Sideways

December 30th, 2010 Posted in Movies
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I decided to watch Sideways (2004) again because it had been a few years since the last time I saw it. Man, I sure was happy I did because it was even better than I remembered it was. I think it’s one of the rare instances when a movie deserves all of the critical and commercial success it attains. It’s loaded with everything you could ask for in a film…humor, wit, pathos, drama, knowledge, entertainment, and on and on.

For me, the best scene in the movie was when Maya (played exquisitely by Oscar nominated Virginia Madsen) asks Miles (The glorious Paul Giamatti, also Oscar nominated) why he was so into Pinot. It’s not just about wine and grapes. This scene is about so much more. You can see it in their eyes. He was talking about himself, about love and life itself. This is one of the best acted and best written scenes ever. It sums up the movie’s main theme that we are like wine, not only do we get better with time as we age as the cliché goes, but more importantly we (like wine) also peak and then begin our decline.

Here’s the scene… Salute!

 

Here is the entire scene

Maya: You know, can I ask you a personal question, Miles?
Miles Raymond: Sure.
Maya: Why are you so in to Pinot?
Miles Raymond: [laughs softly]
Maya: I mean, it’s like a thing with you.
Miles Raymond: [continues laughing softly]
Miles Raymond: Uh, I don’t know, I don’t know. Um, it’s a hard grape to grow, as you know. Right? It’s uh, it’s thin-skinned, temperamental, ripens early. It’s, you know, it’s not a survivor like Cabernet, which can just grow anywhere and uh, thrive even when it’s neglected. No, Pinot needs constant care and attention. You know? And in fact it can only grow in these really specific, little, tucked away corners of the world. And, and only the most patient and nurturing of growers can do it, really. Only somebody who really takes the time to understand Pinot’s potential can then coax it into its fullest expression. Then, I mean, oh its flavors, they’re just the most haunting and brilliant and thrilling and subtle and… ancient on the planet.

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The Only Exception

December 26th, 2010 Posted in Music, Music Videos
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I really like Hayley Williams and Paramore. One of my favorite songs they’ve done is “The Only Exception” which was probably their biggest hit on the charts. It’s a softer side to their usually harder edge. It’s all about a girl who’s very skeptical about love but then makes an exception to her rule when she meets the one.

Here’s the making of the music video

THE ONLY EXCEPTION

When I was younger I saw my daddy
cry and curse at the wind.
He broke his own heart and
I watched as he tried to re-assemble it.
And my mamma swore she would
never let herself forget.
And that was the day that I promised
I’d never sing of love if does not exist.
But darling..
You are the only exception (x4)
Maybe I know somewhere deep in
my soul that love never lasts.
And we’ve got to find other ways
to make it alone or keep a straight face.
And I’ve always lived like this
keeping a comfortable, distance.
And up until now I swore to myself
that I’m content with loneliness,
’cause none of it was ever worth the risk.
But you are the only exception (x4)
I’ve got a tight grip on reality,
but I can’t let go of whats part of me here.
I know you’re leaving in the morning, when you wake up,
leave me with some kind of proof it’s not a dream.
Whooa..
You are the only exception (x8)
And I’m on my way to believing.. (x2)

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Best of TWiST 2010

December 24th, 2010 Posted in Startups, Technology, TV
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I’m a huge fan of This Week In Startups AKA TWiST which is a fabulous show about Startups (DUH) hosted by legendary entrepreneur Jason Calacanis. Every week he interviews interesting founders and CEOs from well-known companies and popular startups. Each show is educational and most important of all entertaining. He also has a segment called Ask Jason where viewers can send in questions that he answers on the air. The other popular segment is Shark Tank where new startups can call in to the show and pitch what they do and the viewers and Jason and even his guests get to rate the pitch and the idea of the startup. It’s fun and a great way to learn about the art of pitching.

Anyway, here are my top 10 favorite TWiST episodes of 2010.

10. Howard Morgan, Co-Founder of First Round Capital and a 30 year veteran of the technology industry. (#44)

9. Alexis Maybank, Founder & President of Gilt Groupe (#58: Lovely & brilliant found of mega successful empire)

8. Sky Dayton, Founder of Earthlink, co-founder of eCompanies, Founder and Chairman of Boingo (#49: Great stories)

7. Niel Robertson, Founder and CEO of Trada (#47: Charismatic & entertaining)

6. Jody Sherman, CEO of Ecomom (#80: Mastermind of word of mouth marketing)

5.Jessica Jackley, CEO of Profounder and Robert Wolfe, Founder of Crowdrise (#96: Great works by good people)

4. Salman Khan, founder of Khan Academy (#94: Khan explains how he created his groundbreaking academy)

3. David Heinemeier Hansson, creator of Ruby on Rails and partner at 37signals (#46: Brutally honest & so refreshing)

2. Page Craig (#85: Fascinating entrepreneur with many interesting stories.)

1. Jason talks to Penn St. (#40: Jason shares personal experiences with students. Touching & so interesting)

Here’s a playlist with all 10 episodes

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The Christmas Song

December 23rd, 2010 Posted in Music
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Everyone has their own favorite Christmas song. For whatever reason, I’ve always loved The Christmas Song by Nat King Cole the most. It never gets old for me unlike most of the other holiday standards. I think it’s a combination of the music, Coles’ amazing voice and most of all the way it captures the best aspects of Christmas time.  From the opening line of chestnuts roasting on an open fire down to the closing lines about kids from one to ninety-two, this song sums up this magical time of year.

 

Chestnuts roasting on an open fire, 
Jack Frost nipping on your nose, 
Yuletide carols being sung by a choir, 
And folks dressed up like Eskimos. 
Everybody knows a turkey and some mistletoe, 
Help to make the season bright. 
Tiny tots with their eyes all aglow, 
Will find it hard to sleep tonight. 
They know that Santa’s on his way; 
He’s loaded lots of toys and goodies on his sleigh. 
And every mother’s child is going to spy, 
To see if reindeer really know how to fly. 
And so I’m offering this simple phrase, 
To kids from one to ninety-two, 
Although its been said many times, many ways, 
A very Merry Christmas to you

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12 Tweets of Christmas 2010

December 21st, 2010 Posted in Life
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I decided to update my popular 12 Tweets of Christmas from a couple of years ago. It’s amazing how much has changed in just a couple of years online, huh? Hope you like it.

 

12 Tweets of Christmas 2010
On the first tweet of Christmas
my followers sent to me
an invite to a startup.

On the second tweet of Christmas
my followers sent to me
Two Failin’ Whales
And an invite to a startup.

On the third tweet of Christmas
my followers sent to me
Three check-ins
Two Failin’ Whales
And an invite to a startup.

On the fourth tweet of Christmas
my followers sent to me
Four Groupons
Three check-ins
Two Failin’ Whales
And an invite to a startup.

On the fifth tweet of Christmas
my followers sent to me
Five Facebook Apps
Four Groupons
Three check-ins
Two Failin’ Whales
And an invite to a startup.

On the sixth tweet of Christmas
my followers sent to me
Six iPhones ringing
Five Facebook Apps
Four Groupons
Three check-ins
Two Failin’ Whales
And an invite to a startup.

On the seventh tweet of Christmas
my followers sent to me
Seven laptops crashing
Six iPhones ringing
Five Facebook Apps
Four Groupons
Three check-ins
Two Failin’ Whales
And an invite to a startup.

On the eighth tweet of Christmas
my followers sent to me
Eight angry birds flying
Seven laptops crashing
Six iPhones ringing
Five Facebook Apps
Four Groupons
Three check-ins
Two Failin’ Whales
And an invite to a startup.

On the ninth tweet of Christmas
my followers sent to me
Nine Stalkers stalking
Eight angry birds flying
Seven laptops crashing
Six iPhones ringing
Five Facebook Apps
Four Groupons
Three check-ins
Two Failin’ Whales
And an invite to a startup.

On the tenth tweet of Christmas
my followers sent to me
Ten teens a-texting
Nine Stalkers stalking
Eight angry birds flying
Seven laptops crashing
Six iPhones ringing
Five Facebook Apps
Four Groupons
Three check-ins
Two Failin’ Whales
And an invite to a startup.

On the eleventh tweet of Christmas
my followers sent to me
Eleven bloggers blogging
Ten teens a-texting
Nine Stalkers stalking
Eight angry birds flying
Seven laptops crashing
Six iPhones ringing
Five Facebook Apps
Four Groupons
Three check-ins
Two Failin’ Whales
And an invite to a startup.

On the twelfth tweet of Christmas
my followers sent to me
Twelve spammers spamming
Eleven bloggers blogging
Ten teens a-texting
Nine Stalkers stalking
Eight angry birds flying
Seven laptops crashing
Six iPhones ringing
Five Facebook Apps
Four Groupons
Three check-ins
Two Failin’ Whales
And an invite to a startup!

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays everybody!

Pai

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Wonderful Stuff

December 14th, 2010 Posted in Movies
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Cover of "It's a Wonderful Life [Blu-ray]...

Cover of It’s a Wonderful Life [Blu-ray]

I love just about everything related to It’s a Wonderful Life, the 1946 Frank Capra classic starring Jimmy Stewart and Donna Reed. I also have a rare collection of buildings and figures from the movie that I put on display every year at Christmas time. I have ornaments based on the movie as well, a cookbook, and large action figures of George Bailey, Mary and Clarence the Angel.

I also enjoy the many tributes to the classic and even the spoofs. Here’s a new one from SNL last night called “This You Call a Wonderful life” which is a Hanukkah version.

Here’s an excellent alternative ending as envisioned by the cast of Saturday Night Live with Dana Carvey as Geoge Bailey!

 

Here’s the entire movie in colorized HD

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Mr. Wonderful

December 5th, 2010 Posted in Movies
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dvd_mr_wonderful

I recently watched Mr. Wonderful (1993) again after many years and thoroughly enjoyed it more than ever before. I think this is an extremely underrated movie by Anthony Minghella who went on to win the Oscar for the English Patient a few years later. I absolutely loved this movie starring Matt Dillon and Annabella Sciorra plus a fantastic supporting cast of likable, realistic characters. That’s the key to an excellent movie, the strength of the entire cast. You can have solid leads and a good story but if the supporting players are weak then the experience falls flat. That’s not the case with this totally believable and enjoyable tale. Mary-Louise Parker is perfect as Matt’s understanding girlfriend as she senses something’s wrong in paradise. All of Matt’s friends are just as delightful and so real. Yes, I might be biased because I related so much with these people since I grew up in the italian section of Newark, NJ. It felt like home. So comfortable. I highly recommend it.

Here’s the trailer that explains what the movie is about.

Here’s a good scene when Matt Dillon has to endure watching his ex-wife sing with another man.
Excellent job of acting by Dillon as you can see how much he still feels for her.

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