Hallelujah

Leonard Cohen is, undoubtedly, the man. His songs are like soundtracks for lonely motel rooms (it's a good thing!)...they're magically sombre.

Remember when they played Jeff Buckley's version of "Hallelujah" on the season one finale of The OC while Seth was sailing away on his boat? Ugh, so heartbreaking.

After seeing Leonard Cohen's performance below, I'm pretty bummed I didn't get a chance to see him when he was in the Bay Area. If he ever decides to come back, I'll be there...pumping my fist for the old man.

A ton of albums that I used to/still love but don't listen to

I used to buy lots and lots and lots of music—to the point where I stopped learning the lyrics to the songs...or even the song titles. Here is a fun little list of 10 20 a bunch of albums I used to have on repeat on my boombox.

Looks like I've got a lot of listening to do.

In alphabetical order:

Belle & Sebastian - If You're Feeling Sinister
Björk - Post
Blur - Parklife
The Charlatans - Some Friendly
The Cure - Wish
De La Soul - De La Soul is Dead
Digable Planets - Reachin' (A New Refutation of Time and Space)
DJ Shadow - Entroducing (I crashed my first car—not my fault—while listening to this CD on the way to class)
Erasure - Pop!
Erykah Badu - Mama's Gun
Grant Lee Buffalo - Might Joe Moon
Janet Jackson - Janet
The KLF - The White Room
Latyrx - The Album
Massive Attack - Mezzanine
Morphine - Cure for Pain
Morrissey - Bona Drag
Neutral Milk Hotel - In the Aeroplane Over the Sea
Oasis - All of them, including B-sides
O.M.D. - Best of O.M.D.
The Pharcyde - Bizarre Ride II The Pharcyde
Pink Floyd - Dark Side of the Moon
The Pixies - Doolittle
Pizzicato Five - Made in USA
Portishead - Portishead
Primal Scream - Screamadelica
Pulp - His N' Hers
Radiohead - The Bends
The Roots - Do You Want More?!!!??!
Soul Coughing - Ruby Vroom
Stan Getz & Joao Gilberto - Getz/Gilberto
Stereolab - Emporer Tomato Ketchup
The Strokes - Is This It?
Suede - Dog Man Star
Tortoise - TNT
Weezer - Weezer (Blue Album)
The White Stripes - De Stijl
Yo La Tengo - I Can Hear the Heart Beating As One

Better living through computer graphics

This video has popped up on pretty much every tech (and some non-tech) blog I visit, and it's totally justified. Alex Roman made a short film about architecture that is mind-blowingly beautiful and technically amazing. I couldn't believe this entire thing was made from CG. Even at full-screen, I couldn't tell it was CG because the animation is so ridiculously photorealistic, especially in the beginning. Have a look below. Do yourself a favor and put it on full-screen.

The Third & The Seventh from Alex Roman on Vimeo.

For those who still don't believe this is all CG, check is out:

Compositing Breakdown (T&S) from Alex Roman on Vimeo.

Not completely wasting my time

Lately I've been trying to spend my time doing things other than being online or at work. Or being online at work. Last week I volunteered at the San Francisco Food Bank. It's kinda fun in an assembly line kinda way. We repackaged bulk granola and brown rice into one-pound bags, which then went into boxes. My job was to do the initial filling of the bags as close to one pound as possible. I've discovered that I've got a knack for this (hitting one pound more often than not) and one of my teammates suggested that I'd be a good drug dealer.

I didn't really think about the people who would be there, but it was surprising that most of the people there were my age or younger. I guess I expected to see more of the mom type (because that's what I see on the news when they do stories on food banks during the holidays?? I don't know).

This year I'm also doing the Adopt-A-Family program at the Raphael House again. My friend Lucie told me about it and I thought it would be nice to contribute. The house is more or less a shelter for homeless children and families in the Tenderloin district of San Francisco. The program asks that you provide gifts for the children as well as a family gift and a gift card to some place practical like Safeway or Target. Last year I spent way more than I really should have, but it was really fun shopping for my girl and her family (hence the overdoing of the gifts).

My motivations aren't completely altruistic, though. Growing up, we were pretty poor and my parents used services similar to these and lately I've been feeling like I have a responsibility to "give back," as they say. If you have the time or money, you should, too. And not just because it's the holidays, but because I told you to.

You can email Anne at SF Food Bank (more info here) or Anna at Raphael House (more info here) if you are a good, decent person.


This stuff isn't going to repackage itself into one-pound bags.

One wasn't enough

Shortly after starting to contribute to Uyen's food blog, I wanted something even quicker and more instantly satisfying. It's a food diary filled with camera phone pictures of the things I eat throughout the day. Maybe I can sell it as a book one day. Probably not, though.

A song I still love

Sometimes I hear a song that I haven't heard in years and wonder "Why have I not heard it in years?" This Mortal Coil's cover of this song is much more wonderful than the original. Sorry, Tim. Also, how amazing is Elizabeth Fraser?




Link

Ha-ha funny

I just want to thank Kristen Wigg for keeping SNL funny when Tina Fey isn't doing her Sarah Palin impersonation.

On turning 30

Just over an hour ago I turned 30. For the first time on a birthday I felt like I'm getting older. That'll probably change tomorrow morning when I go back into work and do the same thing I was doing before my birthday. But tonight I'll just sit in front of the computer, try to do some work and contemplate 30 for a bit.

UPDATE: It's morning and I've contemplated and yeah, it's like any other age. BUT 30 did bring me this, the MOST ADORABLE birthday wish ever.



ONE MORE UPDATE: I was just sent this. SO cute.

Early birthday!

I'm taking a break from the China Diaries to report a perfect early birthday. This morning Patrick woke me up with a breakfast in bed. Eggs, ham and tasty toast. He also crocheted a beanie (!!!!) for me (see below).

After breakfast I was taken to the California Academy of Sciences, which I have been talking about on a regular basis. It was a great mixture of old and new. The T-Rex skeleton, the African Hall, the pendulum and the PENGUINS were there. Penguins pretty much are the bestest things on earth. A few new additions to the Academy included a living roof, a shark and ray pool, a new planetarium and a rain forest. The rain forest is by far my favorite new addition, where birds and butterflies zoom around freely. The only thing that sucked REAL HARD was that my camera crapped out again and I lost all the pictures I took at the Academy. Fucking shit fuck to that, man.

We went to Park Chow for lunch since it was right there on 9th Ave. If I had to give it a Yelp rating, it would get three and a half stars. The spiced apple cider and calamari were good, but my Thai-style noodle entree was a soupy mess. Patrick thought his eggplant parmesan was "mediocre," and this from someone who LOVES his eggplants.

Afterwards we went to San Jose to join Micah and Kelsey for a romp at Christmas in the Park and dinner at Johnny Rockets. I love that my old co-workers are still there because I get hooked up! We ended the night with hot chocolate and some Rock Band.

Thanks for an awesome day, monkey!

(Since I lost all the pictures I took with the DSLR, all photos were taken with my phone.)

Saturday morning on the N. Everyone must have partied real hard the night before.


New beanie made with love


Astroman Patrick


Rain forest. It'll frizz your hair, 4realz


Anaconda. It dont want none unless you got buns, hon.


So-so Thai noodles and eggplant parm

My recent obsession with the Emanuels, particularly Rahm

With Rahm as Obama's Chief of Staff and Ari being portrayed by Jeremy Pivens in Entourage, the brothers have been getting lots of attention. The brothers fascinate me because 1) they're super successful/intelligent siblings that remind me of Salinger's Glass family or a more functional Tenenbaums, 2) they scare the bejesus out of me and 3) Rahm is foxy in a psychotic maniac kinda way.

During a Charlie Rose interview with the three brothers (Zeke, the oldest, is a bioethics director for the U.S. National Institutes of Health), you can see Rahm waving his hand with the stub of a middle finger around. Supposedly it got cut off while working at an Arby's, but I'd like to think that he lost it doing something much more heroic and dangerous.

UPDATE: There's a post today over at the HuffPo about Rahm Emanuel roasting Stephen Colbert! Awesomeness.

The California Academy of Sciences

I read an article on SFGate.com about the opening of the new California Academy of Sciences today and I can't wait to visit it for myself. I'm really excited about the swamp, rain forest, and living rooftop exhibits. The sustainable design is wonderfully sci-fi, most notably the rooftop where there are living plants which acts as insulation against weather for the Academy.

The coolest thing of all, however, is the penguin exhibit. This exhibit has always been a favorite of mine. PENGUINS! The new Academy outdoes itself this time around with a live, streaming cam feed of the penguin habitat. That's right: STREAMING. How awesome is that?

Below are some photos I found on Flickr. I'm definitely bringing my camera.













Bonus photo:


On a side note: Lysol wipes are amazing! I used one sheet to wipe off my dirty keyboard, scanner, table, and even the garbage can before I threw it away. I've got a full canister waiting for me and I can't wait to use them.

David Foster Wallace

In the last day, three of my friends¹ alerted me to the suicide/death of David Foster Wallace. First it was shocking, then it made me extremely sad. I own two of his books and have only read one². Today I will start the other one.

RIP, DFW. You've been a good to me³.


This is the first image of DFW I ever saw, the one on the back cover of ASFTINDA.

__________________________________________________
1. I've shared DFW stories with Audrey, Tristan and Ross. Maybe we should all go see the John Krasinski's film together. 

2. I started my relationship with DFW some time back in college when I got an offer in the mail from QPB (Quality PaperBack) for 5 or 6 books at a dollar a piece. Even though I had never heard of DFW before, I thought A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again: Essays and Arguments was a charmingly long title so I bought it. Why not? It was only a dollar. I also order some art reference books that I've never attempted to read. Once I received ASFTINDA, it sat on my shelf for a loooooong time. I didn't quite have the ambition to tackle the lengthy book, most of which was set in tiny, tiny type via footnotes. 

After reading it, there hasn't been a televised tennis match where I don't think of DFW. Last year I bought Infite Jest when it was released at a reduced price of only $10 (!!). It hasn't been read yet, but I will make time for it.

3. DFW's stories have kept me company while waiting to be called for jury duty and rekindled my interest in David Lynch which led me to buy his films at inflated prices on eBay.

It's been a while

Work, and life in general, have kept me away from my blog, but I'm back.

Since my last entry, I've been (predictably) addicted to my iPhone. I've been downloading apps, uploading photos, and Twittering (which helps me stay up to date with friends like Ross and Nicole!).

To those who have to interact with me on a regular basis (e.g., Patrick), I apologize for ignoring you in favor of my iPhone. True, it can't give me the same companionship that friends and lovers can, but it has Bejeweled 2 and texting.

On that note, I'll take my leave. There is freelance work to do and it's a resolution of mine to tie up the loose ends on these projects. TTYL

One more thing. Patrick posted a YouTube video of Fatass.

Music I can listen to without getting bored

I've been listening to the new Girl Talk ablum, Feed the Animals a lot recently (thanks to my new iPhone!) when I'm wondering around the city. I never really cared for mash-ups until I was introduced to Girl Talk's "Night Ripper" album. But even then, I don't consider it mash-up, per se. He's kind of like a pop DJ Shadow. It was perfect for me. There's enough going on in every song to appease my ADHD tendencies, there's throwaway pop songs as well as classics, AND Rick Astley is involved. It's multi-genred music goodness for those with short attention spans. Check it out.

A new hobby*

*I tried REALLY, REALLY hard to not use the word "sew" as a pun in the title. You're welcome.

Impulse buy of the week: sewing machine. Well, truthfully, it wasn't really that impulsive. I've always wanted one and have borrowed from friends for small projects. Besides a straight stitch, I don't know much more about a sewing machine.

After going to a couple of art shows recently, I've been inspired to start making things. This coincided perfectly with my desire for a sewing machine; I figured if I had a sewing machine, I'd be more motivated to create. One plus one equals two, so the research for the right machine started. There were a couple that I wanted that were completely out of my price range (but one did embroidering and had an LCD display...hott), and would have been ridiculous for me to consider.

After a few hours of research, the Singer 7444 turned out to be the perfect balance between value and features. It's a nice, boxy design with electronic controls. A test drive with a piece of fabric proved that it wasn't too difficult to use. So far, I love it. Hopefully it'll be used regularly, unlike other impulse buys I've made in the past.

Oh! I also bought a caddy for all the threads, shears, needles and bobbins I'll be buying in the future. God, I'm gay.


Love.


A few test stitches. My favorite is the alternating squares.

Rickrolled

As in my personal life, I'm very vocal about my appreciation of Rick Astley at work. Recently, I got an email from my co-worker Craig asking me to take some screenshots of a video supposedly from a client. Thinking it was an odd request that I should be the one to take the screenshots, I played the video. A familiar melody started and soon enough, Rick was on my screen doing the Astley shuffle.

That's when I realized I had just been Rickrolled.

Later, the office manager hands me a FedEx package and said "This came for you." Eagerly opening it, I found a piece of paper with Rick on it, front and center. Well played, Tristan. Rickrolled twice in one day...what a great honor. Perhaps I can add my experiences to this database.


The email, with video attached.


The package.

Lord of the Rings, a tearjerker

In the last couple weeks, I've been geeking out and watched all three movies in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Each of the three movies spans over two discs and is four hours long. It's totally worth the time. I kind of love these well done fantasy movies...and there are hot men in costumes. Funny thing is I don't think any of them are that attractive outside of these movies (i.e. sans LOTR garb).

I've watch the movies three times now, and every single time, there's a part that chokes me up. I know, shut up. I can't help it. At the end when Aragorn gets crowned as king of Gondor (and awkwardly sings in a Tolkien language), he walks up to the four hobbits and they bow to him. Aragorn, being the humble king that he is, says "My friends! You bow to no one." Then a wide shot of the entire courtyard and everyone is bowing to the hobbits. I mean, come on, that has to be the most touching scene in cinematic history...isn't it???

Judge for yourself:


(link here)

Also, fans take the story into their own hands. Oh my.


No, that's not Liv Tyler, that's Orlando Bloom.




What the hell?

Dim sum!

Dim sum, the perfect feast for gluttons. It was a little over a year ago that Pooh and I had this great meal, as retold here, and today we relived it. As last time, we ordered way too much. It was good, though. I hate pronouncing the dishes correctly in Chinese because the person taking our order will inevitably respond in Chinese. This proves to be a problem since I'll reply in English with "I don't understand" and a chuckle. I end up feeling like I've disappointed them and feel guilty (both because I can't speak the language of my people and I let the years of Chinese school my parents put me through go to waste).

After dim sum Pooh bought a tea infuser and we went searching for teas. We found The Aroma Tea Shop, which is a kind of tea tasting bar. We picked out a couple different kinds and tried them with the rest of the people at the bar. I ended buying a flower tea combo set and 4 oz. of chrysanthemum tea (just like grandma used to make). I'm sipping on some right now. Delicious!


Flower tea buds


Dried chrysanthemum flowers ready for brewing


Wall of tea

It's a sad day for photography

I learned late last week that Polaroid will stop production of their instant film to focus on newer technology like portable printers and television sets. The news was kind of heartbreaking, though admittedly I haven't been using the film that much of late (because of 1: the price and 2: the even more instant digital photography). Still, knowing that it would be there when I needed it was comforting. My collection of 20+ cameras will inevitably become useless. Now, many hipsters will suffer the consequences when they want to shoot their next MySpace photo. What a shame. Maybe now my earlier post about a Photoshop filter will come in handy?

Goodbye, old friend.
P.S. Who wants to buy some Polaroid cameras? Or sell me some cheap film...
P.P.S. Update: Or you can do this to your cameras.


Photos I forgot about until this post.

Sometimes drunk people aren't so bad

Last Sunday I went outside of my comfort zone (i.e., my apartment) and actually went out...to a bar! As I approached the Latin American Club (neither Latin American nor is it a club), I saw Alexis withdrawing cash from the ATM so decided to stop and wait for her. She then proceeds to greet me with some well-aimed punches to the shoulder. This drunken roughhousing would be indicative of the night to come.

During the course of the night, there would be headlocking, verbal threats, fallen hot dogs, more punching and a general hubbub of drunkenness. The night ended with Alexis freaking out over a candle with a baby's face on it and Brian begging to go home so he can throw up. See for yourself.


Yup.


The photog says "hi."


Me and my Bro...phy.


Brian votes Obama, Audrey suffers. Alexis is plastered. Thanks Katie.


It was good, really.


Brian's first bite proves unsuccessful.