Christmas Movies

It's that time of the year, when we all gather with our family & friends and watch those holiday favorites, and I'm curious to know what your favorites are.

Christmas Movie Time

There's the holiday favorites you can't miss like A Christmas Story, Home Alone, and It's A Wonderful Life, then there's the newer ones such as Krampus and A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas.  There's also those that some consider Christmas movies even if they're not entirely to other people (I don't care what anyone says, Batman Returns IS a Christmas movie).  Whatever we prefer to watch, the important thing is to enjoy those films that bring us such joy and nostalgia.

Below are my and our (my wife and mine) top 10 favorites.  Because there are so many movies to consider, I've included others that we still watch but can skip if we end up watching others.  There's a ties in there (FINE!  This would make it a top 11).  The top 10 favorites, though, are can't miss movies for us... or at least for me.

1. Elf - This is a must-watch.  To me, this is THE Christmas.  Typically we tend to watch it when we put up our Christmas tree but I can watch this at ANY time.
2. It’s A Wonderful Life
3. A Very Sunny Christmas (It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia) - This isn't technically a movie but it's on our movie watch-list, soooo...  Plus, it was sold as a DVD separately to the other seasons.  We tend to watch this after Elf.  A VERY HILARIOUS one to watch.
4. Love Actually - This plot-less movie is one of our favorites.  This tends to be the first, or one of the first, we watch after Thanksgiving.  There's just so much love and the different kinds of love that we experience, from our first crush to those we love at work to that one love that will never be with us.  As the Beatles said, "All you need is love.".
5. Home Alone
6. The Family Stone/The Holiday - We tend to watch both of these closer to Christmas day.  I love these two just the same.
7. Serendipity - A very cheesy movie with a dumb plot but I'm a fool for this movie.
8. Batman Returns - Like I said, THIS IS A CHRISTMAS MOVIE with my favorite superhero!
9. Scrooged
10. While You Were Sleeping - This is one of the first movies where I paid attention to it being set in my hometown, Chicago, and over time I grew to love watching it at Christmas time.  

Others we watch but can skip:  Krampus, A Very Harold and Kumar Christmas, Hook, Edward Scissorhands, The Family Man, Trading Places, The Santa Clause, A Christmas Story (only because it plays 24 hours each Christmas Eve/Christmas).

What about you?  What's on your watch-list?  Maybe we'll pick up a few this season.

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Thanksgiving 2017

Happy Thanksgiving everyone.

Each year, the radio station that I work for, WOXY La Mega 97.7 FM, buys turkey dinners for families and this year I had the honor of delivering some of those turkey dinners to families.

The radio station bought 30 turkey dinners, which included a turkey, corn, mashed potatoes and bread.  Ten were given to 3 churches.  Of the 3 churches, I had a chance to go to two:  Cristo Rey Catholic Church in Florence, KY and St. Mary's Catholic Church in Dayton, OH.

At Cristo Rey I only had the chance to meet less than half of the people whose food were going to be given since that most people were working at that time.  The few people that I had the pleasure of meeting were great to meet and I'm glad that they will have a wonderful Thanksgiving.

At Cristo Rey Church in Florence, KY.

From Florence, KY I took what should've been an hour drive to Dayton, OH to St. Mary's Catholic Church.  As tired as I was after driving close to two hours, when I arrived I was more than happy to continue to lend a hand to the next church.  Once I arrived the priest, Father Ariel, asked me to help him deliver some of the dinners after a couple of families would come and pick up theirs.

Father Ariel from St. Mary's Catholic Church in Dayton, OH.

It truly was an honor to go to some of the parishioners' houses to deliver their turkey dinners.  The most beautiful thing about this experience was that they were not expecting this beautiful gesture from their church.  These wonderful people who are extremely humble.  One of the families invited us in for a drink and something to snack on (to which I was more than thankful for; that nearly two-hour drive had me famished.).  Talking to this family I find out that the patriarch of this family, Jociel, works two factory jobs and studies online; his wife also works full-time.  This is a family that truly deserved something like this and much, much more.  A true blessing to their community.

Jociel and his wife & daughter, a truly hardworking family.  A true blessing to their community.

What an honor to do this via La Mega 97.7 FM.  Not a day goes by where I'm not grateful to have this job that I love.  Now I can add one of the best experiences that I have lived through La Mega.  Hopefully this is just the beginning and I can continue to do this for a long time. 

You can see more photos at La Mega's Facebook Page.

Día de Acción de Gracias 2017

Feliz Día de Acción de Gracias para todos.

Cada año, la estación de radio con la que trabajo, WOXY La Mega 97.7 FM, compra cenas de pavos para familias y este año tuve el honor de entregar algunas cenas de pavo a familias.

La estación de radio compro 30 cenas de pavos, que incluían pavo, maíz, papas y pan.  Diez fueron dadas a 3 iglesias.  De las 3 iglesias, tuve la oportunidad de ir a dos:  a la iglesia católica Cristo Rey en Florence, KY y a la iglesia católica St. Mary en Dayton, OH.

En Cristo Rey solamente tuve la oportunidad de conocer a menos de la mitad de la gente a quien se les iba a dar comida ya que la mayoría de la gente estaba trabajando a esa hora.  De la poca gente que tuve el placer de conocer fueron grandes personas y me da gusto que vayan a tener un maravilloso Día de Acción de Gracias.

En la iglesia Cristo Rey en Florence, KY.

De Florence, KY tomé lo que tuve que haber sido una hora manejando hacia Dayton, OH a la iglesia St. Mary.  A pesar de estar cansando después de manejar casi dos horas, cuando llegue estaba mas que feliz en continuar a prestar una mano a la próxima iglesia.  En cuanto llegue el sacerdote, el Padre Ariel, me pidió que le ayudara a entregar algunas de las cenas después de que un par de familias llegara y recogieran lo de ellos.

El Padre Ariel de la iglesia St. Mary’s de Dayton, OH.

Fue verdaderamente un honor ir a algunas de las casas de estos feligreses a entrarles sus cenas de pavos.  Lo mas bello de esta experiencia fue que ellos no se esperaban este bello gesto de su iglesia.  Esta maravillosa gente quienes son extremadamente humilde.  Una de las familias no invito adentro a tomar algo y a botanear algo (a lo que les estuve mas que agradecido; esa manejada de casi dos horas me dejo famélico.)  Hablando con esta familia me doy cuenta de que el patriarca de la familia, Jociel, trabaja en dos fabricas y estudia en línea su esposa también trabaja tiempo-completo.  Esta es una familia que verdaderamente se merecía algo como esto y mucho, mucho más.  Una bendición real para su comunidad.

Jociel y su esposa e hija, una familia verdaderamente trabajadora.  Una bendición para su comunidad.

Que honor haber hecho esto vía La Mega 97.7 FM.  No hay días que pasen donde no este agradecido por tener este trabajo que amo.  Ahora puedo añadir una de las mejores experiencias vividas a través de La Mega.  Ojalá esto sea solamente el comienzo y pueda yo continuar esto por un muy largo tiempo.

Pueden ver mas fotos en la pagina de Facebook de La Mega.

Ya Regresé (Eso Espero)

Hola a todos.

Bueno, van mas de 4 anos de edad desde que he publicado aquí.  Llegue al punto donde no sabia que escribir.  Pero un montón de cosas han sucedido:  me case en el 2014, regrese a la escuela en el 2016, y, ahora, trabajando para una estación de radio hispana.  Supongo que SI hay bastante que me ha pasado.

Espero que por fin pueda llegar a publicar mas aquí.  Poco a poco pondré mis pensamientos y más.  Por lo pronto, asegúrense seguirme en las redes sociales.  Me encuentran en Facebook bajo AbelSchmabel Zav, Abel Zavalaa y AbelZ Media.  Pueden agregarme y seguirme en Instagram, Twitter y en Snapchat (@AbelZavalaa).  Pueden visitar mi página web AbelZMedia.com.

AbelZ Media va creciendo de poco a poquito, a través de la pagina web y en Facebook.

O, y si gustan escucharme, estoy al aire en La Mega 97.7 FM (WOXY) cada jueves y cada viernes en las mananas (6 a.m. a 10 a.m. EST) y los sábados en las mananas (8 a.m. a 12 p.m.) y en las tardes (5 p.m. a 7 p.m.).  Pueden escucharme a través de mi página web aquí.

Abel Zavala

AbelZMedia@gmail.com

I'm Back (I Hope)

Hello everyone.

Well, it's been over 4 years since I've posted here.  It got to a point to where I didn't know what to type.  A ton of stuff has happened though:  got married in 2014, went back to school in 2016 and, now, working for a (Spanish) radio station.  I guess that there HAS been a lot that's happened.

I hope that I can finally get around to posting more here.  Little by little I'll get to post thoughts and more.  In the meantime, be sure to follow me on social media.  You can find me on Facebook under AbelSchmabel Zav, Abel Zavalaa & AbelZ Media.  You can add me and follow me on Instagram, Twitter & Snapchat (@AbelZavalaa).  You can view my website at AbelZMedia.com.

AbelZ Media is slowly being built, both the website and Facebook.

Oh, and if you'd like to listen to me, I am on-air at La Mega 97.7 FM (WOXY) every Thursday & Friday mornings (6 a.m. to 10 a.m. EST) and Saturday mornings (8 a.m. to 12 p.m. EST) & evenings (5 p.m. to 7 p.m.).  You can listen to me online via my website here.

Abel Zavala

AbelZMedia@gmail.com

Mr. Blue Fish and Mr. Red Fish

This past Tuesday, we lost our little friend, Eli (or as he was previously known, Levi).  I was really hoping he would be around for at least a year, but he did surprise us, making it past March of this year.  Now that we know Frances' sister and niece are coming to visit us, I was really hoping her niece, Ceci, would see him again.  After all, she was the one who helped me choose our little blue betta.

R.I.P. Eli, or as Ceci called you, "Mr. Blue Fish"

So today I headed to our local pet store for a new fish buddy.We wanted to avoid a blue one since it was too early.  So now, I present to you...

Sheldon

We wanted to name him before Ceci arrives.  I don't think she's very imaginative with names just yet.  I was afraid that she would name him something similar to the previous betta fish, something like "Mr. Red Fish".

Welcome Home little Sheldon and Rest in Peace little Eli.

Weight Milestone... and what I thought of Man of Steel. Also, what I want from DC.

First order of business:

Last post I had mentioned that I have to go to the dentist due to a bad molar.  Now, I'm waiting for a call back, and fortunately my tooth has not bothering me.  However I've had to watch what i eat to cause as little pain as possible. 

That being said, I've been weighing myself here and there, and this morning I hit a major milestone....
I'm at less than 200 lbs.  New weight:  199.6 lbs.

So, Congratulations to me!

--

Man of Steel review (Caution If you've not seen it yet !!!)

This morning Frances and I saw MoS and I've got to say:   I really liked it!!!

Unlike the previous film, which was of a dialogue film versus this was more action packed.  Now, I didn't hate the former, but did find it a bit boring, lacking punch, which is what I want in a Superman film.  That's the reason why Superman Returns was like more by critics versus the audience and vice versa with this film.

Now, there's two type of people for these type of films:  the comic book community and the movie community, and I belong more to the latter than the former.  Reason being that, even though I've always been fascinated by superheroes and mythology and the sort, growing up I didn't get much of a chance of reading comic books so growing up I relied more on watching shows, cartoons and movies.  It wasn't until after high school that I would go to Borders bookstores and read graphic novels and comic book stories.  I'm the type of guy that knows a lot more than the average non-comic book reader but less than a comic book reader.  So when I watch a comic book movie I look more at what the film consists of versus what was pulled from their sources.  Same goes for movies based on novels or anything else for that matter.

First, I was very happy to see Chris Nolan's touch in this.  I think having him be part of bringing Supes back was great.  I really like his films especially the Dark Knight trilogy.

I was happy too when I found out Michael Shannon was cast as Gen. Zod.  As I watched the film, however, I think my joy for his portrayal went down a few points.  I liked his portrayal of Zod but did not love him.  However, I was pleasantly surprised by Faora, Zod's right hand.  I really liked her. 

One thing I really wanted to see:  Zod's famous line from Superman II, "Kneel before Zod!"

Now, because Nolan came on board, I wonder if they tried to copy some of what worked in Batman Begins.  One things were the flashback scenes.  They felt a bit misplaced. 

One last thing was that the movie was a bit slow moving at first.  Yet also felt that some of the scenes were rushed or suddenly cut and then... the action began and the movie's pace was much faster.

In the end, as I mentioned before, I really liked the movie.  I do think it's a wonderful way to bring Superman back to the big screen and start that new DC cinematic universe that we've been waiting for.

So what would I like now?  For one, I was glad to hear that they may work on MoS2 before finally bringing a Justice League movie.  I think DC shouldn't rush into it to be at par with Marvel.  Rushing it may just crumble what they are trying to achieve for us fans.

Second, I hear that Supergirl and Lex Luthor are coming on board for MoS2.  Supergirl as a supporting character would be better than an attempt at a solo film any time soon or later.  Also, as for Lex, I hope they reinterpret him more as a real threat versus what has been interpreted by Gene Hackman and Kevin Spacey.  And for a third film (in case it's a trilogy) I'd like to see Doomsday.  Give us the Death of Superman!!!  After all, we all know Superman comes back.

Lastly, eventually I'd like to see comic book movie crossover, so DC and Marvel, get to working at it.