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Snakes on a Plane

noreply@blogger.com (spuddybuddy) — Fri, 18 Aug 2006 07:05:00 +0000

( ... still alive and blogging ... )

So, with a title like Snakes On A Plane, who would have expected there would be motherfucking snakes on the motherfucking plane? I joined the in crowd and saw the premiere of SoaP tonight at the Metreon in downtown San Francisco. The best part was the crowd counting down to the moment when the snakes first appeared, then throwing handfuls of plastic snakes up in the air. Best premiere since Star Trek: First Contact! (Yes, I'm a huge dork, but you knew that already.)

You should go see it because Samuel L. Jackson is a complete badass. If I found myself 30,000 feet in the sky surrounded by venomous snakes, he's the guy I would want handling the situation.

New Zealand: Travel Notes

noreply@blogger.com (spuddybuddy) — Sat, 08 Apr 2006 08:09:00 +0000

This post covers logistics from my recent trip to New Zealand, for posterity and in case any readers might be planning a trip. We mostly used the Lonely Planet guide to do our research, as well as lots of Web surfing. The Rough Guide was recommended as an alternative to LP by those we met.

Our vacation schedule worked out so we both had time off in the winter. We both love snowboarding and skiing (she's the skier) so a long ski trip would have been fun. But J has never been overseas, and she wanted to go somewhere warm, so we decided to go off to the antipodes.

First things first. Got J a passport and bought our nonstop tickets from San Francisco to Auckland on New Zealand Air. I highly recommend NZA. The cabins are spacious, the service first rate, and there was no shortage of food, snacks, or wine. They have a modern in-flight entertainment system with lots of good recent movies (some indie ones too). Thirteen hours is a long, long flight but NZA makes it about as comfortable as it can be.

Visitors from the United States can enter NZ with a tourist visa waiver; proof of return travel is required.

At the airport we bought prepaid SIM cards from Vodafone for my two unlocked GSM mobile phones. We didn't use them a lot, and have a lot of minutes left, but when we did they came in quite handy. (Anybody need sim cards for NZ? Email me.)

We decided not to get a car. I don't like driving to begin with, and I was even less willing to man the wheel since it meant driving on the left. Plus, we decided that a car is a hassle to park and refuel, and the driver has to worry about driving and can't enjoy the scenery. Instead we booked a Tranz Scenic rail pass, which includes ferry crossings to the South Island. The train was an enjoyable, relaxing way to travel, and we got to see a lot of the countryside. However, it tends to run very late - we were stuck at one station for over 2 hours! (Also, the food on board leaves a lot to be desired.) When we didn't take the train, we got around by a combination of tour buses, shuttles, taxis, and our own four feet.

Now, for our next trip to the South Island, we will probably get a car. It's just nice to have the flexibility to roam freely and not be tied to a train/shuttle/bus schedule. It also means a lot less hauling of luggage, which we were both tired of by the end. Just in case we got International Driver's Permits from AAA. (More on the luggage situation later.)

New Zealand welcomes tourists. Not only are the residents very friendly and helpful, but every city and town has a well staffed "iSite" tourist center. The center usually also serves as the bus station, and most have cafés and luggage lockers. The center staff will book accommodations and arrange shuttle transportation - crucial when you get dropped off the bus and realize you are miles from your lodging.

New Zealand food, particularly outside the major cities, derives its heritage from English food. Lots of sandwiches, tea, fish and chips, steaks, and beer. The food in the cities is much more diverse and interesting, with lots of good fresh seafood as well as Indian, Italian, and modern fusion offerings. All of the wine I had was excellent. I predominantly drank Chardonnay and Sauvingnon Blanc as my diet is heavy in seafood. New Zealand whites have rich, robust flavor that doesn't overwhelm the palate but instead rewards a second glass. New Zealand, being a former member of the Empire, serves tea everywhere, but espresso is the trendy drink.

The New Zealand doesn't stay up late, particularly in rural areas. We found this out the hard way when we arrived at one hotel late and couldn't get anything to eat past eight! We ended up ordering room service. If you like to keep a late schedule, keep this in mind.

Internet access generally wasn't a problem, except for the most remote areas. I used credit cards for most purchases, and for cash I converted travellers' checques at banks (there is a nominal fee). New Zealand isn't really that cheap. I would say prices were generally less than expensive parts of the United States, but only by about 30%. New Zealand economy (fueled by tourism) is growing rapidly and it's affected both exchange rates and prices.

The last item: luggage. I brought a small (35L) and large (50L) backpack. If I really needed to, I could wear both at the same time (one on the front), but it wasn't the most comfortable arrangement. J brought a backpack and a 25-inch rolling trolley from Hideo Wakamatsu. She bought it because it was pink and it was pretty. It was not cheap. If you are ever considering buying HW luggage, consider:

The sides are soft ABS plastic that marks easily. The first time she took it on a trip it was abused by the baggage handlers and it ended up with big black streaks all over it.
As we were leaving for the airport, the latch broke and we could not close the trolley. It is poorly designed and easily bent if you close the trolley while the latches are closed. In a panic we took the trolley to the store (fortunately nearby) and they swapped a new latch in.
While we were in NZ, one of the four wheels jammed and broke its axle. J spent the rest of the trip rolling it upside down.

Suffice to say J is looking for new luggage.

Except for the trolley, we didn't run into any major difficulties during the trip. Surprising, perhaps, because we didn't invest that much time in advance planning. We had lodging and most of the major travel legs figured out, but the rest we made up as we went. If you want to go somewhere overseas where you'll get the maximum enjoyment for the minimum effort and stress, I would say it's hard to beat New Zealand.

Technorati Tags: newzealand, travel

New Zealand: The Photographs

noreply@blogger.com (spuddybuddy) — Tue, 04 Apr 2006 07:46:00 +0000

I've finally stopped procrastinating and uploaded the pictures from my trip to New Zealand. I had a new camera so I was trigger happy; I've already made a pass or two to pick out the ones I liked, but apologies if there are just too many.

Suffice to say New Zealand is one of the most beautiful places on Earth. It was pretty easy to take pictures that I'll enjoy for a long time. I'll follow up with a longer post on my travel experiences and some of the people we met there.

I used Apple's iWeb to generate these albums. It's not terribly impressive. It's very slow, can only handle 99 photos per album page, and the templates aren't really customizable. It generates pretty ugly HTML (probably non-validating) with a lot of inline Javascript and CSS, and absolutely positions everything. Oh well. If you have problems viewing the photos let me know and I'll find something better.

Technorati Tags: newzealand, photos, travel

Google Video

noreply@blogger.com (spuddybuddy) — Sat, 07 Jan 2006 10:23:00 +0000

Inspired by Larry Page's keynote address at CES, I've delved back into Google Video's user-uploaded videos and found a valuable repository of slack. Since Google Video doesn't really have a browse feature, you can search for random things or just keep clicking "Popular" until something good comes up. Here are some highlights:

The Poop Today? video shown at CES. Oddly compelling.
The Back Dormitory Boys doing As Long As You Love Me. Hey, they have their own website, too. This blog post has more of their videos.
There is a subgenre of self-made or mashup videos of Madonna's Hung Up. Here's one, and another, or search for more.
Priceless.
Emily Fox setting the cup stacking world record.
Barney vs. Tupac.
Octopus eats shark.

2006 NFL Playoffs and Bowl Picks

noreply@blogger.com (spuddybuddy) — Tue, 27 Dec 2005 04:52:00 +0000

It's the time of year to join together with friends and family and reflect on what's most important in our lives, that, of course, being football.

The NFL regular season is winding down, with the last week being all but meaningless now that the playoff matchups are set. Here are my picks.

AFC

Jacksonville at New England. New England by 7. New England has been the best team in the AFC down the stretch. Teams from Florida don't win at Foxboro in January, period.

Pittsburgh at Cincinnati. Pittsburgh by 3. They split in the regular season and I still don't believe Cincy is for real.

New England at Denver. New England by 3. An epic matchup between cold weather teams. I predict a 50% chance of snow and overtime.

Pittsburgh at Indianapolis. Indy by 7. Too many weapons for Pittsburgh to cope.

New England at Indianapolis. New England by 1. Peyton still can't win the big game. Tom and Adam can.

NFC

Carolina at New York Giants. Giants by 2. The Giants have played inconsistently this season but they will keep it together at home.

Washington at Tampa Bay. Tampa by 10. Yawn.

New York Giants at Seattle. Seattle by 7. The Giants played the 'Hawks to a draw last time (more or less). Seattle's fresh legs and home town verve will carry the day.

Tampa Bay at Chicago. Chicago by 7. Chicago is Urlacher's house. Also see comment above about teams from Florida. The only question: will Tampa score at all?

Chicago at Seattle. Seattle by 7. In Alexander we trust.

Super Bowl XL

New England vs. Seattle. Seattle by 1. My Boston friends will hate me, but this is the year that the torch is passed back to the NFC. It's up to Hasselback to prove he can lead his team to eternal glory.

Selected College Bowls

I am skipping all the "toilet" bowls featuring 6-5 teams. C'mon, a bowl game used to mean you finished well above .500. I'm also not putting a line on my bowl picks because the college game is too wacky to begin with.

Alamo Bowl - Michigan vs. Nebraska. Pick: Michigan. Michigan was overrated all season and finished ~~below~~ just ahead of Iowa (25) and Northwestern (unranked) in the Big Ten. But they are battle-tested from that competitive conference and will devour a flabby, pasty offering from the Big Twelve.

Holiday Bowl - Oregon vs. Oklahoma. Pick: Oregon. Oregon deserved a BCS bid and got screwed. They have something to prove, and Oklahoma will be the unfortunate victim of the Ducks' wroth.

Sun Bowl - Northwestern vs. UCLA. Pick: Northwestern. Brett Basanez is the most underrated passer in the college game. He has more YPG and the same completion percentage as Matt Leinart (and he's not surrounded by first round draft picks.) Moreover he can pull a victory out of places where the sun doesn't shine.

Fiesta Bowl - Ohio State vs. Notre Dame. Pick: Ohio State. This is the best matchup of the BCS. Ohio State is tough, tough, tough. Notre Dame will push them hard but fall short.

Sugar Bowl - West Virginia vs. Georgia. Pick: WV. Georgia isn't the same team without their starting QB.

Orange Bowl - Florida State vs. Penn State. Pick: Penn State. Somehow, the 'Noles backed into the BCS at 7-4. Despite their home field advantage, Joe will go old school on them and show them how things are done in the Big Ten.

Rose Bowl - Texas vs. USC. Pick: USC. This will hopefully be an entertaining game. When USC brings their A game, they score at will. Hard to beat that.

UPDATE: Fact checking shows that Michigan beat Northwestern and Iowa head-to-head so I guess you can't say they finished behind them in the Big Ten. But Michigan is still overrated.

Technorati Tags: football

Moblog

noreply@blogger.com (spuddybuddy) — Sun, 13 Nov 2005 09:28:00 +0000

I've finally got my Blogger Mobile moblog spiffed up and ready for public consumption. It has its own feed too, if you're into that sort of thing. It's been around for about a month, but it's now integrated with the main blog. The pic on the right should be my most recent snap (or at least if my Python skills hold up). There have been a few other design changes to the main blog while I am at it. Always a work in progress...

Unhealthy Obsession?

noreply@blogger.com (spuddybuddy) — Tue, 01 Nov 2005 07:33:00 +0000

In my last jaunt to Amoeba Records I picked up Clap Your Hands Say Yeah. The first time I played it, I thought, "It's nice. Head-nodding songs. They sound like they are having a lot of fun. I'll probably listen to it a couple of times." Then I listened to it again. And again. And again. And now I have time has gotten by on alibis and wine stuck in my head and every time I reach for my iPod i'm cycling down to C without thinking about it.

I hope I get over this soon ... but man, can that band write catchy songs.

Technorati Tags: amoebarecords, clapyourhandssayyeah

Boston

noreply@blogger.com (spuddybuddy) — Fri, 21 Oct 2005 04:36:00 +0000

It's always nice to return to Boston. There's a crispness to the air that says, "Fall is here." (I miss the seasons now that I live in San Francisco.)

Fall in Boston means the Head Of The Charles Regatta, the largest rowing event in the world. Crew rowing is an interesting sport, it seems coordination among crew members is more important than strength and stamina. I'll be there to check out some of the races.

Technorati Tags: boston, headofthecharles

Download Festival 2005

noreply@blogger.com (spuddybuddy) — Mon, 10 Oct 2005 08:12:00 +0000

Yesterday J and I went to the Download Festival 2005. Let's break it down, shall we.

The Shoreline Ampitheatre is a nice venue. It's big, clean, and has lots of amenities (including decent bathrooms; a far cry from your typical Porta-Potties.) There were a large number of usher/security types around but they were pretty chill. The festival was uber-commercial and everything had a corporate sponsor; well, what do you expect from a Clear Channel produced event.
The crowd, mostly late teens/early twenties, made me feel old. They all wore shirts with slogans I didn't understand, talked on their cell phones incessantly, and didn't seem to care that much about the music (the term "brat" came to mind). Thirty better not be too old to go to big rock concerts.
First up: British Sea Power. Well crafted, intense, power pop, veering into damaged rock excursions. Tree branches and a large plastic pelican were thrown. The drummer meandered into the crowd mid-set and he didn't come back. Good times. Album's on order.
Next: The Doves. Everything they did was solid, nothing in particular blew me away, but I really enjoyed the set anyway. The lead singer complained that the crowd had less energy than a "knitting circle;" we all applauded, but there weren't enough of us for it to fill the expansive amphitheater. I liked them enough to order the album.
Now, the best show of the night, and probably the best live rock performance I have ever seen. The Arcade Fire simply tore it up. I've listened to Funeral so many times the songs are part of my consciousness, but hearing them live channeled through the octet's incredible energy was like turning up the volume full blast and the dynamic range by a factor of 100. During the finale I started crying without knowing why. It was some sort of catharsis triggered by screaming along with the crowd "Every time you close your eyes, Lies, Lies!" It's hard to explain.

At the end of Rebellion, the Extra Action Marching Band (everyone's favorite burlesque marching band) took the stage to add a bit of absurdity to the evening. Fan-fucking-tastic.
Okay, Modest Mouse played a set. It was decent, but a letdown after TAF; their live show is not in the same league. The skater brats were happy and left afterwards.
The Killers came out for an hour of crowd worship, which incidentally involved some music. They played most of Hot Fuss and some unreleased stuff. Their live show is tight and entertaining, I was screaming "Open up my eager eyes, because I'm Mr. Brightside" along with everyone else during the finale. For all their strutting and attitude, they are a very very good rock band.

The crowd was well behaved until the end, when they got bored waiting for the Killers' encore and began throwing free seat cushions (aka the ass mats) around. These ass mats were actually quite aerodynamic and flew 100-150 feet, hitting the unsuspecting in the head and one of the Killers on stage at some point. Sigh.

Technorati Tags: thearcadefire, britishseapower, thedoves, downloadfestival, thekillers, modestmouse

Parents

noreply@blogger.com (spuddybuddy) — Tue, 27 Sep 2005 05:37:00 +0000

My parents made a visit to San Francisco from my Midwestern homeland. The weather was gorgeous and we had a great time. They arrived just in time for that bit of wholesome family fun known as the Folsom Street Fair (photo, Flickr tag, some definitely NSFW). They really just don't have things like that where I grew up.

We ended up missing the Fair, but had another chance for a spectacle of nudity. On our way down Highway One towards Half Moon Bay, we stopped at Montara State Beach, which turns out to be clothing optional. The "optional" folks mostly stayed at the north end of the beach, but one fellow decided to take a stroll right past me, J, and my parents. I shook my head, but what can you do? They're in California, might as well have an authentic California experience. (Where I grew up, swarms of mosquitos discourage clothing optional adventures.)

Other than that, the visit was uneventful as we hit the highlights. Fisherman's Wharf? Check. Seafood dinner? Check. Presidio? Check. Twin Peaks? Check. Noe Valley? Check. It was nice to play tour guide and share some of what we've learned about the area over the past eleven months.

Technorati Tags: folsomstreetfair, nudebeach, parents, sanfrancisco

I Am Jack's Metrosexual Lifestyle

noreply@blogger.com (spuddybuddy) — Wed, 07 Sep 2005 06:02:00 +0000

I bought some Neutrogena for Men products and I really like them. Their Razor Defense line works well; less irritation and dryness when I shave.
I own two Jack Spade bags and multiple other Jack Spade accessories.
I drive a Prius.
I've started to use an electric toothbrush.
I shop at the Gap and I like their jeans.
There are multiple pieces of furniture from Ikea in my apartment.
I have a Starbucks card and I refill it regularly.
I own multiple products from the Apple iPod line and am typing this on an Apple Powerbook.

(After the Narrator's apartment blew up)
Narrator: I had it all. I had a stereo that was very decent, a wardrobe that was getting very respectable. I was close to being complete.
Tyler Durden: Shit man, now it's all gone.

Fight Club

Technorati Tags: fightclub, lifestyle

New Orleans, Summer Of 1986

noreply@blogger.com (spuddybuddy) — Thu, 01 Sep 2005 07:55:00 +0000

I was 12 11. My family made one of its Three Great Road Trips that summer, taking us to New Orleans, Biloxi, and Gulf Shores Alabama.

I remember it was very hot in New Orleans, and being thankful for our air conditioned Holiday Inn. I remember walking through the French Quarter. I remember eating beignets at ~~Café Beignet~~ Café Du Monde and dinner at Antoine's. I'm saddened that the places of my New Orleans memories have been devastated by Katrina, and they may never be the same again.

USGS Landsat Image Gallery, via BoingBoing

Many people in the area have lost far more than vacation memories. Please consider making a donation to support relief and evacuation efforts in the Gulf states.

It was actually 1986, and I was 11, as I found out from my Mom.

I also found out from her we ate at Café Du Monde, not Café Beignet.

Technorati Tags: hurricane, katrina, neworleans

I Like New Compact Discs

noreply@blogger.com (spuddybuddy) — Wed, 24 Aug 2005 06:58:00 +0000

After dropping off J at work I wandered over to Amoeba Records on Haight. I can't say enough about good things about them. I'm like a kid in a candy store, a candy store that is dangerous to the wallet.

In the age of music downloads, I still prefer the real deal, and purchase almost all of my new music as CDs. I like having the cover art, the music at original quality, and ownership of a resellable and shareable item. And, no DRM. I fear that soon CDs will go the way of 8-tracks and cassettes, although in this case the replacement will be inferior in several respects.

Anyway, from Amoeba I got:

Soviet: We Are Eyes, We Are Builders. E.T. introduced me to this band from their single, "Commute." It has enjoyable variations on the Depeche Mode synth-pop formula. Not original enough to be great, but not derivative enough to be dismissed. Rating: 6/10
Kraftwerk: Minimum-Maximum. WOW. Before this album, I had only heard Kraftwerk when it occasionally got radio play. I vaguely understood they were important and influential, but didn't know they compose and play great music. Check these equipment lists from the seventies and eighties to get an idea of how they innovated radically in music technology. Go out and buy this album now. Rating: 10/10
Madlib/Quasimoto: The Unseen (2 cd set) and Madvilliany. I knew of Quasimoto from Real Eyes on Zero7's Another Late Night. At first listen, these are mostly sparser sets of rapping and sampling, not richer compositions like Real Eyes. I haven't given either one a thorough listen yet, but it sounds like Madvilliany is stronger end to end. Tenative rating: 6/10 and 8/10 (respectively).
the evens: the evens. I got two tracks from a random music blog and really liked them, so I was excited to find this one. I think the band members were in some other important bands before or something. The songs have a strong undercurrent of feeling and don't hold back. Not the usual singer-songwriter-with-a-guitar crap. Rating: 8/10.

The new Bloc Party, Spoon, and Chutes Too Narrow are on order from Overstock to add some "mainstream" balance to the collection.

Technorati Tags: amoebarecords, kraftwerk, madlib, music, quasimoto, reviews, theevens

I Want My Gaylord Perry Bobble Head Doll (Or At Least A Refund For My Ticket)

noreply@blogger.com (spuddybuddy) — Sun, 24 Jul 2005 07:29:00 +0000

Gaylord Perry, Hall-Of-Fame pitcher for the Giants from '62 to '71, had his #36 retired tonight. J and I arrived too late to the ballpark to receive a commemorative bobble head doll, which is really too bad, because that would have been the highlight of the evening. The Marlins had their way with Giants pitching, ringing up 20 hits on their way to a 16-4 rout. (They should have thrown a jersey on Gaylord and sent him out there, at 66 he would have done better.)

Alex Sanchez provided some comic relief by throwing the ball from center field to God knows whom ... the batboy? The churros guy in the stands?

If SBC park weren't such a nice place to enjoy a game, I would give up on Bay Area baseball entirely. Going across the Bay to cheer for the guys in green isn't an option because of J's loyalty to the Mariners, and it would feel like a betrayal of sorts. So come on guys, at least try. You're still only 7 out of first.

Wish the beer were cheaper at SBC, though. Spent $40 on tickets and $40 on concessions.

Technorati Tags: baseball sfgiants

EFF 15th Birthday Party and Blogger's Rights Panel

noreply@blogger.com (spuddybuddy) — Wed, 20 Jul 2005 06:33:00 +0000

I attended the EFF's 15th birthday party tonight. It was enjoyable to hear the panelists, experienced bloggers, talk about their blogging experiences. The audience questions centered more around blogging practice than bloggers' rights per se, and were generally softballs. Except for a couple of people complaining that Google didn't rank their blogs highly enough. Because bloggers have a right to be ranked at the top of every search, of course.

Bloggers in America generally have it easier than in many other countries, due in no small part to organizations like the EFF. Check their mission and consider supporting them.

Technorati Tags: 111minna blogging eff15

Frustration in Red Sox Nation

noreply@blogger.com (spuddybuddy) — Tue, 19 Jul 2005 06:01:00 +0000

Could somebody please explain to me what is going on with the Red Sox? They've stumbled out of the All-Star break, handing over three of four to the Spankees. On top of that, tonight they lost to Tampa Bay (yes, 32-62 Tampa Bay) to drop from first to third in the A.L. East.

Somebody in our depleted pitching staff needs to step up and deliver. We won't have Schilling and Foulke at 100% for a while. And we need to find some clutch hitting, and I'm not talking about Alex Cora. Francona decided he "really wanted to see Alex hit" and hit he did, right into a 5-2-3 double play in the bottom of the ninth on Sunday. (Granted, Cora got a bum call at first, but he wasn't scoring anyone on that play.)

This is the lineup I propose: Damon, Renteria, Big Papi, Manny, Olerud (1B), Varitek, Nixon, Mueller (2B), Youks (3B). Olerud has been very productive in his limited at-bats; why not give him the nod? I don't know much about Mueller's fielding at second. But we need better than Cora's .206 with the state of our pitching. And I've been a fan of Youks since Moneyball.

I've respected Terry's management in the past, but I'm losing my confidence. Maybe he should pick up some pointers.

Side Note: SoSH has instituted some sort of registration system so I can't lurk and absorb random sabermetrics. Grrr.

Technorati Tags: baseball, redsox

Disappointment at Bagdad Cafe

noreply@blogger.com (spuddybuddy) — Mon, 27 Jun 2005 07:05:00 +0000

Tonight J and I went to Bagdad Cafe and I was really disappointed with the food. Their cod sandwich was a couple of greasy pieces of fish, covered in heavy mayo, between two greasy pieces of bread. It really was too greasy for me to handle. I mostly ate J's mashed potatoes. Morals: Don't believe Citysearch ratings. Find another option for late-night dining in our neighborhood.

Technorati Tags: food, reviews, sanfrancisco

21 Grams: I'm Dying (Again), You're Dying, Must Be A Barrel of Laughs

noreply@blogger.com (spuddybuddy) — Sat, 25 Jun 2005 08:49:00 +0000

At about halfway through, I've paused the movie and debated whether to finish watching it. The narrative hopscotches back and forth in time, and I've found myself unable to connect any two scenes together. The relationships between the characters seem to change radically from scene to scene; right now, I can't even tell who's alive, dying, or dead! It all feels manipulative, contrived, and cheap. But the acting is very good, and I love Benicio Del Toro, so I guess I'll keep watching and hope it makes sense later.

UPDATE: Okay, so the dots got connected in the end and I feel better about the movie now. But it's pretty hard to watch a movie where everyone wallows in misery (self-inflicted and otherwise) for two hours. There really is not a happy scene to be found, period. The intense, superb acting by Del Toro, Penn, and Watts kept me going. It was rough going but worth viewing in the end.

Rating: 6/10 ◊ IMDB Link

Technorati Tags: movies reviews

Elephant Seals Are Really Lazy In June

noreply@blogger.com (spuddybuddy) — Mon, 20 Jun 2005 06:16:00 +0000

Today, J and I took our pretty new car out for a drive down Highway 1 to the Año Nuevo State Reserve, about 20 miles south of Half Moon Bay. This wildlife area has the largest colony of elephant seals in North America. A short hike takes you to a series of viewing stations, one 30 feet away from the enormous animals.

This time of year, immature males return to the colony to molt, to practice sparring, but most of all to sleep. Picture if you will thirty, forty enormous seals that have beached themselves, occasionally rolling over or waving a flipper. I guess that adults migrate up to 15,000 miles over the course of a year, so you can't really call them lazy.

Our camera ran out of juice before we actually got seal pictures. But this gives you an idea of how beautiful the park is. The park is staffed with knowledgeable volunteer docents who will give you all the seal information you could ever want. I highly recommend a visit. (Of course, wear sunscreen. We didn't. And we're paying the price...)

Technorati Tags: outdoors prius

Star Wars Episode III: More Rockin', Less Talkin'

noreply@blogger.com (spuddybuddy) — Mon, 23 May 2005 08:46:00 +0000

Tonight I saw the final chapter of Star Wars. I had heard and read it was the best of the first three, but had tried to avoid learning any spoilers. Not that it would have mattered a lot, since the fates of nearly all the characters were pretty clear going in.

The strength of this episode is that Lucas allows actions to speak louder than words. The corny dialogue, confusing political side-plots, and unnecessary characters that plagued Episodes I and II have been minimized or eliminated in III. In its place are a series of epic lightsaber battles among the principals, compelling action sequences that rank with the best scenes from the originals. As is to be expected, the art direction, sweeping visuals, and special effects are top-notch.

The movie drags during awkward scenes between Anakin and Padmé. The lack of passion and chemistry between them renders Anakin's motivations a little hard to swallow later in the movie. Scenes of the Chancellor's subtle manipulation of Anakin, the core tragedy of the prequels, work better. The Chancellor manifests living, breathing, sleazy, slimy evil - I desperately wanted him to get turned into lightsaber sausage, but that will have to wait for another episode.

Overall, among the first three, this stands alone as a worthy prequel to Episodes IV through VI. The plot stays focused, the battles are intense, and Yoda gets into the action (even more than in Episode II). What more could a Star Wars fan want?

Rating: 7/10 ◊ IMDB Link

Technorati Tags: movies reviews

Donnie Darko: Not Just Another Teen Movie

noreply@blogger.com (spuddybuddy) — Sun, 08 May 2005 07:58:00 +0000

I just finished watching Donnie Darko for the first time, and wow. After the first couple of scenes I expected a run-of-the-mill drama about teen angst. But then an airplane engine falls through Donnie's bedroom, the rabbit shows up, and the movie becomes compelling, unexpected, and delightfully weird. Jake Gyllenhaal and Jena Malone give very good performances in lead roles. I particularly liked Patrick Swayze's parody of an infomercial self-help guru too.

Donnie experiences nocturnal visions of a demonic six-foot rabbit who compels him to perform destructive acts. Is the rabbit a mechanism for coping with his superficial suburban environment? Is it the result of his medication? Or is it an alien being giving him special powers? The exact nature of the rabbit (as well as many other things) are left unexplained, and it makes the film all the more interesting.

I wanted the film to end differently from the way it did, but that didn't detract from my enjoyment. It will teach me to leave my unopened Netflix lying around for a month.

Rating: 9/10 ◊ IMDB Link

Technorati Tags: movies reviews

Meow

noreply@blogger.com (spuddybuddy) — Mon, 25 Apr 2005 06:28:00 +0000

Tonight, J and I spent the day running around the city to pick up some hardware to fix up a few things around the apartment. We ended up eating dinner at Kezar in Cole Valley. J had her usual dinner: cheeseburger with grilled onions, salad, coke. I wasn't that hungry so I had an excellent Paulaner Doppelbock fresh on tap.

We had a surprise guest for dinner:

The photo is poor, so you might not see that it's Lima, the Very Large Tabby Cat that belongs to Kezar's owner and lives at the bar. Lima had casually sauntered its way near our table, jumped on an empty chair, and gave us that typical cat look that means, "What are you doing here? Don't you know I own this place?"

Photographer Derek Powazek has taken much better photos of Lima.

Technorati Tags: cats, food, sanfrancisco

Back in the Big Apple

noreply@blogger.com (spuddybuddy) — Sun, 17 Apr 2005 20:17:00 +0000

I'm wrapping up a week in New York, and it was great to return to my old stomping grounds. The weather was great and I spent a fair amount of time this weekend walking around Chelsea, the Village, SoHo, and the LES.

I didn't have great luck with restaurants this trip; I ended up eating a lot of fast food from my usual spots (Better Burger, Go Sushi). I did discover Murray's Bagels, down the street from where I was staying. Crunchy on the outside, chewy on the inside, filled with tasty smoked salmon, cream cheese, and fresh lettuce and tomato. YUMMY.

On Saturday I tried to grab dinner at Hadom in the Village, but it was closed, so I ended up with a turkey panini and carrot-squash soup at Doma.

Afterwards, I went to the Mercury Lounge. It's an excellent space for live music, with great acoustics, a friendly attitude-free staff, and PBR on tap. The headliner, Jesse Sykes & the Sweet Hereafter, plays soulful "goth-country" with excellent arrangements of guitar (Phil Wandscher), violin (Anne Marie Ruljancich), double bass (Bill Herzog), and drums (Kevin Warner). Singer/songwriter Jesse's compositions deal in loss, loneliness, and sadness, but they aren't mopey or sentimental. They drew me in to a quiet, darker place where I could contemplate the times I've felt the same. Worth a listen.

Weeks like this make me miss New York. Even so, I've made up my mind: Great place to visit, but...

Technorati Tags: food music nyc

El Camino

noreply@blogger.com (spuddybuddy) — Mon, 28 Mar 2005 12:41:00 +0000

Somebody has started parking a 1977 El Camino across the street from my building. This thing is HUGE. Is it a car? Is it a pickup truck? It's BOTH! Genius! It's also in desperate need of a paint job. As near I can tell, it is the Classic model with the standard (non-SS) option package.

What if I grew up in the Seventies and had my own El Camino? Every morning I would throw my surfboard in the back, spend the day hanging ten at the beach, and spend the night cruising the boardwalk for some action. My muscle shirt, gold chains, flowing mustache, and the throaty roar of my 454 cubic inch V8 would let all concerned know that I was one dude to be reckoned with. Maybe I would save up from my summer job cleaning pools and get it souped up a little, too.

Got an El Camino in your neighborhood? Drop me a line.

Technorati Tags: cars, sanfrancisco

About ubertuber.org

noreply@blogger.com (spuddybuddy) — Mon, 21 Mar 2005 03:51:00 +0000

You are visiting the personal website of Mark F., aka spuddybuddy. The Girlfriend, aka J, makes guest contributions from time to time.

The Past

Posts prior to this one comprise ubertuber Version 1. They are anecdotes from our year of living in New York City (August 2003 to October 2004). Prior to August 2003 we lived in Boston. In October 2004 the Red Sox defeated the Yankees in Game Seven of the ALCS, and three days later I relocated to San Francisco, where we now reside.

The Future

Posts after this one comprise ubertuber Version 2. The site has been completely redesigned from scratch. Old posts have been edited to correct spelling, grammar, capitalization, and markup. Some old posts of dubious value have been removed. A slight mistake during the upgrade deleted all the old photos from the site; they will be reorganized and restored little by little.

I haven't decided what to put into ubertuber 2, but it will likely include anecdotes, essays, analysis, reviews, and photo galleries. Do not expect to find many posts about: my work, my personal life, gadgets or tech, links, or blogging. There are plenty of other sites and blogs that provide that sort of material. The one-page-per-post format is intended to encourage me to post longer and more substantial stuff. I take kottke.org as an inspiration and a model to work from.

I hope to add a comment system in the near future. (Unfortunately, Blogger's comment system does not meet my needs in several respects. If somebody knows how to hack the internals of Blogger comments, I'd like to hear from you.)

Nerd Stuff

The site uses Blogger with a custom template and custom CSS. Blogger templates unfortunately lack some useful features (like next/previous post links), so I am planning on using a Python script to post-process the entries and generate a Javascript index. The index will be used to generate additional navigation links on the site.

The site strives to be XHTML and CSS compliant (please report any discrepancies you find).

Why ubertuber?

The name "ubertuber" was a flash of inspiration during a certain period in 2001 when I was heavily involved with potatoes. At my graduate lab, groups of students would volunteer to cook lunch for the entire lab every Friday. When it was my turn, my team offered the lab an "ubertuber" lunch of baked potatoes, toppings, veggie chili, and extras. We baked too many potatoes - about two hundred - and I ended up eating nothing but leftover baked potatoes for a week afterwards. ubertuber.org was one of the many lingering effects of that episode.

This site is not related to spuddybuddy.com in any way, except for our shared love of les pommes de terre.