On a cross-country flight I got to watch (without sound, since I wasn't going to pay for bad movies) Spiderman 3 and Pirates of the Caribbean 3.
Neither was particularly interesting except as a diversion from a long flight. Spiderman in particular seemed pretty bad: it was an utter mess of storytelling, and I couldn't even hear the sound! Or maybe the lack of sound made it obvious how bad the movie was...
The Pirates sequel was harder to follow without sound, but the basic storyline didn't really matter much anyway. Lots of crazy plotlines and backstabbing, with some over-the-top action sequences.
Fearless
I quickly watched Jet Li's Fearless. Like most kung-fu movies, it was overly sentimental with a pretty predictable plot. Some good fighting, though! And apparently it is loosely historical in nature. I wouldn't have felt good paying $10 at the movie theater to watch it, but on DVD it wasn't too bad.
Justice League
I skimmed through the rather lame Justice League: Paradise Lost DVD. Some mildly entertaining video adaption of the comic, but it wasn't actually very good. They have really depowered Superman, and the annoying bickering between Green Lantern and Hawkgirl was kind of stupid. Oh well, I didn't actually expect much, but I was hopeful.
NYC drive-in
We walked by a fascinating little place: a 6-person drive-in theater (complete with convertible) called GrandOpening. Really interesting!
Mexican food in NYC
We ate at Mole, on the Lower East Side. Outstanding food! They had some "holiday" food to celebrate September 15, which is when Mexico began its revolution against the Spaniards in 1810. One dish was a Chiles en Nogado that was wonderful to eat. I wish I could remember the names of the other dishes. They made a guacamole at table-side that was excellent!
The Brave One
I've been seeing ads for The Brave One recently. It looks like one of the WORST movies ever made. What really irks me about this movie is that it portrays a New York City out of the 1970's. New York City is one of the safest large cities in the country, if not the world. So why make a movie where it looks like there are frequent violent crimes? Someone really hates New York at Warner Brothers.
Organic food thoughts
I've been contemplating why organic, vegetarian food is a "better" choice. Reading Peter Singer's books really convinced me to eat less meat. The book To Buy Or Not To Buy Organic really bothered me, though: the implication of many books of its ilk is that any pesticides (and similar poisons) are bad, in any amount. However, we've been using pesticides pretty consistently throughout the 20th century, and not everyone gets weird diseases due to pesticides. It does seem like certain kinds of diseases seem more prevalent, but there is certainly no proven link between tiny doses of pesticides and diseases (like cancer) late in life. Now, that doesn't mean there isn't a link, but it makes me really uncomfortable when people argue that there must be a link. I think the real reason to avoid pesticides (when possible) is that they are typically linked to monoculture farming and environmental degradation.
Deadwood Season 3
Wow: the end of Deadwood. I think this some of the best TV I've ever seen; pretty comparable to Battlestar Galactica in quality. Great writing and acting, with some fascinating characters. I'm really disappointed that the series is over, but what can you do? Rumor has it that there will be a movie to wrap things up. Ian McShane is spectacular as Swearengen!
Howl's Moving Castle
I watched Howl's Moving Castle, which is a beautiful movie. I haven't read the book, so I can't evaluate the merits of the movie versus the book. However, I enjoyed the weirdness of Hayao Miyazaki. Quite entertaining, if odd and slightly predictable.
US Open
I figured that since I live in NYC, I should go see the US Open at least once. A friend was psyched to go as well, so we trudged out to Flushing Meadows for some quarterfinal matches at night. Fantastic stuff!
Venus Williams beat Jelena Jankovic in the first match, 4-6, 6-1, 7-6(4). It was a seesaw battle, and I really thought Jankovic would win. Venus was attacking, attacking, attacking, and was really sloppy: if she had been consistent she would have destroyed Jankovic. Venus missed lots of shots: low 1st-serve percentage and lots of unforced errors. She did dominate the 2nd set: she broke Jankovic in almost every one of her service games by being aggressive. Venus took control of the 3rd-set tiebreaker quickly, and the match ended pretty quickly.
The Federer-Roddick was riveting tennis, and really close: closer than the score of 7-6(5), 7-6(4), 6-2 would indicate. Roddick had the first break point chance of the match (erased) in the second set. No double faults in the entire match for either player! You had to feel bad for Roddick after the match: he played his heart out, and hit some amazing shots and serves: but Federer was just better...
Roddick serving to Federer
The ultimate pure food
We ate a vegan/organic/raw restaurant called Bonobo's Restaurant, just south of Madison Square Park. The food (particularly the coconut/bell pepper soup) was fantastic, although certainly it was not cheap. For the quality of the ingredients, though, it was understandable: certainly the preparation didn't involve any cooking!
Opus
Did you know that the plural of "opus" is "opera"? Ah, Latin.
Anyway, Opus is a wonderful play written by a Oberlin-trained violist who became a playwright instead of a musician. I thought it was wonderfully written, in a style that reflects how people talk in real life. A fine cast, and we were lucky enough to see it on closing night: there was a long wait list to get in!
Anyway, Opus is a wonderful play written by a Oberlin-trained violist who became a playwright instead of a musician. I thought it was wonderfully written, in a style that reflects how people talk in real life. A fine cast, and we were lucky enough to see it on closing night: there was a long wait list to get in!
Organic or not organic: that is the question
Whether to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous pesticides, or...well, a sad joke. Cindy Burke's book To Buy or Not To Buy Organic goes into why organic doesn't mean what it used to. Big agribusiness has started to co-opt the meaning of the term, and the overheads to certification are becoming onerous to small farmers. How sad. This book is good for telling you what non-organic foods definitely should be avoided, and which have low levels of toxins. Definitely worth a read, if a little extreme at times.
Dead Man's Chest
Pirates of the Caribbean #2 (Dead Man's Chest) was entertaining, if a horribly written film. Why does the Elizabeth character seem to be attracted to Jack Sparrow? Why do they all miss him when he is dead? Weird story, but if you don't pay attention to details the movie is a fun ride. I'm glad I didn't watch this in the theater, though!
Comfort Diner
We grabbed dinner at the Comfort Diner, which is a pretty good place right near where we live. Pretty good quality food for the price, and I always love diner food anyway.
Flight
A friend lent me Sherman Alexie's new book Flight, which is a good read. Structurally, the book felt weird: it reminded me vaguely of If On a Winter's Night a Traveler by Italo Calvino, although of course the subjects and tone of this book are completely different. This book is about rage, impotence, and revenge, and the pain of being an Indian in modern America. Worth reading, and it's pretty short too.
Cuba Cafe
We had dinner at the Cuba Cafe in Chelsea. The web site is funny: it uses the term "Chelsea boys", which is a term that some of our friends explained to us last weekend.
In any case, the food was good, although a tad pricey for the number of calories. But I would go back; in fact, I think I was in this restaurant in 2005, so it seems to have survived pretty well.
In any case, the food was good, although a tad pricey for the number of calories. But I would go back; in fact, I think I was in this restaurant in 2005, so it seems to have survived pretty well.
Scott McCloud
I got to see a talk by Scott McCloud during his Making Comics Tour. He is an entertaining and intelligent writer of and about comics, and his presentation was extremely fun to watch. I was lucky to see him!
Resto
It's a good week for Belgian food, I guess. We went to another Belgian restaurant in NY called Resto. This time we had mussels, which were really quite tender. The food came really slowly, though; we had to complain to get our entrees. Pretty expensive place, but the real problem was that the place was too loud. Crowded, lots of people there for drinks, and a tin ceiling that reflected sound back down into the room. I doubt we'll go back, given our inability to have a conversation.
Chelsea Art Museum
We wandered around Chelsea this afternoon in the hope of seeing some galleries. Unfortunately, it turns out that the galleries are not open on the weekends...
We were able to go into the Chelsea Art Museum, which was wonderful. Only $6, and they had some pretty interesting stuff. One artist, Federico Uribe, makes animals/jungle scenes out of Puma sneaker parts. Check out the museum's web site: it's pretty astonishing.
The other interesting exhibit was of Miwa Yanagi's photography. She has a pretty interesting way of viewing the world; some of it quite disturbing.
We were able to go into the Chelsea Art Museum, which was wonderful. Only $6, and they had some pretty interesting stuff. One artist, Federico Uribe, makes animals/jungle scenes out of Puma sneaker parts. Check out the museum's web site: it's pretty astonishing.
The other interesting exhibit was of Miwa Yanagi's photography. She has a pretty interesting way of viewing the world; some of it quite disturbing.
Zodiac
We watched Zodiac on DVD, spread over a couple of days. It's a brilliantly crafted movie by David Fincher, with lots of interesting/recognizable actors and a good script. Despite all that, it just wasn't that compelling. There were a few spooky scenes, since it is never clear which weirdo is the Zodiac killer. But all in all, it's a hard movie to really get into, because there is no resolution, and the main character (the author Robert Graysmith), isn't that interesting or likable: it is never clear why he gets so obsessed with the Zodiac killings.
Bella Napoli
We had dinner at a good neighborhood Italian restaurant called Bella Napoli. Excellent food, especially given the price: we had dinner for around 30 dollars. I'm sure we'll be going back there.
Bourne Ultimatum
I saw The Bourne Ultimatum on a weekday. I had tried to see it opening weekend, but it was sold out everywhere. Even on a Wednesday night, the theater was 90% full! The movie was a fun ride, and is wonderful entertainment. It certainly is going to continue raking in the money.
300
I quickly watched 300 on DVD. The comic (as I remember it) was kind of entertaining to read, but the feature film was just kind of boring. It was a much worse movie than Sin City, which at least didn't have any pretense of being anything other than fun. As a movie, the story took itself way too seriously.
New York Burger Company
We ate dinner at New York Burger Company. Good food, and pretty reasonably priced. We got a salad and a burger, and the salad was quite fresh. I'd go back.
Shenzhen
I read the graphic novel Shenzhen: A Travelogue from China. Overall, an interesting (but somewhat depressing and non-enlightening) description of a Westerner's view of Shenzhen in the late 1990's. I'm not surprised that the author didn't enjoy being there, although apparently he did not try to learn much Chinese. Not rated highly, but was somewhat interesting.
Clark Brothers exhibit at the Met
We trekked over to the Met to see a special exhibit titled The Clark Brothers Collection. Overall, a fantastic collection of work; these brothers were fascinating people! Sterling Clark (the founder of the Clark Art Museum in Williamstown, MA) amassed a huge collection of Renoirs, and some of the ones we missed in Williamstown we saw at the Met. A really worthwhile exhibit!
Cafe Espanol
We ate in the Village at a Spanish restaurant named (appropriately enough) Cafe Espanol. Good tapas, and everyone seemed to be drinking sangria. We did not have any of the latter, though. The paella was quite good, as was the gazpacho. In addition, the prices were pretty good! We'll go back, I'm sure.
Rubin Museum
We went to the Rubin Museum of Art, which covers the broad category of Himalayan art. There was a special exhibit about the Dalai Lama, as well as Wutaishan (a holy Buddhist mountain/temple complex in China). There was quite a crowd of young people there; it seems to be pretty hip! The museum is small, but worth seeing; I would go back for other special exhibits, as the permanent collection does not seem very large.
Free printable cardboard lens hoods
Now here's an interesting idea: printable cardboard lens hoods! I need to try making one of these hoods.
Korean food
We tried a Korean place near Union Square called Dosirak. Pretty good food, although the portions were somewhat small. Prices were reasonable by NYC standards, but the portions were smaller than in Koreatown. The service was mediocre at best: the food came quickly, but I had to go to the counter to order and to pay. I'd recommend the food if you can put up with the other shortcomings.
Harry Potter ends
JK Rowling's Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows was fun to read. I thought she did as well as I could have hoped in tying up loose ends, resolving story lines, and coming up with an intricate plot that just kept on going. It almost felt like the latest Die Hard movie: non-stop action (one Horcrux after another). I didn't know how Rowling would have them find and destroy all of the remaining Horcruxes, but somehow she managed to squeeze it all into one volume!
Economics for dummies
Naked Economics by Charles Wheelan is an entertaining explanation of economics for the lay person. I recommend it as a good starting place to read about the basic principles of economics.
brgr
We ate burgers at a place called "brgr" (no web site available). Pretty good burgers, but on the expensive side: $20 for the two of us. Great taste, and the burgers were not too large (which I consider a plus, not a minus). However, not cheap, and I almost certainly would never go at lunchtime: I bet it would be way too crowded.
Harry Potter
I've been skimming through the 5th and 6th books of the series (Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince), in preparation for reading the new book that is due out. I have my own pet theory as to how Voldemort will be killed: after having destroyed the Horcruxes, Voldemort will be destroyed and be forced to flee (or attempt to flee) into Harry's body. (I would guess that the scar will represent the last remnant of Voldemort's power.) However, Voldemort will not be able to abide the force of Harry's ability to love, and will have to let himself die. That's the only plausible theory for why Dumbledore thought Harry can defeat Voldemort with the power of his ability to love.
I also think that Snape will be the one to actually destroy Voldemort's new body: he is the only wizard powerful enough to do so. Harry doesn't have any real experience or power, and the only reason that he has defeated Voldemort several times is that he has always been underestimated by the bad guys.
Well, we'll see!
I also think that Snape will be the one to actually destroy Voldemort's new body: he is the only wizard powerful enough to do so. Harry doesn't have any real experience or power, and the only reason that he has defeated Voldemort several times is that he has always been underestimated by the bad guys.
Well, we'll see!
Antique Cafe
I ate last night at the Antique Cafe with one of my cousins. We both had burgers, which were really good. Unfortunately, it was kind of late, and they didn't have any coffee. For the price, the food was quite good, and the outdoor seating was quite pleasant. The indoor seating is a little noisy because of the music they pipe in.
In and Out
We watched the somewhat-old movie In and Out, which stars Kevin Kline. Lots of Hollywood stars participated in the film. I had hoped it would be a lot funnier, but unfortunately it was a really lame movie with a few good scenes and moments.
Empire Falls
We watched the HBO series Empire Falls. What an outstanding cast! Ed Harris, Philip Seymour Hoffmann, Joanne Woodward, Paul Newman, ... I loved the book, and I can understand why people didn't like the movie that much: it certainly was not as good as the book. But still, it was fun watching some great actors work together.
City Bakery
Yum; we had lunch at a restaurant called The City Bakery. Excellent food, although their web site is annoying. Apparently they are quite green, too, which is a bonus. Their prices are certainly not cheap, but the food quality is quite high! Definitely worth visiting.
Value vs. growth
An interesting article aboutmutual fund risk! The theory is that value companies are exposed to more risk of bankruptcy (no surprise there), which is more "dangerous" (presumably insufficiently compensated-for) than growth companies. So investors should not just invest in value companies (which is not too much of a surprise).
Tre Dici
We had a dinner at a small Italian restaurant called Tre Dici. Really good food, although both of us felt that the food was slightly salty. Then again, we've been eating less and less salt, so maybe the saltiness is normal for restaurant fare (it's certainly consistent with our experience that restaurants tend to oversalt their food). The service was OK, with some attitude. Overall, pretty good, but it's not a destination restaurant.
Mmm....gelato
We wandered by L'Arte del Gelato in the West Village. Quite good, albeit a little pricey. For the quality, it was worth it, but I certainly wouldn't make eating here a habit!
More Yolato
We walked by a Yolato store near where we live. Pretty good dessert, and relatively nonfat.
Live Free Or Die Hard
Yippi-kay-yay! John McClane is back in Live Free Or Die Hard. It is definitely worth watching, and on a big screen. For summer entertainment, it is wonderful stuff, especially if you're a fan of the original Die Hard. Go out and see this movie; now!
It was fun to see Timothy Olyphant as the bad guy (he plays the sheriff in Deadwood) and Justin Long as the hacker kid (he is "Mac" on the Apple TV ads).
It was fun to see Timothy Olyphant as the bad guy (he plays the sheriff in Deadwood) and Justin Long as the hacker kid (he is "Mac" on the Apple TV ads).
Nobu
We splurged and went to Nobu for dinner. Outstanding food, and although it was quite pricey, it felt worth it. The only minor issues I had were:
Overall, worth a meal, though! Don't make a habit of it, or it will break your finances...
- the restaurant was too noisy: all the surfaces seemed to reflect sound
- the service was OK, but not great for the price
Overall, worth a meal, though! Don't make a habit of it, or it will break your finances...
Idi Amin
We watched The Last King of Scotland. Forest Whitaker was outrageously good as Idi Amin: and the script really let him show off his ability to portrary the many sides of a charismatic megalomaniac. We were really confused (in a good way) by the movie, in that we thought that it sounded like a true story: it did a really good job of weaving real history into the plot.
Gillian Anderson looked nothing like her character in the X-Files! This movie is definitely worth watching, although there are some really hard-to-watch scenes.
Gillian Anderson looked nothing like her character in the X-Files! This movie is definitely worth watching, although there are some really hard-to-watch scenes.
Banana Leaf
We ate a South Indian restaurant called Banana Leaf. Not a lot of food for the money, but it was tasty. We had aloo chaat, which was very good; tandoori chicken, which was excellent, fish mouli, which was acceptable, and peshwari naan, which was very good. Overall, worth eating at!
Markets
Economic markets, that is. John McMillan's book Reinventing the Bazaar covers a lot of the modern economic theory (albeit in a practical manner) about markets. I like his statement that "liberals" oppose the free market and some of the best ideas about how to help poor people, and "conservatives" love the free market so much that they love ideas that would destroy proper market functioning. McMillan keeps coming back to the idea that markets depend on proper government regulation in order to function best: his best example of this is the comparison between Russian shock therapy in the 1990's and China's unprecedented growth during the same time period.
I enjoyed his description of the Tsukiji fish auction in Japan, where $25M of fresh fish is auctioned every morning. My friend Mike Epstein has said that it is quite a sight!
I enjoyed his description of the Tsukiji fish auction in Japan, where $25M of fresh fish is auctioned every morning. My friend Mike Epstein has said that it is quite a sight!
Galaxy Diner
After theater we went to the Galaxy Diner for some dessert. Pretty good, although it's hard to screw up smoothies!
Grey Gardens
We saw Grey Gardens, the Tony-award winner about the relatives of Jackie O who lived in squalor in a huge mansion in the Hamptons. Although it had some outrageously funny lines, it made me tremendously uncomfortable: the two main characters were neurotic beyond belief (were it not for the fact that they were based on real people). The music was beautiful but not memorable, and the performances were fantastic. We definitely have to watch the documentary Grey Gardens, on which this musical is based!
Opera in the subway
We were riding the W train, and a young woman with a powerful voice came into our car and started singing an aria (too bad my opera knowledge is that strong). It was an impressive display of talent! It reminded me of an article about Joshua Bell in the Washington Post.
The Places in Between
I just read Rory Stewart's first book, The Places in Between. What a nut, although an admirable one. He actually walked across Afghanistan from west to east---during the winter, and soon after the fall of the Taliban. Mr. Stewart clearly has no real sense of fear, which was also evident in his second book, The Prince of the Marshes. The writing is not spectacular, but it does make for a compelling read.
Afghan food
While on a trip to Boston, I ate dinner at Helmand, a pretty good Afghan restaurant. The aushak was great, as was the mantwo. Definitely worth a visit, if you like Afghan food!
MIT food
While in Boston I had lunch at Mary Chung (warning: not much of a web site) with dessert at Toscanini's. I realized that I can't be objective about some of the restaurants I used to eat at all of the time: all that I can say
about Mary Chung's is that eating there brought back fond memories, even though they are in a different location than when I was an undergraduate at MIT.
about Mary Chung's is that eating there brought back fond memories, even though they are in a different location than when I was an undergraduate at MIT.
The Paradox of Choice
I read through The Paradox of Choice by Barry Schwarz. It talks about how we humans do poorly with too many choices, as we appear to be driven by regret or the anticipation of regret. For example, too many choices can lead to paralysis, possibly due to the fact that the sum of the opportunity costs goes up with the number of choices. Overall, this book covers a lot of the same material that is covered in Stumbling on Happiness by Daniel Gilbert. The latter was more entertaining; the former more analytical. Of course, as both authors discuss, memories are hardly reliable, so I could be wrong in this comparison!
Central Park in the summer
Central Park is such a joyous place in the summer. Lots of people having fun, enjoying the sun; what else could one ask for?
More of The Bloodless Revolution
I took out The Bloodless Revolution by Tristam Stuart again from the library, and got over halfway through it before I had to return it again. It is a fascinating book; I never realized how much religious belief (in particular, about what Adam and Eve ate in the Garden of Eden) played such a large role in the history of vegetarianism. In addition, the encounter with Hinduism fed into the vegetarian arguments that occurred in the 17th century. All in all, a fantastic read about a period of history that I know very little about: it even sheds light on Isaac Newton and Jean-Jacques Rousseau.
The Astronaut Farmer
On a flight from CA to NY I watched Billy Bob Thornton in a movie called The Astronaut Farmer. I was torn: the movie was both enjoyable and utterly sentimental (in a bad way). In addition, it was totally implausible, and was a little too overtly political. Nonetheless, not a bad movie to watch on a plane. It had a pretty big-name cast---including Virginia Madsen, Bruce Willis, JK Simmons (JJ Jameson in the Spiderman movies)---as well as some lesser lights who were entertaining---Tim Blake Nelson, Bruce Dern, and Jon Gries.
The script would have been better if the story had been set in some a 1950's setting: in a modern-day setting, it was just too implausible.
The script would have been better if the story had been set in some a 1950's setting: in a modern-day setting, it was just too implausible.
Al Jazeera
There was an interesting interview on Fresh Air with Josh Rushing. Mr. Rushing was the Marine representative interviewed in the movie Control Room, which was about Al Jazeera's coverage of Iraq. After he left the Marines, he became a correspondent for Al Jazeera. Pretty cool!
Blood Diamond
Blood Diamond was an entertaining film: and boy, Leonardo DiCaprio was really good. He deserved the Oscar nomination that he got last year, although I actually liked the character he played in The Departed better.
Casino Royale
We watched the new Bond film that came out last year, Casino Royale. It was well-written and well-acted, mostly; the writing became pretty slow and meandering near the end, and as a result was somewhat predictable. After all, why have a long peaceful interlude in a Bond film? Very enjoyable to watch, though: Daniel Craig was excellent.
Vacation in Vermont
We're taking a hopefully well-deserved vacation in Western Massachusetts and Vermont for a few days. I'm using the Google "My Maps" feature to jot down notes about the trip as we go; of course, every hotel/B&B these days provides free WiFi, so this makes it easy! Follow our route here. We saw one outstanding museum on the first day: the Clark Art Institute in Williamstown, MA.
Stranger Than Fiction
Stranger Than Fiction was an amusing movie, although not as funny as I thought it might be. But Will Farrell did a good job, and it was hilarious to see Dustin Hoffmann tell him that he had to die for the sake of Emma Thompson's book. Maggie Gyllenhaal was delightful!
Climate change
It's amusing how people are still denying the serious climate changes that are occurring across the world. The NY Times has an interesting article on how climate change is destroying a town in Alaska.
Lost
ABC's Lost had a 2-hour season finale that was outstanding. Lots of plot lines revealed, a big flip in story-telling, changes for everyone on the island, what more could one ask for? This season, Lost was the opposite of Heroes: Lost had a relatively slow, boring season with a fantastic finish, whereas Heroes had an interesting season (mostly because of the variety of characters they had to introduce) with a disappointing finish.
Bond investing
The Only Guide to a Winning Bond Strategy You'll Ever Need: The Way Smart Money Preserves Wealth Today by Larry Swedroe has a decent overview of the bond markets for lay investors. I skimmed through it quickly: it doesn't actually provide a real "strategy": just the information necessary to formulate a strategy. So the book could be considered a necessary but not sufficient condition towards developing a reasonable strategy for investing in bonds.
Whitney at Altria
We went to see the Whitney Museum at Altria, which is a small (almost tiny) installation space near Grand Central Station. There was an exhibit of Matthew Brannon's art.
The Bloodless Revolution
I got through a few chapters of The Bloodless Revolution, which is a fascinating history of vegetarianism in Western European culture. Unfortunately, the book is quite dry and long, and I wasn't able to finish it before I had to return it to the library. I'll have to take it out again and continue reading...
Monet @ Wildenstein
We saw an exhibition of Monet paintings at the Wildenstein Gallery at 64th Street. It was an astonishing collection of works that are mostly held privately. One startling work was a painting titled A Palm Tree in Bordighera. Overall, a must-see art event!
Momofuku
We went to Momofuku Ssam Bar, a very interesting Korean restaurant. Their signature dish is a ssam, which is a Korean burrito. Yummy food!
Age-Defying Fitness
I've been reading parts of Age-Defying Fitness, by Marilyn Moffat and Carole B. Lewis. It is an excellent book about staying physically fit and healthy while getting older. The book describes many low-impact exercises to improve balance, strength, flexibility, posture, and endurance.
Shake Shack
We had lunch at the Shake Shack, a venerable institution in Madison Square Park. I order a "Shroom Burger", which I assumed was a burger with mushrooms, but turned out to a vegetarian entree: grilled mushroom. Still, quite good!
Kung Fu Hustle
I wasn't in a great mood last night, so I watched Kung Fu Hustle. I had seen it a while back, but it's still quite funny; it put me in a better mood. The first time I saw it was in Cantonese with English subtitles; this time I watched it with English dubbing and subtitles. Interestingly, the subtitles differed from the dubbing, and the dubbing was funnier: if the dubbing was a literal translation, the original had some very clever lines.
John McPhee: The Headmaster
I quickly read through John McPhee's book The Headmaster. Fascinating portrait of an old-zchool headmaster, Frank Boyden. I bet very few people like him exist anymore.
Most of the interesting parts of the book appeared in the John McPhee Reader, which is one reason this book was so quick to read. Although McPhee's writing is wonderfully elegant, I find his subjects (fascinating and quirky people) more compelling than the writing itself. Although maybe that is because his writing lets the quirkiness shine through...
Most of the interesting parts of the book appeared in the John McPhee Reader, which is one reason this book was so quick to read. Although McPhee's writing is wonderfully elegant, I find his subjects (fascinating and quirky people) more compelling than the writing itself. Although maybe that is because his writing lets the quirkiness shine through...
Thank God You're Here
I caught a few minutes of the show Thank God You're Here, which was pretty funny. Of course, the concept was premiered in Australia, and NBC has just "borrowed" the idea for the show. How non-creative.
Justice denied?
The NY Times has an editorial that raises some disturbing follow-up questions to the problems going on at the DOJ. Apparently some of the non-fired US attorneys may have been pushing cases just for the sake of damaging Democratic candidates; very scary.
Bolivian Baroque
CBS Sunday Morning had an interesting piece about Bolivian Baroque. (The article is a bit older, but is the only link I could find.) Apparently the Indian cultures in Bolivia produced a large number of Baroque compositions (all anonymous) that were discovered several years ago by a priest. Fascinating!
Variability
I read an interesting article on variability The Most Dangerous Equation that was published in American Scientist. It discusses the fact that variability in measurement decreases with the square root of the sample size (which is pretty slow), and then gives examples of real-world implications of this fact. For example, Prof. Wainer discusses how small schools maybe come out "better" in most studies because their variability is higher: not only are they among the best schools, they are also among the worst.
Crazy money advice
Robert Kiyosaki has an interesting post here about money. Unfortunately, most of his "advice" doesn't make sense. And his math doesn't either: he estimates that $25000 in 40 years will be equivalent to $250 today. What kind of inflation rate gives a 100-fold decrease in purchasing power in 40 years? Even a 10-percent rate of inflation would only give a 45-fold decrease in purchasing power.
Protect yourself and reduce junk mail
Optoutprescreen.com is a web site set up by the 3 credit bureaus that lets you permanently opt out of pre-approved credit offers. Highly recommended!
For reference, here is a useful fact sheet about how to get rid of paper junk mail.
For reference, here is a useful fact sheet about how to get rid of paper junk mail.
And the blind shall see...
There's an interesting article about Matthew Dowd's public admission that George W. Bush's administrator is inept. It sure is hard for us humans to admit our mistakes, isn't it?
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