This Side of Lost

I've been tinkering with Movable Type (the software that makes this blog run) and I've finally convinced it to cater to my desires enough to produce a Master Archive Index, which lists all my posts by category. Check it out via the link in the left-hand column.

My life feels kind of like a stick-shift car with only second and fifth gear working.

I kick it into fifth gear from Monday to Thursday, when my commitments generally start at 8 am and usually aren't through until (at best) 4 pm, or (at worst) almost 9 pm. Whew. I mean, one gets a lot done in a day this way, but where does one find time to do one's homework, not to mention the mundane-but-necessary things like grocery shopping or dishwashing? Samantha and I threw in the towel last Wednesday pleading exhaustion and went home instead of going to the gym, promising ourselves we'd make it up the next day (which we did).

And then I slip down to second gear for Friday-Sunday. I like second gear. It's a smooth ride, just kind of tootling along, fast enough to go somewhere, but not so fast that I need to maintain a high level of concentration. I think it's that concentration that makes the first part of the week so exhausting. Like today. I've done nothing of any worth except dork around on the web, listen to my new Olympic Hopefuls CD twice (preliminary favorite tracks: Holiday, Whisper), and update my blog. I'm thinking a shower might be nice sometime soon, but you know, I'm in no rush.

So I'm currently trying to decide if the three days of little scheduling and rest are worth the four hectic ones. The thought is dawning on me that four days might be too small to fit a whole work week into and maybe I should try to move some scheduled commitments to Friday. Note I said "dawning" and the thought hasn't exactly fully formed yet, as it is likely being beaten back down the horizon by my enjoyment of Fridays off. I guess I'll just wait and see who wins.

In other news:

• Speaking of Friday, had a really nice one yesterday. Samantha and I walked into town and had pancakes at the Deli, went by the library to pick up AFI #99, then went up to campus to run errands, went out and did laundry and found her a new backpack, and got back in time to get dressed up and go to Mikado for sushi (sooo good) before going to the opera, which was A View From the Bridge. Which sadly did not exactly change my opinion about contemporary opera much (which is that they are bad). I think Arthur Miller's plays are best when they remain plays.
• My classes are going pretty well. Both the Info Retrieval and the Database course have ongoing, semester long projects that have their first 'milestone' assignment due this week. Which I should be thankful for, because the milestones for this assignment will perhaps keep me from procrastinating on them. Perhaps.
• We have started looking at DIALOG in my Info Retrieval course, which is the second text-based, command line system I've be introduced to this semester (after the STN system that Chemical Abstracts uses). Which is my cue to start mixing the two up terribly. Sigh.
• Speaking of CA, Gary Wiggins, the prof for my Chem Info Retrieval course, is starting to plan a field trip to the Chemical Abstracts offices in Columbus, OH. I'm excited about the prospect of doing this, which just goes to show how much of a library nerd I am.
• Let me emphasize again. The sushi at the Mikado was really, really good. Highly recommended.
• Hey, is that Bowl thing coming up soon? I've seen something about that whilst trawling the baseball sites I frequent. That means funny commercials, right? I'm all about that. Who wants to watch?

Enjoy the rest of your weekend, all. Peace.

Next up was Stanley Kramer's 1967 film about interracial marriage. Katharine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy play parents coming to terms with their daughter's (Katharine Houghton, Hepburn's real-life niece) desire to marry an African-American man, Dr. John Prentice (Sidney Poitier).

I admit to being a little inexperienced with the greats of the golden age of movies, so it was a treat for me to see Katharine Hepburn in an Oscar-winning role and Spencer Tracy (in his last film role!) so early in our trek. Hepburn was at her best when she was telling off her associate from the art gallery. Tracy looked very old (even though he was only 67), likely because he was very sick as well (he died 17 days after filming wrapped), but still had a commanding screen presence. Sidney Poitier is always a marvel to behold -- Samantha said it best when she said that "the most any parent could wish for would to have him come home asking for their daughter's hand in marriage."

The film itself had oddly comedic touches to it for a film with such serious and controversial content. Though I suppose that makes sense -- the seriousness probably needed the levity now and again to break the pressure. Of which there was plenty, by the way. I can only imagine how groundbreaking this film was at the time -- like if a film were made today about gay marriage. And it was done so well -- not preachy or high handed, just an honest look at some normal people struggling with big issues.

So mark another winner. The only thing I can really fault the film for is the insipid insistence of its theme song, "Glory of Love" ("You've got to give a little, take a little..."), which just sounded trite and gooey behind such a well-done movie. But I suppose that is the story of, that's the glory of love.

I like baseball. Do you like baseball? If so, would you perhaps be interested in joining a fantasy baseball league? If so, drop me a line... I am definitely interested in taking my baseball geekiness to the next level...

PS - Opening Day is only 59 days away!

I just got my weekly They Might Be Giants update in the mail, and it included a link to a Flash site about their upcoming children's project. Flansy specifically said "We invite you to post it on your blog" so here you go. I think it's so cool that my favorite rock band is writing children's material. If you thought my kids were going to turn out weird as it was, just take a look at what they'll be listening to ALL THE TIME:

http://www.hyfntrak.com/tmbg/AFF16018/

No, it's not World War II Victory Day, merely a "holiday" to honor our loved ones. Although I'm sure opinions differ on this day, I hope your day is filled with love. Samantha and I celebrated our Valentine's Day Observed on Saturday with a fancy dinner, as part of our...

Trip to Chicago last weekend. The St. Olaf Choir gave a tour concert at Northwestern University in Evanston, IL, on Friday, so Samantha and I used it as an excuse to make another weekend trip to the windy city. My uncle John and aunt Marti were wonderfully hospitable as usual.

The choir was excellent, although perhaps not as tear-jerking as they have been for me in the past. They did some familiar numbers (O Day Full of Grace, A Boy and a Girl, My Soul's Been Anchored) as well as some new ones (a Keith Hampton arranged tune called True Light, a new Charles Forsberg composition). I saw a few old choir buddies who are in the area. Fun reunions.

Saturday Samantha and I poked around downtown. We stopped at the Art Institute (echoes of Ferris Bueller!) and the Field Museum briefly. Our visit to the downtown library was thwarted by early closing hours. Seriously, who closes a library at 5 pm? Sigh. We made our way out to Evanston and had the aforementioned fancy dinner at Pete Miller's, a cool steakhouse. I had ribs. 'Nuff said.

Now I am back in Bloomington, where the weather is lukewarm and wet. Sigh. I am tired of Indiana winter. In other news:

• It is Lent now. Sinden.org has changed colors appropriately. I have decided to give up spontaneous desserts for Lent. Those iced sugar cookies at Sugar & Spice are killing me. Also, no more Cresent Donut, no more vending machine snacks, and no more running out to the Encore Cafe or Puccini's for cheesecake.
• I saw Million Dollar Baby last Sunday. Definitely a punch in the gut. I'm down for the count. Unforgiven is next on our AFI list, so I'll be getting the double dose of Clint Eastwood...
• Spring Break is only a month away. Ooh, ooh, time to start planning... Beantown, here we come!
• This isn't really news, but it deserves its own bullet point, I think. If you live in Bloomington and haven't been to Tortilla Flat for dinner on a Tuesday, you owe it to yourself to go. The tacos are really cheap and so, so good. Never has there been such a taco deal since Twilight Tacos at the Tacoasis in Northfield. That's tough to beat, but I can safely say Torilla Flat has done it.
• Things have been very quiet on the Storyhill front lately. This could be a good sign, though, because a long silence is sometimes broken by something awesome. Like a new album. In related news, my silly Storyhill site shows up 18th on Google if you search "storyhill". And 7th if you search "storyhill lyrics". Yes I am a nerd.
• This site is totally valid. See the graphic on the left-hand side. Don't you wish you were valid?

Talking about tacos is making me hungry. Time for lunch, I think. Peace!

Dang! Why didn't anyone teach me how to do this?

http://www.albinoblacksheep.com/flash/fold.php

You can bet I'll be attempting this at my first available opportunity.

"Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside a dog, it's too dark to read." - Groucho Marx

Conversation with Brian Winterman, librarian and rock star:
"Come on. You're a musician who writes evocative and sensitive songs." - Me
"Naw. I get those lyrics off the Internet." - Brian

Edit for Google searchers looking for information about Drambuie: you spelled it wrong. Try this.

Why have I had this word stuck in my head all morning? I didn't even know what it means until a few minutes ago. (Those of you who know will notice that I misspelled it, since that's how it sounds and how I originally started looking for the meaning. I'm not trying to draw any unrelated Google searchers here.) It turns out be a cool Gaelic word meaning "the drink that satisfies." A Scotch liqueur has appropriated as a brand name, unfortunately. But I think I'll keep using it in its misspelled version to describe my favorite drinks. Like orange juice. Mmmmm... drambooie.

In alcohol-related news, Samantha mixed me a drink the other day that I actually kind of liked (Bailey's, Kahlua, and vanilla soy milk on ice). Will Andrew actually cease being a tee-totaller one of these days? Stay tuned...

Most exciting event of recent times: Seeing Peter Schickele at the IU Auditorium Sunday night. For those of you who are not familiar with him, Schickele is a Juilliard-trained musician and composer who refuses to do anything serious with this talent. He is solely responsible for distributing the works of P.D.Q. Bach, the supposed last and least of J.S. Bach's children. I didn't know what to expect from a live show, but it turned out to be half-concert, half-comedy hour with Schickele and his two (also rather talented) vocalists, poking fun at every convention in classical music (and I do mean every, like the house lights going up and down and everything). Good music and bad puns abounded. A tromboon (trombone with bassoon mouthpiece) and piano variations on Twinkle Twinkle Little Star (Scintilla Scintilla) for two hands and nose were featured. Hilarious. I was very impressed and very entertained. There were many Quotes of the Week, but I can't remember any of them now.

In other news:

• School work is kind of ramping up here. The semester project for Databases actually needs to start getting built this week. I've got a library "visit" to do and write up for Coll Dev, and Info Retrieval is starting to get down to the wire as well. I may be a little lacking in posts in the near future...
• Made some of my world famous brownies for a dinner engagement Saturday night. They turned out even more fabulous than usual, thanks to the substitution of some Ghirardelli Ground Chocolate and Cocoa for some of the baking chocolate. Once again Mari outdid herself with Thai pizza. Yum.
• Saw Constantine last night. Can't say I was terribly impressed. Keanu was lackluster as usual. Rachel Weisz is hot. The casting of Tilda Swinton as the angel Gabriel qualifies as brilliant. Special effects were very nice. I think my view of graphic novels and related media has been affected by reading too much Alan Moore and Warren Ellis, whose writing is just too smart, snappy and engaging for anything else to live up to.
• Fun web toy: the Name Explorer from Baby Name Wizard. Type in a letter or two to show the changing popularity of names that start with those letters.
• I somehow missed out on ordering Girl Scout Cookies this year. Is the season over already? Someone give me a hand here. Don't tell me I won't get any Piñatas this year.

I leave you with Kenya, an old favorite of mine I re-stumbled across today. Free snorkel with every visit. Peace, all.

Here's the recipe for the aforementioned brownies. Quote Adam Ragusea: "These are really f***ing good."

2 oz. unsweetened baking chocolate
8 tbsp butter
5 tbsp margarine
3/4 c. Ghirardelli Ground Chocolate and Cocoa
1 2/3 c. sugar
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/4 cup flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 bag chocolate and peanut butter chips (optional)

Preheat oven to 350ºF. In a medium-sized saucepan, melt chocolate, butter and margarine on low heat. Remove from heat when completely melted. Add ground chocolate and cocoa and mix. Add sugar and mix. Add eggs one at a time, mixing each individually. Add vanilla and mix. Add flour, salt and baking powder and mix (slowly!). Grease a standard 9 x 13 baking pan. Pour into pan, making sure it is evenly distributed. Bake at 350ºF for 25-30 minutes. Test with toothpick before setting out to cool -- if comes out clean, they're done. If comes out a little dirty, they're done well. :) (Optional: Sprinkle chips on top of brownies immediately after removing from the oven. Once melted, spread using knife.)

• Busy week this week. Have assignments due Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, not to mention planning for my road trip to Boston. This post will be short.
• Saw Dialogues des Carmélites on Friday. Excellent music -- can't go wrong with Poulenc. Story was difficult to follow. Also depressing. After this and View from the Bridge, am ready for fluffy Mozart (good thing Magic Flute is next).
• Samantha was given a fascinating DVD recently -- a recording of a made-for-TV musical version of Cinderella, by Rogers and Hammerstein no less, starring Julie Andrews. Apparently this was performed and broadcast live for a massive TV audience (107 million people) in 1957. It's truly a unique recording, as I don't think anything like this was ever done to the quality that this one was produced. I'm curious if my mom remembers seeing this in her youth, considering it probably would have been right up her alley.
• Attempted to do karaoke with Samantha's friend Mandy and the Deli crowd on Thursday. Failed miserably due to prevalence of undergrad drunken idiots and rather disappointing selection of songs. Ended up at the Vid (via Yogi's) for some quality hangin' out.
• Went to the IU/Michigan State basketball game yesterday with David and Jon from church. We were all Mission Impossible with our plans (getaway car, changing clothes, etc). As it turns out, we picked a great game -- it was close for the whole 40 minutes, and IU pulled out a thrilling victory in overtime. We left too early to see the crowd rush the court.
• Oscars were last night. Thrilled to see Million Dollar Baby take some top awards, and to see Cate Blanchett and Morgan Freeman get theirs. Very pleased to see Charlie Kaufman win Best Original Screenplay for Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind! Samantha says she must see it now. Eeeehhcks-cellent. *temples fingers* We also made some very good bruschetta with bean puree for our gathering (once again at Mari's, and once again, she was quite impressive with tomato soup and homemade ravioli).
• Spring training has started. Minnesota Twins are looking good! Am hoping to see them a few times this summer, maybe in Chicago for a White Sox game, maybe at home when I go back for Alison's graduation. We'll see.
• Getting sick of cold and damp weather. Glad it's the last day of February.
• Can't believe it's the last day of February. Where did this semester go?
• Off to work. Peace!