Over the last couple of months I have seen a handful of movies (some old, some new) at the cinemas, Blu-Ray, or via Netflix.  Here are my thoughts and recommendations:

The Trotsky (8/10) - Rushmore set in Canada.  Jay Baruchel's character is simply hilarious.  The movie has some seriously flawed elements, but it is mostly funny if you can accept the premise and uncomfortable love story.

Kick-Ass (5/10) - Gratuitous in every sense.  Nicholas Cage was watchable, Chloe Moretz made me cringe...not because of her, but because of what she did in the film.

The House Bunny (6.5/10) - Guilty pleasure with a terrible message.  However, it gave me a new favorite line - "The eyes of are the nipples of the face."  Anna Faris is hilarious in it.

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Each weekday morning, I read through a summary of the days top humanitarian news stories via Reuters AlerNet. The top stories are typically depressing and a daily reminder of how sick our humanity is and our planet is. People are sick, hungry, killing each other and in complete desperation all over the globe.

This morning I was pleased to read a story of hope. Women are farming vegetables and it's changing the world!

Farming vegetables is changing family dynamics, economics, health and even the climate. I was so encouraged by this story I wanted to share it with you. What are your thoughts on this? How can we help encourage this to continue to grow here at home and in the developing world? 

Here is the article:

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(Durban, South Africa)

At first glance, the Zulu children we met on the bus en route to Ithemba Lethu’s leadership camp were just like any other seventh graders we had ever met. They boarded the bus with tremendous enthusiasm. They were full of life and noise and a certain pre-teen angst. They were excited to be with their friends, armed with bits of junk food, slightly insecure and were chatting about celebrities and rappers. If one didn’t already know that the children were from one of Durban’s poorest townships, that most lived in tin shacks, or that many were being raised by siblings just a few years older than them, it wouldn’t have been immediately obvious that these kids differed from suburban American youth.

As the weekend progressed, we began learning more details about their lives. One child’s parents had just died. Her mother died of AIDS and her father was murdered by human hands. She was now living with an aunt who didn’t want her.  Several of the children were being physically abused on a regular basis. School was not a safe place for the kids because teachers hit them with pipes.

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