The Great Quake remembered

Not sure how much national press this is getting, but today the City is commemorating the 100th anniversary of the 1906 earthquake that devastated not only San Francisco, but towns up and down the coast. This site has some very interesting articles, photos, and videos about not only the earthquake, but also the resulting fires that destroyed the City, and the subsequent rebuilding efforts.

And, just to add the element of fear, here is an article that estimates the amount of damage a similar quake would have today, and here is a link to some new maps that show the liquefaction (when solid ground becomes sandy liquid due to the shaking of a large quake) risk when the next big one hits. Neat.

Celebrating the resurrection of Christ with hot man-on-man action

The subject line is one way of looking at my trip to the ballet on Easter Sunday to see the touring company of Matthew Bourne's Swan Lake. This version puts an new twist on the classic Tchaikovsky ballet, and while I admit that I have not seen the old version, after having read the synopsis, I am glad that I never did. The classic version sounds pretty stodgy, and while the new version certainly had its slow moments (the second act looked like a recital at a dance school, with various groups of swans running on stage to do their act, then running off, and the third act had a similar scene at a party where various groups of dancers had to get in their "solo" time), it had funny parts, sad parts, kept my interest, and even included what had to be the best dance combination ever: disco ballet!

Maybe if Antonio Banderas had taught that combination to sassy inner-city kids, his movie wouldn't have flopped.

Excellent...

Exactly...

Is it just me?

Any time I don't really enjoy something that seems universally praised, I have a bad habit of asking myself: did I just not get it? But then I also sometimes wonder: when art is so widely praised, is it because others have asked themselves that same question, and continue said praise so as to avoid looking like they didn't get it?

I call this the Thin Red Line syndrome.

I have shades of this syndrome after finishing The History of Love, by Nicole Krauss. I really liked Leo, one of the main characters, but have to admit to being tired of the lots-of-different-storylines-coming-together-at-the-end thing that seems to have plagued literature in recent years. I was not overly impressed by the book as a whole, and certainly never found myself "vertiginously excit[ed]," but again, maybe you have to be a critic to get that excited about a novel? Tough call.

For me, I'll give this book a C+; I finished it, and I enjoyed looking at the world through Leo's eyes, but overall, I feel this book is overhyped.

[yawn]

What happened this year? There are always some fun upsets and buzzer beaters in the first round, but I don't remember a year of March Madness where the Final Four and championship games were all so god-awful boring. Twenty-point routs I expect in a 1-16 matchup, not in the Final Four.

But no worries, NCAA...we'll be back next year.

WOW!

Just watched the season finale of The Shield (we taped it last week, and are just now getting around to it...I realize this makes me sound incredibly old, but I just can't stay up that late to watch it, and we don't have TiVo...damn it!), and I still believe that it is consistently the best drama on television. I realize that there is another show that some people may vote for in that category, but I don't have HBO, so my voting field is narrower.

Can't wait for next season.

George Who?

Yeah, I had never heard of them either, but they have certainly made all of us take notice. Here is their athletic site, here is their university's main page, and here is a historical information page where you can learn more about the man behind the name.

How to kill your office copier AND win your office pool

Ahhh...so this is how to win in March.

I love it when a plan comes together.

Three more down...

Finished the Dublin (California) St. Pat's Day 5K yesterday; the good news is that I (a) finished, (b) am not too sore this morning, and (c) got the cool t-shirt I can send to my brother. The not-as-good news is that I was not in top form: I mananged to run the first mile, as usual, but then was in some somewhat serious ankle/leg pain for the second and part of the third mile. I have been using the recent weather as a great excuse not to get out and run in the mornings for the past several weeks leading up to yesterday's race, and it showed.

Time to step it up if I'm going to be ready for May.

Hey, Malkovich! You suck!

Is this real? If it was any other actor, I would automatically say yes, but Malkovich...?

p.s. if you are looking at this while at work, don't click on the t-shirt models...not something you want people to see over your shoulder.

Worst. Bracket. Ever.

"Eh." That was my general feeling yesterday when we watched the Brackets get announced, and realized that NONE of the teams in the dance that we would like to see are in our region. Is that looking a gift horse dead in his smelly mouth? Maybe. Am I still thrilled that next week I will be seeing some Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight games live? You bet.

But do I wish that we were going to have a chance to see several other teams in person? Yeah.

Hell, I was even hoping to see the Scooby Doos.

Drink and Fight!

WAY too funny, and her willingness to do this is a large part of the reason I think Natalie is fantastic. WHAT?!

No Shining Moment

My Colonels, who won the OVC tournament last year and thus secured their first NCAA tournament bid in decades, got stomped in the opening round of the OVC tournament last night, thus ending their hopes for a return to the Big Dance.

Travis, why did you leave?

About time!

Finally, our pets will start earning their keep! They have been sleeping and eating for free long enough; it's about time they became contributing members of the household.

Not Chalmers

I had some free time this evening, and started trying to track down the answer to a question I had while watching Avenue Q last week at the Wynn: did the producers of this show have to pay Gary Coleman to keep him from suing them?

In the course of trying to track down that answer, I found this fascinating site that, for anyone who wants the purest distillation of a celebrity's Q Rating into dollars (and said celebrity's willingness to talk to you for said dollars), is truly fun to search through.

By the way, I haven't found my answer yet, but given that Gary's speaking fees don't even come in at the $5K level, my guess is the producers of the show probably gave Gary some sandwiches...and told him no, he could not play himself!

A Movie Slowly

About a year ago, I was excited to see a preview for a movie version of Philip K. Dick's A Scanner Darkly, allegedly coming out last summer/fall. I really enjoyed the book, and was interested in seeing how they would use a combination of live-action and animation to differentiate between the split personalities of the lead character. I waited.

And waited.

Here we are, well into 2006, and still no movie. I found this article that explains some of the problems they were (and are still) having; even if you haven't heard of the book, it is an interesting look at the nexus that increasingly exists between film making as an art and as a technical process (as well as the studio process that funds both, and how their constraints affect the overall project). An interesting read.

How I love the Fertile Valleys!

That's what my Spanish dictionary says "Las Vegas" actually means. Huh.

We just got back from our latest Vegas escapade, and it was a great trip. We got upgraded to a suite at our hotel, which included both a whirlpool jacuzzi and fantastic view right down the Strip. We saw a hilarious show, which made me laugh out loud (as well as question my career path; I should have been a puppeteer!) for the whole shortened production. And of course, we ate way too much.

But best of all, we played a lot of poker. In the five tournaments we managed to play in, I made the final table three times, with one money finish (3rd). My better half made two final tables, with one money finish (also 3rd). But best of all, if you add up all of our buy-ins, and then balance that against our winnings, we lost a grand total of $13 dollars. Between the two of us. Over three days, or about 11 hours of total playing time.

That's a win in my book.

So close...

Played in an online poker tournament last night, and did really well...but not well enough. Managed to make it to fourth place; good, right? The painful part? Prize money was only awarded to the top three.

I think I would have rather been put out in 256th place and gotten the extra sleep.

Same reason Seinfeld returned the blazer...

Last night's episode of Lost [WARNING: that link has spoilers, but also some cool side notes, esp. about the waitress!] reminded me of why I not only love this show, but the whole stranded-on-an-island motif ala Lord of the Flies: how much of our behavior is influenced/controlled by laws and society, and how much is influenced by our own moral code? More to the point: if the laws were not enforced, would you still obey them?

The show has done a wonderful job of filling in the backstories, but I am pleased to see that since we now know everyone a little better, we are moving forward. After all, by my count, these people have lived on this island for about two months now, and while I (somewhat) believe that the immediate shock of the plane crash and the instinct for survival may have allowed the island dwellers to work together for a while, the frayed edges are finally starting to poke out, and that is where I think this show is going to go to a whole new level of interesting.

Flying away on a wing and a prayer...

My brother has been awarded the highest honor in the Louisville Fire Department, and at least two local newspapers were on hand to report the story. Both articles include pictures, and even though the Louisville article is more about the fire department as a whole (as opposed to the local Bardstown article that is just about Brian), I won't hold it against them.

I am not sure what I am more proud of: my brother's actions in the line of duty, or his sweet new 'stache!

Louisville Courier-Journal: Firefighters honored for valiant work

The Kentucky Standard: Local man becomes Louisville fire hero

BTW, I'm more proud of his actions...but that 'stache comes in a close second!