Month: November 2010

The Root of Who you Root For: New York’s Classic Sports Rivalries

Posted on by LaMarGoti

This is my second installment for the blog I write for, The Next Great Generation — as originally posted here.

Yankees, Mets, Giants, Jets, Knicks, Nets, Rangers, Devils and Islanders. The New York area has nine professional teams in four professional sports. (Eleven, if you count the Buffalo Bills and Sabres.) As a New Yorker (yes, it is where my birth certificate was issued), how am I supposed to root for three hockey teams, and two football, baseball and basketball (if I followed the NBA) teams? Given our plethora of options, we don’t just root for the home team, we root for our team. Personally, I bleed blue (Giants, Rangers, Yankees — and I would have to pick the Knicks, even though I’m not a big NBA fan).

While some of the rivalries are rather civil, like the Knicks and Nets, the rivalries between the Yankees and Mets (aka the Subway Series rivalry) and the Giants and Jets (they do share the same home stadium) can become much more heated — these rivalries even extend beyond the fans, into the players on the teams.

But even with the hometown rivalries, New Yorkers have greater rivals to the north — that’s right, up in Beantown. Since New York’s teams are not in the same divisions (the Yankees in the AL and Mets in the NL, the Giants in the NFL and the Jets in the AFL), we have bigger rivals in neighboring cities with our divisional rivals. AskMen.com rates the Yankee-Sox rivalry in the Top Five Sports Rivalries.

In 1918, the Red Sox won the World Series and in 1920, Babe Ruth was sold to the Yankees  — the Sox didn’t win another World Series until 2004. This “trade” became the root of the most intense, most publicized and longest-standing rivalries in the MLB. “1918” and “Yankees suck” chants are only the tip of the iceberg here — just check out YouTube and you will see the fights and brawls that have been caught on tape. Just think of the infamous time Pedro threw Zimmer to the ground. A word to the wise: if you are a Boston fan, don’t come to Yankee Stadium in Sox gear just for kicks.

Just as baseball rivalries exist in NY, so do football rivalries. Giants and Jets fans battle constantly for bragging rights — the rivalry is like that of a little kid trying to step into some rather big shoes (until this year, Jets home games were played at Giants Stadium). With only 16 regular season games, the two see most of their field time against each other in the pre-season — and this year brought along extra rivalry-fueled decisions, most of which were solved by the flip of a coin. Yet again, New York has a battle between the underdog and the well established team. And our underdog here has their divisional rival to the northeast as well, the New England Patriots.

Regardless of if it’s a New York-New York rivalry or a New York-Boston rivalry, it really all boils down to fans rooting for their home team. Whether it’s for bragging rights or a battle of the best city in the northeast, die-hard fans will always root for the home team (if you’re smart you root for the better, “all-American” team). At least with our intra-NY rivalries, the joking and teasing between fans tends to stay superficial and less people get harmed.
For a true, die-hard fan, who you root for defines who you are. It’s not just a game. It’s a lifestyle.

A Movie Review — Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part I

Posted on by LaMarGoti

OMG! As Ron Weasley (my love) would say, “bloody brilliant!” 3,822 pages of reading and 902 minutes of movie watching later, I find myself standing on a line with hundreds of people ranging in age from 12-60. I spent the last three weeks re-reading every Harry Potter up to the break in this movie (when Harry buries Dobby). Daily for the past week I have fallen asleep only after watching the next installment in the Harry Potter series. I am 24-years-old and I am still in love with the same books that caught my attention 12 years ago. I am not ashamed of the fact I am still obsessed with these books and movies — Harry Potter has now spanned half of my life.

As in many cases, I believe the book is better than the movie — so far this still holds true for all seven Harry Potter movies to date. These books imparticular contain such minuet details yet leave things open to your imagination. I remember reading the first few books and how everything played out in my mind — this was obviously not how the movies played out as well. My problem with Harry Potter movies has always been that it’s not just minuet details being left out, but large details (i.e. Harry never received a life long ban from Quidditch in his 5th year from Dolores Umbridge or failing to tell Harry that the “Chosen One” could have just as easily been Neville Longbottom in the same movie — the latter detail then needed to be worked into the following movie as it is too important of a detail to overlook).

I know I am a terrible person to sit next to during the movie. Due to my obsession and tradition of rereading and rewatching the entire series up to the point of the current movie or book being released, I nit pick everything in the movies when it does not play out exactly as J.K. Rowling wrote. Examples from last night (note, I’m about to spoil the movie — so if you want to see it, STOP reading NOW):

  • The movie is supposed to begin with Snape’s arrival at Malfoy Mannor, not Rufus Scrimegour addressing the news — not to mention, Snape is to arrive late with Yaxley, not alone.
  • We do not see Hermione leave her parents (we do not know this happens until chapter 6 — it is not meant to be scene two).
  • Where was the Dursleys’ protection from the Order? What happened to that cup of tea Dudley left for Harry? Why didn’t we ever see Dudley show that he actually LIKED Harry?!?
  • George is supposed to loose his ear in the removal of Harry for Pivet Drive — why did we still see it when he made it to the Burrow? He can’t be holey if he doesn’t have a hole…
  • Hedwig does not die the way she did in the movie
  • We never see or hear about Ron’s ghoul with spattergroit or the fact that he’s hiding the fact he is traveling with Harry
  • They DO celebrate Harry’s birthday in the book, he has a snitch cake, Scrimegour crashes the party to deliver the things from Dumbldore’s will (he also does not give as much information to our fantastic trio when he gives them their bequests), he gets a watch from the Weasley’s and that is why Ginny kisses him (not because he was zipping up her dress for the wedding and Ron sees them, not George)
  • Krum was supposed to be at the wedding — he delivers some important info to Barny Weasley (oh wait, there is NO Barny Weasley in the movie…)
  • When Ron returns, he brings news of the Taboo on Voldemort’s name and the pirate radio station the Lee Jordan has, but neither of those exist in the movie.
  • At NO point in the book did I ever get the impression that Harry and Hermione would come close to kissing, and yet, the entire movie theater was yelling “nooooooooooooo!” during the movie’s version of how Harry and Hermione kept their spirits up one night (granted they still didn’t kiss then, but it was far too close for comfort)

That’s not all missing from the movie (I could go on for pages if you want every little detail that is different), but the one thing that seemed to disappear from the entire movie is a bit integral (it is part of the title) — I want to know why David Yates thought you could have a movie entitled Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows and leave out the invisibility cloak from every minute of it?!?!?!

As a movie itself, if this were to stand apart from the book completely, it is great. This is perhaps my favorite movie so far, as a movie (perhaps because they were smart enough to know better than to try and squeeze 759 pages into only one move). The problem with Harry Potter fiends like me is we can’t give an objective review of the movie — I will never be able to sit through the movie on the first time without pointing out what’s missing. But just as I have reread the entire series more times than I can count, I have seem the movies probably even more times.

But now 146 minutes later, I find myself 278 pages away from the end of a tale which has enthralled me for half my life. I know what lies in these last pages, but just as I am sure to be at the movie theater for the 12 midnight showing of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II 237 days from now, I will go now and reread these last few hundred pages to finish the tale which will likely captivate me for the rest of my life.

Do Whatever He Tells You

Posted on by LaMarGoti

Preface: the following post is actually some fleeting thoughts of a personal reflection I jotted down yesterday morning while listening to Sean Patrick Cardinal O’Malley address approximately 700 religious and catechists at the Diocese of Bridgeport‘s Catechetical Congress.

I am not a perfect Catholic — no one is (well there may be an exception of two, anyone heard of our Immaculate Mother?). This morning I woke up half excited, half dreading the day — well dread may be an exaggeration, but I can’t in all honesty say I was 100% excited to be attending this year’s Catechetical Congress. Like many other 24-year-olds, sitting through lectures and workshops for an entire Saturday is no what I look forward to. In school, I slept through big lectures like the one I am currently in, and now I tend to opt out of these sorts of things. The theme for today’s conference is to do whatever He tells you to do (He being God — in case you were wondering…). Well, I guess that’s what I am doing right now, right? Originally, I had no intentions to register for this today, I kept trying to come up with a reason to skip it but I had no valid reason to say no. Well why not just say no, sleep in and go out instead? Because a nun I have known since I was a toddle asked me to come. Just as I can’t tell her no when she asks me to teach another year of religion, I couldn’t say no to her without having a valid reason not to come (something to do, family plans, anything other than “sorry, I’m just not into it” would have worked). Sister is a great lady and has always believed in me — I always get the benefit of the doubt with her. Sometimes I feel guilty because I know she thinks the nest of everyone and I think she gives me too much credit most of the time. I am 24, I like to go out and have a good time, but all in all, at the bottom of my heart, I know that she (and her religious ed. program) are who helped my parents form who I am today. They gave me values and morals. They are a huge part of why ethics mean so much to me today.

But back to the conference — two of my friends were going (and then we ran into another friend we didn’t know would be here). So the three of us agreed to go together — we would show up together and keep each other company throughout the day. I accepted that I would be busy today as I would be here. This week, I was even given another out. I could go mountain biking in the snow (assuming it actually snowed on Friday night) in the Catskills. I was torn at first, go to this, or get to spend time with a guy I want to get to know more. In the end, I did what I usually do, I followed through with me word and here I am (or there I was…) sitting at Sacred Heart University listening to Cardinal O’Malley (my favorite bishop). Everything he’s saying applies to me right now. I am doing what He told men and I highly doubt I will regret coming to this.

I guess I just keep surprising myself everyday, though I’m not sure why. I registered for an event and I’m not one to cancel on people unless I really need to, so why am I surprised that I’m here? Regardless of the fact that I keep underestimating myself, it’s OK. Lately I’ve been learning some important life lessons, or at least I’m realizing some key things I think I’ve always sort of know, but overlooked — today is no different. I have grown up. I know who I am and staying true to that is important to me. I know there’s still more for me to learn and I’m still learning things day by day. But my morals and the basis of who I am is set. I follow through with my word and I don’t compromise my morals. I guess this is not something that should come as a shock to me, but it did today and I’m awed by it. Maybe one day I’ll even learn to stop underestimating myself and I’ll realize Sister isn’t in fact giving me too much credit; she’s giving me credit I deserve.

In hindsight, I am glad I went. I enjoyed it and it wasn’t actually that boring. I met some amazing people and got to spend some quality time with some great friends.