Into the Wild DVD

Okay, I’ll admit it. I didn’t sift through any piles to dig something up for today’s scan. I still have a lot to choose from, and didn’t have time to pick. I was heading out for the weekend and packed this DVD to maybe watch with my friends. With the New Year coming, I welcome inspiration. And the story of Christopher McCandless inspires me.

If you haven’t checked out the Into the Wild book, movie, or soundtrack,I highly recommend. It’s a story that teaches us what the most important things in life are. (Hint: It’s not the stuff we own) The soundtrack by Eddie Vedder is almost as inspirational as McCanless’ courageous journey.

Looking forward to another fun holiday weekend with awesome family and friends…

War Horse Ticket (12/25/11)

Starting in 1998 with Patch Adams, my sister had the idea of starting a tradition of going to see a movie on Christmas night. I will add the other tickets here if I find them, but for right now I will just write about last night’s feature.

War Horse was 2 ½ hours long, but went by much more quickly – a sure sign of a great movie. Based on a play of the same name, it (not surprisingly) tells the story of a horse that makes its way through World War I.

Like every war movie I’ve ever seen, it had me wondering why we can’t figure out our differences without fighting – the scene when two soldiers helped the horse out of barbed wire was my favorite.

The best part about War Horse was that is showed the horrors of war without spattering the screen with blood and gore. It was a very touching story about love, loss, and believing in destiny. More Christmas movies to come…

Thanksgiving Dinner Place Card and Muppets Ticket

I’m so freakin’ thankful. I started my day just like I’d love to start every day – by playing hockey. My Crohn’s was making my stomach hurt, but I played through it and made sure I burned some of the calories I was hoping to eat later.

After resting and recharging at my parents, it was off to my aunt and uncle’s for a perfect meal with my some of my favorite people. There was laughter, NFL football, my uncle’s wonderful grace, eating, playing football (a pick-6 was my highlight), dessert, and more laughter.

Then, it was another brief rest at my parents followed by seeing The Muppets with a group taking up almost an entire row. My nephews and niece gave it “so-so, pretty good” sideways thumb reviews, but I thought it was great. Someday we’ll find the rainbow connection, and I think it will be on a day like this…

Green Lantern DVD from Netflix

When I wore my Green Lantern T-shirt last year, I was looking forward to seeing this movie. It wasn’t the best superhero/comic book movie that I’ve seen, but I enjoyed it. I love the idea of the ring’s power only being limited to what the mind can think of, and how the strength of Green Lanterns are based on their willpower and lack of fear. This movie was a nice reminder that by picturing something in our heads, we can make it a reality – even without a ring (it just might take more time).

Bridesmaids Netflix DVD

If you like silly comedies like I do, this movie is for you. Not only is it hilarious, it’s a rare movie that features females in the lead roles. And, in no way can you call it a “chick flick” – just wait until the “fitting scene” that involves bodily fluids in a toilet, sink, and on the street. It’s not going to win any big awards, but it gives a lot of big laughs.

Here’s the movies official site and IMDB page.

And from the IMDB page, here’s the movie trivia and goofs.

Paranormal State 3 Ticket (10/22/11)

I thought with tonight being the 25^th anniversary of Game 6 and Buckner’s error, I’d also write about a horror movie I recently watched.

First, Game 6. I was a 12-year-old in 7^th grade at Westboro Junior High. My favorite bands were Ratt, Motley Crue, and Cinderella, my favorite coed was a girl named Suzy, and my favorite teams were the B’s and Sox. And the Sox were on the brink of winning their first title since 1918.

That day, my younger sister (who was 6) accidentally shut the van door on her finger. We should have taken it as an omen for what was to come, but once she was stitched up and AOK the McGraths continued with the evening’s plans.

That night my younger brother Tom had a bunch of his friends over for a World Series/Birthday party. After the cake and presents, we all glued ourselves to the TV. The game went back and forth and was tied after 9 innings. When the Sox got two in the top of the tenth, my whole family started freaking out. Then when the first two Mets got out in the bottom of the 10^th, the screaming and jumping started. They were really going to do it.

That’s when the hits started. One after another, they got hits. Even though I was only 12, I knew I had to do something. I went into the kitchen and started watching it on the little TV we had in there. It didn’t work. The Stanley wild pitch and the Buckner error tore a part of my heart out. They lost. I went back into the partyless family room and my parents tried to console me with a reminder of game 7. It didn’t help.

I went to bed crying that night, trying to figure out how the Sox could have done that. How can you get so close to something and not get it? How could they ever bounce back and win game 7? Why, oh, why did Stanley throw a wild pitch with someone on 3^rd?

This game stuck with me for a long time. I never watched a replay of the Buckner error, turning my head away anytime it was on TV. Whenever I was watching the Sox on TV or at Fenway and they were ahead by two runs in the last inning with two outs I would remind those with me, “This is how close the Sox were to winning the Series.” It was an early life lesson that no matter how hard you work for something and how close you are to getting it, it can be taken from you right before it’s in your hand.

Thanks to the 2004 and 2007 Red Sox, this story has a happy ending. I am now able to watch replays of the Buckner error (and Boone’s homerun from 2003 - which I never saw because after the Yankees tied it, I left the house and drove around listening to the rest of the game on the radio), and I’m almost glad that game 6 happened because it made 2004 that much sweeter.

By the way, if you haven’t seen this RBI Recreation of the bottom of the 10th, you must. It’s really unbelievable.

Okay, time for another horror story that doesn’t have a happy ending – Paranormal Activity 3. If you liked the first Paranormal Activity and Part 2, you should like this one. It has a lot of the same elements, and parts that make you jump no matter how prepared you are. It’s hard for me to really judge this movie because I’ve lived with my share of paranormal activity. Although not as life threatening as the evil force in the movies, once you’ve lived it, it’s hard to be scared when you see it in a movie.

Movie Tickets II

These tickets didn’t make it into my Movie Tickets Part I blog, but each has its own little story:

War of the Worlds – I saw this with my friend Cailin not long after Tom Cruise had his “couch incident” on the Oprah Winfrey show. Although I let that pass at the time, not long after I saw this movie I determined that Mr. Cruise had completely lost his sense of reality and I could no longer separate the art from the artist. I enjoyed War of the Worlds, but it would also be the last time I ever paid to watch a Tom Cruise movie. I will still watch classics he was in like The Outsiders and A Few Good Men, but I will no longer contribute to his career. See also: Mel Gibson.

Bruno: I watched this movie with my friends Glen and Krissy, and even though it wasn’t the best movie I had ever seen I laughed a lot. Glen and Krissy were living in Westboro at the time, so we hung out a lot that summer. Even though they broke my heart by moving out to Oregon at the end of 2009, I look forward to the day when I can afford to travel at will (I’m predicting somehow it will be here sooner rather than later).

The Town – I’ve always been a sucker for Boston/Massachusetts movies, and The Town did not disappoint. The shootout scene at Fenway alone was worth seeing on the big screen. I went with Jess, who soldiered her way through nausea for the entire flick. However, on the ride home, I had to hand her my travel mug to use as a receptacle. My car was spared of puke, and Jess slept for the rest of the day.

50/50 Ticket (9/30/11)

I’m not sure if being a movie-loving-brain-cancer-surviving night manager of Hope Lodge makes me an unfair or the prefect person to review 50/50, but here’s what I think…

This movie was really funny – I laughed out loud along with everyone in the theater. I could relate to many of the scenes, and it showed how valuable humor is when faced with life’s most difficult challenges. I wondered how close it was to the true events screenwriter Will Reiser experienced, and was amazed when I found out that Joseph Gordon-Levitt took the role just two days before shooting started.

As a cancer survivor, I loved the messages of 50/50:

· Cancer doesn’t care how old you are

· Cancer makes sure you listen to your body and see a doctor when something seems wrong

· Family, friends, and laughter are all great weapons to take into your battle with cancer

· Even with a positive attitude, there are times when those negative emotions need to be released

· Even though there are many types of cancer and treatments, cancer patients/survivors all share a bond that is powerful when faced with this disease

Even though I think they could have made Gordon-Levitt’s character Adam look a little “sicker” (I think most people lose their eyebrows with chemo), 50/50 did a good job balancing the serious side in between the laughs. It succeeded in telling a more personal and real cancer story, while Funny People was more of a comedy with a touch of cancer. Whether or not cancer has affected you personally, 50/50 is a movie that I think everyone can enjoy.

Pearl Jam 20 Ticket and Brattle Theatre Schedule (9/23/11)

Like the Brattle Theatre employee told everyone before the Pearl Jam 20 screening last night, this wasn’t your typical VH1 Behind the Music. This was a true rock doc, covering the pre-PJ days, instant rise to popularity, and everything that followed.

Seeing Pearl Jam perform “Alive” at just their 2^nd show, after they had been playing together for less than a week, was truly unbelievable. Just as crazy was Eddie’s signature climbing/circus/diving act of their early shows. And when Eddie started swearing his head off and tore down a banner at the Singles release party (what the band themselves call their worst performance ever – ever member totally wasted), I smiled and confirmed out loud, “He IS my hero!” I also enjoyed this back stage rehearsal of The Who’s Baba O’Reilly during the 1992 Lollapalooza tour:

But it wasn’t 20 years of just fun and games with the band. There was alcohol and drug abuse (some related to guitarist Mike McCready’s struggles with Crohn’s Disease), dealing with instant fame, and the tragedy at the Roskilde Festival in 2000 when 9 fans were trampled to death during Pearl Jam’s set.

But through it all, Pearl Jam stayed together. They kept making albums, touring, and adding to the number of fans who love their music. Can’t wait for the DVDs to come out…

Pearl Jam Twenty from Pearl Jam on Vimeo.

Wayne’s World Clipping (1992)

With a history of brain cancer, Crohn’s Disease, and a drinking problem; anniversaries have become a natural way for me to remember certain dates: Dates I was diagnosed, dates I was in the hospital, the last day I drank.

The years following my cancer diagnosis (which was 3 days after my 18^th birthday, March 31^st), my birthday and early April became days of a “Dark Anniversary”. I was drinking for the first 3 of those time periods, and that would make me angry when I looked back to my diagnosis. Even after I stopped drinking, I would occasionally feel sad during the days following my birthday. It usually came out of nowhere and would have me wondering why I was feeling so dreadful until I remembered, “Oh yeah, cancer diagnosis”.

In the years since, I have tried to turn the darkness into stretching out my birthday to a weeklong celebration. Rather than looking back and saying to myself “That wasn’t fair or that really sucked”, I have transformed these days into a time of thankfulness and fun activities.

It makes sense to me that I hung up a Wayne’s World clipping during the summer of 1992. This was the summer that I was battling brain cancer. Two of my biggest weapons in this battle were my family and laughter. I kept both close to me that summer, and I think it played a huge part in the success of my treatment.

No matter how many medical battles I’ve fought, won, or still live with; I realize they don’t compare to the anniversary of September 11^th. They are my own personal battles and I was/am able to deal with each of them because of family and friends who have supported me. I didn’t personally know any of the people that were senselessly murdered 10 years ago tomorrow, but I try to use that day of a reminder of how precious life is.

More on this tomorrow…

In the meantime, you can check out:

· Wayne’s World Goofs

· Wayne’s World Trivia

· Wayne’s World Quotes

Coke Classic Six Pack Label (1989)

You know what the coolest thing about PEI is? It’s the little differences. Examples? Well, in PEI, you could get a bottle of Coke. And I don’t mean a little 10 oz. special edition Christmas bottle; I mean a glass liter bottle of Coke. They also call it pop instead of soda. And, you know what they have in PEI instead of Dunkin’ Donuts? Tim Horton’s. They also have the metric system there, so when the sign says “Maximum 100” you can only go about 60, they don’t know what the f- a mile is. And you know what kind of potato chips they have in PEI? Ketchup Chips. And they drown them in that flavoring, man - you’re hands are red after you eat them. But my absolute favorite? Instead of Oreos, they have Fudgeos – they’re like Oreos, but they have chocolate in the middle. I still haven’t gone into Burger King, though…

Robot Chicken Star Wars Episode III DVD, Robot Chicken Star Wars DVD, Family Guy Blue Harvest DVD

Whether it’s the 15 Star Wars related t-shirts I wore, old toys, Star Wars scans, or these DVDs; I don’t try to hide my love of Star Wars.

Luckily, Seth Green and Seth MacFarlane remind me that I’m not the only one…and the Force is strong with both of them.

If you’re a Star Wars fans and haven’t seen the Robot Chicken and Family Guy spoofs, definitely check them out.

Even though I think the RC Episode III wasn’t as funny as Episode II or the original RCSW, it’s still hilarious.

And I would say Blue Harvest was the best Family Guy Star Wars, followed by the Empire and Jedi spoofs (see my Family Guy Star Wars t-shirts here and here).

What I like about Robot Chicken and Family Guy is that they make fun of everyone, including themselves. No one is safe; even favorite movies set a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away…

Despicable Me Ticket (8/20/10)

Even though the ticket I bought a year ago today was printed for The Expendables, I really went to see Despicable Me with my “Little Brother”.

We started hanging out in May of last year, and went to a lot of movies last summer. He had only been to the movies a handful of times his entire life, so I wanted to change that.

We went to the movies a lot, got ice cream, played video games, and went skating, bowling, and arcading. It was a lot of fun, and I like to think that I was a positive influence on him.

Our fun continued into the fall and winter and then one week in December, I called his mother to finalize plans. Someone else answered the phone, and told me his mother was in jail. I immediately called the Big Brothers and Big Sisters Office, and they tried to keep contact with the family with little success.

By Christmas, they had moved away and all I had was an address. I sent him a Christmas package that was returned because it didn’t have an apartment number on it. Another BBBS volunteer who was working with one of my “Little’s” siblings told me she wasn’t given any apartment number and the mother’s cell phone had been turned off.

I never heard from them again, and was never able to send him his Christmas package. It was tough to not be able to say goodbye in any way. BBBS asked me if they could match me with another “Little”, but I guess I wasn’t ready. Maybe it’s time…

Funny People Ticket (8/5/09)

Like in real life, Funny People shows that cancer plus laughter is a great combination. I really enjoyed seeing this movie with my friend Cailin, and I'm looking forward to 50/50 as well.

Inside Job DVD

I knew Inside Job was going to anger me, but I wanted to watch it. I had an idea what made all the banks collapse back in 2008, but this movie does a really great job explaining it through interviews, graphs, and statistics. Not surprisingly, it really all comes down to greed. The mega-rich wanted to get richer and the gap between the rich and the poor got even bigger. To make it even worse, those that were responsible for the collapse got rewarded. Not a pick-me-up kind of flick, but definitely exposes a huge problem to the system of the “American Dream”.

I only see two ways this problem can be resolved: One, more super-rich people can start thinking and acting like Warren Buffett (see his Giving Pledge and recent article here). Two, the 98% (49 out of 50) of Americans that make less than $250,000 will stage a revolution against the top 2% of the country (I think we could take ‘em).

I’m not sure what the future holds, but I’m hoping it includes more people with jobs, homes, and feelings of empowerment.

Rest of My College Door Stuff (Leary, Star Wars, Coke, Parental Advisory, Letterman, Cheers, Gaston, Extreme, Red Sox, MST3K, Jack Nicholson)

In addition to all this other stuff, this scan completes all of the things that were up on my college door during my freshman and sophomore years.

Denis Leary was my hero then, and most likely always will be – just as Star Wars will be my favorite movie.

Coke was my favorite drink back then, but I’d have to say that’s been replaced by Powerade Zero Grape (which is made by Coke).

I guess the parental advisory sticker was a warning to people who entered that they would probably be hearing swears coming from me or a CD I was playing.

Even though I don’t watch Letterman and Cheers as much as I did back then, they still remain at the top of my all-time TV favorites list.

I wasn’t a big fan of Beauty and the Beast, but I think I wanted to be more like the manly, “bad boy” Gaston. Speaking of Beauty and the Beast, this video is hilarious.

Part of my lifelong plan is to keep buying tickets to see Extreme and the Red Sox as long as both groups are together.

If you’ve never seen Mystery Science Theater 3000 (MST3K), I highly recommend checking it out.

And Jack is just Jack – although I don’t think you should lie to anyone.

Skating for Hope Promo Cards

It was February of 2009 when I wrote down in my journal the idea to skate 24 hours for Hope Lodge (you can see the scan of that entry and how my idea was made into reality here).

Even though the initial idea was just for me to skate, Skating for Hope ballooned into a much bigger event – one I certainly needed help with. Like they had been doing my whole life (brain cancer comes to mind), my family and friends rallied around me in support and helped with all of the non-skating responsibilities needed to pull it off.

We had to organize food, raffle items, hockey players, volunteers, announcements, the website, special guests, music, and other things I’m sure I can’t think of. The Skating for Hope committee had the responsibility of making sure all of these ran smoothly during the event.

Even though skating and playing in three hockey games for 24 hours straight may seem difficult, I think I had the easiest job of anyone that was working at Skating for Hope – I was having fun the whole time.

To me, Skating for Hope was a perfect melding of two dreams. One dream of mine is to do whatever I can to help Hope Lodge. The second is to have my own hockey rink. Well, I did have my own hockey rink for a day and I used it to do the things I love: help cancer patients, skate, and play hockey.

There are so many people to thank for helping me make Skating for Hope happen, I’m sure I will forget someone. My family and friends are a constant reminder of the fact that the most important thing in life is the people you have in yours – I am able to do what I do because of the support of my family and friends. The Skating for Hope Committee (which was mostly my family), Jess, Nick and the FMC employees, Skating for Hope volunteers, Danny Manning, Jr., Greg Montalbano, Justin Horton, the BC/BU hockey alum, the 501^st Star Wars people, the Sharks, the Bruins, Worcester Magazine, The Worcester Telegram, people who donated raffle items, The Catholic Free Press, WHS and SJ Alum, all the skaters, and everyone who made a donation all contributed into making the first Skating for Hope a success – close to $15,000 was raised.

We had a post-SFH meeting today, and I shared with the group what part of my plan is for the future Skating for Hope events. I will continue skating/playing hockey for the full 24-hours until $1,000,000 has been raised for Hope Lodge. If we double the amount each year, that should take less than 10 – definitely doable.

I scanned these things because I finally put all of the pictures and videos together and posted the “Skating for Hope Short Film” here. I hope you enjoy and keep in mind there are a couple of parts that I’d call “PG-13”.

Thanks to everyone for helping out!

Rise of the Planet of the Apes Ticket (8/5/11)

So, there was no Queensryche show this weekend, but Carl and I stopped off at the movie theatre after turning around on our way to Hampton Beach and checked out the latest Planet of the Apes movie.

I don’t remember the original POTA movie at all, but did like the 2001 remake and enjoyed watching reruns of the TV show.

Like many sci-fi movies I’ve seen, Rise of the Planet of the Apes had a central message: If you try to be like God, BAD things will happen. The movie ended with a glimpse into what was coming, but it left me wanting to see more of the struggle over who wins control of the planet...the perfect way to setup the next movie.

The Tournament DVD

I owe my parents so much that no amount of words I can write will ever measure up to it. They have supported me through diseases (both unchosen and brought upon myself), provided me with an education, and shown me what it means to love someone unconditionally.

On top of everything immeasurable, they’re always introducing me to things that they know I’ll love. They told me about Trailer Park Boys, and that became one of my favorite all-time TV shows (see Rickyisms if you haven’t already). And one year, they gave me The Tournament DVD. It’s a mockumentary about crazy pee-wee hockey parents, and it’s hilarious. If you like hockey and the Christopher Guest movies (Spinal Tap, Best in Show, etc.), you should definitely put this one on your Netflix list.

Thanks for everything, Mom and Dad!

Slap Shot DVD

Sorry to brag, but I got paid to watch Slap Shot tonight. I watched it with three Hope Lodge guests, and two of them had never seen it before. Luckily, no one in the group was offended by the language and humor of this movie – the best hockey film ever made, in case you didn’t know. I pointed out Paul D’Amato to them, and told them how he was from Worcester and donated a raffle prize to Skating for Hope. There was a lot of laughter in the Hope Lodge basement tonight…take that, cancer.

For more about Slap Shot, you can check out the trivia, goofs, and quotes from the movie as listed on www.imdb.com.

“I’m listening to the F’N song!”