Editor’s Note: SoapBoxing is a weekly feature in which members of the Ames and Iowa State communities rave about various topics. Send interview requests via e-mail to [email protected]. This week, Jim Hayes, associate pastor of St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church, 2210 Lincoln Way, was interviewed.

Cafe Beaudelaire — “[I enjoy] having a gyro at Beaudelaire. You can tell the parmesan cheese has been grated with tender loving care.”

“Stomp” — “I was still shaking three days after. I’ve never had that much rhythm for that long. It was nice and loud. It taught me that sounds around me all the time can be made into music.”

Preserves vs. jelly — “It’s got to be the real fruit.”

“Life is Beautiful” — “I just went to see ‘Life is Beautiful.’ I’ve seen it twice in three weeks it’s so good. It was comic in the true sense. Even in the midst of this death camp in World War II laughter can be found. [There is] an art in being able to laugh in the midst of that tragedy. The last line of the film, ‘We won,’ after having been persecuted — that was a powerful statement of hope.”

Dreams of summer — “If I could be anywhere, I’d be playing 18 holes of golf at Augusta National. I’ve never been there, and I never will. But if I could, I’d love to go.”

Don’t you hate it when … — “It bothers me when I’m sitting at a concert and somebody is singing along so loud that I can’t hear the person I paid to see. I went to see a friend of mine who’s a folk country singer, Mary Chapin Carpenter, and somebody next to me at the night club was singing along to every song.”

Creeds: Nicene vs. apostles — “I would have to go with the Apostles. It’s just simpler language. Just knowing the disputes behind the creeds, I think the Apostles is better for people because of its simplicity, and it’s shorter.”