Support Your Local Library

To paraphrase "The Wire"-"You know what the most dangerous thing in America is, right? A 13-month-old with a library card".

I love my local library; so does my 13-month-old daughter who just got her library card. In addition to the books (which are a great thing) I regularly check out CDs and DVDs, of which there is a great selection at our local branch or available through inter-library loan. Even those of you who live in the suburbs, I know many places have inter-library loans within their counties, so do not assume that you will have a limited selection. Also amazing is that I can manage inter-library loans online, so I don't have to list my myriad of selections to the librarian. In addition to cost-savings by not buying books, CDs and DVDs, I am also not encumbered by keeping these items in my house.

As a music fan, I am able to check out a ton of CDs for free (and legally, as opposed to illegal downloads) especially from genres and artists that I would not normally have bought (e.g. jazz, classical, folk, foreign music, film scores, weird stuff, etc).

The iPod might be one of the coolest inventions ever, but combine it with the library's resources and it becomes absolutely amazing.

Despite being a music lover, my iPod has very little music on it and I do not add or delete music very often. Instead, I primarily use my iPod to catch up on my favorite NPR shows via podcasts and for audiobooks. The library is a great source for audiobooks. In addition to the audiobook CDs available at the library, many library websites have downloadable audiobooks which can be directly imported to your iPod. Although easy to download audiobooks, it might be tricky the first time and I'd be happy to help if you have questions.

With a long commute in the morning, I have been able to listen books by Malcolm Gladwell, Stephen Hawking, Michael Pollan and several other pop culture books that I did not get a chance to read. (Strangely, I find fiction difficult to listen to).

If importing from actual CDs, there will be dozens of tracks and they might disrupt your music playlist if using iTune's random function, but you can correct this and can find some other helpful hints here.

Lastly, if you set your iTunes import setting to "spoken word", audiobooks will take up almost no room on your computer or iPod.

Now go out and get a library card!

What Would Jesus Buy?

As someone who resists consumerism, I was psyched to see What Would Jesus Buy? I've seen the Reverend Billy and the Church of Stop Shopping featured on television before, so I was excited to learn more. Unfortunately, this movie turns to be more like Borat or Brüno than a hard-hitting documentary. That is, Reverend Billy puts on a costume, puts on an accent and puts on a show that freaks out middle America. I wish the movie went a little deeper, but the film keeps it light.

What Would Jesus Buy follows Reverend Billy in the month before Christmas as leads impromptu mock-revival church services in the Disney Store, Starbucks, Walmart headquarters, the Mall of America and other locations with the intent of pointing out the rampant consumerism that has infected Christmas. There's also interviews with "Christmas experts" that talk about how much Christmas has changed and some consumer experts that add a little knowledge about consumer debt. But, the film avoids getting too informative.

The documentary primarily focuses on the Reverend Billy and the Church of Stop Shopping on a personal level, and not on their mission, their goals, their performance nor consumerism in general. Instead we learn about the members of the group, including Reverend Billy himself, and not their activism or the reason behind it. Most unfortunately though they tend to focus minimally on the performances themselves, which are rather entertaining.

Lastly, the film follows Reverend Billy during Christmastime, which is an easy target when it comes to critiquing consumerism, but, unfortunately, it is also a sacred cow. Therefore, it takes a special kind of balance to poke fun at Christmastime spending. Unfortunately, this film doesn't have that balance.

When creating a message movie like this there are two routes-keep it light and potentially attract a wider audience or make it hard-hitting and preach to the converted. This film keeps it light and didn't give me much to sink my teeth into. However, I look forward to checking out another movie about Reverend Billy, simply titled Reverend Billy and the Church of Stop Shopping.