Aside from the fact that this is not a Wii, this is about the coolest promotional swag a guy like me could ask for. I want to make myself a true fan by getting one of these. Convincing myself to spend the money on a 360 is the hard part.
If only I could go back in time... My wife and I hate cake toppers, but I think I could probably convince her to use these that are sculptures of Mii characters. For one, they would look like us and that's infinitely better than generic plastic figurines. If nothing else, we could put them to the side of the cake. But, that was two years ago, so it makes no difference anyway. Still, it's a great idea, and I'm tempted to get sculptures of my wife, son and myself for to put in our house somewhere.
Thinkgeek.com is a great site for purchasing everything in geekery. Most of their products revolve around shirts, but they have lots of other fun things, too. For April Fool's Day, they teased about a tie that looks 8-bit. The joke back-fired, as people began begging that they actually get this product and start selling it. Well, I'm game. I'll be very curious to see the final tie and possible even wear it.
IGN reports about a new movie set to come out during the Fall of 2008, named per this post. Interestingly, it will be based on a novel written by the same woman who wrote Interview with a Vampire – Anne Rice. I'm very curious as to the nature of this novel and soon enough the movie. It seems as though this could be another exciting movie for Christians: obviously because it is about Jesus, but almost just as importantly because it will likely be done with the best quality.
According to Wikipedia, Anne Rice was a devout atheist, but has in recent years turned back to her Catholicism, which she left when she was 18.
In 1998, after spending most of her adult life as a self-described atheist, Rice returned to her Roman Catholic faith, which she had not practiced since she was 18. In October 2005, as she reaffirmed her Catholic faith, Rice announced in a Newsweek article that she would "write only for the Lord." She called Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt, her first novel in this genre, the beginning of a trilogy that will chronicle the life of Jesus.
In an interview with Christianity Today, headlined "Interview with a Penitent", Rice declared that she will never again write another vampire novel, saying; "I would never go back, not even if they say, 'You will be financially ruined; you've got to write another vampire book.' I would say no. I have no choice. I would be a fool for all eternity to turn my back on God like that."
I was just perusing YouTube for Switchfoot and found this song, supposedly called "War in My Blood." Obviously, I like it, especially because it's definitive Switchfoot in so many ways.
On December 26 of this year, Switchfoot will release a new album - a short 15 months after the last album, "Nothing is Sound." Entitled, "Oh! Gravity," they seem set to bring us another amazing experience through music.
I have long loved Switchfoot as my favorite band - ever since before "The Legend of Chin" even arrived on the market and no one knew their name. I have met the guys and talked quite a bit with them. Never have I known a band to be so real and seem so personable. They are entirely honest in their music and never mince words or ignore their faith. In one interview, Jon tells of how their Christianity is part of who they are, as is their music. There is no separating those from each other.
With a newly designed site for the album, Switchfoot.com, talks about "Oh! Gravity," and how it came to be made. In Jon's own words:
And so this past summer when we set out to record a new record, we tried to put all pressures and expectations aside and focus on the music. We wanted to make a record that was honest. A record that didn't trip on itself. A record that represented everything that we first fell in love with about music. We tried to forget about theory and pitch and timing and focus on feeling. As a result, I think that Oh! Gravity is the most honest thing we've ever done. I am so proud of these tunes and hope that they resonate with you like they do for us.
And go back to the reason you loved music to begin with. We took a chance on this record, not to sound selfish, but to make something for ourselves. What other people think can't change our minds about these songs. And that's a good feeling. Because either you believe in it or you don't.
I just found out about a movie today that is in theaters, but I've never heard about it. I wouldn't care, except I really want to see it, but it's an independent film, so it's not in my area. Bummer! The movie is Facing the Giants.
More importantly (because I can watch it on DVD), I'm annoyed by the MPAA and them giving it a rating of PG. I'm putting aside the fact that it's a Christian movie and that I want to support it for that reason, especially considering that it seems like a GOOD movie. According to this article, the rating comes because they're concerned that the Christian story will offend people of other religions. That may very well be the case, but that doesn't mean it should constitute a PG warning, especially considering the definition of a PG film:
The theme of a PG-rated film may itself call for parental guidance. There may be some profanity in these films. There may be some violence or brief nudity. ... The PG rating, suggesting parental guidance, is thus an alert for examination of a film by parents before deciding on its viewing by their children. Obviously such a line is difficult to draw.
