5 Reasons to Go See Captain America: The Winter Soldier this weekend

Posted on April 5, 2014 by Jamie

Disclosure: I saw a pre-screening of the film last week.  All opinions are my own. 

If there is one super hero that truly stands for the courageous acts of bravery, courage, and good values, it is Captain America.  The film came out yesterday April 4th, and let me tell you, it’s worth seeing.  But here’s even more reasons below.  But first, what is the film about?

From Marvel Studios comes the highly anticipated “Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” which continues
the big screen adventures of Steve Rogers aka Captain America. Marvel’s “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” picks up after the cataclysmic events in New York with The Avengers, and finds Steve Rogers living
quietly in Washington, D.C., and trying to adjust to the modern world.
But when a S.H.I.E.L.D. colleague comes under attack, Steve becomes embroiled in a web of intrigue and mystery that threatens to put the world at risk. Joining forces with Natasha Romanoff aka Black Widow, Captain
America struggles to expose the ever-widening conspiracy while fighting
off assailants sent to silence him at every turn. When the full scope of
the villainous plot is revealed, Captain America and Black Widow enlist
the help of a new ally, the Falcon. However, they soon find themselves up
against an unexpected and formidable new enemy—the Winter Soldier.

Captain America The Winter Soldier

1) Envokes True Values

This movie really captures standing up for what you believe in, and also standing up towards evil.  It shows courageousness, bravery, and the ability to fight until the end even if that means risking your entire life.

It also shows friendship and the issues between trust that happen in life.

2) Scarlett Johansson

Black Widow

Her character alone in this movie is worth it.  We all know, by now, that the Marvel movies bring out some great female roles within their movies that truly showcase their power and strength.

With Scarlett in the role of Black Widow, it is no different.  Seeing her as a feisty and witty is what makes this role so fun.

3) Who is The Winter Soldier?

That is the question of the hour, isn’t it?  You will definitely find out who the Winter Soldier is in this movie and also, in scrutiny see, what has been done to him.  Is it someone from the past?  Someone from the future?  Soon, you will find out.

The Winter Soldier

4) Good Versus Evil

With every Marvel film, it is truly Good Versus Evil. In this film, can you figure out who the bad guy is within the first 10 minutes?  If you’re good, and follow the timeline of Marvel movies you can most likely guess it, but honestly, the fun is following the story line as it unfolds.

And trust me, there are a few surprises in the film that will make you Cheer out loud, I know our audience did.

5) Will there be another?

The movie tells all.  But, to get that further clue, you just may have to stay through the credits to discover more.  Trust me.

Overall, this was a GREAT movie.  It had all the ELEMENTS as to why the MARVEL movies are so great.  I, myself, will be going back to see this looking at closer details the next time around.

Have you seen the movie?  What are your thoughts?

 


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The 7th Annual Pebble Beach Food and Wine Festival!

Posted on April 3, 2014 by Jamie

 

Pebble Beach Food and Wine

 

Next weekend the coveted festival will take over the beautiful Pebble Beach area for its 7th year appearance April 10th through 13th.

With such a beautiful venue as Pebble Beach, it only makes sense to combine the best of two worlds: food and wine over an entire weekend celebration.

pebblebeachSome highlights included in this year’s festival are:

Wine Seminars:

  • Rhone Renaissance with Delas Freres: Founded nearly 160 years ago, the Delas Frères wines are an enduring classic from the northern Rhône Valley where legendary appellations like Hermitage, Cornas and Côte-Rotie showcase the power of the syrah grape.  As international interest in traditional Rhône varietals has exploded, Delas Frères’ historical expertise and coveted vineyard sites remain essential.  Come taste their extraordinary Hermitage “Les Bessards” in a retrospective vertical tasting poured out of magnum, among other treasures, as we celebrate a Renaissance of the Rhône.
  • Five Decades of Mayacamas: High on the slopes of Mt. Veeder in Napa Valley sits Mayacamas, one of California’s most storied winemaking properties.  Founded in 1889, Mayacamas was the pioneer in extreme, alpine winemaking – a site where high-altitude cabernet sauvignon vines produced wines of exceptional quality, albeit under exceptionally difficult growing conditions. Join us for a special retrospective tasting of five spectacular decades of Mayacamas.
  • Vega Sicilia Unico – 150 Year Anniversary: Beloved by sommeliers and collectors alike, this legendary property and its flagship wine, “Único,” represent the apex of Spanish winemaking.  Comprised of Ribera del Duero’s indigenous tempranillo grape accentuated with Bordeaux-inspired cabernet sauvignon, Vega Sicilia is Spain’s First Growth – a wine that is marked by exceptional patience and provenance, as the estate frequently waits 10-20 years before releasing a “new” vintage.  This “only at Pebble Beach Food & Wine event,” grants access to a comprehensive tasting in celebration of the estate’s 150th year of production.

Cooking Demonstrations:

Duff Goldman:

Know for his artistic vision on his uniquely designed cakes, this demonstration will show another side of his talents when he demonstrates his ability towards unique desserts.

Andrew Zimmern:

Fans of Andrew will not want to miss this demonstration as he showcases us that weird can truly be wonderful.  What will he show us?

And of course, one of the highlights of the evening include

The Lexus Grand Tasting:

The Grand Tasting taking place on both Saturday and Sunday throughout the festival will feature over 30 top chefs from around the world with over 300 wines to choose from at this year’s event.  Your place to mix, mingle, and enjoy the beautiful surroundings around you.

Wine Pouring

 

Photo Credit: Patrick Tregenza

To purchase tickets to the Seventh Annual Pebble Beach Food & Wine, or for more information on ticket packages, visit www.pbfw.com or call 1-866-907-FOOD (3663). Ticket prices per person range from $100 for a single event pass to $4,750 for a VIP four-day pass, which provides access to all events and private after-hour parties with the chefs and winemakers.

 

 


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Google+ Just Proved Its Love for Itself!

Posted on April 1, 2014 by Jamie

I really got involved with Google+ the beginning of January 2013, and soon fell in love with this platform, however, with the latest information coming out about Google+ I almost feel as if everything I knew just got thrown out the window.

Google+logo

And instead, I’m finding fast how much Google truly does love itself.

Take Note:

This week Google+, along with your circle shares, has began showcasing views.  These views showcase how many people are actually seeing what you put out on Google+ from October 2012.

With that being said, last year, I put so much energy into interacting on Google+ to engage with the community, but to also see how the rise of the Google+ circles came with it.  This was my validation that I was gaining more Google+ juice, but was I?

Turns out, I may not have been after the views and numbers have been shown.

 

Today, I decided to see how others were fairing up against me.  And I noticed a huge trend.  That it didn’t matter how many people were actually in your circles.  Instead, what did matter, was if you were sharing your content or not.

I found the people that were constantly sharing their articles on Google+ and consistently had higher views compared to those with infrequent interaction.  But the key difference is that they were consistent in sharing their content.  These same people ranged in less than 100 to 500 people in their circles.  That’s right, low circle counts.

But here’s the other factor? 

There is love for Blogger.  Many have questioned the blogger platform and its influence on SEO and the Google+ world, but, from what I’ve seen today, Google has just proven how much they love their platforms, and their software.

Prime example?  A few months ago Google’s blogger introduced the Google+ commenting software to blogger.  This is where people would go to a blog platform and leave comments and those comments would automatically integrate into Google+ therefore sharing the article in the process.

Guess what folks?  The ones that signed up for this have shot ahead on Google+, and it has just been proven through the views on your profile.  Take a peek.

What does that mean for everyone else?  

I’m hoping we’ll have more insight soon.  Keep in mind, these are just my observations, but please note, my mind is completely blown right now.

 


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