Clean Up Time

             Changes are coming as promised last Saturday, but the process may be gradual at first.  Don't expect a remarkable transformation to suddenly occur before your eyes--at least none is planned yet.  What may be a big, but almost imperceptible change will be occurring in the upcoming week in this blog.   More on this later.

           First let's look at the big change that occurred over the past week on Tossing It Out.   The week started out with Alex J Cavanaugh's Movie Dirty Dozen Blogfest.  My blog topics turned away from the music fixation that I have had for several weeks as I posted my twelve favorite movies on Monday.  There were about sixty participants in this totally fun blogfest.  I'm still not sure if I got through all of them, but I found a lot of movies I may need to check out over the summer.  Thank you Alex for hosting this wonderfully successful blogfest. 
          As happened with the music favorites lists, I could not confine myself to just one list.  During the course of the week I listed my dozen favorites that came after 1990,  my favorite show biz movies, and my favorite dark movies.   Then on Thursday we had an interesting debate day question about censorship and movies.   There were some sharply divided opinions but as always the discussion was amicable.

          On this upcoming Monday I will return to music with the 10 FAVORITE LOVE SONGS / 10 FAVORITE BREAK UP SONGS list.   If you have some you'd like to suggest, be sure to sign up on the Linky list at the top of the page.  The following days will consist of cleaning up.  I'll begin wrapping up the music and the movies and start moving back to business as usual on Tossing It Out.  There is one more scheduled event which will be the favorite Spanish or Latin albums on Monday July 5th.  After that  music topics may appear on occasion, but this blog won't be all music.

Now please give me your opinion:

      First I have a few questions:    Have you ever seen the number of your followers drop unexplainably?   Would you like it if somebody notified you before they drop you to let you know why?  Was it something you did wrong?   Is there a way to see which follower has dropped you?     

        Do you ever stop following blogs on your list of the blogs you are following?  Here's why I ask--I'm planning to do exactly this.   I have a number of blogs that I follow that I never look at because they don't interest me.  There are also blogs that I have commented on and they never acknowledge me or comment on my posts.   I'm also planning to get rid of some of these.  Now you who are reading this have nothing to fear. If someone is following my blog I will continue to follow theirs.  However if I'm following someone's blog and they do not follow mine and never acknowledge me in any way then I don't see where we have any real relationship and they are taking up space that could be occupied by someone for whom I care more.  My dashboard reading list has become very full and I think housecleaning is due.

        I want your honest opinion.  Am I being petty?  Do you do this sometimes?   Should I notify the parties that I am going to drop just in case there has been an oversight in reciprocation?   I can think of some blogs that have been up longer than mine and regularly post very fine blog bits, yet they rarely get comments and only have a few followers.  Why?  Probably because when someone does comment they rarely acknowledge the commenters and they never seem to make comments elsewhere.  I wonder why they have blogs if they aren't interested in some kind of interaction?

        If any of you have any thoughts about any of this I'd love to hear them.   The way I see it my first change in the interest of helping me organize my blogging activity and free up my time for other things is to start doing some house cleaning.   Please--if you are currently following my blog and I am not following yours, let me know so I can fix that.  Also, if you see that I have stopped following your blog and you are still following mine let me know that I have made an error.  I do plan to notify anyone whose blog I intend to stop following to see if they want to have a reciprocal relationship or if they even care.

        Changes have to be made but I want to do it carefully and fairly--in other words I want to do it right.

         What do you think?

Create a MySpace Music Playlist at MixPod.com

Dirty Dozen Favorites After 1990

           My first Dirty Dozen Favorites are time tested films that were made before 1990.  Today's list includes some of my favorites between 1990 to the current date.  As with the previous list, these are films that made a particular impression upon me that synced with my taste in films.  There are some moral issues in some of these picks such as language, sex, and violence that one might consider before viewing, but I am not going to address those issues here today.

Arlee Bird's Newer Movie Dirty Dozen Favorites:

The Count of Monte Cristo (2002) -- Very satisfying version of this story that is suitable for family viewing.  It is a story about justified revenge.

Pulp Fiction (1994) -- This one gets a pretty hard R rating for violence, language, and sex.  Very cleverly directed film that was inspired by Kiss Me Deadly (see my review from yesterday).  When I saw this film in the theatre I disliked it intensely at first, but after thinking about it I viewed it a second time and liked it a great deal more.  I have since watched this many times.  It is a film that holds up well with repeated viewings if you can deal with the violence and language.

The Patriot (2000) -- This film stars Mel Gibson and I am a fan so that's the first plus for me.  Heath Ledger also co-stars in this film.  It is a story the takes place during the American Revolution and had me cheering for the American patriots.  There is some good war action and a decent story.

Gladiator (2000)--My wife loves Russell Crowe but agrees to stay with me as long as I take her to see his movies.  This one is a really fine sword and sandal epic with some spectacular scenes of warfare and colisseum battles.  Great story that will satisfy with good acting as well.  One of my all time favorite films. 

The Passion of the Christ (2004) -- Several years ago I heard a radio program where a doctor described what the torture and crucifixion of Jesus Christ would have been like and how it would have affected him physically.  I thought to myself that this had never been depicted this way in any of the Jesus movies I had seen and why didn't they make a film that was realistic.  Well, this film does it and does it very effectively.  In Aramaic, Hebrew, and Latin with subtitles, this is a hard hitting film that can have a highly emotional effect upon viewers.

Mulholland Drive (2001) -- A very strange surrealistic experience from the great director David Lynch, who was also responsible for the bizarre television program Twin Peaks.  The film has a hard R rating and not recommended for anyone who is easily offended.  In fact I don't recommend this for anyone who has to have a story that is easily explainable and makes sense.  This is more like a dream than an actual story.  Since I am a fan of this genre, I like this movie a great deal and have watched it several times.  However, there are some moral issues with this film.

Knowing (2009) -- I am a fan of apocalyptic end of the world films and Nicholas Cage.  This movie covers both bases.   Good special effects depicting major disasters and an interesting story.

Apocalypto (2006)-- A film about the Mayan culture before Europeans arrived.  In the Mayan language with subtitles, the dialogue is not as important as the spectacle and the action.  This is an amazing film that is part road trip and part chase.   The scene of the Mayan city is incredible and very realistic feeling.

Being John Malkovich (1999) -- One of the funniest movies on either of my lists, this is truly an original film concept.  The film is mostly funny because it is so bizarre and absurd.  John Cusack plays the part of a puppeteer who, while working at a job as a file clerk, discovers a portal behind a file cabinet.  Anyone who enters this portal is transported into the mind of John Malkovich.  The craziness ensues from this point to become a somewhat tragic story. The cast of characters is strong and John Malkovich is excellent in the role of, well, an imaginary John Malkovich.  This is a thought-provoking, mind-bending philosophical film.





War of the Worlds (2005) -- The 1953 version is a top notch version that ranks high on my list, but this newer version with Tom Cruise is also very good.  The story is set up well with Cruise as just a regular guy caught up in this alien invasion and he must find a way to save himself and his kids.  Some really great special effects.

Gods and Generals (2003) / Gettysburg (1993) -- These films are companion pieces based on source material by the same author, directed by the same director, and with some of the same actors.  Based on the Civil War battle at Gettysburg and events leading up to the battle, the films depict the leaders of both sides as godly men caught up in doing what they believe is right.   There is no real good or bad depicted here other than what comes from war.  The generals question God and themselves as to what they should be doing.  Very faithful look at this tragic era of American history.

          Men With Guns (1997) -- This is a film by the excellent director John Sayles.  The story takes place in an unnamed Latin American country where there is guerilla activity in the back country.  A professor hears that some of his former students are missing and may have been killed by guerillas.  He decides to find out for himself.  From here the film becomes a road journey movie as the professor picks up fellow travelers along the way.  The film is allegorical and spiritual.  It is mostly in Spanish with subtitles except for some American tourists who offer some comic relief.

        Come back the rest of the week as I look at favorite show biz and musical movies, scary and other darker films, and a debate question on Thursday about moral issues in film.    Next Monday June 28 I will be offering a chance to join me in listing 10 FAVORITE LOVE SONGS AND 10 FAVORITE BREAK UP SONGS.   Sign up on the Linky list if you'd like to participate.

Create a MySpace Music Playlist at MixPod.com

I'm Gonna Change

         Something's going to change on this blog.  I don't know exactly what, but I have been tossing around some ideas.  Tossing It Out has been changing since it's inception and that's normal and that's a good thing.  Since the A to Z Challenge I have been seriously reassessing this blog and how it relates to my life, which is something I have been seeing with many other bloggers as well.  I do not plan to blog any less days--I am still aiming toward daily blogging until September 21.   The way I blog may change.

          One change coming up this week will be a switch from music to movies.  Some of you may be saying, "Thank you!".  If you've had enough music already, I'm still not done.  There is a bit more music coming so I can get it out of my system on this blog for a while.  But Monday I will be contributing my list to Alex J. Cavanaugh's Movie Dirty Dozen Blogfest -- twelve of my favorite movies.  Hope you'll check 'em out and let me know what you think.  And I'll busy all day checking up on all of the other lists.  This should be fun.

           During the rest of the week I'll be looking at some of the movies I didn't put on the first list.  And there will be a lot of them.  For one thing, on my Dirty Dozen list I'm not going to include anything less than twenty years old.  That really leaves it open for some great movies to be left off the Dirty Dozen list.  My reasoning in taking this approach is that some things need to stand the test of time.  If it still impacts me after twenty years then it is a film of merit--a classic.  That's the way I approached by favorite album list for the most part and when you're older like me this method works just fine.

             I hope you are going to participate in the Movie Blogfest so we can all share in the experience.  And if you don't contribute I hope you'll check out mine and tell me what you think.

            ....but back to this change thing.  And this has nothing to do with Obama or anything political.  This has to do with Tossing It Out.    I want to hear your opinion.  Is there anything you'd like to see me change on this blog?   What can I do better?   What do you want to see me get rid of?   I'm going to change things, but I don't want to lose readers.  I want to gain more readers.   Can you make a suggestion that might make more people want to read and interact with this blog?   Are you making any changes on your blog?

And Now, time for an award:

       This award was given to me by Swimmer at Books, Writing, and More, Oh My! .  
Since I received this award I have to do a few things.  Here are the award "rules":


1. Thank and link back to the person who gave you this award (as I said this came from the fabulous blog, Swimmer at Books, Writing, and More, Oh My!)

2. Share seven things about yourself (look below)

3. Pass this award along to fifteen bloggers who you have recently discovered and who you think are fantastic for whatever reason! (Since this can be very time consuming I'm not going to check and see whoever already has this, or try to be extraordinarily discriminate, or even give it too much thought-- and as always if you feel like I should have passed this on to you, then feel free to take it and then follow these instructions).

4. Contact the bloggers you’ve picked and let them know about the award  (I'm going to change this rule for me.  I'm not going to contact 15 people--if I come up with that many.  If you see it, you got it.  If you missed it, well that's life.  Sorry, don't mean to sound callous or anything but I'm running out of time here.)

Seven things about me:

1. I like change.
2. I used to change my kids diapers sometimes (I don't like that kind of change)
3 I've never changed horses in the middle of a stream (not literally at least)
4. I usually signal when I change lanes on the highway.
5. I'm not afraid to change my mind if I see my plan is not the best.
6. I often carry a lot of change in my pocket.
7. My blog is going to change--stay tuned.


I bestow this award upon the following:

1.    Yvonne Welcome to My World of Poetry   -- she always gets my awards and she is very versatile.
2.    L. Diane Wolfe at Spunk on a Stick
3,    Alex J. Cavanaugh 
4.   Glen's Blog Spot
5.  Gregg at Gospel Driven Disciples
6.  Wolfie at Writer Person
7.  Trudy at Third Time's a Charm
8.  Ocean Girl
9.  Carol at Under the Tiki Hut
10.  Jemi at Just Jemi
11.  1 Wasabi Mommy
12.  Ruby at Blabbin' Grammy
13.   Rotten With Images
14.   Sig at Beadedbear's Nonsense and Complete Waste of Time
15.   Ellie at Ella's Edge

Create a MySpace Music Playlist at MixPod.com

All This and Heaven Too

         Today's blog entry has nothing to do with the Bette Davis movie, but the title seemed topic appropriate.  This coming week will be themed around the HEAVEN ELEVEN FAVORITE RELIGIOUS ALBUMS.  Since Tossing It Out has temporarily become mostly music, we have been looking at lists of various favorites in different music genres and then looking into some details about those genres. This past week we talked about country music and in the week to come we are going to be dealing with religious music.

          Originally I had planned on the eleven favorite Christian albums, but then I realized that I could be excluding some who may be listening to the music of other religions and decided to broaden the scope to include anyone who wants to make a contribution.  Even if you've already done your albums on a previous list, feel free to contribute to this new list because maybe there are some who missed your list the first time. Or you can even list some favorites you didn't include on your first list.  All music genres can be included.  I will be primarily focusing my list on Contemporary Christian Music, but I plan to have at least one Southern Gospel, and one non-Christian religious album by a group that you may have not realized was promoting a religion-- and I'm not referring to Scientology.

         On Wednesday and Friday I will have some detailed stories about some of the music.  Of course, Thursday is Debate Day and I will be offering up a topic concerning religious music.  The theme on Tuesday will be a little bit different as I verve away from music.  I will be reviewing a book that is being released this Monday called Delivering Happiness by Tony Hsieh (pronounced "Shay").  Tony is an internet entrepreneur and currently the CEO of internet company Zappos.com.  I "won" the book from the Optimal Optimist and since it is a new release I thought this would be an optimal time to review the book. After all, the book deals with a kind of corporate "heaven".

          Last Sunday I began a Bible study on the book of Jonah.   I plan to continue this series for several weeks.  If you are interested in the Bible I hope you will join me in this and add your thoughts.  If you are not interested in the Bible I hope you will still join us and add your thoughts as well.  I'd like to hear any ideas about the topics we'll be looking at in this study. 

          If you want to contribute your HEAVEN ELEVEN FAVORITE RELIGIOUS ALBUMS, then please sign up on the Linky list at the top of the page.   On Monday June 14 I will be doing my TIMELESS TWELVE CLASSICAL FAVORITES and hope some of you are willing to contribute to this one -- this Linky list will appear in the middle of next week.  Then on Wednesday June 16th a few of us are planning two top ten song lists of BEST DRINKING SONGS and BEST DRIVING SONGS.  Anyone who wants to join us is welcome cause the more the merrier.   I'll have more details on the song lists later.

          And do not forget the DIRTY DOZEN MOVIE BLOGFEST on Monday June 21st hosted by Alex J Cavanaugh.   A Linky list for this can be found below.

          Lot's coming up--hope you'll join me in the days and weeks to come.

        

Create a MySpace Music Playlist at MixPod.com

And the Bands Play On

          And the unrelenting musical assault from Tossing It Out continues.  I haven't heard any complaints yet, although the hits to my daily posts have gone down, which I expected after the A to Z Challenge.  So unless I get a lot of requests for me to stop, I will continue to post my musical musings for a few more weeks.

          On Monday I am posting another favorites list and as before anyone is invited to join me in posting their own.  This coming Monday May 31 I will be offering Country Top Ten Favorites.  The Linky list is up on top of the page if you'd like to sign up before the event day.  Or you can post your 10 Favorites list and then add your name to the Linky list.  Hope you'll join us wth your own list if you have any opinions about country music. And if not I hope you'll stop by to hear what I and others have to say about it.

         Upcoming Mondays will be seeing some additional lists.  On June 7 I will be presenting my Heaven Eleven favorite Christian (or other religion if you wish) albums.  Then June 14 will be the Timeless Twelve Classical Favorites--this will be a tough one because I realize classical is not the most popular musical style out there, so I hope a few of you will consider participating in this one to help educate the rest of us.  Like jazz, music we typically call classical covers a broad range of styles and interpretation as to what it is.  Classical can include film soundtrack music such as the music of John Williams.  As in the other lists I will leave this to your personal interpretation as to what it is.   Watch for each Linky list as I will put those up a few days before each event.

        The biggest Monday event will come on June 21 (yay! first day of summer).  This will be THE MOVIE DIRTY DOZEN hosted by Alex J Cavanaugh.   Be watching Alex's site this coming Tuesday June 1st for his special announcement about this event.  I'm sure many will enjoy participating in this one.

         As for the rest of the week, I will be sticking with the general format of the past week.  After my Monday favorites list I will have posts that look a little more in depth at some of the albums on my FIFTEEN FANTASY ISLAND FAVORITES list plus albums from other lists, and any other albums I just happen to think of.  So in the upcoming week you can expect to see stories about country music as well other styles that influenced country or were influenced by country.  Please non-country fans don't be scared off because I'm hoping to make the topics palatable to all.

            By the way, some of you may have noticed that I have been adding playlists to the daily posts that give samples of the music I am talking about in my daily posts.  I'm trying to find songs that are direct examples of what I've discussed or representative of an artist I've talked about.  I hope you have enjoyed these song lists.  It's something new I've learned and I'm having fun with it.

          Another happening is SPUNK ON A STICK's contest.  L. Diane Wolfe has passed her 200 follower milestone and if she hits 250 by the end of May she'll up the ante.  Either way there are some fine prizes in store.   If you aren't following her yet, jump on over and let her know I sent you.   While you're at Spunky's site you might be very interested in two excellent posts she did this past week about self-publishing and querying agents--excellent information for anyone who would like to publish a book.

         Also ending on May 31st is B. Miller's Pay It Forward contest.  You still have time to jump in on that one, so check it out.

A Manly Award:

Alex J Cavanaugh bestowed the following award upon me and being a man award I guess I don't have give it to anyone, but if you want it you can have it.

Thank you Alex!

Have a great Memorial Day weekend and hope to see you often during the upcoming week.