b l o g o s

this is pretty funny.

hat tip to JM. happy Friday, everybody!

birthday outlook

some unrelated observations

1. These Liberal Arts schools make a point I've often wondered about: why are colleges and universities beholden to a commercial magazine's rankings?

2. The bed- and bedding-industry may be the least-considered beneficiary of the late 20th-c/early 21st-c bourgeoisie. (This prompted by our recent purchase of a used Tempur-pedic bed, followed swiftly by our purchase of new sheets, pillows, and comforter: OMG.)

3. That is one big-ass whippet.

4. And finally, rental car companies really ought to think about clientele before assigning vehicles. The company I use, after all, has other pertinent information on file with my license number. But here's hoping that the white PT cruiser will get us plenty of senior discounts in OH and NY.

hot food/hot films

I've moved on to Atlanta, where, thanks to Elizabeth and Chad, the cuisine-of-the-world tour (Georgia edition) continues. Last night's Ethiopian rivaled that in NYC, and on tap for tonight is Belgian food over in Decatur. (It's probably good that we're getting out of town a little, given the big, ahem, event over at the Georgia Dome tonight.)

This afternoon, we have a critical choice to make regarding movies. It's come down to this at the big cineplex across town or this at the art theatre right next to the cafe where the three of us are currently rocking out on grading and reading. We are at a loss because both films seem to us to be of the utmost quality and promise to radically alter our respective worldviews (and we definitely need our worlds rocked). The titles are nearly identical in form, and the acting in both is no doubt Oscar-worthy. So even though the trailers probably do little to help you distinguish between these two films, if you have time or are able to discern important differences that we are not, we'd love to hear about it.

tired of your workout routine? try this!

Talking into air

It's pretty cute how John thinks I'm an early adopter, given that I actually started blogging less than a month before Clancy wondered whether blogging had jumped the shark, and that I only--just moments ago--hung up from my first skype conversation. And also it was E who skyped me rather than the other way around; and at the conversation's end, I 'hung up.' As in my land phone. At least it was cordless.

I know this has been pointed out many times, but it seems to always be the case that with new voice technologies the earliest conversations in large part tend to be about the technologies themselves. Were we an exception? Oh no, no we weren't.

Here are some snippets, beginning a couple moments after E emailed me to say she would skype me if I emailed her right back.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

[ring!]

Me: Oh, my god. Are you skyping me?

E: no. I'm in my office. I'll call you right back.

[ring]

Me: Oh, my god. Are you skyping me?

E: Yep. How do I sound?

Me: You sound great--much better than you did on your cell phone earlier-- but I can also hear myself. I think my voice is bouncing off your speakers (speakers).

E: OK, let me hook up some headphones. [rustle rustle] How's this?

Me: Let me see, I'm talking and talking and talking. Yep, totally gone; totally better.

E: Oh. my god. You know Chad and I just sit and watch television with our laptops and say whatever. [Chad is currently on a fancy humanities fellowship at Emory in Atlanta, far away from E at her fancy new job in Rochester]

[long relevant conversation about Spencer's writing technology class today which was great and about his blog getting cited on IHE--not just on Around the Web, folks, but in an article, as an authoritah--w00t!]

Then a lull

Me, picturing  E with both a telephone headset and a pair of headphones on over the headset: So, what are you talking into? Do you use like a cell phone headset or something?

E: No. I'm just talking. [long pause] Like, into air.

Me: Oh my god.

Hey, there's a book called Speaking into the Air. We're reading it in our reading group. I don't think it's about skype, though.

 

So, do we know how this works?

E: I have no idea. Oh, sorry!

Me: what?

E: I just burned a cd and I thought the finished noise might be loud.

Me: I didn't hear anything.

[lots of jokes about how all her computer noises in all probability sound themselves into my phone: "Ouch! Are you surfing the internet inside my ear? Get off there!" etc. And then I do actually hear static. ]

Me: Wait, is that static?

E: Yeah, it sounds like static.

Me: How can there be static? Did somebody walk by with a microwave?

------------------------------------------------------------------------

That's right. Early adopter. As Borat would say, "I'm an Early AdopterNOT."

[E also sent me the must see Borat movie trailer linked above. Thanks E! Bock! Bock!]

humble folks without temptation

Here's what John and I would look like as South Park characters:

what would you look like?