Years ago, I watched what I thought was most of The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. Then, a month ago, I bought the DVD as part of a birthday care package from Amazon, and last night watched it in its entirety. I thoroughly enjoyed it, both on a superficial level, where it works as a western, and in a subconscious perhaps-imagined sense in which it stands for the evolution of America and particularly the westward expansion.
WARNING: Artsy interpretation includes spoilers.
Jimmy Stewart plays Law'n'Order, who arrives in town and is assaulted by Lawlessness. He is brought out of the wilderness by Toughness (John Wayne), and taken in by New America (Vera Miles). New America and Toughness are an item, but the arrival of Law'n'Order makes her wonder if that's what she really wants. As the film progresses, New America realises that Law'n'Order can take her places and teach/show her things that Toughness never will, and she throws her lot in with the bookish guy, leaving Toughness all broken up. In a showdown between Law'n'Order and Lawlessness, Toughness steps in at the last minute and saves Law'n'Order's bacon, but as a result, New America casts Toughness aside in favour of Law'n'Order. Years later, America and a greying Law'n'Order return to town, and it is revealed that America regrets her decision, and although her head said Law'n'Order, it was Toughness that she really loved.
End artsy interpretation/spoilers.
Ed: I'd also add that discovering the Western genre has almost certainly been the most pleasant aspect of my IMDB Top 250 quest. I've watched the following films as a direct result of the quest: The Good, The Bad And The Ugly; A Few Dollars More; Once Upon A Time In America; Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid; The Searchers; Rio Bravo; High Noon; The Magnificent Seven; The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre; The Ox-Bow Incident; The Wild Bunch, and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. About 8 of the dozen I've really enjoyed, which is a pretty good strike rate.
Friday, 29 August 2008
Tuesday, 26 August 2008
breakdown
Beijing medal count (sports conducted sitting down):
This counts cycling, canoeing (excluding the kneeling canoe events), equestrian, rowing, and sailing (excluding sailboards). Interestingly, only dressage made my hate-list the other day.
On a less flippant note, the discrepancy in medals between the two countries, GB 19-13-15 vs AUS 14-15-17, can be attributed almost entirely to cycling, where Britain dominated (8-4-2), and Australia had one of our worst Olympics ever (0-1-0).
- Britain: 14 gold, 8 silver, 7 bronze
- Australia: 5 gold, 5 silver, 3 bronze
- Britain: 5 gold, 5 silver, 8 bronze
- Australia: 9 gold, 10 silver, 14 bronze
This counts cycling, canoeing (excluding the kneeling canoe events), equestrian, rowing, and sailing (excluding sailboards). Interestingly, only dressage made my hate-list the other day.
On a less flippant note, the discrepancy in medals between the two countries, GB 19-13-15 vs AUS 14-15-17, can be attributed almost entirely to cycling, where Britain dominated (8-4-2), and Australia had one of our worst Olympics ever (0-1-0).
Monday, 25 August 2008
bushwhackin' Bulimba
Amusing weekend. On Friday night Mick & I watched Tropic Thunder, which was a bit underwhelming. On Saturday night, the Lions choked on their knees against the Blues, which was quite depressing.
On Sunday morning, a bunch of us went for breakfast at Bulimba before a game of golf. We settled on a new Olympic sport, tentatively named the Randomathlon, where individuals or teams compete in a selection of events randomly selected on the day of competition from all of the Olympic sports. So in the individual you can might have a day of table tennis, diving, swimming, equestrian, rhythmic gymnastics, and shotput, and in the teams it might be synchronised swimming, tennis doubles, hockey, and volleyball.
The golf was fun. I shot 36 for the 9 holes, including a really great section on the 6th and 7th. I put my tee shot on the 6th over the back of the green, on the steep side of the 7th tee mound, and with 10m to the pin including a 4m high fence. With an unlikely stance, I threw up a flop shot that landed pin high and rolled about 4m past the pin. I 2-putted for 4. On the 7th I hit a high half-wedge to the back of the green and hit a super-fast, curling downhill putt for birdie. The greens were very fast all day, and since they are all inverted saucers, holding greens was challenging and putting was intimidating.
In the evening, Mick had people round to his for his birthday. He set up a projector in garden and showed film clips and a horror comedy film. It was a bring-a-plate dinner (I made a couple of quiches), which went really well. Julz, Paul, Andy and I also presented Mick with Project X, his birthday piñata coated in 12 years' worth of movie stubs, and it seemed to go down well.
On Sunday morning, a bunch of us went for breakfast at Bulimba before a game of golf. We settled on a new Olympic sport, tentatively named the Randomathlon, where individuals or teams compete in a selection of events randomly selected on the day of competition from all of the Olympic sports. So in the individual you can might have a day of table tennis, diving, swimming, equestrian, rhythmic gymnastics, and shotput, and in the teams it might be synchronised swimming, tennis doubles, hockey, and volleyball.
The golf was fun. I shot 36 for the 9 holes, including a really great section on the 6th and 7th. I put my tee shot on the 6th over the back of the green, on the steep side of the 7th tee mound, and with 10m to the pin including a 4m high fence. With an unlikely stance, I threw up a flop shot that landed pin high and rolled about 4m past the pin. I 2-putted for 4. On the 7th I hit a high half-wedge to the back of the green and hit a super-fast, curling downhill putt for birdie. The greens were very fast all day, and since they are all inverted saucers, holding greens was challenging and putting was intimidating.
In the evening, Mick had people round to his for his birthday. He set up a projector in garden and showed film clips and a horror comedy film. It was a bring-a-plate dinner (I made a couple of quiches), which went really well. Julz, Paul, Andy and I also presented Mick with Project X, his birthday piñata coated in 12 years' worth of movie stubs, and it seemed to go down well.
Friday, 22 August 2008
reiterating - sport should be objectively measurable
Something tells me that I made this point back when the Athens Olympics were on, but here we go again - it deserves reiteration.
Judges/referees/umpires in sport should judge fact, not merit. "Sports" which are decided by judges' scores should not be in the Olympics. This includes:
There is also a group of sports for which the judging of points or facts can be very arbitrary. The following are on shaky ground, and should be either dropped or told to make themselves more objective:
Incidentally, I also have a nice little pile of other sports that I would like to see banished, headed by water polo and modern pentathlon, but I'll have to leave them for a day when I have a more cogent argument than "I think they're rubbish".
Judges/referees/umpires in sport should judge fact, not merit. "Sports" which are decided by judges' scores should not be in the Olympics. This includes:
- Gymnastics, including both rhythmic and artistic gymnastics, and trampoline (which make up 18 gold medal events)
- Diving, synchronized or otherwise (8 gold medals)
- Synchronized swimming (2 gold medals) (Frankly, this one isn't a sport by any reasonable criteria).
- Equestrian dressage (2 gold medals, plus the dressage component in the 2 eventing medals)
- The winter olympics has a whole swag of events, including figure skating, ski jumping and probably things like the freestyle skiing - jumps and moguls and stuff.
There is also a group of sports for which the judging of points or facts can be very arbitrary. The following are on shaky ground, and should be either dropped or told to make themselves more objective:
- Fencing, in which something like 75% of touches are simultaneous, and scores thus effectively become subjective.
Get a machine to do it, for crying out loud - if it works for Operation and Sale Of The Century, then it can work for Olympic fencing.(Ed: My reading suggests they have moved to electric judging, although I still question the real significance of striking someone 41ms before being struck oneself.) 10 gold medals - Walking, in which a judge's call about breaking contact with the ground or bending knees frequently decides the outcome. 3 gold medals.
- A lot of the combat sports, i.e. taekwondo (8 gold medals), judo (14 gold medals), wrestling (18 gold medals) and even boxing (11 gold medals) at times, are very prone to "judgement calls" by judges.
Incidentally, I also have a nice little pile of other sports that I would like to see banished, headed by water polo and modern pentathlon, but I'll have to leave them for a day when I have a more cogent argument than "I think they're rubbish".
From 3 years to 5 days
The previous book I read took 3 years, the next one took 5 days. I started Cat's Cradle, by Kurt Vonnegut, on Saturday or Sunday, and finished it late last night. It was significantly shorter, at a sparse 179 pages, but of equal significance was that I actually devoted some time to reading it, taking buses rather than riding a couple of days, and taking it to lunch with me a few days.
As for the book itself, I don't have an awful lot to say on it. Its a science fiction story with some commentary on religion/science/politics, but nothing as insightful as, say, Foundation. There seems to be an attempt to neologise (add new words into the vernacular, a la "grok" from Heinlein's Stranger In A Strange Land) but they didn't stick for me. (Ed: I draw these comparisons only to highlight the story elements, not to belittle Vonnegut's book by comparison to what are, after all, probably two of the greatest SF novels ever written).
Apparently Vonnegut was awarded his PhD based on this novel as his thesis, after his original thesis was rejected. I probably wouldn't have given it to him for this book, although his later efforts (what I've read of it, and what I've heard about that which I haven't read, e.g. Slaughterhouse 5) probably merit it, and his overall body of work certainly does.
Next up was going to be Thus Spake Zarathustra, by Nietzsche, but the copy I have is a little delicate in its cover, so I baulked at bringing it on the bus today, instead grabbing Joyce's Dubliners. Its a compilation of short stories, the first of which I read this morning, which he wrote before Portrait of the The Artist As A Young Man (which I liked), and Ulysses (which I have struggled, and thus far failed, to finish). Hopefully its episodic nature will lend itself to easier reading than Ulysses, and also to my current episodic pattern of reading.
Apologies to Ali if this post seems pretentious :)
As for the book itself, I don't have an awful lot to say on it. Its a science fiction story with some commentary on religion/science/politics, but nothing as insightful as, say, Foundation. There seems to be an attempt to neologise (add new words into the vernacular, a la "grok" from Heinlein's Stranger In A Strange Land) but they didn't stick for me. (Ed: I draw these comparisons only to highlight the story elements, not to belittle Vonnegut's book by comparison to what are, after all, probably two of the greatest SF novels ever written).
Apparently Vonnegut was awarded his PhD based on this novel as his thesis, after his original thesis was rejected. I probably wouldn't have given it to him for this book, although his later efforts (what I've read of it, and what I've heard about that which I haven't read, e.g. Slaughterhouse 5) probably merit it, and his overall body of work certainly does.
Next up was going to be Thus Spake Zarathustra, by Nietzsche, but the copy I have is a little delicate in its cover, so I baulked at bringing it on the bus today, instead grabbing Joyce's Dubliners. Its a compilation of short stories, the first of which I read this morning, which he wrote before Portrait of the The Artist As A Young Man (which I liked), and Ulysses (which I have struggled, and thus far failed, to finish). Hopefully its episodic nature will lend itself to easier reading than Ulysses, and also to my current episodic pattern of reading.
Apologies to Ali if this post seems pretentious :)
Monday, 18 August 2008
3-year books make bad 100-minute films
On Saturday I finally allocated some time to finishing off the novel I've been reading, Possession: A Romance, by A.S. Byatt. Lee gave me the book about 3 years ago, and I essentially read it over two periods: the first two thirds of it then, and the last third over recent months.
The time it took me to finish the book shouldn't be interpreted as a slight on its quality. It is well-written, and although the poetry sections can be slow-going at times, I came to appreciate their contribution to the story. I thought most of the characters were well-drawn, showing a range of personalities and motivations in the sphere of literary academia in which the novel is set. The exceptions are perhaps La Motte, who feels too imbued with the stereotypical passivity and victim syndrome of 19th century literature, and perhaps Maud, who can be a bit blank at times. The plot moves nicely, bouncing between the 19th century fling between the poets and the modern mirror between the critics. The Brittany phase, while evocative in some of the ambience it painted of the area, felt weak in terms of the story, perhaps partly because it dwelt upon, or even wallowed in, the less edifying aspects of Christabel's character. Nonetheless, that was followed by a nice little section of pomo self-reflection, a nice albeit not quite credible ending, and a very elegant epilogue.
While reading the book, I was conscious that there was a film adaptation, directed by Neil LaBute and starring Gwyneth Paltrow, who seemed to me a good casting option for Maud. I tracked down a copy of the film last night and watched it, with the book fresh in my mind.
This is only the second time that I've watched a film adaptation soon after reading the source novel, the first being Le Carré's The Constant Gardener. That film was a much better film on its own merits, and the experience of comparing the two renditions of the story was an amusing exercise in understanding the filmmakers' reasons for trimming the elements they did.
This time, though, felt more like counting the casualties of the adaptation, and wondering if the greater damage was done in adaptation or in editing. The film is far, far too short at 100 minutes long. Neither the 19th-century couple nor their modern counterparts are given a chance to develop any credible chemistry. Ash and LaMotte's tryst, in particular, lacks all the intellectual motivation of the book, which was entirely the point. The casting is quite poor. The character of Roland is so very English, but is inexplicably recast as an American. Blackadder is, seemingly for no reason, cast as an Irishman rather than a Scot.
The casualties of the adaptation range from the minor, like the disappearance of Dog Tray, who I quite liked, to major, as in the absence of Beatrice Nest and particularly of Leonora Stern, who offered an interesting alternative view of the academic, and Val, whose relationship with Roland was so important to his character and his subsequent relationship with Maud. More concerning is the absence of any real character development, so often the case in a book-to-film adaptation. Aside from the relationships between the 4 main characters, parts like Cropper and Fergus are given no chance to develop credibly, and Roland's arc is lacking in its beginning, in his relationship with Val, and its end, in his finding professional and creative escape at the story's resolution. The other absence, I suppose, is poetry. I concede that poetry is almost impossible to adapt for the screen, but without that underpinning, the film seems to lack fundament.
I will confess that watching the film and thinking about its shortcomings did make me appreciate many of the aspects of the book, in particular the way it had developed characters and relationships, and the different ways the characters related to the literature that was their work. Obviously, though, this is damnation by faint praise. The book was a poor choice for adaptation - the story's poetic base is unfilmable, and there are too many characters (that there are 4 distinct leads cannot be avoided) - and a 102 min running length made the task all but impossible.
The time it took me to finish the book shouldn't be interpreted as a slight on its quality. It is well-written, and although the poetry sections can be slow-going at times, I came to appreciate their contribution to the story. I thought most of the characters were well-drawn, showing a range of personalities and motivations in the sphere of literary academia in which the novel is set. The exceptions are perhaps La Motte, who feels too imbued with the stereotypical passivity and victim syndrome of 19th century literature, and perhaps Maud, who can be a bit blank at times. The plot moves nicely, bouncing between the 19th century fling between the poets and the modern mirror between the critics. The Brittany phase, while evocative in some of the ambience it painted of the area, felt weak in terms of the story, perhaps partly because it dwelt upon, or even wallowed in, the less edifying aspects of Christabel's character. Nonetheless, that was followed by a nice little section of pomo self-reflection, a nice albeit not quite credible ending, and a very elegant epilogue.
While reading the book, I was conscious that there was a film adaptation, directed by Neil LaBute and starring Gwyneth Paltrow, who seemed to me a good casting option for Maud. I tracked down a copy of the film last night and watched it, with the book fresh in my mind.
This is only the second time that I've watched a film adaptation soon after reading the source novel, the first being Le Carré's The Constant Gardener. That film was a much better film on its own merits, and the experience of comparing the two renditions of the story was an amusing exercise in understanding the filmmakers' reasons for trimming the elements they did.
This time, though, felt more like counting the casualties of the adaptation, and wondering if the greater damage was done in adaptation or in editing. The film is far, far too short at 100 minutes long. Neither the 19th-century couple nor their modern counterparts are given a chance to develop any credible chemistry. Ash and LaMotte's tryst, in particular, lacks all the intellectual motivation of the book, which was entirely the point. The casting is quite poor. The character of Roland is so very English, but is inexplicably recast as an American. Blackadder is, seemingly for no reason, cast as an Irishman rather than a Scot.
The casualties of the adaptation range from the minor, like the disappearance of Dog Tray, who I quite liked, to major, as in the absence of Beatrice Nest and particularly of Leonora Stern, who offered an interesting alternative view of the academic, and Val, whose relationship with Roland was so important to his character and his subsequent relationship with Maud. More concerning is the absence of any real character development, so often the case in a book-to-film adaptation. Aside from the relationships between the 4 main characters, parts like Cropper and Fergus are given no chance to develop credibly, and Roland's arc is lacking in its beginning, in his relationship with Val, and its end, in his finding professional and creative escape at the story's resolution. The other absence, I suppose, is poetry. I concede that poetry is almost impossible to adapt for the screen, but without that underpinning, the film seems to lack fundament.
I will confess that watching the film and thinking about its shortcomings did make me appreciate many of the aspects of the book, in particular the way it had developed characters and relationships, and the different ways the characters related to the literature that was their work. Obviously, though, this is damnation by faint praise. The book was a poor choice for adaptation - the story's poetic base is unfilmable, and there are too many characters (that there are 4 distinct leads cannot be avoided) - and a 102 min running length made the task all but impossible.
Monday, 28 July 2008
rundown on ride-around
Sunday morning was the Brissie To The Bay charity ride, a 50km ride from West End to Wynnum and back in support of Multiple Sclerosis sufferers.
My preparation for this ride was not, it must be said, ideal. I went out for drinks on Thursday and Friday nights, and on Saturday night I stayed up until around a quarter to 2, watching Le Tour and hoping for (but not getting) inspiration from Cadel Evans. I set my alarm for 5:40am, but slept through the radio until 6:10am, which meant I had to hurry to get my things together and cover the 8.5km to Musgrave Park for the start, without using too much energy.
Anyway, get there I did, and I took my place with the more-than-2500 other riders on the 50km ride (there were also 25km and 10km rides). I was in the fourth tranche, figuring that I was neither especially fast nor especially slow. My aim was to finish inside 2 hours, for an average speed of 25km/h.
I took things reasonably conservatively on the way out, expending a bit of energy but not too much on the hills (I tend to pass quite a lot of people on the short climbs, in general), and just cruising on the flats. After a 10-minute or so break at the Wynnum rest stop, I headed off again. I pushed hard along the long flat section near the start of the return, keeping right on 30km/h for perhaps 3 or 4km, with an old chap on my wheel. I took a turn on his wheel after a break, a little bit slower but not much, and started to get cramps in my calves around 38km. I pushed past him (and quite a few others) up a hill, and pushed on through a bit of fatigue, trying to get home inside 2 hrs. The last 5km or so through Woolloongabba were quite stop-start with the traffic, but I managed to get home in 1:56:37, just inside my target, and an average speed of 25.8km/h.
Once again, I enjoyed being on an organised ride: the idea of riding with other people, with marshalls to help with traffic and to show us the route. Were it not organised, its highly unlikely that I'd do a 50km ride through Brisbane, and I thus wouldn't get the sense achievement.
I also like the fact that the ride is linked with a charity. I've managed to raise a nice chunk of change for MS ($230 at time of writing), a good proportion of which wouldn't have been donated otherwise. Dad noted this morning that I'm up in the top 100 fundraisers for the event, which is surprising and pleasing. If anyone still wants to donate, or if anyone was waiting until I'd finished the ride, donations are still being accepted for another fortnight or so (after that point, just go to the MS society site).
My next organised ride is probably going to be the 100km Brisbane to the Gold Coast ride in October.
My preparation for this ride was not, it must be said, ideal. I went out for drinks on Thursday and Friday nights, and on Saturday night I stayed up until around a quarter to 2, watching Le Tour and hoping for (but not getting) inspiration from Cadel Evans. I set my alarm for 5:40am, but slept through the radio until 6:10am, which meant I had to hurry to get my things together and cover the 8.5km to Musgrave Park for the start, without using too much energy.
Anyway, get there I did, and I took my place with the more-than-2500 other riders on the 50km ride (there were also 25km and 10km rides). I was in the fourth tranche, figuring that I was neither especially fast nor especially slow. My aim was to finish inside 2 hours, for an average speed of 25km/h.
I took things reasonably conservatively on the way out, expending a bit of energy but not too much on the hills (I tend to pass quite a lot of people on the short climbs, in general), and just cruising on the flats. After a 10-minute or so break at the Wynnum rest stop, I headed off again. I pushed hard along the long flat section near the start of the return, keeping right on 30km/h for perhaps 3 or 4km, with an old chap on my wheel. I took a turn on his wheel after a break, a little bit slower but not much, and started to get cramps in my calves around 38km. I pushed past him (and quite a few others) up a hill, and pushed on through a bit of fatigue, trying to get home inside 2 hrs. The last 5km or so through Woolloongabba were quite stop-start with the traffic, but I managed to get home in 1:56:37, just inside my target, and an average speed of 25.8km/h.
Once again, I enjoyed being on an organised ride: the idea of riding with other people, with marshalls to help with traffic and to show us the route. Were it not organised, its highly unlikely that I'd do a 50km ride through Brisbane, and I thus wouldn't get the sense achievement.
I also like the fact that the ride is linked with a charity. I've managed to raise a nice chunk of change for MS ($230 at time of writing), a good proportion of which wouldn't have been donated otherwise. Dad noted this morning that I'm up in the top 100 fundraisers for the event, which is surprising and pleasing. If anyone still wants to donate, or if anyone was waiting until I'd finished the ride, donations are still being accepted for another fortnight or so (after that point, just go to the MS society site).
My next organised ride is probably going to be the 100km Brisbane to the Gold Coast ride in October.
older, certainly no wiser
So on Friday I got a 3 rudely tacked onto the front of my age for the first time in 27 years (too cryptic?). I suppose I feel older today, although I don't put that down to the passing of time so much as the way I'm passing time. It was a busy week.
The anniversarial celebrations kind of stretched out over 4 days in the end. On Thursday night the trivia team - Paul & Julie, Ali & Jesse, Andy, Mick, Jez and I - followed up our impressive 93/100 (only 3 questions wrong all night) with a trip to the Bowery for a few cocktails. Then, on Friday night, a bunch of us - P&J, A&J, Mum & Dad, Andy, Lach and I - hit the German club for some bratwurst, beers and schnapps, which was fun. On Saturday afternoon, Jesse & Ali came around to mine for cake and coffee, and on Sunday I followed up my ride (post to come) with a trip to a new patisserie, which was a bit of a treat for me.
I also scored a few gifts, from a bunch of people mentioned above, all of which were most unexpected and much appreciated. I'm not usually a birthday person, and I certainly failed this year to properly organise anything, but the things that happened, and the weekend as a whole, were most enjoyable.
The anniversarial celebrations kind of stretched out over 4 days in the end. On Thursday night the trivia team - Paul & Julie, Ali & Jesse, Andy, Mick, Jez and I - followed up our impressive 93/100 (only 3 questions wrong all night) with a trip to the Bowery for a few cocktails. Then, on Friday night, a bunch of us - P&J, A&J, Mum & Dad, Andy, Lach and I - hit the German club for some bratwurst, beers and schnapps, which was fun. On Saturday afternoon, Jesse & Ali came around to mine for cake and coffee, and on Sunday I followed up my ride (post to come) with a trip to a new patisserie, which was a bit of a treat for me.
I also scored a few gifts, from a bunch of people mentioned above, all of which were most unexpected and much appreciated. I'm not usually a birthday person, and I certainly failed this year to properly organise anything, but the things that happened, and the weekend as a whole, were most enjoyable.
Monday, 21 July 2008
re-cycling
Well, a couple of months on from its original ill-fated date (or is that ill-dated fate?), the Brissie To The Bay bike ride has rolled around again. This Sunday at the quite unreasonable hour of 7am, I'll be pushing the treadly from Musgrave Park out to Wynnum and back, for a total of 50km.
All proceeds go to help people with Multiple Sclerosis. To sponsor me (those who haven't already), just grab a credit card and head over here. If you'd rather wait to see whether I actually make it, that's a sound strategy, and I'll be sure to post here after the event to let you know.
All proceeds go to help people with Multiple Sclerosis. To sponsor me (those who haven't already), just grab a credit card and head over here. If you'd rather wait to see whether I actually make it, that's a sound strategy, and I'll be sure to post here after the event to let you know.
Saturday, 19 July 2008
the days continue
Things continue.
At work, we're coming up to another drop deadline with our project leader, next Thursday. This time he's bringing with him a chap who might be interesting in commercialising the software, which adds a little bit of pressure.
Paul had a health scare last week. He had been getting dizzy and nauseous when he stood up for too long, which worsened during the week, and he wound up in hospital on Wednesday. Fortunately, they worked out what it was, and he's out now and although it won't go away, he's able to deal with it.
Trivia continued under that shadow - after what we thought wasn't our best effort, we finished strongly and came in a credible 8th. Craig and Em were a surprise sighting playing for Specials - we managed to pip them by 2 spots, which felt good :)
Last night we had a group outing to the movies, corresponding in membership to our trivia squad - Jesse, Ali, Julie, a freshly discharged Paul, Andy and me. We saw Dark Knight, and were all very impressed, I think. I had been a little bit ambivalent about Heath Ledger, but his turn in this was really very impressive, and made me feel a bit sad that we won't be able to see him develop in that role and as an actor.
This morning, I'm running my machines. Scheduled weekend laundry, a run for the bread machine passed on to me from Mum, a very good coffee from my espresso machine, and a bit of a blog on my new black ted :)
At work, we're coming up to another drop deadline with our project leader, next Thursday. This time he's bringing with him a chap who might be interesting in commercialising the software, which adds a little bit of pressure.
Paul had a health scare last week. He had been getting dizzy and nauseous when he stood up for too long, which worsened during the week, and he wound up in hospital on Wednesday. Fortunately, they worked out what it was, and he's out now and although it won't go away, he's able to deal with it.
Trivia continued under that shadow - after what we thought wasn't our best effort, we finished strongly and came in a credible 8th. Craig and Em were a surprise sighting playing for Specials - we managed to pip them by 2 spots, which felt good :)
Last night we had a group outing to the movies, corresponding in membership to our trivia squad - Jesse, Ali, Julie, a freshly discharged Paul, Andy and me. We saw Dark Knight, and were all very impressed, I think. I had been a little bit ambivalent about Heath Ledger, but his turn in this was really very impressive, and made me feel a bit sad that we won't be able to see him develop in that role and as an actor.
This morning, I'm running my machines. Scheduled weekend laundry, a run for the bread machine passed on to me from Mum, a very good coffee from my espresso machine, and a bit of a blog on my new black ted :)
Wednesday, 16 July 2008
futures
Yesterday I went along to a meeting to do with developing a new research program for the next iteration of the construction CRC (to which I'm seconded this year). There was a lot of talk about the network the CRC has developed, the shared but not identical research goals of the faculty and the CRC, and about co-investment to further those goals.
Afterwards, I had a chat with Karen about the subtexts of the meeting. I had felt that I was essentially there as a show of force for my (absent) boss, but Karen made me think about whether that's really the case.
I haven't really thought much about my career path in the last year or so; I've been happy enough to just toil away at whatever I've been working on, without thinking about where it might be leading. Yesterday made me wonder whether the time has come to work out where I want to be heading, and to make some moves towards getting there.
Afterwards, I had a chat with Karen about the subtexts of the meeting. I had felt that I was essentially there as a show of force for my (absent) boss, but Karen made me think about whether that's really the case.
I haven't really thought much about my career path in the last year or so; I've been happy enough to just toil away at whatever I've been working on, without thinking about where it might be leading. Yesterday made me wonder whether the time has come to work out where I want to be heading, and to make some moves towards getting there.
a few more games
I backed up after my weekend of golf, for another game, this time with Neil, Andy and Dave at Vic Park. We played ambrose matchplay again, and Neil and I got up 3-and-1, shooting 78 (+13) for the round. My driving was appalling, but since my irons were OK (albeit not great) and Vic Park is so short, it didn't matter. More importantly, my putting was very good again - I didn't hit as many long putts as the previous week, but I can only recall missing one short-to-mid-range one all day.
On Monday night, Matt and I went for a hit of tennis at Laff's. We hit the ball well considering we haven't played for probably a couple of months. After quite a bit of hitting up, including a workshop on between-the-legs lob chasing, we had a set. I won the first 6-1, getting my serve going and not letting Matt into any sort of rhythm, and Matt was up 3-2 with a break in the second when we called it quits.
On Monday night, Matt and I went for a hit of tennis at Laff's. We hit the ball well considering we haven't played for probably a couple of months. After quite a bit of hitting up, including a workshop on between-the-legs lob chasing, we had a set. I won the first 6-1, getting my serve going and not letting Matt into any sort of rhythm, and Matt was up 3-2 with a break in the second when we called it quits.
Tuesday, 15 July 2008
plain colours only
I've gone away from posting and commenting on news reports lately, but this one piqued my interest.
So let me get this straight. No national flags/symbols. At the Olympics. Didn't we popularise sport in order to provide a safer outlet for partisan feelings? If you can't wave a flag at the olympics, exactly where can you wave a flag??? The more I think about this, the more confused I become.
Also, the idea of a (the) major sporting event without commercial images is just hilarious. Of course, the official sponsors will still be plastered everywhere, I expect, so having a ridiculous regime is the best thing that ever happened to the official sponsors.
(I struggled for a word here - totalitarian and oppressive go too far - but I reckon there can be no debate that the organisers are open to ridicule, especially if they sanction policies like this one).
So if we rule out sporting national images, commercial images, political images, religious images, what can we wear? Plain colours, I guess. Except orange (the Dutch, the Irish), red (communism), green (environmentalism), black (black power), white (nihilism), blue (depression), yellow (cowardice), purple (sexual frustration).
Better go nude.
So let me get this straight. No national flags/symbols. At the Olympics. Didn't we popularise sport in order to provide a safer outlet for partisan feelings? If you can't wave a flag at the olympics, exactly where can you wave a flag??? The more I think about this, the more confused I become.
Also, the idea of a (the) major sporting event without commercial images is just hilarious. Of course, the official sponsors will still be plastered everywhere, I expect, so having a ridiculous regime is the best thing that ever happened to the official sponsors.
(I struggled for a word here - totalitarian and oppressive go too far - but I reckon there can be no debate that the organisers are open to ridicule, especially if they sanction policies like this one).
So if we rule out sporting national images, commercial images, political images, religious images, what can we wear? Plain colours, I guess. Except orange (the Dutch, the Irish), red (communism), green (environmentalism), black (black power), white (nihilism), blue (depression), yellow (cowardice), purple (sexual frustration).
Better go nude.
Tuesday, 8 July 2008
flogging a wet horse
The weekend began, as it is wont to do, Friday night. Andy's birthday party was held with a hobo theme, in Mick's backyard, replete with 44-gallon drum for a fire and brown paper bags to drink out of. The costumes were pretty solid, especially Ali and Andy (I thought), and it was a pretty good night.
Meanwhile, the sporting plan for the weekend was solid: 18 holes at St Lucia on Saturday morning, 18 at Vic Park on Sunday morning.
We played about 6 holes on Saturday before the rain arrived, and 4 holes afterwards, with decreasing satisfaction to be had. I was 4 over or so through the first 6, but started haemorrhaging shots pretty quickly once it started getting slippery. By the 10th, I didn't care any more, and we walked back. I reckon I had about 44 for the 9 holes. The highlight was knocking a 5-wood about 3 metres away on the allegedly-par-4 3rd hole (251m on the card, but playing about 204m), although I missed the eagle putt. Neil struggled a bit, and had 72 for the 9 holes - he's slightly better than that, and improving.
The weather was better for Sunday at Vic Park. I putted better, I reckon, than I've ever putted in my life, draining 3 or 4 long putts including a 6m bomb on the first, and also chipping in at one point. I was 12-over through 14 holes and looking at a good score, but I had brain explosions on the 15th (a +6 10) and 18th (a +4 7) to finish with an 89 (+24) for the 18 holes. With the exception of the 15th, I drove pretty well, avoiding the slice I'd been struggling with, and at one point knocking a driver over the green on a 228-metre par 4. As for the others, Matt had 92 and Lach 94, the latter having the shot of the day knocking a 3-iron stiff to a metre and a half and making the putt for birdie.
After that effort, a beverage was warranted, so we headed to the Ice Bar for a beer. We were joined there by Lach's better 'arf Kirsty, and her friend Alex. Good chat continued until the bar closed around 10, at which point we rejoined to Kirsty's place for some wine and a gander at the first set of Fed-Nadal. I was very impressed by Kirsty and Alex, and the crowd they represent, whom I had met but not engaged much with at Lach's birthday last month.
Meanwhile, the sporting plan for the weekend was solid: 18 holes at St Lucia on Saturday morning, 18 at Vic Park on Sunday morning.
We played about 6 holes on Saturday before the rain arrived, and 4 holes afterwards, with decreasing satisfaction to be had. I was 4 over or so through the first 6, but started haemorrhaging shots pretty quickly once it started getting slippery. By the 10th, I didn't care any more, and we walked back. I reckon I had about 44 for the 9 holes. The highlight was knocking a 5-wood about 3 metres away on the allegedly-par-4 3rd hole (251m on the card, but playing about 204m), although I missed the eagle putt. Neil struggled a bit, and had 72 for the 9 holes - he's slightly better than that, and improving.
The weather was better for Sunday at Vic Park. I putted better, I reckon, than I've ever putted in my life, draining 3 or 4 long putts including a 6m bomb on the first, and also chipping in at one point. I was 12-over through 14 holes and looking at a good score, but I had brain explosions on the 15th (a +6 10) and 18th (a +4 7) to finish with an 89 (+24) for the 18 holes. With the exception of the 15th, I drove pretty well, avoiding the slice I'd been struggling with, and at one point knocking a driver over the green on a 228-metre par 4. As for the others, Matt had 92 and Lach 94, the latter having the shot of the day knocking a 3-iron stiff to a metre and a half and making the putt for birdie.
After that effort, a beverage was warranted, so we headed to the Ice Bar for a beer. We were joined there by Lach's better 'arf Kirsty, and her friend Alex. Good chat continued until the bar closed around 10, at which point we rejoined to Kirsty's place for some wine and a gander at the first set of Fed-Nadal. I was very impressed by Kirsty and Alex, and the crowd they represent, whom I had met but not engaged much with at Lach's birthday last month.
Friday, 4 July 2008
the right to arm bears
The new season of trivia started last night, and our new team, The Right To Arm Bears, made a creditable start by coming in 6th. Members included regulars Paul, Julie, Jim and Mick, and newcomers Jesse and Ali, who made valuable contributions to do with the offspring of tennis and soap stars.
My personal highlight was getting the Teletubbies question right. We also won a bottle of wine for knowing the year One Nation were at their peak. Mareeba FTW!
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