Cool Words of the Month
I like to open the dictionary to a random page and note down cool words, once a month. It’s a good writing exercise, and it introduces me to new words. I also rediscover words that just look neat or sound beautiful. This month’s cool words: Faro – a card game used for gambling, its name […]
Media Fast Reflections
I’ve finished my Media Fast, and have caught up on email, blogs, etc. After reflecting on the experience, I’ve come to several conclusions: I consume a lot of media. DVDs, blog posts, music, movies. Hours per day. Even without a TV. There’s a cultural expectation that everyone consumes a lot of media. People are genuinely […]
Osamu Tezuka’s Brilliant Buddha
I recently finished Osamu Tezuka’s Buddha, a manga adaptation of the life of Buddha. It’s about 3,000 pages that focus on the historical man, and the evolution of his philosophy, as opposed to attempts to teach you Buddhism. I had to be careful when reading this book, as I couldn’t simply pick it up, then put it down; I’d get sucked in and read through to the end. This is partly due to Tezuka’s unique style: he […]
Polymeme – Unusual News
Polymeme is a website devoted to “intelligent content that lies beyond the usual echo chambers of tech news, celebrity gossip or American politics.” This doesn’t mean off-beat stories; Polymeme specializes in articles about subjects we care about, but from perspectives we don’t normally see. For example: From The Independent — Solar panels ‘take 100 years to pay back installation costs’ From IdeaBlob — Designing […]
How Can I Draw Better?
I love to draw. I can’t draw well, but I love doing it and coming up with something that satisfies my (very low) standards. Tonight, I spent a couple hours drawing hair, using Mark Crilley’s YouTube videos. And I’m very happy with some of the results. Of course, they have plenty of flaws. But I’m […]
Media Fasting: No Media for a Week
Today begins my week-long Media Fast, my twice-a-year vacation from all media. I avoid anything that was produced for an audience. No books, magazines, newspapers, movies, DVDs, TV, music, or blogs. I stay reasonable about all this. If I walk into a coffee shop in which a TV sits in one corner, blaring CNN, then […]
Record Your Family’s Stories With Famento
Genealogy‘s a big hobby. Today’s site lies on the lighter end of that hobby, for those who just want to keep track of their close and extended family. If you sign up at Famento, you can create pages for members of your family, upload photos, and write biographies for each of them. There’s also a […]
Listen To Music You’ll Like With Last.fm
I’ve been hearing about Last.fm for months now, but I haven’t tried it. It’s a website—like Pandora—where you list a few of your favorite artists, and the site plays music that sounds similar. It catalogues music by what it sounds like, basically, then streams music that matches the music you like. But now I hear […]
Ela: Legend of Light!
Just stumbled across a very odd video called Ela: Legend of Light. It’s a combination live-action/CGI short film, made in Argentina, that very much evokes 1980’s American cartoons. One of its directors describes it as “a weird mix between She-Ra, Tron, and Flash Gordon,” a fairly accurate description. Besides the He-Man/She-Ra feel, I noticed what […]
I Turn My Back On a Job Offer
So I did something that might appear crazy today. I turned down a nice job offer. I got a phone call two weeks ago from a recruiter, who put me in touch with a local company who does ASP development. I had a phone interview with one of the founders, then went in for a face-to-face interview with the other founder and a few people there at the office. I’m trying to keep these people as anonymous […]