Greetings and salutations!

At long last, a much delayed blog entry - and what an entry it is! This particular entry has been given the arduous task of making up for the total lack of entries the last little while. To that end, it will be crammed with a variety of types of information. So let's get on with it, shall we?

Theoretically there has been a great deal of development in my personal life but, seeing as this blog is not meant for covering my personal life, we'll simply leave it out of the picture....or not so much. Rest assured, I'm alive and well, for the most part. Work goes well, though this past week saw some frustrating client related challenges; recreation and health go well; spirituality go well and so on and so forth. A number of decisions are in the process of being made but so what else is new? The family is all right - dad on his way to Red Deer, Jeremy on his way out of SAIT, Mom in B.C., and Shannon on her way to Israel.

I went and saw Sin City the other night. It was ok but not as good as I had hoped. It was fairly obvious that the attempt to meld actual graphic novel format with motion pictures fell short. On the upside though, I got to see someone I haven't in quite some time. This seems to be a trend of late. Also, if I didn't mention it earlier, my close friends seem to be on a mass exodus. Jeremy is leaving to join the RCMP (but a big congrats out to the Perdue family...and to Becca on her baby!!) and Andrew is going away for 6 weeks to Quebec (of all places) and then to Lethbridge...uncool..but congrats to him as well.

The one thing I am personally stoked about is the upcoming E3 Trip! I have booked my flight, my pass is confirmed, and I have my concert tickets! That's right - Nobuo Uematsu and the Black Mages are hosting a symphonic concert at the Universal Amphitheatre the evening of May 16th and I am THERE baby! I'll be in L.A. all week attending the Electronic Entertainment Expo with a bunch of friends. Should be good times! Along with this goes the enjoyment of my new toy, the Sony PSP, which is simply insane, and the countdown to Advent Children continues.

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Amazon Break

Featured Novel: The Myst Reader - Rand Miller
Featured Movie: Finding Neverland
Featured Music: Push the Button - The Chemical Brothers

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Next up...a quick countdown of where I stand on newsworthy or contentious issues of late...I mean, seriously....why the hell not? *S* On second thought...it's really not worth my time to go through the countless issues ranging from Michael Jackson to Terri Schaivo to gay marriage to separation of church & state and so on. You probably have a good idea on my views, and if not, ask. I do want to pass on my condolences to the countless people around the world mourning the passing of Pope John Paul II.

I also want to remind everyone that there is still a story waiting to be written pending the POLL results. Here's something interesting - or a bunch of interesting things that continue to hold my interest:
Megatokyo: Wicked online comic
Red vs Blue: Freaking hilarious machinima series based on Halo
Halo Generals: A C&C Generals Mod = Halo RTS!
Save Toby: Only YOU have the power!

Here's something else interesting - in a recent survey of UofC students, the majority of women rated Personality the most important trait in a potential "mate." Faithfulness came in at number 4. While Looks was the top priority from the male perspective, Trust did come in at number 2. A disturbing 90 % of those surveyed said sex does not imply some form of commitment while 70 % said pre-marital sex helps a marriage. This "experience" argument falls flat against the most recent statistics putting the divorce rate among common law couples at 80 %. The average divorce rate is 45 % but get this - among those couples who were virgins at the time of their marriage, the divorce rate is an amazingly low 5 %....something to think about.

What lies at the heart of the growing inability of today's young people to cope with the idea and commitment of marriage? Ultimately, it comes down to issues of the heart - two of them. Because of idolatry we put people on pedestals and create unrealistic expectations of our partners. When they inevitably fail to meet those expectations, we tend to leave the relationship because it was based on performance rather than love. Selfishness creates walls in our relationships. We negotiate for how much we can get out of them and at what cost. This selfish attitude creates fear and emotional defenses that impact every area of a relationship.

So what is the solution, how can we defeat selfishness and idolatry? There are only two antidotes to these poisons - forgiveness and sacrifice - and too few people today are willing to offer either, but they are both absolutely critical to a healthy relationship. Plato outlined the classic pyramid of love. The base is Eros (romantic infatuation or erotic love). But to move past the base, Philos (a common set of goals and ideals) is required. However, even these forms of love cannot result in a truly healthy relationship. The tip of the pyramid is Agape, the ability to love one another beyond ourselves, to love selflessly. This is the most important kind of love, and the most rare. I truly hope that today's young people begin to learn the truth of what lasting love really is.

With Hope,
Joseph