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June 30th, 2009
10:54 am - One for ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) cogshiftingman
Slashdot is carrying a report of a woman who has been given 20000 pounds to explore cultural attitudes towards female buttocks. Follow this link to get to the bottom of the story.
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June 13th, 2009
10:30 am - Herbert
After singing a setting of "King of glory, king of peace" at choir practice:
Ten: I wonder if this is the same George Herbert as wrote "Dune"
DrC: No, this one is the 17th century metaphysical poet
Ten: But "Dune" is quite metaphysical
DrC: Not in the same way.
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May 23rd, 2009
07:09 pm - Historic Driver Day
My SuperShuttle driver was great - there's a phrase you don't hear that often - very courteous but also acted as a tour guide as we drove to the airport. First pointing out houses is Pas/South Pas that have been used in various TV programmes/films - did you know there is a $52 million propert in Pasadena that Ferdinand Marcos bought for a mistress? And then when we hit the morning rush hour on the freeway, he just turned off, bypassing it all on back streets in Chinatown and Downtown but still keeping up the tour. The first time I have actually felt that one of their drivers deserved their gratuity.
Then on my first plane (LAX - Chicago) when the captain was doing his welcome speech, he described the flight route in terms of which Native American tribes' lands we would be passing through. I'm pretty sure it was not Alice Cooper but it had that (feel to it).
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May 3rd, 2009
04:42 pm - Learn to tell the time, fuckwits
Cosima and I went to a concert on campus this afternoon and she fared pretty well, certainly better than some of the audience. We left after the first half since the first movement of the Barber Violin Concerto had unnerved her somewhat. However, the first piece was a Haydn symphony and in the lull between the first and second movements, a whole load of latecomers came in and settled themselves in vacant seats. This actually took about three to four minutes and the conductor was clearly very pissed off - to the point that the orchestra had to retune. This just strikes me as the height of rudeness and a complete lack of respect for the performers. It doesn't matter that it's a free concert: if you are going to miss the start then you should only be let in at the interval.
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April 25th, 2009
09:16 am - There can be only one
A colleague writes: "...for you were within
throwing distance of where the morris dancers will be at dawn
on Friday." In California. Battling to death?
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April 24th, 2009
05:12 pm - Getting old?
I saw the doctor today about the continuing aftereffects of my sidewalk acrobats a month ago and have been given a referral to a sports physician for further assessment. However, he also expressed some concern about my blood pressure. The measurements at Urgent Care a month ago and today are higher than those taken when I last visited the doctor 18 months ago and he wants to see me in 3 months again to see where it is then. Looking at the list of things one can do to lower blood pressure, I find that I already follow virtually all of them. So I guess it's just a case of my basic physiology being against me and a remaining lifetime of pills to look forward to.
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April 21st, 2009
12:11 am - Acceptability
If I wrote a book about where the Nazis had won World War II and were constructing their global society as you would expect them, it is an acceptable (if somewhat trite) premise. However, if I wrote a book where there really was a Zionist conspiracy then would that be anti-Semitic?
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April 17th, 2009
01:56 pm - Nobody does it better
We recently matched the 2003 BBC miniseries of "State of Play" which is fantastic and has a really good cast with John Simm, Philip Glenister, David Morrissey, Bill Nighy, Kelly Macdonald, etc. Now I see the film version opens this week with a blurb thus:
Ambitious U.S. Congressman Stephen Collins (Ben Affleck) is the future of his political party, and high hopes are pinned to his rising star -- until his beautiful young staff assistant is brutally murdered, and buried secrets come tumbling out. When veteran D.C. reporter Cal McAffrey (Russell Crowe) and his novice partner Della Frye (Rachel McAdams) are assigned by their tough-as-nails editor (Helen Mirren) to investigate the story, the two step into a cover-up that threatens to shake the nation's power structures. In a town of spin doctors and wealthy politicos, they'll discover that when billions are at stake, no one's integrity, or life, is safe.
Now is it me or does that just sound really trite, formulaic and, let's face it, utter pants!
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April 2nd, 2009
10:53 am - Writer's Block: In a Jam
Lt Frank Drebbin
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March 30th, 2009
10:56 am - Catching up with the Jones
One of the advantages of spending four hours in urgent care on Friday evening was that I was able to refresh my knowledge of reality TV stalwarts such as Wife Swap and Supernanny. As if sitting in at least mild discomfort from your own injuries for a protracted time is not enough, being subjected to a continuous stream of crass drivel adds a whole new experiential dimension. I do understand that for many in pain, television can be a very effective palliative measure but I would have been inordinately happier for a designated quiet zone where I could try and distract myself with a book.
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February 11th, 2009
01:02 pm - Finally making Jane Austen bearable
I must read this when it comes out.
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February 5th, 2009
04:15 pm - Justice for sale
Reading an article about Ruth Ginsberg's illness, there is an eBay advert on the side offering to search for any "Chief Justice of the United States" for sale. I wonder what the going rate is?
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February 2nd, 2009
08:59 am - Boriswatch
Keep an eye on what his hair is doing here
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January 28th, 2009
02:56 pm - New backpack
I'm looking for a replacement to the Targus XL Notebook backpack that I've had for the past 5.5 years as the plastic buckles are all shot. I want something that has a separate compartment for my laptop, can hold a tonne of stuff, is comfortable for cycling, will double up as a carry-on bag and has a waist band for even weight distribution. I frequently have 20lbs of stuff in there - books, gym kit, laptop, etc. I really liked this one but Targus do not make the same model anymore and so I need to replace it. Oh, and I want something around $60. Any recommendations?
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January 17th, 2009
09:27 am - Long noses
Cosima had a bad dream last night which involved things with long noses. That flash at the end. And they might be robots. And rhyme with "cheese". And have something to do with archaeology? And we have seen them on YouTube. Any ideas?
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January 14th, 2009
11:38 am - Traveller's dilemmas
It looks like I'm going to be in the UK at the end of February/beginning of March and I'm trying to figure out how to get around. I need to go to London, Exeter, Glasgow and Canterbury, and would like to visit Oxford and somewhere in Shropshire as well. I'm torn between just driving everywhere and trusting in public transport to be comfortable and reliable. The cost difference between the two is not that great so which would you suggest I employ:
Poll #1331121 Travel options
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: AllHow should I travel?
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January 9th, 2009
07:53 am - So it begins
Senior Democrats are unhappy with Obama's proposed stimulus plan. Well, of course, they would be, I mean they've been in Congress for years and here comes this young whippersnapper with these fancy highfalutin ideas and thinks that he knows best. Who does he think he is - the President - oh, wait, he is, well he has no experience - he was just a junior senator for a term or two, wasn't he? And he's immensely popular - he's even appearing on the cover of Spiderman - and we can't be having that. So let's cause problems and take him down a peg or two so that he gets to understand and respect due process and that the real ideas come from us, the DNC elite.
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December 22nd, 2008
11:36 pm - "Work party"
I attended a Xmas party in Second Life this morning at the invitation of a Caltech professor. He's the guy in the suit with his back to the "camera" - we were all dancing and drinking champagne before noon!
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