Aphoenix.ca

I found a fantastic resource for people that are interested in photography and are on the lookout for new lenses:

Photozone Lens Reviews has a boatload of reviews, that seem to be spot on – they’ve reviewed all the lenses that I’ve used for my XTi, and we seem to see eye-to-eye on all of them.

Check them out if you need to buy a lens!

I had the luck to catch the Austria – USA U-20 FIFA Soccer quarterfinal game on Saturday, and let me tell you, it was a doozy.

For the entire first half of regulation, I thought the United States was going to win. They showed a remarkable drive that was let down only by their inability to finish plays. Almost all of the action was in Austria’s half, where I was sitting. The Americans had some of the best footwork I have ever seen in soccer players; Adu, the American captain did a quadruple scissors(!!) at one point, which had people cheering. The US also managed to pull a lot of cute passes that were mostly redirecting the ball behind them to a player they weren’t looking at. The entire first half was a testament to the fact that cute plays can confound a more traditional method of playing.

The second half started and Austria came out strong. They shut down almost every play that the US tried, and almost all of the play was in the US end of the field, which means that my seats were glorious. The US managed to fend of Austria’s blitz and push it into extra time (which you always want to see right? Except that it was a rainy and bugfilled afternoon. I was exceptionally wet and covered with blackflies). In the end, the US was undone by a star player that scored 4 minutes after being subbed into play in OT. That was pretty much the end of the game – the US was unable to mount a steady game afterwards. Focusing only on offense, they let a few breakaways happen, including a crazy 2-on-0 that went off the post.

I was thoroughly impressed with both teams, and happily surprised at how much fight both teams had. I think the US could have won if they focused more on finishing plays instead of making plays, or if they hadn’t squandered almost every corner kick they had.

I certainly recommend catching a game, or seeing the Toronto FC play in the new soccer stadium. It was awesome.

I went to see Transformers on Wednesday night. Yes, that’s right. Opening night. If there’s one thing I hate about movies in the theatre, it’s seeing them on opening night. You’re right in there with the unwashed masses (read: teenagers) that don’t seem to get movies at the same level that I do. You’re right, I’m being pretentious. It’s on purpose, and it’s mildly sarcastic. Mildly, because it’s mostly true. (kidding!)

Man, do I ever not regret going to see the movie.

I think part of why I loved this movie coming out was because of how absolutely low my expectations were going in. Michael Bay has, in the past, been a ridiculous train wreck of a director. He makes terrible Hollywood tripe of the worst order; take Pearl Harbor for instance. I think it may be the worst movie (yes, I’m including Battlefield Earth. No, I’m not sure if I can back that up). When I heard that Michael Bay was directing Transformers, I was hurt in a way that is difficult to describe. It was as if a good friend of my childhood, one that I loved and cherished, but hadn’t seen in years, had come back into my life, but was now dating a bully that used to beat up on me at the same time. And that bully beat them. And had herpes.

I guess you can see how low my expectations were.

So, there I was on opening day. I didn’t even know it was opening day – I told my brother and sister that I’d go see the movie with them, assuming it had been out for weeks. I shoed up, and we hit the theatre. I sat, knowing that I would hate that Bumblebee was a goddamn Camaro, that Starscream wasn’t voiced by Cobra Commander (RIP, Chris Latta) that… that a thousand things that Michael Bay had taken away from the original.

The ads finished. The lights dimmed. The movie started.

I was 5 years old again, and it was a Saturday morning.

That would be enough of my review, right there, but there was more than that. In addition to being 5 years old again on a Saturday, I was 27 and it was late on a Wednesday night, and there were things in the movie made for that person, too. Michael Bay poking fun at his own pop-schlock crappy movies. Michael Bay taking little pot shots at the government of the United States. Throwbacks to the original series. Ridiculous, ludicrous stunts that only work because of my willing suspension of disbelief. This movie has it all.

My name is Andrew Phoenix. I’m 27, and I love robots that transform. Thanks for listening.