A quick post

Updating my blog during the week is going to be hard. I don't really give it much thought when I'm up to my eyeballs in marking and planning. It's like treading water but instead of water, it's paperwork. I'm supposed to be working right now...

108.5/190 movies

Andrew got this from Neal so I thought I would put it on my blog too. I don't think I'll score very well.

There are 190 movies on this list. Put your score in header:

(X) Rocky Horror Picture Show
(x) Grease
(x) Pirates of the Caribbean
( ) Boondock Saints
( ) The Mexican
( ) Fight Club
(X) Starsky and Hutch
(X) Neverending Story
( ) Blazing Saddles
(X) Airplane
Total: 6

(x) The Princess Bride
(x) Young Frankenstien
(x) Anchor Man: The Legend of Ron Burgandy
(X) Napoleon Dynamite
(X) Labyrinth
( ) Saw
( ) Saw II
( ) White Noise
( )White Oleander
( )Anger Management
(x)50 First Dates
( ) Jason X
Total: 6

(x) Scream
(x) Scream 2
(x) Scream 3
( ) Scary Movie
( ) Scary Movie 2
( ) Scary Movie 3
(x) American Pie
(X) American Pie 2
(X) American Wedding
Total: 6

(x) Harry Potter
(x) Harry Potter 2
(x) Harry Potter 3
(x) Harry Potter 4
( ) Resident Evil I
( ) Resident Evil 2
(x) The Wedding Singer
(x) Little Black Book
(x) The Village
( ) Donnie Darko
(x) Lilo & Stitch.
( )Lilo & Stitch 2: Stitch has a Glitch
Total: 8

(x) Finding Nemo
(x) Finding Neverland
(x) Signs
( ) The Grinch (jim carrey)
( ) Texas Chainsaw Massacre
( ) White Chicks
(x) Butterfly Effect
(x) Thirteen Going on 30
(x) I, Robot
Total: 6

(x) Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story
( ) Universal Soldier
(x) A Series Of Unfortunate Events
(x) Along Came Polly
(x) Deep Impact
( ) KingPin
(x) Never Been Kissed
(x) Meet The Parents
(x) Meet the Fockers
( ) Eight Crazy Nights
(x) Joe Dirt
Total: 8

( ) A Cinderella Story
(x) The Terminal
( ) The Lizzie McGuire Movie
( ) Passport to Paris
(x) Dumb & Dumber
( ) Dumb & Dumberer
( ) Final Destination
( ) Final Destination 2
( ) Halloween
( ) The Ring
( ) The Ring 2
Total: 2

( ) Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle
(x) Practical Magic
(x) Chicago
( ) Ghost Ship
( ) From Hell
(x) Hellboy
(x) Secret Window
(x) I Am Sam
(X) The Whole Nine Yards
Total: 6

(x) The Day After Tomorrow
(x) Child's Play
( ) Bride of Chucky
(x) Ten Things I Hate About You
(x) Just Married
( ) Gothika
( ) Nightmare on Elm Street
(x) Sixteen Candles
(x) Remember the Titans
(x) Coach Carter
(x) Bad Boys
Total: 8

( ) Bad Boys 2
( ) Joy Ride
(1/2) Se7en
(x) Ocean's Eleven
(x) Ocean's Twelve
(x) Identity
( ) Lone Star
(X) Bedazzled
(x) Predator I
(x) Predator II
TOTAL: 6.5

(x) Independence Day
( ) Cujo
( ) A Bronx Tale
(x) Darkness Falls
(x) Christine
(x) ET
( ) Children of the Corn
( ) My Boss' daughter
(x) Maid in Manhattan
( ) Frailty
Total: 5

( ) Best Bet
(x) How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days
(x) She's All That
(x) Calendar Girls
(x) Sideways
(x) Mars Attacks
(x) Event Horizon (wish i hadn't)
(x) Ever After
(x) Forrest Gump
(x) Big Trouble in Little China
Total: 9

(x) X-Men
(x) X2
(x) Spider-Man
(x) Spider-Man 2
(x) Sky High
( ) Jeepers Creepers
( ) Jeepers Creepers 2
( ) Catch Me If You Can
( ) The Others
( ) Freaky Friday
(x) Reign of Fire
( ) Cruel Intentions
( ) Cruel Intentions 2
( ) The Hot Chick
Total: 6

( ) Swimfan
( ) Miracle
( ) Old School
(X) The Notebook
(x) K-Pax
(x) Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
(x) Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
(x) Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
(x) A Walk to Remember
( )Boogeyman
Total: 6

(x) Hitch
(x) The Fifth Element
(x) Star Wars Episode I The Phantom Menace
(x) Star Wars Episode II Attack of The Clones
(x) Star Wars Episode III Revenge of The Sith
(x) Star Wars Episode IV A New Hope
(x) Star Wars Episode V The Empire Strikes Back
(x) Star Wars Episode VI Return of The Jedi
( ) Troop Beverly Hills
( ) Swimmig with Sharks
Total: 8

(x) Air Force One
( ) For Richer or Poorer
( ) Trainspotting
( ) People Under the Stairs......
( ) Blue Velvet
(x) Sound of Music
(x) Parent Trap
( ) Parent Trap Re-make
( ) The Birds
(x) The Terminator
(x) Terminator-2
(x) T-3
Total: 6

(x) Empire Records
( ) SLC Punk
(x) Meet Joe Black
(x) Nightmare Before Christmas
( ) The Silence of the Lambs
(x) Sleepy Hollow
( ) I Heart Huckabees
( ) 24 Hour Party People
( ) Blood In Blood Out
( ) Nowhere
Total: 4

( ) Thirteen
( ) Manic
( ) American History
( ) Deep Blue Sea
(x) George of the Jungle
(x) Canadian Bacon
( ) Big Black Titties
( ) How High
( ) The Jacket
( ) My Little Ponys Grand Adventure 2
Total: 2

57% - At least I passed!

I thought this was funny, not that I believe it

March 25 Your Birthdate: March 25

You excel at anything difficult or high tech. In other words, you're a total (brilliant) geek.It's difficult for you to find people worth spending time with.Which is probably why you'll take over the world with your evil robots! Your strength: Your unfailing logic Your weakness: Loving machines more than people Your power color: Tan Your power symbol: Pi Your power month: July

What Does Your Birth Date Mean?

Funny - I had a stuffed Scooter as a child

You Are Scooter

Brainy and knowledgable, you are the perfect sidekick.You're always willing to lend a helping hand.In any big event or party, you're the one who keeps things going."15 seconds to showtime!"

The Muppet Personality Test

Lutheran identity crisis 2

I'm pretty well steeped in what it means to be a Lutheran - to understand that my salvation comes only from the grace of God - and here's why. I was baptized in a Lutheran church, grew up in a Lutheran church, confirmed my faith in a Lutheran church, went to CLBI (the L stands for... wait for it... Lutheran - shocking!), went to U of A and attended a Lutheran church, and then married a Lutheran pastor. Here' s where things for me hit a cross-roads.

I am a Lutheran but for some, the difference between the Synods causes people to act strangely. You see, I grew up in the ELCIC and when I got married, I married an LCC seminarian who would later become an LCC pastor. I now get a "stuck in the middle with you" kind of feeling from both sides. Why does the difference matter to people? Probably because they don't understand the other "side." The thing is, it's not the other "side". Both Synods subscribe to the exact same documents and most importantly, the Bible. There are jokes made about going over to the "dark side" but both ELCIC and LCC people make this joke. ELCIC people get called hippie-Lutherans while LCC people get called uncaring, stuffed shirts. It's not right, but it happens. People like to judge what they don't understand.

In the LCC churches I have attended, I have been asked how I liked Concordia. Why is it assumed that I went there? When I mention I grew up in Grande Prairie, people ask if I know so and so. My reply: "Well, no because I grew up in the ELCIC congregation." To which the person says, "Oh." As though that changes how they feel about me. Sometimes I even feel that I should be embarrassed. I'm not.

Conversely, in the ELCIC I now feel like I wear a sign on my back that says "Synod jumper." People find out that my husband is an LCC pastor and I get the same "Oh" and feelings of awkwardness by the other person. I just wish people would base their opinions on who I am, and not on my affiliations. It's stupid and petty and frustrating. Thankfully, it is only a minority of people.

For the most part, people accept me for who I am and it doesn't matter where I grew up or where I am now. I know who I am in Christ and I know what I believe. I am totally confident in that. I just wish people wouldn't get so hung up on labels when clearly they don't understand the differences.

I am a proud Lutheran (most importantly a proud Christian) - I grew up in the Lutheran church and continue to attend a Lutheran church. I know there are differences between the church of my past and the church of my future, but that doesn't make me any less or any more, better or worse. I do not naively believe that the Synods will one day fully agree. Truthfully, they will most likely become further apart. But at the same time, I can pray for God's faithfulness to His church and the continued faithfulness of His people.

Here I stand. I can do no other. God help me. Amen - Martin Luther

Lutheran identity crisis 1

I went to Edmonton over the weekend. Saw some friends and had some great visits. It was interesting though, because it turned into quite the Lutheran-fest. I knew I was going to a worship service on Friday night with my friend. What I found out later, was that Marty Haugen - the Lutheran contemporary liturgy writer- was going to be the worship leader. Hmmm. Well that's really cool. He's done many different services and settings (e.g. Holden evening prayer, Now The Feast and Celebration) and has been writing new ones. The worship service was kind of like Lent over the course of an evening. We started with ashes and brokenness, moved through healing, and ended with joy. I enjoyed it a lot.

The next evening was the Lutheran Campus Ministry (LCM) banquet. I was part of the Lutheran Student Movement (LSM) on the University of Alberta (U of A) campus for many years so the banquet was a reunion of sorts. Wow, lots of abbreviations! Anyway, LCM was celebrating 50 years of existence this year and as part of the celebrations had Marty Haugen and his writing partner Susan Briehl come and do a two-day worship conference. Apparently it was very good. But man, I realized sitting there, I have spent a lot of time in the last two days hanging out with Lutherans. To quote Seinfeld, "Not that there's anything wrong with that."

Now we come to Sunday where I attend church with my friend Kristine. First, we almost didn't get there and we were late because of heavy snowfall and frequent occasions being stuck in the middle of the road or intersections. Fun. We always managed to get out, thankfully. Well, we get to church and there is a guest pastor. Kristine's pastor was there, of course, but the congregation had apparently asked Bishop Steve Kristenson to preach that Sunday and give a presentation after the service. What was the presentation about you ask? "What does it mean to be a Lutheran?" Too weird because as many of you know, I'm married to a Lutheran pastor.

But more on this later.

A stain on my blog

So after just starting my blog, there was a really distasteful comment on my first post. Thankfully, my husband alerted me to the situation and thankfully I have the ability to remove said comment. I have now turned on comment moderation so hopefully this kind of thing won't happen again. Now I get to choose which comments are publish-worthy. For the record, anything offensive or just plain rude, will not be posted. And for those of you wondering what was said, I am not repeating Mr. Rude-blogger's comment.

As I'm thinking about this distasteful comment, though, I'm saddened by the fact that people need to be that disrespectful. Did this blogger (some guy I don't know who lives in the States) really think that I wouldn't be offended? Or did he just do it to be funny? Regardless, there is no excuse for rudeness. What I had hoped would be an innocent first foray into the blog world turned into an opportunity for a jerk to be a jerk. Boo urns on you Mr. Rude-blogger. Good day.

What have I gotten myself into?

So, I'm new to the whole blog thing. I read lots of blogs so I figured it was about time to start my own. As a matter of fact, I'm not really sure what I'm doing, so this is an interesting experiment for me. Andrew convinced me that I should give it a try, so that's what I'm doing. Who knows? Maybe having an outlet for teaching frustrations will be cathartic. I've never been good at journaling, though, so hopefully I keep up with blogging. As I said... interesting experiment for me.

Catch you on the flip side.