Book Review - The Last Battle

With great sadness, I read the last book of the Chronicles of Narnia. I've enjoyed the series enormously. The Last Battle which is the final book in the series was another outstanding book. It tells of the last King of Narnia Tirian and how he and Narnia are betrayed by an evil scheming talking ape called Shift. Shift gets a donkey friend of his called Puzzle to don a lion skin and impersonate Aslan, the great lion. Shift uses the Puzzle as the fake Aslan to gain the support of numerous talking beasts. He also uses the fake Aslan to gain power in Narnia which he subsequently betrays to the Calormen, a Persian like empire that borders Archenland and Narnia. Tirian discovers Shifts treachery but is unable to save Narnia. He and a few supporters fight the Calormen and animals supporting Shift in one last battle. At the same time, Shift and the Calormen called upon Tash and to their surprise Tash answers! Tash is the God the Calormen worship and is in fact a demon with the head of bird, four arms ending in claws, and a very deadly presence. If that isn't enough, Aslan also appears and saves Tirian as well as Eustace Scrubb and Jill Pole who are sent to Tirian's aid. Ultimately, Tirian loses the last battle but, Aslan causes the world of Narnia to be destroyed. In an allegory to Christian doctrine, every animal and being has to go before Aslan. If the animal or being loved Aslan, he or she goes to the "real" Narnia (the one all the kids have adventures in is a shadow of the "real" Narnia). If they don't love Aslan, they are sent to the land of Tash the Demon where they undoubtedly suffer terribly. Christian doctrine says that at the last judgement, every person, both believer and unbeliever will come before Jesus Christ and be judged. If they accepted Jesus Christ as their saviour, they will join Jesus Christ in heaven forever. If they rejected him, they are cast into the lake of fire with the evil one and his fallen angels. You can see the similarity. Like those who go to heaven, all those who go to Aslan's land know perfect contentment and can never sin again. In the "real" Narnia, life will be many times better than it ever was in the "shadow" Narnia. This is like how it supposedly will be in heaven.

In a touching ending, all the kids who played such key parts in Narnia come back except for Susan Pevensie who it seems can't be bothered with childish Narnia. She has more important things like lipstick, pantyhose, and staying forever 25. The other kids know what is important and do what they can for Narnia. Because of this, they get to return to the "real" Narnia forever where they will be with their Narnian friends. It's a beautiful ending to a wonderful series.

Overall, the book is excellent as is the whole Narnia series. My only complaint is I wish C. S. Lewis had written more of them. I've truly enjoyed the books. I would heartily recommend them to anyone. I would give one bit of advice. I would recommend you buy the books in a set as you could save some serious money. I bought the entire series at Sam's Club for $28. Separately, the books would've cost $7 each or $49 total not including tax. My set came with a box too which makes it easier to keep them all together. While the books are meant for kids, I think adults can enjoy them too. They are wonderful fantasy with great messages about faith, courage, love, redemption, and friendship. I can't wait for Disney to do the movies based on the books. As long as Disney stays true to the books, the movies should be a great success. Just a reminder, it will be in April that the first Narnia movie will be released on DVD. Please check my earlier blog on this for the exact date. Cheers!

Guns N' Roses

One rock group that erupted on the scene, got some mega hits, and then self destructed was Guns N' Roses. For years, they remained apart and I personally believed they were finished. Apparently, that isn't the case. I found out on www.contactmusic.com that Guns N' Roses will be coming out with their first album in 13 years in March. I haven't heard any previews of the songs on the album yet so we'll have to see if it ends up being any good. Still, it is something to keep an eye out for.

Snow

We got a bit of snow in Maryland last night. When I awoke (probably around 5 a.m.), the power was out and everything outside was covered in the white stuff. I got dressed, went outside, dug in the snow, and guesstimated that we received between 5 and 6 inches of snow. Later, I dug my car out and cleared away the snow around Tami's parent's car. Around noon, the power came back on thankfully. According to Baltimore Gas & Electric's website, over 56,000 people in Anne Arundel county were at one point without power. I can only guess that a major power line went down some where. Right now, it looks very pretty outside. Who knows how long it'll last though. It can be freezing one week in Maryland and in the 60's two weeks later. Hopefully, this will be winter's last hurrah. If that is the case, I'll count my blessings as I think we've had a very mild winter this year.

Book Review - The Silver Chair

I finished the sixth book of the Chronicles of Narnia called The Silver Chair. I found it outstanding like the rest of the books in the chronicles. The story introduces us to Eustace Scrubb who in his desire to escape his terrible school returns to Narnia for a new adventure. His classmate Jill Pole comes along and is introduced to Narnia and becomes one of the key heroes in the story. The two find out that King Caspian's son Prince Rilian has been missing a number of years. Aslan gives them four signs to watch out for and assigns them the task of finding the missing prince. Along the way, the two will meet a marsh-wiggle named Puddleglum who will join them on their quest. They'll discover bad giants eat humans and narrowly escape the giants whose clutches they unwittingly walked into. The meet a people called Gnomes who are under the spell of a witch. And finally, they meet Prince Rilian though they don't know it initially. At first, they think the knight who is in fact Prince Rilian is a total prick but, it turns out the prince is worthy of his great father King Caspian (the same Caspian we meet in Prince Caspian and The Voyage of the Dawn Treader). It is here that they are confronted with the fourth sign that Aslan told them to watch for. The three adventurers messed up on the previous three signs. They are determined no matter what, they won't mess up on the fourth. Unknowingly, they help free the prince of the witch's spell and end up doing battle with her. Ultimately they triumph and foil the witch's plans to takeover Narnia. Sadly, Prince Rilian returns in time to say a few last words to his dying father. Eustace and Jill depart with Aslan to Aslan's mountains where they see the dead King Caspian. It is there that we get to see references to Jesus Christ. Aslan tells Eustace to pick a thorn from a bush nearby. Those who remember Christ, remember he was crowned with a crown of thorns. Aslan has Eustace pierce one of his paws with the thorn and then allows a single drop of his blood to touch the dead King Caspian. Caspian comes back to life and is made young again. This is another reference to Christ as it is through his blood that we can be given eternal life like Caspian if we believe in Christ. Caspian will now remain forever young in Aslan's land. Eustace and Jill expect to stay there too but Aslan says now is not the time. Caspian asks Aslan if he may visit Eustace and Jill's world and Aslan permits him too for 5 earth minutes. Here, there is another reference to Christianity for Aslan tells Caspian he can't think anything evil anymore. Christian doctrine teaches that once we who believe in Christ die, we are freed forever from our sin nature and will sin no more. The entire group summarily returns to Eustace and Jill's school where Aslan and Caspian help them defeat the school bullies. Aslan and Caspian return to Aslan's realm but the adventures of Eustace and Jill in Narnia aren't over. They'll be called back one last time in the last book in the chronicles called The Last Battle.

Overall, the book is excellent with plenty of ups and downs. I think this book will make a great movie too and I hope the Disney folks will turn it into one. My only regret with the book is there is only one more book in the Chronicles series. I wish C. S. Lewis had written more of them. Stay tuned for my book review on The Last Battle.

Book Review - The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

I finished the fifth book of the Chronicles of Narnia series today. The fifth book is called The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. The book brings back Edmund and Lucy and a new character Eustace Scrubb. Eustace is a cousin of Edmund's and Lucy's whom they happen to be visiting. At the beginning of the story, Eustace is a total prick but through various adventures and misadventures Eustace will change like Edmund did and become a decent kid. The story also brings back Caspian who is now King and is off on an expedition to find seven lords who were "encouraged" to leave Narnia by Caspian's usurping Uncle Miraz. The voyage has a number of adventures before reaching the edge of the world. Narnia unlike our world is flat and eventually they nearly reach the land where Aslan and his father the Emperor live. Here Lucy, Edmund, Eustace, and the mouse knight Reepicheep will leave the ship and successfully reach the land where Aslan lives. Here, we will again see clear references to Christianity. Aslan appears to the Lucy, Edmund, and Eustace as a lamb. Aslan tells them that on their world (earth) he is known by another name. He also tells Lucy and Edmund that from now on, they will have to get to know him by that name and that they won't be allowed to return to Narnia any more. It seems they have gotten too old. The book also shows another reference to Christianity when Aslan provides lots of fish for the children to eat. One interesting point Aslan brings up is that Aslan and the land he lives in can be reached from all worlds. It is interesting to ponder that there might be other worlds and races that also know Jesus Christ. One final note, Aslan also reveals to the children that the reason he allowed Lucy and Edmund to return to Narnia was so they would get to know him better. This same reason may be why C.S. Lewis wrote the books in the first place. The books have been a wonderful way to teach various Christian themes and doctrines.

Overall, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader is another outstanding book in the series. It sends a number of good messages about greed, fear, friendship, and redemption to kids. Adults however can also enjoy the book. After finishing this book, I couldn't wait to read the next one The Silver Chair. Stay tuned for the future review on that book. Cheers!

Book Review - The Big Sea

The latest book I had to read for the college class I'm taking is Langston Hughes' The Big Sea. The book is an autobiography that tells of Hughes life up to 1930 or so. It is interesting autobiography because it is more than a tale of Hughes' life, it is a window into Harlem's heyday and of Paris in the 1920's when it was the city to live in for writers and other artists. Hughes own life is sad as at an early age, his parents divorced. His mother who at one time left him with his grandmother and then a beloved Uncle and Aunt would move around a lot in search of a better job or a better place to live. It was a hard life for a young kid. It was made worse because Hughes was black. The racism prevalent during that time was terrible. Many jobs were closed to Americans of African descent. The attitudes of some of the southerners Hughes talks about are shockingly sad. At one point in Hughes' life, he teaches english in Mexico. His replacement is a lady from Arkansas who can't get to grips with the fact that her predecessor who is a black man was capable of teaching classes in English  Amazingly too with all the terrible racism, Hughes keeps a positive outlook and shows no sign of bitterness in the book even when he is beaten by a gang of white kids because he went into a neighborhood they felt he didn't belong in. It's an incredible story.

Overall, I found the autobiography excellent. Hughes lived an incredible life. He was a man who was determined that African-Americans should receive the same rights as white Americans. The story tells of how he worked for that end. The college that Hughes went to was a school whose goal was to teach future African-American leaders. Yet, when Hughes went to the college, the school didn't have a single African-American professor, trustee, or member of the board. Hughes did a study that showed how the school was failing instill confidence in the students by its whites only policy. Within 10 years of Hughes study, the college would have African-American professors and trustees. Hughes attitude in the face of incredible racism is also inspiring. He never let the racists get him down. And, as he says at the end of the autobiography, he continued to keep plugging away at his writing and for his fellow African-Americans whom he loved. I would heartily recommend this book to anyone.

Sprint's PCS Connection Cards

First, before I get started let me state that the following opinions are my own and are in no way influenced by Sprint. Sprint also hasn't paid me any kind of remuneration for my endorsement of their PCS connection cards.

One service I use that Sprint offers is their internet service using one of their PCS connection cards on my laptop computer. What a PCS connection card is basically a cell phone made for a computer that can enable it to access the internet via Sprint's cellular phone network. The big plus of these cards is that any where in the U.S. where you can pick up a Sprint cell phone signal, you can hook-up to the internet. For an internet junkie like myself, this can be priceless. I big time like to surf the web, get the latest news, and check my emails regularly. Thanks to Sprint's PCS connection card I can.

Sprint offers two of the cards. As far as I was able to determine, there wasn't any difference in capability. Both supposedly worked well. I ended up going with their Nokia card. Connection wise, the card enables you to hook-up to the internet at a minimum of 400 kbps with a top speed of 2 Mbps. This is equal to a broadband connection with the advantage that you can take it with you. The disadvantages is the price of the card and the cost of downloading. Even with a rebate, my new PCS connection card ended up costing over $100. I've heard you can get a cable modem for $25. Also, Sprint has various plans where you can decide how much you think you'll download off the internet. If you think you're going to use it LOTS like I do, you would be smart to get unlimited download though that will cost you either $60 a month with a 2-year agreement of $80 a month with a 1-year agreement. I think someone told me cable internet service would cost you $50 a month so you pay more for being mobile.

Realistically, the service is intended for the travelling business executive who needs to be able to access the internet any time they want while in the U.S. However, those who travel a lot may find the service handy. I like to take the train down to Richmond to see my friend Harvey or fly home to see my parents, and it's really nice to be to access the internet any time I want. The service also guarantees that I won't have any problem doing my college class assignments if I'm travelling. Lastly, the service can save you money. I remember staying at the Grand Hyatt in New York City. They wanted 50 cents a minute to access the internet on one of their computers in their business center. I've rarely been so glad I had my PCS connection card as I was then.

Overall, the service isn't for every body. It very much depends on how much you need to access the internet. Also, how much you travel would determine how much you would need the card and service. If you travel a fair amount and need to access the internet, the Sprint PCS connection card may be ideal for you. If you don't, it would be cheaper for you to use a cable modem service. One other consideration about the card. If you don't have cable service available, you might want to check into the card as it does enable you to have cable modem speed without having to get your yard dug up to install the cable modem. I personally very much enjoy the service. Whether it is right for you, only you can decide. It is in my opinion, an option worth considering.

Steelers Win Super Bowl XL

I watched the Super Bowl last night and it ended up being one nail-biting game. Seattle definitely came out to play and for a while it seemed only the Steeler's defense had bothered to show up for the game. The first four times the Steeler's had the ball, they couldn't escape their 20-yard zone. They looked hopelessly pathetic. Finally, the Steeler's offense did get going only to have Ben Roethisberger throw two interceptions including the one at seven and goal which left me speechless. I can't help but wonder if he even looked where he intended to throw the ball before he unloaded it. Still, the Steelers defense did its renowned job and Roethisberger managed to put enough points on the board to win the game. I've heard the officiating hurt the Seahawks but I think the Seahawks got some breaks too. I remember when their quarterback fumbled and the officials said he'd been hit by a Steeler and that some how negated the fumble. The Steeler managed to get one hand on his jersey as he was already going down. I don't consider that a hit. I will concede that a passing interference against Seattle which cost them a touchdown looked bogus. The push the Seattle player did on the Pittsburgh player had no effect on stopping the Pittsburgh player. Still, great teams overcome such calls and I thought Seattle would. I was absolutely amazed when their quarterback got intercepted down on the 4 or 5 yard line. That led to an incredible special play by Pittsburgh where one of their wide receivers threw a touchdown pass. It was a play to remember.

Overall, it was a good Super Bowl. The first half wasn't terribly exciting but the second half was. Many kudos to Seattle, they played a great game and in my opinion they had the better offense. Lastly, many thanks to Jerome Bettis for the memories. He's a class act. I know Pittsburgh will miss him.

Book Review

The latest book I had to read for the college class I'm taking was Willa Cather's My Antonia. The book tells of two children who arrive in late 1800's Nebraska. One is a recently orphaned boy and the other is an immigrant girl from Bohemia named Antonia. The two become friends. The story mainly focuses on Antonia through the eyes of the boy named Jim Burden. It tells of her life as well as the lives of immigrants that settled in Nebraska during that time. Their lives were very hard and the book doesn't try to hide that. It also shows something that was lost as more and more people moved off the land and into the towns and later cities. Jim will become extremely successful as a lawyer and yet he'll be unhappy with his wealth and success. Antonia will ultimately return to the land, get married, work very hard, and raise TEN kids. It would appear it isn't a life guaranteed to bring happiness and yet she does unlike Jim. Cather also shows her ability to paint pictures with words as she describes vividly life in Nebraska during those times.

Overall, the book is a beautiful tale of an incredible and indomitable woman. It also makes the reader wonder what has been lost in our more modern times. Lastly, it tells the important part immigrants played in the expansion of the U.S. and the richness they added to this country. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who wants to read of a time past and lost as well as the people who helped this country grow during those times.

Book Review - Prince Caspian

I'd heard from a fellow blogger that Disney wants to make the book Prince Caspian the next Chronicles of Narnia movie. One reason supposedly why is because that way they could use the same kids from the first movie. It's a smart move in that way though I think it's a smart move in that book should crossover to the screen really well and follow The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe really well. The reason for this is because the kids return to Narnia a year later Earth time. In Narnia, it is clear that their time is very different from Earth time. The kids while waiting for the trains that will take them to school suddenly disappear and find themselves on unknown beach. They have no idea how they got there or why. They further discover that they're on an island. Then, they discover the remains of Cair Paravel. Cair Paravel was where they were crowned as the Kings and Queens of Narnia and where they lived for a number of years before they returned to Earth. It becomes clear that they've been gone a long time. They discover that years before, Narnia was invaded and conquered. The boy (Prince Caspian) who should be King has his throne usurped by his Uncle Miraz. Prince Caspian discovers the old Narnians i.e. the talking animals, dwarves, and centaurs and wants to help them. It is the prince that blows Susan's magical horn that causes the four Pevensey kids to be brought back to Narnia where they end helping put Prince Caspian on the throne of Narnia.

The story moves well and isn't too long. My only complaint with the book is it is the last of the Narnia books that has all four Pevensey kids in the Chronicles. Three of the kids do come back in the last of the books but still, it saddens me that this is the last book all of them will be in. I wish C.S. Lewis had written more Narnia stories with them in them. I think the book will crossover to the silver screen well and I suspect that is another reason why Disney chose it. It follows the first Narnia movie well, has lots of good action, and some nice plot twists. Overall, the book is excellent and I'd recommend it to readers of all ages. I hope the rumors that Disney will make this the next Narnia movie are true. If so, it should be an excellent movie.

Lord of the Rings

Recently, I discovered a feature on the extended versions of the Lord of the Rings films I didn't previously know about. When you put in the first of the film discs, instead of clicking on the movie, click on special effects. When that menu comes up, it offers special effects crew, someone else, and the cast, click on cast. What happens is that the movie starts playing and you get to hear the actors and actresses talk about the various scenes in the movie as they come up. It can be really interesting to hear their takes on the various scenes as well as their experiences when they were shooting the movies. This feature I believe is offered with each one of the extended versions of the films. It's pretty cool and it might be something you'd want to check out.

Book Review

I finished the third book in the Chronicles of Narnia yesterday. I continue to be extremely pleased with the books. They're really nice fantasy and yet, they also contain teaching about Jesus Christ. The third book is titled The Horse and His Boy. It is about a boy named Shasta who helps his poor fisherman father Arsheesh. It tells of his adventures when he meets a horse from Narnia who was horseknapped and sold in Calormen. The horse (Bree) talks and tells Shasta that a local lord plans to buy him. In order to avoid being sold by his father, he and the horse run away with the hope of reaching Narnia. Along the way, Shasta meets a young female runaway named Aravis who has left home because she is determined she won't marry a 60-year old man who becomes the Grand Vizier. She too has a talking horse that likewise had been horseknapped and sold in the empire of Calormen (a very Arabesque type empire). The party of four suffer various misadventures in the capital of Calormen. Shasta will discover and make friends of a prince of Archenland who happens to look just like him. Aravis will discover a plot that threatens Archenland and possibly Narnia. Later, the four get back together and do their best to foil the plot against Archenland. In the process, Shasta discovers that his true father is the King of Archenland. He helps foil the threat against Archenland through the help of Aslan. It is the meeting between Aslan that another allegory is drawn with Christ. Shasta moans about all his misfortune and Aslan shows that he wasn't misfortunate at all. Aslan shows that he repeatedly came to Shasta's aid when he was in grave peril. The allegory is about when Christ repeatedly comes to our aid during our darkest hours. I remember reading about a story of meeting between a man and Christ. The man looks along a beach and sees the walk of his life. At times, he sees two sets of foot prints and other times one. He notices that at the worst times in his life, there was only one set of foot prints. He remarks to Christ that Christ seemed to only be with him during the good times. Christ remarks that he was indeed with him during the good times BUT the reason there is only one set of foot prints during the man's hard times is because it was Christ who walked and carried the man. The story with Shasta is the same. It is a very touching story. Another interesting aspect of this book is that it is during the reigns of the Pevensy children after they defeated the Witch in the second book. We get to see Queen's Susan and Lucy and King Edmund. King Peter is mentioned in the story but plays no real part in the plot as he is off fighting evil giants in the north of Narnia.

The book is an easy read. It has only 241 pages. The storyline moves along well and never drags. Overall, the book is excellent. It should delight readers of all ages. I look forward to reading Prince Caspian which is the next book in the Chronicles of Narnia series.

Forklift Safety Training

I'm not someone who is mechanically inclined. I can operate machines after I've been shown how but I'm not someone who takes to them immediately. So it was with some trepidation that I signed up for a forklift safety training course at Alliance Material Handling Inc. I signed up for the course because I wanted to be able to operate the forklifts the Washington D.C. SHARE has. Until you take the course, you're not suppose to operate a forklift though some people still do. Forklifts are incredible machines. They can enable the operator to easily move thousands of pounds of material from one place to another. At SHARE, they enable the people there to move thousands of pounds of palletized food from and to trucks arriving at SHARE. They also enable them to easily move the palletized food between its five bays. However, forklifts can be potentially very dangerous machines. Because of the way they're built, they can become very unstable very quickly and topple over. They can also cause severe injury if someone is hit by either one of the prongs of the cab part of the forklift. Because of this, safety training is a must. The forklift operator learns why the forklift is prone to toppling over, how it can be prevented, that the forklift CAN'T be driven like a car (the dynamics of each are radically different), and what is the biggest cause of accidents (surprisingly operator inattentiveness). My instructor Bill Wisham was very thorough in explaining all these things. He really wanted to make sure we understood how important safety is when operating a forklift. He saw his main job as an instructor was to ensure that we'd be able to go home in one piece every day after operating a forklift. After explaining all the safety aspects of a forklift, we got to actually drive one. For me, it was a nerve wracking experience. Driving a forklift is enormously different from driving a car. The rear part of a forklift swings out widely and you have to take that into account. You also need to be able to see in front of you. Sometimes, a load can block your view. In that case, you have to drive the forklift in reverse and look behind you. You also have to be aware how the prongs are pointed. If you're going down hill and have the prongs pointed down, your load could slip right off the forklift! Another safety aspect is remembering to always put the prongs down on the ground when you're done moving something. That way, someone doesn't walk right into them.

I felt Mr. Wisham was a fantastic teacher. He worked to make the course fun while at the same time hitting on how to operate a forklift safely. I feel as long as I practice the things Mr. Wisham taught me, I should be able to operate a forklift safely. Now, all I need is practice. I plan to get that at SHARE under Sam's supervision. In time, I should become a proficient forklift operator and have one more way I can help out at SHARE.

SHARE - It's A Wrap!

Yesterday, I got to finish working an entire cycle at SHARE by helping them do inventory. It wasn't very hard work. All I had to do was pull everything out of the freezer, group like items together like all the chicken thighs, and then help Sam count all the items. What's left in the inventory and from next month's food packages will go on sale at February's market day (see previous post on this). Once all the remaining items were counted, I put all the frozen food back in the freezer. After that, I got to help with the disposal of the fresh produce SHARE had leftover. Due to health laws, SHARE can keep the produce only so long (I don't know how long). Usually, SHARE gets rid of the produce after market day. SHARE will donate the food to various church pantries and food banks so the food isn't wasted. Once all the produce is cleared out, I helped Sam set up the tables so volunteers can bag a new potato shipment when it arrives in two weeks. After the tables were set up, my part in the cycle was finished. For Sam and the other permanent staff, there will be time to work on various projects such as recruiting new customers for SHARE and finish determining what February's food package will be. It'll also give them time to take a breather before the cycle kicks in again and builds up to its peak on the distribution days.

It has been an interesting experience going through an entire cycle with SHARE. For someone who used to just bag potatoes on bagging Saturday, it has been an eye-opening experience to see how much more actually goes on at SHARE. It has also shown me how I can help SHARE in other ways such as showing new volunteers how things are done, help set things up for pre-staging, and preparing the bays for the distribution days. It has helped keep things exciting for me at SHARE. I can now do so many different jobs. Because of that, I look forward to doing more volunteer work at SHARE. I hope you the reader have found the SHARE posts informative. SHARE is an awesome program. Hopefully through these posts you might be persuaded to help out at the Washington D.C. SHARE if you live in that area or at a different one close to you if there is one. I feel certain any of the SHARE centers would appreciate your help. It doesn't take a lot of time and it can make a real difference for a lot of people. Cheers!