Mike Batie - Oregon Beauty - Part 2

Hello, Mike Batie here again. It's been a while. Again. Here is the other part of the photos I took in Oregon some time ago, of the lush beauty there.

Mike Batie - Oregon Forest Moss

Mike Batie - Oregon Waterfall

Mike Batie - Oregon Moss

Mike Batie - Oregon Fern

Mike Batie - Cut log. Count the rings to find it's age.

It's impressive how old some of these trees actually are.

Mike Batie - Oregon Waterfall

Mike Batie - Waterfall from the bottom.

Mike Batie - Oregon Beauty - Part 1

Hello, Mike Batie here again. It's been a while. Thought I'd share some amazing pictures of Oregon beauty that I came across this week.

Mike Batie - Moss covered tree

The forest in Oregon is covered in moss. It add such an amazing feel to the forest, like everything is alive.

Mike Batie - Moss on Rocks

The moss is on everything, making even the rocks seem alive.

Mike Batie - Oregon Waterfall

Waterfalls abound, especially at Silver Creek Falls.

Mike Batie - Waterfall

Another view of the falls with a footbridge in the foreground.

Mike Batie - Moss covered tree

With some of these trees, I'm not sure if they died first and then became covered in moss, or if the moss ensnarled and killed the tree?

I'll be sharing more soon.

Mike Batie Reviews "The Lone Ranger"

Mike Batie reviews "The Lone Ranger."

Going in to this film, I had my expectations drastically lowered by a friend and critical reviews I read at various websites recommended skipping it.

When I saw the film, I must admit that I very well enjoyed it. Why? Because the action of the film keeps going, and I always want to know what happens next. I think The Lone Ranger was very successful in doing that.

I was also pleased with how well Johnny Depp and Armie Hammer worked together in their interactions as characters. While Johnny Depp's character provides most of the laughs, Armie Hammer's character of the Lone Ranger supplied some great comic relief as well.

I would say, that The Lone Ranger is quite an enjoyable film, and the story does a good job of showing the Lone Ranger's growth and what he learns and who he becomes as he overcomes his moral dilemmas related to justice. If you watch this film with with the intent of having a fun time with this action-filled movie, you probably won't be disappointed.

Below are some images you may enjoy.

Mike Batie reviews The Lone Ranger

Mike Batie reviews The Lone Ranger

Mike Batie reviews The Lone Ranger

Mike Batie reviews The Lone Ranger

Mike Batie reviews The Lone Ranger

Mike Batie - How God Views Us (Quote)

I wholeheartedly agree with this quote: "God doesn't care nearly as much about where you have been as He does about where you are" (Jeffrey R. Holland).

Mike Batie - Daily Quote

God isn't really interested in our past, in our mistakes, but in the NOW. He cares about where we are now, and where we are heading. The past cannot be undone, but the present and future are all we have, and that is what God is concerned with.

Mike Batie - Quote on Starting Over

Here is today's quote:

Mike Batie - Daily Quote

This life is a test, one that has no "back" button, and no "Control+Z" button. Life is lived forward, not backward. Thankfully, every day, every minute, every second we can begin now to make the changes in life that we need to in order to be on the proper course, and change the outcome of how our story is going to end. So for now, this is Mike Batie, encouraging everyone to begin now and make a new ending.

Mike Batie Reviews actor Tom Holland in "The Impossible"

Perhaps the standout performance in "The Impossible" is delivered by Tom Holland, who plays the eldest son, Lucas Bennett. While this movie has two big name actors—Ewan McGregor and Naomi Watts—who play the adult parents, the film really seems to end up being about the growth of their eldest son during the ordeal, who must go from being an immature and even somewhat bratty older brother to a brave young man who must look after his mom and deal with the harsh reality of the injuries, death and chaos in the aftermath of the tsunami that he narrowly survives.

Mike Batie reviews actor Tom Holland in "The Impossible."

Tom Holland goes beyond many of the more shallow acting jobs we're used to from children, and he delivers a performance that will leave you feeling his fear, anxiety, pain, frustration, and sadness. It is amazing how his performance grows during the film as well, from more of a high-pitched boy to a more mature and responsible man and brother.

This is Tom Holland's first film role, which makes him deserving of an even bigger nod of approval. His previous acting credit is starring in Billy Elliott the Musical.

Like I said in a previous post, if you haven't seen this movie, you should do everything in your power to see it—with no distractions...though it will be hard to be distracted from the intensity once the tsunami hits. For now, this is Mike Batie, saying, go watch The Impossible!

Mike Batie reviews "The Impossible"

Greetings! Mike Batie here, it's been a while since I've done a movie review. I saw The Impossible a while ago, starring Ewan McGregor, Naomi Watts, and Tom Holland, and if there were two words I would use to describe this movie, they would be:

INTENSE and MOVING

Seriously, if you have not seen this movie, and many people I have spoke to have not, then please do yourself a favor and go see, rent or buy this movie! It is an incredible true story of a family's experience in the tsunami of 2004.

Mike Batie reviews "The Impossible."

Once the first few minutes have opened the film and you're introduced to the characters, buckle up, because it's an intense and sometimes suspenseful ride from there on out until the movie's conclusion. All of the actors and actresses do a fine job in this film, but the stand-out stars are really the children. Tom Holland shines as the eldest son, and the actos who portray his little brothers in the film are extremely endearing. I'll post more on this film in posts in the near future.

If you haven't seen this movie, don't walk but run to your nearest movie vendor to see it! Well, Mike Batie signing off until next time.

Mike Batie :: Everyone Has Problems (Daily Quote)

We tend to think that all of our problems are too great, too heavy, too awful. We may look upon others and think how perfect their lives seem, how easy they seem to have it. Well what if we could pull away the curtain and see the problems that everyone else faced, even those who we think have perfect lives? What if we could do like this quote suggests, "If we all through our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back." I think this is true. And in taking our problems back from the pile, glad that we didn't have as big of problems as others, we would probably have a lot more compassion upon other people; we might even have less envy or hatred towards people who seem to "have it all." Until next time, this is Mike Batie reminding you to own your problems, gather the strength and ingenuity to solve them, and have compassion on everyone else: because we've all got problems.

Mike Batie - The Biggest Step

"Sometimes the smallest step in the right direction ends up being the biggest step of your life. Tip toe if you must, but take the step."

Mike Batie encouraging you to take that step. A few times in
my life, I have taken those important footsteps, and it has
set me back on proper course. — Mike Batie

Fear of change, complacency, addiction, routine, you name it—we can get stuck heading in the wrong direction for a long time. It's only that first tiny, small step in the right direction that can be the biggest step in your life, because it's the step that can SAVE you...from a host of things: death, a life of regrets, addiction, bondage, fear, shame, injury, etc, etc, etc.

Having the courage, the willpower, the faith to take that first step in the right direction is one of the hardest, but it is the most important step you will take. So for now, this is Mike Batie, saying: Take the step!

Mike Batie - Success Comes by Small Steps

What can be more true than this? It is easy to get discouraged or frustrated when we try to make these big leaps of effort, and we don't see immediate results (weight loss, career change, learning a new language, etc). What we must keep focused on is that it is the small efforts—repeated—that will keep us moving in the right direction until we achieve our goals.

You can achieve success in many of your personal goals by first determining what it will take to achieve your goal: decided what smaller steps you must take each day to eventually achieve your goal, and then plan to take these steps everyday. In time you will be coasting to success.

Mike Batie - Life is a Bull

I love this statement. So much truth to it. Being good is no guarantee that life is going to treat you good.  Just be aware of that, so that when you've given all your best, and done all the good you can, you don't feel like a martyr. Life is life, it charges on and through everything like a bull, so be ready for some blows from time to time, no matter how good you are. Ever seen someone awful seem to be blessed with everything they could ever want? It works the other way around too. The important thing is to keep being good and don't get discouraged when bad things happen to you; and don't become jealous or envious when good things happen to "bad" people. The sun shines on the good and the bad, just as the rain falls on the good and the bad.

Mike Batie - More Thoughts on "Perks of Being a Wallflower"

I was thinking about what happened to Charlie when he was a child, and how it affected him as he got older. Many people may not realize just how much things that happen to children will affect them throughout their entire lives.

Oh the breakdown scene...maybe a little too close to home,
but I knew exactly how the character felt. —Mike Batie

I read that the age bracket of 6-9 is crucial years when children are forming to a greater degree their own identity—mental, emotional, gender, etc. So when things happen to kids during this time, speaking of abuse, it can really screw them up into adulthood, because trauma was introduced into those tender formative years. I was grateful to see the conflicted character of Charlie in this movie, who was dealing with things that happened to him in his childhood, that he so dearly sought to repress and forget about, but it only got worse. Many survivors of childhood trauma can relate to the flashbacks, seeing things, breakdowns...trying to hold it all in but at some point retreating somewhere private to breakdown. Even if the story is fiction, the author clearly knows what he wrote about.

Mike Batie reviews "The Perks of Being a Wallflower"

Well there is just so much that I can say about The Perks of Being a Wallflower. Such a wonderfully moving movie! I think many can identify with Charlie, feeling apart from everyone, not sure if he's sane all the time.

I am grateful that my dear friend Nikki introduced me to this movie. It was good to find a character in a movie that I could just connect with so much. There is a great quote in the movie that I'm going to butcher, but Charlie says that his doctor told him, "We can't choose where we come from, but we can choose where to go from there." 

Mike Batie - Daily Quote

Today Mike Batie's qoute is this: "Humility is not thinking less of yourself, but thinking of yourself less." —C.S. Lewis

Mr. Lewis certainly had a lot of good things to say, he is very quotable. I have collected quite a number of his quotes. I love how he worded what it means to be humble. It doesn't mean being a doormat. That is how I mistakenly viewed myself as being humble, as being a doormat and letting someone walk all over me. This person would try to define me, tell me who I was, and they were often dead wrong...but I would cower or shy away from correcting them or standing my ground, because I thought I was being humble. This person would say mean and hurtful things that made me feel stupid all the time...and I would not stand up for myself or tell them to knock it off because I thought I was being humble, that I was keeping the peace. I could go on and on with examples, but you get the idea. I had the definition of humility all wrong. I THOUGHT LESS OF MYSELF by allowing someone to walk all over me. I should have spoken my mind or gotten the heck out. Now I know that humility is about thinking more about other people, and not thinking less of myself.

Mike Batie reviews "Jack Reacher"

I was pleasantly surprised. I had heard this movie was good, but had some doubts. I came away relatively pleased with the experience. Some of the scenes were disturbing, at least 6 innocent people are killed in this movie, and not in a nice way. That's rather unsettling for me, especially the way it was shown. I can say that the action, plot and even some humor are rather good. I liked the mystery that the movie takes you through the process of solving.

One funny thing, this movie highlights Tom Cruise a lot...like I feel like it worships him, in a "He's still as hot or bad-a as he was in Top Gun." But he's old, and getting older. I just thought it was entertaining in that respect too, like if  you thought about it enough in certain scenes, it was laughable.

All-in-all, I liked this movie pretty well and think any guy would enjoy its action and some good humor that doesn't feel out of place in this action thriller. Mike Batie gives this movie a thumbs-up.

Mike Batie - A New Year - 2013

Mike Batie here again. I'm not going to lie. The year 2012 was the year I hit rock bottom, and when I finally landed at the bottom and lay there on my back, I looked up and saw how far I had to ascend to get to where I both wanted and needed to be. I am amazed at how quickly that ascent has been! Letting go and giving up on things and certain people, and focusing on areas of my metaphorical "garden" that needed tending, and letting the weeds die off on their own while I focused and turned my attention to better things.

I have taken great comfort, solace and motivation in a quote by J.K. Rowling: "Rock bottom became the solid foundation on which I rebuilt my life." What a positive statement. I can see myself no longer standing on a rickety and unstable foundation I'd built (or rather thrown together) over my life and used coping mechanisms to do a balancing act on that unstable pile. Well now that that has been torn down, I can rebuild on a really solid foundation. I like who I am now, who I am becoming, and where I am going in life. New Year's is about new beginnings, and this year is certainly one I am grateful in which to have to begin anew.

Mike Batie - New Year's Eve: The End of 2012

Well, it's the New Year's Eve that wasn't supposed to be. The earth survived threats of an end to the world sparked by misinterpretations of Mayan calendars and the United States survived a very bitterly divisive election year.

2012 was probably one of the hardest years of my life, but also one of the most rewarding. It was in this year that I was rescued from an awful pit that I was in. With the love and support of my amazing parents, family, and friends, I was able to finally let go and move forward in healing, progressing and getting on with life.

I am forever grateful to those who helped me get through this rough year, there are many who probably don't even know they were a huge influence in helping me get through this year, and come out on the other end a more whole and complete person.

Mike Batie - Daily Quote 12/30/2012

"The best years of your life are the ones in which you decide your problems are your own. You do not blame them on your mother, the ecology, or the president. You realize that you control your own destiny."

—Albert Ellis

How empowering it is to realize that our situation and our problems are our own, and they belong to us. When we own our problems and seek to work towards resolving them, instead of blaming others, we can really move forward in our lives and really that is when you become more of an adult. It reminds me of another hidden gem of a quote in The Wizard of Oz, when the Good Witch says, "You had the power all along my dear."

Mike Batie - Review of Les Misérables

Ah, the epic awaited by so many this year. I've read that beast of a novel, and so I feel like I get so much more out of the musical, having the backstory on many characters.

I think it's pretty well understood by most that this is a fantastic movie and there's a reason why the musical has been so successful—it's good. Here were my thoughts on the movie, as far as criticisms go, according to Mike Batie:

1) Russell Crowe was kind of disappointing as Javert. I felt like his singing dialogue parts were rather hard to listen to, they just didn't flow well. I do have to say however, I think he did really well on his solo in "Stars." That rather surprised me, based on the earlier singing in the movie that he did, so I have to give him props there, after some of what I thought was horrid singing dialogue, he was rather a delightful voice in "Stars."

2) Hugh Jackman did well as Jean Val Jean, but I also did kind of feel the same about Jackman as I did of Crowe in the singing dialogues; it was a little harsh on the ears. At a few points I wasn't sure Jackman knew if he were going to sing a line or speak a line and that's what it sounded like. Other than that I think he did well, he doesn't have a bad voice, but I also don't think it's a remarkably good voice either. I really liked the new musical number added to this film version performed by Jackman, "Suddenly." I felt like he was in his element with this number.

Okay, now that my criticisms are out of the way, I must praise the casting for the younger characters, particularly Amanda Seyfried, Samantha Barks and Eddie Redmayne. Their trio of "A Heart Full of Love" was divine by the final note. Seyfried hits some beautiful high notes in a couple of songs. Barks is perfect with her powerhouse voice in "On My Own," and Redmayne is impressive in "Empty Chairs At Empty Tables," which I've always thought is a difficult song for a man to sing, but Redmayne proves his dynamic voice range well. There's been buzz that Redmayne will likely be nominated for best supporting male actor, and I wouldn't argue that it isn't deserved.

And then of course, Anne Hathaway blows us away with her emotionally charged "I Dreamed A Dream." I really felt the raw emotion of that song, and who couldn't feel something of their own lives in that song, dreams that you've dreamed yourself and life turns out to deal you a different set of cards than you'd hoped for.

All-in-all, Mike Batie would say this is one great musical brought to film.

Mike Batie - Daily Quote 12/29/12

“Those who do not weep, do not see.” 

―Victor Hugo, Les Misérables 

I almost forgot a quote for today, so here it is. Obviously since I saw the film recently and have been re-reading the novel, quotes from Les Misérables have been at the forefront of my mind.

I think of the times where I have been so profoundly moved to tears, whether for good or bad. It is those times when I am most moved to tears that I feel I  have truly seen...that I have seen much deeper into something, whether joy, beauty, tragedy or loss.

I have known a few people who I have never known to weep, or seen them profoundly moved enough (for good or bad) to weep. I wondered how they get along through life without such deep emotions. I often wonder if their lives feel robotic, without emotion enough to be overwhelmed by beauty to tears, or overwhelmed by loss to tears. I wonder if they can truly see the beauty and feel the sting of loss. So when I think of this I think of them, and I wonder, "Do they see?" Perhaps they are prisoners to emotions that they keep bottled inside and do not express.

Until next time, Mike Batie asks that you try to "see" a little more in every aspect of life. And it's okay if it makes you cry.

Mike Batie Reviews "The Hobbit"

Mike Batie here, this is my first blog post. I saw The Hobbit tonight with my parents. It was entertaining. I've never read the book, so I can only judge it as a movie. I was surprised how quickly the nearly 3 hour movie passed by. I credit that to there being a decent amount of action. I had heard from several people that it was painful to sit through, and from some that they had to take naps during the movie to make it through. I thought I would be one of those people, but apparently I wasn't. I can honestly say I was entertained. Best parts of the film were of course Gollum, and a musical number, "Song of the Lonely Mountain." Long story short, I was pleasantly surprised that I did not become bored or restless in this one. The storyline was easy to follow, the characters seemed to have a clear goal and the plot pushed toward that. There was plenty of action and some moments of suspense that kept this movie rolling along.