Movies! Movies! Movies!

So, I told you all that I would talk you about the movies I have seen and stuff, right? <---- Eloquent sentence, I know. Anyway, a little background on me and movies. I like movies. I think they are a wonderful way to clear your mind and enjoy someone else's reality. I live across the street from a pretty nice theater and that makes it easy to go when there's time.

Don't get me wrong, I read books to expand my mind as well, but sometimes I want the story to be told in two hours as opposed to two weeks (read: I am a bit of a slow reader). Okay, so here's the deal, same with the music; I am no expert nor do I claim to know what I'm talking about. I do, however, know what I enjoy and so that's what I plan on letting you all know about.

Some of these movies will be new and still in theaters, some of them will be newish, and some may be classics. There probably won't be much of a pattern but there will probably be at least one new movie a week. I also want to use this space to watch some classic movies that everyone should see. Maybe I'll plow through the AFI lists.

Okay, enough with the intro. You get it, I know. It's not like it's rocket surgery, anyway. BTW, I'm not trying to give an spoilers, just thoughts.

So, this week I have FIVE movies for you all, four new movies you can still catch in theaters and one that came out around a year ago that has been making the rounds on Showtime recently.

1. We're The Millers: So, there's nothing super original about this movie. It's pretty straightforward comedy and, well, somewhat predictable. The thing is, it's super funny. All two hours are crazy funny. Jason Sudekis and Jennifer Aniston and the rest of the cast all work well together and if you can go more than a few minutes along the way without laughing, then something may be wrong with you, just saying. Hint: Watch the outtakes, it's worth the extra few minutes before you leave the theater.
2. The To Do List: Raunchy. Funny. Uncomfortable. Those are the three words that come to mind for this comedy about a nerdy high school valedictorian who wants to "be experienced" before heading off to Georgetown. Some fun cameos and, if you're like me and grew up in the 90s, the clothes, music and other accoutrements are spot on. It does contain some pretty gratuitous gross-out comedy a la American Pie and other movies of the genre, but it's laugh-til-it-hurts funny in some moments. Something to watch for: A scene early on, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, better known as McLovin, answers the door wearing a Hypercolor shirt. I used to own that shirt.
3. The Wolverine: Not much to say about this one. It was good, just like most everything else Hugh Jackman does. It has some decent plot intricacy and some fun twists. The action and fight scenes are pretty awesome and it's not all just Hugh rampaging through slicing and dicing with his Adamantium claws. There is some decent samurai sword action in play. It's a fun summer blockbuster that's worth seeing, especially if you are into the comic book flicks that the kids like so much these days.
4. Pacific Rim: Holy moly, what a fun movie! I know that it's hokey and there are robots fighting monsters, but isn't that what movies are about? This is reality suspended at it's finest. I mean, Charlie Day plays a scientist. If that doesn't say suspended reality, I don't know what does. It's got a little bit of Independence Day, Armageddon, and loads of other summer blockbusters. Go see this flick. Watch it in 3D. It's not serious so don't expect it to be. Do, however, expect to have a fun movie-watching experience.
5. Liberal Arts: Of all of the movies I have seen in the past year, this has to be one of my favorites. It's a traditional story about going home again and finding yourself. It's in the same vein as Garden State so if you were into that flick, do yourself a favor and watch this one. Yes, there are similarities between the two, even down to the similarities between lead actors/writers in both. The soundtrack also has some pretty glorious classical music to enjoy as well and the third Olsen sister - yes, there is another one and this one's not a twin - is just plain adorable as coed Zibby.

Clip for the day: This guy plays a scientist, that's all I'll say.

New Happenings From the Forty Acres

So, where I left you all last week with my update was by saying that perhaps an advanced degree was in my future because I have been really enjoying the coursework and all that it entails. Putting it in print last week was the first time the thought process truly became something real.

After sitting, thinking, and praying on it over the weekend, I decided to reach out to my professor from this class that I am taking this summer, Dr. Jan Todd, and pick her brain on a few things; namely, whether she thought I would be a good fit for the program - she's in charge so she would know - and what steps I would need to take moving forward to make it happen.

We set a meeting for earlier this afternoon, and, to my surprise, it was she who brought up the idea of me pursuing a Masters degree in Sports Management. She asked if I had considered it and even thought that I'd possibly be able to start the program before finishing this degree I'm working on currently. I told her that was precisely what I wanted to meet with her about and so we talked options moving forward. There are still a lot of things to get down to, and some research-y type stuff to do, but if all goes well, I may be able to start in the spring!

This will be an ongoing story and I will definitely keep you all up-to-date!

As far as this course is going, I made a B+/A on the first paper, A on the second paper, 95 on the test (highest grade in the class!) and just turned in my third paper yesterday.

Looking forward to having you all take this journey with me!

So Much New Music!

So, I think I have finally figured out how exactly I am going to go about the music portion of this blog. New music comes out weekly, generally on Tuesdays, and I consume a lot of it. Mainly angled towards rock stuff, but my tastes are wide and varied so there will be write-ups on loads of different stuff on Tuesdays for me to write about. I must warn you, though, while I love music and it is an every day part of my life, I have no musical background other than liking to do karaoke, singing (probably off-key) to songs as loud as possible in the car, seeing more shows than I care to count, and just enjoying the way the right song can magically altar my mood. So, with that said, if you are looking for a technical breakdown of tunes, this won't be the place. If you wanna know what someone with self-proclaimed good taste in music is enjoying, then this will be the place for you.

So, I will review something new or classic or both and preview what will be included in the next week's edition as well as put a little playlist together because I love making mix tapes! These mixes will be songs that have been stuck in my head or that I have recently heard or liked, regardless of genre and I may give a brief description or thought on why it moves me and you can see if it does the same or something else for you.

So, this will be the hardest review process I will have to attempt mainly because I have the ability to write about whatever I want to. I have actually bought quite a bit of music recently but haven't had an opportunity to pile through it all, so I will do a review of two recent albums that I have given a few listens to completely; Kanye West's Yeezus and Jay-Z's Magna Carta... Holy Grail.

Let's start with Kanye. I know many of you may be grumbling right now because you can't stand the guy and I couldn't be more on board with that assessment. He's crass, cocky and doesn't know when to shut up. He is also probably a musical genius in some regards. I heard him mention on VH1's Storytellers that "..so many people get caught up in trying to remake their first album, and it's impossible for me to remake The College Dropout... and that the songs on someone's 7th or 8th albums sound just like the songs on their first album" so he wanted to grow album-to-album. This new album is once again new territory for the self-proclaimed Louis Vuitton Don. I was hesitant to purchase this album at first after A) seeing him debut two songs on SNL, B) those songs being named Black Skinhead and New Slaves and C) the album title. He is treading in some dicey waters there if you ask me and some of that didn't jive with me. Considering that I had purchased each of his previous albums the day they were released, it was a big deal for me to put off picking this one up a month after release. So here's what I think about it:

• It's extremely different. Filled with a lot of industrial beats and just general loud noises. The soundscape of this album will probably appear on many albums over the next few years because that's what seems to happen when Kanye releases albums. My first listen pained my ears trying to get over the disorganized noise, but after a few listens and my ears assimilating to what was happening, I must say that it's a pretty fun listen. My favorite songs are On Sight, Black Skinhead (which is featured in numerous movie trailers currently, including the new Leo DiCaprio/ Matthew McConaghey vehicle The Wolf of Wall Street), Blood on the Leaves, and Bound 2. Least favorite song was an easy one for me; the poorly named I Am A God. I just don't really enjoy that premise and have probably fast-forwarded through that tune every time I've listened to the album since my first swim through it. All-in-all, if you like cutting edge sounds and fun beats and can get past songs with a lot of cussing and some pretty poor song titles, give this album a shot

Next up: Jay-Z's Magna Carta... Holy Grail. I don't have as many HSO's on this album as I do on the Kanye album and that's probably because Jay has started aiming his albums at middle America. That's not to say that there isn't edge on this album, there's just not much controversy. It's a pretty straightforward hip-hop/rap album. 

• It's not another Jay-Z masterpiece, but it's a good, solid album. It incorporates a lot of different sounds and beats and some fun collaborations with, not only his wife, but Frank Ocean, Justin Timberlake and Rick Ross to name a few. This isn't Jay's best work by a long shot, but, as I said before, it's worth listening to. My favorite tunes: Holy Grail(feat. Justin Timberlake), Oceans(feat. Frank Ocean), Crown,  and Jay Z Blue(I love the Mommy Dearest and Notorious BIG samples). Least Favorite: La Familia, Heaven, Nickels and Dimes.

Next week I will be reviewing two new albums that came out today, The Polyphonic Spree's Yes, It's True. and the self-titled album from The Civil Wars as well as the Robin Thicke album Blurred Lines, which came out last week.

Now for my mix tape(with some personal notes)!

• M83 - My Tears Are Becoming A Sea - Just an epic song full of grandeur.
• Gogol Bordello- Wonderlust King - If you've never seen these guys live, you're missing out! This is one of my favorites that they do.
• Mumford and Sons - Below My Feet - A song I love running to, for obvious reasons.
• Of Monsters and Men - Dirty Paws - Many people know their other work with Little Talks, but this is probably my favorite song off of their album.
• The Flaming Lips - She Don't Use Jelly - The first song I ever heard of theirs and it still kicks ass.
• Kishi Bashi - Manchester - Such a beautiful tune and a wonderfully talented guy. One that you could work out to or sleep to.
• The Piano Guys - Rockabel's Canon - A fun take on Canon in D.
• The Smiths - Asleep - When I die, I want this song played at my funeral. I have listened to this song so many times it hurts. A lot of times with the lights off and the sound up. It's hauntingly beautiful and sad.

Below the playlist I have put a YouTube video of Gogol Bordello so you all can experience a little of what I am talking about when I reference their live show as well as a video of Kishi Bashi playing this same song live. Both are worth watches so if you must, skip them on the list and just watch the videos.

Thanks as always for reading and listening. An extended version of this playlist will be available on my Facebook. For some reason, four songs went missing in the load process. Have a great Wednesday!

On Football, Johnny Football, and Steroids

What a weird last few days in sports. I honestly don't really know where to start so I will start with what's been in everyone's face not only today, but over the last few weeks.

Full disclosure for those that don't know me all that well: I am on my way to becoming a two-time graduate of The University of Texas at Austin and with that comes a healthy desire for rivalry with two schools, OU and Texas A&M. As Longhorns, the schadenfreude is high when it comes to those two schools, and before I get called a jerk for reveling in the failures of others, those two schools feel the same about us.

With that said, I will say that these past few weeks have been a little bit of a back and forth within me about how to feel about good ole Johnny Football. As an Aggie, I am generally rooting for his failure, but that's only between the lines. As someone who has made my fair share of mistakes but has had the family and friend support to help get me back headed into the right direction, I just want to reach out to the kid and lend some support. I want to feel bad for him when I read about the way his mom and dad treat him and have treated him since his meteoric rise to fame last season. They are trying to maximize their window of opportunity and earning potential while it's there, and while I am never one to condemn something like that, the NCAA rules are in place and haven't changed in a long time so the fact that they can't follow them and steer him in the right direction as the parents blows my mind. Some of the stuff I can forgive. I was 20 not that long ago and for those of you familiar with me at age 20, you remember that I, much like John Foot, enjoyed the occasional adult beverage. I also probably got asked to leave a party. I was also flippant with money that wasn't mine. I also wasn't the first one that ever acted that way and Johnny won't be the last.

The part that makes me irate, and would drive me insane if I were an Aggie, is how arrogant and above-the-law he has conducted himself. It's one thing to get a little partied up and get out of control. In today's social media-driven climate, we even sometimes post things we don't mean or would love to have back. My 50 twitter followers or so don't care what I post. I doubt anyone even reads what I put on there in most regards. Johnny has treated us as if we are all stupid and that's what doesn't work for me. It's tough to be young. I know that. It's tough to be a celebrity, at least from what I've read and been told. Combine the two and it's no walk in the park. One thing I do feel that I have a grasp on is Aggies and the way that they treat each other. The reason that schools goof on aTm is that we don't truly get it. It's cool. I'll admit it. Aggies stick with one another more so than most. They blindly take up for one another and protect their own. The point I am trying to make is that if there were ever one place where it would be simple to be a big-time celebrity, it would be College Station, TX.  Secluded from big city life, kind of in the middle of nowhere, filled with people who generally have your best interest at heart because you are one of their own. I understand his star is bigger than most, but any quarterback at a big-time school is a celebrity. You think AJ McCarron at Alabama walks unnoticed across campus? How about Braxton Miller at Ohio State? What about when Vince Young was at Texas? Or Ricky Williams for that matter? Is Johnny Manziel more accomplished than those players and/or the countless others I haven't listed? The way he has acted since winning the Heisman Trophy is careless and reckless.

That's more than I cared to say about that, so onto something else...

So, it's officially football season. How do I know these things? Well, I got to have my first argument last night regarding Tony Romo. I won't get into all of it, but here's the gist: As far as I am concerned, Tony Romo is not the main issue with the Dallas Cowboys and those who believe so are delusional and I don't have a problem telling them that. Is he the best quarterback in the history of ever? Probably not, but he's far from the worst.

Ask yourself this the next time that you feel like bashing Tony Romo: In the last 4 years, what top-of-the-line quarterback has been available for the Cowboys to have? Once again, I'm not asking if there have been better or more successful quarterbacks in the NFL, I am asking for an opinion as to whom the Cowboys could have signed that would have given them a better chance at winning than Tony Romo. Make sure to factor in that trading up in the draft to take RG3 or Andrew Luck would cost us picks that could potentially help shore up the offensive line, not that Jerry Jones has done much in that regard even with the picks we have had.

And one last thing:

Steroids suck. I am sad that Nellie Cruz won't be flexing his muscle and ability for the next 50 days on my favorite tv show, otherwise known as Rangers baseball. I am not in the camp that feels he was selfish by not appealing the suspension so he could play a few games longer. I feel as if him accepting the punishment shows signs of remorse and acknowledgement for wrongdoing. I applaud him for that and will welcome him back with open arms come playoff time.

And now for links:
 The Cowboys Fourth String QB:

And since I talked so much Aggies today for the first, and most likely the last time, here's Dude Perfect:

What I've Learned

So, here's what I have learned in the last week...

I am a little rusty at on-demand essay writing and a little long winded in some regards. I took my first test in my class this summer and it was the first test since returning to school that involved an essay portion. The one thing I'm happy about is that instead of having to do blue books, she just provided us with some paper to write on. I am stoked about this because I would probably still be writing my essay due to my extreme attempts of being detail oriented and trying to cram as much info in the essay as I could. We were told 3 pages and I filled it up and then some and had to wrap it up with the quickness leaving a bunch of unused thoughts rolling around in my noggin.

I will get better, though. Am gonna have to.

There are points of my week where I think that with this new degree I would like to pursue a job in the sports world, helping the continuance of ushering in the new media age and using my idea factory and knowledge of the technology to help people use this technology properly.

At others, I think I would love a job in higher ed. I would love to be my professor, Dr. Jan Todd and tell the next 3 generations of sports enthusiasts how it used to be and how it is now. I understand that would mean multiple more years left in school, but this journey has been so wonderful thus far, and eye opening, and humbling that I feel I may be doing myself a better service if I choose that direction.

Obviously, these aren't decisions that have to be made today. I have time, but it's up there and I think of being called Dr and that's pretty cool too.

That's about all I have for today, so here are a few links, including one for the Google Ngram Viewer, which is the coolest thing I've seen in a while. All you do is type in a word, and the chart will plot when it was first used. You can use that info to find not only it's first appearance, but in what it first appeared. For instance, 1576 was the first recorded use of the word "Christianity". It's fun to play with.

Here's the Ngram link: http://books.google.com/ngrams

And here's some links about my professor, Dr Jan Todd; Professor, Scholarly Journal Editor, Former Powerlifter, Hall Of Famer
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jan_Todd
http://www.usapowerlifting.com/halloffame/women/jan_todd/
http://www.starkcenter.org/history/ - I get to go here to study. You know how awesome it is to get to study in a museum of sports and fitness?!?!

Music for your Face

So, I'm gonna kind of mail this report in. It's been a long day. I don't recommend waking up at 4 in the morning an then expecting to be fresh all day.

Anyway, I said Tuesdays would be about music and here's me keeping my word. The following playlist is a grouping of songs that have been on my mind, stuck in my head, or coming out of my mouth over the last week or so. Songs you may not be familiar with that I feel you should be and why  are:

• Der Conversationaliste by Wax Fang- A song, in my opinion, about the mindless conversations we have day in and day out. Favorite line - "I'm rolling my eyes to keep my head from spinning around"
• Maria by Phil Pritchett- This song never gets old. I've been listening to it for almost 15 years and I will probably still listen to it for 30 more. 
• Heartbeats by Jose Gonzalez- Cover of the Knife song. Really gorgeous take on an already awesome song
• Diane Young by Vampire Weekend- The whole new album is pretty rad and this is my favorite song of the lot.
• Dry Creek by Owen Temple- The best song about the best little bar in Austin, TX
• 10,000 Hours by Macklemore and Ryan Lewis- It saddens me that his other songs about goofy stuff in "Thrift Shop" and songs with great beats that allow the message to get lost like "Can't Hold Us" are the ones getting praise when songs like this one, about the hard work and dedication it takes to succeed at anything in life, "Same Love" and "Starting Over" and many others off his most recent album go unnoticed. These are the songs with messages that need to be heard. About equality and recovery and hard work. I understand that many musicians have made it big with chart topping songs never to have anyone delve into their actual work, I fear that this may be the case for Macklemore but hope it's not. People need these songs. "I observed Escher, I love Basquiat, I watched Keith Haring, you see I studied art. The greats weren't great because at birth they could paint, the greats were great because they paint a lot" 
• To Modern Science by The Black and White Years- A really fun song by my favorite Austin band. A throwback to 80s synth-pop in some regards, just a really fun song.
• Runnin' Buddy by Max Stalling- Just a fun, twangy song about best friends and what happens when one of them finds love. It's like "Wedding Crashers" but better.

Enjoy!

Inside the Mind of a Slumping Baseball Fan

Sports. Background noise for some. Religion for others. As I am learning in school these days, a lot of what happens in the sports world falls on a continuum and the level of ones fandom is no different. The fun part is that this level can sometimes vary day-to-day, week-to-week, game-to-game, etc. 

Sports, to me, is the one area of life that can provide you with instantaneous fear, agony, and euphoria in a matter of minutes. Don't believe me? 

Here's an example from less than 24 hours ago. As a lifelong Rangers fan, I have seen them play some good baseball and some bad baseball. I have been there for the ups, like the first ever playoff game in 1996 and both Game 5s that have been played in Arlington, and I have been there for the downs, basically the 80s and early aughts. As a former employee at The Ballpark in Arlington, I have seen easily over 1,000 games in that stadium alone, not to mention countless others on my tv, computer, phone, etc. I would say I consciously consume 150 out of 162 regular season games in real time each year.

I say all of that to lead into this point: The baseball that the Texas Rangers have been playing over the past few weeks, and almost months, has been disgusting. There are really no words for it. They either can't catch a break or aren't putting themselves in favorable enough positions to steal a break. Sloppy base running, poor execution on defense, really pitiful situational hitting. Everything outside of the pitching staff has been pretty brutal to watch(tell 2000 Jeff that's how things are going and watch closely for the look he gives you, it's not gonna be pretty). But last night sure was fun, entering the ninth down a run and "BAM" homer to right, tie ballgame. Two batters later "POW" homer to left and "Hello, Win Column!"

In our world of sports, we tend to overreact to every little thing. It's in our nature and we've been doing it forever. Tiger Woods wins a tournament one week and the incessant rambling over how "he's back" controls the airwaves of national talk. Two weeks later another golfer plays a magnificent round of golf and leaves everyone, including Eldrich, in his wake and all of a sudden, "He's a Bum! He'll never win again! He should hang them up and take up knitting." Baseball, football, hockey, you name it; when it's good, it's great, when it's not it's agony.

I, on the other hand, try my best to stay in the middle of the road, knowing that (a) these sports I consume so much of are merely entertainment and (b) nothing I say or do will do anything to change what happens on the field so there's no sense in getting so worked up over it that I blow a gasket. That's not to say I don't say an expletive or two when whichever of my teams fails to execute the way I want them to. That's just nature. But I have tried to calm myself when it comes to this, emphasis on the word tried. I fail sometimes in remaining calm when someone tells me that Tony Romo is the main problem with the Cowboys without considering that he's playing with an offensive line where 2 of his 5 'protectors' led the league in missed blocks last year or when someone tells me that the Rangers would be better without Ron Washington and refuse to listen to reason that ole Wash isn't the guy up there throwing the ball or swinging the bats. In both of those cases, I completely agree that these two men aren't free of any ridicule or don't deserve some of the blame, but these are team sports and by definition, you win as a team and you lose as a team. Wanna blame one individual for losing something? Ask Novak Djokovic(sp?) why he didn't win Wimbledon. Even in that case, sometimes you lose because the other guy is just simply better, nothing more.

I don't know where I'm going with this other than to say one more thing, watching baseball is more fun when the Rangers(or the team of your choice) is winning just the same as your job is more enjoyable when your boss is giving you praise and not constantly riding you about a deadline so these past few weeks have been tough to watch, but I have continued to do so, with an open mind and forgiveness for errors in my heart. The string of bad play has also allowed my brain to try to figure out some of the other anomalies of the sports world, such as: (A) is Crossfit a sport? (B) Which sport would be best to have a background in in case of the zombie apocalypse? (C) How hard would it be to be on American Ninja Warrior and exactly how many surgeries would I need following an attempt to find out? 

I may attempt to answer those questions, or they may have been in my mind like that feather in Forrest Gump, here today and gone with the next gentle breeze.

Thanks for listening to me ramble today and my apologies for any disjointed nature of this report, I wrote it at three different times and was hoping for flow. You'll get a better effort out of me next time.