I gotta feva.....

and the only prescription has been more World Cup. Yeah, I realize I am one of those guys. I like a niche sport. Oh wait, it's only a niche sport in our country. And now that the stars and stripes have advanced to the knockout stage, people will start caring. Not unlike the winter Olympics and the USA's run to the gold-medal game. I have always been a soccer fan, played it for nearly 10 years, and while not an avid follower, I've probably watched more soccer than 98% of the people in this country. I find the game fun and truly showing off great athletes.

The US has been unspectacularly spectacular in their group play. They should have lost to England and drew 1-1. They should have lost to Slovenia and drew 2-2. They outplayed Algeria and based off their chances, could have won 6-0. Instead Landon Donovan had a flail for the dramatic with a goal in the 91st minute, and the US won 1-0. They finished group play undefeated, with 5 points, and their first group stage win since 1930 when only 13 teams were in the World Cup. Pretty staggering stuff. I give kudos to a team that should have been packing their bags long ago.

The US now draws Ghana, who finished second in their group 1-1-1 with 4 points. Ghana is ranked 32nd in the world and the US is 14th. If they get past them they play the winner of Uruguay/South Korea, who are 16/47 in the rankings. I know lots of numbers. But the US has an opportunity to get through the first two rounds. Do I think it will happen? Not really, but then again I didn't think they could come back in their first 2 games or win their 3rd. The team has a chip and a chair, and that is all they need.

Keys to the game against Ghana go like this.
1.) No early goals
2.) Force the issue
3.) Shore up the defense

If they do those things they have an opportunity. Ghana only scored 2 goals in their 2 games against inferior competition. Not much firepower. Time to take it to them. I unfortunately can't watch the game on Saturday, as I will be in the car driving to a wedding. But I will get highlights.....

Imagina-na-na-nation......

I am a 24 year-old male and have no problem telling the world that my favorite movie trilogy is Toy Story. You can take your Lord of the Rings, Matrix, hell even Godfather and just go somewhere else with them. Part of my fondness for the franchise is the fact that during their first two releases I was 10 and 14, respectively. But the other part is they tell a good story and are extremely well-made. It's kind of like when I explain why I like Grand Theft Auto to non-game players. Yes, it has a negative stigma, but is so well made and the story is rich. If those were not there, people wouldn't play it. Same goes with these movies. Yes, it is animation, but it's production values are fantastic and the script is better than most live-action movies.

Needless, to say I enjoyed Toy Story 3 to no end. It has a great opening sequence that really breakdowns the essence and the concept of toys. They are what you imagine them to be. Sidebar, won't you join me for a moment. Last Christmas I was at a cousin's house and they have a 2 year-old. He has more toys than one kid needs, and every single one of them blinks, makes noise, moves, or has some sort of action to it. What happened to the days of leaving something to the imagination? It was only a mere 18 years ago when a young Zach would set up Turtle battles against the Foot Clan on the molten lava that was the spare bedroom's red carpet. Kids these days don't have to do that, the toys do it for them. I feel bad for those kids. The scenarios you came up with, were cooler than the toys themselves.

TS3 ultimately turns into a jail-break action set piece, and it's a pretty good one. As you can guess the toys get themselves into trouble, but ultimately end up where they belong. The ending puts a nice boy on the story, and I must say, evoked teary eyes from yours truly. Damn you Pixar!!!! (the last two movies to tear my eyes are TS3 and Up) Though not as bad as the 50-something woman behind me who was flat-out hysterical. And there in lies the rub of the movie franchise. People cared about the toys. Why? Because when everyone is little they cared about their toys like they were their best friends. And the movies showed us a new side that the toys cared just as much as we did.

I give Toy Story 3 a glowing review and look forward to one day sitting down with my kids and watching these movies with them. Because that's the way the toys would want it. Always played with and always loved. (Cue sappy Randy Newman music)

Pulling Up the Bootstraps.....

This guy just purchased a big-boy TV for his living room. Sad to say that this is the highlight of my past couple weeks, but it is truly awesome. We only have basic cable, so we don't get any HD channels except for the networks. But I feel an upgrade is coming soon. According to our landlord we can pay like $20 for an extra box and then like $20 a month to get all HD channels. To which I say, you've got yourself a god damn deal landlord.

Needless to say I am excited. The jump from a 27 inch box TV to a 40 inch flat screen is rather remarkable. It is big and powerful (that's what she said). And I truly never knew what I was missing gaming wise until booting up my games on this guy. The XBOX 360 comes in crystal clear on 1080p resolution.

I highly suggest it. I realize they are a little pricey, but I seriously just got a 40 inch Sony flat screen with an extended 2-year warranty for less than $800. Reasonable enough. I'm not using it for anything fancy right now, but so far the games and DVDs for that matter look spectacular.

And I get to go to Target Field tomorrow for my first official game. It is supposed to rain a crap load tonight and tomorrow, so I'm hoping for some divine intervention to lay off on the wet stuff. Looking forward to some inter league action. If you would have told me 2 years ago that the only games I would see this year were Cubs/Rangers in Texas and Twins/Rockies in Minneapolis, I would have slapped you. Still looking for cheap Twins garb, because I don't have any yet. That's right, I will be the guy at the game, playing it neutral.

Exploring the West....

I have been quiet recently and much of that has to do with my new obsession: Red Dead Redemption. The game is in a word: Brilliant. I have been drawn to sandbox games a lot in recent years. Mainly because it is more than button mashing or repetitive sports simulation. It is an actual movie that you get to play, and let me tell you RDR would make a good movie.

The vastness of the landscape is remarkable. The game is huge. I have heard from some publications that I read, that the game map is 3 times as large as Grand Theft Auto IV. And while driving around in GTA became laborious, riding your horse around in RDR is breathtaking. It's the wild west, so the pace is slow and more realistic. No bustling city, no 18 models of cars on the screen. Just a lot of barren land, a few wild animals, and every once in a while a tandem of other riders.

The controls and game play are a little buggy, but forgiven when I think about the sheer scope of the game. There is no load time when it comes to in-game play. I rode my horse from one edge of the map to the other, and it took about 12 minutes of real time. Not a single load, just beautiful desert and back town landscape.

Characters and story are very well done. Each character actually means something to the story and are interesting enough to make you want to follow them. I find myself always distracted from the main storyline missions. I have been picking flowers, hunting rare animals, and trying to up my sharpshooter level. So for giggles I went to the stats section to see my progression. I had played for nearly 15 hours and was 22% through the game. I was astounded that I had done so much, and yet had only registered at 1/5th of what this game had to offer.

So take my review as is. A guy who still has 80 percent of the game to go. But if you own a PS3 or an XBOX 360 go buy this game. I have been playing video games for the better part of 20 years and I have only had a handful of games blow me away. Those happen to be: Super Mario Bros. 3 (I was 6 so sue me), NHL 95 (Loved the Blackhawks!), GTA: Vice City (my first foray into sandbox games), Bioshock, and now Red Dead Redemption. So in other words, it is pretty awesome, and I am definitely getting my money's worth.

Long Weekend....

I had an absolute blast on my extended weekend to Wisconsin. Things were rather busy with lots of wedding things going on. Met with the minister on Saturday morning, but it was after this that the adventure began.

Kristi and I traversed to New Glarus to take in the Brewery tour. Great time. I highly suggest anyone who enjoys a smooth and delicious beer to take in the sights. $3 will get you a 3 oz. little guy glass and a couple of refills. It is worth it to try their special brews of the season. And of course we had to stock up on beverage. It is a tad overpriced at $8 for a six pack, but when you live in a state where you can't get it, money flies out the door. There is also something to be said for convenience, and literally everyone of their beers is at your fingertips in their cellar.

Sunday we had our engagement pictures taken in multiple locales around the SP. It was a lot of fun, if not a little warm. Then headed off for a little sushi buffet with Jeffrey Boll. Had a glorious time, mainly because you can't beat sushi. I absolutely love it. It could be the perfect food. Spicy, filling, but yet I don't feel like a vomitasaurus after I eat it. Also love Asian buffets and their dessert spread. Can't beat pumpkin pie, lime jello, and cream puffs on the same table.

All in all, enjoyed my time back in Wisconsin. Should have some more posts this week. I feel a rant on the Cubs coming soon. So stay tuned for profanity and fits of rage....