New Blog Announcement

Hey guys,

As you've likely noticed, I haven't updated this blog in a while. I kept telling myself, "I'll get to it soon." After a while I basically gave up, and the idea for a new blog grew in my mind.

3Brushstrokes

If you're interested in following my future posts, please follow/subscribe over there.

So what's going to happen to this blog (A Writer's Inspiration)? I'm not sure yet. If I keep it, I will at least be focusing on 3Brushstrokes for the immediate future. I'm just not decided yet.

Thanks for following me, and I hope to see you over at 3Brushstrokes!

"Tonight" Debut + Review

As some of you may know, Toby Mac's new album Tonight released last Tuesday (the 9th). As a fan of Toby's music, I pre-ordered a copy of the album (deluxe edition). After listening to the music a few times over the past couple of days, I have come up with a general review of Tonight:

For those who have been listening to Toby Mac's music from the beginning, you may find this album's style a little surprising--that is, different from the past albums. To me, it almost seems more..."acoustic" and "Jamaican." However, that isn't to say it doesn't have the mixes and technical tweaks that makes up the style of Toby Mac's songs.

My top three favorite songs (out of the thirteen unique songs) are:

• Tonight (with John Cooper from Skillet)
• Get Back Up
• Start Somewhere

I am not generally a fan of very "rockous" songs, of which "Boomin'" (from Portable Sounds) is based, in my mind. "Showstopper" is the rock song of Tonight, and as such, I am not a big fan of it.

The "deluxe" version of the album features three remixes of three songs, as well as a DVD with around 70 minutes of behind-the-scenes videos and interviews. I haven't watched the DVD yet, but I can't wait to. I'll update this review when that happens.

I became a fan of Toby Mac because of the meaning behind his lyrics, and I was not disappointed with Tonight. I love the theme of the entire album--to get close with God tonight, to start now rather than later. Whether or not Toby Mac's music style is your thing, we can all agree that God's love is great, and something we can't get enough of.

Our Friends, the Muslims

If you missed it, more than one week ago, there was a live web-broadcasted event called "Why Do You Fear Me?" The discussion was between author Ted Dekker, Governor David Beasley, and missionary Carl Medearis. What was the discussion about, specifically? To put it in summary: why we should not fear all/most Muslims. As Christians, we aren't going to shed any light by treating all Muslims as one--or by titling them all terrorists.

Check out the archived hour and a half webcast here.

Blue People Take Over

If you haven't heard of the movie "Avatar," then you've been hiding under a rock. A big one. Avatar is breaking records financially and in popularity. As someone who hasn't seen this hugely-successful film yet, I have to ask, "What's with the blue people?" Or more specifically, "What do these blue people have that I don't?"

However, before the media goes and proclaims Avatar the #1-grossing film of all time (oops, too late), let's examine a few technical factors here:

• Ticket prices have increased. Dramatically. In 1929, the average movie ticket (with inflation accounted for) cost $4.32. Today's average movie ticket costs a whopping $7.20!
• Nearly every showing of Avatar is in 3D. It's practically impossible to see this film not in 3D, save those few theaters not yet set up with the proper equipment.
• The average 3D movie ticket price ranges from $10 (matinee) to $15. Ouch! This means fewer sold tickets generates a large chunk of cash anyway.

 So where does Avatar really rank? As of this post (updated 2/4/10): 21st place, all time, inflation adjusted. The real top ten films are:

1. Gone with the Wind
2. Star Wars [A New Hope]
3. The Sound of Music
4. E.T.: The Extra Terrestrial
5. The Ten Commandments
6. Titanic
7. Jaws
8. Doctor Zhivago
9. The Exhorcist
10. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs

While I'm sure Avatar is a good film, as I've been informed by a few particular friends, it's still not the number one film of all time.

And besides, those blue people are scaring me.