Life in Clothing

As some of you may know, I use to be an avid MySpacer. Writing blogs on MySpace was a big draw for me. I was thinking recently (I know this because I don't think very often) and I was reminded of a blog that I wrote a couple of years ago about clothes. This blog kind of fell by the wayside, but it was one of my most favorite blogs that I had written. I'm not patting myself on the back or anything, it just held a lot of truth for me and it was a very important subject to me at that time in my life. It's strange how things of importance at one point seem to find their way back around to becoming important again. Anyways, please enjoy "Life in Clothing."


Clothes are a funny thing. The thing is that we all need clothes, so the search for the perfect attire is something that we all will eventually have to deal with. We might stand in front of clothing racks for hours to select one article of clothing. Why do we put so much thought and effort into these choices? It's because we're scared. We're scared of the consequences that might occur once we make our purchase. We're scared that it might not fit us. We're scared that it might not match anything else that we have. We're scared of what other people might think about it. We're scared that we might get it home, and find out about a fault that wasn't visible in the store. We're scared that we might wear it once, then forget about it. As unbelievable as it sounds, we're scared that we might have broken the hearts of the other clothes in the store that we glanced at, but passed over and left them sitting on the shelf. Sometimes, we believe that we don't even need something new, and we go on with what we already have. We're content with the wardrobe with which we have surrounded ourselves. All of these factors play a role in our selection process. Most of the time, we come home with an item that we will soon regret ever wasting money on. We begin to think that we should have taken a chance on the dress shirt, or the boot-cut jeans. So the question arises, why do we continue our search for the perfect clothing? The answer is simple. Eventually, we find it. Many times, it isn't obviously noticeable. We all have that faded t-shirt or those comfy shoes that make up our favorite attire, but we had no idea it would become that perfect piece when we bought it. We may not realize it until we've worn it several times, washed it and re-washed it, and gotten use to it. It becomes comfortable. It becomes a part of us. We become so happy that we made the decision that we made. We grow so attached to it, that it doesn't even matter what others may say or think about it. It doesn't matter if it becomes worn down, old and tattered. It's our safety blanket. It compliments us. We grow to love it. We think to ourselves, wouldn't it have been a shame if I passed this over? If I didn't take it when I had the chance? Of course, we would never know what we were missing out on. But the risk was worth the reward. Why is it so hard for us to take that risk? Why do we become content with our surroundings? Why do we give up the search for the perfect piece of clothing? Why is the pain of regret so frightening and so difficult that we can't look beyond it to see possible bliss and infinite happiness is waiting for us? Clothes......funny things.

My Most Underrated Movies

So this past week on facebook I gave a list of some of my most underrated movies of all time (and when I say all time, I mean movies of my generation, for the most part over the past 2o years with a couple of exceptions). I didn't necessarily list anything in order of importance, except for Fight Club, which is my number 1. Everything behind it is in no particular order, and it's what I started this list off with as well. Since I only had seven days, there were many movies that got left off my list. Here is my complete list. Remember, my definition of "underrated" is that the movies don't get the full credit they deserve. Some of these movies may be well-recognized, I just don't feel as if they are recognized to their full potential. Feel free to add to it, criticize, compliment, or completely desecrate. That's what it's here for, to cause discussion.

• Fight Club - Brad Pitt's best ever. Ed Norton solidified as a leading man. A movie ending that, if watched now for the first time, could be seen coming a mile away, but only because it has been so often imitated. In it's day, ground-breaking.
• Groundhog Day - The perfect comedy. Bill Murray in his prime paired with an original story line. "It's gonna be cold, it's gonna be gray, and it's gonna last for the rest of your life."
• The Fast and The Furious - Forget about the acting. It made car movies cool again, simple as that. Trust me, I was there on opening night to see posers rollin' up to the AMC in their imports with blades and lights underneath. It was big time.
• The Cable Guy - This should be the blueprint of how a dark comedy is made. Jim Carrey gives one of his less annoying performances, but he creates a character that you hate and feel sorry for. "Gotta warm up, don't wanna pull a hammy."
• Gone in 60 Seconds - Cool concept and great cars. "Good brakes. Good brakes, too."
• The Prestige - 2 hours of Christian Bale and Hugh Jackman one-upping each other. Throw in Scarlet Johansenn and you have yourself a winner.
• Tin Cup - Look, I realize Kevin Costner is a beating, but if he was born to play any role, it was that of Roy MacAvoy. This is one of the few golf movies that you can stay awake through.
• Minority Report - I am catching a lot of flack over this one, but stay with me. Tom Cruise pre-"couch-jumping", Steven Spielberg at the helm, running in a futuristic world where crime doesn't exist, or can someone still beat the system. Great ending.
• The Sandlot - I just feel as if this is one of the greatest movies ever so it may never get the full credit it's due. That's it.
• Any Given Sunday - Oliver Stone does a good job of putting you in the action on the field, and who can play the aging egocentric coach better than Pacino. "My name is Willie, Willie Beaman."
• Boondock Saints - Surely you knew this movie would pop up, right?
• Donnie Darko - Not necessarily something you wanna watch for laughs, but is so much fun trying to wrap your mind around such a crazy story. Jake G is perfectly crazy.
• Hook - This movie is still fun to watch even when you're older. Dustin Hoffman made the movie. "Rufio, Rufio, R-FI-OOOOOOOOOOO!!!"
• Man On Fire - It's always cool to watch Denzel play a Bad-A.
• O Brother, Where Art Thou? - Clooney's best? Possibly. The music is legendary and quotes come a mile a minute. "Dammit, I wasn't hit by no train!"
• Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure - Say what you want about it, but it kick-started Keanu's career. And even though it's been an awful career, there have been some entertaining movies.
• Red Eye - I have a man-crush on Cillian Murphy and a straight crush on Rachel McAdams, so this works well for me. It's claustrophobically tense.
• Four Brothers - This is a man's movie right here. Shooting, fighting, cussing, Mark Wahlberg! Whoooo!!!
• Smokin' Aces - This movie very much fits the bill of underrated. Jeremy Piven should have had an Oscar nom, plus it was one of our first exposures to the new Captian Kirk. There are 4 Ryan Reynolds movies on my list, including this one, because normally if he's in it, it's underrated, which leads me to...
• Van Wilder - This was our first real taste of Reynolds. How can you not like him?
• Gangs of New York - Ya really just can't go wrong with Leo and Scorsese. Plus, Daniel Day-Lewis makes The Butcher possibly the most underrated villain of all time.
• Three Amigos - Three comedians in their prime. Best. Comedy. Ever. "I think it's a mail plane..."
• Maverick - This movie is just flat-out entertaining. It's a comedy, action, western, and drama rolled into one with some brilliant poker scenes, including Brett's last hand with the the no-look card toss.
• Space Jam - Of course I'm going to put it on this list, it had MJ.
• Rounders - Barely edges Maverick out of the top poker spot. John Malkovich is such a great actor and this is one of his greatest roles. "He beat me, straight up."
• Swingers - It has to go on the list because it introduced us to the Vince Vaughn we know and love. "You're so money and you don't even know it."
• Two For The Money - I don't know why I put this here. I just like this movie.
• Memento - Be prepared to take Tylenol afterwards because it will have your brain working from beginning to end. Very cool concept, plus it supported my crush on Carrie Ann Moss.
• Boiler Room - Ya know, I just love Giovanni Ribisi, and Ben Affleck doesn't completely suck in this one.
• Just Friends - Refer to my facebook page and you'll find out how much I love this movie. It actually gets funnier the more you watch it. How is that possible?
• Waiting - My final Ryan Reynolds film on the list. Gives you a whole new perspective on being a jerk to your waiter. It's also Dane Cook's only funny movie, so enjoy it while it lasts. "She's got that Scooby-Doo tongue."
• Hellboy - This movie has a pretty big cult following, so don't hate on me for this one. It's actually really well done and not as cheesy as you think.
• Alpha Dog - I included this movie because it is jam packed with young talent. Justin Timberlake in his first major movie does a terrific job, Emile Hirsch proves he can carry a movie if he's called on, and my absolute favorite young actor, Ben Foster, has perfected the art of the quietly intense angry young man.
• Snatch - Guy Ritchie's best movie with all of the elements that he's known for. He sprawls the movie out into a hundred different directions, and pulls it all together in the end. And Brad Pitt is a gypsy bare-knuckle boxer. So legit.
• Equilibrium - It wasn't as ground-breaking as The Matrix, but it was smarter, and it's the only movie you can see Christian Bale sword fight Taye Diggs. Yeah, you read that right.

Thoughts???