We don't have much discussion here like we used to. I'll admit some of the past discussion had contention, so it is good to eliminate that, but still it seems like we can still discuss things. Here are some random thoughts I've had that may or may not be interesting topics:
I really enjoyed the new Great Expectations movie. I read the book a long time ago, long enough that I couldn't remember much of the story until I saw the movie. After seeing the movie, I did some research and was pleased to find that the movie seemed to follow the book fairly closely, though it did of course have to leave out some events and characters.
On the topic of movies, who is excited for Catching Fire? I'm not especially, but all the girls in my family are quite excited about it. Kristi and I have tickets to see it on an IMAX screen on Friday evening, and Kristi, Maryn and Nikkail have tickets to see it Saturday afternoon. I believe that Nikkail is also planning to see it Thursday evening with friends.
On the same topic, I thought that Thor: The Dark World was one of the best comic book character movies I've seen in a while. We took Draeden and Liam to it last week and all really enjoyed it a lot.
Kristi is taking an English class this semester and SLCC and she wrote her main research paper on the topic of encouraging bicycle transportation. One of the interesting things she found is that right turns on red (in cars) are illegal in countries that actually try to support bicycle riding as a form of transportation. I realized at one of the reasons for this last Thursday evening when I was hit on my bike while crossing a crosswalk by a drive turning right on red who didn't bother to check if the crosswalk was clear before accelerating to turn. Luckily he slowed down enough before he hit me that I was not hurt badly. I was knocked off my bicycle and sprained my wrist, but I felt very blessed to get away with such minor injuries because at one point the car's rate of acceleration towards me was extremely scary. The front wheel of my bicycle was destroyed, but luckily it was a very cheap wheel. I guess lucky for the driver because I'd have made him pay for it if it wasn't worth so little. He offered to buy me a new wheel, and I told him the wheel was worth about $25-$30 and he said he didn't have any cash, and I said don't worry about it because I was in a hurry and didn't want to worry about contacting him later.
On the topic of safe driving, Maryn got her driver's license back last week and we are hoping and praying she will drive safely. It is quite convenient for her to be able to drive herself to and from work. She is working full time at the Western Nut kiosk at South Towne Center mall.
On the topic of Kristi's class, last night she had an assignment to turn in a summary of the ideas in an essay that was assigned for reading. The teach said they this could be in any format they wanted, such as a paper, and infographic, or a poem. So, Kristi composed a sonnet about the ideas from the essay and I was very impressed by it. Hey, remember the post on our old site where we all wrote limericks?
I was really disappointed that there was not a Beatles mono vinyl box set released for the holidays this year, as last year when the stereo box set and individual albums were released the word was the the mono set would be released on vinyl this year. I can only hope that the reason is that they have decided to remaster the mono vinyl in pure analog directly from the tapes rather than use the 2009 remastered digital source as they did for the 2012 stereo vinyl. I still quite enjoy all of the 2012 stereo vinyl versions that I have - they do sound way better than the 2009 stereo cd's, though perhaps that is mostly just because the cd's have a more compressed dynamic range, often making the bass too "boomy". I'd be very curious to compare mono vinyl mastered from the same digital sources as the 2009 mono cd box, because the mono cd's are not "squashed" like the stereo ones, so the main difference would be the 24 bit source vs. 16 bit cd format, and of course the quality of the DAC chip in my cd player vs. the quality of the DAC chip used to create the vinyl, (and of course the eq would be adjusted to compensate for the different playback technology). However, even though I'm curious about that, I would much rather have new Beatles vinyl (stereo or mono) created from pure analog source. There is just something special about sound that has never been digitized, especially drum sounds. Original 60's Beatles records in good condition are pretty expensive to obtain these days, and even then you won't know until you play it how much groove wear there really is, so it would be great if they would create new ones that sound even better than the old ones.
We recently decided to stop buying microwave popcorn due to the potentially dangerous chemicals it contains. We have an air popper, but the kids thing it is too difficult to properly flavor the popcorn popped in this way. So, we bought a Whirly-Pop stove top popper pan, along with some coconut popping oil and Flavacol butter flavored salt. With these, we are able to very easily make popcorn that tastes very much like movie theater popcorn in less than 5 minutes. We all really like the flavor of this method much better than either microwave or air popper. How do you like to make popcorn?
Your popcorn popper sounds interesting. This is something I've been thinking about lately. We don't have an air popper, but have learned that you can pop regular popcorn in the microwave in a brown paper bag, but it is difficult to flavor it properly, so it's good to know there is another option.
ReplyDeleteI believe that most people in the family have stopped buying microwave popcorn. We just think that it doesn't taste as good as popped on the stove. Eric can't eat the microwave kind (butter flavorings) so it's lucky that we already were practiced in making it the other way. We also have a bowl that can be used in the microwave but the kids prefer the stove.
ReplyDeleteI'm so sorry to hear that you were hit by a car! I'm glad that you weren't hurt. Brian is still recovering from his accident.
I would love to hear Kristi's sonnet. It sounds like she's having fun with the class. It's funny how taking classes always sounds fun, but I've learned from experience that it isn't really, at least not for me when I'm working full time.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad to hear that you weren't hurt badly. I am terrified of riding a bicycle on city streets. I hadn't thought about the right turn on red thing. Bicycle friendliness is a major topic around here.
Food safety is also a big focus. I'm trying to eat more whole foods and less processed foods. I have also switched to organic apples and tubers. And I try to buy grass-fed meats more. I don't eat all that much meat so it's not too much of a budget impact. I've never been a popcorn fan, but Rishard likes to buy popcorn when we go to movies so he was disappointed to hear that it probably isn't safe.
Tina, where did you hear that movie theater popcorn isn't safe? I mean, I'm sure it's not a health food with all the butter, but I haven't heard of it being unsafe to eat, so I'm curious. I love movie theater popcorn!
ReplyDeleteWe pop popcorn in a large covered pot on the stove. We put enough kernels in the pot to coat its bottom in a single layer, and add about 1/4 cup of oil - any oil will work, though we often use olive oil. Then we heat it over the stove until it starts to pop, and we shake the pot as it pops to get the unpopped kernels to the bottom where they can also pop. After everything pops, we add salt. It's delicious, and we find that we get very few unpopped kernels that way.
ReplyDeleteMark, your accident sounds scary! My accident in April was also caused by a car turning right without looking to see if I was there. That wasn't at a light, though. Since then I've become very careful about passing cars on their right, just in case they're planning on turning.
I should add that we don't add any butter to our popcorn - we find that the oil gives it a nice flavor. I believe that movie popcorn does have butter flavoring added to it, though.
ReplyDeleteI was also hit once last year by a car turning right, so that sounds like a common issue, and something to be careful about if you want to bicycle defensively.
ReplyDeleteMy concern with movie theater popcorn is the same as the microwave popcorn thing. They use artificial butter flavoring which contains Diacetyl.
ReplyDeleteOn the topic of school: This is the first time I've taken a class since we moved to Utah. Every semester I’ve wanted to go back to school, but things with the kids have been too hectic. Now Liam is in kindergarten so I thought I could squeeze in one class. It has been a lot of fun! I used to regret not having gone to college at the “normal” time – right after high school – but I don’t regret that anymore. I think if I’d gone then, I would have had more stress and would have been focused on graduating and getting done. At this phase of my life, I thoroughly enjoy each class and the homework. It’s a great way for me to stay mentally stimulated, which, as a full-time mom, can sometimes be frustratingly difficult. What do other full-time moms do to stay mentally engaged?
ReplyDeleteMark really wants me to post my sonnet here, not sure why but he keeps asking me to… so, since I adore him, here you go, Mark :).
Can anyone tell what it's about? Like Mark said, it’s a summary of an essay. (As a preface, when my teacher said we could write our summaries in the form of a poem, she was joking; we haven’t studied poetry at all this semester and she sarcastically suggested poems after she listed all the genres we have studied. So I thought it would be a good joke to turn in a poem, haha.)
Oil on Canvas
Once, sheltered, my true secret was my own,
Secure in my preserve, a long time past,
As pilgrims ventured far, their eyes to cast
Upon my form, my grace and beauty known
To those who sought. My essence now is thrown
On wind, both far and near, I travel fast –
What once was mine is not, I stand aghast!
I am not yours to know. Leave me alone.
Now, kept with greed by just a privileged few,
I am the prize of thieves, theirs to obtain
For glory, bent by every passing view
Into a thing which I am not. I feign
To give my jailers knowledge they pursue –
My mysticism bolsters their dark reign.
The poem is very impressive. It's fun that it's also a riddle. I haven't come up with the answer yet, but my thoughts that don't quite work were: The ring from Lord of the Rings, America, and the internet.
ReplyDeleteI think its America or America's resources.
ReplyDeleteI think it is about the 1936 essay "The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction" by Walter Benjamin.
ReplyDeleteMark, you are wrong. Wrong wrong, wrong wrong wrong.
ReplyDeleteOk, it was a guess with the information I had, but in my defense, I believe that when the correct answer is revealed, we will see that my incorrect answer has a small shred of correctness in it.
ReplyDeleteI like the guesses! I can especially see how it might seem like it's about America. The real topic is much more obscure; it’s actually about art. It summarizes an essay written by John Berger, a pseudo-Marxist art historian. In his essay he makes three main points:
ReplyDelete1. With the invention of the camera, it became possible to reproduce and widely distribute works of art. When this is done, the meaning of the original art piece is changed. For instance, everyone knows what the Mona Lisa looks like, though relatively few have actually seen it. This creates a certain “mysticism” surrounding the original piece of art; what makes it special is not the image it portrays (as the artist originally intended), but simply the fact that it is old and an “original.”
2. When works of art are removed from their original “preserve” and placed in museums, their meaning is changed. Most works of art were created for a specific place, for example, a church, an estate, etc. Removing art from its intended home changes the artist’s intended context.
3. The “mysticism” surrounding authentic pieces of art strengthens class divisions. Interpreting and understanding art has become the sole domain of an educated minority. Uneducated classes are alienated from art because they are led to believe they do not understand it. Berger argues that artists do not intend the interpretation of their work to be the sole property of a privileged few. Instead, art is for everyone to understand and interpret according to their own personal experience.
And I'd like to point out that when John Berger wrote this essay, first published in 1972, he drew heavily upon the ideas he found in Walter Benjamin's 1936 essay I mentioned above, so my guess was partially correct.
ReplyDeleteThat was fun, Kristi! I like the poem, and it's nice to have an interpretation.
ReplyDeleteYes, very fun and I really enjoyed the summary of the essay.
ReplyDeleteThanks :) And, Mark, I guess you weren't quite as wrong as I said...it's just always fun to quote Nikkail quoting Psych, haha. :)
ReplyDelete