Blog Archives

A Mind Trip Unlike Any Other

The man’s name was Robin Williams. The man’s occupation was making people laugh. And the formula for comedy is tragedy plus time.

We owe Robin Williams, the man who made us laugh out loud and cry like no other comic (Mrs. Doubtfire, dears), to take the time to hear and understand his personal tragedy that, evidently, was a parallel force pulling at the imaginative, faster-than-lightning comedic genius.

This brand new trailer for the brand new HBO documentary ‘Robin Williams: Come Inside My Mind’ will make us laugh and make us cry. Hopefully, HBO has timed the release date of Monday, July 16 at 8 p.m. ET correctly so audiences can appreciate both emotions separately and as one.

One final picture of the art form known as Robin Williams.

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Radio? Who Needs the Radio?

When it rains, it pours.

While NPR isn’t a daily struggle of mine–or issue whatsoever–the sentiment between the radio network and Zach Galifianakis certainly rings true. We feel comfortable for a moment. Things seem to be going well, perhaps even on the verge of something great. And then the boom is lowered.

How should we react?

Not wearing (and keeping off) a t-shirt related to that thing is a good start.

Hugh’s Glass Was Famously Half Full

With the weather still cold (well, it is winter after all) and snow flakes falling here and there, one sound keeps floating to the front of my mind.

Along with an image of Leonardo DiCaprio.

Let me explain.

The Revenant, which premiered in theaters back in late 2015, took audiences on an epic tale of a remarkable true story of Hugh Glass (played by Mr. DiCaprio) who is left for dead in 1823, yet fights for his life in the freezing, punishing conditions of the wilderness of the American west. Equipped with essentially nothing but his know-how and relentless grit, the movie spotlights the wonder of nature, as well as the crutch and handicap of solitude.

For some reason, the short theme music from The Revenant remains a distinctly mysterious and intriguing orchestral piece. As such, the music provides a rare few minutes to pause from bracing with the chilly weather and our lives to simply reflect. On what, exactly? That’s purely your call. However, we occasionally need time to take a break (and then break off a piece of a Kit Kat bar) to allow things to settle in and just be for a few moments.

Revenant is defined as, “a person who has returned, especially supposedly from the dead.” Maybe the music above has allowed you to return (or figure out the next step) from a dead end or deep struggle you’ve been having.

Or, perhaps the music and image from the video is a reminder to check how days it is until spring arrives.

Either way, fair enough.

Chapel Thrill

For those who wonder why so many soccer players celebrate by pointing their fingers towards Heaven…

Soccer (or football) is known as the beautiful game. As a lifelong player and fan, I can and will attest to this description with the power of a thousand suns.

Like many sports, our personal favorite(s) often reveal a philosophical belief in how we go about life on a daily basis. The specific strategy, urgency, patience, necessities, rewards, setbacks, effort and so forth of any sport can typically be closely translated into how we view our work, jobs and the complexities of our personal lives.

The following segment from a 60 Minutes interview with FC Barcelona star Gerard Piqué from 2013 struck something inside me as a viewer, a soccer player/fan and a Christian. During the time of this interview, FC Barcelona was regarded as the best soccer club in the world. With all the star power in its starting eleven and the fanfare surrounding this team in Catalonia, take a look at what the designers of the Camp Nou believed was a must-have in the walkway from the locker room to the world famous pitch.

Despite not being a Barça fan, the chapel in Camp Nou showcases (in its uniquely intimate, off-to-the-side kind of way) the link many soccer players have when it comes to their belief in God as it pertains to the beautiful game.

That’s living and embracing the beautiful game on and off the pitch.