Month: January 2014 (Page 5 of 10)

Five Things to do on a Rainy Day

January 21, 2014 / Bullz-Eye Staff

Gloomy weather can quite literally put a dampener on your plans. The rain, wind and snow means you’re forced to stay huddled up indoors and seek out some new entertainment. Well, when the storm clouds start to gather, don’t feel blue. Instead, why don’t you . . .

Host a card/games night

If you don’t enjoy stepping outside then bring the fun to you. Invite your friends over, crack out the drinks, cigars and snacks and indulge in a bit of healthy competition.

The details are pretty much up to you. If you like video games then get the controllers out and power up a co-op mode on one of your favorite titles. Alternatively, you could put your money where your mouth is with a poker night. You can even play for free on sites like www.butlersbingo.com, and see if you can outperform your pals.

Whip up a great meal or some tasty dessert

Grilling steaks might be more fun outside on a sunny day, but you can still fry up a killer steak in the kitchen. There are all sorts of delicious ways to pass the time. Shows like The Great British Bake Off have inspired us all to cook up a storm in our kitchens. Whether you’re a baking fanatic or a complete novice, anyone can make something tasty.

Choose your favourite food, whether its cakes, buns or brownies, and look up a no-fuss recipe before getting to work. Not only will it kill a couple of hours, but afterwards you’ll get to sit down with a nice cup of tea and your own delicious creations.

Enjoy a Netflix binge

Netflix is chock-a-block with TV series, cartoons and films. As we’ve said many time, you can binge on on a great series in one sitting.

A rainy day is the perfect opportunity to catch up with that show all your co-workers have been raving about, or get nostalgic with some of your favorite childhood cartoons. You can even invite your friends over, pour out the popcorn and sit down for a tailored film fest of your own.

Pamper yourself or your wife/girlfriend

When it gets cold outside, there’s nothing better than sinking into a nice hot bubble bath for two. Light some candles, put some good music on in the background and just watch your troubles melt away.

Women love this cause they can spend this time to exfoliate their skin, deep condition their hair or paint their nails, so you can also suggest this for them as something they can do so you can do something else. She’ll feel a million dollars and will look for ways to pamper you!

Get organized

Days like this are perfect for getting to that to-do list that you’ve been neglecting. Clean up your place, read that book you have been trying to find time for or just organize your upcoming events and plans. When you’re done, you’ll feel like a weight has been lifted from your shoulders.

Lifestyle

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Entertainment Untethered: What it’s like to ditch TV

January 21, 2014 / Bullz-Eye Staff

Before we begin, let me backpedal for a second and set the stage for “ditching TV”.

Here’s how I’d word it:

• Watching TV is the actual act of sitting down in front of one to consume entertainment
• Ditching TV is removing all those setbacks that come from viewing

What I’m trying to convey is the difference between being a zombie in front of a TV set versus having an a la carte choice in what shows and movies you watch. Instead of getting stuck with commercials and waiting for shows during primetime – you’re cutting those setbacks so you can binge.

Entertainment, Television

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Blu Tuesday: Captain Phillips, Blue Jasmine and More

January 21, 2014 / Jason Zingale

Every Tuesday, I review the newest Blu-ray releases and let you know whether they’re worth buying, renting or skipping, along with a breakdown of the included extras. If you see something you like, click on the cover art to purchase the Blu-ray from Amazon, and be sure to share each week’s column on Facebook and Twitter with your friends.

“Captain Phillips”

WHAT: While on a routine trip around the Horn of Africa, Captain Richard Phillips (Tom Hanks) orders his crew to practice prevention tactics against possible hijackers, only for the drill to become a real-world situation when a group of Somali pirates (led by Barkhad Abdi) boards the commercial freighter and takes Phillips hostage.

WHY: Based on the incredible true story of the 2009 hijacking of an American-flagged cargo ship, “Captain Phillips” is a gripping hostage thriller that boasts some of the year’s finest performances. Director Paul Greengrass has a knack for dramatizing real-life events (as evidenced in “Bloody Sunday” and the excellent “United 93”), and that success continues here, throwing the audience right into the middle of the action docudrama-style in order to best capture the intensity of the situation. But while Greengrass excels at creating a sense of claustrophobic tension (especially once the story moves into the lifeboat, where he really ratchets up the suspense), it’s the acting that makes “Captain Phillips” work as well as it does. Barkhad Abdi is particularly impressive as the leader of the pirates, while Tom Hanks delivers his strongest performance in over a decade in the title role. The final five minutes alone pack such an emotional wallop that it should have guaranteed him another Oscar nomination, and his work throughout is a stark reminder why he’s one of the best actors in the business.

EXTRAS: In addition to an excellent audio commentary by director Paul Greengrass, there’s a three-part featurette running just under an hour long that tells you pretty much everything you’d want to know about the making of the movie.

FINAL VERDICT: BUY

“Blue Jasmine”

WHAT: When her husband (Alec Baldwin) is arrested for investment fraud, New York socialite Jasmine French (Cate Blanchett) is forced to give up her glamorous lifestyle and go stay with her sister Ginger (Sally Hawkins) in San Francisco. Mentally unstable and on a steady diet of booze and prescription drugs, Jasmine attempts to put her life back together, with disastrous results.

WHY: Woody Allen is one of the most prolific filmmakers in history, but it’s hard to maintain any level of quality with that sort of productivity, and moviegoers have witnessed the hit-and-miss nature of the director’s work first-hand over the past two decades. “Blue Jasmine” falls somewhere in between, mainly because it doesn’t seem to know what it wants to be: a biting dark comedy or a drama. A modern-day retooling of “A Streetcar Named Desire,” the movie has its share of laughs in the opening act, but it gets darker by the minute, especially since Blanchett’s character is more of a schizophrenic than the typical Allenesque neurotic. The problem with that, of course, is that Jasmine is a lot less likable as a result, and though the actress turns in a mostly good performance, it borders on parody at times. In fact, there aren’t many characters in the movie that are very likable, and that’s the biggest obstacle standing in the way of “Blue Jasmine” being as great as it could have been.

EXTRAS: Woody Allen movies are always light on bonus material, and this one is no different. Apart from a press conference featuring actors Cate Blanchett, Peter Sarsgaard and Andrew Dice Clay, there’s a brief collection of red carpet interviews.

FINAL VERDICT: RENT

Entertainment, Movies

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Old versus new in the Super Bowl

January 20, 2014 / Bullz-Eye Staff

The matchup is set with the Denver Broncos facing off against the Seattle Seahawks in the 2014 Super Bowl which will be the first to be played outside in a northern city. It will likely be a very evenly matched game between two very different football teams led by very different quarterbacks. With such a matchup we can all expect the Super Bowl online betting to be quite brisk. As soon as the two teams were in place there was already a flurry of activity as most sportsbooks had Seattle listed as a slight favorite, but that changed quickly as money poored in on the Broncos. Now were see Denver as a one point or 1.5 point favorite on many sportsbooks, and we can probably expect more volatility.

One factor that will probably move the line with be the weather. With Peyton Manning leading Denver’s traditional yet explosive air attack, we can expct more money to flow to the Broncos if we see mild conditions for the game, or at least little wind and snow. But if the weather is bad, than the conventional wisdom has that favoring the Seahawks who rely more on the running game as opposed to Russell Wislon. Also, while Wislon is not particularly effective in the pocket, he is great at improvising and bad weather might actually help his game.

The matchup between the quarterbacks will be the most intriguing and that goes far beyond the weather. Peyton Manning represents the kind of quarterback that has been winning championships in the NFL throughout its history. Manning beats you by throwing from the pocket. His mobility isn’t that great though he’s good at navigating around a pass rush and throwing under pressure. Russell Wilson on the other hand is one of the new mobile quarterbacks who sometimes relies on the read option to be effective. The Seahawks have been limiting the number of times he runs, as it’s obviously a huge risk that he’ll get injured, but he’s also been less effective lately. Without the running threat teams are daring Wilson to throw the ball. But he’s certainly capable of making big plays, and if he hits on some then Seattle will be in a good position.

It should be a great game!

Sports, Vices

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Car Review: 2014 KIA Sorento EX AWD

January 20, 2014 / Staff

The redesigned Sorento that is built in Georgia has come out of the gate with fanfare and strong sales. The Sorento delivers an impressive roster of premium features and amenities that impressed us throughout our week of testing.

EXTERIOR

In a segment more often known for bland utility, the new 2014 Sorento sports dynamic and sophisticated design elements, inside and out. Redesigned front and rear fascias enhance the Sorento’s road presence with a lower, broader appearance up front and a visually wider stance at the rear. The ubiquitous Kia tiger-nose grille is enhanced with an anodized silver metal or black mesh appearance, and the lower valance has been opened to expose an aggressive cross-hatched maw. Front LED positioning lamps create dramatic eyebrows, while projector-style headlights peer from behind tapered clear lenses. Available fog lights on all trim models have been upended and pushed to the far corners of the front bumper for better forward and side visibility. Horizontally positioned rear LED combination lamps embrace the turn signal and back-up lights, emitting a warm corona that makes the 2014 Sorento instantly recognizable from behind. Our Sorento EX AWD sported 18-inch alloy wheels, but there are also 17-inch and, a first for Kia’s best-selling CUV, larger 19-inch wheels. The look of the 2014 KIA Sorento EX AWD resembles some higher end CUVs, but still establishes her own presence with a sophisticated and modern design.

INTERIOR

There is elegance everywhere in the 2014 KIA Sorento EX AWD, and we took notice from the time we stepped in the cabin. A redesigned instrument panel deftly combines technology with proven ergonomics. Standard on EX and optionally available on the LX trim, the large center gauge cluster features a 7-inch TFT LCD that projects a digital speedometer flanked by easy-to-read analog instruments for the tachometer, fuel level and engine temp. The TFT LCD readout also displays trip and vehicle information, along with navigation updates. The center stack’s appearance and layout has been modernized and button positions have been rearranged for a more user-friendly experience.

The new design also provides room for Kia’s new, larger touch screen. Diagonally spanning eight inches, the optional screen on our test model integrates navigation, SiriusXM Traffic with real-time road information updates, a premium Infinity audio system, SiruisXM Satellite Radio, Bluetooth hands-free connectivity, vehicle settings and UVO eServices, Kia’s next generation of infotainment and telematics. Other new available features in the 2014 Sorento include Kia’s first-ever programmable power liftgate, a redesigned and enormous panoramic sunroof with a one piece power-operated shade, integrated second row sliding sunshades, available dual ventilated air-cooled front seats, a 115-volt power inverter and illuminated door handle pockets. Our beige leather seats were first class and provided heated seats that you could not place a dollar value on in zero degree Ohio temperatures!

Car Reviews, Cars

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