Essential Bookmarks for Web Designers
Good stuff in here.
Thankfully, there were no geeks outside with lightsabers or stormtrooper uniforms. Episode III was pretty killer, if not a little wooden here and there. Lucas took a step back from the cutesy ‘little CGI creatures doing funny shit’ tone of the first two. Lots of boom-boom, saber fights, dark portents of doom, and some more ass-kickin’ Yoda. I wouldn’t be disappointed to buy a ticket to this flick, and I’ll see it again in the theater.
[minor spoilers ahead]
5-20: Having a day to reflect on the experience, I’d have to agree with pretty much everything Kottke said. I wanted Yoda to kick the Emperor’s ass. I wanted for Anakin to renounce the Dark Side, and for Mace Windu to kill Palpatine, but I knew it wouldn’t happen. Some of the images that stuck in my head were ones I didn’t think we’d see from Lucas—Anakin’s end by the lake of fire, several thrilling lightsaber duels, and the sight of a young Chewbacca keeping an eye on Yoda. Surprisingly, the set-piece space battle that begins the movie was the only one, and it wasn’t all that memorable.
Finally, I have to say that there’s something intangibly more real about the old-skool plastic model approach to filming spaceships. While it’s infinitely easier to create everything in CG, there was something missing from the thousands of little pixellated blobs zipping around in each frame. I think back to the stunning tracking shots of the Millenium Falcon dodging asteroids in Empire, and of the skill and care taken to line up each shot. The cameramen cared about getting it right, because they had to make a ten-foot plastic model look huge and alive. I miss those days, but I have to just let it go.
Date posted: May 19, 2005 | Filed under humor, shortlinks | Comments Off on Learn To Dance Like Napoleon Dynamite
I wish I had something more exciting to talk about today, but there’s not a whole lot to tell. Jen and I are horrifically busy. I was supposed to be getting some work done last night, but I got pinned to the couch by two cats and a viewing of Lost. Our vegetables are growing happily, and I ordered the remaining pipe fittings to build the second half of the irrigation system. Dooce reviewed a chandelier Jen and I were considering for our dining room…not. our phones are wonderful little machines but it seems that Cingular’s coverage is spotty (or flip-phones have lousy reception.) This weekend we are hosting Jen’s family to attend graduation of one of her sisters from college. We weren’t sure where or what time the ceremony is, or if we were going to have tickets to attend (apparently, it’s free) or even who was coming in (we’re still not sure). So the weekend should be interesting.
In my pocket, next to my Sam’s Club card, $5 bill and assorted reciepts, is a ticket to Episode III at noon tomorrow, paid for by my company, who is letting a good majority of us go see the premiere.
I’m a pretty lucky guy.
My dear Gramma Dugan used to pronounce it ve-ge-ta-ble. “Eat your ve-ge-ta-bles.” Gramma, this one’s for you.
Jen was geeking out yesterday by sending me text messages on the Batphone: “DAMN BUNNies[sic].”
I spent the better part of Saturday digging out the shade bed (that bed which lies along the driveway and is hidden by three very emaciated bushes) and laying in a frame of 2×12″s to contain fresh dirt. Phase One was actually lugging the material home. Phase Two involved digging the existing plants out of hard-packed clay. (Think of the chain gang scenes in Cool Hand Luke.) Phase Three was constructing and installing the frame. That was definitely enough for one day, and a hearty round of applause must go out to our neighbors M. and S. for upping our suggestion of walking to get ice cream to a full-blown barbecue with beer at their place.
Sunday, Jen ignored all warnings from her Russian physical therapist and planted a paycheck’s worth of pretty shade plants into the rich soil we added and watered the whole thing while I toiled at the computer all afternoon long. It looked great Monday morning, when her back felt like the whole Russian army had marched across her shoulderblades.
Apparently, though, this fluffy patron and her child think we have opened up a salad bar for their convenience. Now, I like bunnies. They’re cute, and they eat lettuce and hang out in the glass cage at the pet store and poop little round pellets, like styrofoam peanuts. But when they start chowing down on my woman’s plants like it’s bluehair hour at the smorgasboard, I have some homicidal (bunnycidal) thoughts. We’re going to have to look into some anti-bunny measures (punji pits? guard dogs? mines?) so as to keep our garden green.
Impact Driver Wrench
I NEED this tool. (Thinking of the Scout)
Interstate Wine Sales Legal
You better BELIEVE I’m ordering wine off the internet.
Friday night, Jen and I walked out of the Cingular store in the Columbia mall with two shiny new cellphones. To give you a brief recap: My phone, a five-year-old Motorola, had about fifteen minutes of talk time left on its $25 crap-ass batteries, which meant I had to carry the power cord with me wherever I went. Friday morning, I was in the middle of an important call on my way to work. As I pulled off the exit near my office, the annoying BEEP of the “batteries are dying” alert started punctuating the conversation at one-minute intervals. I found myself running through the parking lot, up three flights of stairs, and to my desk to plug the damn thing in just as the signal was fading….luckily, I made it. This phone features a useless black LED screen, a UI one step above DOS, and a busted earphone jack (don’t ask me…I don’t know). Jen’s phone, the standard free Nokia they offered four years ago, was several steps above my phone, but she was averaging about twenty minutes of talk time before it died, which meant we had to use our phones strategically.
After about five minutes of browsing the various models, we decided on the 551, as it had Bluetooth for the cheapest price. The guy behind the counter rang us out, and we returned home to spend the rest of Friday evening drinking beer and playing with our phones (oh, how romantic.) We sent pictures to each other. We called each other. We programmed ourselves in as Rockstar One and Rockstar Two. We quickly learned that the phones have a vibrate function, a personal voice note function, a speakerphone, and about seventy-five other things we haven’t gotten to yet. Apparently, with the media plan Cingular offers, you can browse the internets and send AIM messages on the teeny keypad to your other geek friends. Me, I’ll just be happy when my Powerbook talks to my phone automatically to update my contact list, and I don’t have to run the Boston Marathon to make it to the next electrical outlet.
I still have to figure out how to turn off the hateful, irritating default ringtone, though.