Tuesday, April 28, 2020

TV: Peaky Blinders Season 1

Well hey, its got the filter where everything looks blue and gray.  They play with the lighting almost every episode.  There appears to be some CGI.  Definitely for the lads, lots of booze, smoke, gore.  Some of the acting is really competent and other bits are really cringey, but they make a good show to talk shit about.  Abrupt plot twists are part of gangster shows, but some of these are just implausible.  Suddenly all these geniuses fall in love and put years of plans and family in the trash.  Anyway, there's a bit too much talk of how awesome everyone is and lack of actually being awesome.

Still, I'm enjoying myself and I'm now in season 2 steaming along.


Wednesday, April 22, 2020

YT: Permaculture Farm Tour

https://youtu.be/dztgMnaH1rw

these people have really gone for it.  farmsteading.  growing all their own food, even only burning wood from their land in their oven, which is a giant one they built that stays warm for 4 days.  pretty nice.  but yeah, i saw a lot of stuff i recognized, plant wise, but i hadn't seen it set up like they have it.  and yeah, some things are ugly, like big plastic planters.  but they seem to be working and without a doubt these people have an amazing setup and accomplishment.

YT: Slow Clap

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JW68goC4_es

Just a few guys slow clapping, one starts and then the others follow.  Its kind of like a nice rick roll.

Monday, April 20, 2020

YT: fermenting citrus

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUHp3ve4m50

this guy ferments some citrus fruits in vacuum sealed bags.

weigh the fruit, add 2% of the weight in salt, seal up, and wait 10 days.

he says fresher fruit is better

thankfully i have access to a food saver vacuum sealer, so i can try this out.

Wednesday, April 15, 2020

YT: Autonauts Review

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-l76kORuY_I

I heard about some games that help you program and went down a rabbit hole.  I found Zachtronix and did some research about their games.  This was "an easier one" than others.  Its visual programming.  Moving stuff around from A to B.  I think the mind games might be fun, but also I know this stuff starts to feel like work at some point.

Monday, April 13, 2020

YT: Cheddar Cheese and Bacon Waffled Grits

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXnMogICTGU

This is the savory waffle I've been looking for. Basically it is grits cooked on the stove, mixed with cheese and bacon, and put in a griddle.  Nice and simple.

But I always like to switch things up.  I'd use canned hominy.

YT: Betty's Kentucky Style Fried Cabbage

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N1ZIxzb9ha4

Betty has an interesting recipe.  I might call this a stirfry.  She uses bacon and onions to season some cabbage.  It looks pretty good, but maybe a bit heavy. 

Like she says though, this dish might be best for people that don't like vegetables.

YT: Information about checks from the government

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smcREJKOl-4

this guy wears a suit so he must be informed.  he says checks are coming soon, and talks about some myths he has read on comments in his other videos.

YT: Stay the fuck home song

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e0G63uzhFP4

my friend sent me this.  its not bad.  a guy on piano sings a song about quarantine.  the top comment is good: they should play this song everyday and not the press conferences.

Film: The Big Lebowski

Well I'd seen this before.  I remembered a few scenes, but many seemed new.  I was surprised how intricate the unconscious scenes were.  Flying and bowling, were they glimpses of heaven? Sometimes their conversations were so annoying that I cringed.  Other times I could just watch and enjoy.  I was expecting a bit more because this movie is so popular.  I can't tell if this is a hollywood film or an art film.  Can it be both?  Are the tropes hackneyed or are some of them rooted in this film?

Well anyway, it passed the time.  I learned that the Cohen brothers also directed Fargo, which I thought was supposed to be very gruesome.  Lebowski wasn't gruesome, although he did end up in the same place as he started.

Friday, April 10, 2020

Film: The Bodyguard

The acting is bad.  Whitney Houston's performance is forgivable, she isn't a trained or experienced actress.  Kevin Costner is abysmal.  He is trying to sound like a battle hardened warrior, but ends up sounding like a constipated and angry dad.

The shots are pretty.  Lots of dark yet well lit scenes that add to the drama.  But they are too long, too often we are looking at nothing wondering what is going on.

The movie is too long.  I was really surprised by the whodunnit nature of the film, like I thought this was an austere minimalist film and didn't even realize I should be trying to figure out which character was responsible for all the drama.  So yeah, suddenly I feel like I've been watching the whole thing wrong, and don't feel like going back to watch more, because I'm bored.

There are some real hardass samurai moves, that are actually awesome, but they are so far apart that they almost don't fit with the rest of the movie.

There are a few deleted scenes floating around on the internet, some worth watching.

Overall, the movie is a cultural touchstone, especially because of the song I will always love you, but also because the shooting takes place at the Oscars.

YT: Is Cybernator Worth Playing?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AzQD8y8zQ28

Ok so, you run and gun, but there are shooter aspects, these are the good things.  Then, there's the story, which is bad.  No puzzles to solve.  Sounds fun.

Thursday, April 9, 2020

YT: Crested carara eating baby caiman

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NLfME20BqbU

that video took a very long time to get to a very short segment that then matched the title.  thankfully baby caiman are very fun to look at.

Wednesday, April 8, 2020

YT: Zizotes

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zs7LHGSezMA

Watchin monarch butterflies eat vegetation


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B0RrQj9QyfE

collecting zizotes seeds, they come in a pod

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Ig4TLZjLMk

a monarch laying eggs on a zizote

YT: Caracara call

https://youtu.be/fg8EPBINqcE

their call sounds like videogame lobster hands and they can bend their heads back 270 degrees.  rad

YT: Loquats

 all watched at 1.5 speed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_TIy-_9jiQ bunch of facts about loquats.  learned they are a good source of many vitamins

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3X3uIgsM_Ic

this lady makes a loquat jam.  the recipe looks good, and the jam's color is that of a ruby red grapefruit, much different than the fresh fruit

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNobCdryIPU
 this japanese channel's take on loquat jam is peaceful.  no music or spoken word, just a few labels for ingredients that popup.  they show the whole thing from start to finish, for making jam.  their house also looks great.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zhE5sJcC0pQ
this white guy makes tea, he makes some loquat tea.  he does a good job showing how to scrape off the spiny stuff on the back of the leaves before they are steeped.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=riGvAXZZdTc
this video shows another way to prepare the tea, by using a sponge to scrape off the spiny stuff.  it looks like it is more theraux than using a knife.  also this recipie calls for older leaves, not chopping them, and says they can be reused several times.


Tuesday, April 7, 2020

TV: Parks and Recreation Seasons 2 and 3

some good laughs

a definite feminist bent

starting to turn away from the pit of the first season as a unifying story arc, now turning into a bit of a soap opera

blurring into the 4th season

YT: How to make oatmilk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTt_Mlj6YN8

the secrets to making oatmilk: used cold oats, cold water, don't blend too long, use a nut milk bag, and maybe try soaking the oats in digestive enzymes.

Monday, April 6, 2020

News: How to clean your groceries in the corona virus

https://www.cnn.com/videos/health/2020/04/03/sanjay-gupta-wiping-cleaning-groceries-demo-town-hall-vpx.cnn/video/playlists/novel-coronavirus-explained/

So, use a cleaner. Have a clean area and a dirty area.  Seems like he doesnt clean things that well, but it is just an example

the virus can live on cardboard and plastic

TV: High Maintenance S4E9 Soup

Kinda gave me anxiety.  We learned the dudes name, I think.  I don't know if he really went to New Zealand.  The flight attendants seemed pretty real, but not American.

TV: John Oliver Tonight on the Corona Virus

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UnSILVWDKL8

Well he goes over a few internet viral type things that I've seen on reddit before. But he also covers OAN, which is a bullshit news network that gives him softball questions.

I'd never heard of OAN before, but I do remember something very similar during the Bush II era.  A flimsy journalist in the media pool for the white house fucking stuff up.  Free speech and all.

Anyways, I can't remember if I laughed.  But I learned a bit.

Friday, April 3, 2020

TV: High Maintenance S4E8 Solo

An episode about a person who can't stand to be alone, who rifles through relationships and people, seemingly leaving a lot of broken hearts in wake.

Drugs, arcades, alcohol.  Some cool texting videography.  An excellent drug sequence featuring videogames and bowling balls.  Pretty fun.

Film: Dead Presidents

A pretty slow moving film.  I'm not sure how well the characters were developed.  Looks like they were chopped together, tossed in at unpredictable times. 

The first half of the movie was prettier in the first half, visually. 

The scenes in Vietnam were interesting.  Less stupid shit and more of just terror and fear.  It made war look terrible.  But the scenes in the city seemed less interesting.  I mean, I guess there was a blue filter for so much of the movie.  Things looked kinda dull.

But yeah, there were plenty of surprises in the plot.  It managed to avoid quite a few of the tropes that I thought it was leading into.

This was an interesting take on the African American's role in the the Vietnam war and its aftermath.  It made me realize how Deer Hunter, Platoon, Rambo, and others are all about white people.

YT: Korean Doctor Talks about the effectiveness of wearing masks

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gAk7aX5hksU&feature=youtu.be&t=951

This guy seems to know what he is talking about.  It feels like a real doctor is giving me information, instead of propaganda that I see in the United States.

YT: How to change window weights

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jsgivH6kbkk

They look pretty chill, doing this job.  Break all the seals, and then pop off some stuff.

Friday, March 27, 2020

YT: MMA game changing fights

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CbV_lMS0R6U

hmm well the fights or moments or whatever were described rather than shown.  i watched this just to be brain dead, but i ended up sniffing a lot.  then i turned the speed up to 1.5x.  i yawned.

it looked like a lot of hard work to put this together.  the last thing was about cutting weight.  that's the stupidest thing in mma, in my opinion, but i dont have many opinions about it.

anyway, harumph

YT: How to transfer an agave pup

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHaqvBe2YSg

looks pretty dang easy, just tilt up the agave with a shovel and the pups pop off.

this landscaper has some good words, too. it looks like the yard featured here is really fully of fun stuff.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7zY9fsGZqg4

this colorful personality shows how to nuture some pups from a variety of agaves.  clean cuts, only harvest when they are 1/3 size of the mom.  trim the mom to make room for sun to get to the babies.  fun, informative, lots of examples.  i ejnoyed it.

Thursday, March 26, 2020

TV: Parks and Rec Season 1

well yeah, i watched this

i found andy to be the character that makes me laugh the most.

there's a lot of deadpan delivery

there's a lot of jokes about real issues, sexism, discrimination, harassment, and interpersonal ones, too.

its kinda like the office but in a different office.  everyone is an idiot.  the place is a shit hole, apparently.  only the main character has an actual moral compass and is driven to do good. 

i am creeped out that quite a few of the characters have almost no actual development.  who is ron swanson

aubrey plaza is too well cast as an angry teenager. but she's 24.  i hope she doesn't have an eating disorder

some of the jokes about being gay, they feel dated, even insipid.

the camera work is fun, with real shots, despite all the stupid zooming in, the picture is good.

falling in the pit is a good song.

YT: Garden hacks, raised beds, and easy to grow veggies

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3vN5Mn_-5MM
the best hack from this was planting in a gutter and dumping the gutter out with all the sprouts, right into a planting trench.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WNh4DYm0GzY

this guy is kinda too enthusiastic, but he says beans, radishes, and "asian greens" are the quickest and easiest.  i'd never heard of the greens he talks about.  way more than 5 things the title says

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ESxRVV1r7Ck

more of a show off piece, but they have a large variety of plants and vegetables.  they seem happy.  didn't really teach me much about gardening, except they keep mint in pots, but it was fun to watch.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bc4ecvD_rMM

another quick tip video.  this time the best tip was chipping the walkways, then shoveling the chips into the raised beds the following season, once things have broken down.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7LzAFgfqQNE

i looked for a garden  video for texas because we have a dry climate.  this lady made a raised bed out of pallets, laid paper down, filled in three things and mixed them, then kept her plantings very simple.  a bit slow moving but still learned some things.  i'd like to have seen how her transfers turned out.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l0E3Zk1BX_4

ok yeah, different plants need different things to keep up their production.  keep plucking the blossoms off basil so that it keeps making new leaves.


alright, this set me up to garden and to take a nap.


Wednesday, March 25, 2020

YT: What to do with your bathouse

https://youtu.be/Oznj-LdLpyg

So basically you put your bathouse up high, paint it dark, and don't put it in a tree.

Bats need to drop down to fly, and they like dark colors.  If you put the box in a tree, then predators can eat em up.

I'm thinking about building a bat box, and I found this video.  It was helpful.

The lady's accent was interesting to listen to, too.

Monday, February 24, 2020

Film: Ghost

A classic film.  My cab driver told me he was going to see it for valentine's day. 

The film is beautiful.  So many lovely shots, up close, of the city. 

Patrick swazy maybe not up to the role.  The tight shots on his face during emotional moments.  Argh, I don't know why they asked him to do things that he clearly couldn't do.

Well the fantasy ghost part was pretty interesting, taking over peoples' bodies, but only briefly.  Ghosts weren't just demons, but just, living creatures.

I was really entertained.

YT: How to raise a heavy beam

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3zs5WGCyUSA
using a block and tackle


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Nrzvz7T0Lg
using a wench
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K_edWnDGINY
using a block and tackle

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGzsPRPCKS8
this was actually a wooden beam.  not what i was looking for

Friday, February 21, 2020

YT: How to remove a load bearing wall

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rZsS_4HiHT8

you put a brace in, put a header in the wall where you cut out a gap, and then you put in studs to support the header.

YT: Circular Saw Tips

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jDfpl1_I904

I may have reviewed this before.  This guy does a bunch of stuff with a saw, looks very handy.  Unfortunately a lot of what he does looks pretty dangerous.

Oh well, some things look doable, like cutting out a notch

YT: This guy shaking his head and eating chips

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ufdyCaAOts

This guys is a spasmatic but seems to have turned it into something positive.

YT: Jumping Spider

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y_udvnFCl7s

This spider waves a couple of paddles to attract its mate.  Pretty cute.

YT: Daytona 500 crash

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=owURzgtwOSw

Was this an illegal play, or not?

Looks pretty awful, but I apparently those involved are not going to day.  That's good, at least.

YT: Starburst commercial

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wYX_zhlTDr8

this is so incredibly bad, how did it get to actually be made?

YT: Lockpicking lawyer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ANsipsS7IK8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T5YsZLJ5FjY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ToQT_i4I6vI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nz6NxH3wy94

just watching this guy be a badass and tearing shit up.  seems like most locks are terrible, generally speaking.

YT: A big vine compilation

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lf6DM3VuwOE

a big compilation of vines.  a lot of them have been cut short.  i've seen this before, apparently i already liked it.

made me laugh a few times

YT: old town road played on gayageum

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dynyW_7hSzY

a bit of schtick, but pretty fun to listen to, especially the parts where she does tremolo to the strings.

YT: Pubg doesnt have action queing

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AV_UpDzgeZ0

so yeah, you have to wait for an animation to finish before you can hit another command.  this is counter intuitive and leads to a lot of frustrating plays.  most games made in the last 10 years have action queing. 

anyway, i'm glad i don't play that game any more.

Wednesday, February 19, 2020

Friday, February 14, 2020

YT: ERV and HRV

Trying to learn what an air exchange does.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gi3FbFMc5B8
this video gave a general overview of the purpose and what a house looks like.  the photos were helpful in understanding the big scheme

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1RtbwkI2lH0
this video showed the two kinds, what they do, and also discussed some myths surrounding the machines

so, the exchange brings in outside air, retains heat or energy, filters, and pumps in fresh air.

Monday, February 10, 2020

YT: Joss Paper

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PI-obdd9yqc
this joss paper shop in singapore has all things made out of paper, pets, condos, even a maid.


Film: Robin Hood Prince of Thieves

Well marriage is a power move.

Alan Rickman sweats a lot.

Was Kevin Costner ever a heart throb?

A few parts of the plot just didn't make sense.  Lots of hackey lines.

Why did they get launched over a wall on a catapault?

Was this movie made for idiots?

Some of the footage just looked so fucking gritty.

The witch was cool.

Film: Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon

Well the narrative was quite captivating.  The whole film holds up quite well.

I saw this when it was released, in the theater.

I'd forgotten most of the story.  The sets were really fun.

There were some ridiculous moments, but things were pretty coherent.

Monday, January 27, 2020

Film: Princess Bride 1987

I heard this movie had a good sword fight scene.  2020 is about melee combat.  Well, the sword fight scene was pretty good.  They did a lot of jumping around and talking, which was fun.  The other sword fights in the film were very fast and people died quickly.  The contrast was stark.

Most of the absurd parts of the film seemed to be over pretty early on.  The second half was much more somber and serious, even dark.  It seemed like there were a lot of stars in the film.  They wore make up to hide their appearance.  They did a good job making the film about the story and the emotions.  People bond over emotions, they say. 

Andre the giant did a good job with his voice, and the shots made him look really huge.

I laughed a lot at different things in this film, and in that I think it was a success. 

YT: Linus Tech Tips of Mac Pro

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mIB389tqzCI
This computer he talks about, it costs about 16,000 dollars when its been turned up to a decent setup.  The RAM is ridiculously overpriced.  It doesn't seem like it has a lot of I/O. 

I dunno, if you want a lot of features and good value, then don't get this.  He was lucid and entertaining with his insights.  It felt good to get off track and watch this.

Wednesday, January 15, 2020

YT: What is an arduino

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CqrQmQqpHXc

shows some applications, but i'm really not sure if this answered my question, what is an arduino?

How do you get the code from your computer to your board? Usb, bluetooth?

I mean, how much proprietary bullshit is there?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_h1m6R9YW8c

this one was better, i feel like I needed to know that the project is opensource and that the development environment is provided.  they connect to PCs using USB ports.

Seems like something I could use for fun.

Thursday, January 2, 2020

YT: Reviewing Primus

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fwJHLpFg-KM

this guy is chill and genuine.  I don't know if he is that insightful, but he is entertaining in an acute way.

YT: My life as a non star wars fan

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dHowJ7ULNfo

Yeah, I think I'm funnier and better at acting and this isn't that original.  So, I'm inspired to do better.

YT: New Card Reveal

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DMi-5WpqQHk

Well there's a new card.  They admit to stealing ideas from Brawl Stars.

But hey, Drew looks so dead at the beginning.  Poor mf.

Film: The Devil Wears Prada

I've heard so much about this film.  Countless students came to me with snippets of the script, asking about particular parts of the dialog.  There were summaries of the plot.  Descriptions of dream jobs.

Well, the story was OK.  The clothes were fun, but not all the time.  Some of the lines were hilarious, especially the ones from that journalist guy Christian.  But then there were some that I guessed before they were said... it could have been a bit punchier many times.

Some of the montages were really beautiful.  Occasionally they stuck on someone's outfit.. and I wanted them to stay longer.  They only zoomed in on Anne Hathaway's face once... where's the film noir starlet shot when you need it?  They should have given us more eye candy. 

Some people played this up too much, but it didn't disappoint.  It was pretty good, so people weren't wrong.

Well, maybe I should follow this director or something?  The pictures were definitely memorable.  And, Korean fashion goals make more sense now. 

Lovely.