All posts by Brian Wray

Brian Wray is a writer for Writtalin. A self-proclaimed hipster who makes his home in San Diego, he recently escaped LA after working in production and casting for the past 2 years. His interests are tennis, recording music, and more tennis. Follow his various works at BrianWrayMedia.com. And Twitter him @BrianWrayMedia

Posted On September 24, 2014By Brian WrayIn Sports, Sports Takes

NFL Week 3: The Plot Thickens

Teams, I see you. We’re beginning to notice who came to play this season and who’s pining for a top draft pick in 2015. So without further ado, here are my 3 biggest surprises of the early season.     3. Atlanta Falcons The Bucs might be terrible, but they are still an NFL team. For Atlanta to demolish them 56-14 on Thursday night was nothing short of spectacular, and hints at the season to come. It was a night of high octane offense for the Falcons, but the momentRead More
The season has legitimately arrived, now with 2 full weeks in the books. There were many highs and lows both on and off the field, but here are the top 5 takeaways. 5. Controversy Although I care more about what happens on the field, I’d be remiss not to acknowledge what is happening behind closed doors. Especially when it involves domestic abuse. Despite some amazing games over the weekend, all anyone is talking about is Ray Rice and Adrian Peterson. Peterson is the latest in dead beat dad horror stories,Read More

Posted On September 14, 2014By Brian WrayIn Dating For Men, Manzone

3 Things You Never Say To A Lady

The whole Ray Rice thing has got me to thinking… In general, guys don’t know how to treat ladies anymore. I’m not equating every dude out there to Ray Rice by any means, but even in simple ways I see a lot of men drop the ball. I call it male bafoonery. In commercials, I see men being portrayed as patsy morons. Even walking the streets of LA (okay, from my car) I see moronic behavior. Guys not holding the door open for others, especially for women and the elderly. GuysRead More

Posted On September 11, 2014By Brian WrayIn Sports, Sports Takes

NFL Week 1: The 5 Things We Learned

Pigskin season is upon us. Time for cooler weather, beer, and…. more beer. With Week 1 firmly in the books, let’s review the 5 takeaways.   #5. Seattle Is Still Seattle While most fans around the league are unsure about their team’s future, Seahawks fans are reclining in their La-Z-Boys and laughing at the rest of them. The men from the Northwest (I think that’s in America) came out of the gates sprinting. They made Green Bay look like a bunch of cheese packers. Their defense stunted Aaron Rodgers forRead More

Posted On September 8, 2014By Brian WrayIn Sports, Sports Takes

US Open Final: A Landmark Occasion

Few things are completely certain, but the exception lies in the world of tennis. Fans have become accustomed to Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, and Rafael Nadal participating in every grand slam final. Well the waves of change are a flowin’. Kei Nishikori and Marin Cilic will face off in Flushing Meadows today.     Significance This 2014 US Open Final will be a landmark occasion. Since the 2005 French Open, every grand slam final has included at least one of the big 3 (Fed, Djok, Nadal). That’s 9 1/2 yearsRead More

Posted On September 5, 2014By Brian WrayIn Sports, Sports Takes

US Open: A Lesson In Physical Toughness

Yesterday’s men’s quarterfinals featured unbelievable displays of physical ability by Novak Djokovic and Kei Nishikori. Djokovic notched a big win last night with his victory over Andy Murray. While earlier in the day, Nishikori defeated favorite Stanislas Wawrinka in 5 sets. But the score lines don’t explain these results very accurately. Anyone who saw last night’s match can attest to the obvious difference in physicality between Djokovic and Murray. By the fourth set, it was becoming pronounced. Murray opened his service game with a strange, 70 mph first serve usingRead More

Posted On August 24, 2014By Brian WrayIn Buzzworthy, The Scene

A Non-Gamer’s Guide To Playing FIFA

What are some of the most popular video games of all time? I can think of a few…. there’s that game with space soldiers dressed in full body armor, then there’s the one with army people called to duty, and of course there’s the one with the hedgehog. But one that may not come to mind right away? A sports game. And the sport isn’t even popular in this country.   100 Million Copies Sold Worldwide The soccer game franchise FIFA has made a ton of money for EA Sports.Read More
Young adults are becoming baseball fans, or at least going to more games. Why? Well, a recent study in the Washington Post makes note of a rise in craft beer options at ballparks. In stadiums like Great American Ballpark in Cincinnati, or Safeco Field in Seattle, “the market has exploded.” Since 2011, more young people have attended games and craft sales have gone up with them. In response, Cincinnati has installed dozens of additional craft beer taps. Meanwhile, Seattle, known for being a hip, new age kind of place, hasRead More
In Monday night’s baseball game between the Oakland A’s and Tampa Bay Rays, Outfielder Josh Reddick did something we haven’t seen in maybe… forever. In the bottom of the 10th inning, and the game tied, Reddick extended his arms and began rubbing the beards of teammates’ Stephen Vogt and Eric Sogard. Reddick, having grown quite a hefty beard of his own last season, knows firsthand that long facial hair follicles can translate into victories on the field. Sure enough, later in the inning Derek Norris hit a walk-off single toRead More
It’s hard to be optimistic when there are things in life that drive you mad. So the purpose here isn’t to persuade you to change who you are, it’s to help you make the most out of your negativity in a positive way. Pessimists, here are 3 things you can do to make your life a little more positive. Just a little.   3. Traffic Is Terrible, But It Could Be Worse Your commute is dragging you down, adding countless years to your life. But look at it this way.Read More
This year marks my 9th season of fantasy football participation, and I’m saddened to admit that I’m still as much of a noob as I was in 2005. Sure I’ve had some solid regular seasons, and made the playoffs numerous times, but I am still championship-less. It’s not that I can’t learn from my successes and mistakes. It’s just that in the months between January and August, any helpful fantasy football info gets muscled out of my brain by life. But now that the greatest sport in the world isRead More
I used to think of most entry-level type jobs to be a gigantic waste of time. Other than making money, the work was so mundane and dreadful that I thought it was taking years away from my life. I’ve come to realize that maybe I was being hasty. Work is always of the utmost importance. It doesn’t necessarily matter what kind, as long as it pays (and is somewhat legal, but who am I to judge?). You need to be working. Not working is bad. Not working exudes stagnancy, muchRead More

Posted On July 11, 2014By Brian WrayIn Sports, Sports Takes

Magic In The AL West

For anyone who knows baseball, imagine someone telling you in April that you would be looking at this scenario come July. The Oakland Athletics will have the best record in baseball. The Los Angeles Angels will have the second best record in the American League, good enough for a wild card spot in their division. The Seattle Mariners will hold the number two wild card spot. And the Texas Rangers? They are playing for next season….. Back in April, you would have scoffed at this. But now that we’ve surpassedRead More

Posted On July 2, 2014By Brian WrayIn Sports, Sports Takes

There Are 3 Types of World Cup Fans

The World Cup is like the Olympics. It happens once every four years, and before you can blink, it’s gone. While fans in other countries get amped for any soccer event on the calendar, the sport is only acknowledged in America during this time. In the past couple of weeks I’ve noticed fans cheering for many different reasons, but I’ll narrow them into the following three groups.   Type 1 – The Pretentious Multiculturalist This fan is the most obnoxious of any sports fan. Sorry Yankees fans, they have youRead More

Posted On June 21, 2014By Brian WrayIn Sports, Sports Takes

Wimbledon 2014: A Repeat in the Cards?

It’s Time. Wimbledon. The French Open held relatively true to form on the men’s side, but will Wimbledon cooperate? To answer this, we must analyze the draw (and make some lucky but ‘educated’ guesses).   1st QUARTER It’s easy to say who will likely emerge from this grouping, and his name rhymes with Movak Smoshevidge. But his opponent in the quarterfinal is not so simple to predict. Tomas Berdych usually plays well at Wimbledon (made the Final in 2010), but his path to the quarters is not edged with roses.Read More