April 28, 2010

Brilliant use of space

This brilliant architect used moving walls to create 24 "rooms" in his tiny apartment (see Youtube video):

I love it.

Permalink | From the general department | Posted Wednesday, April 28, 2010 at 7:32 am PDT

December 15, 2008

Throwing shoes at Bush

They should throw the book at him in The Hague, not shoes at him at a press conference.

Permalink | From the general department | Posted Monday, December 15, 2008 at 7:41 am PST

October 25, 2008

I love Harriet

This blog's been abandoned for a long time, but finally I have something to say. This is my wedding day and I love Harriet Patterson very, very much.

Permalink | From the general department | Posted Saturday, October 25, 2008 at 7:29 am PDT

December 30, 2006

Powerpuffs

Back in 2002, I read this review by San Francisco Chronicle TV critic Tim Goodman of The Powerpuff Girls Movie. Who ever heard of a four-star review for a kids' cartoon? It sounded like just the thing to share with my niece, then nine years old. So I asked her if she wanted to go. She said, no, she'd never heard of the Powerpuff Girls.

I was shocked. They were the big thing, I said. They were the hip cartoon of 1998-2002. If I knew about them -- through a coworker who was interested in hip cutesy cartoons -- surely every nine-year-old girl had heard of them? This was the same girl, after all, who couldn't spend enough money in the Hello Kitty section of the Sanrio store.

Lupita said no, she didn't want to see it, but that if I were too embarassed to go alone, she would be willing to see it with me.

Having a nine-year-old tolerantly condescend to me is something I didn't expect to live to see.

The reason I bring this up now is that, while having a cold, I finally got around to watching The Powerpuff Girls Movie, which I had set my TiVo to record. And I have now firmly come to a conclusion which I should have realized from the outset and which I have suspected for some time:

Tim Goodman is a moron.

Thank you, Lupita, for saving me from spending $8 on this garbage. At least this way I saw it when I was so zonked out on medication that I wouldn't have been able to appreciate something better.

Permalink | From the general department | Posted Saturday, December 30, 2006 at 8:38 pm PST

October 15, 2006

Xiao peng you zao

I don't know how long this article will be up on the San Francisco Chronicle's web site. It's about the new Mandarin immersion class in San Francisco's Starr King Elementary School.

My nephew is in this class. As he is is already bilingual in English and Spanish, the third language will open up many new doors for him.

I always figured someday I would take him on a vacation trip somewhere and have him translate for me. I just never thought it would be China!

Seriously, I am so proud. And jealous. Oh, so jealous.

Permalink | From the general department | Posted Sunday, October 15, 2006 at 10:49 am PDT

May 21, 2006

Pictures from Empire Builder, Southwest Chief trip

I took a long train trip this past week, from Portland to Chicago (on the Empire Builder) and thence to Gallup, New Mexico (on the Southwest Chief), where I stayed for a few days (visiting Canyon de Chelly and Shiprock) before continuing to Los Angeles (again on the Southwest Chief). I took a bunch of pictures, mostly on the Empire Builder and of Canyon de Chelly. I am a terrible photographer, sadly. Still, I put them up on my home page so people can see them. It's always good to give people something to cluck over. At some point I will probably go through it and give all the pictures titles, but I have not done so yet. You'll just have to guess on a lot of them. Sorry.

Permalink | From the general department | Posted Sunday, May 21, 2006 at 11:02 pm PDT

Tattoos

While passing a tattoo parlor on the street, it occurred to me that I should get a tattoo that just says "This body intentionally left blank."

Permalink | From the general department | Posted Sunday, May 21, 2006 at 2:14 pm PDT

April 21, 2006

I Would Take Something For My Journey Now

No reasonable offer refused.

Permalink | From the general department | Posted Friday, April 21, 2006 at 10:03 am PDT

February 6, 2006

One City, One Book

Today I attended a discussion of The Mistress of Spices, the book taken up as the first in Oakland's "One City, One Book" program. This was one of ten book discussions being held all over Oakland.

This was one was held at the Piedmont Avenue Branch Library, a tiny little building on 41st St., two doors down from the apartment building in which I lived from 1997 to 2003. I was afraid that this library was so small that it would be overwhelmed with people. I needn't have worried. All of six people showed up, other than the moderator (a Main Library reference librarian). I was the youngest person present by a decade, I suspect, and the only male.

Literary criticism is not one of my great strengths, so I was quite prepared to be quiet and not say anything. I didn't get that opportunity. Not only were there only six other people there, but four of them hadn't read the book. What's the point of going to a book discussion if you haven't read the book? I can only imagine that the enjoyment of the book would have been lessened by giving away plot points.

Anyway, although I tried not to talk too much, with only two other people there who knew the book I couldn't really be quiet and let those with a clue speak. Oh well.

Even though the turnout was disappointing, I'm glad I read the book and showed up. Magical-realist novels aren't something I normally pick up for myself. I did read One Hundred Years of Solitude (doesn't its Spanish title, Cien años de soledad, have much better rhythm?) in college, eighteen years ago, and later The Octopus, which although written before the term was coined, does seem to have some elements of magic realism to it.

Yet it's good, once in a while, to expand one's boundaries, and the idea of reading the same book as others in your community has a lot of appeal. And, given that the book is set in Oakland and explores themes of cultural assimilation, it's certainly a good choice for the program, even if I don't regret not attending some of the cultural events ("The Art of the Sari: Indian clothing demystified at this hands-on workshop for families and kids"). Let's see what book they pick next year. I wonder if I can get them to read The Death and Life of Great American Cities?

Permalink | From the general department | Posted Monday, February 6, 2006 at 10:43 pm PST

December 6, 2005

Pennies from Hell

Someone posted a rant on Craigslist, the gist of which is that we ought to get rid of pennies. He or she is right. Pennies have so little value with today's inflated dollar that it makes a great deal of sense to round prices off to the nearest nickel, as is done in Australia.

There used to be an organization called the Coin Coalition promoting the replacement of dollar bills with dollar coins and the elimination of the penny. Unfortunately the organization does not appear to exist anymore.

Permalink | From the general department | Posted Tuesday, December 6, 2005 at 8:46 am PST