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Movie Review: Kwaidan (Kobayashi)

The movie is actually 4 unrelated Japanese ghost stories, all set in the past. They all seem a little strange, and I'm not sure if that is a cultural thing (different sense of what resolution should be) or these stories in particular or if I am just missing some background info. The production quality was astoundingly high for a movie made in 1964 that involves lots of effects designed to make things look ghostlike and creepy. They had the ghost makeup down pat. Some of the sets were obviously sets, but most of the indoor scenes were just fine. The story about Hoichi the Earless was probably my favorite, having a pretty solid story structure and a wonderfully creepy idea. Overall, the movie was enjoyable well beyond just the listening-to-Japanese aspect, although it had a slow pacing, so I wouldn't recommend it to everyone. I am interested in watching more Japanese films to get a better sense of how this compares.

Soccer: Loss, 3-2

Hey, it was a pretty close game. It was at Greer park, and we played on an incredibly short field. Kind of strange. We lead 2-1 at the half, which was nice. We did not have a real goalie, which was not good, although there was really only 1 goal thery had that might have been stopped by a "real" keeper. I had a couple of blocks playing post on corner kicks, which was fun. It seems like it will take a little while for us to figure out who should go where, and how to play our positions a little better. We had one new guy that should get better quickly, which would be good since we didn't have any subs today. It was a little rough going back to the longer half. All the kintana people that showed up had good games - Derek, Roger, and Thuy.

Hey, at least it wasn't 5-0.

Bug Count = 0

Well, it looks like the team finished our last bugs today. No weekend work the final weekend before the release? Who would have thought it possible? Now, if only there were an objective way to measure the quality of a release. Heh. But I think this one is OK.

Email is a funny thing

But it is certainly nice when people do write you back. Yeah!

Quote File

I used to put quotes in my .plan file, and collect them all in one big quote file. I guess this weblog is just an extension of that concept, isn't it?

Anyways, here is one for today:

"As long as people believe in absurdities, they will continue to commit atrocities." - Voltaire

Is it from Candide? I can't find a real attribution online.

Finished?

I checked in my last bugfix for the release today. Well, maybe. The last one in my queue. And there aren't tons more coming in. I am really quite ready for this release to be done... it has been a quite a long time, especially with all the things that have changed over that time, and it might be nice to move on.

TV Science Fiction

I like science fiction. I like thinking about the future, thinking about what might be possible, thinking about what things we should try to avoid. I like the sense that humanity is going somewhere. I like ideas about new technologies.

But TV science fiction usually winds up being pretty crappy. I haven't really watched any for a few years.

And tonight there is a new Star Trek series. It sounds like they are doing some things right, and they got a reasonable actor to play the main role, but... I bet it will be mediocre. Good production values, of course (well, relative to other SF shows...) but nothing profound to say story-wise.

But at least I am going to watch it with a group so I don't need to be ashamed alone.

Is it me?

I'm getting so tired of people saying they are going to do something and then bailing on it. It is getting to the point where people who offer explanations seem extremely nice. Sigh.

Well...

It's the software equivalent of whack-a-mole crossed with trying to close a suitcase you've tried to cram everything you own into...

Soccer: More pick-up

Well, the last pick-up week before the "real" season starts. I blocked a corner-kick shot while playing post, which was neat, until someone on my team picked up the rebound with his hands. Argh. On the resulting penalty, though, Thuy made an amazing stop, so it might have been worthwhile. I also learned I don't have a good sense of where to go when playing sweeper. And I took a shot to the face. I really should go get the safety glasses this week. Yup.

Movie Review: Things Change (Mamet)

It was ok. A simple story about a shoeshiner making a deal with a mob boss and having a last weekend fling in Tahoe. Some amusement, but there didn't seem to be a whole lot there. Not many characters I felt sympathetic towards or related to or was interested in, which was kind of surprising. Seemed pretty formulaic for a Mamet movie. Not that I think his movies are that great, but I wasn't sure why he made this one. Maybe it was early in his career, when he didn't have as much say in things? But that's going pretty offtopic - which reinforced the idea that the movie isn't very gripping.

Today's Nightmare

May very well be something to do with this or this.

Sigh.

Maybe I need to go back into my hole and curl up with a nice fiction book... maybe that is terribly selfish.

The Question

Is life without freedom not worth it? Or is freedom not worth it without life?

Cooking Class

I had my first cooking class today, as part of the Drive team activity. I got to stir risotto for longer than I ever have before. It was fun, though. Will this inspire me to start cooking for real again? Probably not. But I will figure out a way to do that - maybe right after the cycle ends. I should ask for some days off now...

Big Changes (the work kind)

What's weird is that I am in the small group that got to get a preview, so they could anticipate questions and understand what they need to explain in detail at the big presentation. I feel honored to be part of that group, but also kind of strange in a bad/uncomfortable way - why is there a group of people that knows this stuff beforehand? Why isn't that formalized and understood? Hrmmm.

More articles

I think it is a little oversimplified, but it is nice to see someone talking about it: Religion and terrorism

Mark Twain still seems smart. I would love to sound smart now, much less 100 years after my death.

I am still feeling like I don't know what is really going on, but more because people are not telling the whole truth than because they don't know what's going on. Go mass media! Of course, other sources of media sometimes seem incomplete or just plain crazy.

I talked to my mom tonight, too. She seemed nervous about the whole thing, and unsure of what she can do. I wasn't sure what to say. Avoid the large corporate choices when possible? Support small, independent options? Don't silently tolerate racism or hatred in your presence? I don't know. I guess if someone really knew the answers that always worked we wouldn't be in this situation.

Motto

From the New Hampshire Revised Statutes Annotated (RSA) 3:1, 8 -

The words "Live Free or Die," written by General John Stark, July 31, 1809, shall be the official motto of the state.

It was the 1945 Legislature that gave New Hampshire its official motto and emblem, as World War II approached a successful end.

The motto became "Live Free Or Die," as once voiced by General John Stark, the state's most distinguished hero of the Revolutionary War, and the world famous Old Man of the Mountain was voted the official state emblem.

The motto was part of a volunteer toast which General Stark sent to his wartime comrades, in which he declined an invitation to head up a 32nd anniversary reunion of the 1777 Battle of Bennington in Vermont, because of poor health. The toast said in full: "Live Free Or Die; Death Is Not The Worst of Evils." The following year, a similar invitation (also declined) said: "The toast, sir, which you sent us in 1809 will continue to vibrate with unceasing pleasure in our ears, "Live Free Or Die; Death Is Not The Worst Of Evils."

New Hampshire's Official Motto has been in my head a lot lately.

Story Idea

A society based on quality, not personal property. Achieving the highest quality in what you do is what gains you respect. Lots of details to work out about how that could work, but hey, it is just an idea.

Refuse to accept

I still feel like I haven't caught up with the "normal" stuff I should have put up here. Blah.

I just can't accept that we are going to war, or are in a war, or whatever. How can people be so stupid? How can we let people who devote their lives to military service decide a military solution is the appropriate one? Do people really think this will help, and not just further solidify the hate that certain people have for us?

Well, I donated my tax refund to the ACLU and the EFF, and I am hoping that someone helps to make sure America remains a great place. We're not great because of our military strength or our economic strength or our cultural domination. We're great because of our freedom. We can be even greater trying to increase freedom for people outside our country. I don't see how a military action to try to capture or kill the "most probable suspect" (suspect! not even convicted yet) without having gone through any other options first will help people's freedom. Maybe if it really would stop terrorism you could make a case for it, but I haven't seen anyone make a convincing argument for that. The only explanation seems to be eye-for-an-eye vengeance "on behalf of the american people."

I'm an American, and I don't want to see more killing.

Some Links

atheism on a national day of prayer

thoughts from someone originally from Afghanistan

FBI gets new powers as a result of the attacks

some nice thoughts from a libertarian?

thoughts on pacifism

intolerance and racism

more intolerance

who is Osama bin Laden?

Weekend?

I still haven't written about the Modest Mouse concert.

I don't really have any plans for the weekend.

I want to feel a sense of concrete accomplishment.

I don't want to see my country, which has problems but overall seems a pretty good place to be, continue the violence and killing. I don't see how that makes things better. I do see how it can make things worse.

It is strange for world events to seem to create such a distinct emotional response in me.

Hopefully this weekend will help. Maybe a little hair trimming will be good. Some early Sunday morning soccer. Finding where to donate my tax "refund" check. Try to enjoy things, try to find a way to make things better.

Debunking

I love debunking.

Graffito

"Rock is dead! Long live Paper and Scissors!"

Another Day

And things start to get back to normal, whatever that means. It's still strange to see American flags on the freeway overpasses, or think about how much depends on air travel, or to think that some people are trying to benefit from this situation.

Not sure what to say, really

It has been quite a day. I woke up to the phone ringing, which turned out to be a friend telling me to turn on the news. I'm not sure if being so tired made it seem more or less realistic. It doesn't seem like this kind of thing can really happen, but it did. I feel like I know very little about what happened, why it happened, what will result from all of it... it's one of those amazing, take a step back and think about life and your life and what everyone should be doing kind of events. How should people respond? How do you prevent people from making violent responses? The inconsistency of the news coverage also made me question how we receive information in this country. I don't know. Seeing this really shakes your faith in how things are supposed to work. I hope that there is a positive response to come out of this. Somehow. But I'll try to do my part to keep things going in a reasonable way, and hopefully be a little more aware of doing things to prevent these things or be more prepared if they ever happen again. Like those blood donations I kept putting off. I feel like I am lacking in external sources of reassurance, though.

Soccer: Pick-up game

Only pick-up games in this weird delayed season time. I wound up playing for about 3 hours, which was completely exhausting. Wow. I don't think my feet will be too happy tomorrow. I was afraid lots of people would show up, soIgot up early (although not nearly as early as planned) and there were just barely enough people for 2 full teams. Around the third half, I subbed out for 7 minutes, but after that we were short people so I couldn't sub anymore. By the end it was getting really hard for me to keep moving up to hold the offsides line. But I had a decent game, broke up some plays, had a few runs back just in time - I still need to work on my winning balls in the air and ball control to get it to a midfielder. Again, it was nice notplaying against much faster forwards, and I think I got tired less quickly than some of the other people, so I held my own. It will be nice to get back to a regular team, though, to try to work on some defensive coordination.

Movie Review: Zero Effect

This was a nice little move - not great, not spectacular, but very enjoyable. I watched it because of Ben Stiller's presence, although his role was relatively understated here. But the other actors did a good job with the main storyline, involving private detectives, blackmail, murder, and working out in health clubs. I enjoyed the themes about what you give up to try to be the best at something, the importance of learning new things even if it isn't part of "your nature", and the non-traditional ending. The movie wasn't as funny as I expected, but I still am glad Tivo held onto it long enough for me to watch it.

Friday

A weekend with no plans? Uh oh. Outcome will either be extreme productivity (work or non-work), extreme slacking in front of CRTs, or some middle ground of not quite feeling like I got enough done. We'll see.

Concert Report: Habib Koite

I went with a group of work-related folks, and none of us had ever heard anything by this guy, or really knew anything about it, but decided what the hell based on a single recommendation. Go Kristen for organizing! I didn't have to, which was nice. So we drive up, parked in the weird structure, and walked past the strip club to get to the Great American Music Hall. It was kind of a strange club, rectangular with the stage at the narrow end and a balcony all the way around the top. Lots of tables, but all of the big tables on the second floor had absolutely no view of the stage. Lots of the tables on the first floor were obstructed by pillars and standing people in the standing area, so it wasn't exactly a great venue for line of sight. Maybe if we had gotten there early. The opening band was pretty mediocre, consisting of several drummers, a guitar player/singer guy, and a woman that sang. Neither singers had engaging voices, and the songs all started off ok but quickly turned into something that sounded just like all of the other songs, with the drummers taking over. Maybe I just don't have the appreciation for complex rhythms or something. So mostly we sat and talked, not caring that we didn't have a view of the "action." But then Habib and his band came on, and after a couple of songs we decided it would be worth checking out (and Roger was making fun of us...) The band had Habib, who sang and played guitar, another guitarist, a bass player (who also played some more traditional african stringed instrument), a drummer playing a drum set, a drummer playing a little talking hand drum, and a xylophone (is that what it is called if it is made of wood?) player who also played a violin-like instrument. There was another drum guy that played some of the songs, and a woman they got to sing a song with them. They were all quite good, which we got to really see when they all did big solos in the last song before the encores. The talking drum solo was the most impressive to me - the guy got an amazing wave of sound to roll out of this little thing. The crowd seemed pretty in to things, and Habib did a good job interacting with the crowd, despite limited english ability. They always kept some rhythm going between songs, which helped keep the crowd into it, I think. I enjoyed a lot of the songs, but mostly I think I just enjoyed seeing people perform that seemed to really enjoy performing and giving a good show for the crowd. That was neat.

Waiting

I don't like waiting.

More specific:

I don't like waiting when I am uncertain of the outcome.

More specific:

I don't like waiting when I am uncertain of the outcome and there is nothing I can do to improve the chances of success.

More specific:

I don't like waiting when I am uncertain of the outcome and there is nothing I can do to improve the chances of success and I don't know if I can trust the person working on it.

Conclusion:

I guess I have no choice but to wait.

(frequent keypresses to check email)

Comic Review: The Sketchbook Diaries (Kochalka)

I really enjoy James Kochalka's comic work. I'm not yet convinced about his music, although I did have "Monkey vs. Robot" stuck in my head for days. I think he has an interesting perspective on things and a really entertaining visual style. I think the part of me that likes to read weblogs is the part that really enjoyed this book, which is about a year's worth of his 1 comic a day diary. A lot of the details of his life had been talked about in some of his other comics, but this really gave an insight into typical day-to-day things. It was especially interesting to see him go through a few bouts of depression over the course of the year. I still have a hard time really identifying with people who have jobs that are more typically "creative" or "artistic" than, say, programming computers, since my life is suspiciously short on interacting with people like that. Works like this give me hope that my career choice is ok, and I can still do creative things, and I don't need to work on a huge masterpiece for it to be worthwhile. A comic a day, and you can wind up with some really neat things. Yeah. Thanks, James.

Dishwasher

I can't help looking stuff up on the web after it comes up in conversation, and sometimes it results in finding a good story.

Movie Review: Following (Nolan)

I saw this with my roommate as part of a test screening for the DVD release, so I've already had a chance to think about this a little. And the result was that I felt it was "Good" but not "Excellent" or whatever the little checkboxes I had to choose from were. It was an interesting story of someone getting involved in burglary. There were lots of really good scenes between the actors, with interesting and entertaining dialog. However, the movie used a lot of flashbacks and playing-with-ordering, which felt a little gimmicky coming into this thinking about Memento. If I had seen the movies in the opposite order, I would probably say this about Memento. But it felt a little more unnecessary here, which reduced my overall level of enjoyment of the movie. Although I thought it was still good. Probably worth it just to hear the more experienced burglar talking about his theories of burglaring.

Emotional Slacking

I was doing really well using my freetime constructively, and then the past week has not felt very constructive. I guess it is all relative. And it looks like I have actually kept up here, which is amazing. But I haven't kept up with my movie reviews, which isn't so good. But maybe it is OK for me to not document every movie I see in here? Well, maybe it would be if I was putting something interesting here instead. Maybe I still haven't figured out what I'm doing with this.

Like today. What do I say about how my day was? I feel like I can't be completely honest since I don't know who could potentially read this someday. Argh.

Oh, forget it. I'll just do it anyways.

I went to see a movie with Chimi today. It was another thing that was almost like a date, but not really. Not that I have any idea what constitutes a date. But we saw the movie, then went to the comic book store. It was fun. I enjoyed it. I think she seems really neat. For some reason, though, I felt nervous, and worried that I sounded stupid. She was a geology major, and I am really interested in knowing more about that, but I don't even know how to ask questions about it. So what I do try asking isn't very useful for conversational purposes. But somehow I managed to get through things, although I didn't ask her if she wanted to go get some food at the end, which I wanted to do but felt uncomfortable doing. It was fear of rejection, I bet. Stupid fears. But we'll see what happens. It would be really neat to become actual friends with her. I'll try to avoid thinking about all of the questions that could be asked next. Maybe if we go do things a few more times I will be able to not be nervous about it anymore.

It is nice to know there are interesting people out there, though. I just hope some of them find me interesting, too.

What time is it?

How long has it been since you stayed up most of the night playing video games with friends? Heh. Amazing...