Seven Tips For Happiness in Watching Movies

1. Be grateful that there is the movie industry for us have movies to appreciate. Yes, they make a lot of mistakes, but they also give us the movies we love and make our lives richer. 

2. Always stay with a movie for at least a half hour. The movie may really improve in the next act, or make it all worthwhile at the end. Stick with it, if you can. 

3. If a movie is poor, consider: how would you change the movie to make it better? For instance, who would you replace Sophia Coppola with in Godfather III? Make it a better movie.

4. Look first for the positive aspects of any movie, even if you will trash it in the end. A movie is never "a waste of two hours" even if it only there to help you appreciate better movies. 

5. Don't just watch movies for "homework" or because you have a list to finish, but because you are looking for the next great movie experience. 

6. Take time to re-watch films you love. Movies are one of the few experiences we can re-live.

7. Share movies with friends, so you can share the experience. Try to watch movies at the same time with others, so it becomes a shared experience. Use movies to laugh with friends, be frightened with friends and to cry with friends. Then the movie isn't just a personal experience, but a point of relationship.

U2: Even Better When They Were the Real Thing

Look, I'm not saying that the new U2 album is bad.  I'm just saying there's a good reason it's free to hundreds of millions of people.  Actually, the last third of the album is worth listening to, and there will be a couple songs I'll put on my permanent playlist.  But the first two thirds is dull to anyone who has listened to U2 before this decade.

Let's spend a little time reviewing some of the best of U2 over the decades:

The Refugee: The power of direct and powerful lyrics and some great energy.

Bad: Builds and builds.  I love screaming "I'm wide awake" in falsetto.

Running to Stand Still: My favorite lyrical work by the band.

Love Rescue Me: Dylan and Bono on the slow burn.

Love and Peace or Else: Recognizing that U2 can still be innovative and energetic when they want.

Yep, they are a great band.  One poor album doesn't change that.