So, back by popular demand!
I actually don't have much to say here, but thought I should take a moment out of my busy day to let everybody know that Joe (my mentor in Houston) just called for my permission to put me down as an author on a paper he's submitting. Take that, everyone who's not me!
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Monday, October 5, 2009
Blocking access
Hey, friends.
As most of you know, I'm applying for grad schools in the next few weeks. Also as my long time readers/people who've talked to me for more than 5 minutes know, I am an opinionated man. Someone mentioned to me that it was often a good idea to scrub the internet of any information you don't want admission boards to see. I can't do that completely, but I am going to restrict access to this blog for a while.
What that means is that if you are currently reading this, I am totally OK with you continuing to do so. I just need to know who you are. So, send me an email or just leave your address as a comment on this thread. I'll add you to an approved list.
Access will be blocked to anybody not on that list at the end of this month. Thanks, guys!
As most of you know, I'm applying for grad schools in the next few weeks. Also as my long time readers/people who've talked to me for more than 5 minutes know, I am an opinionated man. Someone mentioned to me that it was often a good idea to scrub the internet of any information you don't want admission boards to see. I can't do that completely, but I am going to restrict access to this blog for a while.
What that means is that if you are currently reading this, I am totally OK with you continuing to do so. I just need to know who you are. So, send me an email or just leave your address as a comment on this thread. I'll add you to an approved list.
Access will be blocked to anybody not on that list at the end of this month. Thanks, guys!
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Movie review: Transformers 2
Ever since the first Transformers movie came out a few years back, I have said the same thing about a sequel: it will only be good if the opening sequence includes a robot stepping on Shia LeBouf's character, giving him the ignominious death he deserves. Transformers 2 failed to deliver.
They did manage to take some of my advice from the first movie. First, there is way more robot on robot fighting. I really felt like the first one, for a movie about giant robots who fight, displayed a serious lack robot fighting. They mostly fixed that.
Second, in the first one it bugged me that the top secret squad of super soldiers carried only small arms. If you're using pistols to fight giant flying robots it just doesn't matter how many Jason Statham jumps you do. You're still going to lose. In this movie, they pull out the gunships, tanks, miniguns, railguns and other things that delighted the little boy in me. Could have used more, but I was glad they tried.
Megan Fox is still attractive, though I found her less attractive in this one than in the first one. But the movie makers definitely went out of their way to remind the sweaty nerds in the audience that they were doing them a huge favor by including lots of boob shots. After about 20 minutes it got a bit silly in that respect.
Speaking of boobs, the immature humor was a bit much. And coming from a guy who just started a paragraph with "speaking of boobs" that means a lot. There were dogs humping each other, robots humping legs, and enough crotch jokes to make even the most seasoned Boy Scout think it was time to grow up. Nobody needs to see that a Constructicon (robot made from construction vehicles) has testicles made from wrecking balls.
The plot was pretty bad. There were so many different MacGuffins that it was often hard to keep track which one the characters were interested in at the moment. The bad guys have an elaborate plot with a trap and all...to get the good guy to go literally 20 yards out of his way for an ambush. Characters just sort of disappear and reappear when it is convenient. And, of course, the entire good guy team has a combined I.Q. of 34.
All in all, it was nice to see the extra explosions and fighting, but I'm not sure if it was worth enduring the confusing main plot and the extremely painful love story on the side.
They did manage to take some of my advice from the first movie. First, there is way more robot on robot fighting. I really felt like the first one, for a movie about giant robots who fight, displayed a serious lack robot fighting. They mostly fixed that.
Second, in the first one it bugged me that the top secret squad of super soldiers carried only small arms. If you're using pistols to fight giant flying robots it just doesn't matter how many Jason Statham jumps you do. You're still going to lose. In this movie, they pull out the gunships, tanks, miniguns, railguns and other things that delighted the little boy in me. Could have used more, but I was glad they tried.
Megan Fox is still attractive, though I found her less attractive in this one than in the first one. But the movie makers definitely went out of their way to remind the sweaty nerds in the audience that they were doing them a huge favor by including lots of boob shots. After about 20 minutes it got a bit silly in that respect.
Speaking of boobs, the immature humor was a bit much. And coming from a guy who just started a paragraph with "speaking of boobs" that means a lot. There were dogs humping each other, robots humping legs, and enough crotch jokes to make even the most seasoned Boy Scout think it was time to grow up. Nobody needs to see that a Constructicon (robot made from construction vehicles) has testicles made from wrecking balls.
The plot was pretty bad. There were so many different MacGuffins that it was often hard to keep track which one the characters were interested in at the moment. The bad guys have an elaborate plot with a trap and all...to get the good guy to go literally 20 yards out of his way for an ambush. Characters just sort of disappear and reappear when it is convenient. And, of course, the entire good guy team has a combined I.Q. of 34.
All in all, it was nice to see the extra explosions and fighting, but I'm not sure if it was worth enduring the confusing main plot and the extremely painful love story on the side.
Sunday, August 23, 2009
Lacy, gently wafting curtains
Thursday, August 20, 2009
As if we needed more proof...
Math students are even more nerdy than scientists. Check out the link.
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Food is good
A few days ago I got home to Provo after a summer with Sam and Mollie. When I got home, I realized that I needed to step it up on the food I'm eating. Mollie made such good food that now bachelor food seems like such a step down. So I went shopping and spent a lot of money on good food (instead of the usual junk I buy) and have tried to make one good meal every day.
These recipes are all adapted from a cookbook that Mom bought me for Christmas. It's good. I say adapted because I feel about cooking a lot like Calvin feels about puzzles: I don't want my dishes to turn out like something somebody else made. Where's the fun in that?
Monday: marinated chicken sandwich
Mix some olive oil and balsamic vinegar with spices for the basic marinade (Did you know that marinate is a verb and marinade is a noun? I just learned that). It's basically like making a quick vinaigrette. Add to the marinade some freshly chopped rosemary (somewhere in the neighborhood of 1T). Pound 1 chicken breast to about 1/2 inch thick (it's thinner than you think) and let it marinate for an hour.
Turn on the broiler, remove the chicken from the marinade, and broil it on both sides. While that's going, chop 1/2 tomato into chunks (mostly because I like tomato better that way- slices would work too). Slice up 1/2 an avocado. Dice a little bit of red onion. Slice a hoagie bun and toast it in the oven. It doesn't take long because the oven is really hot for the chicken.
Stack: Bread, avocado, tomato, SALT (I forgot this on one sandwich and it was way less delicious), onions, 1/2 of the chicken, then bread. This is enough stuff for two sandwiches. Eat. Yum.
Tuesday: Different marinated chicken sandwich
It was so good the first time I just couldn't resist. Actually, the truth is I marinated the chicken for something else and realized that I didn't have any rice so I thought fast and made a sandwich with it. Good nonetheless, despite sounding a little weird.
Mix a bit of Bulldog sauce (sweet teriyaki) with soy sauce. Add a teaspoon or so of sugar. There's your marinade. Do everything else as on Monday. Yes, even the avocado. Avocado goes with everything.
Wednesday: Beef and tomato stir fry-ish thing
This was super easy and really good. Buy the cheapest, thinnest steak you can find at the store. Slice 1/2 a pound into thinnish strips. Chop up a tomato and a half or so into wedges. Dice about
1/4 C red onion. Throw all that into a hot skillet till the beef is done. (The next time I make this I will also use some hot peppers). Salt, pepper, and garlic (as if I have to say this).
Cook 1 packet of ramen noodles without the salty flavor packet. Drain them and set aside.
Mix 1T black bean sauce (from the Asian isle of your grocery store) with about 1T water. Add to beef mixture. Add noodles. Stir together till everything is warm through and everything is covered in sauce.
This recipe was really easy and pretty darn good (considering how easy it was).
More updates as the week of delicious meals continues.
These recipes are all adapted from a cookbook that Mom bought me for Christmas. It's good. I say adapted because I feel about cooking a lot like Calvin feels about puzzles: I don't want my dishes to turn out like something somebody else made. Where's the fun in that?
Monday: marinated chicken sandwich
Mix some olive oil and balsamic vinegar with spices for the basic marinade (Did you know that marinate is a verb and marinade is a noun? I just learned that). It's basically like making a quick vinaigrette. Add to the marinade some freshly chopped rosemary (somewhere in the neighborhood of 1T). Pound 1 chicken breast to about 1/2 inch thick (it's thinner than you think) and let it marinate for an hour.
Turn on the broiler, remove the chicken from the marinade, and broil it on both sides. While that's going, chop 1/2 tomato into chunks (mostly because I like tomato better that way- slices would work too). Slice up 1/2 an avocado. Dice a little bit of red onion. Slice a hoagie bun and toast it in the oven. It doesn't take long because the oven is really hot for the chicken.
Stack: Bread, avocado, tomato, SALT (I forgot this on one sandwich and it was way less delicious), onions, 1/2 of the chicken, then bread. This is enough stuff for two sandwiches. Eat. Yum.
Tuesday: Different marinated chicken sandwich
It was so good the first time I just couldn't resist. Actually, the truth is I marinated the chicken for something else and realized that I didn't have any rice so I thought fast and made a sandwich with it. Good nonetheless, despite sounding a little weird.
Mix a bit of Bulldog sauce (sweet teriyaki) with soy sauce. Add a teaspoon or so of sugar. There's your marinade. Do everything else as on Monday. Yes, even the avocado. Avocado goes with everything.
Wednesday: Beef and tomato stir fry-ish thing
This was super easy and really good. Buy the cheapest, thinnest steak you can find at the store. Slice 1/2 a pound into thinnish strips. Chop up a tomato and a half or so into wedges. Dice about
1/4 C red onion. Throw all that into a hot skillet till the beef is done. (The next time I make this I will also use some hot peppers). Salt, pepper, and garlic (as if I have to say this).
Cook 1 packet of ramen noodles without the salty flavor packet. Drain them and set aside.
Mix 1T black bean sauce (from the Asian isle of your grocery store) with about 1T water. Add to beef mixture. Add noodles. Stir together till everything is warm through and everything is covered in sauce.
This recipe was really easy and pretty darn good (considering how easy it was).
More updates as the week of delicious meals continues.
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Tired of racism
Well, folks, I've been reading the news and I came to a conclusion. I'm tired of racism. Some of you may not know this, but I belong to a group that is judged because of a stereotype based on the actions of a few.
That's right. I'm a white male.
I've read about two things that really bother me, and they both have to do with the same thing. Perceived racism where none is intended. I have voiced my opinions on this before, but I just thought I would weigh in on these specific issues.
First is the Gates case. I used to live in a crappy apartment that was pretty easy to break into. A few times in my years there I locked myself out and had to break back in. Every time I did so, I thought about how it must have looked to an onlooker who did not know me. Because I knew all my neighbors and they all knew me, no one ever mistook me for a thief and the police were never called. But I was always ready to be cooperative with police should they show up.
Say what you want about the arresting officer. Gates himself could have stopped it all if he had replaced all his indignant shouting and accusations with these simple lines:
The other bit of racism in the news is all this noise about the ObamaJoker posters. I read a disgusting article this morning that said (in many more words) that when somebody photoshopped Joker makeup onto GWB it was a simple message about how GWB is an unpredictable psychopath, but when somebody photoshopped Joker makeup onto BHO it was a nuanced subliminal message revealing that the photoshopper is a filthy racist who can't accept that a black man runs the country.
This accusation disgusts me. Opposing a belief set that happens to come from a black man does not make me racist. I like these Joker posters, not because of any racial undertones, but because Uncle Barry is turning out (in my opinion) to be a bit like the maniac who Alfred aptly describes as just wanting "to watch the world burn."
And anybody who disagrees with me is a racist. Or a commie. Or a jerk.
That's right. I'm a white male.
I've read about two things that really bother me, and they both have to do with the same thing. Perceived racism where none is intended. I have voiced my opinions on this before, but I just thought I would weigh in on these specific issues.
First is the Gates case. I used to live in a crappy apartment that was pretty easy to break into. A few times in my years there I locked myself out and had to break back in. Every time I did so, I thought about how it must have looked to an onlooker who did not know me. Because I knew all my neighbors and they all knew me, no one ever mistook me for a thief and the police were never called. But I was always ready to be cooperative with police should they show up.
Say what you want about the arresting officer. Gates himself could have stopped it all if he had replaced all his indignant shouting and accusations with these simple lines:
I appreciate your concern for the safety of my neighborhood, officers. I can see how this might have looked like a break-in. Here is my ID, showing that this house is, in fact, my residence. Is there anything else I can do for you, or will you be leaving now?That clearly communicates that he is in the right and that he wants the officers to leave without making unfounded accusations.
The other bit of racism in the news is all this noise about the ObamaJoker posters. I read a disgusting article this morning that said (in many more words) that when somebody photoshopped Joker makeup onto GWB it was a simple message about how GWB is an unpredictable psychopath, but when somebody photoshopped Joker makeup onto BHO it was a nuanced subliminal message revealing that the photoshopper is a filthy racist who can't accept that a black man runs the country.
This accusation disgusts me. Opposing a belief set that happens to come from a black man does not make me racist. I like these Joker posters, not because of any racial undertones, but because Uncle Barry is turning out (in my opinion) to be a bit like the maniac who Alfred aptly describes as just wanting "to watch the world burn."
And anybody who disagrees with me is a racist. Or a commie. Or a jerk.
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