Cornerstone: Breaking the Silence

Cornerstone: Breaking the Silence, originally uploaded by echobase_2000.

Here's a shot of the band Breaking the Silence, playing at Cornerstone.

I noticed a few trends -- more female fronted bands, in the vein of Evanescence and Flyleaf (the latter of which played at Cornerstone too).

Night Parade

Night Parade, originally uploaded by echobase_2000.

One of my last shots of the day may be one of my favorites. As happens at Cornerstone, it's not unusual to see a makeshift, ragtag parades through the grounds. But this time it was at 10:00 pm. My only hope was to silhouette them against the merch tent, and then I saw the mohawk kid. It worked.

Cornerstone registration

Cornerstone registration, originally uploaded by echobase_2000.

The festival gate is open, and cars are streaming in.

Shane Claiborne is Stalking Me (or Jesus for President)

Shane Claiborne, originally uploaded by echobase_2000.

So last weekend I'm wondering through Barnes and Noble looking at cookbooks, when my wife brings me a book.

"I think you'd like this," Sara said.

"What is it," I asked?

"It looks really interesting," came the answer.

It was a book by Shane Claiborne,a guy who I'd been interested in for a year. More than that, I'm interesting in what he has to say.

Turns out CNN is interested too.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/06/29/evangelical.campaign/index.html

Of course, had the story not lent itself to a title like "Young evangelicals not a lock for Republicans", I'm not sure CNN would care.

But read the story, and read Shane's book. And if you're at Cornerstone, check out what he has to say.

Shane calls himself "an ordinary radical" and not in the scary left-wing radical kind of way, the sell-everything-you-own rooted-in-the-Bible kind of radical.

Cornerstone: We're here!

There's my ginormous new tent. It already got rained on, for all of two minutes. And it held up!

Favorite Movies

Tag, I'm it! Courtesy Ben Reis, it's my turn to play one of these blog games.

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

So here we go… My Top Ten Favorite Films (in no particular order):

1. Star Wars trilogy

2. Indiana Jones triology

3. Lord of the Rings triology

4. Wallace & Grommit films

5. Spider-Man (I liked #2 best)

6. Chronicles of Narnia (mostly because I like the books)

7. The Final Sacrifice -- Rowsdower! (youtube link) OK, this isn't a *good* movie, but maybe my favorite MST3K movie. I've got to have at least one movie that's so bad it's good on this list, and this is it.

8. The Goonies. I had to pick an '80s movie. Sorry Ferris Bueller and Better Off Dead.

9. Planet of the Apes (the original, you manaics. you blew it up! damn you, damn you to hell!)

10. I'm going to cheat and put everything else I can think of: The Matrix, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Princess Bride, Army of Darkness, Blues Brothers, UHF (Weird Al!), Dances with Wolves, Equilibrium, 2001, Forbidden Planet, Andromeda Strain, Christopher Guest movies (Spinal Tap, A Mighty Wind, Best in Show, etc).

Now I'm tagging: Lisa, Jeff, and Colleen!

Rain, rain go away!

Three years ago it was flooding. Other years it's been hail.

This year it's been multiple tornadoes, multiple hail storms in one day, flooding, high winds, heat, humidity, and about every kind of spring and summer weather you could imagine.

Last Thursday an hour to the west in Kearney, NE they got hit by a tornado. It was the lead story on Good Morning America the next day. It ripped open an apartment and destroyed the expo building at the fairgrounds. That storm skipped over us (at least the bad stuff) and reformed tornadoes in Aurora, the next town to the east.

The damage in Aurora wasn't as widespread as in Kearney, but those who got it got it even worse. Here's my story on that. It's amazing. You have to watch it.

Then this week, when Grand Island has gone smoke free (w00t!) it's been overshadowed by day after day of rain. The worst came Wednesday night, and resulted in flooding several miles north of our home. Again, the video tells the story.



Anyway, we're ready for a dry spell. After years and years of drought, this isn't any better. A nice, normal spring would be nice. Not that I know what a normal spring is anymore.

Still Lost after the Tornadoes

Not only did I not see Lost last night, I had to be the one to tell the TV viewers of central Nebraska that they wouldn't see it either.

But I hope people are understanding that tornadoes take precedent over TV. Even a season finale.

We did get some email from upset viewers. But we got ten times as many people emailing storm stories, video, and pictures.

Grand Island seemed to have been spared. But our neighbors to the west in Kearney and east in Aurora got nailed by tornadoes. Thankfully, it sounds like no one's hurt.

But it's a mess. It was a long day, and looks like another long day's ahead of us.

Go over to www.nebraska.tv to see video.

Lost: Predictions

Thursday is TV night in the White household (established April, 2008).

We really have only two shows we watch. The Office, which has replaced Arrested Development as our favorite comedy.

But the show we have to watch weekly is Lost. I don't know why we were slow to catch on. Maybe it seemed like a Castaway rip-off. Beautiful people crash on a desert island and try to survive. Guh. Doesn't sound like much.

It's more Twin Peaks or X-Files than Castaway. There are elements of sci-fi (time travel, smoke monsters, the dead coming back), action, adventure, drama, plus it's told in serial fashion. You really can't miss a week. It's not like the X-Files when Cigarette Smoking Man would show up a few times a season. With Lost, there have only been a few throwaway episodes. On the flip side, that means storylines stretch out forever. But I can live with that.

Really, I think it's setting a new standard for postmodern storytelling. The story is by no means linear. Not only do the writers use flashbacks, but flashforwards, showing us snippets of what will happen. Heck, we even know who gets off the island. The fact that millions still tune in to find out how and why tels you something. They can give that away and still leave you wanting more.

Plus they have characters named Locke and Rousseau. This season they even introduced a character named after C.S. Lewis. How could I not like that?

Did I mention the biblical allusions, including a scene that came straight out of the old testament history of the temple? Not to mention a drug lord turned priest who carries a "Jesus stick".

Anyway, if you're still reading, here are my predictions for the season finale. And if you don't watch, this stuff won't make any sense.

But here goes. Here are the questions this episode has to answer.

1. How will they move the island?

I've heard speculation that it's a move in time or a physical move. A physical move seems unlikely. I also think there could be another purple sky episode, where the Island goes haywire and somehow the electromagnetism hides the island from the outside world. But I'm going with a move in time.

2. Is Claire dead?

Well, she's walking around talking to her dead father, so I'm going with yes. She's dead. Don't know when for sure she died, but I'm saying she is.

3. Will Jin, Michael, and Desmond die?

We know by way of a flashforward that there's a grave for Jin in South Korea. Even if he dies now, I think Michael and Desmond won't. The island won't let Michael and Desmond has unfinished business. He's not done.

4. Will we meet Jacob?

I think they might string us on a little more on this, but they have to give us more than they've given. I think Jacob appears and talks, but I don't think we really will learn his identity and story here. That comes next year. That's my prediction.

5. Who's in the coffin?

I say it's gotta be someone who we previously thought wouldn't be dying -- i.e. someone the island wouldn't let die. That could narrow it down to Ben and Michael, maybe Locke, or I'll got out on a limb and say Richard Alpert. Ben and Michael are too obvious. Just for the sake of making a guess, I'm going to say Locke.

6. Crackpot theory

Locke sacrifices himself in the Orchid station to move the island and save everyone, but since it moves the island in time, he's brought back. So his body ends up in the coffin, but he's basically cloned in time and stays on the island.

So I'm probably dead wrong on all this, but we'll see tomorrow night!

No Time for Wal-Mart?

Perusing Wal-Mart's magazine aisle tonight, I noticed Hot Rod, Hot Rodder, Street Rodder, and about two dozen other car magazines not having anything to do with rods, hot or otherwise.

But did I see Newsweek or another news periodical?

In the checkout you'll find People, Teen People, TV Guide, some mags about soap operas and country music. Plus those who need no last names, Martha, Oprah.

Still no Time?

I'm sure Wal-Mart has plenty of marketing data that shows which magazines sell, and specifically which celebrity-driven rags sell in the checkout aisle. I can't fault them for making money. That's their business.

I didn't expect National Review or the New Yorker, but no Newsweek?

I know news is my business, but even if I weren't on TV I'd still be reading some sort of newsmagazine. And I know the internet has changed the landscape. But the people who aren't reading newsmagazines aren't reading blogs and aren't watching TV news.

Those who watch me on the local news generally read their local paper and check a site like cnn.com. I don't mind when someone doesn't know who I am if they watch another news program. But when they tell me they don't follow the news... then I understand why voter turnout is 25%.