Day 4 of 30: My Favorite Books

Yes, that's rights, favorite books, as in more than one.  Of course, as a Christian, my favorite book of all-time is the Bible, especially the New Living Translation (NLT).  However, I am also a life-long lover of books of all kinds, so I can't make a post about favorite books without mentioning others I have enjoyed over the years.  I'm not going to give you a numbered list like I did in my previous "30 Days" posts; instead, I'll just tell you about them, and, if you like what you hear, you can go seek them out.
By now, you all probably know how nerdy I am in a lot of respects, so, naturally, I love various kinds of science fiction and fantasy novels.  I've mentioned before about Star Wars and Star Trek novels, and they really are quite good.  You might think that they're just shoddily written books meant to cash in on the popularity of George Lucas' and Gene Roddenberry's blockbuster space operas, but you'd be wrong.  In fact, many times, the writers of the SW novels do a better job than Lucas ever did with writing the films' screenplays.  Michael A. Stackpole and Aaron Allston's works, such as the X-Wing series and I, Jedi, are perfect examples of that.  The Trek books are great, too; among my favorite ST authors are Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stevens, John Vornholt, and Diane Carey.
In my Day Two post, I mentioned that I love superhero movies, especially Spider-Man 2, which is my favorite film of all-time.  I'll admit to not being a fan of superhero comic books--the only comics I like are ones in the daily paper, such as Garfield or Mother Goose and Grimm; more on that later--but I have quite enjoyed novels about superheroes from the DC and Marvel universes.  I am currently reading the Gamma Quest trilogy, which is an amazing X-Men/Avengers/Hulk crossover.  Other such titles I've loved are: the Legacy Quest, Chaos Engine, and Mutant Empire trilogies (all X-Men,) the Justice League of America series (which features well-known DC superheroes, including Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, and the Flash) and the Doom's Day trilogy (featuring a smattering of Marvel heroes such as Spider-Man, the Incredible Hulk, the Fantastic Four, and even Iron Man.)
But wait...there's more! Other sci-fi/fantasy series that I have enjoyed are: the Acorna series by Anne McCaffrey, Margaret Ball and Elizabeth Ann Scarborough; the Circle trilogy by Ted Dekker; Isaac Asimov's Robot City by various authors; and, last but certainly not least, the Academy and Alex Benedict series by Jack McDevitt.
Despite being a nerd, there are other types of books I enjoy besides sci-fi and fantasy.  One such genre is mysteries.  I've read quite a few of Agatha Christie's works, and loved all of them.  Lee Goldberg also did a very good job with (some) of the Monk and Diagnosis Murder books, although a few novels in each series--not all of them--were quite crude.  The same goes for Colin Dexter's Inspector Morse series. (If you want to know which ones in those series are not crude, take a look at my book review page on Facebook or LivingSocial.)  Even lesser-known authors such as Jim Walker, Randy Alcorn and Kathy Herman have written some good ones.  Of course, how could I bring up mysteries without mentioning Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, creator of the iconic Sherlock Holmes?
I'm going to make a confession here: Despite being a 23-year-old guy, there has been some fiction that was not intended for people my age and/or gender, but I still really enjoyed it.  One of my recent favorites was Janice Thompson's Weddings by Bella series.  The three books are all reminiscent of classic movie "romcoms" such as While You Were Sleeping, Ella Enchanted and Leap Year.  Other "girly" favorites of mine include Melody Carlson's True Colors series and several books, especially the Above the Line series, by Karen Kingsbury.  When it comes to more guy-friendly juvenile and young adult fiction, I have enjoyed the Alex Rider and Diamond Brothers series by Anthony Horowitz, the Dreamhouse Kings books by Robert Liparulo, the Time Quintet by Madeleine L'Engle, Maximum Ride by James Patterson, and, of course, Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling.
I don't do much non-fiction--other than the Bible, of course--but I will say that the ...For Dummies titles are very informative and fun.  Also, for many years, I have enjoyed the Garfield books by Jim Davis.  I wouldn't call them non-fiction if it weren't for them having Dewey Decimal numbers when I see them on the library shelves.  The Man in the Mirror by Patrick Morley and The Life You've Always Wanted by John Ortberg are Christian devotional books I'm working through right now, and they're good so far.
Whew! What a long post.  Any comments?

Day 3 of 30: My Favorite Television Programs

So, Day Three's post is about my favorite television program(s).  As I did with the "My Favorite Song" post on Day One, I'll do an ordered list of my top six:

6. iCarly.  By now, I think everybody knows what that show is all about; if you don't, I'm sure Wikipedia has a great article on it.  It's a fun show, and a reminder of when times were simpler.

5. Design Star.  Yeah, I know what you're thinking: a show about interior designers? Well, the competition gets intense, and they always have at least one attractive female contestant (such as Emily Henderson last year and Lonni Paul the year before) on there.  It also helps that the people who do the elimination (the judges, that is) know what they're doing, and don't refrain from eliminating someone due to dumb reasons such as infatuation.

4. House of Anubis.  For the uninitiated, Anubis is a British-produced Nickelodeon show about several kids (including one American girl) at a boarding school where strange things are afoot.  It's a wonderful show, and some of the actresses (Nathalia Ramos, Ana Mulvoy Ten, Tasie Dhanraj and Jade Ramsey) are quite beautiful.

3. The Electric Company (the 2009 remake).  I first got into this show because Jenni Barber (who plays Lisa Heffenbacher) reminded me of Ashley Tisdale during her Suite Life days, but I still like it for other reasons as well.  There's supposed to be a season premiere on tonight; hope I get the chance to watch it!

2. American Idol.  Maybe it's only because of how hard I fell for Siobhan Magnus last year--when is her debut album coming out?!!--but I'm interested to see what happens this season.  I haven't seen all the episodes this season, but my favorite so far is Sarah Sellers, who has an outstanding voice and is quite good-looking, especially in those big, thick-rimmed glasses.  (Yes, I like a woman in glasses; I think it's because I was raised around women in glasses.)

1. Victorious.  No surprise there.  This show is hilariously funny, and Victoria Justice is both an amazing actress and a superb singer.  The rest of the cast is good, too; my second favorite cast member is Daniella Monet, who plays Trina, Tori's older sister.

Any comments?

The Demi Lovato Song

The Demi Lovato Song
To the tune of "Got My Mind Set On You" by George Harrison

CHORUS:
I love Demi Lovato! (4x)

Yeah, I love you as Sonny!
You always are just so funny!
And you were great as Mitchie
In Camp Rock 2, now!
And, you're lookin' quite fine!
Oh, how I'd love to make you mine!
You are exactly my type!
A brunette, a Christian
With talent, great talent!
Why wouldn't I think you are great, now?

REPEAT CHORUS

Those rumors 'bout you I hear?
Oh, I have nothing to fear!
I don't even listen to 'em!
There's not even one bit of truth in 'em!

I love Demi Lovato (Lovato) (2x)

That was a great Original Movie
With Selena; oh, it was so funny!
You were just so amazing
As a "fish out of water"!

Yeah, you're so my type!
With you, girl, what isn't to like?
Where else would I be able to find
Such good looks, such talent
All in the same package
Who always will make me feel great?

REPEAT CHORUS

Oh, all that they say is unreal!
They give you a raw deal!
I will never believe any of it,
'Cause I know you didn't do it!

I want to see you on my TV!
I want you to return as Sonny!
Oh, you were insanely funny!
I loved So Random!

Just give it some more time!
Soon, you will be feeling fine!
When you return, I will spend my time
In front of my TV
Watching you as Sonny
And smiling the entire time!

Demi L.!
Love you, girl!

[For you, Demi! You rock! Hope you recover soon!]

Day 2 of 30: My Favorite Movie

I had abandoned the "30 Days" thing, so I figured I should get back to it.  So, what is my favorite movie? You might expect me to say Star Wars, or a movie starring Anne Hathaway or Victoria Justice.  However, as the picture suggests, my favorite film is Spider-Man 2.  The other two parts of the trilogy were good, but this is easily the best installment.  Plenty of action, wonderful messages, amazing special effects, dashes of humor, and a low amount of offensive content, especially for a "PG-13" film.  I love most superhero movies; the X-Men movies (minus Origins: Wolverine,) Sky High, every Batman movie since 1989, and even Superman Returns are all part of my collection, and are great movies.  However, Spider-Man 2 is my favorite movie of all-time in any genre.
Any comments?

25 Facts About Me (New and Improved)

About two years ago, pretty much everyone on Facebook did "25 Facts About Me" notes. I did it back then, and you can find it if you're my Facebook friend and are willing to dig that deep into the archives; I'm not. Things have changed somewhat since then, so I'll post twenty-five (maybe) new facts about me. You might find out things about me you didn't know before! Anyway, here we go.

1. I was once a member of a winning basketball team. We only played once, though, and we won by one basket that was made by a member of the other team.
2. I have recently been watching the 2009 remake of The Electric Company, and have fallen in love with Jenni Barber, who plays Lisa Heffenbacher.
3. Despite having an iPod and loving it, I still use my portable CD player sometimes. I've burned quite a few CDs for myself in the past year.
4. The first movie I ever owned on DVD was Big Fat Liar, which starred Frankie Muniz, Amanda Bynes and Paul Giamatti.
5. I wasn't completely sure what to put on my Christmas list this past year, because so much of what I wanted--DVDs, books, and music--I could easily get from the library.
6. Despite giving up on video games in 2007, I still like some of the music from them. My personal favorite is the first track from Top Gear on the Super NES. It just makes me want to dance!
7. While watching Wheel of Fortune, I usually am able to solve the puzzle early on. The one time I wasn't, it was a complete shock, especially considering that the answer was "Actress Anne Hathaway". (In my defense, I wasn't really paying attention.)
8. One of my new song addictions is "Can't Back Down," from the Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam soundtrack. In my opinion, it's the "We're Not Gonna Take It" of 2010!
9. I really got into this past season of Dancing With the Stars; my three favorites from the beginning were Kyle Massey, Jennifer Grey (who I dubbed "the cougar,") and Bristol Palin (my new crush.) It made me insanely happy that they ended up being the three finalists.
10. Say what you will about dc Talk; their music has stood the test of time like none other in my collection. I have songs from all their studio albums on my iPod, and they sound just as good as they did when they were released.
11. My computer came down with a virus several weeks ago; thanks to AVG and SpyBot, it has been completely cured.
12. I often have "mini-concerts" when my parents are gone. If you're driving or walking down my street and you hear loud music, it's probably my stereo.
13. I have five different 2011 calendars: a Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows one, an Alice in Wonderland one, an iCarly one, a Star Wars one, and a Book Lovers' Page-A-Day one.
14. I have been watching the new season of Idol; my favorite so far is Sarah Sellers.
15. My birthday is thirteen days away.
16. In two months, I will celebrate two years of volunteering at my local library.
17. I have really gotten into the new Nickelodeon show House of Anubis.
18. I absolutely loved Jennifer Stone's reading of Freaky Monday; if you like audiobooks, you should give it a listen.
19. I am eagerly awaiting the premiere of the next season of Design Star.
20. My mom used to joke about Valerie Bertinelli and Barry Bostwick being my favorite actors.  The joke is too long to explain here; ask me sometime, and I'll tell you.
21. Every time I listen to danceable music, I see (in my head, that is) random women dancing like they're in a new Disney Channel musical.
22. I'm still waiting for your debut album, Siobhan Magnus.  Don't keep us "Sha-bon-bons" waiting, girl!
23. My favorite store is MovieStop.
24. I love my new iPad!
25. I didn't think The Last Airbender was as bad as everyone else said it was.
    

My Life = A Series of Fads?

Way back in 2004, I got the album Adam Up by the Christian parody band ApologetiX.  I played some of the songs on it hundreds of times--no exaggeration--and it was my favorite for quite a while.  One of my favorites on there was a spoof of Eminem's "Lose Yourself," titled "Look Yourself."  J. Jackson, the lead singer and parody lyric writer stated that, when he became a Christian, his friends and family didn't think much of it; they just thought it was another fad, and he'd be out of it as quick as he got into it.  Obviously, that wasn't the case, since he became a Christian in 1988 and is still performing in a CCM band to this day.  J. referred to it in "Look Yourself" with this lyric: "That's what'll happen, then, though: he'll go fanatic-y! Better go batten the hatches and hope it don't last!"
I've previously used that lyric as sort of a personal statement.  Sometimes, I wonder if that's exactly what people were thinking when I mentioned some new fascination, like when I walked into my homeroom junior year and announced, "Guess what, everyone? I've got a new celebrity crush!" and proceeded to tell them it was Anne Hathaway...or when I recently announced to my friends both on and off Facebook that Anne was no longer my number one celebrity crush, and had been replaced by Nickelodeon star Victoria Justice.  You may think that my life is nothing but a series of fads, and you'd be right...but only partly.
Why do I say "partly"? For all the short-lived crazes I've been into (Pokémon, Beanie Babies, Diff'rent Strokes, The Magic School Bus, Power Rangers...and the list goes on) there have also been some passions I've had for as far back as I can remember.  One of them is computers.  Ever since I started fiddling around with that old Commodore 64 at the age of two, I've always liked doing all kinds of stuff on them: playing games, making and printing stuff using desktop publishing software, typing out my feelings (like I'm doing right now,) researching things on the Internet, and so on.  Parodies are also a long-time passion.  Even before I really liked popular music all that well, I liked making and singing parodies.  I taught my friends parodies of "Prince Ali" and "Deck the Halls" that I'd heard from other kids, and who can forget the anti-school spoofs, with lyrics such as "Let's blow up stupid [name of school]! Hip, hooray!" or "[Name of school]! Dumb [name of school]! We dis you with our song! No part of us should ever be here, especially when we're gone!" (The latter made my best friend in sixth grade laugh out loud.) It continued from then into now; I still create and love them.
Even some things that I have been into can't really be considered fads.  Wiktionary defines a fad as "a phenomenon that becomes popular for a very short time."  You may think that Anne Hathaway falls into that category for me, but I'll tell you why she doesn't: I first got into her in March 2005, and I still somewhat like her.  (I didn't say I was completely giving her up; I said she was no longer my number one celebrity crush or favorite actress.) Do any of you honestly consider five years and ten months to be a short time?  Even video games weren't a fad with me.  Although I got out of them in 2007, I first got into them around 1999, so that equates to eight years.  Again, do you consider that a short time?
Besides which, many of us--by that, I mean everyone, not just autistics--have gone through fads at some point in our lives.  Remember how kids all over America were all fanatical about Pokémon back in 1999? (I should know; I was one of them.) How many of them have even touched one of those games in the past year? A small percentage, I'd be willing to bet.  Beanie Babies were the same way; people were collecting them in droves and selling them for super-high prices, but, over the past few years, I've seen them countless times at yard sales, often for only a buck or two each, when their starting price in the 90's was over twice that.  For many people of my generation, those things and others (such as Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers) are nothing but embarrassing memories.
I will close by saying this: My tastes in everything have changed over the years.  If you look at the spectrum of music on my iPod, it's a lot broader than my tastes in music were a decade ago.  I also used to detest "tween" shows, but I now have the star of one as my desktop background, and she's not even the first one to be on there.  I'm sure everyone could say that, though; many things they used to hate or laugh at, they ended up quite liking.  Who knows who will replace Victoria, or if she will even be replaced?  For now, though, I will wear my "Team TORi" shirt with pride.
Any comments?

Why Decry Entertainment?

DISCLAIMER: Most of you may recognize a good part of the stories referenced here, but there might be some that stump you.  If you have a question about what I'm referring to in part of this "song," let me know.  Otherwise, enjoy!

WHY DECRY ENTERTAINMENT?
To the tune of "American Pie" by Don McLean

Not all that long ago...
I can still remember
How the TV used to make me smile.
And, I knew I was a big fan
When I played those games every chance
They gave me, and I was happy all the while.
Reality just made me shiver!
All the insults those kids delivered!
All that I could not take!
I just needed an escape!
Some people just cannot see why
Entertainment I really like!
Well, you know what I do not like?
The way it is decried.

CHORUS:
So, why, why, entertainment decry?
There's so much that it has taught me!
I am not gonna lie!
And, it's something that I will continue to like!
Say, now, what new DVDs can I find?
What new, fun novels can I find?

Do you think romantic love
Is never what the TV shows?
I can tell you that's not so!

Back when Lizzie was with Gordo,
He wanted more, she didn't know!
He told her, she smooched him in the last episode!

Well, when Alice was in Wonderland
She saw all kinds of funny things!
That telefilm was so cool,
I just had to read the book!

Spider-Man wasn't having any luck
Defeating vile Doctor Octopus!
But, then, Doc Ock went and saved New York
By risking his own life!
My favorite film!

REPEAT CHORUS

Now, on Tim Taylor's Detroit tool show,
He showed us all the La-Z-Bowl!
It's a comfortable toilet seat!

Garfield eats everything he sees!
And to Odie, he may be mean,
But Odie always acts stupidly!

Oh, and to bring that Prince Char down,
His father poisoned his royal crown!
The plot backfired on him
When the crown touched his own head!

And, while Cody may have had the smarts,
Mr. Moseby still got alarmed
When Cody and Zack went way too far
When fun they tried to find!
It's a great sitcom!

REPEAT CHORUS

That purple car saved those baby animals
And got a ribbon from Outback Al!
Boy, Putt-Putt surely did it fast!

Fudge always loved to make a mess!
He even swallowed his brother's pet!
No wonder Peter Hatcher was so stressed!

Now, the girls thought that Wilde kid was cute!
They loved it when he sang his tunes!
He had so many fans,
Oh, but they did not really know him!

Anakin's only true love was killed
Because to the Dark Side he did yield!
There was so much that was revealed
In Return of the Jedi!
A real good movie!

REPEAT CHORUS

And, there the Enterprise was in space,
When Picard and crew had to face
A guy who was a clone of their captain!

Come on, now: Jumpman's nimble, Jumpman's quick!
As long as you're good with your joystick
And never any of the hazards hit!

Oh, and, when Siobhan they did eliminate
So many people were in a rage!
It just wasn't fair!
Her fan page had the wrong number!

And, Charlie and his Grandpa had such delight
Seeing the factory from the inside!
The other kids didn't make it out all right,
'Cause Wonka they defied!
Read the novel!

REPEAT CHORUS

I spent the night having the blues
When I saw the Seavers up and move!
What did behind that picture say?

Sarah almost made a bad choice!
She gave up on God years before,
But she did again seek and find the Way.

Luke was lying there, suffering
When his father came to his aid!
Vader may have been a machine,
But he was still partly human!

And the thing that I admire most
'Bout movies, games, books, and TV shows?
They make life more enjoyable,
And should not be decried!

That's why I'm singing:
REPEAT CHORUS

Yes, I'm singing:
REPEAT CHORUS