"Immigrants, liberals, weirdos, atheists"

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It occurred to me this morning that I’ve completely forgotten the whole fatblogging thing. Just as well; not much has happened since it slipped my mind back in November. Stayed pretty much the same, went up around Christmas came back down to about 224 where I’ve been sitting for weeks. The cold this past week hasn’t helped anything. I’m hoping to start running again on Tuesday, maybe.

.:.

Watched the remake of 3:10 To Yuma (imdb | rotten tomatoes) today. It was pretty good indeed. I don’t normally care much for Russell Crowe, but I think he was well-suited to this role and Christian Bale was great as always. Funny how a Brit and an Aussie would play two cowboys, no? Anyway, it was a solid film, especially if you like westerns.

.:.

This article in the New York Times [via Richard Florida] contains some interesting insights on the threats to science in the U.S.:

Many Americans remain ignorant about much of science, the board said; for example, many are unable to answer correctly when asked if the Earth moves around the Sun (it does). But they are not noticeably more ignorant than people in other developed countries except on two subjects: evolution and the Big Bang. Although these ideas are organizing principles underlying modern biology and physics, many Americans do not accept them.

“These differences probably indicate that many Americans hold religious beliefs that cause them to be skeptical of established scientific ideas,” the report said, “even when they have some basic familiarity with those ideas.”

Florida takes issue with this explanation:

This is not just a question of religion, many Americans are more than skeptical, they dislike, are fearful of and are angered by the institutions which develop science and help provide the broad eco-system of innovation. They view leading universities as places filled with “immigrants, liberals, weirdos, atheists” and so on, who’s views are antithetical to “family values.”

I’m not sure I agree with Dr. Florida’s theory, though I admit I have no data either way. It simply seems easier to accept the religious influence suggested in the article, as I know the that schism exists in the U.S. I cannot, on the other hand, figure out how the opinion described by Dr. Florida could have taken hold. I’m not saying it didn’t; I would just be stunned if it had. Stunned, and even more fearful of what’s happening south of the border.

[tags]fatblogging, 3:10 to yuma, richard florida, new york times, science, evolution, big bang[/tags]

"Not your God. Mine."

Dan DickinsonLeave a comment

The sun actually came out today. The wind still made it bitterly cold, but it was nice to at least see some sunshine for the first time in weeks, even if it didn’t help warm things up.

.:.

Just as I’ve pretty much gotten rid of my cold, Nellie’s gotten sick with one of her own. It’s a different cold than what I had — all in the throat, this one — but she’s no less miserable. Last night she had just enough in her to enjoy a couple of drinks and some dinner at beerbistro, but this morning she was worse. Scrapping our original ambitious plans, we ran out just long enough to pick up some food, a book at Nicholas Hoare (Cormac McCarthy’s The Road…I got one without an Oprah sticker, thank Gutenberg!) and some movies.

.:.

Two of those movies we watched this afternoon:

I thought Sunshine (imdb | rotten tomatoes) was quite good. I’ve liked pretty much everything director Danny Boyle’s done, and while this wasn’t exactly new cinematic ground, Boyle made it interesting without being too “sci-fi” at all. Definitely recommended.

28 Weeks Later (imdb | rotten tomatoes) was Nellie’s pick…she wanted something a little dumb and action-y. It wasn’t terrible, but just couldn’t live up to 28 Days Later (also directed by Boyle, and starring Cillian Murphy who also starred in Sunshine…come to think of it, Rose Byrne was in both Sunshine and 28 Weeks Later…I guess Danny Boyle likes continuity) and fell back a little too much on cliche. Not bad, but you’re better off just watching 28 Days Later again.

[tags]toronto sunshine, nicholas hoare, cormac mccarthy, oprah, sunshine, 28 weeks later, 28 days later, danny boyle[/tags]

"Such a beer does not exist, sir."

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Links of the day:

  • One more reason to love Nicholas Hoare: this sign in their door. If you like books at all and live in Toronto (or Ottawa or Montreal), I suggest you visit. It’s like God’s living room.
  • Much like a special candy-covered doughnut that Homer Simpson asked for, Dunkin’ Donuts is introducing an M&M-covered doughnut. I anxiously await the arrival of Skittlebrau.

.:.

You know who I find annoying? Not specific people (’cause you wouldn’t know them), but types of people who exhibit like behaviour? Well, let me tell you:

  1. Smokers. No offense to any smokers who may be reading this, but you’re assholes. All of you.  You’re not assholes because you stink or because you slowly kill yourself or because you look ridiculous; that’s your choice. No, you’re assholes because you blow smoke in my face as you walk down the street in front of me, and because you throw thousands of butts on the ground every year as if the world is your personal fucking ashtray.
  2. The tragic and desperate souls who drive down Yonge Street (or any other busy street) with the windows down and the mondo-nuclear-subwoofer bass on 11. It fills my heart with sadness that your need for attention is so bottomless and unfulfilled that you’re forced to spend thousands of dollars on a stereo for no other purpose than to get strangers to turn their heads in your direction for maybe two seconds.
  3. People who play politics in the workplace. Office politics is the last refuge of the dull and incompetent. I don’t mind smart, capable people who understand politics, but when you make a career solely out of figuring out how to cover your ass next week, you’ll have to admit to yourself that you’ll never get another ounce of respect from anyone other than fellow political weasels. The rest of us see right through you, and know that you’ll get yours in the end.
  4. Pedestrians/shoppers/drivers who have no idea what’s going on around them. We’ve all seen them. The person who stands on the escalator in just the exact spot that makes it impossible to pass them. The friends ambling down the sidewalk side-by-side so that no one can pass in either direction. The driver who tries to turn on a red light, unaware that they’ve blocked pedestrians trying to cross. Sometimes I think this is rudeness, but more often than not I think it’s just that people are oblivious. They can’t process two thoughts at once. It doesn’t occur to them that at least one other of the 6.2 billion of us could be on the same escalator, the same sidewalk, the same street. How do these people not get eaten by wolves or accidentally drink PineSol?
  5. People who answer their phones during a movie. Phones ringing in a theatre don’t bug me; it doesn’t happen often and when it does it’s usually just forgetfulness, and the culprit is almost always apologetic. But occasionally you get some asshat who lets it ring a few times while he digs it out, lets it ring again while he checks the caller ID, and then answers the frigging thing. I once threw a handful of M&Ms at a kid who answered his phone, thinking he was a badass. Struck by candy, he turned around to find an audience whispering threats and plotting his death. He hung up.

Whew, that felt good. I’m not sure what possessed me to write that; I had a pretty good day. My cold is nearly gone, I got a lot done at work, I’m watchin’ hockey, I’m planning trips and visits…all is well, more or less. Maybe I just felt like making a list.

[tags]nicholas hoare, dunkin’ donuts, skittlebrau, smokers, office politics[/tags]

In which my sinuses resume negotiations with my brain

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I’m starting to feel ever-so-slightly better. I went to work today but I was still in pretty bad shape and my boss sent me home. I was about to enter a meeting room full of executives and had I gotten them all sick I would’ve been personally responsible for at least $0.50 off our stock price. Nobody wants that.

Tonight rather than doing work (did that already), doing schoolwork (nothing to do until the 27th) or watching a movie (Nellie’s not in the mood) I think I’m just going to…wait for it…read a book. Like, a book book. Not a textbook. I’ve been reading Naomi Klein’s The Shock Doctrine since September but [overshare] the only time I really have in which to read it is when I’m on the can [/overshare] so it’ll be nice to just sit quietly and read a book…on a couch.

.:.

We watched episode 3 of The Wire last night. Every episode is producing classic moments (e.g., the look Bunk gave Fremon last night) and the tension took a big jump last night at the end of the episode, so I just can’t wait for what’s coming. Seven more episodes just doesn’t seem like enough to pack it all in.

[tags]the shock doctrine, the wire[/tags]

Day three of the plague

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Yea and verily, this cold is kicking my ass. I had to stay home again today; even if I could summon the energy and concentration to do my job today, I’d just make everyone else sick. I can still get some more basic work done here this afternoon, but I need to find a way to get functional by tomorrow. Can’t miss three days in a row.

I’m sure some people would think I’ve gotten sick like this because I’m (largely) off meat, but that’s not it. I still eat seafood occasionally, I still take vitamins, etc. If anything I probably don’t eat enough vegetables (ironic, for a vegetarian…) or fruits. The Toronto Star actually has a story today about how easy it is to be vegetarian in this city.

.:.

Speaking of my job, my title includes the word “strategy”, a term used inaccurately and far too often. I take some flak for it — I often get accused of task-oriented people of “not doing anything, just thinking about things” — which doesn’t bother me, but it does start me wondering if what I work on is really strategy.

That depends largely on the role description, I suppose, and I won’t go into that here, but I read an interesting article last week by Penelope Trunk (aka The Brazen Careerist). In it she states that people inclined to think strategically are (Myers-Briggs personality type) typically INTJs.

The best thing you can do for your career is take a personality test to understand your strengths. If you are an INTJ you really are a strategist.  If you are not an INTJ, the fewer letters you have that match that, the further away from strategist you are. So get some self-knowledge before you declare yourself a strategist.

I am, in fact, an INTJ — I was an ISTJ in university when I first took the test but a few years ago came out INTJ — so while this may not mean much in itself, and I would never refer to myself as a “strategist”, it does help to reassure me that I am, in fact, in more or less the right field of work. Which is, you know, nice.

.:.

I haven’t used Schmap.com myself, and until Monday I’d never heard of the site, but whoever they are they decided to use one of my Flickr pictures for one of their new Paris guides. It’s a shot taken in Place des Vosges, for their Marais neighbourhood guide.

Of course, I can’t take any credit whatsoever for the shot; Nellie took it, just as she took all of the best shots from our trip to France. The girl has an eye.

[tags]vegatarian, strategy, myers-briggs, intj, schmap, paris, marais, place des vosges[/tags]

Where's the "blessed sinus relief" setting on this contraption?

Dan DickinsonLeave a comment

The good: our fancy-pants Harmony 880 remote arrived today. Actually, it arrived last Tuesday, but the security desk downstairs somehow forgot to tell us. They do that a lot. Anyway, we fetched it tonight and I’ve spent my few remaining active brain cells figuring how to use it. Still working out the bugs but I think I’ve got it. For Nellie and I it’ll be sweet to only have one remote instead of wrangling 4 or 5; for visiting parents it’ll be nice to just press one button that says “Watch TV” or whatever.

The bad: no two ways about it, I’m sick. I am siiii-iiiick. I stayed home from work today and basically tried to figure out the optimal angle at which to lie down to a) minimize my headache, and b) maximize drainage from my sinus cavity. All the Tylenol cold & cough in the world didn’t make much difference; I’m hoping the mug of neo-citran cooling in front of me knocks me out. I need sleep.

The sacred: all I could do today was lie on the couch and watch a movie (higher brain functions: not present) so I watched The Devil and Daniel Johnston (imdb | rotten tomatoes), a documentary about the little-known cult folk singer. I knew a little bit about him from the buzz surrounding the film (which screened at TIFF a couple of years ago) and I know my brother was very affected by seeing him live, but that was it. I actually didn’t even know about the whole Kurt Cobain t-shirt thing. Watching the film was only marginally easier than listening to him sing; in both situations this man’s demons are on display for the whole world to see.

The profane: we also watched a documentary tonight (thank you writer’s strike!) called Fuck (imdb | rotten tomatoes). Yes, you read that right. Fuck. It is, predictably, an inspection of why the word is considered so naughty. It spends a bit of time on the origin of the word (hint: it’s not an acronym, despite what you’ve been told), looks at the history of its use in comedy and show business (starting, naturally, with Lenny Bruce), touches on what it means to first amendment rights and eventually becomes a discussion of conservative hysteria and hypocrisy (or at least that’s how it seemed to me; I’m sure to a conservative it seemed like a discussion of how liberalism is sending America into the toilet at Mach 3). While it was interesting subject matter, and it had a few laughs (especially from Billy Connolly and Bill Maher) the documentary tried much too hard to be cute and edgy at the same time. Not bad, but not great. And vertainly not for the faint of heart; the film takes pride in the fact that, were it to be aired unedited on American television, they would be fined $280 million dollars by the FCC.

[tags]harmony remote control, sinus cold, the devil and daniel johnston, fuck documentary[/tags]

"I left my thimbles and socialist reading material at home."

Dan DickinsonLeave a comment

.:.

Wow, three days without blogging. That’s probably a record. I can explain: busy Friday, busy Saturday and today I feel like ass.

Friday I was at work until about 7:30, and by the time I got home all I really had the energy to do was eat and watch Friday Night Lights and The Wire.

Yesterday we intended to see There Will Be Blood but when we got to the theatre we found that the new Eye Weekly film listings had lied to us. No wonder Torontoist hates them. No other showtimes worked so we had one last meal at the Biryani House in Roy’s Square. It’s closing in two weeks (moving just around the corner onto Hayden Street) to make room for 1Bloor. Mmmmm…samosas and pakoras and shrimp masala…tasty. After lunch we walked back down Church street, cleaned up a little and waited for CBGB to arrive. They joined us for dinner and a couple of tasty drinks at Smokeless Joe (hence the picture above), then back at ours for a bit.

All was going well until I woke up this morning stuffed up, with a sore throat and a pounding sinus headache. Last night I had nothing; by this morning I was deep in the throes of a cold. Shitty. I feel very unpleasant right now. As such we did next to nothing all day; I have no energy. My day has been limited to lots of basketball, football and movies.

.:.

The first movie we watched today was Stranger Than Fiction (imdb | rotten tomatoes) which, based on the ads, I’d all but dismissed as typical Will Ferrell clowning. It was, in fact, very funny, clever and sweet. Ferrell is so good at the subtle humour he showed here and in Winter Passing that it kills me to see the ads for crap like Semi-Pro. A few times in this movie I laughed out loud, and I rarely laugh at Will Ferrell movies.

We also watched Marie Antoinette (imdb | rotten tomatoes) this evening. The first half was interesting, but it completely lost steam in the second half. It was like watching a dessert cart being paraded around…it looks lovely and inspired at first, but after you stare at the same sweets for two hours it loses something. I didn’t think I’d enjoy it that much to begin with; Sofia Coppola had me in the first half, but lost me again in the second.

I forgot to blog last week about Italianetz (imdb | rotten tomatoes), yet another foreign entry at a past film festival that I wanted to see. The story was about a Russian boy set to be adopted from an orphanage by an Italian couple (hence the title) but who worries that he has a mother somewhere that, should he go to live with another couple, he’ll never see again. The plot takes him on his search for her, but the real star was Russia itself: a dirty, drunken, stormy, barren, corrupt plain of despair…that one little boy refuses to give up on. Worth watching, if you can tolerate the dodgy subtitle translations.

[tags]friday night lights, the wire, there will be blood, eye weekly, torontoist, biryani house, 1bloor, smokeless joe, stranger than fiction, marie antoinette, italianetz[/tags]

I am a happy fellow

Dan DickinsonLeave a comment

My assignment, the last for this course, is done. I finished it off around 10:00 and practically skipped — pranced, even — to the couch to watch the Canadiens-Bruins game on the PVR.

That’s the last schoolwork I have to do for a couple of weeks. Weeks, internet, weeks! On an unrelated note, there’s a bluebird on my shoulder and everything is satisfactual.

[tags]mba, canadiens, bruins[/tags]

How to make snow look warm

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I don’t even remember where I saw it, but one of my site feeds recently pointed to a list of their favourite photoblogs. Of course the list contained ddoi, of which I’ve been a fan for years, and a few others I already knew. It also contained a few that I didn’t recognize, the best of which (in my opinion, anyway) is Julien Roumagnac’s photoblog. His pictures of Montréal make me homesick for a city I’ve never lived in.

Have a look at today’s picture of Rue de la Commune, for example. As cold and snowy as that looks, tell me you don’t want to be standing there right now.

[tags]daily dose of imagery, julien roumagnac[/tags]