BrowserMetrics

Where can you find useless USB dongles? Are they still making them or has the switch to USB 3 made them obsolete? Or has lightening made them obsolete, too?

Labels: NewsRadio quote, photo

"Suki desu" LOL! Sawa-chan.

Sawako-sensei is always good fun. Who would've known a rocker was hidden in such a kawaii package?

Labels: K-ON, music break, NewsRadio quote

Quote of the Day [9.24.13]

"Remember we're all in this alone"

Lily Tomlin

Labels: NewsRadio quote

Julia Marlowe, by Irving Ramsey Wiles, Oil on canvas, 1901, photo by browsermetrics

After the birthday luncheon, we wandered over to the National Portrait Gallery. It's my first time there and I will tell you it's an overlooked gem of a museum. It's got a great collection of portraits from the earliest Americans to the most recent generation. It's also got a wonderful atrium, which is now my iPhone wallpaper.

Currently, they have a display of Union Generals by renowned Civil War photographer, Matthew Brady. They are small prints from the original negatives, and they look like baseball cards. It's nice to think about what the back of these cards would say: winning percentage - 0.756, rebels killed - 14574, errors - 4.

My favorite is the portrait above of Julia Marlowe, an actress. The relaxed position of her right arm, the look in her eyes, her leaning out toward you is arresting. It stopped me dead in my tracks, and I had to read the caption next to the portrait. That's the power of art and a uniqueness in portraiture.

It's a wonderful place to visit if you want to avoid the hustle and bustle of the museums on the Mall.

Labels: art, NewsRadio quote

Have you seen the new illustrations on the cover of the Harry Potter novels? Of course you have. You're staring at one now. They are amazing. I already own the set, but after seeing these I want to purchase them again.

Labels: art, Harry Potter, NewsRadio quote

There is no content on this post. I just wanted a post today.

Why is it that the animated films I watch in autumn end up being my favorites for the year?

Labels: animated, anniversaire, just asking, NewsRadio quote

Ue o Muite Arukou or its title in English, Sukiyaki, was part of the soundtrack to From Up on Poppy Hill. The song really doesn't have anything to do with sukiyaki does it?

Anyway, watch the movie or listen to the song, and feel the melancholy.

An aside, the tune was the basis for an American hit in the 80s. A song whose lyrics form the basis of one of rap's greatest hits, La Di Da Di.

It's all because of you.
I'm feeling sad and blue.
You went away
And now my life is filled with rainy days.
I love you so
How much you'll never know
'Cause you took your love away from me

Labels: lyrics, music break, NewsRadio quote, you'll need babelfish

Pulled from the Shelves: From Up on Poppy Hill

The great animation director Hayao Miyazaki announced his retirement this past week. He'll be sorely missed, but if Ghibli continues to make animated films as lovely as From Up on Poppy Hill, the studio is in good hands.

From Up on Poppy Hill is directed by Miyazaki's son, Goro Miyazaki. The father wrote the screenplay based on a shojo manga from the early 80s. Ghibli films are known for their leading ladies. Choosing a shojo manga heroine is natural. Although, this is the first time one can say that Ghibli is doing a moe film.

Moe? Yes. It's got plenty of tropes from anime of the last few years: twin tails, seifuku, school clubs, school setting. For a second, From Up on Poppy Hill feels almost like any anime lately. That doesn't really detract from it. I'm only noticing because of the amount of anime I've been watching.

The plot revolves around young love. The heroine falls for the charismatic editor of the school newspaper. She helps him in saving the old club house building from being demolished. They are meant to be together but certain family ties stand in their way.

It's a simple film. Girl meets boy. Girl falls for boy. Boy falls for girl. They both are in love. Plain and simple.

I bought the Blu-Ray/DVD combo and I have both discs in both TVs ready to be watched. The English dub is completely different than the original Japanese. Goro Miyazaki trusts his viewers to understand what's showing on the screen. The English dub doesn't; it opens with a voice over from the heroine setting the scene fro the rest of movie. The Japanese version opens with just the soundtrack playing following the heroine as she wakes up, prepares breakfast, and gets ready for the day. We are meant to infer what's happening, let the story unfold, and figure out the setting. That's trust by showing and not telling.

Animation is not a genre. It's a technic. This film could easily have been live action. I'm glad that Ghibli did it animated. Animation isn't just for kids. Plenty of stories can be animated. I wish more directors chose it. Thank you Hayao Miyazaki.

4 of 5 stars.

Labels: animated, anime, movies, NewsRadio quote, review, the shelves

Wired commemorates 50 years of X-Men by offering up 10 essential X-Men story lines. The usual suspects are there, Giant Size X-Men #1, Days of Future Past, The Dark Phoenix Saga, as well as mid 90s comic desolation crossovers and latter day reboots. They've hit a good set of stories and arcs to give an overview of the who, what, and why of the X-Men. But like all lists that try to categorize something I have more than a passing knowledge of, it's missing a few arcs that I would deem essential.

I've been an X-Men fan since I started reading comics. I am still picking up the latest issues even when I have no idea what is going on. Now, I'm not familiar with the mid and late 90s X-Men, but I want to add to that list.

I would add a few of the first issues: The X-Men #1-3. I own a copy of #3 with the Blob as the villain. Any list about the X-Men should include the origin stories!

I would add the run of classic Chris Claremont from the mid-80s. These were the stories I grew up on. I would start with the Shi'ar/Brood arc (#155) and run through the Wolverine/Mariko wedding in Japan (#174). That's at least twenty issues of Claremont. It's not leaning on John Byrne, but Claremont on his own.

I would add the Fall of the Mutants arc. The story line I came back to reading the X-Men after a couple years off.

I would add Inferno because that was the last meaningful arc I read.

I have yet to catch up to all the X-Men comics. There's been a lot that happened to them. I should try to catch up on some kind of wiki.

Labels: comics, geeked, NewsRadio quote

Labels: meta, NewsRadio quote, whining

My Panasonic Blu-Ray player is the worst.

When it plays through the special features, it hangs. Nothing. Usually, it should return you to the special features menu. It doesn't. I have yet to figure out how to get it back. I usually restart the machine, and when I say restart I mean a hard shutdown pulling the plug with a restart. Remind me to never play a special feature through.

It's also slow to respond to user input. I have no idea when I press the on button when it will actually respond. So you press it two or three times and now you may have shut it off.

There is no navigation back to the main menu. It's a little pop-up which doesn't seem to show everything. Is this Blu-Ray? Can they get software developers on this?

Labels: NewsRadio quote, surly

Shimmering waves!

Labels: music break, NewsRadio quote, surfing

Quote of the Day [9.05.13]

"And then what did he do? Did he train you? Did he rehearse you? Did he tell you exactly what to do, what to say? You were a very apt pupil too, weren't you? You were a very apt pupil! Well, why did you pick on me? Why me?"

Scottie (Jimmy Stewart), Vertigo

Labels: Hitchcock, NewsRadio quote, qotd

The War on Fat: Dog days of August.



It goes up this time of year. If I was losing ground the previous month, then I'm giving up gains this past month. It's what happens.

Basically, I just felt like eating.

Also, I spent the month offline not working out to let my elbow heal.

It's time to return to some serious work. Can I really get down under 200 pounds by the end of the year? Not sure. It's going to have to be salad and yogurt or some kind of diet to get me going. And I just lowered the bar!

Labels: fat war, get off your butt, NewsRadio quote

Quote of the Day [9.01.13]

Look at the birds in the sky: They do not sow, or reap, or gather into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them.

Matthew 6:26

Labels: disaster, Hitchcock, NewsRadio quote, qotd

Closed Circuit

I think I'm the only person living in America wanting to go see Closed Circuit. It's because I've got the hots for Rebecca Hall. So, I tricked my mom to catch an early Saturday show. It bored the hell of her. I was too busy looking at the beauty on the screen to see that it was really a average pot boiler.

The film's plot is about 2 English barristers (they wear wigs!) who have to defend an accused terrorist. Eric Bana is the terrorist's main lawyer who gets the job after the original defender jumped from a building. Rebecca Hall is the terrorist's special activist for the top secret trial. Both have a sordid history in the past which may conflict with their sworn duty, and both have to defend themselves from a higher power keeping them from unravelling the true mystery of the terrorist bombing.

The film plays out as you expect it. "Trust no one." When terrorism is on trial, question all motives from the terrorist to the prosecution. Every one is under suspicion.

The movie even though boring at times is thoroughly adequate for a late summer/September release. You'll forget about it by the time the leaves change color. You'll remember it when it comes time to think about Rebecca Hall.

3 of 5 stars.

Labels: movies, NewsRadio quote, review