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Friday, June 26th, 2009
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1:10 am
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I'm confused by all the ads on tv for Bing. They make fun of other search engines for bringing up lots of superfluous results, and suggest that a good search engine will be able to read you mind and find only the search results that happen to match with what you were thinking but didn't say.
And yet, trying Bing out myself, I find I get way more junk results than I get with Google. It's phenomenally hard to actually filter through and find the useful results with a Bing search.
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(5 comments | comment on this)
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| Tuesday, June 16th, 2009
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10:08 am
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You know, David Letterman's jokes about Palin and her family were out of line. They were disgusting, mean, and misogynist. And it's kinda disappointing to see everyone on the left apologizing for them just because we don't like Palin.
There are plenty of legitimate reasons to dislike Palin. If you want to attack or mock her, there are a lot of good ways to go about it (see Tina Fey for some perfect examples). But having to sexualize and shame a woman for being in a position of power is completely inappropriate, and fantasizing about watching her young daughter get raped is just appalling.
That being said, Republicans have no leg to stand on with their outrage. They've done the exact same thing as Letterman. They told just as vile of jokes about Chelsea Clinton back in the day. John McCain especially became somewhat infamous for his vicious attacks on 12-year-old Chelsea, and he is now in no position to claim a moral high ground when he tries to say that Letterman was out of line.
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(comment on this)
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| Tuesday, June 9th, 2009
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11:38 am
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| Tuesday, June 2nd, 2009
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1:18 am
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So, all these Snapple ads about how they've discovered "better stuff." The big change is that they're using cane sugar instead of high fructose corn syrup. So, apparently, they only just discovered the existence of sugar.
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(2 comments | comment on this)
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| Monday, June 1st, 2009
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2:08 pm
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1:25 pm
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I'm filling out paperwork to be eligible to teach at UW this summer. And there's one form that's all about qualifications - listing previous jobs, degrees, awards, etc. And it also asks for you to report gender. It doesn't ask for any other demographic information. But right in with all the questions about academic experience and qualifications, it also wants to know whether you're a boy or a girl. It doesn't seem especially relevant.
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(comment on this)
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| Saturday, May 30th, 2009
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3:29 pm - sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast
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I just bought the 1998 Kate Beckinsale "Alice Through The Looking Glass." I'm watching it right now. Only about twenty minutes in, but already, I think this may be the best Alice adaptation I've ever come across. It stays true to the book while having its own unique character. It keeps the whimsy of the stories, while also maintaining the underlying elegaic bittersweet quality.
And, though it shouldn't be that rare of a quality, I appreciate that someone is willing to actually leave Carroll's poetry as is, rather than presuming to re-write it:
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(comment on this)
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| Thursday, May 28th, 2009
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2:47 am
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2:42 am
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Any of you in the Tri-Cities on the 13th who want to come are welcome to drop by the Sloughter Family Graduation Party - we will be celebrating a hat trick of recent Sloughter graduations (myself, Kalin, and Carolyn).
( The Invitation )
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(comment on this)
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| Wednesday, May 27th, 2009
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1:48 am - Assorted Folklife Thoughts
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-There's really impressive gender equality amongst the buskers at Folklife. About as many women as men there, not just in terms of numbers of people performing, but in terms of who seemed to be the driving creative forces in the bands. Not so much true with the stage performers - there, it was perhaps a bit better than the music industry as a whole, but there still seemed to be at best maybe 25% female artists, often in fairly token sorts of roles.
-I wish I could live on curly fries, mango lemonade, and elephant ears.
-Also, yay for the Tofurkey stand selling veggie hot dogs, sausages, cheesesteaks, and meat ball sandwiches.
-Ran into Paul Mataruse, a classmate from GU. Random and fun.
-I like dancing. A lot. But dancing at Folklife feels kinda silly to me. I tried it, and it seems a waste - there's all these unique opportunities to see really great music, and I don't know why I should, instead, spend that time doing the sort of dancing I could do any time. I guess, for the people who enjoy the dancing there, more power to you, but it feels like an inefficient use of one's time to me.
-Beat-box jug is the best thing ever.
-I've never felt less unique as a washboard player than I did at Folklife. Perhaps the single most ubiquitous instrument there (possibly second-most, behind guitar).
-I need to build a washtub bass. Step one: where do I find a washtub?
-Funnel cake is no substitute for an elephant ear.
-I spent 3 days outside all day, and somehow didn't get sunburnt. Wow.
-Brought my washboard along and played in a Cajun jam session. Oodles of fun.
-Also busked for the first time, with Mai Li and Sarah. "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" is so much better with a kazoo.
-You can identify Portland people by sight. Even more so than you normally can. There were a lot of great Portland acts there. And, in the grand tradition of the Portland music scene, the Portland bands seemed to largely consist of people not actually from Portland.
-Everyone was selling out of their cds. Yay for them, boo for McLean who will have to borrow Sarah's copy of the Dapper Cadavers' album, rather than have his own.
-Yay for lots of free food being given out. Especially for the kid I tutor giving me a bunch of extra bags of free granola when he recognised me.
-Playing music with people is fun. I need to do this more often.
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(4 comments | comment on this)
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| Saturday, May 23rd, 2009
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2:43 am
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A question that came up when Sam and I were discussing this new show "Glee" - what other musical tv shows can you name? All I could come up with are "Cop Rock", "Fraggle Rock", and "The Monkees", but there must be more than that.
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(5 comments | comment on this)
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| Friday, May 22nd, 2009
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8:07 pm
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Many many years ago, I had a thing of vanilla yoghurt that was the most delicious thing I'd ever tasted. I forgot what brand it was, and since then, have been trying to find it again. Every vanilla yoghurt I've had since then has tasted way too sour and yoghurty. I finally found one today that tastes just as delicious, though - Trader Joe's French Village vanilla yoghurt.
McLean is happy.
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(comment on this)
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| Monday, May 18th, 2009
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10:15 pm - They had me at "Robert Downey Jr. Is Sherlock Holmes"
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| Sunday, May 17th, 2009
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10:07 pm
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For any of y'all who are around the Tri-Cities (or, I suppose, feel like making the trip), on June 13th there will be a Sloughter Family graduation party for myself, Kalin, and Carolyn. Ain't no party like a Sloughter House party.
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(comment on this)
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9:47 pm
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| Sunday, May 10th, 2009
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8:40 pm - Dancing
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7:38 pm - Dr. Sloughter
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It's done. No revisions required. I am Dr. Sloughter. Blog name has been appropriately updated.
So, now, future and real world? Woo?
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(6 comments | comment on this)
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| Wednesday, May 6th, 2009
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3:56 pm
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On Food Network right now, I'm seeing yet another cook talking about how hard it is to make a hollandaise sauce, and how you can cheat it by mixing everything in a blender.
I hear this all the time. And I'm just baffled by it. Sure, hollandaise isn't as easy as, say, gravy. But it's not that tough. Once you get the hang of it, and learn a little patience, it's pretty easy to throw together.
I suppose I should be appreciative, because all these celebrity cooks scaring people off means a lot of folks will just never try, and it will be all the more impressive when I make it. But really. Anyone can make a hollandaise.
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(1 comment | comment on this)
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| Thursday, April 30th, 2009
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11:24 pm - Yesterday and Today
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Dinosaurs = extremely disappointing.
Stephen Campbell Moore = awesome.
Maple brandy hot toddy = not as good of an idea as it sounds.
Two hours of sleep = insufficient, but also more manageable than anticipated.
Train = awesome.
Making a new friend on the train = more awesome.
New friend buying me breakfast on the train = more awesome still.
Shopping at Powell's = yay, but always somewhat slightly less magical than I build it up in my imagination.
Rose-flavoured gelato = brilliant.
Canada socks on sale = McLean's buying presents for the whole family.
Hotel charging for internet = boo.
Sister = now a master of teachery!
Pizza + wine = nom.
Convincing the hotel to give us free internet = McLean wins.
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(10 comments | comment on this)
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| Monday, April 27th, 2009
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5:17 pm
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Was just on the phone with my mom, and Pam and Baby Love were over there too. As they were leaving, my mom put Baby Love on the phone, telling her "say goodbye to McLean!" And apparently she then waved goodbye to me.
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(comment on this)
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| Sunday, April 26th, 2009
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2:59 pm
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I just bought a ticket to go see the live show of "Walking With Dinosaurs."
I've been a fan of animatronic dinosaurs for ages, and this looks to be perhaps the greatest piece of animatronic dinosaur art ever created. I can't wait.
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(1 comment | comment on this)
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| Friday, April 24th, 2009
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5:45 pm
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A vegetable peeler is perfect for making cucumber sandwiches - you can get wonderfully thin slices of the cucumber. I don't know why this never occurred to me before.
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(2 comments | comment on this)
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| Wednesday, April 22nd, 2009
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2:17 pm
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| Monday, April 20th, 2009
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1:23 am - Dr. Sloughter
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On May 8th, I will be defending my dissertation (3:00 in Smith 105 for anyone who wants to come and see it). Then I will be Dr. Sloughter, and I get to become a super-villain.
Super-hero/villain themed party at my place that evening.
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(5 comments | comment on this)
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| Thursday, April 2nd, 2009
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5:48 pm - Necessity is the mother of invention
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Substituting grapefruit for lemon/lime in a gin & tonic = tasty.
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(comment on this)
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| Wednesday, March 25th, 2009
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11:58 pm - Shaken, not stirred
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So I'm watching "Quantum of Solace" right now. And decided that I ought to try making a proper Vesper martini to have with it.
And I've come to the conclusion that Mr. Bond just doesn't know how to make a decent martini.
Firstly there's the volume - the thing is massive, about four times the size a martini needs to be. There's three measures of gin, a measure of vodka, and a half-measure of Lillet. That's a lot of alcohol. Enough that it's hard to finish for some of us. If nothing else, enough that it won't stay properly cold the whole time - even if you want that much to drink, you're better off having several small martinis.
Secondly, the vodka - you're deliberately cutting down on the flavour of the gin, making a duller martini.
And finally, it's shaken, not stirred. Which has two problems. It bruises the gin, further dulling the flavour. And it breaks up more ice into the drink, watering it down.
The Lillet is nice, though - I like the citrus note to the whole thing. And it did prompt my creating the Turner martini - one and a half measures of gin, half a measure of Yazi ginger vodka, a splash of Lillet, stirred, with a slice of lemon peel. And that's a tasty tasty drink. So the Vesper isn't without redeeming value. But it's not that great of a drink itself.
But, especially with "Quantum of Solace", that really works. Bond is playing at being sophisticated and capable, but he's ultimately an immature punk, full of bluster, thinking he's doing well. An overly elaborate but low-quality drink is perfect for him.
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(3 comments | comment on this)
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| Wednesday, March 18th, 2009
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10:21 am
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| Tuesday, March 17th, 2009
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2:55 pm
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Ratzinger is apparently picking right up where Pope John Paul II left off, taking an active role to further the spread of AIDS in Africa. Just like JP2 before him, he is trying to discourage condom use. This policy, which has contributed rather hugely to the death toll in Africa, was one of the blackest marks on John Paul II's otherwise mostly impressive career, and continues to be one of the things I find most personally embarassing about having ever had any association with the Church.
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(comment on this)
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| Sunday, March 15th, 2009
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8:52 am - Beware the Ides of March
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| Thursday, March 12th, 2009
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12:17 am - Duty Now For The Future
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| Wednesday, March 11th, 2009
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7:58 pm
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So, yet another superhero movie is out, which means we get yet another round of people claiming this newest one to be "the best superhero movie ever."
Personally, I have very little interest in the film anyhow - I've never seen or read anything of Alan Moore's that I found especially compelling to begin with, and the creepy level of worship this movie was getting from folks before it even came out was enough to turn me off.
But any time someone describes something as "the best superhero movie ever", it does absolutely nothing to sway me. Because we've never really gotten a good superhero movie. It's like someone telling me "This new Brittney Spears song is her most lyrically complex to date." That's not going to win me over.
I'm not opposed to superhero movies. I enjoy a bit of popcorn fun. But really, when they best an entire genre's been able to do is such still highly flawed and ridiculous films as "Batman Begins", "Spider-Man", and "Iron Man" (all of which I still quite enjoyed, although I think "The Dark Knight" may have since permanently ruined my ability to enjoy anything Batman-related), I'm not going to be convinced by arguments that really this time this one has great artistic merit.
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(4 comments | comment on this)
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| Saturday, March 7th, 2009
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1:57 am - At last
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| Wednesday, February 25th, 2009
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10:43 am
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Obama last night encouraged all Americans to pursue an additional degree.
Maybe it's time for me to finally go to law school.
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(1 comment | comment on this)
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2:53 am - Oh, Nixon!
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| Monday, February 23rd, 2009
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11:51 pm - Only my love will protect you from your thoughtless reckless charm
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Any of you in the Seattle area should check out Eclectic Theater Company's Woyzeck. It just opened this past weekend. I saw it on Saturday, and it's brilliant - it feels sort of like what you'd get if David Lynch teamed up with Amanda Palmer and Colin Meloy to create a musical adaptation of Hamlet.
It's the story of a soldier slowly going crazy, adapted from fragments of an unfinished play by Georg Büchner. This production is a new translation / adaptation, and features original music by Mai Li Pittard.
They put together a music video for one of the songs, to give a taste of the show:
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(comment on this)
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10:09 pm - Science is awesome
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| Sunday, February 22nd, 2009
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9:15 pm - Oscar
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I beat my old Oscar prediction record tonight. Woo!
2006: 17 of 24
2007: 14 of 24
2008: 17 of 24
2009: 18 of 24
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(comment on this)
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4:49 pm - 81st
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It's Oscars night. My predictions:
Actor - Mickey Rourke. Even though this time Sean Penn actually deserves to win.
Supporting actor - Heath Ledger. Because he should've won something already for a better role.
Actress - Kate Winslet. Same as Ledger.
Supporting actress - Penelope Cruz. Woody Allen's always good for actress Oscar wins, and this was an especially great performance.
Animated film - Wall-E. Not as perfect as it gets treated, but still pretty brilliant.
Art direction - Benjamin Button. One of the only things it really had going for it was a distinctive visual. Even if that distinctive visual was just a carbon copy of what Jean-Pierre Jeunet does.
Cinematography - Slumdog Millionaire. One of many awards this should pick up.
Costume design - The Duchess. Lacy aristocratic period pieces win this a lot (this should've gone to "The Other Boleyn Girl", which presumably wasn't nominated because everything else about it was so embarassing, but really, it had some brilliant costuming).
Director - Danny Boyle.
Documentary - Man On Wire. It's the one that people have actually heard of, and you get to feel good about yourself for watching a documentary without actually having to watch anything with substance.
Documentary short - Smile Pinki.
Editing - Sllumdog. Again.
Foreign film - Waltz With Bashir.
Makeup - Benjamin Button. Because it lets the voters give the award to a "serious" film instead of a genre film. And because the whole film was about the makeup effects.
Original score - Slumdog. Again.
Original song - Peter Gabriel. I'm guessing Slumdog will split its own vote, and Gabriel gets this.
Best picture - Slumdog.
Animated short - Presto. I was torn on this. "La Maison en Petits Cubes" was brilliant. But so was "Presto", and in a much more accessible way. Watching "Presto" felt like Chuck Jones was still alive.
Live action short - Spielzeugland (Toyland).
Sound editing - Slumdog.
Sound mixing - Wall-E. More likely, it'll be Slumdog again, but Pixar should get this. No one mixes sound like the Pixar folks do.
Visual effects. Benjamin Button. Which shouldn't win. The effects were ridiculous and cartoony and distracting, completely contradictory to the tone of the film. But yeah. This ought to go to Iron Man, which made me believe that a man could fly with the assistance of rocket boots.
Adapted screenplay - Slumdog.
Original screenplay - Milk. Which should be winning other awards, but will get this as a token / pity award. "Happy-Go-Lucky" would also be a great pick for this, but didn't get the exposure to have any real chance.
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(comment on this)
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| Saturday, February 21st, 2009
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12:28 pm
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Wow. So, "Starship Troopers 2" is really awful. Not even an enjoyable sort of awful. Just completely worthless.
Here's hoping #3 is beter.
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(1 comment | comment on this)
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| Friday, February 13th, 2009
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11:24 am
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I get the most wonderfully random care packages. My parents just sent me a Valentine's Day package. In addition to the more traditional candies and cookies, it included an umbrella, a Dr. Seuss book, and a plush Cat In The Hat.
The best part about this is that I already have a plush Grinch. When I get home, I'm going to watch "The Grinch Grinches the Cat in the Hat", and make them fight each other.
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(2 comments | comment on this)
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| Thursday, February 12th, 2009
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4:24 pm - Happy Birthdays
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Today is the 200th birthday of Abraham Lincoln and his twin brother Charles Darwin.
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(comment on this)
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| Monday, February 9th, 2009
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8:56 pm
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| Friday, February 6th, 2009
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12:25 pm - Jane
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| Thursday, February 5th, 2009
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11:59 pm - And if I don't make it, know that I loved you all along
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Over the past year or so, I've been going back and listening to a lot of the 90s music I was listening to when I was first really discovering music. There's something very happy about how familiar it is - a sort of auditory comfort food.
At the moment, I'm really enjoying Our Lady Peace again:
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4:14 pm - my to-do list for the afternoon
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| Tuesday, February 3rd, 2009
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2:26 pm - Bad news on the doorstep
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Fifty years ago today, Buddy Holly, the Big Bopper, and Ritchie Valens were killed in a plane crash.
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(comment on this)
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12:15 pm
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I've long been of the opinion that the whole concept of reality tv really peaked with "Temptation Island." Nothing that's been created since then has quite managed to live up to the horrible brilliant voyeuristic schadenfreude of that show.
But that may all soon change. CBS is creating a show about arranged marriages. People will have get a spouse assigned to them, and have to actually get married, and then we'll get to follow them through the struggles of newly married life.
I can't wait.
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(5 comments | comment on this)
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| Monday, February 2nd, 2009
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5:36 pm - I don't believe you! You're a liar!
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| Friday, January 30th, 2009
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10:58 am
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| Thursday, January 29th, 2009
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10:03 pm
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For some reason, in my many years of vegetarianism, it never occurred to me to try to vegetarianise a french dip sandwich. Did so tonight, though. And it was delightful. The real key was the vegetarian veggie au jus - garlic, red wine, veggie broth, soy sauce, black pepper, and a touch of cornstarch. Heaven.
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(3 comments | comment on this)
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