Sport Movie

I skipped class tonight to see a movie. It was Moneyball, and I highly recommend it. I love movies and I love sports (more than the average girl, but not as much as a guy). It was like combining two things that I love to make an awesome hybrid of movie entertainment and sports intensity. The movie is about Oakland A's manager Billy Beane and how he reinvented baseball. It would've worked better if they had won that last game.

I've never been a huge fan of baseball; it's long and sometimes boring. It is very much a mental game, which can be difficult for the casual watcher. But this worked to my advantage, as I had no idea how this story ended (it's based on a true story) and was therefore completely caught up in what would happen. Would the team win? Would they get that twentieth straight win? Did Billy jinx the team? Did the idea of applying statistics to the sport really work? I watched it like I was watching a Jazz game. It was exciting.

The movie actually made me care about baseball. The behind the scenes machinations of a baseball organization was interesting, and made me actually appreciate the mental-ness of baseball that I before had found boring. Baseball has always been full of nostalgia and a certain sense of romanticism, more so than other sports, I think. Billy and his Yale-educated economics right-hand man Peter tried to take that away and make it about numbers and winning. While numbers don't lie (but anyone who's taken a stats class will tell you that they do...distort what they want) they can't override emotions, human error, or the romanticism of baseball.

Running Again

I have decided I need to start being active again. I was sadly super un-active all summer long, and it's showing. In my clothes especially and they way they don't quite fit the way they used to. I'm pretty sure I weigh at least 10 pounds more than I did in the spring, and even then I was about 10 pounds over what I used to be.

So I have registered for the South Jordan Marathon/Half Marathon/5k on October 15th. I'm of course doing the 5k. Remember when I used to do those? And when I once ran a 10k? I let my own busyness and, mostly, laziness stop me from doing either of those earlier this year. I figure that I set aside time in my day to do things that don't really matter--watch a tv show (Vampire Diaries premieres this week!), surf youtube, peruse Facebook, take a nap--that I can at least set aside 20-30 minutes to go for a jog.

That's what I did tonight. And it felt great. There's this cool website, mapmyrun.com, that lets you map your run. My walk/jog tonight was 2.39 miles; my jogged stretch of the exercise was really great--I actually didn't want to stop!

How Do You Know It's the End Of Summer?

There are many things that signal the end of summer--school starting, the weather changing, your favorite flip-flop breaking. For me, though, I always know it's the end of summer based on movies. Summer is always heralded in by big-budget, flashy tent-pole pictures usually involving a superhero or some sort of number in the title signifying it's a sequel of something that was popular two summers ago. Basically anything a teenage boy would like to see.

But then we get to the end, where a lot of the smaller films that aren't quite summer movies (read: there's no superheroes or animation) get unloaded. Films like The Help, One Day, and Crazy, Stupid, Love. Generally they're based on books.

It's a very fine line between when those end and the fall movies start, but I think the distinction this year is made by the film The Debt. I hadn't heard a single thing about this movie until just last week, but the trailer seemed pretty convincing, especially since it starred Helen Mirren, the delicious Sam Worthington, and new "It" actress Jessica Chastain. See the movie, you will not be disappointed. Director John Madden stages the film with lots of suspense, emotion, and intrigue that I couldn't look away.

Also, three of the four trailers before the film I wanted to see. That's also how I know summer is over. I don't need a barometer to know the changing seasons, just give me a movie theater.

The City Anniversary

September 1st, 2007 I arrived in New York City. It was a momentous occasion and quite the ride. So much of who I am was discovered and developed during my small but decidedly important time in the city. I always like to remember the day I arrived each year, and think about how far I've come, how things have changed, and where I hope to be going in the next year. Thanks New York.

Losing It

In the intervening months between Spring and Fall semesters I have lost my jump drive. It never even crossed my mind during the summer; I never had a need to write a paper and save it, nor to create a powerpoint and work on it while at work, and not even the need to update my resume. But as soon as school started, and I was working on a project, I realized I needed to save it so I could print it at work. I went straight to my backpack to retrieve it. Not there. I've looked everywhere, even in the hole in my purse pocket. It's not there.

I've lost it, along with everything that was on it.

A Spider Story

One night I was sitting on my bed reading a book (or possibly watching clips on youtube....) when I had the sudden feeling that I would see a spider. I was sure that a spider would start to crawl on my alarm clock sitting on my nightstand next to my bed. Not a moment later, I looked over to see a spider come out of nowhere and crawl on my alarm clock. I watched it move around a little, and then move down its spiderweb-pole onto the floor. Where I immediately stepped on it.

I'm thinking of starting a business of Spider Whispering.