Tom MacDonald “Daddy’s Home” Review

Tom MacDonald has his tattooed finger on the pulse of politically conservative rap, if that’s such a category. From the very first time I heard one of his songs (“Fake Woke”), I was like yes, yes, and yes. It was about time someone added beats to lyrics that related to a lot of people across the country. Rap doesn’t always have to be about drugs and naked women (I’m being very stereotypical, of course!). Tom’s latest features Tom’s ex… that is Tom Arnold’s ex-wife Roseanne Barr. Take a look then scroll down for more…

Roseanne has been an outspoken Trump supporter and while she’s not the best rapper, I don’t think the legitimacy of her rap career is the point of the video anyway. She probably doesn’t really give a flying flip what I think or you think or anyone thinks, which is kind of refreshing. Another good one from Tom as far as creativity goes, but I do have to take issue with the premise, the title.

Referring to a president as “daddy” is more in line with Democrats, though I’m not sure they even know that. When they look for someone to be elected in their party, it’s as if they’re searching for a father figure (maybe that’s why Kamala had to be forcefully situated on their ticket this election cycle, she’s not a daddy). They love to have authority over them, telling them what to do and how to do it. Actually, it might be more accurate to say they love someone having authority over YOU. Why else do they often fight for citizens to have less rights in this country?

One part I love about conservatives is that this weird Democrat fetish of an elected official being a savior is rarely, if ever, the case. Now it might be said that a lot of people think of Trump as the savior of the Republican party but I disagree with that, too. At this point in time, he fits what the Republicans want in a leader. He works for them (and us, the people). Conservatives aren’t looking for someone to bark out orders, in fact, it’s probably the opposite. We want someone who kind of does what they’re hired to do and gets out of the way.

Democrats, on the other hand, look to these leaders to solve all their problems. They want someone to discipline anyone who disagrees with them, give them an allowance, tell them they’re being good citizens. It’s weird. So in that sense, I don’t like playing their game of calling a President daddy, but I suppose if this Tom MacDonald song is aimed at liberals, its title is phrased in a way they’ll understand. Tom… a man of the people.

But I’m absolutely never calling Donald Trump daddy.

-Out of the Wilderness

Snow in north Florida??

It’s sure to be the talk of the town next week when (if) north Florida gets a band of snowfall that will undoubtedly do 3 things:

  1. shout down the city
  2. kids everywhere will be looking for hills to slide down on a garbage can lid
  3. Parents will be pulling their hair out by the end of the day

I’ve been in north Florida for a few years now, using it as a home base for my travels. The last time it snowed in the state capital (Tallahassee) was 2018 according to a quick Google search. A significant amount of snow was way back in 1989 (over 1 inch of snow).

Needless to say, it will probably amount to a lot of hype but not the landmark event it’s getting attention for today, about 4 days before the event is allegedly going to happen. But if it does, that will be pretty wild. I’ve never taken my camper to a snowy area and if the forecast is accurate, the snow might come to me! Either way, the temperature at the middle of next week has a low in the high 20s so that’s sure to be fun.

Maybe it’s time for a quick trip south but exactly how far south do I need to go in Florida to feel that pleasant warmth again in January? Plus, I’m training for an upcoming duathlon and snow has the perfect texture for running. 🤭

-Out of the Wilderness

Movie Music Matters – Crazy Rich Asians and Speed 2

I was watching Speed 2 last night and before you say it, yes it gets dark at 5pm and I don’t have any paid streaming services at the moment. Free YouTube movies for the win! This movie is from 1997 so you can imagine how dated it is now after so many technological advances just in the past 25 years. Sandra Bullock is great though and even though the movie is simply too long (I fell asleep after the 3rd ending), I think it filled in quite nicely as the entertainment for an evening.

Music in movies matters a lot. Right off the top of my head I’m thinking of movies like A Knight’s Tale, Elizabethtown, The Lion King… movies with fantastic songs weaved in to the storyline perfectly. Oh, how about my favorite rom com movie ending ever, Never Been Kissed? The way they used The Beach Boys “Don’t Worry, Baby” was 10/10. That’s a specific song at a specific moment and another great example is the wedding scene in Crazy Rich Asians. Using “Can’t Help Falling in Love” was simply to die for! It was excellent.

Speed 2 on the other hand, used the same song, one of my favorite versions actually and it was basically just background noise. They had a chance to bring the song to the forefront of the scene but instead it’s basically just a forgettable moment and I hated that! It’s the dinner scene with UB40 on stage singing “Can’t Help Falling In Love” and if you aren’t paying attention you’ll miss it. Just like the movie producers did.

-Out of the Wilderness

The World’s End and the End of the Matter

Last night I watched the science fiction movie The World’s End (free on YouTube) and it was pretty awesome. I I couldn’t tell if it was from 1993 or 2013, which I thought was kind of awesome, too (it’s from 2013 and stars Simon Pegg as Gary King).

Lots could be said about the comedy, the story, the twist, the editing (superb editing) but I’d like to skip all that and talk about how I was caught off guard when the final few scenes strangely coincided with what I’m learning about a book in the Bible… Ecclesiastes. You know the one that says there’s a time for this, a time for that, like that song?

The pastor at the church I go to just so happens to have started a series on Ecclesiastes, kicking off with chapter 1 (the list of seasons like the song isn’t until chapter 3). Pastor Paul explained the chronology of the book in relation to King Solomon’s life; a season he (Solomon, the author) was in after he’d kind of let himself indulge in the pleasures of the world and now he’s reflecting on it all. The word “meaningless” (or “vanity”) pops up a lot throughout Ecclesiastes because Solomon seems to have tried everything and nothing really worked for him. Not wisdom, not folly, not riches, not women, not food, nothing! Nothing except for God, as the book finalizes in its last few verses where it’s written, “The end of the matter is this: Fear God and keep his commands.” But it’s the emptiness from a deflated Solomon that is mirrored by Gary King in the last moments of The World’s End. Now seems like a good time to say that YouTube has a video for EVERYTHING. I was actually able to find the scene I’m talking about with Gary’s low point, the moment in the movie when all seems lost, Gary could quit or give it one last heroic effort. There’s never been a movie where the main character quit at the low point (otherwise, what the heck is the point of the movie to begin with!?) so of course Gary powers through but it’s in that desperate scene where we pick up with the movie. Notice Gary’s confessions sounding a lot like Solomon… hoping in things that just don’t quite match their promised glory.

Gary’s friends seem to have it all together (spoiler alert, they don’t) and Gary admits everything he’s been chasing is like chasing the wind. A false hope. That’s exactly what Solomon confesses in Ecclesiastes! Gary is in the middle of realizing that everything he thought was promised him as a young man was a waste. A lie. Empty. A lot like Solomon searching for wisdom, folly, riches, etc. It turns out that everything Solomon searched for (apart from God himself) was meaningless. Also, in the final scene (after the one above, the villain calls Gary “King of the Humans,” and in Ecclesiastes, Solomon refers to himself as King of Israel. A lot of parallels going on, definitely not what I expected on a random Tuesday night.

If you get a chance, watch the movie. It’s funny, heartfelt, clever, and kind of wild in a really good way. It’s also British so if you like their accents, you’ll be jumping in your knickers about this one. Then read Ecclesiastes and see if you notice the same sentiment from King Solomon.

-Out of the Wilderness

Wait, there’s no more Redbox??

Did anyone else know Redbox is gone? I began to wonder when one of their kiosk machines wasn’t at this one gas station where I used to see the it. I just figured that location wasn’t working for them. I guess you knew, didn’t you? Or maybe only the people who rented DVDs there knew. Which is evidently me and a few other people because Redbox’s parent company filed for bankruptcy in 2024. Redbox is no more. It was solidified for me when I went to their website and got some kind of error. Then I researched and found out they were going out of business. Now even their Facebook page is run by a company that I assume was one of their competitors. If you go to there, you’ll see where it says it’s owned by Crackle, the streaming service. I guess time and technology are always moving forward. Unlike Redbox’s Twitter. This didn’t age well.

Where am I supposed to get my DVDs now!? The Walmart bargain bin?? I guess the local library is going to see more of me… that is, until DVDs completely disappear, too.

-Out of the Wilderness