speaker’s spoke truth into leaders lives.
#11 I am thankful for the genius feature on iTunes.
#12 I am thankful for the Chargers, Irish, Wolverines, Spartans, and any other sports team I care about in 2008 sucking so I could concentrate on other things.
#13 I am thankful for the dress code at YS.
#14 I am thankful for horchata.
#15 I am thankful for pretty things, like Gmail’s new themes, sunsets at Ocean Beach, and odd wildlife in our backyard.
#16 I am thankful for Wii Fit as there is nothing quite like watching your 5 year old do yoga.
#17 I am thankful for former students. They encourage me, join my crazy conversations, challenge me, and inspire me to keep going as I watch them stumble towards faith.
#18 I am thankful for a lot of things, big and small this year.

How about you, what are you thankful for?

I got tagged on this one by Chris. I love movies and have eclectic taste so this ought to be a  good time. In no particular order here are my favorite 10 movies.

1. The Godfather, part I – Shear brilliance. A real family film if you know what I mean. I’ve seen it about 15 times and catch something fantastic each time.
2. The Godfather, part III – A lot of people don’t like this movie but I find it fantastic. It ties the first and third together masterfully.
3. Hoosiers – Gene Hackman is an inspiration in this movie. This true story shapes a lot of who I am as an Indiana boy.
4. Rudy – The best Notre Dame movie out there. It was filmed at a time when ND was on top. And the fact that a lot of the extras are people I went to high school with always helps.
5. Tin Cup – “This is a defining moment. And the thing about defining moments is that you either define the moment or the moment defines you.” Maybe one of the best lines in a movie, ever.
6. 50 First Dates – Adam Sandler finds the perfect balance of male and female romantic comedy. I laughed, I cried… and generally at thinks that would make you blush.
7. Little Miss Sunshine – Two words: Super freak. It’s a tragedy that this movie didn’t win best picture in 2006… I’m still not over it.
8. Juno – The scenes with Juno and her parents are amazing. When Juno and her dad talk about finding love… that is the kind of parent I want to be. (Less the pregnant daughter of course!)
9. 12 Angry Men – The original of course. This is group dynamics 101. Anyone in ministry needs to watch it 20 times.
10. Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby – This is not the most complete movie in the world. But it has some sound bytes that I catch myself quoting all the time. I prefer the baby Jesus personally.

The rules of the “game” are simple:
1. list your top ten favorite films (in no particular order).
2. if you’re tagged, you’ve got to post and tag 3-5 other people.
3. give a tag back (some link love) to the one who tagged you in your post
4. give a hat tip (HT) to Dan

I’m tagging…

Kristen (queen of the indie film)

Adam (because he’s moving and needs a mental break)

Ryan (because he needs a reminder to blog)

Autumn (cos she watches more movies than anyone I know)

Dennis (because “i’m teaching in Cuba this summer” is no excuse!)