What Movies Are You Into?

When I was a junior and senior in high school, I had the best job in the world, working as an usher at the Summit Mall Theater in Akron, Ohio. What a gig. I got hired, then all my friends got hired. We suited up in blue tuxedos in a locker room up by the balcony. We knew all the girls that worked behind the candy and popcorn counter. It was a total blast. There were two screens and it was one of the nicest theaters in the northeast Ohio.

Popular movies then, several of which I still know line-for-line, include Saturday Night Fever, The Wiz, Star Trek, Superman, Every Which Way But Loose, The Goodbye Girl, Grease, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Animal House, Jaws II, Heaven Can Wait, and Kramer Vs. Kramer.

Today, I enjoy the classics, anything with Jimmy Stewart, Lionel Barrymore, etc. Favorites include You Can't Take It With You and It's a Wonderful Life. More recent top picks include Cinderella Man, Schindler's List, and Gladiator. The thing is, I'm always looking for great new movies, so feel free to offer a list of your favorites here. If you like, tell who's in your favorite flicks and why you like them so much. Thanks! CM

What's Got Your Attention?

We have a bunch of big readers at our house. All six of us love to dig into a good book or magazine. My son loves Nate the Great books. My daughters enjoy the Red Rock Canyon and Wally McDoogle books. My older daughter loves everything from Gone With the Wind to novels by Lynn Austin and Kristen Billerbeck. My wife is currently reading—and loving—Max Lucado's new book, Every Day Deserves a Chance. Beside my bed right now are the following:

The Prince of Tides - Pat Conroy
The Truth War - John MacArthur
Never Look Back - Kathy Herman
If You Will Ask - Oswald Chambers
Crime and Punishment - Fyodor Dostoevsky
The Gunslinger - Stephen King
Black Ice - Linda Hall
Oswald Chambers: Abandoned to God - David McCasland

What about you? What are you reading? Why is it so good...or bad?!