The Less Popular Sports

There are several sports that I really haven’t touched on yet this month. Unfortunately, there’s 30 days in April and there’s many many sports that I could talk about. However, I didn’t really want to talk about sports that I don’t know much about. So I just stuck to what I know the best which isn’t exactly a lot of different sports, just the main ones. I thought it’d be best to at least acknowledge these sports.

1. Hockey

I think hockey is a really awesome sport. It’s one that definitely doesn’t get enough credit. I mean, what other sport has so much physical action? Basketball, football, and baseball don’t have the type of physical contact and the fouls are hardly ever called. Like one hockey player once said, hockey gives you a free nose job. Hockey does have it’s pretty big stars but only a few of them, much less than the main sports I’ve already mentioned frequently this month. But here is my much too short talk about hockey. I’m sorry I couldn’t talk about it longer, I’d just sound uneducated on the sport (because I am) so I’ll stop here!

2. Soccer

One of the biggest sports in the world. It has a much bigger appreciation and following in other countries but I think it’s sort of catching on in the United States. The World Cup had such a high rating when it was on this summer. Pretty much everybody was suddenly a huge soccer fan but not so many people care during the actual season, but that’s typically how it goes. A lot of the most popular players aren’t actually American, but again, the World Cup gave some American soccer players attention like they’ve never seen before. Outside of the World Cup, there really isn’t much to say about the sport. I think the clubs and how they organize the teams can be a little more complicated than what I’d like for it to be. But it does deserve it’s special shout out since there are so many people who play the sport and also love watching it!

3. Swimming

I love swimming for fun but it was never something that I was good enough to do as a sport. I think it can be a really fun sport to watch, especially during the Olympics. There’s also several different popular athletes I can name off the top of my head: Michael Phelps, Ryan Lochte, Mark Spitz, etc. Okay, let’s be honest, Michael Phelps is easily the most popular but Ryan Lochte is pretty up there too. Lochte is most famous for his attitude and vibrant outspoken personality. Phelps is most famous for his incredible swimming and his weed smoking. There are also many talented women swimmers who deserve some recognition as well. Both men and women swimming teams were absolutely dominant for the United States in the Olympics back in 2014. It was a really fun time to watch and I can’t wait for 2018 for the next one.

10 Best Baseball Movies

If you can’t already tell based on my posts so far this month, I really love baseball. It’s one of my favorite sports and I also enjoy all movies about the sport. These are my personal favorite movies that are about the game I love so much.

1. The Sandlot

This movie shows the sport in the most innocent and honest way. It’s just a group of young boys who love baseball. They play the sport just for fun in a sandlot. Only one of the boys is actually any good at the sport. Like most movies about baseball, it’s about so much more than just that. We get to watch these boys come of age and interact with each other. It’s such an uplifting and timeless movie.

2. Field Of Dreams

This is a classic movie about Ray, a farmer in Iowa who begins hearing a voice whisper to him, “If you build it, they will come.” He then sees a vision of a baseball diamond and builds a baseball field by plowing under his corn. The famous deceased baseball player Shoeless Joe Jackson begins showing up, and only Ray can see him. He soon realizes this is happening because of his father, whom idolized Jackson. His father has previously passed away and didn’t really have a good relationship with his son. All in all, the movie focuses a lot on our dreams (obviously) and that sometimes you just have to put your trust into another person, even when you don’t know what the outcome might be.

3. The Natural

Roy Dobbs was an upcoming star pitcher who was full of potential. One night, a woman lures him into her hotel room and shoots him. After that, Dobbs goes off the grid for 16 years. He starts to play the game again sixteen years later, at the age of 35. He was considered “The best that never was,” and he tries to prove that name wrong. This movie is just one of those feel good movies that you can’t help but love. It’s extremely inspirational and you can’t help but love the charm of Robert Redford.

4. A League Of Their Own

A powerful tale about women playing baseball while the men are away in the war. It’s interesting that something that takes place decades before is still relevant to us today. The movie has an all star cast, which only makes the story more intriguing. Tom Hanks stars as their drunk washed up manager, even Rosie O’Donnell and Madonna make appearances as two other players on the team. The movie never gets old.

5. Bad News Bears

Walter Matthau plays a former minor league player who’s now an alcoholic who cleans swimming pools. He gets recruited to coach the least athletic players in the league, one of them just so happens to be his son. This movie is a classic because of the acting and the story is original and hilarious. Tatum O’Neal is amazing in this movie, her performance alone is worth tuning in to this one. Be sure to stay clear of the Billy Bob Thornton remake, the original is obviously better.

6. Bull Durham

Another movie starring Kevin Costner but this is one of the most beloved sports movies of all time. It tells the story of an older and mature player being asked to mentor the big upcoming star pitcher. I think the big reason why so many people love this movie is because it’s a lot about life and love, not just baseball. It’s a classic and timeless story that never gets old.

7. Bang The Drum Slowly

Bang The Drum Slowly stars a young and unknown Robert DeNiro. Two years after this movie, he won an Oscar for his role in The Godfather Part II. We all know what a great actor he is but it is pretty awesome to see his early work. He plays the role of Bruce, an uneducated catcher who finds out he has a terminal illness. The movie focuses on his relationship with his pitcher. It’s the baseball version of “Brian’s Song” except even better. It’s not overly cheesy, it’s just a naturally emotional story.

8. The Rookie

Dennis Quaid stars as Jim Morris, who is a real person and was briefly but notably in the major leagues for one season. Morris was supposed to be an incredible major league player. A shoulder injury shatters that dream and he hangs it up and makes a family. Slowly, he makes his way up throughout the movie until he finally reaches the major league. This is an uplifting movie that shows that dreams can come true no matter what age you are.

9. Moneyball

This is the true story of Billy Beane, the manager of the Oakland Athletic’s. This movie has become so popular in the past few years because it gives some insight into the operations behind professional baseball. Basically, Beane gets help from Peter Brand, a young graduate from Yale who has a degree in economics and has unique ideas about the values of players. Working with a limited budget, the two figure out their roster by taking these players that nobody wants and discovering those players strengths.

10. 42

This recent film looks at the life of the classic baseball player Jackie Robinson. There were many African American players who were good enough to play in the major leagues, who were around before and the same time as Robinson. However, Branch Rickey singled out Jackie because he believed he had the guts not to fight back. It’s a really compelling classic story that we all know but it’s beautiful to watch this come to life.

 

Sports Fashion In Movies

Okay stay with me here, it may seem weird to get any type of inspiration from characters in movies about sports. However, if you want a little bit of a sporty look, these can be some cool suggestions to take notes from! I tried to make this gender neutral. Basically, it’s more about the comfort that these characters provide then looking super fashionable.

Dottie Hinson from A League Of Their Own

Dottie from A League Of Their Own has an effortless tomboy look that is pretty chic and awesome. She also has really great hair that you probably wouldn’t want to have today when playing softball or whatever sport you play, since you’re bound to get that gorgeous hair extremely dirty. But hey, it’d look just as great pulled back as well. I love the uniforms that they wear in this movie although they are definitely more than a little bit outdated. I still think they look beyond cool.

Lizzie Bradbury from Wimbledon

Kirsten Dunst also has perfect hair in this movie. Her character has a fairly simple style as a tennis player. But again, her hair looks awesome and I really love her skirt. Plus, her scarf in the first picture also proves that the character herself has a great sense of style. You can look athletic on the court, and be a fashionista off the court and I love that fact.

Missy Pantone from Bring It On!

Okay, so this one is on a more goth route than the other two for sure. But I thought it’d be best to represent a lot of different styles and this is certainly mixing the list up quite a bit so why not? I picked to talk about Missy because I already talked about one character played by Kirsten Dunst so I figured this was the best choice. Plus I dig how different Missy is from other characters. She auditions for the squad in the outfit that can be seen here in the first picture. Then she has a transformation in a sense, and becomes a cheerleader. However, she doesn’t become preppy by any means. She still keeps her attitude throughout the movie which is great to watch. And I love the personal addition she adds to her style. Missy is definitely the coolest cheerleader in movie history.

President’s Day Sales

Due to the snow day, it turns out I have more time than I would’ve otherwise had. Here are some of the best President’s Day sales that I could find.

Charlotte Russe

Shipping costs only a penny for orders over $30. The store also has an additional 25% off. Charlotte Russe is one of my favorite stores but I haven’t found anything that’s really stuck out to me online. However, I do think this is a deal worth checking out.

Forever 21

Free shipping with no minimum today only. There’s also 30% off handbags. The prices are extremely affordable and I think it’s a big deal to take advantage of the free shipping while you can.

Loft

There’s 50% off regular items and an additional 60% sales items. Yeah, the Loft is on the expensive side. But this is a big sale with really great quality clothing.

Urban Outfitters

This retail store has a HUGE sale right now. There’s no shipping and no tax. The prices for Denim starts at $19.99, as does Women’s sweaters. Women’s tops start at $9.99. Don’t miss this one!

H&M

Not sure about the shipping, it’s probably about $3 or $4, probably an additional $6 or more. But there’s 70% off everything and the prices are as low as $4.95.

American Eagle

Free shipping with no minimum today only. There’s also 60% off clearance items. If you buy one jean, you get the second one 50%.

Nordstrom

Free shipping and free returns all the time. 40% off until February 22. Probably one of the worst sales on here due to how expensive the clothes originally is.

These are the sales that are the biggest to me personally. I also recommend using Ebates for any purchases that you make so you can get some cashback. Did I forget any sales that you’re checking out? Be sure to let me know! I want to provide you guys with the best information and deals so let me know if I missed any.

Best Sex and the City Characters

Sex and the City is a show much loved due to it’s strong central friendship group: four single New York women who are navigating through their mid-30s and 40s together. I felt that it’s only fair for this post to be dedicated to the four main characters listed from worst to best in terms of who I’d want to be friends with. Each woman has their own respective qualities that anyone would love to find in a best friend, but this is a list that’s strictly my personal opinion based on what friends I want to have.

4. Charlotte York

Charlotte is the practical and rather uptight one of the group. Her most positive quality is definitely how optimistic she is about love and her future. She never gives up hope on finding her Prince Charming. As far as a friend goes, constantly looking on the bright side of life while you’re going through breakup after breakup can get annoying. She also can be extremely judgmental at times and a little too on the proper side.

3. Carrie Bradshaw

Sex and the City is Carrie’s story since she narrates it through her columns. She has a fabulous life filled with lots of beautiful shoes and general glamorous life. But Carrie can be selfish and only focus on her problems. She’s there for her friends when they need her but she constantly puts them in awkward positions in her love life then turns around and judges them. She’s a flawed character which is much like women are in real life which is nice and rare to see on TV shows. I just wouldn’t care to have her as a friend.

2. Miranda Hobbes

Miranda is smart and funny but more than that, she’s a great friend to her girls. I found her kind of annoying and whiny in the first few seasons but she eventually evolves into a more likable character. She also gains wisdom and understanding once she becomes a mom. While Charlotte is overly optimistic, Miranda is too pessimistic at times. This attitude is the only reason why she didn’t score the number one spot on this list.

1. Samantha Jones

I’d want to be friends with Samantha the most out of all the SATC girls because who wouldn’t? Samantha is confident, classy, blunt, loyal, and fun. She’s neither too optimistic or too pessimistic, she’s just right. She always has her hilarious Samantha Jonesisms regardless of the topic at hand. Another good quality of hers is that she’ll never judge you. She stands by Carrie’s side when Carrie goes to only her about her affair with a married Mr. Big. She doesn’t gossip about it to the other girls or scold Carrie, instead she offers support and comfort to her friend. Having a friend like Samantha is ideal because she’s fun and a loyal friend.