Pinewood Castle

Movie Night

I apologize ahead of time for not posting pics or links about this movie but I don't want to attract  visitors (not regular readers) that might be looking for blog posts or links on this topic with the intent of leaving harassing comments.

The movie is Food, Inc. Have you seen it? Heard of it? It is now available through Netflix and I am so glad to have finally seen it. Last year I read The Omnivore's Delimma by Michael Pollan and had my eyes opened pretty wide about the food industry. Even though I have been convicted about organic food for years, this book provided so more more information about what really goes on in factory farms than I ever wanted to know. Food Inc. brought it all to life. 

Here are a few things I learned:

• The role of corn and oil in our food production.
• All Cows Eat Grass - why the mnemonic device we learned for bass clef space notes is no longer true.
• What e.coli has to do with feeding cows corn.
• The politics of industrial farming.
• How the seed company really works (Monsanto).
• How animals are treated in meat packing plants as well as why so many illegals are employed by them.
• Why chickens are grown in crowded windowless barns and can walk only a few steps before falling.
• Why most food is not honestly priced.
• Why organic food might cost more, but is honestly priced.

And much more.

Before you tune out please know that I know that you are doing your best to provide food for your family within your budget. I am too. I still buy the majority of our food from the regular grocery store and from Costco. I know you shop at Sam's and I am not recommending that you quit any time soon. Trying to buy all our food locally would require more time and gasoline than most moms have.

Even if you have no intention of changing your shopping habits, I would still recommend this movie to anyone who buys food, just so you know where the food comes from and how it is produced. It is temping to bury your head in the sand and resist learning things that might disturb you as you shop, but I truly believe in making informed decisions. Stores do cater to customer's buying habits and this DVD shows that our grocery dollars still count as votes.

If you are inspired to do something different after watching this DVD, here are a few easy ways to begin:

• If you have an extra freezer, buy a 1/4  or 1/2 of a grass fed cow from a local farmer.
• Take a drive on some county roads and find a place to buy fresh eggs, preferably eggs from hens who spend time in the pasture. Or look for better eggs in the natural section of the grocery store. Even $4 a dozen is a good price considering all the protein and nutrients you get.
• Check around for local farmers with non-enclosed. non-antibiotic chickens.
• Schedule time to visit a Farmer's Market when they start up again.
• Find other places to buy local food. This is easier in some states than others. Here in MN we have  Minnesota Grown directory and website. 
• Patronize locally owned restaurants that use fresh, local ingredients.
• Join a food buying club like Azure Standard for discounts on organic food. Buying items like grains, beans, canned goods and frozen fruit in bulk can result in big savings.

Last year I began by just asking around and ended up with a two page list of local food sources to share with the members of my book club and buying club. A little effort can go a long way!

Movies on My Mind - Fireproof

Just in time for St. Valentine's Day - Fireproof is now out on DVD!

This is another movie about which I missed the hype when it first arrived in theaters. My neighbor, Amber, told me about it and was excited to begin "fireproofing" her marriage.

If possible, I cried more during this movie than Tess of the D'Urbervilles. But I also laughed just as much.

This is not a story about falling in love for the first time, it is about falling in love again after being on the brink of divorce. The couple in the movie had grown apart emotionally and financially. The tears in this story are shed out of compassion because most couples will identify with some of the problems with which this couple struggles. They also come from the joy in seeing how the husband is transformed and the wife's hardened heart softens. They come from seeing the influence of strong mentors in the workplace and the family. The tears come from seeing how strong a person can be using their own will power but how much more powerful is the grace and love of God working in a person's life. And, I have to add, a good father - the father in this movie was pivotal.

The laughter - well, since the husband in this movie is a firefighter we see the pranks pulled on rookies and the hysterical personalities in the group. This movie was made by Southern Baptist brothers who know how to lighten the message with plenty of laughter.

The commentary for this movie tells how one church in Georgia worked together to make this movie, of the previous movies they have produced (Facing the Giants and Flywheel) as well as the back-stories of the actors and sets. Martial counsel is also given in golden nuggets - about God's design for marriage. About a man's desire for respect and woman's desire to be loved. About the difference between a contract (you are mine) and a covenant (I give myself to you).

My three favorite parts of this film:

• the ending
• the commentary
• the "While I'm Waiting" montage

The Love Dare is available and I would love to hear from anyone who is trying this at home!

*** the makers of this film purposely made this movie acceptable for older children to watch.

Movies on My Mind - Sweet Land

Two days ago I had a lengthy post about Sweet Land all ready to go and then lost it somehow - I must not have actually clicked "save" thinking that Typepad now has an auto-save feature.  After some groans and some arghs I figured that it was meant to be, that perhaps I had vented a little too openly about the feelings this movie stirred up in me concerning my own experience in Minnesota.

I hope you will be equally satisfied with a shortened and much more charitable version!

This began as an independent film of a a story by Will Weaver. When it first came out in 2007 I heard about how good it was, that it was filmed in Minnesota and that it was a carbon neutral film. I am so grateful for what-ever-it-was that prompted me to send it to the top of my Netflix queue a few months ago!

This is a story of a Norwegian bachelor farmer in the 1920's who send for a mail order bride. He thinks he is getting a Norwegian bride and while the lady who arrives had been living in Norway she was really German. Due to post WWI suspicions about Germans (she must be a spy or a prostitute, etc) the parson will not marry the couple, not the courthouse. Other than the groom-to-be's best friend, the community shuns her. After staying a few nights at the friend's farmhouse trying to sleep in a room with umpteen children she returns to her intended and takes a bedroom upstairs while the farmer sleeps in the barn.

The beauty of this film lies not only in the love story of how this couple eventually unites but also in it's portrayal of the immigrant experience. This lady is beautiful and intelligent, a lover of music and poetry but nobody seems to care to get to know her at all because she is outside of their comfort zone. (this, btw, is the part with which I most identify as an former musician Bohemian married to a central Minnesota farm boy) The once sympathetic parson eventually turns on her after catching her trying to dance with the farmer to the music on the Victrola she painstakingly brought from Europe(and they weren't even touching). They dance, she cooks for him, they are practically living together and to top it all off her coffee is too black! Such heavy accusations.

After he denounces them from the pulpit, time and the opportunity to show loyalty brings the story to a touching climax. Despite the modest (for most movies) million dollar budget, this film is amazingly RICH in feeling and beauty and artful cinematography. Personally, I watched it several times, with and with commentary.

I would imagine that any kindred spirit of mine will enjoy this film as much as I.

*** Some have asked of this movie would be suitable for children to watch. Personally, kids as young as mine would be bored but teenagers might enjoy it. There is a scene with partial nudity when the farmer walks in on the gal who is bathing in a tub in the kitchen. He is caught by surprise and she runs for clothing. While the context is mostly innocent, it would be most prudent to FF!

Five Hankie TV

Did anyone watch Masterpiece Theater the last two weeks?

Excellent reviews of Tess can be found here: Part One and Part Two.

Some parts were far fetched to me like Alec's reversion to his old self and the dramatic murder towards the end left me feeling incredulous and disenchanted. And of course the tragedy that the main characters turned their backs on God and the Church (of England) reduced my sympathy for the members of the love triangle. (although more understandable in Tess' case) In spite of these detractions, the overall excellence of the story and production coupled with Tess's courageous spirit left me a sobbing heap on the family room floor with a sopping wet sleeve. Five hankies would have been more lady-like!

If you missed it, it is available here for viewing online through the 18th.