Teleport City is all I need. Books, movies and more reviewed, with an excellent Japan travelogue.
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Bringing you yesterday’s tomorrows today!
March 7, 2008 by Rob
Category Movies, Reading | Tags: | No Comments
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Superbad? It’s not quite that bad
March 6, 2008 by Rob
For a film about adolescence, it’s somewhat poetic that it’s dragged out just that bit too long.
There were two main storylines crammed into one film, and they never seemed to mesh – even when they met up it was a marriage of plot-point convenience.
The Mclovin storyline was much better, mainly because I found it less painful to watch (having never larked around suburban America with a couple drunk cops), but also because it seemed much more joyful and less… bitter? The main story just left me squirming.
Rating: 6/10
Category Movies | Tags: | No Comments
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The Fast and The Furious 3 : Tokyo Drift : Drift Harder : Faster and Furiouser
October 30, 2007 by Rob
Things I learned from this movie:
- Every problem in life can be solved through the medium of drift racing
- The best date ever is some vending machine food followed by a drifting session
- Even the japanese mafia will use drifting to sort out disputes
- If your car flips on a city street, you will be crushed and it will explode.
- If your car falls off the edge of a mountain and lands nose-first 30 feet down, it will be dented but you will only have superficial cuts.
- Vin Diesel regrets not coming back for the sequel…
Category Random | Tags: | No Comments
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Like a Foreign Language
April 10, 2007 by Rob
“Everybody’s got their choices, how they stay alive. Some of us just don’t know it.”
Steven Seagal, The Foreigner
It sounds like wisdom, but I’m sure that I’m less wise for having heard it.
Category Random | Tags: | No Comments
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What are the most dangerous things in the world?
April 6, 2007 by Rob
Let’s ask Mr. Safety!
- Earthquakes
- A pilled-up hobo with a hammer
- Stupidity
So there you have it.
Category Random | Tags: | No Comments
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Decision
March 31, 2007 by Rob
You can’t be true to yourself if you’re willing to compromise what you believe in.
Category Random | Tags: | No Comments
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A strange dream of giants and mortals
March 24, 2007 by Rob
I had a strange dream on Thursday night. I was watching American Football on TV.
Half the players on each team were giants, and half were normal-sized men. It was like watching two simultaneous games as they played on, each size oblivious to the other.
Category Random | Tags: | No Comments
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Everything Good is Bad for You?
March 14, 2007 by Rob
Everything Bad Is Good for You: How Popular Culture Is Making Us Smarter
Stephen Johnson
This book covers a subject close to my heart, and one that’s caused more than a few arguments within my family – does modern pop culture have any value or should we all be doing military service and baking hedgehogs over a log fire? As someone who’s always been interested in gadgets, sci-fi and computer games, I’ve had plenty of clashes with my dad about “wasting my time on rubbish”.
Well, I’m glad to see that the author comes down firmly on my side of the fence, and wholeheartedly agrees that playing games and watching TV aren’t bad for you, and in fact develop useful skills and knowledge.
He calls the growth of this usefulness “The sleeper curve”, viewed as a progression from the post-war years (when popular entertainment really took off) through to the present day, where a household that lacks a TV is very much the odd one out.
Stephen Johnson’s writing style is conversational and easy to read, the book is laid out into short chapters, and unlike many non-fiction books it doesn’t drag out the conclusions onto page after page. There’s a handy section at the back of the book that takes the place of footnotes, with often a whole page of digressions that were wisely left out of the main body.
All that seems pretty conclusive proof that I should have enjoyed it. But although I didn’t hate it, I didn’t find it hugely valuable either.
So what’s my problem with the book then? Mainly, it’s the pro-pop cultural bias throughout it. Opposing viewpoints are brushed aside with very little discussion, and there’s a lack of intellectual rigour in the arguments that might have slowed down the pace, but would have added much-needed depth. I suppose one of the problems with studying pop culture is the lack of authoritative voices, but the reliance on opinion columns to back up the findings doesn’t really prove anything.
I can’t see this book doing anything other than preaching to the converted. I don’t think my dad would undergo a paradigm shift from reading it. But then he wouldn’t read it anyway, it’s not a military biography…
Category Reading | Tags: | No Comments
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Even more Rodney Yee Yoga
December 28, 2006 by Rob
* [Rodney Yee - Abs Yoga](http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00029QOTA?ie=UTF8&tag=birosketchboo-21&linkCode=as2&camp=1634&creative=6738&creativeASIN=B00029QOTA)
Category Yoga | Tags: | No Comments
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Classical Guitar Tablature
December 5, 2006 by Rob
A few bits for practicing
* [Classical Masterpieces for Guitar](http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0793508282?ie=UTF8&tag=birosketchboo-21&linkCode=as2&camp=1634&creative=6738&creativeASIN=0793508282)
* [50 Classical Guitar Pieces](http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1569220808?ie=UTF8&tag=birosketchboo-21&linkCode=as2&camp=1634&creative=6738&creativeASIN=1569220808)
* [50 Easy Classical Guitar Pieces with CD (Audio)](http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/082562827X?ie=UTF8&tag=birosketchboo-21&linkCode=as2&camp=1634&creative=6738&creativeASIN=082562827X)
* [Classical Guitar Favorites with Tablature](http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0486439607?ie=UTF8&tag=birosketchboo-21&linkCode=as2&camp=1634&creative=6738&creativeASIN=0486439607)Category Music | Tags: | No Comments
