Jim Kochenburger is dedicated to helping people enjoy genuine, loving, fun-filled, life-enhancing relationships. He has a degree in counseling and is a speaker and published author of  101 Movie Clips That Get Families Talking, (Konsensus Publishing, 2008); Fun Devotions for Parents and Teenagers (Group Publishing, 1990). Additionally, he was the product developer for the family resource Parenting Teenagers for Positive Results (Group Publishing, 2001), the book, Risk in Our Midst: Empowering Teens to Love the Unlovable (Group Publishing, 2000) and others. Google him (Jim Kochenburger or James Kochenburger) to find out more. He is not an expert on the family, just a pretty good dad who wants to be a better dad, with a family he loves dearly. (He hopes to get as much out of this site as you!). Pictures below are of Jim, his son Mike, his daughter Kristin, his wife of 23 years, Karen (she is INCREDIBLE!), and schnauzer, Frosty.

 

Collects: Hot sauces that could burn out your eyeballs, and candy dispensers--especially M&M's dispensers

Music: LOVES music of all kinds, and has a 160 GB ipod to enjoy them on. Especially like old soul and R&B, alternative--I love findng anything unique and different, also Southern rock, and country. Currently listening a lot to The Eagles new record, the new Radiohead record, old Earth, Wind & Fire, Gnarls Barkley, and Mat Kearney. Frequently played on my ipod: U2, Coldplay, Radiohead, Lifehouse, Seal, Mat Kearney, Wilco, Switchfoot, The Shins, Anberlin, Beck, The Eagles, Jason Upton, Muse, Electric Light Orchestra, Drive-By Truckers, Gnarls Barkley, Snow Patrol, Gorillaz, Minus the Bear, Cut Copy, Rooney, The Lovetones, Bob Dylan, Van Morrison, Tom Petty, Bruce Springsteen, Brad Paisley, Shooter Jennings, Marshall Tucker Band, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Kenny Chesney, Tim McGraw, Big & Rich, Jason Aldean, Earth, Wind & Fire, Anthony Hamilston, Kirk Franklin, The Brothers Johnson, The Temptations, The O'Jays, The Ohio Players, Isaac Hayes, Curtis Mayfield, Bootsy Collins, Parliament and Funkadelic, Bobby Womack, and many others.  

Concerts attended this year: Bruce Springsteen, Radiohead, Tim McGraw, The Police and Elvis Costello, Rascal Flatts and Taylor Swift.

 

Favorite Movies: Currently Dark Knight, and liked Batman Begins. Love the Bourne movies--love CIA and spy stuff. Gladiator, Coen brothers movies. The first Matrix movie. Braveheart, We Were Soldiers, Saving Private Ryan, Star Wars--the old ones, Indiana Jones, It's a Wonderful Life, Elf, A Christmas Story, Band of Brothers the mini-series.

 

Books: Just finished: Me Talk Pretty One Day (Sedaris). Now reading Click: What Millions of People Are Doing Online and Why It Matters (Tancer).   

 

Loves: God, wife Karen, the kiddos, family time, doing stuff to bring families together, smiles and laughter, travel (favorite places are NYC, California, and Europe), great conversations, roller coasters (Cedar Point is #1!), movies (well written, with good characters is tops, but anything entertaining will do), Starbucks, sushi, animal crackers, Saturday morning family breakfasts, all hot sauce and hot wings especially, laughter (worth mentioning again), random acts of kindness and seeing people behaving kindly to one another, eating sushi, reading spy novels and humor (David Sedaris, Garrison Keillor, and many others).

Hates: Meanness, liver, religious fanatacism (I am talking about fanatical atheism too), profanity--especially with children present, just about all reality TV, pornography, laziness.  

Pet peeves: Much of them revolve around cell phones and bluetooth ear pieces (don't let these devices "moronize" you socially--that's all I ask, oh and, unless you have your finger on the nuclear button, do you really need to wear that earpiece to church or at a meal with your family? Please, stick the earpiece in your pocket and talk to your family--thanks!), really ill-mannered kids and their parents who behave worse than them.