Monday, February 18, 2008

Air Poo

I don't know if this is a hoax or if it's real, but it's an interesting concept nonetheless. The Mac Air won't ever be the same again....

Air Poo

Friday, February 15, 2008

This is wrong in so many ways...

A co-worker sent the linked article below around today. I am flabbergasted. Two things that jumped out after I read it:
  1. The last time I'd checked, exchanging money for sex is considered to be prostitution
  2. Why the heck wasn't the guy wearing a condom? Do people really not care about getting sexually transmitted diseases? Apparently not.
Click here to be just as horrified. Trust me, it gets better...

Wednesday, February 13, 2008

Music

I've been finding that my taste in music has been tending towards Alternative/Indie/Rock. To this end, I've been listening to a local station that plays more of this genre of music. The one I could find locally is Evolution 107.9, which is actually a student-run radio station. The students are part of the radio & television broadcasting program at a poly-technical school in town. Let me tell you that I don't tune in for the witty banter. However, I've hear some great music, and some great bands, who, for whatever reason, don't get very much, if any, air time on most other local stations.

However, I feel that there is also a lot of good music that comes out from Europe, and after a bit of searching, I found this London station that plays the same genre of music. The interesting thing is since I'm 8 hours behind London, I hear their late afternoon, evening and late night programming. There is one particular late night segment that features interviews with groups or artists who just so happen to be in London. It's really cool because I get to hear music that I wouldn't normally get to hear. Some of these people have such a small following that I'd doubt the music even gets heard outside of the UK.

Anyways, I've recently become a fan of the Arctic Monkeys, a band from the UK. Here they are performing Teddy Pickers:

Thursday, February 07, 2008

Happy Chinese New Year!

Happy Chinese New Year Everyone! It's the Year of the Rat, and it's my year!

Here's some stuff I found out about Rats, with my comments in italics:

Years
1912, 1924, 1936, 1948, 1960, 1972, 1984, 1996, 2008, 2020

Rat personality traits
People born in the Year of the Rat are one of the most industrious and hardest working in the zodiac. [That's me!]

Forever busy in pursuit of an ambitious personal goal, at times they may become difficult to work with since they are born perfectionists. [Yup, I'm a perfectionist!] Rats must ensure that every "i" is dotted before completing an assigned task. As a result, they are often successful financially, and are good providers for their family and those they cherish most dearly.

Loyal and loving, Rat people inspire loyalty in others who are close to them. They are essentially honest individuals and loath to betray a confidence. However, their quick wit and restlessness [yes and yes!] can sometimes lead to chattiness, and they can often be relied upon at large social gatherings for a good story or a juicy bit of gossip. [I love gossip!]

Their energy levels and expert organizational talents are such that it is a rare thing to see a Rat person sitting idly by with nothing to do. [Yes, I need to be organized, and I hate sitting around doing nothing!]

They may even sometimes be viewed as opportunists who cajole others into helping them accomplish a great ambition. In their careers, Rat people can find much success as business leaders or politicians.

Rats are most compatible with : Dragon, Monkey, Ox

Famous people born in the Year of the Rat : Charlotte Bronte, Truman Capote, Catherine I, Prince Charles, Sasha Cohen, Eminem, Peter the Great, Mata Hari, Scarlett Johansson, Wolfgang Mozart, Plato, William Shakespeare, Leo Tolstoy, George Washington

[Source]

Tuesday, February 05, 2008

Friday, February 01, 2008

Book Review: Stardust

After watching the movie Stardust, I was compelled to read the book on which the movie was based on. Neil Gaiman, from the extras that were on the DVD, came up with the premise of the novel one day while travelling in Ireland. He saw a wall with a hole in it, and began thinking what would be on the other side of that wall... and the land of Faerie was born.

I really like Gaiman's style of writing. The narration flows quite easily, and the worlds of Faerie and Wall are developed through his descriptions and dialogue, warmth and humour. It's an easy read, and it reads like a fairy tale. In fact, if you took out the three or so not-so-suitable-for-children references, you definitely can read this to a child, although, it is clearly an adult-fairy tale. I definitely could imagine everything in my mind while reading Gaiman's prose, even if the images rendered were from the movie, for the most part.

I won't explain the plot, but you can read it on Wikipedia if you're curious. But I have to say that looking for a fallen star (in the form of an adult woman) was certainly a very interesting and fresh premise, and that helped make this story unique. Well unique to me as my exposure to fantasy novels are almost nil. In any case, I don't think I've ever run across a premise like this in either books or film.

There are some similarities and differences between the book and the movie, but I don't know if I really could say if I preferred one over the other. I do feel that both the book and the movie can stand on its own. The movie has a Hollywood bent, and that is very apparent when compared to the book, but both have their own charms. The adventures that Tristan and Yvaine experience in the book were very different, but this allowed for a better and satisfactory plot development and the eventual blossoming of their relationship. Lilim (the witch), doesn't die at the end, but neither can she touch Yvaine's heart, because Yvaine had given it to Tristan by that point; it's no longer Lilim's (or anyone else's) to take as Tristan now owns the heart. Very clever.

I liked Tristan and Yvaine just as much in the book. There were also some characters in the book that didn't show up in the movie, but this is typical of most movie adaptations. And even though some of the character portrayal were different from the movie, I was satisfied with the different fates of the characters. I was sad in the end though, because Tristan, being mortal, does die, and Yvaine, unable to return to the sky, is left all alone. Babylon Candles aren't able to solve Yvaine's dilemma this time around, but I still liked the ending, because life isn't always fair, which makes it believable.

But still, Gaiman has made a fan of me. Two thumbs up!

A little spoof I found, for your entertainment...