For my fans from high school, you may be thinking this post will be about my mutton chops, but imma save that topic for later (for my other fans--my chops were named Thunderbolts and Lightening). Actually, by popular demand Imma post about meteorology. Around 3PM today there was a red alert for Thundersnow, which has piqued my interest in Xtreme weather.
Many scientists debate the defination of Xtreme weather, especially whether it should include whirlpools, rouge waves, that big red spot on Jupitor, and other natural disturbances which, while cool, are unrelated to Earth's atmosphere. I like to embrace all things, but for purposes of this post imma confine myself to events associated with the jetstream.
Though i've been known to crouch down like a hunchback and run like the dickens when i'm outside in a thunderstorm (when you're my height, it's only prudent), I actually love thunderstorms, on the condition that i'm protected from the lightening (FACT: IT IS THE LIGHTENING, NOT THE THUNDER, THAT IS DANGEROUS). One time @Sagar and I went driving around Lawrence during a crazy storm and sagar kept screaming "The wrath of nature!". It was kinda scary at the time but tight in hindsight. Also, it was a fun scary like when you see a gross bug in an aquarium. But my fans are here for learning, not yarn-spinning (we'll see how they like my upcoming post on arts and crafts lol). Thunderstorms are caused when nature has decided its been too boring and should spice things up--that's why many cultures call thunderstorms the oregano of the gods.
Some thunderstorms are extra spicy, and these we call tornados. Tornados are tight (except the mile wide ones lol), especially because they spurred the invention of basements. In most houses the basement is the coolest room (especially when there's a ping pong table), and for this we can thank tornados.
One of the most unlikely types of weather is THUNDERSNOW. This phenomenon occurs when a disturbance in the stratosphere causes snowflakes to hit each other really hard. FACT: EVERY SNOWFLAKE IS UNIQUE. The best part about Thundersnow is that it usually cancels work, e.g. this afternoon. Also, I associate it with sledding, like the time last winter when the Kimmler and I slid down that hill on a blow up pool toy. KAWABUNGA!
Hurricanes are also kinda interesting, especially Hurricane Andrew. Overall, i like weather and hope there're some cool storms this year, but that no one gets hurt and everyone is entertained.
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Tips for living with a non-dude
As my fans know, about 7 months ago I moved in with @alison, the most awesome person ever. But her awesomeness notwithstanding, it has been an adjustment living with a non-dude. Since I was 18, I've lived with just dudes (yes jon, that includes you lol). It was a great time. When I lived with Steve and Sagar, we used to play poker and have kick-offs (where Sagar and I would run around the house and practice karate kicks). Living with Milhouse and Torre taught me to fend off a semi feral cat, as well as plenty of germs. We also had awesome interior design (eg the Alf for President poster). Living with Jon and Mikey was tight because we had an extra room for all our stuff (mostly their trendy clothing). And the pinecone is legendary and a perfect habitat for dudes. After several moves in Arlington and a good spell at Dude Manor with Jon, I moved in with @alison, and i've learned a lot about civilization and non-dude living. Since even Milk will probably some day live with a chick, I think it's useful to pass on some of the lessons i've learned about harmonous inter-gender life.
1) Clothing, whether clean or dirty, must be kept seperately, preferably in some sort of enclosed space, such as a drawer. When i first moved in with @alison, I didn't have a dressor. I'd hang up my work shirts, but generally I could tell if something was clean or dirty by some sort of special sense (maybe smell, idk). Well, after a week of that system, Alison was having none of it. So, i bought an old dresser from Ion, my Romanian colleague. Now I keep my clean clothes in these drawers, and it helps me seperate things, like dark socks and underwear. Sorting clean clothes is a step, but it's not enough. It's maybe more important to hide dirty clothes. I used to have a little laundry basket that i kept for show, though mostly i just left laundry strewn about wily nily. Unfortunately this system did not contain odors. Alison has taught me that my odors are houdini-esque, meaning that they'll escape if uncontained. So, i bought something called a "hamper", which like a grill has a lid, but instead of cooking meat you put your dirty clothes in there. It makes it a bit harder to do laundry, since i have to lift the lid and move things in a pile to the washingmachine, but apparently it makes the apt smell better (idk, but whatevs). Oh yeah, and also, when doing laundry, it is important to clean out the lint from the dryer and to put in a dryer sheet.
2) Cleaning the dishes is also more complicated. After you clean them, you have to 1) Let them dry, and most importantly 2) Wring out the sponge. Sponges can soak in odors and germs, but even though they only cost a dollar, it is important that they last long. So now i always try to remember to squeeze it out. Also, only certain sponges are acceptable for non-stick pans. Speaking of non-stick pans, apparently you can't use silverware on these, but instead you must treat a special spoon in essense of apricot palm oil before you can put it in the non-stick pan. Even when you use the specially treated delicate non-stick pan ladle, you're suppossed to immediately wrap the non-stick pan in silk and softly sing lullabies to it. Only then will the non-stick pans retain their beauty and innocence.
3) Falling asleep with a twitter-machine on one's chest makes it so the bedroom isn't dark enough to sleep. It is important to turn off one's twitter-machine before going to sleep.
4) Even though everyone will eventually open all the cupboards anyway, it is important to close them after each use.
5) Towels are person-specific, and must be washed. These points are related, and really baffle me, but i've accepted them. To most dudes, it is illogical to care what towel to use unless it is decor.ated with a jayhawk or other cool mythical creature. I mean, one only uses the towel to dry off after a shower, so obvi it's clean, so who cares who uses it, and there's no need to wash it. Well, i'll tell you who cares--a non-dude. Even after a shower, a person can still transmit ickyness to a towel, so they need to be washed every few days, and should not be shared amongst roomates.
6) Shaving doesn't end when one's face is as smooth as joel's. In fact, shaving creates little whiskers that, like sand, get everywhere. The most obvious solution is to just wipe them onto the floor and kind of kick them around so they spread out, but non-dudes have a special sense for detecting stray whiskers (it's kind of like "smell" but a bit different). So, it is important that one follows shaving with a thorough wipe down of the sink, or else just shave in the shower.
7) Similar to whiskers, non-dudes are very sensitive about fingernails and toenails. I don't really understand why these things suddenly become gross just because they've been disconnected from my body (i mean, my hands aren't gross, even though they've got fingernails on them, but suddenly i trim those fingernails and all the sudden they're gross?). But anyway, it is important to trim your nails over a trash can, and to look for any escapees. And if you're like me and hate trimming your toenails (i can barely breath when i try to reach them lol), then you should sleep with socks on so as to protect your partner.
Well fans if you follow the above advice, you'll have an awesome relationship and only argue about what's for dinner (hint: not pizza if you've had it 2 nights in a row).
1) Clothing, whether clean or dirty, must be kept seperately, preferably in some sort of enclosed space, such as a drawer. When i first moved in with @alison, I didn't have a dressor. I'd hang up my work shirts, but generally I could tell if something was clean or dirty by some sort of special sense (maybe smell, idk). Well, after a week of that system, Alison was having none of it. So, i bought an old dresser from Ion, my Romanian colleague. Now I keep my clean clothes in these drawers, and it helps me seperate things, like dark socks and underwear. Sorting clean clothes is a step, but it's not enough. It's maybe more important to hide dirty clothes. I used to have a little laundry basket that i kept for show, though mostly i just left laundry strewn about wily nily. Unfortunately this system did not contain odors. Alison has taught me that my odors are houdini-esque, meaning that they'll escape if uncontained. So, i bought something called a "hamper", which like a grill has a lid, but instead of cooking meat you put your dirty clothes in there. It makes it a bit harder to do laundry, since i have to lift the lid and move things in a pile to the washingmachine, but apparently it makes the apt smell better (idk, but whatevs). Oh yeah, and also, when doing laundry, it is important to clean out the lint from the dryer and to put in a dryer sheet.
2) Cleaning the dishes is also more complicated. After you clean them, you have to 1) Let them dry, and most importantly 2) Wring out the sponge. Sponges can soak in odors and germs, but even though they only cost a dollar, it is important that they last long. So now i always try to remember to squeeze it out. Also, only certain sponges are acceptable for non-stick pans. Speaking of non-stick pans, apparently you can't use silverware on these, but instead you must treat a special spoon in essense of apricot palm oil before you can put it in the non-stick pan. Even when you use the specially treated delicate non-stick pan ladle, you're suppossed to immediately wrap the non-stick pan in silk and softly sing lullabies to it. Only then will the non-stick pans retain their beauty and innocence.
3) Falling asleep with a twitter-machine on one's chest makes it so the bedroom isn't dark enough to sleep. It is important to turn off one's twitter-machine before going to sleep.
4) Even though everyone will eventually open all the cupboards anyway, it is important to close them after each use.
5) Towels are person-specific, and must be washed. These points are related, and really baffle me, but i've accepted them. To most dudes, it is illogical to care what towel to use unless it is decor.ated with a jayhawk or other cool mythical creature. I mean, one only uses the towel to dry off after a shower, so obvi it's clean, so who cares who uses it, and there's no need to wash it. Well, i'll tell you who cares--a non-dude. Even after a shower, a person can still transmit ickyness to a towel, so they need to be washed every few days, and should not be shared amongst roomates.
6) Shaving doesn't end when one's face is as smooth as joel's. In fact, shaving creates little whiskers that, like sand, get everywhere. The most obvious solution is to just wipe them onto the floor and kind of kick them around so they spread out, but non-dudes have a special sense for detecting stray whiskers (it's kind of like "smell" but a bit different). So, it is important that one follows shaving with a thorough wipe down of the sink, or else just shave in the shower.
7) Similar to whiskers, non-dudes are very sensitive about fingernails and toenails. I don't really understand why these things suddenly become gross just because they've been disconnected from my body (i mean, my hands aren't gross, even though they've got fingernails on them, but suddenly i trim those fingernails and all the sudden they're gross?). But anyway, it is important to trim your nails over a trash can, and to look for any escapees. And if you're like me and hate trimming your toenails (i can barely breath when i try to reach them lol), then you should sleep with socks on so as to protect your partner.
Well fans if you follow the above advice, you'll have an awesome relationship and only argue about what's for dinner (hint: not pizza if you've had it 2 nights in a row).
Spoons, forks, sporks, and knives
It's sunday, so that means its google day. As my fans know, I promised to blog about the history of utensils. Though i majored in history, I must confess that i'm no expert on culinary evolution (though i do love to eat lol). Frankly, my promise of fork blogging was just something that popped into my head at the time. But I'm a man of my word.
Full disclosure: I'm an unabashed spoon partisan. Whereas most people consider the fork the "go-to" utensil (I really have no idea, but it seems that way. If any tech-savy fans want to start a poll, i'd be interested in the results), I myself favor the spoon. Assuming the Veil of Ignorance (Jown Rawls, A Theory of Justice, 1971), meaning that I had to go through life with just one utensil, I would definetly choose a spoon. A spoon is so much better at scooping than a fork, and I think I get fuller bites when spoon-fed. Some argue that a fork brings more cutting prowess to the table (so to speak, lol!), but I think the shear (lol) number of spoon-centric meals in my diet (e.g., kitchens of india, soup, rice bowls) outweighs any cutting advantage of the fork. Besides, I can eat a pancake with a spoon, but I can't eat cereal with a fork. QED.
So anyway, im actually pretty interested in how the spoon, fork, and knife combo became the norm. As my twitheads know, i'm all about questioning norms and analyzing the geneology of accepted patterns of behavior. Some may think that forks, knives, and spoons are just inevietable, objectively necesary eating accessories, but I say "au contraire Pierre!" (i often assume my imaginary intellectual sparring partners are named Pierre). Look at the land of China--they use chopsticks. Now i'll grant that there are probably a limited number of utensil shape options for a bipedal species such as our own (i mean, obvi a tentical-centric species would have little use for our knives), but if the popularity (well, i should probably just say common usage, since popularity is a meaningless concept when there's not much choice involved) of our three utensil norm was merely a matter of utility, then the spork would be on every dinner table (whew, what a sentence lol).
In prehistoric times, cavemen used spears to kill their food, so it was only natural to use little tiny spears to pick at their food when eating. In these little tiny spears we see the origin of both chopsticks and forks. With the invention of stew (a pre-cursur to chunky soup), our ancestors had to come up with a new mechanism for moving morsels to mouths. Many cavemen were content to just schwangle their stew straight from the bucket, but this method tended to create major spills and make their caveman beards start to smell. Thus, the cavewives created the first ladle by tying a wicker basket to a stick.
The tiny spear and wicker ladle combonation was dominant until the Iron Age, when humans learned how to weld. Scientists have discovered proto-forks in the city Ur. Most importantly, metalworking allowed humans to finally create a usable spoon. Whereas the whicker basket and stick combination was allright for wooly mammoth stew, it didn't work so well for the lighter stews poplular in warm mesopotamia, e.g, gespacho. There were several advances in ladle technology (e.g., using dried mud to fill the holes in the wicker basket), but it was the ancient Greeks who revolutionized the soup-to-mouth trip. Pythagorus discovered that if one filled a wicker basket with metal and let it sit, it would form a non-porourous depression that one could fill with stew (and later, soup and kitchens of india). This invention caught on, and soon the spoon became a staple at fashionable Athenien tables.
The Greeks also invented the fork as we know it. As I mentioned before, scientists have discovered proto-forks in mesopotamia. These forks were essentially little daggers welded together. The Greeks looked to their God Neptune, who wielded a trident. They decided this would be a good model for the table, so they made little tiny tridents, which soon accompanied the spoon as a go-to combination.
The Romans essentially copied the Greeks, though they spread the spoon and fork combo across the Mediterranian basin. They also loved spaghetti, which could only be eaten with a good spoon/fork combo.
During the middle ages, people often just used dried up breadcrusts to cut their food. Then during the Victorian age some British twit invented the salad fork, which is just reduntant.
So that's basically how our utensils came to be. I advocate wider use of the spork, but for now, i'll just be thankful to that unknown genius cavewoman who first tied a wicker basket to a stick. Otherwise, we might all be trying to eat our kitchens of india with little spears.
Full disclosure: I'm an unabashed spoon partisan. Whereas most people consider the fork the "go-to" utensil (I really have no idea, but it seems that way. If any tech-savy fans want to start a poll, i'd be interested in the results), I myself favor the spoon. Assuming the Veil of Ignorance (Jown Rawls, A Theory of Justice, 1971), meaning that I had to go through life with just one utensil, I would definetly choose a spoon. A spoon is so much better at scooping than a fork, and I think I get fuller bites when spoon-fed. Some argue that a fork brings more cutting prowess to the table (so to speak, lol!), but I think the shear (lol) number of spoon-centric meals in my diet (e.g., kitchens of india, soup, rice bowls) outweighs any cutting advantage of the fork. Besides, I can eat a pancake with a spoon, but I can't eat cereal with a fork. QED.
So anyway, im actually pretty interested in how the spoon, fork, and knife combo became the norm. As my twitheads know, i'm all about questioning norms and analyzing the geneology of accepted patterns of behavior. Some may think that forks, knives, and spoons are just inevietable, objectively necesary eating accessories, but I say "au contraire Pierre!" (i often assume my imaginary intellectual sparring partners are named Pierre). Look at the land of China--they use chopsticks. Now i'll grant that there are probably a limited number of utensil shape options for a bipedal species such as our own (i mean, obvi a tentical-centric species would have little use for our knives), but if the popularity (well, i should probably just say common usage, since popularity is a meaningless concept when there's not much choice involved) of our three utensil norm was merely a matter of utility, then the spork would be on every dinner table (whew, what a sentence lol).
In prehistoric times, cavemen used spears to kill their food, so it was only natural to use little tiny spears to pick at their food when eating. In these little tiny spears we see the origin of both chopsticks and forks. With the invention of stew (a pre-cursur to chunky soup), our ancestors had to come up with a new mechanism for moving morsels to mouths. Many cavemen were content to just schwangle their stew straight from the bucket, but this method tended to create major spills and make their caveman beards start to smell. Thus, the cavewives created the first ladle by tying a wicker basket to a stick.
The tiny spear and wicker ladle combonation was dominant until the Iron Age, when humans learned how to weld. Scientists have discovered proto-forks in the city Ur. Most importantly, metalworking allowed humans to finally create a usable spoon. Whereas the whicker basket and stick combination was allright for wooly mammoth stew, it didn't work so well for the lighter stews poplular in warm mesopotamia, e.g, gespacho. There were several advances in ladle technology (e.g., using dried mud to fill the holes in the wicker basket), but it was the ancient Greeks who revolutionized the soup-to-mouth trip. Pythagorus discovered that if one filled a wicker basket with metal and let it sit, it would form a non-porourous depression that one could fill with stew (and later, soup and kitchens of india). This invention caught on, and soon the spoon became a staple at fashionable Athenien tables.
The Greeks also invented the fork as we know it. As I mentioned before, scientists have discovered proto-forks in mesopotamia. These forks were essentially little daggers welded together. The Greeks looked to their God Neptune, who wielded a trident. They decided this would be a good model for the table, so they made little tiny tridents, which soon accompanied the spoon as a go-to combination.
The Romans essentially copied the Greeks, though they spread the spoon and fork combo across the Mediterranian basin. They also loved spaghetti, which could only be eaten with a good spoon/fork combo.
During the middle ages, people often just used dried up breadcrusts to cut their food. Then during the Victorian age some British twit invented the salad fork, which is just reduntant.
So that's basically how our utensils came to be. I advocate wider use of the spork, but for now, i'll just be thankful to that unknown genius cavewoman who first tied a wicker basket to a stick. Otherwise, we might all be trying to eat our kitchens of india with little spears.
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Das Rheingold
Opera review is back! A few months ago @alison and I went to see a simulcast of the Met's production of Das Rheingold. I was a bit skeptical of seeing an opera at a movie theatre, but it turned out tight. Before I get into my plot summary and performance assessment, i've gotta comment about the orchestra and the staging. James Levine conducted the show, and this dude rules. He's got a huge fro, and he's really enthusiastic for an old guy. Apparently he's recovering from a heart attack, but you wouldn't know it from his wild gesticulation. The guys arms were wilder than a coopt up rooster escaped from his cage and on chasing a wacky worm. The stage was crazy too--it has this big lighted struccture that they turned into a river (the rheine obvi), valhalla, and cave underworld.
So the plot is basically about how this dwarf who makes a magical ring that eventually brings down the gods. The first scene starts under the river, where these three chicks are guarding the gold that lies underneath the rheine. They're just kicking it when this dwarf comes along and starts hitting on them. The scene is kind of like Louise's circa 2006, and the rheinmaidens are having none of it. So the dwarf gets pissed, renounces love, and steals their gold. Turns out, this is magical gold, and someone who recounces love can turn it into a ring and become powerful.
Since the dwarf has renounced love and schwangled the gold, he becomes super powerful and starts to rule the underground caves. Instead of being a cool king and giving burritos to his people, he turns into a real grade A jerk and makes all the other dwarves slave away in the mines. Eric Owens played the dwarf and did a good job expressing his bitterness over love and his lust for power and shiny things.
MEANWHILE...Woton, the king of the gods, is kind of a dipass and hired these two giants to build him a badass castle, but like many americans, he didn't have the money to pay the giants. So the giants make like CountryWide and come and demand payment. So Wotan offers them his sister-in-law, but this doesn't go over so well with his wife. So then he calls on Loge, who is this wacky fun loving guy that kinda reminds me of Puck. So Loge tells them about some tight ring he heard about in the underworld that apparently some dwarf preferred to love. The giants decide they'll take the ring as payment, but if they don't have it the next day, then they'll demand Freia (Wotan's sister in law).
So Woton and Loge go into the underworld and see Albrecht the dwarf being an asshole to the other dwarves. Apparently Albrecht wants to make a magical helmet that would make him invisible. Woton or Loge ( i forget) dares Albrecht to turn himself into a toad, and Albrecht is a dipass and goes for it. Woton then puts the toad into a jar and after some hijinks, schwangles the ring. Albrehct is pretty pissed, but couldn't really do anything besides put a curse on the ring. Woton doesn't really care about some dwarf curse, though, and gives the ring to the giants and then Woton and some other gods go into their new castle. Prumably Woton has a big tv in the castle.
Generally i liked this opera. The music was tight, though you've got to be in the right mood. Its not jovial like the italian operas i've seen. My biggest complain is that all the charactors are kind of dipasses, well, besides Loge, who is pretty tight. But I feel kinda bad for the Gods, because Woton seems pretty dumb. I mean, if you're the king of the gods, it seems like you could just tell the giants to suck it, or mint some god coins, or something. The whole plot is based on Woton trying to pay off the giants, and that just seems like a weird power dynamic. But, the music was good and if you're in the right frame of mind its a tight show. B+
So the plot is basically about how this dwarf who makes a magical ring that eventually brings down the gods. The first scene starts under the river, where these three chicks are guarding the gold that lies underneath the rheine. They're just kicking it when this dwarf comes along and starts hitting on them. The scene is kind of like Louise's circa 2006, and the rheinmaidens are having none of it. So the dwarf gets pissed, renounces love, and steals their gold. Turns out, this is magical gold, and someone who recounces love can turn it into a ring and become powerful.
Since the dwarf has renounced love and schwangled the gold, he becomes super powerful and starts to rule the underground caves. Instead of being a cool king and giving burritos to his people, he turns into a real grade A jerk and makes all the other dwarves slave away in the mines. Eric Owens played the dwarf and did a good job expressing his bitterness over love and his lust for power and shiny things.
MEANWHILE...Woton, the king of the gods, is kind of a dipass and hired these two giants to build him a badass castle, but like many americans, he didn't have the money to pay the giants. So the giants make like CountryWide and come and demand payment. So Wotan offers them his sister-in-law, but this doesn't go over so well with his wife. So then he calls on Loge, who is this wacky fun loving guy that kinda reminds me of Puck. So Loge tells them about some tight ring he heard about in the underworld that apparently some dwarf preferred to love. The giants decide they'll take the ring as payment, but if they don't have it the next day, then they'll demand Freia (Wotan's sister in law).
So Woton and Loge go into the underworld and see Albrecht the dwarf being an asshole to the other dwarves. Apparently Albrecht wants to make a magical helmet that would make him invisible. Woton or Loge ( i forget) dares Albrecht to turn himself into a toad, and Albrecht is a dipass and goes for it. Woton then puts the toad into a jar and after some hijinks, schwangles the ring. Albrehct is pretty pissed, but couldn't really do anything besides put a curse on the ring. Woton doesn't really care about some dwarf curse, though, and gives the ring to the giants and then Woton and some other gods go into their new castle. Prumably Woton has a big tv in the castle.
Generally i liked this opera. The music was tight, though you've got to be in the right mood. Its not jovial like the italian operas i've seen. My biggest complain is that all the charactors are kind of dipasses, well, besides Loge, who is pretty tight. But I feel kinda bad for the Gods, because Woton seems pretty dumb. I mean, if you're the king of the gods, it seems like you could just tell the giants to suck it, or mint some god coins, or something. The whole plot is based on Woton trying to pay off the giants, and that just seems like a weird power dynamic. But, the music was good and if you're in the right frame of mind its a tight show. B+
Amacimprovementchallenge
So as my twitheads know, i'm on the #amacimprovementchallenge. This began one night at the Manor when Jon, Stone, and I were making bets, and I said that I bet that I could beat jon in a mile by at least a minute. Also, i've put on about 40 pounds since college, and I need to get back into shape. So starting January 3, I've been trying to eat better and spent more time at jim's. I got off to a hot start and went to the gym twice in a day. The first week was pretty intense, and i was running about three times a week, up to 2 miles. I ran a mile in about 7:45, which is probably about 3 minutes faster than jon can run. But then, this week i've been kinda lazy and haven't gone to jims, except this morning. But i've still been a bit better about my eating habits. I've had salad with light dressing for lunch most days, and my awesome starfish @alison has been making delicious and healthy soups after work. So far I've lost 3 pounds so far and i'm obviously confdent about my upcoming race.
Bigfoot
I'm kinda weird (obvi lol) in that I am fascinated by strange things, but ultimately i'm pretty skeptical. I think it was Hume who said assertions of wacky things require extraordinary evidence...or something like that. So, it seems unlikely that there's a large undiscovered primate living in North America. I mean, someone would've found incontrovertable proof by now. And yet...its so kewl to read about Bigfoot stories. There was this sick MonsterQuest a while ago where they set up cameras in an extremely remote cabin in Alaska. Apparently the previous year, the owner came to the cabin and found that it had been ransaked, but a jar of honey was untouched, so obvi it wasn't a bear...so all signs point to Bigfoot. And apparently this guy kept cool things in his cabin (i bet he had some tight lion carvings or something) and didn't want some big half human primate schwangling them. So, he watched Home Alone and decided to set up some traps and leave a tarantula in the cabin (since according to evolution bigfoot would be afraid of spiders). One of these traps was a piece of wood with nails in it, and when he came back later to the cabin, there was some blood on the wood trap. So Monsterquest came and tested the blood, and they couldn't rule out something freaky. So the MonsterQuest people stayed the night, and they reported a lot of strange noises at night. I suppose they've got an incentive to make is seem scarier than it really was, but it still gave me goosebumps. But then I activated my prefrontal cortex, and figured that it was probably just a bear, honey jar not withstanding. But still, its a cool story. Anyway, sometimes when i'm bored i read bigfoot stories at the bigfoot field researchers organization (www.bfro.net). They've got a big archive.
The Barber of Seville
Some of you may wonder why this blog is called Beingabarger. Amac, you may ask, (or are you asking yourself?), you're not a barber, so how would you know if its tight? Well, if you're cultured, you'll know that I am referencing an awesome Opera, The Barber of Seville, by Gioachino Rossini.
The Barber of Seville was the first Opera I saw, and oh buddy it was tight. The Overture is real kewl, with an exciting, fast pace. It may give some listeners a hankering for beef, since the cattle industry appropriated it for their "Beef, its what's for dinner" campaign. It gave me a hankering for chipotle, but that may be non-unique. But anyway, the Overture rules and definetly sets the mood for this wacky story of barber-assisted love.
The first scene is basically about a rich Count trying to woo this young widow. Since he aint looking for no golddiggers, he pretends to be a poor student (besides, chicks dig students). But a wreck of other dudes are trying to court this newly eligible non-dude, so he turns to the wisest dude in Seville, Figaro the Barber. And Figaro doesn't disappoint. He advises the Count to get drunk and pretend to be a solder on orders to stay at the house. Some hijinks ensue, but the Count is able to get a letter to Rosina (the object of his desire). But she still thinks he is a poor student, and doesn't know he's the count.
The Count gives Figaro a bunch of money to thank him for the genius idea of acting like a drunk soldier. This prompts Figaro to sign the famous song about how being a barber is tight. The opera is in Italian, but after the show i went home to look it up and the translation is essentially "As the town barber, I get to do a bunch of cool stuff all the time. I'm pretty busy, but its okay because I just cut a wreck of hair and talk to people."
There are some more hijinks, but bascially Rosina is in love with the Count, but she thinks he's a poor student. So, having determined that she loves him for his dance moves and wit instead of his money, the count reveals his true identity and then they get married. Figaro is the witness to the wedding, and then they all sing about how everything rules.
I definetly give this opera an A. There are cool charactors eg a count and a barber, the music is tight, and everyone has a good time. Definetly recommend you go see it. Or at least watch the Bug Bunny version (though i can't vouch for the story line there).
The Barber of Seville was the first Opera I saw, and oh buddy it was tight. The Overture is real kewl, with an exciting, fast pace. It may give some listeners a hankering for beef, since the cattle industry appropriated it for their "Beef, its what's for dinner" campaign. It gave me a hankering for chipotle, but that may be non-unique. But anyway, the Overture rules and definetly sets the mood for this wacky story of barber-assisted love.
The first scene is basically about a rich Count trying to woo this young widow. Since he aint looking for no golddiggers, he pretends to be a poor student (besides, chicks dig students). But a wreck of other dudes are trying to court this newly eligible non-dude, so he turns to the wisest dude in Seville, Figaro the Barber. And Figaro doesn't disappoint. He advises the Count to get drunk and pretend to be a solder on orders to stay at the house. Some hijinks ensue, but the Count is able to get a letter to Rosina (the object of his desire). But she still thinks he is a poor student, and doesn't know he's the count.
The Count gives Figaro a bunch of money to thank him for the genius idea of acting like a drunk soldier. This prompts Figaro to sign the famous song about how being a barber is tight. The opera is in Italian, but after the show i went home to look it up and the translation is essentially "As the town barber, I get to do a bunch of cool stuff all the time. I'm pretty busy, but its okay because I just cut a wreck of hair and talk to people."
There are some more hijinks, but bascially Rosina is in love with the Count, but she thinks he's a poor student. So, having determined that she loves him for his dance moves and wit instead of his money, the count reveals his true identity and then they get married. Figaro is the witness to the wedding, and then they all sing about how everything rules.
I definetly give this opera an A. There are cool charactors eg a count and a barber, the music is tight, and everyone has a good time. Definetly recommend you go see it. Or at least watch the Bug Bunny version (though i can't vouch for the story line there).
Things imma blog about
Hey fans! Welcome to my blog! I love reading about cool stuff on the internet, e.g., nebula, bigfoot, and the evolution of utensils. So, in the spirit of John F. Kennedy's exhortation to give back to that which gives you opportunity, I have decided to give back to the Internet by starting my own blog. I intend to blog about awesome things, so that others may enjoy the internet as much as I do. My twitheads will probably recognize some of the themes, but I am hoping to expand on some of these ideas. I won't limit myself to any particular topics, but I do hope to relate Opera to the common man, kind of like how @jennings brings halloween movies to the masses. I'll also blog about the #amacimprovementchallenge, so keep checking for updates, and be the first to know how badly I beat @jon in our mile race. Expect posts about pumpkin pie, parachutes, and dancing as well.
Well, here goes!
Well, here goes!
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