The Most Beautiful Sound I've Ever Heard....

(Right after the exit, Matt & Nicole spend their first moments as
Husband and wife singing to each other! A real-life theatre musical
moment-- ahhhmazing.)

Hear That?

Wedding Bells!

This weekend I had the pleasure of filming the wedding of two close friends from my church- Matt & Nicole. I first met them when they showed up at a weekly prayer meeting one Thursday night 3 years ago and after meeting the sweet, fresh, witty couple I knew that there was something special about them.

Fast forward to a few years later where, Nicole had grown from a brand new christian to a young woman of Godly character and maturity well beyond her 21 years. This past year she even started co-leading one of the women's small groups for me and so, pours into her peers as much as soaks in the wisdom of others.

Matt is just as special, just as fun, and such a significant part of the church that Shoreline would not be what it is today had he and Nicole decided to skip that fateful first prayer meeting.

I say all of this because as a friend, being a witness to their vows was incredibly special. As a videographer, it was such a treat to film and be able to preserve it for them forever. Everything from beginning to end was laid back, full of dance moves, smiles, tears of Joy, and a celebration of the true meaning of what a marriage date should be. It was all of this and more.

All of this with a stripped down ceremony (prayer, scripture,vows, rings, kiss, exit) and it was the best one I've captured all summer. I am sure I am biased on so many levels, but that's okay- the rest of their guests were too.

I have over 6 hours of footage from that day, but here are some stills from that footage that will give you a true preview of the "feel" of their final film--

True Joy, and a marriage made in Heaven.

Congratulations Matt & Nicole!

Little glowing eyes...

It's been a long time since I've been to Disneyland and so I am not sure exactly which ride it is-- but it's one where it's pretty dark inside, and you float along on a water cart of some kind- looking at all the animatronic animals and characters within the ride's story theme and see a bunch of glowing eyes in the bushes.



Anyways...

The fig tree outside my window is in full bloom now. I noticed the ripening figs a week ago and knew that meant that everything from crows to squirrels, the occasional possum and raccoons would soon come taste and eat.



Last night, they were back. The familiar trio from last summer. Three very large, fearless and raccoons. At first I wasn't sure it was them because the moonlight illuminated their dark figures moving near the pool and sometimes they looked as huge as coyotes, or as small as cats. As long as it wasn't a human I wouldn't jump out of my skin but there was no way I was going out there.



It doesn't freak me out as much as it did last year. I am positive they aren't interested in coming into my room through the screen door anymore (although they don't mind starring me down and standing up on their haunches to make themselves look intimidatingly tall so I won't interrupt their midnight snacking) but they still wake me up in the middle of the night which is just not cool. And living in a big house on the top of a hill without traffic noise to drown them out makes their arrival into the yard via the Ivy-covered wall- well- not very stealthy.

At all.

They rustle, they thump, they squeal a weird occasional communication back and fourth and man when they chew on those figs- they smack and gurgle without closing their mouths. What's worse, is they really like to wash their paws in the pool. So they splash and swish and pat the water in between fig feasts.



I walk you through all of this because if I were you I'd think about how cute this all might be. I'd think about how God made each of those little rascal raccoons and "provides" late summer night meals for them to feast on every year. I'd be thinking about all of that too.

And I was.

Until I pulled out my flashlight and shone it out my window into the darkness.

And I didn't see anything at all except three sets of bright glowing eyes looking right at me.



And they weren't animatronic. And I wasn't on a ride at Disneyland.



And it was 2am.



I put myself back to bed but couldn't block out their rustling, their splashing, their chewing for another 20 minutes.



Oh, and those glowing eyes will never be endearing.

After the final Gold is given...

I'm looking forward to re-entering the world of good films after the Olympics madness passes. For now, I'm going to continue to stay glued to NBC throughout Track & Field and the gymnastic final round but here are a few flicks I "must see":

THE FALL starring Lee Pace/ Pushing Daises.
I missed this one when it was in the actual theatre because it was a tiny film and only up for a few weeks so I'll snag it when it comes to DVD and invite myself to impose upon the largest screen I can find because the visuals are supposed to be amazing. Plus, it's a movie that stuck with my brother for days after-- and that is hard to do so I know it was good. Check out the trailer. You'll be intrigued!
A must "save" for your Net Flix Que.

HENRY POOLE IS HERE starring the brooding and oh so endearing Luke Wilson.
Christian magazines are ALL over this one because of it's "message about Hope" -- the story was written based on the true experiences of the writer's own life trials and faith. The cast is top notch and the trailer expresses a dark, dry wit. Something I always find incredibly brilliant.
Now Showing.

THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON starring Brad Pitt & Cate Blanchett
Need I say more with a cast like that? The trailer immediately mesmerized me in when it started showing up during the commercial breaks between Olympic Track and Field Heats and has my official vote for our traditional Wanke Christmas Night Movie out.
Opens Christmas Day.

See you at the movies! (But first, I gotta go see how the gymnasts are holding up)