a fairy tale

Once upon a time, I married Shane West. I suddenly remembered this while watching a recent episode of Nikita, my new "guilty pleasure" show. He was on screen, and I literally shouted, "I MARRIED HIM!" Fortunately, I was alone at the time.

Of course, I didn't actually marry West. Rather, I married him in my obituary. In my college news writing class, one of the assignments was to write our own obituaries. I had fun with mine, and it became even better when my sister Val got her hands on it and embellished it a bit more. So I present, for your reading pleasure, my obituary. (Val's additions are in italics. I also just realized that I probably shouldn't put all this personally identifying information out there, so I'm changing and/or leaving out a few things.)

Rebecca West, known as the "Christian Entertainment Voice," died Sunday of natural causes at her home in Central City. She was 85. Because her entire estate was left to one relative, her daughter, Cassandra Kilers, it was at first believed that she had been "done in" in another tragic case of greed by a cold-hearted relative who just couldn't wait. However, because Cassandra was already well-off thanks to the untimely death of her husband, Michael Kilers of Chicago, on whom she had a $1,000,000 life insurance policy, it was decided that she did not need the money and, therefore, did not "buy the farm" for her mother.

Services will be at 2 p.m. Thursday at Swiss Church in Whitewater, Kansas. Pastor Jason McCullogh will officiate. Burial will be in the Whitewater Cemetery. 

Visitation will be from 4 to 8 p.m. on Wednesday at the Lion Funeral Home. Family will be present from 6 to 8 p.m. Memorials are suggested to Nebraska Christian Schools and CAM International.

Mrs. West was born in Kansas to Robert and Susan R. She graduated from Nebraska Christian High School in Central City, attended Central Community College in Grand Island, and received a Bachelor of Arts in English from Grace College in Winona Lake, Indiana. She received a Masters of Education degree from Northwestern University in Chicago in 2008.

On July 19, 2006, she married Dean Cain in Central City. They had three children. Mr. Cain was killed in a skiing accident in 2012. Cassandra was again a suspect early on in the investigation, but it was later determined that it was the malicious ski lodge owner who was jealous of Cain's fabulous abs who spiked the hot cocoa on that fateful day. Because of the influence of the alcohol, Mr. Cain "Just call me Dean" skiied into a tree. On November 25, 2015, she married Shane West of Los Angeles in Whitewater, Kansas. They had one child. 

Mrs. West's great loves were family, education, and entertainment. She combined these loves in her work as the "Christian Entertainment Voice." While doing her graduate work at Northwestern, she wrote a column for the Chicago Sun-Times which reviewed television programs in light of traditional moral values. This column spawned a weekly syndicated television show, "Family Entertainment," which also included movie reviews and interviews with members of the entertainment industry. Critics dubbed her the "Christian Entertainment Voice" due to her family-friendly reviews and her push for morality in Hollywood. 

Mrs. West also had a great love for romance novels, which she read daily. Upon the suggestion of her rustic husband Shane, she decided to try her hand at this "art." Her first book, "Love in Kansas," was based entirely on the exploits of her mother's teens and early twenties. Her second book, "You Skiied into a Tree, and Now I'm All Alone, Unless I Find Someone Else," was based upon the tragedy and triumph of her first husband's death. This was a bestselling book on the "Literature of Kansas" reading list.

 Mrs. West also taught high school English at Puebla Christian School in Mexico and Berean Academy in Elbing, Kansas; served as Chair of the Journalism Department at Multnomah Bible College in Portland; worked on the staff of "Plugged-In Magazine;" and founded and served as editor-in-chief of "Christian Entertainment Quarterly," which she continued to be involved with until her untimely death.

Survivors include her husband of Central City; two daughters, Jennifer Jensen of Whitewater, Kansas, and Cassandra Kilers of Chicago; two sons, Christopher Cain of Winona Lake, Indiana, and Jeremy West of Puebla, Mexico; 12 grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.

She was preceded in death by an infant son, Jesse West; two grandchildren, Sydney Jensen and Jessica Cain; and one great-grandchild, Alec Hernandez. Her favorite saying was, "For all the saiiints who from their labors reeest to Thee by faith before the world confeeeeeeeeeessed." While she lived a seemingly full life, she never fulfilled two dreams; to become Michelle Kwan, and to personally meet the entire cast of the show "Full House."

After reading that, who here thinks Val should blog? Also, according to my timetable, I still have time to marry Shane West. Just sayin'.

my life in television

A few weeks ago, I posted "My Life in Films," based on something I saw on author Kaye Dacus's blog. My friend Holly has since posted on her life in films and books. (I plan to do a book post at some point, too.) It occurred to me, though, that a "My Life in Television" post would be most appropriate for me, as, well, I really like me some TV!

Television Shows that Remind Me of Childhood

• Square One TV: This was, without a doubt, my favorite show as a child. I watched it every day after school, and I still remember many of the featured songs (I hated "Nine, Nine, Nine," but it still comes to mind every time I'm working with multiples of 9, and "The Mathematics of Love," and "Ghost of a Chance" were favorites). I also feel compelled to say (at least in my head), "...is brought to you by erasers. Don't make a mistake without one," whenever anyone says, "Oops!" But Mathnet was my absolute favorite. (This is where I learned the Fibonacci Sequence--"1, 1, 2, 3, 5, Eureka!")
• Zoobilee Zoo: I probably watched Zoobilee Zoo longer than I should have, age-wise. I don't remember much about it now, other than the theme song.

Television Shows that Defined My Teens

• Lois & Clark: Dean Cain wasn't my first celebrity crush, but he's certainly the longest lasting. Would I pass out if I met him today? Probably. I'll never forget where I was when Lois & Clark got married (sort of ... he married a clone of Lois, but we didn't know it at the time)—on a school bus, in a blizzard, writing "Superman, save me!" on the iced-over window with my friend Angie. We were both dying to be at home watching the show with our families.
• Full House: I watched this show pretty much from beginning to end. I always identified with DJ, though I was much closer in age to Stephanie. And now, once again, for your viewing pleasure, the song I always associate with Full House: 
• Friends: The debut of Friends marked an important (and deceitful) time in my life—a time when my brother and I would go to our basement and watch TV shows we knew our parents wouldn't approve of. I was the instigator, of course, but Andrew was a willing participant. Eventually, Mom caught me watching Friends and banned it, and I did pretty well avoid Friends after that (at least until college). All of the other shows, though, we kept watching—but when I look back at the list now, which included Suddenly Susan, The Single Guy, and Veronica's Closet, I wonder ... why? 
• Hang Time: Anyone remember T-NBC? By the time I started watching, the original Saved by the Bell had ended, and California Dreams was in its final seasons. But Hang Time, about a girl who joins the boys' basketball team, I watched from the beginning. It's funny—I can't remember much about the show now (except that Anthony Anderson was the adorable "Teddy")—but I loved it then.
• Star Trek: The Next Generation: This was my first foray into science fiction. My dad always watched TNG on Saturday nights, and many nights, I opened my bedroom door just a crack so I could watch, too. Once I got older, I was actually allowed to stay up and watch with him. 

Television Shows that Defined My College Years

• Gilmore Girls: I'll never understand why Rory broke up with Dean. I would have married Dean ... and I never would have had an affair with married Dean or dated Logan. Yeah, the show went downhill in it's latter years.
• Alias: Gathering with the girls in the Westy 1 lobby to watch Alias ... one of my favorite memories of college!
• Stargate: SG-1: My dad got me hooked on this one, too. This remains my favorite sci-fi show, and I have all 10 seasons on DVD.

Favorite Shows of My Twenties

• Lost: I jumped on the Lost bandwagon the summer after the first season—this was back when the broadcast networks still ran reruns during the summer. I don't know if I've ever been more shocked by an episode of TV than when (GIANT SPOILER ALERT) Michael shot and killed both Ana Lucia and Libby and let Ben (then known as Henry Gale) escape.
• The Office: In seasons two, three, and four, I was a completely loyal viewer of The Office. Somewhere along the line, though, I stopped caring, and I stopped watching. I still love those first seasons, but I have zero interest in what's happening now.
• Monarch of the Glen: I discovered this show, produced by BBC Scotland, when I was looking for something to watch on Netflix streaming. It's so fun! It's sweet, gentle, and funny—perfect for a rainy day.
• Prison Break: While I was watching Lost, my friends Justin and Adair were watching Prison Break. I remember arguing Lost's ridiculousness with them by claiming Prison Break was just as implausible. Then I actually watched the show. Implausible, yes ... and completely enthralling! Season One is one of the best seasons of television I've ever watched. Things do go downhill from there, though, and I never even made it through Season Four.
• Psych: Shawn and Gus make the perfect comedy team. Psych is simply fun to watch—and the 80's and 90's references just make it that much better!

Current Shows I Can't Miss

• Fringe: I've written about my love for Fringe before, so I won't rehash it here. The current season is a bit rocky, but I have faith in the producers.
• Parks & Recreation: When Parks & Rec premiered, I didn't give it the time of day. I thought it was too similar to The Office. While it does employ the same mocumentary format as The Office, Rashida Jones has been a cast member on both shows, and the shows share some of the same producers and writers, Parks & Rec is so much more sincere, humorous, and endearing. While Michael Scott's antics were often cringe-worthy, I find myself always rooting for Leslie Knope. The supporting characters are wonderful, and adding Adam Scott and Rob Lowe to the cast at the end of the second season was genius. Also, there was a shout-out to the Mighty Ducks movies a couple weeks ago—can't go wrong with that!
• Castle: I started watching because of Nathan Fillion. In the beginning, I called Castle a total ripoff of Bones. Well, now I enjoy Castle so much more than Bones, and Rick Castle is my favorite Fillion character. But Castle is about so much more than Fillion—the interplay between Detectives Ryan and Esposito, the Castle/Beckett romance, Alexis's heartbreak, and (last but not least) Lt. Commander Worf as Beckett's therapist—and those aspects all make Castle must-see TV for me. It's one of two shows I actually watch live.

Guilty Pleasure (Scripted)

• Ringer: A nighttime soap if ever there was one, Ringer is ridiculous, melodramatic fun. Sarah Michelle Gellar plays twins Bridget and Siobhan. Bridget is a recovering drug addict who's on the run from both the FBI and a dangerous drug lord. Siobhan is married to Andrew but having an affair with her best friend's husband. When Siobhan disappears, Bridget sees a way to freedom by masquerading as Siobhan, since Siobhan conveniently never told anyone she had a twin sister. It's totally implausible and highly addictive. 

Guilty Pleasure (Reality)

• The Bachelor/ette: I used to look down on those who watched The Bachelor or The Bachelorette. Then one night, I dropped by my parents' house while my sister was watching DeAnna Pappas's season ... and I was hooked. I think I've watched every season since. Also, I'd like to think my interest in The Bachelor helped along a love match ... Janae & Jordan, who will be getting married next month, watched nearly all of the Jake Pavelka season with Blendy and me at my apartment when they were first getting to know each other!

Favorite Show that Few Others Know About

• Dollhouse: This was a short-lived Joss Whedon show on FOX. It was a bit uneven, but when at its best, it was completely mesmerizing. Alan Tudyk absolutely blew my mind—what a phenomenal actor!

Best Show I Discovered on DVD or Streaming

• Firefly: Okay, I didn't technically discover this myself. My brother and sister-in-law brought me their DVDs to borrow because they were sure I would like it. And I did. This is the show that made me first appreciate Nathan Fillion.

Favorite New Show of the 2011-2012 Season

• Once Upon a Time: They had me at "from the writers of LOST." I am absolutely loving this show, which takes place both in "Fairy Tale Land" and modern-day Maine. Go here to watch a preview.

There you have it: the shows that, for better or worse, have been important to me. What does your list look like? Do we share any favorite shows?

"the way home" dvd review

My love for Dean Cain is well documented. So when BookSneeze offered me the chance to review his latest movie, I jumped at the chance!

Cain plays Randy Simpkins, a man whose two-year-old son Joe disappeared while he was supposed to be watching him. When those in the community learn Randy’s son is missing, they turn out in droves to help search for Joe.

I wanted to like this movie. Instead, I just feel ambivalent about it. It was fine; the acting was good, the plot featured plenty of action, and the display of community is one we don’t often see in this age of technology and privacy. But it was lacking … something. At first, I thought perhaps the problem was that I already knew the ending—it’s a true story, and it's not hard to guess what happens. But that’s not it; I’ve thoroughly enjoyed many true-story movies where I already knew the ending. In the end, all I can say is this: The Way Home is a nice, well-produced film that’s safe for the whole family. But it’s probably not a movie you’ll watch over and over again.

I received this dvd free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze book review blogger program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? (11-28-16)

Mondays after holiday weekends are the absolute worst, right? I actually accomplished a lot at work today, but the minutes seemed to tick by sooooooo slowly.

I should probably title today's post "What are you watching?" instead of "reading" ... I read very little last week, but I watched a ton of movies. I did other things like decorating my house for Christmas and catching up on some blogging while I watched, but still.

Review: "#Starstruck" by Sariah Wilson

Here's the thing: it's becoming more and more difficult to tell which books will be clean and which ones won't. I've started some books that looked (and sounded) like they'd be heat-level sweet that turned out to be filled with swearing and sex. Then there are books like #Starstruck that look like they might be erotica but are actually clean. It's so hard to tell, even when you read reviews, which I always do. (I'm not taking about Christian books here, just ones in the general market.)

#Starstruck isn't a book I'd normally pick up, but it was available thru Prime reading, and the reviews made it sound fairly clean. I decided to give it a shot.

25 random things about me

This is the latest facebook obsession. I thought I'd take a page from Melody's book and post mine here.

1. I share a birthday with Pete Sampras and my first real crush. (To clarify: I have the same birthday as the first boy I liked, and I have the same birthday as Pete Sampras. I do not share my first real crush with Pete Sampras.)
2. While You Were Sleeping has been my favorite movie since I saw it in the theater in 8th grade. It will remain my favorite movie until the day I die.
3. I am a horrible multi-tasker.
4. When I was in 2nd grade, I learned that a classmate's father had graduated with my dad. For some reason, I thought this meant we were destined to marry. This troubled me greatly.
5. It's very difficult to convince myself to go to bed early (and by early I mean before midnight)--even during speech season, when I get up at 6:15 on weekdays and 5:30 or earlier on Saturdays. Perhaps this is why I'm crabby during speech.
6. I would probably pass out if I ever met Dean Cain.
7. I went through a phase (OK, a decade) where I was completely obsessed with figure skating. Just ask my siblings.
8. I once turned around in church and saw that Lori Wick was a few rows behind me. Of course, I didn't go talk to her--where were all my bold friends when I needed them?
9. My most despised chore growing up was crushing cans. My dad would bring home huge garbage bags full of cans (most from games at school), and we kids would have to crush and bag them for recycling. The smells, the bees, the fighting with my siblings . . . it was horrible.
10. If you call me but don't leave a message, I won't call you back.
11. I worked as a telemarketer for two summers.
12. My siblings and I once acted out The Sound of Music using my soundtrack. You'd probably like to know how old I was at the time, but I don't want to tell you!
13. During my one and only trip to LA, I unexpectedly got to tour the Gilmore Girls set. No one was around, so we even went into Luke's Diner to take pictures! (Thanks, Regina and Jen!)
14. While on the WB lot, we also met George Lopez. Meeting him did not cause the reaction mentioned in #6.
15. I've started many handwork projects; I rarely see them through to completion. Actually, I think I've only seen one through to completion--the one I gave to my cousin for Christmas.
16. I come off as shyer than I really am because I am very quiet and often don't know what to say.
17. In college, I was "adopted" by a family from my church. The wife was a real mentor to me, and I was able to share my hopes, dreams, and struggles with her in a way that I never before had with an older woman. God brought her into my life at a time when I was really thinking through and struggling with what I believed and why I believed it. I've lost touch with her, but I'll never forget her influence on my life.
18. One of my college roommates and I used to do a wicked impression of the guy who made our coffee.
19. I DESPISE writing captions--or as we call them in yearbook, "cut lines." They are the bane of my existence as a yearbook adviser.
20. I wish I could remember my grandpa better. I have a few clear memories of him before he got sick, but mostly I can only remember the hard times.
21. I hate cleaning.
22. I have a weakness for all things (books, movies, TV shows) time related. If you write a book or make a movie, just throw in a time loop, and I promise I'll buy it.
23. I can't act. At all. Yet I coach the school's speech team.
24. I'm absolutely obsessed with LOST. I could discuss it with you for hours. And yes, it does have a time element to it.
25. My next handwork project (which I WILL finish!) will be completing a cross-stitch wall hanging my grandma started but never finished.

i used to love writing...

Today, I spent my entire lunch break—all 30 minutes—rereading old blog posts both on this blog and on Cinematic Survey. And here's what I remembered, in the midst of occasionally cracking myself up (because really, I totally get my own humor!)—I used to love blogging. I used to love writing. It gave me joy. Whether I was gushing about Dean Cain (it's really the crush that never dies), analyzing Dawson's Creek (a post that led to yet another blog), or simply talking about life, I was writing because I wanted to, not because I had to. I was writing for my own enjoyment, not for anyone else.

Writing takes energy, and that's been in short supply lately. So I've stuck to the bare bones—what I have to do. Don't get me wrong: I enjoy reading and reviewing, but writing a book review doesn't exactly fill my soul with joy. How can I get back to the joy of writing?

I don't have any answers right now, but I know I want to learn to love writing again. And this is a step in the right direction—I had an absolute blast writing this post, and I don't care if anyone besides me enjoys it!

Random cat picture of the day: two of my cuties!

superman!

You know those adolescent crushes--the ones you get on famous people? My first celebrity crush was on Jonathan Brandis (R.I.P.). I had a huge poster of his face on my wall. That crush faded fairly quickly (although the poster remained on my wall for years). It was replaced by a crush that lasted longer than I'd like to admit . . . and evidently isn't quite gone yet. I say it isn't gone because as this page (sent to me by my considerate brother) loaded, and I saw the headline, I squealed. Yes, squealed. I guess Dean Cain still has the ability to make me revert to junior high.

snow day #1

Ah, snow days--one of the benefits of working in education! Today, we had our first snow day of the year. Tomorrow, we'll have our second! I spent a rather lazy day at home, and it was fabulous. I'll have to get some actual work done tomorrow :-)

• I woke up at 11:30. 11:30! When I went to bed last night, I initially set my alarm for 9, but then I decided to just let myself sleep. I had no idea I'd sleep so long, but I woke up feeling wonderfully rested!
  
• Blendy braved the snow to spend the afternoon with me. Or was she spending the afternoon with my fast internet?
• While she was here, we made biscuit pizzas for lunch. They're such kid food, but I still love them!
• I finally cleaned up the living room--it was about time! I also did all my dishes. Again, it was definitely time!
  
• I put up the rest of my Christmas decorations and wrapped some presents. (Note the cross-stitched angel at the top of the tree. One year, Val and I had a colossal fight about what should go on the top of our tree--she thinks this angel is ugly, and I love it! Now that I have my own tree, I can put it wherever I want ... and it fits in well with the rest of my tree!)
  
• After seeing a commercial for Dean Cain's new Christmas movie, I had an urge to watch Lois & Clark. So I did. For hours!
• Janae gave me her recipe for her amazing molasses cookies a few weeks ago, and I finally made them today. They didn't turn out quite as amazing as hers did ... after they cooled, they turned into rocks!
• Check out Cinematic Survey. I finally posted something new!
• I never really had supper ... I just had molasses cookies. So, at 10:30 p.m., I decided to make pancakes! They were delicious.
• Several months ago, I wrote about this cross-stitch project that my grandma started several years ago. My goal was to finish it by her birthday. Well, that didn't happen, but today, as I was trying to figure out what to give her for Christmas, I decided to attempt to finish it before we go to Kansas on the 24th. Do you think it'll happen? (Interestingly enough, the day I wrote about the project was also a snow day.)