Though it took me until it was released on DVD to check it out, I finally got around to seeing The Hurt Locker — a day before it was nominated for Best Picture for this year’s Academy Awards.I had read on blogs after it was released in theaters that it was a great film. I read reviews from critics I trust like Roger Ebert, who raved about it. Then after Avatar came out, it seemed like everyone started talking again on blogs and in Tweets about The Hurt Locker and how the two would likely be going head-to-head with Avatar in a David vs. Goliath-like battle. They were right.

The Hurt Locker is a beautiful piece of film. I’m a big fan of the war film genre because it’s so hard to get right. But when it’s done right, it is done right. I don’t really want to get too deep into the glorifying war vs. anti-war film debate, but The Hurt Locker is simultaneously a great commentary on the current wars we are fighting and a flat-out great action movie. The suspense in the film is palpable. I don’t think I have been as physically involved and on the edge of my seat during a film since Paul Greengrass’ United 93. Director Kathryn Bigelow does a great job of letting you feel the suspense that these soldiers must be going through every time they leave the wire. Nevermind the fact that they are defusing a bomb and never know when it might go off, but you also never know when a sniper is going to fire on you, or someone is going to pop around out of an alley an point an AK-47 in your face.

I’m not a member of the Academy, but it has my vote.

For the past year I’ve been waiting for the release of Empire after seeing its initial teaser. It’s a film about having fun on fixed-gear bicycles by a group of friends in New York City. There are a bunch of films out there on the internet generally about the same thing, but the guys at Empire have done a great job teasing the film by running a blog about it is and releasing these short trailers. I’ve found that for me, nothing really gets me more motivated to get out and ride than watching cycling videos, especially during the winter months. I can’t wait for the full-length version to be released.

I do not know why, but it seems that some trends simply will not die.  The trend I am referring to here is Ugg boots.  They look awful, they aren’t waterproof or good for your feet, yet people will not stop wearing them everywhere, with everything, in distasteful colours all over the place.  The ultimate fashion faux pas is the ugg boot worn in combination with the latest in horrific varieties of the spandex pant–the ‘jegging’ worn skin tight (of course) and painted with delicate faux denim detailing.

Thankfully, there are some people who naturally gravitate toward classier atire, and this season most of them can be seen jazzing it up adorned in a variety of posh wear somehow incorporating sequins.  From dresses, shoes, and handbags to vests to cardigans, skirts, and ties, sequins are the toast of the holiday season.

When it comes to accessories, chunky rings and bracelets have that unique crossover appeal between casual and dressy, and add a little funkiness to any outfit.  I am especially fond of pieces made by local artists or from recycled bits of… anything.  As an avid cyclist I am particularly impartial to accessories made from bits of bicycle chain – earrings, necklaces, and bracelets.

When you’re a hockey fan, you get used to taking the back seat in terms of outlets to find coverage of your sport. But when you are a cycling junkie, until recently you would have been SOL to see it anywhere other than magazines and in newspapers during the Tour de France.That said, Cervelo bikes has been putting episodes of its compelling “Beyond the Peloton” documentary on the internet over the course of this past racing season, and it doesn’t have just racing junkies hooked, but the urban fixie riders who wouldn’t be caught dead in lycra — even if their jeans are pasted on just as tight.

In true 2.0 fashion, the company keeps the most recent episode hosted on its main company page, has a designated for the documentary, and in video sharing sites like YouTube and Vimeo, where users can take the episodes and embed them across a variety of blogging and social networking platforms.

Though the racing season has come to a close and the weather is getting colder, the episodes currently being released are from the Tour de France — something I doubt is an accident.

Another thing I’m excited about is Twitter lists, which acts as a way to curate what might otherwise seem like unmanageable content if you follow a ton of people on Twitter. I don’t know how people kept up with following multiple hundreds of Twitter users without being on it all day long, but now with Twitter lists you can manage the content and get what you need. For people like me who follow friends, journalists, athletes, news sites and musicians, I now have an easy way to categorize everything and get what I want without having to scroll through every update since I last checked in.

I see hipsters trying to be fashionable by matching their t-shirt or trim on their messenger bag to the rims of their bikes. And they love cutting a perfectly good pairs of jeans at the knees to make jorts. It was so refreshing when I ran across OUTLIER, which actually blends fashion and function seamlessly for urban cycling. They make great pants that work as well on your bike as they do in the office. These are clothes that will turn some heads when seen on the streets — and for once not in a bad way. Luckily for me I work freelance and can show up at my desk in my underwear. But it’s nice to know the clothes are out there if I need it.

Maybe it’s because the Blackhawks nearly made it to the Stanley Cup finals last year and sports pundits are predicting the Bears could make a run to the Super Bowl, but I’ve noticed a lot of girls wearing sports team T-shirts lately. And I’m not talking your oversize men’s or packing into a boy’s youth large size, but nicely printed shirts made specifically to fit women. Say what you want about the little black dress, but there’s nothing sexier than a girl who is confident going casual in a fitted t-shirt and jeans. It’s nice to see the ladies representing their hometown teams, even if some might not know what’s going on on the playing field.