19 Shopping Days Left Until Epiphany!

This will only help with those of you who forgot to already buy Christmas gifts, but I’ve been trying to build a collection of alternative shopping resources the last few weeks.* Here are a few, and if you’re familiar with others, I’d be interested to know about them:
Benefitting the poor in 2/3 world countries (generally [...]

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Next two things

1) Saw I’m Not There and The Darjeeling Limited this week. Two films featuring trains, drugs, spirituality, and a life-altering motorcycle accident. Also include interesting casting overlaps with other films in which the same actors appear. Both are among my favorites this year. Only one has David Cross as Alan Ginsberg.
1b) Also watched Year of [...]

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The Future and the Present (It’s a gift)

1) I can’t stop laughing/crying about this article someone (who will remain anonymous unless she/he chooses not to) sent me today: Forecast: Sex and Marriage With Robots by 2050. Don’t worry, it’s FOX News, so it’s safe for the whole family. See if you can come up with any responses we didn’t already.
2) Also, it’s [...]

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RSS’d Out

Thanks to RSS, I’ve never seen any of your cool widgets, and you’ve never seen the big red button in my blog’s margin that says “click here for free money!” But every once in a while I try to catch up with what folks had in mind for my viewing experience, and sometimes am pretty [...]

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The Gospel blah blah blah blah Batman

Batman Begins:
As idealistic DA Rachel Dawes receives a kiss her lawyer boyfriend, former child sweetheart Bruce Wayne observes from sidewalk, dressed in dingy hooded sweatshirt.
Viewer banter:*

J: That’s so sexy when a billionaire dresses like a homeless person. If I was super wealthy that’s what I would do. It’s. . . it’s like an expression of [...]

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Devotion

A prayer from Thomas Aquinas, from which I’ve been separated over a decade. Thank you, internets:
Give us, O Lord, a steadfast heart,
which no unworthy affection may drag downwards;
give us an unconquered heart,
which no tribulation can wear out;
give us an upright heart,
which no unworthy purpose may tempt aside.
Bestow upon us also, O Lord our God,
understanding to [...]

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Emancipation, Dissipation

I cleared a major academic hurdle, and then ended up with the wife and young’uns out of pocket for a bit. In the interim, I’m casting aside all good intentions, and filling my time with media catch-up. I’ve noticed that with the break in assigned reading, my taste for the usual timekillers has totally dissolved [...]

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