Exciting news on the homesteaders front – it looks like Beemsville Worldwide HQ will be relocating in the near future.
When, where, how, you ask? Soon, we don’t know (but not too far), and with the help of friends and family. This has been brewing for a few months. Nothing like a little extra stress to keep things interesting. Stay tuned for exciting updates.
In the most watched sporting even on the planet this year, FC Barcelona defeated Manchester United 2-0 in Rome to take the UEFA Champions League title. For the neutral observer or non-aligned soccer fan this was a great game to watch – not only because it pitted the two reigning champions from England and Spain, not only because these two teams are among the most popular in the world, not only because it matched the two best players in the world in Messi and Ronaldo, but Barca and Man U also just won their respective leagues this year as well.
What did you do for Memorial Day? Did you think about those who died in service of this country? Maybe not. Maybe you went for a picnic or you watched the war movie marathon on AMC/TCM/TNT. When I was growing up we always did the cemetery circuit, visiting the graves of relatives at a handful of cemeteries in the home county, listening to stories about great-great aunts, uncles, and cousins we never knew. A couple of thoughts on this Memorial Day… Read the rest of this entry ?
If you’re ever in Albuquerque, the right turn would be a trip up the Sandia Tram to Sandia Peak. It’s a 4,000 climb by tram, which means a temperature drop of 10-15 degrees. At the top you’ll find a restaurant, and a number of trails leading to the crest of the peak (which also includes a gift and snack shop).
Yeah, yeah, the phone pics don’t do it justice. And it’s not the absolute back-to-nature experience, but the 1.5 mile hike through woods and along the cliffs has some awesome views of the Rio Grande basin, and Manzano mountains. You also get a decent little cardio workout at 10,000 feet. The tram runs until sundown. At the base of the mountain you can grab some good southwestern grub at Sandiago’s…
Want to hang out and see some soccer?
World Cup qualifying gets is nearly upon us again, with the USA taking on Costa Rica on the road on June 3, and then a home match against Honduras on Saturday, June 6 in Chicago. What’s at stake? The chance to take a commanding lead in the final round of qualifiers and sew up that bid for South Africa 2010.
We will be in Chicago along with friends on the 6th, for all the festivities and hijinks. The American Outlaws (of which we are proud members) are hosting pre-game and tailgate fun, as well as the postgame rally. It’s always a good time at USA Soccer games; just check out the breakdown of our last epic road trip, along with some videos.
Unfortunately, a co-worker and his wife who were set to accompany us have had to back out do to an unforeseen work conflict, and I bought one extra because my sister said she might go. What’s it all mean? If you want to come hang out with us in Chicago and go to the game, drop me a line! I have three extra tickets. Even if you’ve never been to a soccer match before, I virtually guarantee a good time. We are staying up there Saturday night and there are still good deals to be had on priceline for hotels. Give me a shout.
Having just attended a high school graduation in smalltown Western Illinois, we offer these helpful reminders for general commencement etiquette.
Regarding mobile phones: you might want to switch to vibrate; if someone calls, don’t pick up and shoot the breeze for a couple of minutes (a guy did this one row down from us – yes, he had on a t-shirt and a camo hat). If you are one of those self-important bastards who just has to take the call, proper procedure is to remove yourself to the lobby discretely and do a callback.
Regarding PowerPoint: probably only an issue at smaller schools, but all you teachers, class sponsors, etc. should resist the urge to do a powerpoint presentation to sappy theme music. Save it for the wedding receptions. Especially resist the urge to let each graduate choose their own theme music and throw it up there with youthful photos. Nothing says awkward quite like eight seconds of ill-chosen music to the backdrop of poorly staged photos. Unless you’re making an ironic statement on the subject of awkwardness and its integral place in the high school experience; then by all means proceed. Read the rest of this entry ?
Eight games in to MLS and as usual you have a few surprises. D.C. and Toronto on top of the East while Columbus is in the basement. Houston’s slow start and the surprising Seattle Sounders in the West. But most puzzling are the strange cases of Chivas USA and the Chicago Fire.
Paulo 'Sweep-the-leg' Nagamura
Chivas, the less-glamorous but more effective LA team, is 7-1-1 with a commanding lead atop the West. This from a squad appraised in the pre-season as mediocre at best. So how has this happened? Well, five of those games are against Dallas (twice), the Galaxy, Colorado, and Columbus – teams which are turning out to be pretty poor. They’ve only played two Eastern Conference teams, and they’ve had six home games. That’s helpful, but it’s not the whole story.
Start with Zach Thornton. Many had written him off as past the sell-by date, but big Zach has come in leaner (for him) and has shown some of the agility that made him an all-star with the Fire. Chivas have also benefited from timely goals from a variety of players. Especially helpful when some of their most talented players either haven’t played much or played well (see Kljestan S., and Galindo, M.). Read the rest of this entry ?
Star Trek… Directed by J.J. Abrams, written by Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman, starring Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Eric Bana, Karl Urban, Zoe Saldana, Simon Pegg, John Cho, and Leonard Nimoy.
The Trek is back. Big opening weekend, great buzz. What a fun movie…
Is it the timing? Almost 40 years(!) after the original series, 20 afte the Next Generation, with few enough successful big screen space adventures of late. Battlestar Galactica and to some extent Star Wars, have shown you can keep going back to the sci-fi franchise, even when the original cast has moved on. Is it the team? J.J. Abrams has had some success with ensemble pieces; the writers obviously know and revere the original material but have also taken to heart lessons learned from other recent reboots. Is it the casting? If you’re a Trek fan, you had to be a little nervous when the actors were all named. Zach Quinto? Shaun of the Dead? And who’s this Chris Pine dude? Yeah, I sort of wish John Cho could match George Takei’s melodious baritone as Sulu, but if that’s all I have to complain about…
Some spoliers after the bump.
The new Star Trek is finally upon us. Easily the most anticipated movie in some time around here, we’ll be out to the local cineplex with Vulcan ears and phasers in tow.
Do we some concerns? Sure… Despite our policy of avoiding buzz and potential spoilerage on movies we’re interested in seeing, it’s hard to keep away from everything. Here are a few:
Concerns aside, can’t wait to get out there and this movie. It’s great to see the old Enterprise again, and all those characters who’ve become a part of our popular culture. Check back soon for the official Beemsville movie review.
X-Men Origins – Wolverine, written by David Benioff and Skip Woods, directed by Gavin Hood, starring Hugh Jackman, Liev Schreiber, and Danny Huston. Wolverine will either satisfy your summer movie cravings or disappoint your narrative sensibilities. It all depends on your perspective and expectations.
On one hand, if you’re going to have a big budget-fx driven action movie, you might as well stock it with mutants and comic book characters. It’s a proven formula for success, and if the early returns are any indication, Marvel has another winner. On the other hand, Wolverine the character has a singular place in the realm of comics, and his origin is ripe for some creative extrapolation.
Original Mini-Series (1982)
I always felt Jim Shooter, Chris Claremont and the guys at Marvel got it right by leaving Logan’s origin story the hell alone in the 80’s and 90’s. It was a big reason why Wolvie became so popular. Unlike every other Marvel character, you didn’t really know that much about him; he had that mysterious and grimly alluded to past before he showed up as an X-Man and we liked it that ways. He was the anti-Spidey, a dude with a mean and vicious streak who sometimes killed the bad guys. This was new ground at the time (unlike today, where half your comic book ‘heroes’ have no bones about taking scalps). But Professor X trusted Wolvie, and he always proved himself a loyal and selfless teammate.
As the years went by, we saw more glimpses into Wolvie’s past. The original mini-series spoke of a lengthy stay in Japan, and there was the Weapon X storyline that overlapped with Alpha Flight in Canada. You had the whole ‘Patch’ persona on the island of Madripoor, and then Sabretooth showed up. Along the way, some older character would seem to know Logan from days gone by. It was pretty cool. Read the rest of this entry ?
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