Monday, September 19, 2011
Wednesday, September 07, 2011
At Least We Looked Good in Defeat
Sunday, September 04, 2011
Somebody! Buy Me This Shirt!
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Teddy Roosevelt v. Rally Monkey
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Life Shards: Volume 5
Sunday, April 17, 2011
As Dusty Would Say, I'm "Liv'n On The End Of A Light'nin Bolt!"
Sunday, March 27, 2011
On Fighting and Being Human
Sergio De La Pava's A Day's Sail is one of the very rare writings I've found that comes close to doing justice to the beauty and potential for metaphor found in fighting. He is able to artfully weave Virginia Wolfe, Gatti v. Ward, Corrales v, Castill, and even a pinch of law to make this article seem like I commissioned it myself.
Friday, March 11, 2011
Life Shards: Volume 4
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Wednesday, March 09, 2011
Annoying Day
Saturday, March 05, 2011
Life Shards: Volume 3
Tuesday, March 01, 2011
Life Shards: Volume 2
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Life Shards: Volume 1
Saturday, February 26, 2011
UFC 127 Main Even Pick Posted…Just Because
I want to like John Fitch, I really do. When we watched UFC 87 at Angelina’s place and he took 25 minutes of ass whupp’n from GSP but just refused to die he earned a ton of respect from me. Also, the man perfectly times his walk in to Johnny Cash’s Rusty Cage so that he always walks into the Octagon as the guitar solo hits. But since then he’s been a bit of a boring decision machine.
As for BJ, I never feel 100% confident picking Penn because you never know when he’s going to come into a fight all disinterested and looking like he’d rather be ordering up fries at the Hilo BK. When he’s dialed in I think he takes this fight 75% of the time. So my pick comes down to whether I think BJ will care or not.
I’m going to have to go with Penn in a decision because he’s got better hands and good enough take down defense to eek out a close decision. (And yes, I do realize my reasoning for the pick actually didn’t have anything to do with the stuff I had written up until that last paragraph. I guess I was going for more of a surprise ending than a well formulated term paper approach with this comment)
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
You Make the Call
Monday, February 21, 2011
Impressionist Painting or Tourist Photos?
From the “I wish I had thought of that great art project” folder comes this Flavorwire story about Corinne Vionnet, a Swiss photographer who “layered between 200 to 300 tourist-taken shots of some of the world’s most famous landmarks to create what look like blurry, Impressionist paintings.”
Here’s a link to her project’s site: Photo Opportunities/
Sunday, February 20, 2011
"As if Every Thought that Tumbles Through Your Head was so Clever it Would be a Crime for it Not to be Shared."
Wednesday, February 09, 2011
Watch Black Swan, It's Great
Director Darren Aronofsky’s last film before Black Swan was 2008’s the Wrestler, his brilliant look into the life of an aging professional wrestler. On the surface the subject matter of pro wrestling and ballet couldn’t seem to be farther apart, but there are some similarities in the way Aronofsky handles both movie’s themes. These similarities combined, among other things, with Aronofsky’s fantastic ability to bring you into the mind of a person descending into madness make Black Swan a very entertaining 108 minutes.
Natalie Portman plays Nina, a brilliant but naïve ballerina is going for the lead role in a new production Swan Lake where the lead will be expected to pull double duty by playing the roles of both Black and White Swan. Nina’s sheltered existence and constant striving for technical precision as a dancer make her a perfect fit for the innocent role of the White Swan. However after being cast in the lead she is forced to find a more impulsive, sensual, and impulsive side to herself to fulfill the Black Swan role.
This transition runs so opposed to the world Nina knows that it wears away at her sanity. Just like Randy “The Ram” Robinson in the Wrestler trying to adjust to normal life where he is no longer cheered by thousands the feelings of awkwardness and even cognitive dissonance are palpable as you watch Nina find her more impulsive side. The feeling is especially pronounced when Lilly, a free spirited fellow ballerina played by Mila Kunis, is on screen.
Without giving away too much of the story away before you set foot in the theater I’ll also say that you should watch for how Aronofsky uses the thematic underpinnings of Swan Lake itself, especially in the plot’s resolution.
Very quick note: I love how the Wrestler and Black Swan deal with mental demands of characters who’s lives completely revolve around physical performance. This seems to be a niche where Aronofsky is peerless.