When life becomes simple, what do we long for?
When life becomes complex, what do we long for?

There is no question we all have a desire to be loved, to belong, and to be desired—I believe those are some of the most basic yearnings any of us have. But certainly that list is not exhaustive. There are other ingredients that go into the recipe of wholeness and worth.

When tragedy enters our life basic needs quickly move center stage. As I have walked along side people dealing with great pain, I have often heard them speak of the commitment to living just one day at a time—even one decision at a time.

Get up in the morning.
Take a shower.
Eat.
Go to work…

Weezer's "Buddy Holly" video brought together most of the elements of my childhood. The chunky guitars echoed seventies rock from bands like the Raspberries. Weezer embraced their inner geek by casting themselves within a homage to the sitcom, "Happy Days." For a kid who grew up on Richie, Potsie and The Fonz, it was the ultimate trip, a delicious embrace of disposable pop culture. It put director Spike Jonze on the map, winning MTV's 1995 Breakthrough Video award. "Buddy Holly" made music videos a respectable, cut-and-paste art form.

With their new video for "Pork and Beans," Weezer has buried the MTV era and embraced the network that matters most, YouTube. The first single on their red album is classic power pop: short, sweet, and anthemic. But the "Pork and Beans" video takes the song to another level by embracing the absurdity of instant Internet celebrities. It is a massive, viral video test. The humor will be completely lost upon those who ignore those forward emails with links to strange outtakes. But for people who can't get enough stupid human tricks, Weezer creates a wondrous chance to play name that meme.

If you have a Facebook account, there are two questions within your profile that you either spent significant time contemplating or little to no time bypassing all together: religious view? and political view? Two questions that inevitably communicate more than anyone would ever desire. If your political view reads "liberal" - you are a democrat that welcomes socialization and is "anti" anything religious/conservative. If you select "conservative" - you are pro-privatization, certainly a Christian, and likely drive an SUV with a pro-life bumper sticker. Similar perceptions and distinctions emerge when religious/faith-based words become attached. Think about it. The sheer mention of the following words birth an array of assumptions: evangelical, catholic, atheist, Muslim, Christian, Mormon (to name a few).

What intrigues me about the "labeling" conversation is not the intricacies of the language and identifiers we could debate ad nauseam, but the simple belief that different "views" (political or religious) are ultimately in opposition and therefore cannot coexist. Sure, we can agree that we can inhabit the same earth (can we?), but beyond this - high-emotion, conflict, and non-interaction is a common reality.

“It's a satire of not only New York, but of American consumerism and culture…” Those words came from Lazlow Jones , one of the creators of Grand Theft Auto IV, which hit stores yesterday.

Now, take that quote and lay it next to the fact that GTA IV is the most highly anticipated video game release ever. Early estimates say it will sell over $400 million this week alone—making GTA IV both a critique of American consumerism and one of its greatest benefactors.

Is that even possible? Can you be both of those things at once?

Our Starbucks in the game is called Bean Machine. Its slogan: All Beans Lovingly Picked by Children in Central America.