Jennifer Connelly in charity: water Clean Water Africa PSA

a cool commercial for a wonderful charity called charity:water that helps build wells in Africa and provides clean, safe drinking water. Only $20 will give one person clean and safe drinking water for 20 years. Help them dig wells. Find out more at: Charity:water (It was directed by Hotel Rwanda's Terry George, cinematography by Ellen Kuras. Its national commercial debut was on American Idol Gives Back.)

Mental ABC's of Pitching

Last week, David Brooks of The New York Times did a great Op-Ed piece on baseball.

Ok. Wait—I know. I have a British accent and what do I think I'm doing talking about baseball.

No, you see, it really was a brilliant piece all about skills, it seems to me, that hold true of Brits as well as baseball fans, and of writing as well as lots of other things.

Brooks talks about a book called The Mental ABC’s of Pitching by a sports psychologist named H.A. Dorfman. And then quotes the Dorfman man (?):

“Self-discipline is a form of freedom. Freedom from laziness and lethargy, freedom from expectations and demands of others, freedom from weakness and fear — and doubt.” — H A Dorfman

Which means, clearly, I must stop blogging immediately and get back to writing at once. Goodbye.

trouble the water: award-winning documentary

With no means of escape, Kim and Scott (seen above at their home in the Ninth Ward after the storm) had no choice but to ride out the storm.

"Two weeks after Katrina made landfall, New York filmmakers Tia Lessin and Carl Deal flew to Louisiana to make a film about soldiers returning from Iraq who were now homeless. But the National Guard closed off access. Just when the filmmakers were ready to disband their crew, Kim and Scott Roberts, streetwise and indomitable, introduced themselves. Kim had bought a camcorder the day before the hurricane, and using it for the first time, she captured the devastation and its pathetic aftermath, including the selfless rescue of neighbors and the appalling failure of government. The strong center of Trouble The Water, though, are the Roberts themselves who survived all the storms of their lives.."

Ultimately, the levee that protects Kim againts the devastating storm is her irrepressible faith in God. It's the only levee that holds.

That's the amazing thing about this film: in the face of overwhelming tragedy and loss, Kim and Scott continually demonstrate the triumph of love over hate, faith over fear, forgiveness over hideous injustice, and hope over despair. Everyone should see it.

Grand Jury Prize: Documentary 2008, Sundance Film Festival

"One of the best American documentaries in recent memory"
Manohla Dargis, NYT

“When the hurricane struck the Gulf and the floodwaters rose and tore through New Orleans, it did not turn the region into a Third World country… it revealed one.”
Danny Glover, Executive Producer

To do something, click here.

For more info, check out the Trouble The Water website. You can watch a clip here and listen to some of Kim's music (her rap name is: Black Kold Madina), here.