Reflection #3

At this point we have completed everything we can, and now just await the short clips from each groups final product. Then we will be able to use short clips to show which groups are up for which of the awards. I feel good although we have little time to finish this step in the process. There will be some cramming but we should be able to get it done in time for CAP Hollywood.

This week we will use clips from each film to edit them in with the categories they are nominated to. We will also be adding in text slides that tell the title of the film and the individual who is being nominated, as fits. Also, if possible and appropriate, we will add voice overs.

This week, we hope to complete each award clip so they are polished with clips from the films nominated. This means doing the texts and importing/editing the clips of each film. It is a lot of work but I believe it is possible.

Soooo Late

I was supposed to have updated you on my team's CAP Hollywood film awhile ago but I kept forgetting to actually write the blogpost. After reviewing our footage from filming without our cinematographer and director we decided to scrap the project. We have started working on some logistical inserts for the CAP Hollywood night.

Our group will be working on the introduction clips for each award. This week we've already gotten all the shots we will need. Now we must just edit them into appropriate length clips and add some special effects and voice overs.

By the end of the week I hope that at least half of the short clips are complete so there is not too much stress on what needs to be done in the home stretch of CAP Hollywood.

Top of the Sixth Reflection

With the recent absence of our Director and Cinematographer Peter B, our group has been disorganized and falling behind. But last thursday we were able to film for nearly two hours and get a number of the shots we needed. I think this was very good as we are not as pressed anymore but there is still a lot of work that needs to be done. I'm concerned about the remaining filming that needs to be done and how difficult it may be to get it done. It was very good that we got the filming done that we did last week or we would be in a very deep hole.

It appears as though Peter will be rejoining us this week so our group should be back on track to completion. We were able to film over half of the shots we are going to need for our final production. All the shots that being on the baseball were necessary have been shot so filming the rest won't be so difficult to arrange.

I hope that by the end of this week, everything we have shot will be formed into a rough draft on final cut. Also, we should, by the end of the week, have arrangements to shoot the rest of the film.

Israel

On Thursday the 11th, I received an out of the blue email from a hockey coach in New York. To tell this story appropriately I must date back to this past summer. 

For a weekend in August, I went up to Pennsylvania for a hockey tryout. This team I was trying out for was an unusual one. The team was the USA National Maccabi Games team (AKA the US Jewish Olympic Team). The team I was trying out for consisted of Jewish hockey players ages 13-16. 

Unfortunately, after tryouts I was named to be a alternate on the team. But then, out of nowhere, I received this email informing me that I was appointed to the team.

Now, for three weeks in July, I am going to Israel with a team of Jewish hockey players my age to compete in the Maccabi Games (AKA the Jewish Olympics). For the first week, our team will be traveling around Israel visiting important places like Masada, the Dead Sea, Yad Vashem, and the Kotel (Western Wall). Then, for the next two weeks we will competing in the games. 

We will being playing Jewish hockey players from Canada, Israel, and France. This will be my first time in Israel, and my first time leaving North America. I am very excited for this opportunity to visit the famous locations in Israel but to represent my country on a international stage playing the game I love. 


If you'd like to help support my trip to Israel, please follow the link below. Any and all donations will be much appreciated. 

Sebastian Rubinstein's support for 19th World Maccabiah Games, Team USA


For more information on the Maccabi Games, you can click here.

Or you can watch this video:

 

Dog in Motion

As a hockey player offseason includes roller blading when ice is unavailable. In this post I'd like to reveal to you my dog, Nigel who is a big part of my life. He turns one on April 6th. This weekend when I went roller blading I brought along "Big Nige" and he ran along side me. I experimented taking pictures of him in full flight. He's fast.

A Sad, Sad Day

My hockey season ended today. Of course I knew this day was coming but like most unfortunate things, it still stings when it gets here.

It's cliche to say that teams are families. But playing travel hockey, taking bus trips, staying in hotels, and seeing each other four times a week, a hockey team truly becomes a tight group. A family. The end of the season means the dispanding of a great group of friends and families. Today we played our last game as a team, and there is nothing worse than the feeling of never getting that chance again.

The next couple weeks will no doubt be tough. Trying to accept the end of a great season and some how look ahead towards the future but it will not be easy.

To recap a great season - our team, the Northern Virginia Ice Dogs, finished with a 36-15-4 record, one win from a state championship, second in our league, and ranked nationally in the top 50. The team that stood in our way was the team ranked nationally #1 (rankings found in the right column). Last weekend we upset them with a 4-3 victory, becoming just the 4th team at our age group and level to beat them.

What a great year. There is no way I could've asked for a better group of guys to play with. This season will be remembered for a long time to come, no doubt.

The Oddities of the World

Last Friday was March 1st. In Maryland, March 1st marks the first day of spring sports. But to Maryland, March 1st in no way marks the beginning of spring. As high schools around the state eagerly hit the fields to start the new season, temperatures in the the 30s and 40s came too.

Now, I can understand some cold days at the beginning of March but on the 2nd, there were periods of snow flurries, or a sprinkling of snow. Three months of real winter brought nothing but a few two-hour delays and an early release. Then, somehow snow finds high schoolers on the fields during the 2nd day of spring sports.

Now, the biggest snow storm of the year is moving into town in the middle of the first week of March. Just when all hope was lost for a snowy winter, and everyone was ready to move on to shorts weather and outdoor sports.

I guess better late then never.

MAPHL 'Ship

On Friday February 22nd I attended the Mid-Atlantic Prep Hockey League Championship between the Gonzaga Purple Eagles and Calvert Hall Cardinals. Gonzaga won by a final score of 6-1 but that was not what I took from the game. Yes, the game was very good and there were many plays to marvel about throughout the game but what amazed me most was the crowd on hand.

(Photos courtesy of DCSportsFan.com)

About a half hour before the game, the lines to buy tickets filled the lobby of the ice rink and long before the teams took the ice, fans from both schools filled the arena. The stands were split between the yellow and red fans of Calvert Hall and Purple fans of Gonzaga. Throughout the pre-game ceremonies and warm-ups the student sections chanted, yelled, and shook the bleachers.

Never before have I seen a high school sporting event in this area fill a arena quite like this. Especially attending public school for most of my life, no games ever attracted attention like this. It was amazing to see the school pride on display from both sides throughout the game. My hopes are that in the future public schools catch on to the moving experience of school sporting events.

I realize that the crowd on hand was there to see the Championship game and the fact that Blair never reaches State Championships is depressing, but maybe one day, and if it comes, Blair better be ready.

A Sad Time of the Year

As we have reached mid-February with nothing more than a couple two-hour delays, I have come to the realization that another winter will pass with no snow. Also, winter coming to an end marks the end of the hockey season.

Last Thursday the Montgomery Blair hockey season came to a conclusion with a 8-1 playoff loss to the two-time defending state champion Washington County North Stars. It was an unfortunate end to a strong season for the Blazers.

In addition, my travel season most likely only has two weeks remaining. This weekend is the league playoffs and the following is the state championship series. Lossing in the state championship serious would in turn bring a conclusion to the season.

Another factor in the ending of hockey season is the coming of baseball season. With March 1st right around the corner the baseball team will hit the field first thing to start training for the soon to come season.

This time of year brings many changes to every day activities.

A recap of the Blazers final game of the year can be found here.

Silver Spring Swag

For those of you wondering what its like to live in such an awesome place as Silver Spring, MD, check out Max and my video. One thing is, we aren't always blessed with snow. Hope you enjoy :)

NHL is back

Wow, how great it is to say those words. Finally, the NHL will return to the ice this weekend after missing over half the season. All the NHL stars have begun to return from overseas and begin practicing with their teams again before everyone hits the ice this Saturday. What a day it will be for hockey fans everywhere. The season opens with numerous rivalry match-ups including a rematch of the high-scoring, intense, exciting playoff match-up between last years 4 and 5 seeds in the East, cross-state rivals, the Pittsburg Penguins and Philadelphia Flyers. Saturday includes Montreal v Toronto, Boston v NY Rangers, and New Jersey v NY Islanders. Saturday will be a fun exciting day of hockey as the great sport returns.

The season has been abbreviated due to the time off and now only includes 48 games played between only same Conference teams. This means no East v West rematches of past Stanley Cup Finals. With a shortened season there's no time for slow starts, thankfully most players will come into the season in great shape after playing overseas with the absence of the NHL.

The greatest sport on earth is back and one thing the shorten season will do is make the whole season a playoff push meaning top level hockey with important games from now through the middle of July.

Nothing could've made any hockey fan in the world more happy than this great news. The NHL is back and it feels as though everything has been fixed.

9.79* - ESPN Films: 30 for 30

Daniel Gordon's film 9.79* is an ESPN Film as a part of their 30 for 30 collection of sports documentaries. Gordon's film captures the hype and controversy surrounding the 100 meter final at the 1988 Summer Olympic Games in Seoul, South Korea. The race was highlighted by some of the fastest runners in history, performance enhancing drug (PED) scandals, and a world record time.

Gordon focuses on the eight runners that ran in the 100m final in 1988, including the world record holder at the time, Ben Johnson of Canada, and his teammate Desai Williams, along with the United States' Carl Lewis, Calvin Smith, and Dennis Mitchell. At the time, these were the fastest men in the world, but this was also a time when knowledge of PEDs was increasing and scientists had a new, better understanding of how to utilize these drugs to the advantage of an athlete. Gordon's main focus throughout the documentary was on the growing rivalry between Ben Johnson and Carl Lewis. Over the years, the two went head to head in races all over the world. In the most recent history, Johnson had been consistently narrowly edging Lewis and Lewis was suspicious as to why. Gordon's film analyzes the historic 1988 final and uncovers the truths behind the use of PEDs in the majority of the runners from the race. Gordon's main goal is to display the evidence that is in the history books, while adding each runners point of view, but he chooses not to add his own.

Gordon's film does not touch on any dramatic aspects as all footage used is archival footage or in person interviews with doctors, scientists, and athletes. The only time Gordon chooses to have other types of film, is when he uses recreations of lab testing of urine.

When filming each interview, Gordon used multiple cameras to capture each subject from multiple points of view. Then, when editing them together, he wisely chose an appropriate angle for the mood of the quote. Gordon's camera men also use their fancy focus and unfocus skill to capture the emotion of the subject of an interview. Especially when the film reveals a major component of the scandal, the camera men very carefully capture the emotions.

Gordon's film does the subject very well, capturing the various points of view on the topic and the truth behind each runner's story. For any sports fan, I strongly suggest this film for an in depth look at the largest issue with sports today, PEDs. The race that should be well known to sports fans as the dirtiest race in history, is perfectly covered by Gordon to the enjoyment of the audience.

9.79* is rated 80 minutes long and is appropriate for all audiences. The film can be found on ESPN OnDemand and at select times on the ESPN stations. 

Yum

On Friday night I went to the restaurant Family Meal in Frederick, MD and was very pleased.

First, the restaurant was in a former car dealership, so the walls were huge windows like the show room and provided a very interesting atmosphere.

Second, the food was delicious. I have to say that the fried chicken was some of the best fried chicken I've ever had. The chicken had a wonderfully crunchy exterior, that was perfectly seasoned. While the interior remained succulent and came out perfectly cooked.

Growing up in a northern household, I am unaccustomed to wonderful homemade fried chicken. I can proudly say that I have only been to Pop-eyes and KFC a limited number of times so fried chicken is lovely to see on a menu.

Also, the French fries were fried in duck fat and were server with amazing dipping sauces. Despite the seemingly unhealthiness of this meal, my stomach cannot resist such beautifully prepared food.

It's not food you can eat every day but quite delicious it was.

Oh, December

My dream December is highlighted by snowy nights, crisp weather and freezing temperatures as it marks the beginning of the winter. Such weather brings snow days and with luck a frozen pond. Unfortunately, I've grown up in the wrong place for that. This weekend, for example, provided shorts weather and a rainy day. It's insane. December's bring the holiday spirit, and no one wishes for anything more than a snowy Christmas.

Since I was a child, my parents, who grew up in New England and Canada, spoke of going to the closest pond or park to play a little pick-up hockey. I've had tastes of such lovely things, the crisp air on your face, and your sharp blades cutting threw the crisp natural ice. There's nothing like it. In MD, winters can come with weather in the 50s. Not only no pond hockey but no sledding, days off, or snowmen. Don't get me wrong, I know we aren't going to have a white winter, with endless days off, but I pray for just a few days of winter weather.

As we move into the holiday season, it still feels like the end of fall. The stretch between Thanksgiving and winter break provides four five-day weeks. It would be such a delight, for one day off in the middle, provided by the weather.

Maybe I should move up North. That may be the only solution. Or maybe a snowpocalypse will bless our area with its presence. Either way, I long for a true winter.

NHL, SMH

I've avoided discussing this topic for a long time, because it's a sensitive matter to me, the NHL lockout. The stubborn owners and players association have been negotiating for nearly six months and virtually no progress has been made. According to many sources, the two sides still sit far apart. This lockout has done a burden on the players, and more importantly the fans. The players have been forced to move over seas to play the sport they love and abandon their North American teams. One of the greatest players in the NHL, Alex Ovechkin, went so far as to say he may consider never coming back if this season is cancelled. So far the season has been cancelled through December. Some of the greatest parts of the season will be missed including the well known Winter Classic on New Years' Day. Also, the HBO series based on the Winter Classic called 24/7. Most of all, this lock out is killing the fans. There is no hockey on television for the fans. No games to attend. Hockey fans have lost the great sport. The filthy rich men that own NHL teams and run the league have caused the second lockout in 10 years. But it doesn't even affect them. All that matters is the money to them, not the sport. The NBA missed nearly half their season last year, but was smart enough to realize that the lock out benefited no one and quickly fixed their mistake. The NHL needs to come to their senses quickly before losing fans and players to other leagues. The one thing the NHL has going for them is that they control the future of the sport many people love. Hopefully the NHL realizes what they're doing and quickly fixes all they've done wrong.

Blazers on Ice!

To the surprise of many, Montgomery Blair High School does in fact have an ice hockey team. Although it is not an official winter sport of the school, the team does exist. It exists like crew and frisbee, as club sports. The ice hockey team combines with Northwood High School and Albert Einstein High School in order to have a sufficient number of players. The Blair ice hockey team is led by some of CAP's finest, Assistant Captain Max K and Captain Sebastian R. Friday marked the kickoff of the season. On Friday night the Blair hockey team took on the DC Stars at the Rockville Ice Arena. Although the game was lost by the Blazers, it was close and came down to the wire. High school hockey is one of the greatest things. It combines the intense fun game of hockey to the passionate dedication to supporting your school. Friday's attendance numbers were down due to the late start time but in the future, Blair hockey games will serve to be the hot spot on Friday nights.

Come out to support the Blair ice hockey team on Friday nights at various ice rinks around the area!

Friday's game was captured by the steady hand of photographer Peter B.

Color of the Leaves

In my video above I intended to capture the beauty of the foliage around me in my daily routine. My favorite part of the fall is the changing of the leaves and the pretty colors. For this project I used my phone and the iMovie app. This covers the prettiest part of my day, the journey home from school. As I take the bus and walk the trees around me cease to amaze. Also walking my puppy when I get home and the drive to hockey practice along Sligo creek and scenic Wheaton Regional Park.

Niagara Falls

Over the weekend I visited Niagara Falls with my hockey team to compete in a tournament. We ended up having lots of time away form the rink that we spent at the falls on both sides of the border. On one of the days we visited the US Falls and viewed them from the observation deck. The next night we crossed the border into Canada to get a better view of the Canadian Falls and both of them at the same time. This presented me with a great time to take pictures from the bridge and both sides of the border to capture the beauty in the falls. Using my phone, this gave me an opportunity to use the panorama feature and capture even more of the falls at once. Unfortunately, for me the falls got a little boring cause after a while it is just water crashing over some rocks. But what a site it was at first. 

The Falls from the Bridge

The Falls from Canada

The Canadian Falls

The American Falls

Both Falls from Canada

Nature

As we relax at home surrounded by mother natures art I am forced to reflect on the beauty of the outside world. The elegance of the pitter patter of raindrops on the roof is so soothing and relaxing. Watching the rain fall and collect on the ground and rush down the road. As it collects in the creek turning it into a shift moving river. The water rushes down crashing over the rocks. The leaves turning colors as falling from the trees provides perfect scenery for walking a puppy. Together we can enjoy the weather and days off.
Mother Nature provides us with outstanding variables. The wind rustles the leaves off the trees and pushes us around. It cools us off on warm days and makes us search for protection when it's chilly. Occasionally we are blessed with snow and a day of fun outside, home from school. It's rare that the rain cancels school. It's slightly unfortunate too. There's no playing in the rain. And the large possibility of the power going out would result in very little to enjoy at home in our modern age. But it is what it is. The hype and excitement surrounding a storm is so enjoyable. Preparing in advance for what you know is destined to come. Watching the Doppler radar seeing how bad it may get. Praying you don't lose power and that school will be cancelled for one more day. Mother Nature is beautiful.

Permit!

I turned 15 years and 9 months old about a month ago. To a teenager living in MD this age is an extremely important three quarter birthday, marking eligibility to report to the MVA and receive a learner's permit. I did so one week after my memorable age landmark. In the three weeks since receiving my permit I have done quite a bit of driving, including a four hour trip on US Interstate roads.

I have already come to numerous conclusions about driving that are much different then what I have perceived from riding in the passengers seat for so many years.

1. It's not easy. I knew it wasn't going to be easy, but I did not believe it was going to be this difficult. My family only owns a stick shift so the addition of another variable does not help but being able to develop a familiarity with the huge piece of machinery in order to drive successfully is no cake walk.


2. Stop-and-go traffic is aggravating. As a passenger of course it sucks too, but inching by a speed limit sign reading 65 going a whopping 10 miles per hour is extremely frustrating.


3. Other drivers are not friendly. The people you share the road with often couldn't care less about you. They have no problem riding right on your tail or purposefully not allowing you to merge in front of them. The only thing on their mind is them and where they have to go.


4. The blind spot is real. When a car finds itself precisely in the spot where neither your eye or mirrors can detect it, that car is invisible. Merging while going 70 MPH is already difficult enough but when you are caught of guard your whole body jumps. Not fun. 


5. Going backwards is twice as hard. When you drive forward you only concern yourself with what lays ahead. When the car is in reverse though, you have to turn around while remaining aware of the front of the car and obstacles that may lay in the way while maneuvering.


6. Going steady isn't easy. When driving at high speeds the smallest movement can cause larger actions by the car. Also keeping a steady foot on the petal isn't easy. Unless cruise control is on, there are no breaks from anything. 


7. Going fast is fun! Enough said.