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Notables: Paul Blart managed to suppress the rise of the Lycans to take the top spot for the second week in a row. That's quite a feat. At least, I think it might be. I really have no idea what a Lycan is. They just sort of strike me as tough.

Our stubborn love of Paul Blart seems to prove even more that we really crave mindless entertainment right now. (And Underworld seems to prove that we still want to be scared mindless.)

Nonetheless, the popularity of Gran Torino sort of messes with my theory a bit. This article points out that while Clint Eastwood's film was shut out of the Oscars, audiences are embracing it. Though a lot of people want to see mindless fun (see slots 1, 3, and 4, in this week's list), a lot of people want to see something or someone they can identify with - something to point to as an illustration of our nation's plight. From the article: "'The film confronts issues that are very timely, from racial violence to economic struggles. It's a working-class world that we may not see all that often in blockbusters, but it's something a good many people can relate to,' says Karie Bible, an analyst with Exhibitor Relations. Surely Eastwood could not have predicted, when he first set out to make the film, that Detroit's economic woes would be making national headlines by the time Gran Torino arrived in theaters (his character is a retired Ford assembly-plant worker), nor that the movie would be launching into wide release the same day the U.S. government released the darkest unemployment report in 16 years." And so I wonder for me, for you, for us together: what does this national desire for someone or something they can relate to in these harsh times mean for us as we communicate this coming weekend?

As for the last two slots: I think I'm done writing about dog movies for the rest of the year - either CGI-produced ones or slumdog ones. Dogs, dogs, everywhere dogs. Enough already. And no - the best remedy is not a slew of cat movies (though I fear that's coming).

One last note: make sure you check out CT Movies' article on the top-ten most redeeming movies of 2008.

Top Five Books (according to USA Today research)
1. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Last Straw, by Jeff Kinney
2. New Moon, by Stephenie Meyer
3. Breaking Dawn, by Stephenie Meyer
4. Twilight, by Stephenie Meyer
5. Eclipse, by Stephenie Meyer

Notables: This is pretty much the same as last week's list. With that in mind, consider that John Updike died this week. I caught this photo gallery on a number of sites. One picture had a quote from Updike that offers a window into his writing: "My subject is the American Protestant small-town middle class. I like middles. It is in middles that extremes clash, where ambiguity restlessly rules. Something quite intricate and fierce occurs in homes, and it seems to me without doubt worthwhile to examine what it is." I don't know about you, but I find that intriguing as both a writer and a preacher - this idea of writing or preaching about the middle, where the fiercest battles take place between two extremes that are pulling at you, pulling at you. I could go on and on about that, but I don't want to influence your thinking too much. I'm offering this not so much as illustrative fodder, but for consideration about your calling. If you want illustrative fodder from Updike, I would point you to one of his most recent novels, Terrorist. I'm not really sure how to sum up the novel, because to do so will sound like it's full of stereotypes that have only been strengthened since 9/11 - and this book is full of anything but stereotypes. I'll just let you search the Internet for reviews. They will give you a fuller picture than I can offer here. If you do read it - and know going in that it has some rough patches - you will eventually find one of the more moving descriptions I've ever seen of a nonbeliever experiencing a Christian church service. I have no idea how Updike did it - he was a master - but he manages to look at the story of Israel and Christ through the eyes of a teenage terrorist-in-training who is both horrified and drawn to what he is hearing. It's brilliant, stunning writing.

Top Five Albums
1. Fearless, Taylor Swift
2. I Am?Sasha Fierce, Beyonce
3. Dark Horse, Nickelback
4. 808s & Heartbreak, Kanye West
5. Twilight (movie soundtrack), Various Artists

Notables: I really hope this list changes sometime soon. It's pretty much the same as last week's. I want to talk music! As I noted last week, I think change is coming. Bruce Springsteen's new one is out, and sales will probably go through the roof when he does halftime at this weekend's Super Bowl. I'm a Springsteen fan, and I picked up Working on a Dream on Tuesday. I'm about to start my second listen-through. I'll let you know what I'm thinking when I've properly digested it.

Top Singles
1. "My Life Would Suck Without You," Kelly Clarkson
2. "Just Dance," Lady GaGa (featuring Colby O'Donis)
3. "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)," Beyonce
4. "Heartless," Kanye West
5. "Love Story," Taylor Swift

Notables: Wow. Kelly Clarkson's tune sort of came out of nowhereville. Literally. It was ranked 97th last week. That's the biggest jump in Billboard history. I think it has to do with American Idol being back on airwaves (Clarkson won the first Idol, back in the day). They've been pumping her new single, and it paid off. I'm sorry to say there's not much there in the lyrics. The title sort of eliminates the element of surprise: it's all about?well?how her life would "suck" without her boyfriend.

Top Five Web Searches (according to Google Trends)
*Exercise caution when searching; some topics may be inappropriate.
1. bacon belly bomb
2. angela suleman
3. marchetti sf 260
4. cecil suwal
5. jose duarte

Notables: That first item kind of makes me sick to my stomach. The "bacon belly bomb" is a popular dish in Kansas City that consists of "bacon (two pounds of it) and Italian sausage (two pounds of that). The sausage is wrapped in a basket-weaved blanket of bacon, and for good measure there's even more bacon inside." In other words, it's meat on meat on meat on?meat. Who needs a bun, right? Do you see why I'm sort of sick to my stomach? And do you see why we are struggling with obesity in America? And do you see why other nations think we're awfully gluttonous?

Perhaps you've heard of Angela Suleman. She's the woman expecting eight kids. Oh! Scratch that. She's expecting eight more kids. That's right: she and her husband already have six kids. Do the math. When all is said and done, the Sulemans will have fourteen kids under one roof. And if you think that's rough, read the article carefully: her military husband is scheduled to go back for another tour of duty in Iraq. Unbelievable.

The third item is related to a story about a plane crash in California.

Cecil Suwal ran the prostitution ring that doomed the career of New York governor Eliot Spitzer. Just yesterday she was sentenced to six months in jail. At the sentence reading, Suwal told the judge: "It is my aim to prevent others, especially young girls, from making the kind of mistakes that I have made."

And finally, Jose Duarte. There are a lot of Jose Duartes out there. I think this might be in reference to a minor league baseball player invited to compete for a spot on the Kansas City Royals. Congrats, Jose! Here's a bacon belly bomber!