Wednesday, March 23, 2005
Congratulations to my boys. Scotty and Chuck both received Honorable Mentions in Coudal’s Crash Ballet, Part Deux contest (where a link was provided to an educational film from the 70’s called “Joyride: An Auto Accident” and participants were to take it apart and edit it however they saw fit). The top dog, Ronn Kilby, had a cracking concept…complete with professional sounding voice over talent. Stellar.
Bonus: Thanks to Moe I now know that an old favorite, Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead, is finally out on DVD. This is dangerous knowledge.
Plus: The news isn’t as big, to me, as the flickr/Yahoo business…but now Hewlett-Packard has snapped up Snapfish. Let the re-branding begin. Sigh.
And: I pointed Zophia in the direction of Alternative Outfitters, an online store selling only cruelty free products. Many of which we are both coveting now. I apologized for tempting her so. She replied with:
“s’okay, as long as you never tell anyone i like something in the pamela anderson collection.”
Oh, oops. Sorry! I’m also a sucker for cute things embedded with stars.
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No rock rock rock for me last night. I phoned home after work to find that the little man wanted his mommy…and the husband wanted a nap. So I made a quick stop at the venue to say hi to my friend, fork over my ticket, and head home.
Bonus: I appreciated this post by James on so many levels, but mostly I’d just like to follow his example…by enjoying a good meal at the Early Girl Eatery on a mild Spring day.
Plus: Dreadfuldan (Daniel Boud) took some fabulous photos at SXSW, for both the Musical and Interactive portions of the festival.
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Today is going to kick my ass. Soon I’ll be going in for my first full day of work at the new job. Immediately afterwards I’ll be heading to the Triple Rock, for the early all ages 7 Seconds show. There I will rendezvous with Anton and Sophie, who are visiting from Chicago. I’m sure the little man will be confused and dismayed when mommy doesn’t show up before bedtime. At least this will make my appearance by dinnertime (on subsequent week nights) seem spectacular by comparison.
Plus: It turns out that much of the Decemberists stolen equipment was, alas, uninsured. But if you are willing and able you can throw them a few bones to help replace their gear.
And: The wacky and wonderful craiglist posts keep on coming. Yesterday’s best? A call for a Vampire Actress, who must be “willing to wear skimpy, Vampire Nightgown”. Anyone biting?
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I’m feeling antsy, but unmotivated.
A morning visit with family was tiring…and a tentative afternoon playdate hasn’t come to pass.
The snowman we made yesterday seemed to dismantle itself in a hurry.
Borrowed two books last night, and neither is grabbing me.
A short story idea popped into my head and is demanding to be written, but I’m too preoccupied.
Overall, I’m having a meh sorta day.
But this headline made me smile: URGENT Bear Costume Positions.
Plus: The rumors were true…Yahoo actually does acquire my beloved Flickr.
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Today’s news: some ugly, soulless jerk(s) stole all of The Decemberists gear in Portland. Naturally I wish the band a speedy recovery…of their equipment. But I’m sure the best we can hope for is a relatively painless replacement of said gear.
Yesterday’s news: it’s been confirmed. Joss Whedon will be writing and directing Wonder Woman. While I love Joss, I’m not so excited about Wonder Woman. Kinda like Peter Jackson and King Kong. But I’m sure I’ll be seeing their takes on both subjects.
In other movie news, there’s a new Sin City trailer up. Though I haven’t read the comic yet, I’m excited by the idea that it’s such a faithful adaptation of Frank Miller’s work. And April 1st is right around the corner.
It would seem about once a year I’ll be poking around the local library, grab a Terry Pratchett book at random, and only realize once I’ve gotten home that it is from the Discworld Series (he’s been so damned prolific). Even though the author claims anyone can jump in anywhere in the series (it’s a series, not a serial, or so he says) my OCD will only allow me to start with book one. So maybe one of these days I will.
The auction has just ended, to name the cruise ship in Neil Gaiman’s upcoming book, Anansi Boys. The $3,533.00 (USD) will go directly to benefit the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund. I’m curious to see if this name is divulged before the book is published, or if we have to wait and read it. Fun idea either way.
Plus: I realize it’s all relative, but this week went by in the blink of an eye.
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Times of transition are hard for everyone. But especially for the little man. Lately the poor boy’s been under a lot of pressure. At school they’ve been buckling down on “disruptive behaviors” in an attempt to prepare the kids for kindergarten. At home we’ve been more vigilant about getting the boy’s teeth brushed. And grandma says she’s been taking less guff from him on their visits. He’s just getting it from all sides. And I’m about to throw another curveball at him. On Monday I’m going back to work, full-time, for the first time in over a year and a half. I hadn’t planned to just yet. I wasn’t going to start looking for work until kindergarten kicked off. But I heard through the grapevine about a promising position. It sounded like such a good fit with my skillset and experience, and at such a cool little company, that, well, it was too good to pass up. I applied, I interviewed…and I got it. Maybe our luck is finally changing. And now it’s time for the husband to get a bit of a break. He’s quit one of his jobs so that he can be home with the little man, when the lad isn’t at school. I’m a touch jealous really. Their springtime will be chock full of quality guy time. While mine will be spent getting back into the swing of things. But it’s all good.
p.s. Because of the new gig I suspect my posting habits will be…changing. I won’t be posting less, necessarily, but at odd times. You know, early morning, later evening, and weekends. What’s most likely to suffer, if that’s the word for it, is my flickr-ing. C’est la vie.
Bonus: Also next week, two shows I’d like to see that seemingly have nothing in common…except that I secretly liked both bands in the same era. At the time I would have lost punk rock points for admitting it, but now I just don’t care. So without further ado…Monday night is the 7 Seconds show. While Tuesday night things get a little, uh, different, with Duran Duran. Going to both shows would be dreamy. Yeah, a pipe dream. Sigh.
Plus: Ours isn’t the only family to be struggling with these sorts of big picture ch-ch-changes. Best wishes to this Swiss/Aussie foursome.
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Wednesday, March 16, 2005
Been seeing the billboards around town for Blind Justice, the latest cop show with an unconventional crime solver. There are the inevitable comparisons to the BBC’s Second Sight, starring Clive Owen. I remember quite liking what I saw of that show…and I suppose I’m predisposed to thinking that this American take on the idea is crap. So there you go. Knee jerk judgement (but the critics seem to agree with me). Oh, how I pine for the days when Joss Whedon’s shows graced our public airwaves. Most of my distractions are to be found online these days, anyhow. And who needs teevee when we’ve got vloggers to watch?
In other news, the music portion of SXSW began today. And the Upper Midwest Blog Managers Assocation is being finely represented by Lorika, Lane and Chollie. Speaking of whom…just yesterday Chuck and crew met the man behind Homestar and crew. Sigh.
Bonus: The day has come for a new fiendish Making Fiends episode.
Plus: Speaking of Whedon…‘Firefly’ Actors Enjoy a New ‘Serenity’
And: Apparently Mr. Sam Brown did some drawings on the fly, at SXSW. For me it’s a tie between ‘Merge‘ and ‘Take Me‘. Magnificient.
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The husband just headed out to a doc appointment, but he’s going on a secret mission after that. To bring home The Incredibles DVD.
Which originally wasn’t slated to come out until the 22nd, but there you go. Actually coming out one week from today are two other releases, though, that I’m quite chuffed about. One, The Decemberists’ Picaresque. Yeah, we’ve had an illicit copy for months, but I’m looking forward to supporting the band by purchasing a legit copy. Secondly, M.I.A.’s Arular. What is the aural equivalent of catching a glimpse? I’ve heard snippets here and there, a review on NPR, her track Pull Up The People played on the K, but I’m looking forward to basking in her first full length release (oh, and there’s an interview with her on Pitchfork today).
Bonus: My most recent five minute crush…artist/illustrator Christopher Hutsul. I love his robots, of course, but the rest is tops too.
Plus: I was such a fool. Dave is taking Vicodin…but lucid enough to taunt me via email. Oh well.
And: My supply of recent photos is running a little low as I’d foolishly misplaced my camera battery recharger. It’s been recovered, the batteries are charged, and I’m ready to rock. Or take some photos, at any rate.
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When the husband woke up today he started to shave his head. Midway through he remarked “this is one way to get rid of bedhead”. Too true.
While catching up over at Electrolicious my eye was drawn to the headline: Blogging = Good For You! A sentiment I was likely inclined to agree with in advance, of course, but Ariel was discussing specifics…Tim Bray’s top Ten Reasons Why Blogging is Good For Your Career. The list doesn’t necessarily apply to me, except for this point:
7. Networking is good for your career. Blogging is a good way to meet people.
I couldn’t agree more, and certainly agree with the overall message (especially his parting words). Speaking of networking…because of my beloved flickr, an old high school friend found and contacted me today. And that was neat.
Bonus: The latest Hitchiker’s Guide trailers [2, 3] get me ridiculously giddy. Especially since Alan Rickman can now be heard as the voice of Marvin the Paranoid Android. Squeeeeeeee!
Plus: Lane makes his layout a little easier on the eyes…before leaving for SXSW. Rock star.
And: Dave, dear, I hope your surgery went well today and you find the percocet especially effective. Before long your old schnozz will be just like new. Or new and improved. Or something.
And another thing: While Dave is doped up maybe he won’t be able to further tease me about my online habits. It’s true that, once upon a time, I may have had a short-lived ebay addiction. I’ve been very good the last two years or so, dammit. Selling more stuff than buying, and only picking up essentials…like winter boots for the little man. But tonight I made my first non-essential purchase in ages. New shoes. And they’re seriously cute. So there.
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A weekend recap…
Friday: Even though it’s coming out on DVD this Tuesday, I took the little man to see The Incredibles at the theater. Again. For a total of four times now.
Saturday: I could tell the boy needed to do some running around, but it was bitterly cold and blustery out. So off we went to the Eagle’s Nest (no, not Hitler’s hideout). Upon arrival I instantly remembered why the place is best avoided on the weekends. It was wall to wall kids. With a staggering number of brown-haired boys wearing red t-shirts with blue jeans, just like the little man. This helped him blend into the crowd…and greatly hindered my efforts to keep track of him. Then there were the ear-piercing shrieks emitted at regular intervals, in surround sound. One shrieker in particular…man, I found myself flinching involuntarily any time he came near me. Made me wonder how his parents must feel. After recuperating at home for a while I rewarded myself by taking the fam out to dinner. At Evergreen, of course.
Sunday: March Madness. I hear that term every year, and can never remember what the heck it applies to. Apparently it’s basketball. Let’s just see how long I retain that knowledge. But because of it I got a bit of a break. The little man’s grandpa is an avid basketball fan. Grandma, not so much. So she decided to take the lad on an impromptu outing today. Which allowed me out to run a few errands and take in Bride & Prejudice, a movie where “Bollywood meets Hollywood”. Now, I’m a long-time fan of Bollywood films, so it was more than a little disconcerting for the usual big dance numbers to begin…only to have the songs come out in English. And the bulk of the dialogue, again, in English. But I’d have to agree that “it’s hard not to warm to this brash, slaphappy, Technicolored lummox of a movie.”
Bonus: Speaking of movies about marriage…just came across Mail Order Wife. This interesting looking mockumentary stars Cheng Pei Pei’s beautiful daughter, Eugenia Yuan.
Plus: For weird…Van rips into Minneapolis salon. I may not have frequented said salon, but it was (past tense) a lovely building. And I particularly liked the paper store next door.
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