A Summer in Review Today is supposedly the unofficial end of summer, but that didn't stop us from acting like the goofballs we are. The night was full of heated ping pong matches, 2nd grade level question and answer books, and to top it off, football in the rain. Who said summer was over? Not I. There is nothing more fun than frolicking in the rain. It's been too long since I last had done it. But this was only the icing on the cake for an already awesome summer.

Summer kicked into high gear only a few days after the final school bell rang. I hopped on an airplane, traveled to Chicago, changed planes and flew to London, and boarded yet another plane on its way to Athens. I was in the birthplace of civilization and it was nothing like I imagined. It was too modern, to noisy, and way to dirty. How can you go from the pinnacle of civalization to way behind the times in a span of 2000 years. The highlight of my time in the mainland of Greece was Acrocorinth. The enormity of the place was amazing, but the fact that it was high atop a small moutain made it even more impressive. The view of the surronding area was spectacular, too. The best part of Greece overall was the island of Paros. It was a prime example of an island where the citizens live to give their guests an amazing beahc get-away. Everyday life focused around making money off the guests while keeping them happy. The beaches were amazing and the water was crytal clear, but cold.

Egypt was the complete opposite of the beatiful island of Paros. It was dirty, noisy, and uncomfortably hot. But the sights were equally as amazing. We traveled round the country in buses, trains, boats, and taxis so we could see all that Egypt had to offer. We saw the incredible Pyrmaids of Giza that towered aboce the surroundiung desert. The Sphinx, though small in stature, was an awesome sight. I also got the chance to see the sacarphogus of King Tut, including the cermonial burial mask. The amount of deatial and jewels that are part of the mask are astounding. It was great to finally see it after seeing many pictures of it in my life. Also on the trip, we rode on the Nile and went to the Valleys of the Kings and Queens.

The trip was incredible, but I was eager to get back to the States to play in the state soccer tournament. One day I was in the Greece, the next morning I was in Boqwling Green to play soccer. Functioning after lots of jet lag and little sleep was quite hard. My team had lost its first game of the season while I was gone but we were ready to win state. It wasn;t meant to be though. Our season came to an end when a ill-timed collapsed of concenttration allowed the other team to demolish oujr defense. But the season was still succesful and lots of fun. The team was amazing and fun to play wiht and be around. One of the highlights of my summer was our dinner at Longhorn following our second game. We must have driven Misty nuts. But I still got my free desert.

After that, my usual summer routine began. Lazy days by the pool and hanging out with friends. Some highlights of the rest of my summer were playing paintball for the first time, going to the Warped Jr. concert, and once again going to the opening day of the Ky State Fair. this time our shceme to get cheap tickets actaully paid off and we won third place. Now, its itme for school again. The dreaded long days and early mornings. i'm not prepared for this.
  ¶ 9:43:00 PM

  Are These Good Enough for You? 11-15 We continue our countdown with even more great films. Hope these suti y'alls taste better. Wait. No I don't. This is my list and I don't care if you like it or not. Anywho, here we go again.

#15- Fargo- Drama. 4th Best Drama.

I like the use of the woodchipper. Also, this story of kidnapping, ransom, and murder is thrilling and very well done.

#14- Pirates of the Carribean- Adventure. 3rd Best Adventure.

PotC ranks high on my list for one reason in particular: Johnny Depp's performance as Jack Sparrow. His potrayal of this character is superb and adds great humor to the movie. The movie successfully brings the the ride to life in a entertaining, funny movie for all ages.

#13- Silence of the Lambs- Drama. 3rd Best Drama.

This movie is just creepy. Anthony Hopkins performance as Hannibal Lecter sends chills down your spine. Jodie Foster also has a steller performance as Clarice Starling. There is nothing creepier than the way Hannibal says here name. Its just a very good movie that is highly entertaining.

#12- Braveheart- Action. 4th Best Action.

William Wallace and his tale of bravery and freedom comes charging in at number twelve. The film, partly based on true happenings, shows the Scots battle fro independence from the English and the lengths they will go to get it. The battle scenes in the movie are some of the best I have seen and Mel Gibson's portrayal of the lead character is insprirational. He truly portrays the courage and bravery of William Wallace perfectly. But the question still remains, what exactly happens to Wallace at the end?

#11- Shrek- Animated/ Comedy. 2nd Best Animated.

I first saw a preview of this when Greg and I went to see some movie. We both decided it looked funny and we wanted to see it. Who would have thought that it would be as funny as it was or become as big of a hit as it did. The movie, a spoof of fairy tales, took animated films to a new place. The humor is a bit crude, but very funny. It's a fairy tale for the underdog. In the end, Shrek gets the girl and lives happily ever after. We are happy, too. But please, do not eat the gumdrop buttons.




  ¶ 12:01:00 AM

  Bottom of the Top: 16-20 Sal the Silly Goose proudly presents to you the first of many countdowns: Mark's Undeniable Countdown of the Top 20 Movies That Cannot Be Proven Wrong. We start today with numbers 20-16. The rest will be unvieled in the coming days. Come back to find out what the rest of the movies are!

Here we go:

#20- Finding Nemo- Animated-comedy. 3rd Best Animated Film.

The tale of a missing fish and his father's quest to get him back start our countdown. The journey is brought to life by the artists at Pixar Animation Studios and the animation is top notch. The awesome animation helps you become immersed in the film and the watery surroundings. Not to far behind are the well developed characters and script. This movies is made for the whole family, but is still downright hilarious. The film is part of a new era in movies. Digital animation is the next wave in films and this film helped move expectations up a notch.

#19- Independence Day- Action. 7th Best Action Film.

Will Smith does a decent job acting. Surprise! And the script and plot are better than decent. Surprise again. Truly, Indepedence Day is a very entertaining movie. Someone actually made a 'aliens invade earth' plot work in a serious manner. Honestly, who doesn't enjoy watching to world on the brink of destruction only to be saved by some random guy who lives in a motorhome.

#18- Terminator: Rise of the Machines- Action. 6th Best Action Film.

Ahhhnold Returns. He told you he'd be back, but he still isn't bigger or better. Actually, he is even more obsolete. Still, The Terminator finds a way to win. I like this movie because it is just very entertaining. I could watch multiple times and not get bored with it. Arnold returns with his awesome one liners, but this time "She'll be back." The film also has an incredible chase scenes. It may be the best one I have seen in any movie. Come to think of it, Terminator 2 also had a great chase scene. Finally, I liked to surprise ending. I guessed wrong.

#17- The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King- Adventure. 4th Best Adventure.

The third leg of this epic tale blows the others out of the water. It is filled with plenty of intense battle scenes, loads of awesome special effects, and two pint-sized Hobbits on a quest to save the world. The twists and turns of Frodo's difficult task add to the already deep plot, while th rest of the Fellowship try to protect the city of Minis Trith. Though the movie is 3 hours long, it nevers becomes dull. Every scene is action packed and pivitol in the plot of the movie. I recommend you see this even if you did not enjoy the first two parts of the trilogy.

#16- Spiderman- Action. 5th Best Action Film.

Spiderman makes his returns to theaters in a spectacular film full of incredible web slinging action, directed by Sam Rami. His expertise in the subject helps film shed the 'superhero movies suck' generalization. The characters are well developed and their internal problems are small plots in themselves. He captures the Peter Parker Vs Spiderman conflict especailly well. The plot keeps spidermans fight against the Green Goblin in the spotlight, but also keeps the sub-plots close by. Great special effects and awesome battle scenes add to this already great movie.


  ¶ 11:23:00 PM

  I'm Rubber, You're Glue. Crazes come and go. One that seems popular now is celebrating the past, especially with the use of countdowns. VH1 is the leader in this area. They already remembered the 70's and 80's and they just put us back in the 90's, which only ended 4 years ago. Over the past couple of years, VH1 counted down the best hair bands, one hit wonders, and most awesomely bad songs ever. CMT didn't miss the band wagon either. The country music station has counted down both the best male and female country singers, best country love songs, the best drinking songs, and the Top 100 country songs ever. ESPN is currently celebrating 25 years of sports coverage using two shows that air every Tuesday. They are counting down the Top 25 sports headlines of the past 25 years and they have a show that counts down the top 25 of a different theme every week. Not to mention that Top 100 sports moments countdown that comes on at random commercial breaks everyday. Now, Sal the Silly Goose is getting into the act. Introducing the newest feature at the now world famous blog, Mark's Undeniable Countdowns that Can Not be Proven Wrong. Yes, its redundant but I don't care, I'm trying to prove a point. If you argue that I'm wrong, you will lose.

Look forward to this coming attractions:
Top Movies (by category and overall)
Top Songs
Top Shows
Top Sports etc. etc. etc.

You get to the point. Enjoy.
  ¶ 1:43:00 PM