The Orange Blues
Ciao. I’m writing from my abroad home in Florence, Italy after an exhilarating, recent weekend excursion to Amsterdam. While Holland’s capital is well known for its green (Cannabis and locally-brewed Heineken are both legal for those over 18 and 16, respectively) and red (the city’s Red Light District is world famous), I spent much of my trip with Orange on my mind.
I AMissing 'Cuse
My current semester in Europe has been an eye-opening experience that I will always treasure. I’ve escaped my comfort zone, met interesting people, and have had a blast while traveling throughout many beautiful cities like Rome and Pisa. Still, as with most choices in life, studying overseas has had its tradeoffs.
While I thoroughly enjoy exploring the world, it is hard being away from the Syracuse University friends and lifestyle I’ve grown to love. Giving up a semester on campus is indeed a sacrifice, and I’d be lying if I said I didn’t think about school daily. In addition to missing the routines and people back at SU, being thousands of miles away from one of the nation’s top-ranked college basketball teams has made my European experience bittersweet.
Despite all the wonders of modern technology, the six-hour time difference and my apartment’s lack of a television have made keeping up with the Orange a grueling task. Italy’s weak Internet signal makes streaming online broadcasts virtually impossible, and scrambling to local bars to catch live games has been incredibly chaotic. Sure, it’s cool watching games in a foreign place, but it’s impossible to do so without wishing you were packed in the Carrier Dome’s student section watching the action in person. Italian soccer matches are definitely intense, but not quite the same.
Is Fiorentina Purple the new Orange?
Throughout my time at school, I’ve attended virtually every home basketball game. I’ve even followed the team on the road to Rutgers, Seton Hall, and Madison Square Garden to show my support. Not being in Syracuse for the College GameDay rout over Villanova made me feel record levels of what I somberly call “The Orange Blues.” Still, I’m trying hard to keep things in perspective. I’m enjoying a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity while doing my best to fully experience another.
I always believed this year’s Orange team would be successful, but Coach Boeheim’s squad appears to have what it takes to be special. Watching Syracuse contend for a national championship while abroad was never something I gave much thought to, but now I’m starting to prepare myself for this very real possibility (winning the upcoming Big East Tournament would certainly help the team’s chances).
Could an Orange title run simultaneously make me feel better and worse? While I’m whole-heartedly pulling for SU, I can’t fathom what it would be like to miss the on-campus celebration. It’s tough wanting to be in two places at once. Still, viewing this year’s basketball team as an added bonus to my abroad experience is a good way to appreciate all that I have going for me on two continents. Perhaps it’s also the only way to cope with the onset of what the Italians would refer to as “Marzo Madness.”
Syracuse forward Wesley Johnson
Avatar Feeling “The Hurt”
Posted by Andrew in Film/ Music on March 8, 2010
The Hurt Locker is a great film. Is it the best movie of 2009? No.
Avatar fell victim to its own enormity and success Sunday night. Sometimes things can be so popular that it’s unpopular to support them.
People have called “Locker” one of the greatest war films ever produced. While it may be the most intense and provocative drama of its type, the movie doesn’t match up with several similar films that didn’t take home Best Picture, including Steven Spielberg’s timeless classic Saving Private Ryan (1999 Oscars). Ironically, The Hurt Locker may not have even been the best war movie nominated this year! My vote goes to Inglourious Basterds, which I believe is writer-director Quentin Tarantino’s 3rd masterpiece film (after Pulp Fiction and Kill Bill).
Even if the Academy didn’t choose Avatar as the year’s finest, James Cameron should have been honored as Best Director for his latest sci-fi love child. Hollywood’s most innovative mind has changed the future of global cinema by pushing the boundaries of the medium. Avatar, simply for its groundbreaking visual advancements, may go down as the Citizen Kane of the 21st century.
Looking back at 2009, Avatar is the one movie that will always stand out. Unfortunately, it didn’t last night.
AVATAR left feelin' blue
A Bul-Lock to Win an Oscar?
Posted by Andrew in Film/ Music on March 7, 2010
Unfortunately, I won’t be able to catch the 82nd Annual Academy Awards tonight. My time difference and fear of being spotted in an Italian “viewing party” will force me to discover this year’s winners online via morning news reports (I won’t be alone thanks to WABC-TV being pulled from Cablevision back home).
While Hollywood’s biggest night is always exciting, the 2010 Oscars may be one of the more memorable celebrations in recent memory. James Cameron’s revolutionary Avatar will likely take home Best Picture, and stellar performances from Cristolph Waltz (Inglourious Basterds), Mo’Nique (Precious), and my “Dude” Jeff Bridges (Crazy Heart), are also expected to be immortalized in the Kodak Theater tonight.
Still, there is one Oscar story that trumps them all. Many industry experts predict that the inexplicably popular and historically mediocre Sandra Bullock (The Blind Side) will join the likes of legends Katharine Hepburn, Jane Fonda, and Meryl Streep (nominated for her 16th Academy Award tonight ) as a Best Actress winner.
Few film stars have annoyed me more throughout the years than Bullock. Her awful (but often commercially successful) body of work truly sucks, and the fact that she may win an Oscar quite literally “blind-sides” me. Had someone told me one year ago that “Ms. Congeniality” would soon be nominated for such an honor, I would have considered betting my life’s savings on this fool being wrong.
Sure, other stars have made similar progressions (Reese Witherspoon recently transitioned from Legally Blonde to an Oscar-winning role as June Carter in Walk the Line), but Bullock’s nomination reflects as improbable of a leap towards artistic credibility as I can remember. Hell, she just won a “Worst Actress Razzie” for her 2009 role in the widely-lamented All About Steve. To no surprise, Oscar triumph tonight would make Bullock the first screen performer to earn film’s most prestigious and embarrasing awards in one weekend!
While I have enjoyed a few of Bullock’s films, including Crash and 1994’s action classic Speed, she is undeniably my least favorite element in both works. In the latter, her irritatingly-flat performance somehow makes the stoic Keanu Reeves look Shakespearean.
In a cinematic year I’ll remember for being visionary (Avatar, District 9), uncompromising (The Hurt Locker), painfully introspective (Crazy Heart, Up in the Air), and playfully genius (“Basterds”), it would be a shame if Bullock’s performance in a B sports flick draws the most attention from tonight’s affair. Still, America (and especially Hollywood) loves to see unlikely heroes reaching unexpected heights, and a Bullock victory that once seemed impossible is now probable. What’s next? A one word acceptance speech of “whoa” from her Speed co-star for Best Actor in 2011?
an Oscar win for Bullock would leave me feelin' Grouchy
Music from Friends
Posted by Andrew in Film/ Music on February 21, 2010
It’s always great to see friends following their true creative passions. It’s even sweeter when that pursuit is music. I highly suggest checking out these up-and-coming artists.
Todd Kramer -A talented singer-songwriter and Syracuse University alum. Check out his original tunes and his acoustic cover of Iyaz’s “Replay.”
Neighbors -A new, hard-rocking, Kings of Leon-esque band featuring my old friend Jordan Schneider on the drums.
Eric and the Sliders -A pop rock foursome previously mentioned here. Take a look at their schedule of upcoming shows throughout the tri-state area.
When in Rome…
As a local, it’s hard for me to imagine what a first trip to New York City is like for a foreigner. I’d presume one’s initial Big Apple experience is both memorably exciting and overwhelming. That’s exactly how my past weekend’s trip to Rome felt.
With only three days in this magnificent and historic city, it was definitely challenging to see everything I wanted to. Fortunately, I traveled with an organized group that allowed me to follow an intensive traveling itinerary while still being able to appreciate plenty of free exploration time. I learned many things about Italy’s capital, but most importantly, I discovered that I am much more comfortable living in a smaller, more “walkable” city like Florence. Still, Rome is a place everyone should see at one point in their lifetime. The Colosseum, Vatican, and Trevi Fountain are three of the most amazing sites I’ve ever laid eyes on, and I feel privileged to have seen these attractions at such an early age.
American Gladiator
I’m glad I was able to snap some quality photos and “Flip” my amazing experience in Rome. It’s important for me to visually document my abroad endeavors so I can share them with others. For future Rome travelers, however, I advise you to use caution when attempting to capture images from within the iconic Sistine Chapel. Even Ethan Hunt would have difficulty sneaking past the Chapel’s fleet of camera-detecting guards (I was only able to get a few seconds of footage before being forced to put my Flip back in my pocket). It’s kind of amazing how when graced with the presence of one of the most beautiful works of art ever created, people will spend more time trying to technologically record their observations than they do actually experiencing them. I was certainly guilty of it, and believe me I wasn’t alone (literally hundreds of people were told to conceal their cameras during my twenty minutes in the chapel).
My time in Europe is getting more exciting by the week. I’m planning on visiting Venice this weekend, and I’ve got a journey to Amsterdam booked for the end of the month. With all of this Carmen Sandiego-esque traveling ahead of me, I’ll do my best to truly take everything in.