Safe Haven

 I don’t mind it. I’m not even rebellious enough to destroy a wave as it comes around. I will say that most people can’t do the wave and maintain focus on the game, which baseball assuredly deserves. In my long familiarity with my beloved St. Louis Cardinals, the outbreak of The Wave usually indicated that the game was delayed, or boring. We’re not The Best Fans In Baseball (TM). Sorry. But St. Louis has a pretty big metro area. The Cardinals will never be in financial trouble, unless they get taken over by a series of fools. Moreover, the hardcore, well, core of the fan base IS extremely knowledgeable. Objectively, we can say that the floor for the attendance of the Cardinals is probably 25,000 a game. It’s the most decorated franchise in the National League, and probably the Dodgers and the Yankees could credibly claim to have more haters. And we absolutely deserve that. We’ve won a lot. Like, a lot. They’ve spent the last few years being average or bad, and I’ve felt genuine sym...

 The Lion King. (1994) The Hunt For Red October. (1990) Field Of Dreams (1989). They are great films, but there are specific reasons why these three are the ones that mean the most to me. The Lion King reminds me of my father. When I think of my father, I think of Mufasa. I also think of Gregory Peck as Atticus Finch, but Atticus is impossible to live up to. Like Bluey’s Dad.  But the parallels to Mufasa deepen. Mufasa dies suddenly, and it’s something that defines Simba for the rest of the film. When Simba finally triumphs, he does so by finding himself, and thereby honoring his father. His wandering was Simba trying to ignore his father and his father’s death. It’s more than just the sadness of the death; it’s what the death means, and what Simba does in response. The Hunt For Red October is pretty much my foreign policy and my patriotism distilled into a movie. Communism sucks, and despite herself, the United States of America remains the hope of the world. The book had to ...

 I don’t know anything about psychology, and obviously he does. I think I have dropped enough similar bombs on the far Left that I don’t need to become a poster boy for the Right like he did, or at least I felt he did. Probably from his perspective, he sees and saw his field in general being used for the destruction of self-efficacy, especially among men. I can appreciate that. He said something a few months back in a video that sticks with me as a teacher: The biggest thing a teacher does is set the inspirational frame for learning. I think he’s right. I think what I can do better is draw direct connections with the content knowledge and our near-inevitable bond as learners together. (That is, some of my friends have said that I am especially skilled at creating bonds of friendship with kids; I don’t think so. I just think a lot of people don’t feel seen, especially as they grow up. Try a little, you end up with strong loyalty.) If you don’t know something, you can find it out. Bu...

 I know Scott Stapp and those guys were trying to beat the Christian allegations, but especially the period from 1997-2001, why try? It’s a hard rock trip through the Psalms. As for music critics, what do they know? I always do reparations for “the words” in “My Own Prison”—I’m definitely a Christian, after all—but I have seen some things, man. Imperfect but real spirituality resonates more with me than a lot of “church people.” Moreover, every genre of music deserves stuff that’s radio-friendly. Make what you want, but if you try to tell me that you’re a musician and that you wouldn’t trade places with Taylor Swift in half a second, I’ll call you a liar. Besides The Joshua Tree, if it’s not a Creed record, give me the Make Believe LP from Weezer. It’s Eastern, but get over it. We can and will “baptize” anything. If I’m completely honest, “Christian” music usually isn’t good because I just don’t believe what they’re selling. Pathos and ethos, man. How many of those CCM bands had pe...

 The Spotify algorithm knows me well. 1980s and 1990s pop and R&B. It was a time when pop and adult contemporary were the same songs. Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis made their bones in this time, somehow making a mark as songwriters and producers contemporaneously with the legendary Babyface. (Kenneth Edmonds) Jam and Lewis introduced the music world to Janet Jackson principally, though that is in no way exhaustive of their contributions. They wrote and produced the ballad “Let’s Wait Awhile” from the 1986 LP Control. It concerns a young woman telling her boyfriend that she isn’t ready to have sex. Now, the younger sister of Michael Jackson was only 20 years old in 1986. Doubtless many of her fans were younger. The question is, why? What are we waiting for? A lot of scary red pill types go on and on about not wanting a woman who’s “ran through,” but what’s the point? 20 is too young, but 22 would be fine? The Christian ethic is direct: the permission for sex for both men and women...