Hurt Locker

As many of you know I am not a big fan of going to the movies. Spending $12 to pad the pockets of these Hollywood scumbags is not my idea of a good time. However once and awhile I will go against my better judgement and go catch a flick. This was the case a few weeks ago when Neil and I found ourselves wandering around NYC with some time to kill. Neil is a movie conesuire and after knowing him for around twenty years he knows what kinds of films I like. He suggested that we go see The Hurt Locker and I didn't object. I had never heard of this movie but Neil mentioned a few taglines that sold me on it; "non-stop action," and "war."

We walked into the Times Square theater and it was packed. We had the option of sitting extremely close to the screen or farther back with the only downside being that a small handrail was partially obscurring my view...we chose the latter. With the pesky handrail adding another
dimension to my movie watching experience the film started. The moment the lights dimmed and The Hurt Locker began the excitement and nail biting started didn't stop until about 45 minutes after the movie ended.

I had never heard of, or seen any of the actors before. The renegade company leader played by Jeremy Renner was a riveting character. His antics provided much of the excitement as well as contributing to my incesant nail biting. My favorite person in the movie was Sergeant JT
Sanborn, played by Anthony Mackie. This guy was the real deal and did a tremendous job. He captured the feeling and emotion of a soldier faced with the never ending danger of trying to survive in a warzone while having to deal with a careless company leader, (Jeremy Renner's character.) To my surprise there was no political bias in this film, it simply gave an unfiltered view of the day to day actions of an Army bomb squad unit in Iraq. I would highly recommend this movie to anyone, whether you are interested in war films or not we all can relate to the human experience found in The Hurt Locker.

This might sound cliche and cheesy, but after leaving the theater I had a newfound respect for our military and the remarkable job they do. One aspect that I had always known about but never really thought about was how a solider must make split second decisions with so many mitigating factors. He/she has to deduce how their actions can positively or negatively affect their own lives as well the lives of their fellow soliders at the drop of a hat. The incredible stress that
this puts on a person is incomprehensible and ever the more reason why post traumatic stress syndrome is very real and affects many heroes returning from Iraq, Afghanistan, etc. I think it is very important that we all see the The Hurt Locker, and allow ourselves to be enveloped into the movie and try to feel and understand what these soldiers have to deal with. Unlike most films that are purely for entertainment, I truly believe that this one serves a more important
purpose and should be seen by all.

Impostor Yankee Stadium

1992, this was a good year for a variety of reasons. I was eight and actually excelling in school, (a feat I would not see again for another ten or eleven years until I reached college). Boutros Boutros-Ghali (one of the coolest names ever), took over as UN Secretary-General, George Bush Sr. threw up on the Japanese Prime Minister, and most importantly this was the year I went to my first Yankees game.

I recall the anticipation before we embarked on the 1 hour+ trek to the game. The drive through the crime ridden Bronx was magical; the abandoned cars, the crackheads on the sidewalks, condemned buildings, etc. It was a bit scary for an eight year old kid from the suburbs, but it was also alluring. This was only the appetizer. The main dish was the stadium: the hallowed ground on 161st Street and River Ave. The ballpark stood out among the decrepit buildings like a jewel in a pile of trash. This was the very spot where players like Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle, Joe D., Yogi Berra, Thurman Munson, and one of my favorite Yankees', the immortal Cecil Fielder had played. I figured that this place must be special however, why else would rich yuppies from the burbs' risk life and limb to drive out to The Bronx just to watch a baseball game? Once you enter Yankee Stadium you are treated to a unique aroma of urine, sweat, and other unknown smells that I couldn't even begin to decipher. You look around and notice the low ceilings, you hear the most foul obscenities, see people stumbling around drunk...and this all takes place before the game has even started. However once I caught my first glimpse of the field, my heart skipped a beat. It looked amazing. I couldn't get over how the perfectly manicured grass looked like a gorgeous painting. To add to the ambiance, Eddie Layton was playing the organ, and the sound beautifully resonated throughout the stadium. We went to our seats which were cramped and didn't have much legroom but who cared? I just wanted to see my favorite team play.

Lets fast forward to 2009, I am now twenty-five and have attended 5 games at the "new" stadium. I hated the idea of building this place from the moment they first broached the concept building another stadium. I thought, "how could they abandon THE Yankee Stadium? This place can't be duplicated, and why should it be?" Granted the old stadium was outdated and could have used a face lift, they should have remodeled it and made small improvements, but overall kept it the way it was. Fenway and Wrigley are older than Yankee Stadium, so why tear the ladder down? It was all about greed and money: they wanted more luxury boxes, they wanted fancy restaurants (the old stadium had $7 hot dogs, how much fancier did they need)? So now we get Lobel's steaks-the dream of any true baseball fan to pay $20 for a steak sandwich at the ballpark. I love to eat as much as the next guy, but I have never came to a game for the food; I came to watch the Yankees smack around their opponent. Now it's the fans who are the ones getting bitch slapped by the Yanks and forced to come to this tame, watered down stadium to watch our team. The place has no soul; it has no feeling. It's just a huge industrial-looking pit with a scoreboard that you can see from outer space. The crowd is alien to me. Gone are the true fans who had passion for the bombers. Gone are the heated arguments amongst the patrons. Now we are left with guys in suits who couldn't tell you who the Yankees first baseman was before Jason Giambi.

As I walked out of this new ballpark for the first time, I remember saying to myself, "where the hell did I just go?" I looked over the old stadium and wished there was an undo button-I would click it in a heartbeat and erase this impostor field. Unfortunately this can't be done and I, along with all True Yankees fans are stuck with it. So when you go to a Yankees game, look around the stadium and see what greed has gotten, and then glance across the street and look at what greed has left behind. This place would be fine if it were the Twins new stadium, or the Marlins new field, but it's not fine for the Yankees, and it's not fine for the "true" fans.

A day of losses

Today we lost two great talents, Farrah Fawcett and The King of Pop, Michael Jackson. I must admit that I never saw Charlie's Angels so I don't know much about Farrah Fawcett. However her passing is very sad nonetheless, especially at the young age of only 62. She gave us a first hand look at her courageous battle with cancer in a recent special called "Farrah's Story." Ms. Fawcett showed tremendous bravery and a strong will to overcome her disease, unfortunately she lost the fight this morning, my condolences to her family and friends.

The death of Michael Jackson came as a huge shock, as i'm sure it did to most of you. It is hard to believe that such an epic figure is gone, and a talent that comes along once in a lifetime has been lost. Michael has been in the public eye since he was very young, performing first with the Jackson 5 before embarking on his tremendous solo career. I grew up listening to his music, especially the album "Bad," which I had on cassette tape. In my opinion this is one of the greatest albums ever and contains my favorite Michael Jackson song, "Liberian Girl." We all know he had major issues, i'm sure his abusive father contributed to a lot of them, but I like to only judge his quality of music, not how he lives his life. There are only a few performers who could captivate a generation, John Lennon and Elvis being at the top of the list. I would add Michael Jackson to this category, and the influence he had (and will continue to have,) over popular culture is unparalleled. It feels very strange that he is gone, and it will take awhile to sink in. I could ramble on about MJ forever, but in closing I want to say that Mike will be missed, and the moonwalk probably looks even better in heaven.

Are the Nets crazy?

I am a huge Nets fan and I have always wanted to buy season tickets. When I came across a posting for exclusive ticket offers on my company's employee page I was excited and expecting to get a really good deal. The Nets never draw any fans, even when they are good they could barely bring in people to fill the seats. Now they are a joke and the newly named Izod Center is practically empty every night. I think after they basically dismantled the best team they ever had people pretty much gave up on them. Granted I loved the acquisition of Devin Harris but dumping Richard Jefferson was brutal. But I digress, I called the sales rep and spoke with him regarding different ticket plans, the cheapest being $2,500 for 2 seats for 41 home games (including the parking pass.) These particular seats are behind the basket in section 101, not horrible but certainly not a prime location. Ideally I would like to be sitting somewhere near center court, this would give me a great view of the whole floor. Sitting behind the basket gives me a great view of UCONN's finest, Josh Boone, airballing a foul shot, sounds thrilling.

The ticket rep I spoke with was a really nice guy and I felt bad he had to try and sell Nets tickets for a living, I think it would be easier to sell an iPhone to an Amish guy then to pawn off pricey Nets seats in this economy. He also explained that there is a no interest payment plan where I would pay $640 per month over the course of 4 months...that is exactly what I want to be doing with my money. Shelling out a good portion of my paycheck to eat $15 chicken fingers and watch the Nets lose to the Grizzlies by 35 points on a frigid night in mid January, thanks but no thanks. As you might have guessed I am passing on these tickets, even though I did contemplate buying them for a little while, my senses got the better of me. I should save my money for more important things...like a train ticket to watch them play in Brooklyn in 2020.

Trashy TV

Everyone watches crappy TV shows, whether its Rock Of Love, The Bachelor, or even Jerry Springer, we all watch programs that we know are garbage. In case you don't know I am not a psychologist and I don't care to analyze why people watch these shows, but it is an interesting phenomenon nonetheless. I am guilty of watching the Housewives of New Jersey (along with the NYC, Orange County, and Atlanta casts.) I love this show, you can call me whatever you want but this is great TV. These people are some of the biggest dolts I have ever seen, but their feeling of entitlement and "me first" attitude is priceless. A prime example of this is "The Countess," from the New York season. She was some model from Connecticut who married a random French Count, now she thinks she is the Queen of England.

My favorite cast is from Orange County, they are the most attractive and the least depressing to watch. I think its great how big of a douche bag Shane Keough is, and how his mother lets him treat her like crap, he is certainly an obnoxious SOB. I also find Vicki's insanely low self esteem to be pretty sad yet comical as well. She needs to be told she is loved about 500 times a day and hounds her kids about this to the point where they can't stand her.

I found the New York and Atlanta casts to be very weak, Atlanta especially since these women don't really work and were not particularly bright. It still escapes me why they need personal assistants when all they do all day is go to the spa and then plan a benefit dinner once every 5 months. The token gay male friend is getting pretty old as well, they treat these guys like accessories rather than people, its very lame.

The current New Jersey cast is god awful. Granted all of the cast members from each season are horrible people, (some worse than other,) but the Jersey group is particularly heinous. These women and their families, including the little girls who are repulsive brats, are sickening and portray the worst Garden State stereotypes. The overbearing Italian family with mafia overtones, gaudy jewelry, too much makeup, and bad accents. I think Obama said it best, "you can put lipstick on a pig, but it's still a pig," that basically sums up the NJ wives. The finale last night was insanely stupid and horribly scripted. All of the wives and their families go to dinner and the biggest whore of the bunch Danielle, walks into the restaurant. She just happens to be carrying a book that details her criminal past, and that has been the source of much strife throughout the show. She decides to put the book down in the middle of the table during the meal (with no coercion from the shows producer of course.) All hell breaks loose, again totally not scripted wink wink.

I was happy to see the NJ cast hit the road, hopefully never to be heard from again. Another interesting tidbit, this season was comprised of only 5 or 6 episodes, making this one of the shortest series ever. If this is the best Bravo can come up with I think I'll be passing on the next bunch of housewives and returning to the gold standard of trashy TV....COPS!

Why I started a blog, and what you can expect to find here

Why did I decide to start a blog? Too much time on my hands, bored, just into anything trendy, i'm a lame son of a bitch? All of the above could be true, however I think there are some other reasons I wanted to do this. My brain goes a mile a minute, 24/7...365, I talk and think fast, the thoughts and ideas go through my head at NASCAR speeds, non stop. Most of these thoughts usually end up in the preverbal "trash can," in my cranium. So why not share them here on the blog and give people something interesting to read while they are bored at work.

When I was contemplating this blog I did not want to focus on one particular theme, I would like to allow my posts to touch on all different topics, with no restrictions (there will be no political correctness here.) I can assure you that some common threads will be sports, food, music, politics, and TV/movies. There is a playlist on the bottom of the page, I have loaded some of my favorite songs for your listening pleasure, feel free to scroll through them at your leisure. Check back for updates, hopefully you will enjoy what I put out there. Cheers!