Zorro!

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Don Diego de la Vega opposes the corrupt tyrants of Spanish California as the masked swordsman, Zorro.

The only son of Don Alejandro returns to 1820s California to fight the corrupt local military. He plays the foppish dandy by day and the masked swordsman Zorro who slashes "Z"s everywhere by night. His horses (black and white) are Tornado and Phantom.

Yes, Prime Minister

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James Hacker is the British Minister for Administrative Affairs. He tries to do something and cut government waste, but he is continually held back by the smart and wily Permanent Secretary of the Department, Sir Humphrey Appleby. Private secretary Bernard Woolley is caught in the middle, between his political master, and his civil service boss. 

After years in opposition a new party is in power. The new Minister thinks he is the government. Sir Humphrey Appleby, Permanent Secretary, knows that it is he and his civil service colleagues who run the country. An inexperienced and gullible Minister puts forward plans in English, and is frustrated by his chief civil servant, who speaks Red Tape. With help from Bernard Woolley, stuck between his political boss and the master of his career, the Minister gradually learns to master the situation ... or does he?

Caught off-guard by the sudden retirement of the Prime Minister, Sir Humphrey and his civil service allies soon get their house-trained minister, James Hacker, elevated to the top job.

Book Review: The Work of the Spirit

Title:  The Work of the Holy Spirit

Author:  John Owen

Publisher:  The Banner of Truth Trust

First Copyright:  1967

Pages:  520

Type of Book:  Hardback

General Subject Matter:  Pneumatology

Special Features:  None

Price:  $28.00

ISBN:  978-0-85151-068-2

This book is the second part of John Owen's great writing on the Holy Spirit. According to a sentence contained on the book jacket, Owen was not sure he would be able to publish everything he wanted to publish so he chose to publish his writing in two volumes, (see The Holy Spirit.) 

I highly recommend this book as enthusiastically as I recommended Owen's first volume as an authoritative teaching on the Holy Spirit. Once again I make note that this book is difficult to read. It also takes the full attention of the reader to follow the brilliant mind of the writer. The finished product is well worth the effort needed.

These two volumes are the most detailed and complete books I have ever read on the Holy Spirit. This book as well as almost all of Owen's writing were a response to the needs of his own day. John Owen was probably the greatest British theologian of all time.

John Owen was a noted pastor, lectured before English Parliament on a number of occasions, and Chaplain to Ireland and Scotland. He was an adviser to Oliver Cromwell (Lord Protector of England)

The purpose of this book is to provide information to the reader about the work of the Holy Spirit as the means of illumination, prayer, comfort, and as the source of spiritual offices, and spiritual gifts. This book is divided into four (4) main sections.

The first section is divided in to two (2) sections. Part One deals with "The Reason of Faith. Part Two deals with "The Causes, Ways, and Means of Understanding the Mind of God." The second section covers the topic, "A Discourse of the Work of the Holy Spirit in Prayer." The third section deals with the Holy Spirit as as Comforter. The fourth section deals with Spiritual Gifts.

The theme or subject of this book as already declared is the second person of the Godhead, the Holy Spirit. 

Owen uses exposition to develop his theme and thesis. Owen uses explanation and analysis to develop his topic. His primary purpose is explain the person and doctrine of the Holy Spirit.

Once again, as in the first volume on this topic, this book is as interesting as it is difficult to read. Owen exegetes scripture and his theme accurately and objectively. This too is an important work on the subject of the Holy Spirit. Owen draws conclusions that are logical and biblical.

There is no bibliography or index in this book either. It has limited footnotes, some of which are not helpful to the reader. The book is replete with Scripture in the main body. Explanation of these texts are given in detail.

This book is thorough. The content is well developed and derived straight from Scripture. I think that any believer would benefit from reading this book. 

X-Men

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Never saw this program. But it started with "X"

The X-Men are a team of mutant superheroes in the Marvel Universe. They were created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, and first appeared in The X-Men #1 (September 1963). The basic concept of the X-Men is that under a cloud of increasing anti-mutant sentiment, Professor Xavier created a haven at his Westchester mansion to train young mutants to use their powers for the benefit of humanity, and to prove mutants can be heroes.^[1] Xavier recruited Cyclops, Iceman, Angel, Beast, and Marvel Girl, calling them "X-Men" because they possess special powers due to their possession of the "X-gene," a gene which normal humans lack and which gives mutants their abilities. Early on, however, the "X" in X-Men stood for "extra" power which normal humans lacked. It was also alluded to that mutations occurred as a result of radiation exposure.

White Collar

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White Collar is a USA Network television series created by Jeff Eastin, starring Matt Bomer as con-man Neal Caffrey and Tim DeKay as Special Agent Peter Burke. It premiered on October 23, 2009. In December 2009, White Collar was renewed for a second season that began on July 13, 2010. On September 27, 2010, the USA Network renewed White Collar for a third season with 16 new episodes, which premiered on June 7, 2011. The series was renewed for a fourth season on August 25, 2011, which began airing on July 10, 2012. On September 25, 2012, the series was renewed for a 16-episode fifth season

Neal Caffrey, a con man, forger and thief, is captured after a three-year game of cat and mouse with the FBI. With only months left while serving a four-year sentence, he escapes from a maximum security federal prison to find Kate, his girlfriend. Peter Burke, the FBI agent who initially captured Caffrey, finds him and returns Caffrey to prison. This time, Caffrey gives Burke information about evidence in another case; however, this information comes with a price: Burke must have a meeting with Caffrey. At this meeting, Caffrey proposes a deal: he will help Burke catch other criminals as part of a work-release program. Burke agrees, after some hesitation. Through the successful apprehending of several white collar criminals, Caffrey has proven to Burke that he will help him, and that he will not try to escape again. This begins an unconventional but successful partnership.

Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea

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Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea is a 1960s American science fiction television series based on the 1961 film of the same name. Both were created by Irwin Allen, which enabled the movie's sets, costumes, props, special effects models, and sometimes footage, to be used in the production of the television series. Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea was the first of Irwin Allen's four science fiction television series as well as the longest running. The show's main theme was underwateradventure.

Voyage was broadcast on ABC from September 14, 1964 to March 31, 1968, and was the decade's longest-running American science fiction television series with continuing characters. The 110 episodes produced included 32 shot in black and white (1964–65), and 78 filmed in color (1965–68). The first two seasons took place in the then future of the 1970s. The final two seasons took place in the 1980s. The show starred Richard Basehart and David Hedison.

Voyage chronicled the adventures of the world's first privately owned nuclear submarine, the SSRN Seaview. Designed by Admiral Harriman Nelson, she was a tool of oceanographic research for the Nelson Institute of Marine Research. Though the show is known for its few "monster" episodes, many plots were veiled commentaries of what was happening in the news. Such plotlines as nuclear doomsday, pollution of natural resources, foreign threat, and theft of American technology are all still relevant today.

Undercover Boss

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Undercover Boss is an Emmy award-winning television franchise series created by Stephen Lambert and produced in many countries. It originated in 2009 on the British Channel 4. The show’s format features the experiences of senior executives working undercover in their own companies to investigate how their firms really work and to identify how they can be improved, as well as to reward hard-working employees.

Each episode features a high-ranking executive or the owner of a corporation going undercover as an entry-level employee in his or her own company. The executives alter their appearance and assume an alias and fictional back-story. The fictitious explanation given for the accompanying camera crew is that the executives are being filmed as part of a documentary about entry-level workers in a particular industry, or a competition with another individual with the winner getting a job with the company. They spend approximately one to two weeks undercover (one week being the norm in some editions, such as the U.S. version, and two weeks in some other versions, such as the Australian edition), working in various areas of their company's operations, with a different job and in most cases a different location each day. They are exposed to a series of predicaments with amusing results, and invariably spend time getting to know the people who work in the company, learning about their professional and personal challenges.

At the end of their time undercover, the executives return to their true identity and request the employees they worked with individually to corporate headquarters. The bosses reveal their identity, and reward hard-working employees through promotion, or financial rewards, while other employees are given training or better working conditions.

Taxi

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Taxi is an American sitcom that originally aired from 1978 to 1982 on ABC and from 1982 to 1983 on NBC. The series, which won 18Emmy Awards, including three for "Outstanding Comedy Series", focuses on the everyday lives of a handful of New York City taxidrivers and their abusive dispatcher. The series, produced by the John Charles Walters Company, in association with Paramount Network Television, was created by James L. Brooks, Stan Daniels, David Davis, and Ed. Weinberger.

The show focuses on the employees of the fictional Sunshine Cab Company, and its principal setting is the company's fleet garage inManhattan. Among the drivers, only Alex Rieger, who is disillusioned with life, considers cab-driving his profession. The others view it as a temporary job that they can leave behind after they succeed in their chosen careers.

Elaine Nardo is a receptionist at an art gallery. Tony Banta is a boxer with a losing record. Bobby Wheeler is a struggling actor. John Burns (written out of the show after the first season) was working his way through college. All take pity on "Reverend Jim" Ignatowski, an aging hippie minister, who is burnt out from drugs, so they help him become a cabbie. The characters also included Latka Gravas, their innocently wide-eyed mechanic from an unnamed foreign country, and Louie De Palma, the despotic dispatcher.

A number of episodes involve a character having an opportunity to realize his or her dream to move up in the world, only to see it yanked away. Otherwise, the cabbies deal on a daily basis with their unsatisfying lives and with Louie DePalma, their cruel dispatcher. Louie's assistant, Jeff Bennett, is rarely heard from at first, but his role increases in later seasons.

Sunshine Cab goes through a change of owners. They are referred to, but seldom seen: Ed McKenzie (who appears in one episode, played by Stephen Elliott), and, later, Ben Ratlidge (who is also only seen in one episode, played by Allen Garfield).

Seinfeld

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Seinfeld is an American television sitcom that originally aired on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998. It lasted nine seasons, and is now in syndication. It was created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld, the latter starring as a fictionalized version of himself. Set predominantly in an apartment block in Manhattan's Upper West Side in New York City, the show features a host of Jerry's friends and acquaintances, in particular best friend George Costanza (Jason Alexander), former girlfriend Elaine Benes (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), and neighbor across the hall Cosmo Kramer (Michael Richards).

Seinfeld stood out from the many family and group sitcoms of its time. None of its principal characters is related by family or work connections but remain distinctively close friends throughout the series. Unlike many other sitcoms, Seinfeld focuses more on character than story; instead of focusing on resolving the story, the focus is on what the characters are doing in the premise. It was often called "a show about nothing" by critics and its own creative personnel.

Tom's Restaurant, a diner at 112th Street and Broadway, in Manhattan that was used as the exterior image of Monk's Cafe in the show

Many of the characters were based primarily on Seinfeld's and David's real-life acquaintances. Two of the most prominent recurring characters were based on well-known people: Jacopo Peterman of the J. Peterman catalog (based on John Peterman), and George Steinbrenner, the owner of the New York Yankees. Many other characters were introduced as more writers got involved with Seinfeld. Other characters based on real-life individuals include theSoup Nazi and Jackie Chiles based on Johnnie Cochran.

Seinfeld follows its own structure: a story thread is presented at the beginning of each episode, which involves the characters in separate and seemingly unrelated situations. Rapid scene-shifts between plot lines bring the stories together toward the end of the episode. Even though it does not follow a pattern as other sitcoms, the character's story variously intertwines in each episode. Despite the separate plot strands, the narratives reveal the creators' "consistent efforts to maintain the intimacy" amongst the small cast of characters

Royal Pains

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Royal Pains (stylized as "℞oyal Pains") is a USA Network television series that premiered on June 4, 2009, starring Mark Feuerstein, Paulo Costanzo, Jill Flint, Reshma Shetty, Brooke D'Orsay, and Campbell Scott.

The series is based in part on actual concierge medicine practices of independent doctors and companies. The series was renewed for a fourth season by USA Network on September 15, 2011. On September 25, 2012, Royal Pains was renewed for its fifth and sixth seasons.

The series follows Hank Lawson, a young emergency room doctor who, after being wrongly blamed for an important patient's death, moves to the Hamptons and becomes a reluctant "doctor for hire" to the rich and famous. When the administrator of the local hospital asks him to treat the town's less fortunate, he finds himself walking the line between doing well for himself and doing good for others.

Quincy

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Quincy, M.E. (also called Quincy) is an American television series from Universal Studios that aired from October 3, 1976, to September 5, 1983, on NBC. It stars Jack Klugman in the title role, a Los Angeles County medical examiner.

Inspired by the book Where Death Delights by Marshall Houts, a former FBI agent, the show also resembled the earlier Canadian television series Wojeck, broadcast by CBC Television. John Vernon, who played the Wojeck title role, later guest starred in the third-season episode "Requiem For The Living". Quincy's character is loosely modelled on Los Angeles' "Coroner to the Stars" Thomas Noguchi.

The series starred Jack Klugman as Dr. Quincy, a strong-willed, very principled Medical Examiner (forensic pathologist) for the Los Angeles County Coroner's Office, working to ascertain facts about and reasons for possible suspicious deaths. His colleagues, friends and wife all address him by his surname or the shortened "Quince". (The character's first name was never fully given, although in the third-season episode "Accomplice to Murder" his name is shown on a business card as "R. Quincy" and in early episodes the name "Dr R. Quincy" appears on his door.)

In his investigations, Quincy frequently comes into conflict with his boss, Dr. Robert Asten (John S. Ragin), and the police, in particular, LAPD Homicide Lieutenant Frank Monahan (Garry Walberg). Each have their own (often flawed) ideas about what's going on and about Quincy's deductions. Quincy is assisted by his faithful lab assistant, Sam Fujiyama (Robert Ito).

It is revealed in the episode "The Last of Leadbottom" Quincy is a retired Captain in the US Navy and remains in the Naval Reserve. In the episode "Crib Job", Quincy notes he originally wanted to be a railroad engineer, after revealing a number of facts about the dangers of the occupation. A well-liked man, Quincy lives on a sailboat in a permanent boat slip in Marina Del Rey, California and frequents "Danny's", a restaurant at the marina, owned by his friend Danny Tovo (Val Bisoglio).

Quincy is very popular with women. He was married once before but lost his wife Helen to cancer. In the Mystery Movie installments and earliest hour-long episodes, Quincy has a regular girlfriend called Lee (Lynette Mettey) who sometimes accompanies him on his cases (such as in "...The Thighbone's Connected to the Knee Bone..."). This is his only steady relationship until near the end of the seventh season, when Quincy remarries (Dr. Emily Hanover, played by Anita Gillette who had previously portrayed Helen in a flashback) and sells the sailboat in the episode "Quincy's Wedding". Quincy occasionally drives an antique car (which is shown in Season 4, Episode 1 to be an antique PackardTown Car), but friends sometimes ask why he drives his "work vehicle" (the county coroner's hearse, an AMC Matador Station Wagon (reg plate: 999853) in the first 2 seasons and a late 1970's Ford LTD Station Wagon for the rest of the series) on his day off. Quincy claims that his car is off being repaired.

Pitchmen

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PitchMen (original name: But Wait...There's More) is a docudrama television program produced for the Discovery Channel in the United States. The show followed infomercial producers and talent Billy Mays and Anthony "Sully" Sullivan as they attempted to sell various inventions through direct-response marketing, mainly through Telebrands, one of the largest direct response/infomercial companies. The series was narrated by Thom Beers. Each episode typically focused on two different products.

Each episode typically begins with Billy Mays and Anthony Sullivan being pitched different products by their inventors. Two products are then selected and are field tested with peoples' opinions gathered on the products. If successful in the field test, Billy and Sully would create an infomercial which is then produced and played in test markets after which the inventors are notified of the amount of success that the commercial generated. For products that generated a successful level of consumer interest, high praise is given by Billy and Sully. For products that did not fare as well, the inventor is notified, and the future of the product is discussed briefly including the possibility of collaboration on tweaking the commercial for a later airing date.

It was unknown whether or not the series would continue following Mays' death on June 28, 2009. The Discovery Channel ran an all day marathon of episodes on July 1 as a tribute, which concluded with the season finale, itself edited to end with a tribute to Mays. On July 9 a special tribute episode entitled "Pitchman: A Tribute to Billy Mays" aired with comments from friends, co-workers and family. The status of the second season was undecided until July 15, when a press-release was put out by Discovery to announce that the show would be renewed for a second season, with Mays' eponymous son taking his late father's place. The second season premiered on August 19, 2010^[6] with solely Anthony Sullivan starring in commercials. Sully sometimes brings in others to help him decide with product such as Telebrands CEO AJ Khubani.

Where Were You?

“Where were You?” 

An Answer about the Boston Marathon Bombings

“Where was God?” Already the question is being asked and it is showing up in print. Each time a horrific and unthinkable event takes place people start asking this question. What they are really saying, or at least thinking is, “if there is a God why didn’t He stop this?” Or, “Why would God all this to happen?” God’s existence, God’s abilities, God’s character, and God’s will are called into question.

The question is, “moments before the explosion where were you?” You see, God was right where He has been for an infinite forever. God, if you would, is right where He “belongs.” God is on His throne; God is ruling and reigning sovereignly in this world. God does as He pleases (as He pleases Himself, not you) and does not ask the counsel of a living soul.

Where were you? I don’t mean were you in Boston or Aurora, Co or Newtown, CT or at the World Trade Center. Where were you? Were you in a place of indifference, resistance, rebellion, oblivion or denial? Where were you? Were you in a place of submission, worship, or fellowship with God?

First, let me say that I am not indifferent to the suffering and the horrific tragedy that people suffered at Boston, Aurora, or Newtown. My heart goes out to those who were killed and injured by murderous terrorists who are unfit to live, let alone exist in this country. My heart breaks for the pain and suffering forced upon my fellow human beings.

Second, it is not fitting that we should question God, His existence, His reasoning’s or His motives. Our concern should be with our response to such a tragedy.

The frightening and sobering truth is that God who remains God and as God has given to mankind the one thing that man desired above all – to do as he pleases. The Apostle Paul makes it quite clear that as mankind rejected God, God gave man over to his own depraved and darkened heart to do as he desires. Granted, God has placed some restraints on some men and their behavior. Mankind does not seek God nor does mankind want anything to do with God.

Yet, when our life is interrupted by pain or suffering, mankind is quick to ask the question, “Where is God?” I wonder if God sits on His throne and ever asks the question, “Where were you?” OOPS, God did ask the question once didn’t He? In the garden – he asked “Adam, where are you?”

The bombing was a terrible tragedy. People are filled today with pain and tremendous grief. Let’s not blame God as ineffective, uncaring, or indifferent. Turn to God, run to Him. It is only the goodness and grace of God that you were spared. It is the goodness and grace of God that leads you to repentance. Repent of your sin. You are under the wrath of God. God is angry at you and your sin. You escaped these afore mentioned tragedies – take advantage of that blessing and turn to God for the forgiveness of your sin.

Where was God? He was right where He belongs. Where were you? Where are you right now?