So, Rosie got married yesterday.

I swear, the next time this woman does something without attempting to make it a statement, it will be the first time. I have very specific opinions on the question of governments permitting same-sex marriages, which will be an entirely separate posting, but this woman is just unbelievable.

Not knowing a whole lot about the situation, apparently she married her "long-time" partner. So, they've been living together and only decided to "take the plunge" when G.W. says he supports a ban on same-sex marriages. Anybody else think that she's desperate for the publicity? Oh, yeah, let's not forget that she called G.W. "Vile". John Kerry, there's your celebrity spokesperson.

If there's any doubts about that, let's keep in mind that she had a small private ceremony attended by a 1500-voice Male Gay Choir. Oh, man, South Park could just have a heyday with all of this (attend "Big Gay Al's (Not Really) Small Wedding Ceremonies").

I could say much more, but it might result in my feeling nauseous the rest of the day.

Another awesome episode of 24 last night.

Thus far, they've REALLY brushed off the Nina business in favour of going after the virus. I expected half of last night's episode to centre around it, not just the first few minutes. What I really liked about this episode was that it wasn't the Jack Bauer show as Jack is now secondary to the main plot. Seeing Michelle thump Alvers was a lot of good fun, too.

It's too bad Gael's going to die next week. He had serious coolness potential. But, we should get a wicked Tony and Michelle storyline for the home stretch.

All these good points, however, make what's annoying about this season even more so. The baby issue appears to have fallen by the wayside, Andrea Thompson's character mysteriously disappeared after hour 2 or 3, and why have we heard nothing more about the debate that started the day? I'm still not convinced that we really needed Palmer's character this year, unless they intend to somehow do away with Sherry by season-end.

I'm VERY curious to know, however, who Amador was talking about at the start of the episode.

So my wife and I took my son to see Bear in the Big Blue House Live on Saturday. My son has the video of the show and loves it, so we thought this would be a good way to see if he's ready for live theatre. Well, he is, but I'm not sure I am.

You see, the show runs about 60 minutes and it's very well paced for youngsters, with lots of music and dancing and short runs of acting, in order to keep the story moving. All the characters from the show make appearances (the fact I know every one of them frightens me) and it's very enjoyable. The kids, especially mine, were really into it from the start.

So why do they need a 15-minute intermission?

After the first half-hour, they took a 15 minute break. My son lost all interest and was really fidgety during the second half, which he wouldn't have been had they just carried on. The reason for the break?

Some guy started selling helium-filled Mylar balloons with Bear's face on it. This after paying $31 per adult and $29 per kid, $15 for a t-shirt and passing on the $7 programs, the $16 flashlight and the $8 ball. We guessed that the balloons were $5 a pop (no pun intended). Then came the funniest part: the voice of Bear across the theatre telling kids to put their newly-bought balloons UNDER THEIR SEATS, so people behind could still see the stage. I figure maybe 5 balloons disappeared.

Anyway, it was a good show, even if my son wanted to "pick a video" during the second half, so he could watch something else.

Well, it's about time!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It took over 36 episodes, but Jack FINALLY avenges his wife. Jack's decision to off Nina was right on many levels, but is gonna REALLY mess things up between him and CTU. I heard whispers at the start of this season that Kiefer Sutherland was considering leaving the show, and this is the one loose end he had to deal with. Chase earned his badass stars during the torture session in Mexico and I think I could continue to watch beyond Season 3 should Kiefer leave. Besides, I think Tony has slowly become the centre of the program, and I think that him and Jack could have some tension over Jack's decision to dispatch Nina.

An awesome episode all around. Things are starting to build to the end, as we're slowly getting rid of the peripheral players, leaving just the main cast.

I want to share a bit of background. I have had a deepening relationship with God since 1995. I gave my life to Christ in July of 1995 and was baptized in February of 1996. I love God very deeply and His church.

In this modern day, I fear for the church very much.

The business world is being turned upside-down by "rock-star" CEO's, venture capitalists, investment bankers, you name it. Instead of lauding great companies for their productivity gains, profitability in down cycles and ability to stand firm in the face of global competition, much of the business media points to those who sit, as one of my professors liked to say, "around the mahogany table". The leaders get the praise. Those who should receive the praise, get nothing.

Much of the New Testament is dedicated to the idea of churches being led by a group of elders and deacons. Among the elders, there are those who excel at teaching and preaching the Word of God. Certain among them, who dedicate their full-time and resources to serving their flock are, according to 1 Timothy, worthy of "double honour", which I interpret as a paycheque. However, those receiving a paycheque are not to be exalted above the rest. Canadian churches and, I suspect, many American churches, are slowly getting away from this idea, allowing the full-time pastor, priest, whatever, call the shots and apply his "vision" to the church. While this is happening, the elders' board, full of men with full-time jobs, family commitments and other ministry work, simply serves in a "rubber-stamp" capacity, asking a few questions, but ultimately approving the pastor's vision with little argument.

Now I am along way away from achieving a depth of spirit where I would hear God's call to serve as an elder, but I fear for the church, nonetheless. As we continue to allow churches to move to a "one-man, one-vision" type of leadership, we run the risk of drinking the magic Kool-Aid. We need elders boards who are committed to full service, and less of the pastor-elder-flock heirarchy.

More on this as I think it through further.

So, I'm a big fan of 24. I watch the show faithfully every week and have since the first ep. of Season 1. I read a review of the show in Entertainment Weekly that said this season was getting predictable.

Well, what did they expect?

When a show is written to take place in a 24-hour day, it's a safe bet that they're not going to stretch out major plot points across all 24 episodes. In each season, the heart of the story is revealed somewhere around hour 16 (Season 1 - arrival of Dennis Hopper as Victor Drazen, Season 2 - Sherry's revelation that the bomb was intended to lead to Palmer's failure as President, basically the most elaborate revenge scheme EVER concocted by an ex-wife).

So we're 13 hours in and, to my thinking, we've just been given the third of three very cool plot twists this season, with Nina's effort to bring down CTU's network. This, along with Tony's stopping the interrogation of Gael and Jack's message to the president (which basically invalidated the first 4 episodes), make this season a welcome addition to the 24 logbook. Here's how I think this all goes down:

Wayne Palmer, working with Sherry, are conspiring to bring down David. Wayne was the one who told Jack about the virus and is running Amador. Sherry is the mastermind behind drawing Milliken into the web of deceit. She encourages Wayne to have an affair with Milliken's wife, knowing the reaction it'll get. This allows her to come back on the scene. They have David running in so many directions, it'll be easy to bring him down. So they think.

As far as Chase's baby goes, anyone want to wager Nina's the mother?

So, here we are.

My name is Brian Benallick and I am fascinated by the concept of WeBlogs. I have been turned on to this by a few friends who actively operate their own Blogs and I like to think that I have something to say, too. Anyways, if you find my little corner of the web, welcome and I hope you enjoy reading. Please feel free to link to me and to provide links so I can connect to you. WeBlogs are, I think, the future of writing on the Web and is a great way to share ideas.