The Top 5 iPhone Apps of 2008

A very short list of my top five iPhone applications of the year...

• Tweetie -
  Twitter was made for mobile interaction. There are many great Twitter iPhone apps out there. Twitteriffic is gorgeous. Tweetsville has a great UI. But Tweetie just beats theem all in speed and stability. After it gets a little makeover and fixes the UI of the direct messages... Tweetie will be set.
  

  
  
  




• Collapse! Chaos -
  When Apple first announced software development on the iPhone, Collapse was the first game I thought of. Man, I love the general concept of this game. Its a bit slower (in style) than it is normally, but, I'm still happy they brought it to the iPhone.
  
  

  
  
  




• BlocksClassic -
  It might be the simplest game on the planet, but I play it all the time. Its great for when you're waiting around for five minutes.
  

  
  
  




• Tris (no longer available) -
  Tetris might just be the most perfect game ever for portable gaming (or for any platform). But of course the iPhone's Tetris game is pricey and slow. Tris was perfect... simple, quick, free, and very pretty. Unfortunately Tris was forced to disappear. :(
  
  

  
  
  




• Klick -
  I find myself using Klick more and more. Klick makes Flickr viable for the iPhone. Period.
  

  
  
  




• Bonus - NetShare (no longer available) -
  This should really be at the top. Those of us who were lucky enough to get it while it was available know why its so awesome. When you're stuck without internet and your laptop, it is just priceless.
  
  

  
  
  

iphonemac

The Top 5 Mac Apps of 2008

A (very) short list of my favorite mac applications of the year...

• Dropbox -
  Dropbox might just be the best and most original idea of the year. File sharing and file syncronization became simple and speedy. Enough said.
  

  
  
  




• Bowtie -
  Easily the best, simplest, and most affordable iTunes accessory ever. You can read my quick review here.
  
  

  
  
  




• LaunchBar 5 Beta -
  Years ago before Quicksilver I used LaunchBar. Well, LaunchBar has come back in a big way. Its incredibly quick and smooth. Once you try it, you won't be able to use anything else. Its that good. It just really needs a way to customize its appearance and perhaps a way to add Del.icio.us bookmarks.
  

  
  
  




• Eventbox -
  Eventbox is a great concept with a great design. It still needs some development, though. But its really has awesome potential... and the guys who make it are open to ideas, which is the best part.
  
  

  
  
  




• Flow -
  The fact is that Transmit by Panic is still a great and reliable Mac FTP app. No question. However Flow attempts to be a bit different. I have to say I was weary of switching from Transmit, but I have really grown to enjoy using Flow.
  

  
  
  

macsoftware

School Helps You Watch Television

So I have a terrible terrible final tomorrow. I've been studying a lot, or at least I've been trying to. So tonight I was taking a break and was watching a repeat of House because apparently repeats of House are my new addiction.

Anyway, at one point House asked the Team where fear was in the brain, and before Foreman answered I told him out loud "the central nucleus of the amygdala". Right after I did, Foreman answered "the amygdala". Now I actually understand much of the neurological terminology on the show. I guess this class was good for something.

fluffschooltv

The Switch

So, we made the switch to Verizon FIOS this week.

I had been checking the FIOS availablity page every few months to no avail. The towns next door to us had had FIOS for over a year. Then finally last week I happened to check and suddenly it was available.

We were surprised by how much money we could save with the phone/internet/cable service, even with a ton of premium cable channels and a faster internet plan and signed up right away. However, we ended up having to speak with Verizon sales three different times on three different days to get our order right. We found out the third time that the order wasn't done right at all, and instead of a multi-stream cable card (for my TiVo HD) and a regular cable box, they were going to send us an HD cable box and a regular cable box. By the third phone sales person, though, we finally got someone who actually knew what a TiVo was and what a cable card was, and set up the order properly.

On the day of installation, the installation guy actually showed up on time. A short while later, a second guy came to help him set up service outside and in the basement. A couple of hours later a third guy came to help with setting up the cable card for the TiVo since the other two had never done it before.

So, we had a little FIOS party with three guys from about 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. When the left, everything was working pretty much flawlessly. I've used the router they force you to have before, so configuring it was no problem.

The first night of watching TV I started to notice an issue. My HD on certain channels would come in choppy and sometimes not at all. After some google searching I found this:

"Verizon FiOS (Series3 and TiVo HD only): If you are using a Series3 or TiVo HD DVR with Verizon FiOS, you may need to use a signal attenuator to decrease the strength of the signal before it enters the DVR. You may also want to use a low pass filter or diplexer to avoid macroblocking. Please contact Verizon Customer Support for more information or see Picture quality issues with Verizon FiOS service."

So, I was able to fix the issue, right? Wrong. This post has been a draft for about a week now. Thats because my TiVo still isn't working properly. I'm still getting skipping and freezing on my HD channels all of the time. After trying all kinds of different combinations of attenuators to decrease the signal strength to the perfect level, I've finally given up with that and Verizon is overnighting me a new cable card. I'll post how that goes next week....

---

Update

Finally got a new TiVo, and the problem has been solved. Woohoo! FIOS, all in all, is fabulous.

fiostivotvverizon

*Cinema -- Step Brothers

Step Brothers (2008)

• I'm ashamed of how much I enjoyed this.
  

  
  
  




• Bordered somewhere on the lines of funny and almost horrifying at times.
  
  

  
  
  




• Mary Steenburgen just kicked ass.
  

  
  
  




• Kathryn Hahn, who played the older brother's wife, made the movie for me. I started liking the movie as soon as she showed up.
  
  

  
  
  




• I still can't believe that I enjoyed this.
  

  
  
  

Selling My Unlocked Original 8gb iPhone

I'm finally selling my mint condition unlocked 8gb iPhone. ! It is in extremely good condition, as it had a screen protector and a case on pretty much the entire time I owned it. Check out the auction! :)

iphonesale

*Cinema -- Zack and Miri Make a Porno

Zack and Miri Make a Porno (2008)

• Easily one of the best movies I've seen in a long while.
  

  
  
  




• So much better than I was expecting.
  
  

  
  
  




• The best romantic comedy I've seen since Knocked Up.
  

  
  
  




• Yes, I realize they both star Seth Rogen. He just works so well in romantic comedies.
  
  

  
  
  




• If we're going to continue with the Knocked Up comparisons, I have to admit that I found Elizabeth Banks much more likable than Katherine Heigl.
  

  
  
  




• Craig Robinson. You are just awesome.
  
  

  
  
  




• Jason Mewes and Jeff Anderson. Best guys ever.
  

  
  
  




• A five minute cameo made me finally begin to like Justin Long.
  

  
  
  




• I definitely have a thing for romantic comedies that also involve a healthy dose of dirty humor.
  
  

  
  
  

*Cinema -- The Big Lebowski

The Big Lebowski (2008)

• I know, I know I just never got around to seeing it.
  

  
  
  




• John Goodman was great, but my goodness, I just wanted his character to shut up the entire time.
  
  

  
  
  




• Quite possibly the least annoying role Jeff BRidges has ever played.
  

  
  
  




• A perfect role for Tara Reid.
  

  
  
  




• Julianne Moore's manner of speaking was bizarre and great at the same time.
  
  

  
  
  




• I think my favorite thing about most Coen brothers movies is the way every single facet of one of their films is just so stylized, and each time, its a completely different style.
  

  
  
  




• I absolutely loved the ending.
  

  
  
  

Fall Screenshot

For no particular reason, a screenshot!

Feel free to ask any questions. :)

macscreenshot

Bowtie

My friend Laurent helped create a new Mac application called Bowtie. It's easily the best app out there to accompany iTunes.

Its basically an iTunes remote app. The beauty of it is in its simplicity. It can display album artwork and let you control iTunes from the desktop. It will post what you're listening to last.fm for you. It does these things without hogging your computer's resources and while looking beautiful. Bowtie boasts an extremely easy to use theming system based on html+css+javascript. It already has tons of themes, and promises to have many more. Absolutely fantastic.

The best part though is... its free! So go get it! :D

bowtiemacsoftware

*Cinema -- Wonderland

Wonderland (2003)

• Very interesting to see Val Kilmer play the same character Mark Wahlberg previously played.
  

  
  
  




• They obviously both played the role of John Holmes with a a child-like quality.
  
  

  
  
  




• Yet Wahlberg played Homes at around ten years old, while Kilmer played him as a toddler.
  

  
  
  




• Generally the toddler was more annoying and much less empathetic.
  

  
  
  




• The real story behind this movie is what makes it so compelling. Its nuts.
  
  

  
  
  




• Kate Bosworth has fantastic hair in this movie.
  

  
  
  




• Definitely weird seeing Dylan McDermott in the role of David Lind. Weird seeing him trying to look and act like a scary guy.
  

  
  
  




• Did I mention how great the real story is behind this? Cause it is.
  
  

  
  
  

Uselessness

Bird in the Supermarket

I survived the short-answer half of my Physiological Psych test. Considering the fact that he gave us no real insight into what it would consist of, I'm pretty sure I did pretty well. Have a few essays to write for the second part by Friday... but I'm just relieved to be done with the first part.

So! As you might know, I'm a big fan of twitter. Today the guys at twitter were kind enough to offer me the username liz. When I first signed up a looong while ago, the username Liz was taken. However over the past several months the account has been dead, and they were nice enough to kill the account and offer it to me. This totally made my day (as silly as it is). So... go add me! Yay! :)

The new spiffy address is: http://twitter.com/liz/

fluffschooltwitter

Unibody MacBook

When I first heard that Apple was going to hold a Laptop event in October, I had no plans on getting a new laptop. However once they came out, I couldn't resist. This is mainly because it finally seemed like the perfect compromise in Apple laptops.

I had been wishing and waiting for a 13.3" MacBook Pro. The fact is that a 15" MacBook Pro was simply too large and too heavy. The MacBooks were underpowered and not quite as sexy. But then the new 2.4 Ghz Aluminum MacBook was announced, and I was smitten.

For me it is ideal. Small (not quite as small as the Air, of course) and powerful.

So, I took the plunge and got one of the new top-of-the-line Aluminum MacBooks. So far, so good! Now on to some specific features...

Fit & Finish
The round corners are a welcome change, and the unibody enclosure make it feel much more sturdy and compact when compared the old MacBook Pro. I always felt like the 15" MBP felt like it could break in half, so thats a welcome change. Of course it's larger and heavier than the Air, but so far I haven't been that phased by it. All the similarities in look and feel seem to be making up for the extra 1.5 lbs.

Screen
There have been some pretty strong complaints about the screen. It is certainly shiny. I ordered an anti-glare screen protector just incase, but I haven't felt the need to use it yet. Yet I do have to admit I am wondering what the long-term effects might be to my eyes...

Touchpad
The trackpad for the most part has been a non-issue for me. I was already well accustom to the whole idea of tapping and not clicking most of the time. I tend to only tap with my 4 fingers and only click with my thumb. So for me, it pretty much feels the same. So far I haven't noticed any clicking issues with the trackpad yet, but I don't always click, so...
The new gestures are pretty awesome and well thought out. The trouble I have is remembering to use them. After so many years using a trackpad without them, its going to be difficult to adjust. However, considering how second-nature two-finger scrolling is to me now, I'm sure it would be too long before I'm using the four-finger gestures all of the time.

Keyboard
Perhaps my favorite thing about my old MacBook Air was the keyboard. Luckily, the new Macbooks have the same keyboard, which is easily the best keyboard I've ever used. Bonus #1: the keyboard lights up! Those of us that had the old 12" PowerBooks will understand how cool this is. It was the only PowerBook on the block without the lit keyboard. I really appreciate that Apple has added it in. Bonus #2: the keys on the new black keyboards don't seem to smudge like the old MacBook Pro keys. That was such a pain in the neck. So, big win on the keybaord.

I haven't gotten a chance yet to extensively test the video card yet. I've used Photoshop for a few moments without any issue, though. Compared to the Air, I'm pretty sure I'm going to be happy. Plus, with the extra RAM (4 gigs) and storage (320 gigs) I am in a bit of upgrade heaven.

The only thing I've had any issue with is actually the MagSafe power adapter, and it isn't really an issue. It seems to detach from the laptop more easily than MagSafe adapters I've had in the past, but it certainly isn't a deal breaker.

aluminummacmacbookunibody

Progress

Yay.

obamapolitics

Ah, Politics

So I've been pretty quiet lately. I think this is mostly because I really don't want to talk about Politics here, and I think its something that is on everyone's mind. However if you follow me on twitter I'm sure you're pretty clear on my political views.

fluffpoliticstv

*Cinema -- Baby Mama

Baby Mama (2008)

• It's deeper that I expected.
  

  
  
  




• The trailers didn't do it justice at all.
  
  

  
  
  




• Amy Poehler just kicks major ass. Also, she looks absolutely gorgeous in the scene were we meet her.
  

  
  
  




• Greg Kinnear's part was pretty predictable and flat. There just wasn't much going on there. I guess I just didn't buy him.
  

  
  
  




• Steve Martin was fabulous.
  
  

  
  
  




• Romany Malco is just great in anything he's in. However no one spends that much time with their door man. No one.
  

  
  
  




• Overall fun and I enjoyed it much much more than I was expecting to.
  

  
  
  

New Macbook Extravaganza

So incase you didn't know, Apple had a huge presentation of new MacBooks, Macbook Airs, and Macbook Pros today.

They are a great bunch, all in all. The Macbook Airs are a bit disappointing simply because they don't get a speed bump. I would have been pleased with even a bump to 2.0 Mhz.

The new "high end" MacBook is what has interested me. It seems to be what I've been waiting for since the PowerBook 12", and is even better than the PowerBook 12". It's got the power of the MacBook Pro and the size of the MacBook. For those of us who really hate lugging stuff around (me).

So... I've put my MacBook Air up for sale. Here are the specs:

Its been sold! Thanks! :)

airmacmacbook

TiVo Addiction

For the first time ever, I had issues with my TiVo.

I noticed on Wednesday that my TiVo hadn't recorded anything since Monday night (I hadn't been home much in between).

So, I checked my To Do List. Turned out there were only two items for October 12th and nothing else scheduled.

So I restarted, etc. Nothing worked. Checked the TiVo support site, nada. So I called TiVo support for the first time. The first guy told me to spend an hour cleaning out all of my To Do List and Program Information. No go.

The next day, the next girl told to turn off TiVo Suggestions, which she didn't know how to find through the TiVo Menus. Luckily I had remembered seeing it a couple of days before. Then she told me to restart. She said that while I was waiting to restart, she would get off the phone with me, and call me back in fifteen minutes.

Alas, she never called back. However, while I was waiting, I manually deleted all of my Season Passes and each "none scheduled" item in my To Do List. After I re-added all my season passes, everything has been peachy.

This post isn't really about so-so customer service. This post is really about how thoroughly sad I was to be missing my TiVo for a couple of days, and how positively relieved I was when I had fixed it. So silly.

flufftivotv

*Cinema -- P.S. I Love You

P.S. I Love You (2007)

• Unavoidably, if not stupidly, sad.
  

  
  
  




• The whole letter aspect is a great idea though. Though the fact that the letters inevitably end is incredibly depressing.
  
  

  
  
  




• I may never really get Hillary Swank's appeal.
  

  
  
  




• Jeffery Dean Morgan plays a decent Irish Guy.
  

  
  
  




• That whole rude Harry Conick Jr. thing was pretty annoying and definitely not attractive.
  
  

  
  
  




• That girl was just drawn to Irish guys. So silly.
  

  
  
  

*Cinema -- Wristcutters: A Love Story

Wristcutters: A Love Story (2006)

• Loved the always funny Will Arnett.
  

  
  
  




• Enjoyed the idea that once you commit suicide, you end up in another world very similar to the old one you lived in... just slightly worse.
  
  

  
  
  




• I also liked Eugene's song that played throughout the film.
  

  
  
  




• Not bad, not bad.
  

  
  
  

*Cinema -- Hot Rod

Hot Rod (2007)

• Oh boy.
  

  
  
  




• There were many times when all I could do was say "What the f*ck was that?"
  

  
  
  




• Oh, Will Arnett, you just kick ass.
  
  

  
  
  




• So do you, Isla Fisher.
  

  
  
  




• That dude who is constantly humping air... oh goodness.
  

  
  
  




• Basically, much of it is extremely silly bits that are separate from the main plot.
  
  

  
  
  




• Insanely ridiculously unfathomably silly.
  

  
  
  

Mad Men -- A Night To Remember

So I wrote a ridiculously long review of last night's episode of Mad Men. I just couldn't help myself... its so good! Of course there are spoilers, so you have been warned...

• I love how Joan is developing. Giving her a taste of that she never thought she wanted... to find that it is what she wants. They're bringing Joan and Peggy, two completely different women together. So cool.
  

  
  
  




• When Roger told Harry there would be a real job, he said "he" when describing who would get the job. Joan was never an option for the job to anyone, simply because she is female. I'm hoping they carry this further... if any woman in that office (other than Peggy) can move up the ladder, its Joan.
  

  
  
  




• Joan's engagement is interesting. While Joan is trying to be an ideal companion, I think its worth noting that she didn't spend a couple hours having to cook dinner for her fiancee. I do think he thought that perhaps when they got married she'd become more like Betty, however Joan is no Betty, which I think Joan herself is beginning to realize.
  
  

  
  
  




• Also that bon-bons line. Cravings? What kind of cravings are we talking about here? Hmmm....
  

  
  
  

• I can understand why the beer was such an issue for Betty. It was the last straw for her. She was trying to just ignore and get over the incident with Jimmy, but that was it.
  
  

  
  
  




• I think Don, more than anything, is trying to sell the American Dream. Not only is he selling the American Dream to the rest of the world, he is selling it to himself. The problem is that his family is not in a magazine. Its a real living thing, and unfortunately, he's killing it.
  

  
  
  




• When Betty finally confronts Don, he's actually not having an affair anymore. So when she can't find proof, you have to remember that she had found proof in season one. She had smelled other women's perfume on his clothes before. He just had gotten all his dry cleaning done after ending things with Bobbie, which understandably makes her distrust her own perceptions and internal beliefs. That has got to be the worst feeling ever.
  

  
  
  




• That scene where Betty spoke to Don sleeping on the couch was powerful. I doubt Betty often let Don see her hair wet with no make up in a bathrobe. Don's lies in that scene ranged from plausible to just blatantly obvious. Of course its wrong for Don to lie about his affair, since she has no proof, he can still push the lies without much issue. However when he lied about not saying "I love you", that is just blatant and undeniable. However Don did mean it when he said he didn't want to "lose all this". When Betty left the room, I think she knew what was really true in what Don had said, and for a moment believed that was enough.
  
  

  
  
  




• With the broken glass, and then with the oven, clearly the writers were trying to show what Betty could do. Betty could stick her head in the oven and never come back out. Yet she's stronger than that, which is something I think she realizes about herself when she tells Don to not come home.
  

  
  
  




• The writers are still pushing Sally's weight with her playing Piglet in the ballet. Betty mentioned in season one how her mother used to pressure her about her own weight. Its a never-ending cycle. I started on diets in middle school. It wasn't untill I was older that I found out that my mother had been a "big girl" when she was that age... ah, it never ends.
  
  

  
  
  




• Also worth noting how Betty shares Sally's bed when she feels she cannot sleep in her own, and how Sally asks Betty if anything is wrong. I'm sure Betty realizes in some way that there is a very good chance her daughter will end up in Betty's position someday, while Sally in some way realizes something has gone terribly wrong.
  

  
  
  




• When Betty finally confronts Don, he's actually not having an affair anymore. So when she can't find proof, you have to remember that she had found proof in season one. She had smelled other women's perfume on his clothes before. He just had gotten all his dry cleaning done after ending things with Bobbie. Betty can no longer smell something she has smelled before, which understandably makes her distrust her own perceptions and internal beliefs. That has got to be the worst feeling ever.
  

  
  
  




• Poor Peggy with the Priest. Just having to think about spending that much time alone with a Priest makes me uncomfortable.
  
  

  
  
  




• The Priest is interesting. I thought it was interesting how they had him be the only man in that montage at the end with the women. Its far-fetched, but I do think him taking off his uniform is significant. Perhaps the writers are trying to show is that underneath his uniform, he's just a man. While I do think he's genuinely trying to help Peggy in his own way, I don't think he'd be so intent on her if he didn't see something else in her that he found attractive in someway. I'm not saying he'd ever act on it, though. But I do think that its there.
  

  
  
  

tv

*Cinema -- Forgetting Sarah Marshall

Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008)

• I really did not want to see this movie, however...
  

  
  
  




• Much better than I expected.
  
  

  
  
  




• Mila Kunis was great. Easily the least annoying role she's ever played (not counting Meg on Family Guy).
  

  
  
  




• Jonah Hill and Paul Rudd were great. It was funny to see Paul Rudd as a surfer dude.
  

  
  
  




• I don't really get the fuss over Kristen Bell, although I did appreciate her role on Deadwood.
  
  

  
  
  




• I have high hopes for the future of the Muppets now, thanks to Jason Segel. I mean, he clearly likes puppets.
  

  
  
  




• Totally enjoyed his puppet musical, obviously.
  
  

  
  
  




• Sweet and funny. Not quite as sweet or as funny as Knocked Up, but still fun to watch.
  

  
  
  

*Cinema -- O Brother, Where Art Thou?

O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000)

• That song is the catchiest song on the planet.
  

  
  
  




• I had seen bits and pieces but never had gotten the chance to see it from start to finish.
  

  
  
  




• Oh, Dan Dapper. I've never seen someone so obsessed with their hair.
  
  

  
  
  




• Of course I loved all the Odyssey references.
  

  
  
  




• Seriously though, the catchiest song ever.
  

  
  
  

Emmy Picks

Ok so I can't think of anything to post about. So I'm going to list who I think deserves this year's Emmy Awards...

• Outstanding Lead Actor In A Comedy Series
  Steve Carell as Michael Scott on The Office (NBC)
  

  
  
  




• Outstanding Lead Actor In A Drama Series
  This is a toughie. Jon Hamm (Mad Men) and Hugh Laruie (House) both deserve it, but I'm going to have to give it to MIchael C. Hall as Dexter Morgan on Dexter (Showtime) He's just fantastic.
  
  

  
  
  




• Outstanding Lead Actress In A Comedy Series
  Tina Fey as Liz Lemon on 30 Rock (NBC)
  

  
  
  




• Outstanding Lead Actress In A Drama Series
  Kyra Sedgwick as Deputy Chief Brenda Johnson on The Closer (TNT)
  
  

  
  
  




• Outstanding Supporting Actor In A Comedy Series
  Rainn Wilson as Dwight Schrute on The Office (NBC)
  

  
  
  




• Outstanding Supporting Actor In A Drama Series
  John Slattery as Roger Sterling on Mad Men (AMC)
  
  

  
  
  

• Outstanding Supporting Actress In A Comedy Series
  Amy Poehler as Performer on SNL (NCB)
  
  

  
  
  




• Outstanding Supporting Actress In A Drama Series
  Meh. I don't think Chandra Wilson nor Sandra Oh had all that much going on Grey's this last season. I guess I'd have to give it to Sandra Oh though.
  

  
  
  




• Outstanding Individual Performance In A Variety Or Music Program
  Jon Stewart, Host on The 80th Academy Awards (ABC)
  So I really think he should get it for The Daily Show, but I'll settle for this.
  
  

  
  
  




• Outstanding Comedy Series
  The Office (NBC)
  

  
  
  




• Outstanding Drama Series
  Mad Men (AMC)
  
  

  
  
  




• Outstanding Variety, Music Or Comedy Series
  The Daily Show With Jon Stewart (Comedy Central)
  

  
  
  

awardtv

Californication Season One

• Plenty of sex, which isn't a bad thing.
  

  
  
  




• Duchovny, for the most part, does a great job. You can (almost) believe that so many women would throw themselves at him, while also believing how self-destructive he can be.
  

  
  
  




• However I don't buy all the physical fighting. Is there anyone who really tries to get in so many fights? Especially when they're normally not that hot-tempered (would never hit people he cared about).
  
  

  
  
  




• It can be difficult to see Evan Handler do "wrong" things after knowing him on Sex and The City. However for the characters on this show, he's still a pretty decent guy.
  

  
  
  




• Marcy (Charlie's wife) and Becca are definitely my favorite characters.
  

  
  
  




• The whole stealing of Hank's work really really bothered me. I think it bothered me so much simply because it was his livelihood.
  
  

  
  
  




• While we're at it, Mia stealing Hank's work was far too predictable. Its a pathetic thing to do and in reality won't get her anywhere once she realizes she has to keep writing.
  

  
  
  




• Its going to be interesting to see how the show handles Hank not being single anymore. No more random hookups means the show loses half of its content...
  

  
  
  

tv

Sun, Food and Surf

Oh my goodness, its been almost a week since I've posted.

So I spent the weekend out east for my grandparent's 50th anniversary. I finally got some sun, which was long overdue. I also attended a fundraiser for at The Surf Lodge, which is Sam from season two of Top Chef's restaurant.

The restaurant had an absolutely gorgeous view of the water and a very active outdoor bar. For hors d'oeuvres, there were spoonfuls of civiche (complete with popcorn, which I recognized from him preparing it on Top Chef), spoonfuls of spicy chopped vegetables, and skewers of beef. Eventually we were served a very casual dinner of watermelon salad with feta, potato salad, clams, and fried chicken. I have to say I was rather surprised with the style of food served for dinner, since I had heard the food was fantastic. However the watermelon salad and clams were impressive (and I usually hate clams).

After dinner was served we ran into Sam who had come out from the kitchen for a couple of seconds and complimented him on the party. Overall it was a lovely laid-back time, and I'm looking forward to going back to try the usual menu.

flufffoodtv

Psych Season Two DVD

Gus dancing with an old lady in The Old and the Restless.

For the record I absolutely love the show Psych. I love it so much that I didn't watch season two at all and saved it for the DVD because I'm weird and I was afraid I would run out of episodes to watch.

• American Duos is still my favorite episode of the season. Hello. It was fantastic. Honestly I could just watch Shawn & Gus impersonate 80's music acts all day long.
  

  
  
  




• Although a couple of others came close, including The Old and the Restless and Lights, Camera.... Homicido.
  
  

  
  
  

• My favorite line of the season is courtesy of the old lady dancing with Gus in The Old and the Restless...
  

  
  
  

  Old Lady: Now, spin me...
  Gus stands still with a strange look on his face.
  Old Lady: Marvelous!
  

  
  
  




• There has never been a show that has made me so happy. Ever. Its a little weird.
  
  
  

  
  
  




• Shawn mentions to the detectives he got a 100 on the detective's exam when he was 15 years old. That should really be a huge clue that he is not a psychic, but actually just an extremely good detective.
  

  
  
  




• Has anyone else noticed that Shawn and Gus on the front cover of the DVD are so photoshopped that they're barely recognizable (especially Shawn)? However they're not photoshopped on the back cover or on the DVD menus. Odd.
  
  

  
  
  




• The audio commentaries on the DVD are actually pretty entertaining.
  

  
  
  




• The deleted scenes, however, are pretty disappointing. In the commentaries they mention how much great extra footage they had gotten for a couple of episodes, and those episodes had hardly any deleted scenes.
  

  
  
  




• A highly enjoyable DVD set.
  
  

  
  
  

dvdpsychtv

Mad Men Season One

I kept putting it off, but I finally started watching Mad Men to see what all the fuss was about...

• Its completely engrossing. I watched the entire season far too quickly.
  

  
  
  




• Extremely well written. At times it really really bothers me, but doesn't depress me. Its hard to explain.
  
  

  
  
  




• Compared to my other beloved show-set-in-the-past, Deadwood, there is no sense of urgency. Its different, but still great.
  

  
  
  




• My favorite characters are Betty, Joan, Peggy, and of course Don Draper.
  
  

  
  
  




• I identified with Betty more than I ever expected to.
  

  
  
  




• The men, on a whole, mostly disgust me.
  

  
  
  




• Especially Pete Campbell. I keep hoping an will anvil drop on his head. Just looking at him creeps me out.
  
  

  
  
  




• The finale was easily one of the mot well-written shows I've ever seen. It really encapsulated the entire season and was just so thought out. Betty's scene at the therapist blew me away. So did Don's presentation. Just plain fantastic.
  

  
  
  




• Clearly, I loved it. Not what I expected at all.
  

  
  
  

tv

*Cinema -- Pineapple Express

Pineapple Express (2008)

• Danny McBride was just plain fantastic. "Thug life." He made the movie.
  
  

  
  
  




• Rosie Perez was great. She's getting older, which weirds me out.
  

  
  
  




• Seth Rogan and James Franco were both good.
  

  
  
  




• Very very funny.
  
  

  
  
  




• Yet I did feel like it was a bit too much of a "stoner comedy" for me in general.
  

  
  
  




• Appreciated Kevin Corrigan & Craig Robinson as hit men.
  
  

  
  
  




• The car chase was easily one of the funniest things I've ever seen. Ever.
  

  
  
  

I Wear My Glasses Far Too Often

• Ever since I got my new glasses, I am wearing them far too often. Pretty soon the world without them will be completely fuzzy.
  

  
  
  




• Love, love, love the Delicious redesign. I was part of the beta, but I didn't really use it. Definitely seems speedier, which was my only complaint. I am such a delicious addict.
  
  

  
  
  




• Speaking of addictions, if Apple ever gets totally rid of Input Mangers, I'm screwed. Edit-in-TextMate is just indispensable.
  

  
  
  




• Not surprised that TiVo has let the Series 3 go.
  
  

  
  
  




• Loved the SYTYCD season finale. I voted for Katee, but I knew that Joshua would win. I'm very happy that she was the top girl, though. I would also like to point out that Katee was in four of the 'favorite' dances while the rest of the four finalists were only in two (or three, in Twitch's case) dances each.
  

  
  
  




• I'm liking Shear Genius much more than Project Runway. I didn't expect that at all.
  

  
  
  




• Cablevision added a whole mess of HD channels last week. Including Discovery HD, FX HD, AMC HD and Spike HD. All this really means are HD versions of MythBusters, Deadliest Catch, Rescue Me and repeats of CSI. Pretty awesome though.
  
  

  
  
  




• Incase you couldn't tell, I've really been missing lists.
  

  
  
  

fluffglassesmactextmatetivotv

The Thing About American Idol

Apparently executive producer Nigel Lythgoe is leaving American Idol.

I personally didn't watch American Idol this year... I wanted to, but it just didn't interest me. I think that this mostly has to do with the contestants that are being chosen for the show. They're selecting people who aren't always very appealing or at least very talented.

Regardless, the people they should pick should be people who just have not been discovered yet, instead of people who would never be discovered.

SYTYCD, however, picks more appealing/talented contestants, and the ones who aren't appealing are off the show fairly quickly. I don't know if this is because of the pairs, the fact that two people are kicked off each week, or the fact that the judges pick the first few people who are kicked off. For whatever reason, the contestants are more compelling and that is why I watch.

flufftv

Running Django on (mt)

So, I've been running on the (mt) Django beta container for a couple of weeks now. So far its been great. I've received some questions about it so I figured I'd write up a few notes on the Django container...

• You get total control over your app without having to manage an entire server.
  
  

  
  
  




• The level of control vs. stability is perfect. This is my most favorite thing ever.
  

  
  
  




• You set up and control your Django project/app with a set of terminal commands that all begin with mtd.
  
  

  
  
  




• Overall, it's been extremely stable. I'd venture to say it seems more stable than the Rails container I used to use... my app has not crashed once yet.
  

  
  
  




• You can run on either the last released version of Django or the latest SVN of Django, and switch back and forth with a couple of mtd commands. You can also just download the SVN yourself if you want to be on a specific revision.
  
  

  
  
  




• Note: if you're running the container on a current SVN of Django (rev. 8015 or above) you will need to add this line to your settings.py for it to run properly:
  

  
  
  

  FORCE_SCRIPT_NAME = ''

  
  
  
  
  

I have to say that (mt) has blown my expectations away as far as hosting is concerned, and the Django container is just a part of that. I'd highly recommend them.

djangomtsite

We Are Scientists at Bowery

So last night we went to see We Are Scientists at Bowery Ballroom. It was fantastic. They sounded great and as you can see above, they played a great set of songs. It was a nice combination of the new and the old album.

We arrived about an hour late, and we still waited for like twenty minutes until the opening act came on. Which means that some people just stood around drinking for over an hour. The opening act wasn't too bad.

They're one of my absolute favorite bands, and one of maybe three bands that I haven't gotten to see live yet that I really really want to see. Loved every minute.

Almost the entire time there was hardly any light on the band at all. There was only a dark red light, and even with flash it was impossible to get good shots of the band. However, we did manage to get one when the lights came up in between two songs...

bandmusicnycshow

Cable YoYo Pop

Cable YoYo Pop (RadTech)

• Yes, I know I'm reviewing a ten dollar product.
  

  
  
  




• It's designed to stick onto the back of your iPod. However, if you have an iPhone, you probably don't want to stick your headphones on it all the time.
  

  
  
  




• So I stuck the suction cup to the included same-sized belt-clip. It worked like a charm.
  
  

  
  
  




• It took me way too long to find the ideal way to keep my headphones in my purse.
  

  
  
  




• Small and very thin.
  

  
  
  




• However not too tiny that you lose it within the first day.
  
  

  
  
  




• It's the perfect size.
  

  
  
  




• Very, very impressed.
  

  
  
  

fluff

Stupid-Simple Django Admin Previews

Incase you didn't know, I love Django.

I love how Django just makes things stupid-simple, such as with its built-in automatic admin interface. Yet one thing it did not provide was an optional post-preview, where you could see exactly what your post will look like once it is live without others being able to see it.

For me this was a must-have feature. So I quickly thought up a stupid-simple way to add admin previews.

This technique works with or without newforms-admin and is insanely easy to implement.

This requires a general understanding of Django's generic views. It also requires that you have a model that you want to preview. This model must have some kind of 'draft' status that is not shown on your live site, but is saved in the database.

So, lets say you have a model called Article. To add a preview for each article:

• Add a generic object_detail view to your app's views.py:
  
  

  
  

  
     from django.contrib.admin.views.decorators import staff_member_required
     from django.views.generic.list_detail import object_detail
     from your_app.models import Article
  
     @staff_member_required
     def preview(request, object_id):
     return object_detail(request, object_id=object_id,
     queryset=Article.objects.all(),
     template_object_name = 'article', )

  
  
  
  

  That @staffmemberrequired ensures that only people logged into your admin and designated a staff member for your site can see your article's preview before it is live. The rest is just a generic object_detail view named 'preview'.
  
  

  
  
  




• Add a line to your app's urls.py, above your admin url line:
  

  
  

  url(r'^admin/your_app/article/(?P<object_id>[0-9]+)/preview/$',
     'your_app.views.preview'),

  
  
  
  
  
  




• You don't actually have to add a template for the view if your project already has an object_detail template (named article_detail.html in this case). The generic view will grab this same template, and you'll be able to see exactly what your post will look like on your live site.
  

  
  
  




• Lastly, add a template to: /templates/admin/your_app/article/change_form.html. Paste this into that template:
  
  

  
  

  
     {% extends "admin/change_form.html" %} {% load i18n %}
      {% block object-tools %}
      {% if change %}{% if not is_popup %}
        <ul class="object-tools">
          <li><a href="history/" class="historylink">
              {% trans "History" %}</a></li>
          <li><a href="preview/" class="viewsitelink" target="_blank">
              {% trans "View preview" %}</a></li>
        {% if has_absolute_url %}<li>
          <a href="../../../r/{{ content_type_id }}/{{ object_id }}/" class="viewsitelink">
              {% trans "View on site" %}</a></li>{% endif%}
        </ul>
      {% endif %}{% endif %}
      {% endblock %}

  
  
  
  
  
  

The beauty of that 'View preview' link is it will only appear on the change form for the appropriate model (in this case, Article) and only once the article has been saved to the database (so you must save it as a draft first).

So after you restart your server, every time you save an article as a draft, you'll be able to click a button and see exactly what your post will look like to the world, without the world having to see it. :)

django

*Cinema -- The Dark Knight

The Dark Knight (2008)

• As good as everyone is saying.
  

  
  
  




• Heath Ledger was fantastic. Creepier than anything ever.
  
  

  
  
  




• Seriously though, I had trouble watching half of his scenes simply because I was afraid of anything he'd do. Although this was less about his acting and more about his actions. I'm a wimp when it comes to movie violence.
  

  
  
  




• Maggie Gyllenhaal kicked Katie Homes' butt. I mean her acting was just so much better.
  

  
  
  




• Loved Morgan Freeman and Michael Caine as usual.
  
  

  
  
  




• Christian Bale was good of course, though for a movie about Batman, it wasn't really all about Batman.
  

  
  
  




• There is no way that Nestor Carbonell looks old enough to be a mayor. I'm probably just used to Mayors being old.
  
  

  
  
  




• The criminals (other than the Joker) were kind of... eh.
  

  
  
  




• Real, creepy, and highly enjoyable.
  

  
  
  

Twenty Gigs Free!

It took way too long, but I've finally cut my music library by about half, from thirty gigs to fifteen. This means I actually have some breathing room on my tiny eighty-gig Macbook Air. At least for a little while, that is...

airdashboardmac

Django!

Excitement!

I have switched from Rails to Django. Ideally this isn't too big of a change for you, but it is for me. For the first time ever, I have written my own backend!

For the most part it was simple and incredibly fun. Basically its something I though I'd never be able to do, so I'm way too excited about it. Most things should be about the same. If you find any errors or 404's, please let me know.

Every few months, I had gone to the Django website, looked around a bit, and chickened out. This last time, though, I started reading about it a bit more. I found some various sites made with Django. Then I read that Mephisto's template language, Liquid, was based on Django's built-in template language. That was enough for me to get the book and dive in.

As soon as I did, I totally fell in love. A couple days later and things just started flowing. Next thing I knew, I was a part of the (mt) Django beta and here we are!

I'm sure I'll be talking more about it soon. With any luck its faster and more fun for all.

Please update your RSS subscriptions to: http://feeds.latherrinserepeat.org/all_articles/. Thanks! :D

djangomtsite

Feed Mess

Quick apology... the feed was a huge mess today, with many repeat postings, mostly due to various newsreader apps caching issues. I believe I worked it all out, and you shouldn't be seeing any more repeat postings...

If you are seeing multiple instances of the same item please remove the feed and re-add it with this address: http://feeds.latherrinserepeat.org/all_articles/. It seems to be the only way to definitely clear the cache.

Thanks for understanding! :D

site

Canon SD750

Canon SD750 (Canon)

So, I'm making a new section of my site. Its called Swag, because well, its about my stuff. I love... stuff. I've got a lot of it. So I might as well write about it.

So here is my first Swag post. About my brand new camera! A Canon SD750. Woo.

Matt got me a new camera for my birthday. I have had the same digital camera for the past few years, a Canon SD450. Its a great camera, but my main issue was (believe it or not, I know it was a tiny camera...) was that it was just too heavy. It was a little metal rock. I It just was not worth carrying in my purse all of the time.

I'm very happy to report that my new SD750 is significantly lighter. I think the biggest help is the fact that it's half black plastic, which I have to admit is pretty sexy. The screen is crazy huge.

I haven't had it even for 24 hours yet, so I don't have too much to report just yet. I am also about the worst photographer in the world. However, I have managed to take a couple sample photos that you can see after the jump...

Sample pics! Yay!

Rose, taken with my new camera this morning. It was taken in full natural light, no flash. The flash was set to automatic, and I'm pretty sure for the first time ever with a Canon camera, it didn't apply the flash. I was impressed.

My iPhone 3G, taken with my new camera. This also has no flash.. though it tried to use it this time (taken in a different area).

My new camera, taken with my new iPhone. Pretty!

cameradigital

iPhone 3G, Baby

As you might have guessed, I got a 3G iPhone. There is no way around it, I love it. Is gorgeous, white and significantly faster than the old one.

Luckily though I didn't wait on a three hour line. I called the two closest Apple Stores every couple of hours. I started around noon, getting reports of "three to four hours" of wait time for a phone. I started to get worried that they might sell out when I heard around 2 that there was still three-hour long wait times. When I called around four, I was told that around fifty people were only online. So I took my chances and headed to the store.

Altogether It took about an hour and a half to get my phone. Afterwards, though, seeing that the line was about same length I ended up waiting on the line once again to save a place for Matt who was still stuck at work.

Obviously not too much is different. I had installed the iPhone 2.0 firmware the day before, so even less is unique. Yet for some reason it really does feel sleeker, smoother, and faster.

3giphonemac

Clearly, I Need Sleep

This morning I noticed I was pretty much out of face wash, but I knew I had another bottle in my bedroom so I didn't buy one today. So tonight, when I went to wash my face in the bathroom, I realized I had to get the other bottle. However I couldn't find the new bottle anywhere. I was looking all over forever. I finally found it on the bathroom sink. Yes, I had completely forgotten I had already put the new bottle in the bathroom this morning.

Clearly, I need sleep. Plenty of sleep.

fluffglasses

Glasses. They Help You See.

Yay for new glasses! I can see!

Seriously though, got a second pair of glasses and new lenses. The best part is now I can always have a pair in my purse so I don't accidently leave the house without glasses. Thats the worst. Yay!

fluffglasses

*Cinema -- Wall-E

Wall-E (2008)

• Might be the cutest movie on the planet.
  

  
  
  




• Loved just about everything Wall-E did.
  
  

  
  
  




• So sweet.
  

  
  
  




• Absolutely beautiful. I can't wait to see it on my TV.
  

  
  
  




• Loved every bit of physical comedy.
  
  

  
  
  




• I know I'm probably in the minority, but I actually liked Ratatouille even more.
  

  
  
  




• However that doesn't mean that I didn't love Wall-E.
  
  

  
  
  

*Cinema -- Dan in Real Life

Dan in Real Life (2007)

• The daughters were easily the best part.
  

  
  
  




• I love Steve Carell when he's anyone except Michael from The Office (don't get me wrong, I love him on The Office too). He is just the greatest guy.
  
  

  
  
  




• Dane Cook, however. Meh.
  

  
  
  




• Juliette Binoche was a bit too perfect. Her positive qualities were all way over-exaggerated.
  

  
  
  




• Actually plenty of things were over-exaggerated. Such as Steve Carell's actions. Same for Juliette Binoche.
  
  

  
  
  




• No one is that revealing of their feelings in public, especially with their family around. No one is that obvious and downright silly.
  

  
  
  




• The daughters totally made up for the pure ridiculousness, though. Just cause they were awesome.
  

  
  
  

Shiny New Things

So! I have a new layout up. I've had the ideas and the illustrations done for some time now. I actually first drew those birds maybe a year ago now... its just taken a while for me to find the time and motivation enough to finish up.

As for inspiration and creation... I guess I tried to make something that was more organic, but still with some structure, which is where I got the idea for the tree. At first everything was a variation of gray, but I quickly got tired of that and added in some rainbow flowers.

I miss the kitty already. But she will be back very soon... I just needed a change for now.

It should look suitable in Safari and Firefox. Of course I'm still working some kinks out and it is all subject to change. If you notice anything, please let me know. :)

I've also taken the plunge and switched hosts. Lets face it, (mt) is simply gorgeous. I love the amount of control that I have over everything while still not having to worry about the basics (email, stability, etcetera). I'm sure I'm going to have more to say about them later.

Anyways... so these are the new digs. I hope you like em! :D

fluffmtsite

F*ck You, Mosquito

Not only do you make me feel terrible on the outside, you make me feel awful on the inside, too.

So f*ck you, mosquito.

bitchfluff

*Cinema -- Death at a Funeral

Death at a Funeral (2007)

• Very funny.
  

  
  
  




• I think that Alan Tudyk wins 1,000 points for well, everything. Especially for being on the roof nekkid.
  
  

  
  
  




• Thanks to this, and of course Nip/Tuck, whenever I see Peter Dinklage, I think, oh no, the marriage just went to sh*t.
  

  
  
  




• So silly. Liked it lots.
  
  

  
  
  

Psychic TiVo

After having it only a couple of weeks, my new TiVo HD recorded Reality Bites and Top Gun. Like wow.

My TiVo Gets Me.™

flufftivotv

*Cinema -- Waitress

Waitress (2007)

• So many pies.
  

  
  
  




• I really really enjoy Keri Russell, as long as she isn't Felicity.
  
  

  
  
  




• For that matter I also loved Cheryl Hines.
  

  
  
  




• Jeremy Sisto did a great job of being a complete asshole. It is definitely a talent of his.
  

  
  
  




• Oh god, spontaneous poetry.
  
  

  
  
  




• Absolutely loved Andy Griffith.
  

  
  
  




• Having an affair with your OB/GYN = awkward.
  

  
  
  




• I hope this is the last unexpected pregnancy movie I see for a while.
  
  

  
  
  




• Have I mentioned all the pies?
  

  
  
  

*Cinema -- 27 Dresses

27 Dresses (2008)

• Katherine Heigl is like a much taller Meg Ryan. Queen of the romantic comedy.





• James Marsden managed to have a leading role, and wasn’t bad at all.




• Heigl’s hair color in the movie wasn’t flattering at all, but I think that was the point.





• Some of the gowns were so bad that they were awesome.




• Had some original lines and original aspects, which was nice.




• Even the cheesiness wasn’t too corny at most points.





• Lots of fun.

*Cinema -- Iron Man

• On a whole, highly enjoyable.
  

  
  
  




• If for no other reason than for Jeff Bridges' beard.
  

  
  
  




• Robert Downey Jr. is a very lucky man for getting that part.
  
  

  
  
  




• He did an awesome job though.
  

  
  
  




• I spotted on Downey's imdb page that he's going to be playing Tony Stark in The Incredible Hulk. Interesting...
  
  

  
  
  




• Its fair to say that there was a fair amount of product placement, but of course, its a superhero movie.
  

  
  
  




• It was... refreshing.
  

  
  
  




• Looking forward to the next one.
  
  

  
  
  

*Cinema -- Lars and the Real Girl

Lars and the Real Girl (2007)

• Much better than I was expecting.
  

  
  
  




• It also managed to completely keep my attention, despite my expectations.
  
  

  
  
  




• A mix of creepy and sweet, but managed to mostly stay on the side of sweet.
  

  
  
  




• Emily Mortimer plays the woman I wish I was, but well, I guess I'm not.
  

  
  
  




• Patricia Clarkson was the psychologist I wish I could be.
  
  

  
  
  




• Ryan Gosling was good. He and Emily Mortimer managed to keep things on the sweet side.
  

  
  
  




• There was more to it than I expected.
  

  
  
  




• I liked how they revealed aspects of the film over time. Very well done.
  
  

  
  
  




• I really really enjoyed it, until the end. Although it was a fine ending, I think it could have been better.
  

  
  
  

*Cinema -- Horton Hears a Who!

Horton Hears a Who! (2008)

• Jim Carrey was much less annoying than I thought he’d be.





• I knew I recognized the Kangaroo voice but I just couldn’t place it… it was Carol Burnett!




• Also! Seth Rogen and Isla Fisher were in it! Ok, I had no idea. Woo!





• Steve Carell was of course wonderful.




• Vlad was basically just Will Arnett being himself, but of course, being awesome.




• This was much sweeter than I expected it to be. I think thats mostly because Jim Carrey was much sweeter than I expected him to be.





• All these Jim Carrey expectations probably have something to do with how he showed up on American Idol in a elephant suit.




• I really want my own little yellow fuzzy thing (named Katie).

*Cinema -- Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story

Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story (2007)

• Just plain silly.




• John C. Reilly did a great job. He’s insanely versatile.





• How could you not <3 Jenna Fisher?




• Some of the running jokes throughout the entire movie were great.





• The first half was crazy funny (in a super silly way). Somewhere around the part where he started LSD it got kind of slow, and never really picked back up.




• There was tons of useless nudity of all kinds, which of course adds to the awesome silliness.




• The words “stuffed cabbage laundromat” speak for themselves.





• “Edith I can’t build you a candy house! The house will fall down, the sun will melt the candy!”




• I don’t know what you would think of it if you hadn’t previously seen Walk the Line and Ray…





• Did I mention it was silly?

Subway Adventures

I took the subway by myself for the first time today. It was a very pleasant experience and I didn’t get lost or frustrated at any point.

I was even lucky enough to just catch the F train as it was leaving. It started moving as I got on, and I accidently almost fell on a man sitting, and used his shoulder to break my fall. Luckily he was clean, not scary and didn’t get angry.

fluffnycsubway

iPhone Screenshot!

I’m loving this theme, called Damino. Its gorgeous.

fluffiphonemac

MacBook Air!

So... I got myself a new toy! A MacBook Air.

Its easily one of the best toys ever. You simply cannot underestimate the incredibleness of the design and size of it. It truly is amazing.

I have a custom configuration, the 80 GB hard drive and the 1.8 Ghz processor. All together, for most tasks so far, I don't notice *that& much of a speed difference between it my MacBookPro. I don't see the rainbow ball of death nearly as much as I was expecting to,
but of course something are going to be much slower, such as basic tasks in Photoshop. I have to test this a bit more to get a real opinion on it.

The hard drive is also significantly slower, which means that basic file operations, such as copying take longer, but it has not gotten to a point where the mac is unusable at all. I also find Leopard to run well and is rather stable.

After I installed CS3, I haven't really noticed the lack of optical drive. I suppose it'll be a pain in the neck burn CDs and DVDs, but I've got the USB drive, and other machines for that.

I have to admit I find the 80 GB hard drive a bit stifling. I might have to work out a better set up for my music, which is taking up the bulk of the room. I suppose I don't need to have all of my music on my Air all of the time...

This is the first time I've ever been able to fit a laptop in my purse. It so freeing. I also have no desire to ever, ever sit at a desk. Not sure if thats a good thing yet.

In addition to the MacBook Air, I also finally switched to an Airport Express 802.11n in the apartment. Its fantastic. My home set up is almost complete!

All in all, I love my MacBook Air. Its so much in such a tiny package. Screenshots are on their way.

fluffmac

*Cinema -- Secretary

Secretary (2002)

• I totally appreciated Lesley Ann Warren.





• Not to mention the fabulous Maggie Gyllenhaal. I thought she did a great job.




• Pretty good for a film I had to watch in class.




• Very funny to see Jeremy Davies, who of course is now on Lost.





• One may to wonder, if Lee just asked Peter if he’d spank her, if she might have be a little more interested in. Of course, he was a complete idiot and she was already crazy about Mr. Grey.




• Ok, so, that last comment made no sense, but it let me use the word “spank”.





• I’d like to see what the coloring was really like in the movie. It was all screwed up on the classroom’s projector.




• Overall it was pretty enjoyable.

Things I'm Liking

• Git and Github. They’re totally changing the way I do things. In fantastic ways.





• Logitech. They provided an update for Harmony remotes for my brand of DVD Player/Stereo. It finally switches inputs properly! I’ve spent months trying to fix it, what a nightmare. Yay!!!




• Nokia Theater in Times Square. Went to see the band Say Anything there this weekend, and it is a great venue.





• Spending the weekend in the city. Makes me feel like I really live here. Is also lots and lots of fun when with fun people.




• TweetScan. Finally a way to search Twitter. So useful.





• Twitter in general. It is a wealth of information and assistance in well, everything.




• The fact that The Office comes back on April 10th.





• CSI repeats. I have moved from L&O Criminal Intent to classic CSI repeats. They soothe me.




• Muxtape. Its not perfect, but its not too bad, either. Check mine out.





• Really good salmon sushi. I cannot get enough. Ever. Its delicious!

fluff

*Cinema -- Enchanted

Enchanted (2007)

• Omg. Cute.





• The beginning animation left something to be desired. Just not classic Disney.




• There is no way around it, Amy Adams just plain rocks.




• James Marsden will always be the guy who inevitably loses the girl the other guy.





• Cheezy as all heck.




• I think the concept of the movie works a bit better in theory than in practice, but I still enjoyed it completely.

*Cinema -- Gone Baby Gone

Gone Baby Gone (2007)

• The first fifty minutes were kind of a waste.




• The rest was much much better. *So* much better.





• However, I’m not sure what else could have been done with the first fifty minutes. They just were not as good as the rest.




• I wish I hadn’t known Ben Affleck directed the movie, because I might have been less critical while watching.





• That being said, it does take something to make me feel bad for a guy named Cheese.




• Michelle Monaghan didn’t do too much considering how often she was on screen.





• Ed Harris was very good.




• After the first fifty minutes, it had some amazing “ohmygod!!” moments.





• Overall good, but not great.

Oh, Lists

• My office went to see Macbeth at BAM staring Patrick Stewart. The play itself was awesome, although the seating was awful. It was easily the most entertaining version of Macbeth I’ve seen.




• My professor has confirmed that the entire class must find a way to sit in and observe a sex-addicts-anonymous meeting. Oi.





• I accidently burned the tops of my feet by walking into the shower without checking the water first. I was still half asleep so it didn’t really phase me. Its not too bad, my feet are just a bit red.




• I really enjoy Rock Band. I could sing in Rock Band all day. In fact, I have sang in Rock Band all day.





• For the record, America is still getting it “right” on American Idol.




• The new things are coming. They’re actually almost (almost) here.





• I think the issue is that I’m far too tired at night to think of posts.




• Though lets face it, this isn’t much better.

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Old Things are Slow

Things here are slow and old.

Quick, plain, clean things are hopefully on their way.

In other news..

• I bought a new purse. I love it, yet I am deeply ashamed of it at the same time.





• Going to sleep early seems like such a waste of time, even when you wake up early.




• On a related note, I am really enjoying my coffee right now.




• Has anyone else noticed that when your Mac has had a really hard day, it stops automatically switching spaces when you switch appropriate applications? Bizarre.





• Yesterday I made Apple’s Package Maker crash so intensely that I had to restart before it would reopen.




• America keeps getting it “right” on American Idol. I can’t believe someone thought singing Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go was a good idea.





• If you’re going to sing a Wham! song, it can only be Careless Whisper.




• I fear that I’m not nearly as creative as I used to be (in any and every way), but I hope its just because I’m out of practice.





• It may not seem like it, but I think about this place all the time.




• Fitting few and far between blog posts in before work is poor form, especially when you still have to dry your hair.

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*Cinema -- There Will Be Blood

There Will Be Blood (2007)

• Daniel Day-Lewis was awesome.
  

  
  
  




• He totally deserved his Oscar for his accent alone. It was so cool.
  
  

  
  
  




• I had no idea that Paul Dano was the same kid from Little Miss Sunshine. What a great actor.
  

  
  
  




• The music. Omg. Constant suspense music. Drove me insane. So much impending doom!
  
  

  
  
  




• The whole parent/child element was so potent and incredibly sad.
  

  
  
  




• One word: Milkshake.
  

  
  
  




• Anything with Ciarán Hinds, you know its gotta be good.
  
  

  
  
  




• Wanted to punch Eli in the face the entire movie.
  

  
  
  




• Intense is an understatement.
  

  
  
  




• I really hated that music.
  
  

  
  
  

*Cinema -- 25th Hour

25th Hour (2002)

• Edward Norton just rocks.





• First time I didn’t find Rosario Dawson entirely annoying.




• Except that her name was Naturelle. That was pretty annoying.





• It was funny that at the very beginning Edward Norton references the X-Men, and Anna Paquin as you know, was in the X-Men movies.




• Appreciated the contrast in Frank’s character. He was clearly a sleazy guy, who actually was capable of feeling.





• Barry Pepper looks less creepy with much shorter hair (than in the film).




• That dog was awesome.




• Philip Seymour Hoffman was fantastic as usual.





• Nice appearance by Patrice O’Neal.




• One of the best lines ever: “Who are you trying to be… R. Kelly?”

Working. For Cats.

So. I work at Freeverse. I've been here for almost a month, and its much more fun than I thought a "real job" could be. Yay for pics!

I really enjoy the cats at work...

A couple other fun pics..

(Ps.. The SuperBowl was fantastic. Goooo Giants!)

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*Cinema -- Charlie Wilson's War

Charlie Wilson's War (2007)

• Much much better than I was expecting.
  

  
  
  




• Tom Hanks was brilliant.
  
  

  
  
  




• Tom Hanks looked much better than Julia Roberts.
  

  
  
  




• Phillip Seymour Hoffman had some fantastic lines.
  
  

  
  
  




• Completely entertaining and worthwhile.
  

  
  
  




• Enjoyed Amy Adams, makes me want to see Enchanted even more.
  
  

  
  
  




• Seemed like such a balanced politician, which was refreshing.
  

  
  
  




• Well written, acted, timed, and directed.
  
  

  
  
  




• Watching Julia Roberts separate her lashes with a giant safety pin was scarier than anything in No Country for Old Men.
  

  
  
  




• Impressive.
  
  

  
  
  

*Cinema -- No Country for Old Men

No Country for Old Men (2007)

• All in all a great movie.





• I spent the whole movie going “its the guy who played two guys in Deadwood!”.




• Its fair to say this entire movie is based on how incredibly creepy Javier Bardem can be.





• Long, but kept my attention.




• The whole no-music thing worked rather well.




• I don’t know if I’ll ever know the point of it all, but I guess thats ok.





• Although it puzzled me at first, I really appreciated the whole many tried, but all failed to be heros thing.

*Cinema -- Juno

Juno (2007)

• Pretty much as great as you've heard.
  

  
  
  




• Rainn Wilson might have the smallest cameo ever, but its still the best cameo ever.
  
  

  
  
  




• Cute but does have less-cute elements, which was refreshing.
  

  
  
  




• All I can think of when I see J.K. Simmons is Law and Order, where he used to play a psychologist.
  
  

  
  
  




• I'm not sure how someone like Jennifer Garner's character can be such a poor wife yet a great mother, but its probably possible.
  

  
  
  




• Gonna go out on a limb and say that Jason Bateman's character was both a poor husband and probably a poor father, even if he was charming at the same time.
  

  
  
  




• At times it felt like bits might be missing, like it went through time a little too fast. I didn't even go to the bathroom during the movie, so I know I didn't miss a thing.
  
  

  
  
  




• Paulie Bleeker is an awesome name for a non-jock teenage kid. Especially when played by Michael Cera.
  

  
  
  




• Loved Ellen Page and Michael Cera together.
  

  
  
  

In With the New

Happy New Year!

Soo things have been happening. Such as…

• I got a job.




• I’m getting an apartment in Manhattan.





• I start my job and living in the apartment in around two weeks.

So plus the holidays, things have been a little hectic. So exciting though!

I guess I haven’t written much about it because I don’t want to jinx anything. Long story short, I might be the first person to find a job from a tweet. I had just started to look around for a position when I posted this tweet, not expecting anything to come out of it. I was hired two weeks later. I’m super excited to start and its really amazing how things work out sometimes. I still don’t want to say too much because I haven’t actually started yet. However I will say my official position is (Mac) System Administrator of a pretty awesome software and gaming company. Wooooo!

I haven’t even had the chance to mention the fantastic presents I got for Christmas! Namely a new TV from my mom and a TiVo HD from Matty! Yay! Hopefully the cable guy will show up at the apartment tomorrow and actually manage to install the cable so I can use them. I don’t think I would be able to live without cable and TiVo. I <3 my TiVo.

I am also pretty excited to see what comes out of Macworld. Particularly in the ‘sub-notebook’ department. Although I am hoping its not really a sub-notebook but really a reinvention of the 12” PowerBook (perhaps a 13.3” MacBook Pro). I suppose its also worth mentioning that the company I’ll be working for will be at MacWorld, however I won’t be there this year since I haven’t even started working yet. :( Hopefully I might be able to go to the next WWDC, though!

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