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| Stranger Than Fiction | Mar 16, 2007 |
| I saw Stranger Than Fiction on the plane last week, and I really liked it. It wasn't a typical Will Ferrell movie, but he played a fairly typical Will Ferrell role (which was good). The movie has been compared to Being John Malkovich, the Truman Show, Fight Club, and others. It has that moment where all the smart kids say, "I knew that would happen" as I sit there in complete life-changing amazement (I have poor reading comprehension [and therefore also movie-watching] skills). My favorite line was when the main character said, "I'm somehow involved in some sort of story, like I'm a character in my own life." It's just such a cool idea, and it's something I've thought about myself. Unlike some of the movies it's been compared to, this one has a happy ending and doesn't leave you feeling like your head's on backwards. #entertainment | |
| Self-centered | Mar 16, 2007 |
| I've noticed that certain people are very self-centered (by making this statement, I'm sort of grouping myself in the same category ["I, I, I..."]). These people tend to concentrate entire conversations on themselves, and even when an attempt is made to change the topic, it still somehow centers around them. These people aren't fun to talk to, and identifying these people makes me want to steer clear of them in the future. Sometimes I can be other-centered for a little while. I occasionally care about other people enough to hear about every minute detail of a specific event in their miserable lives (I'm thinking of a specific example right now; not everyone has miserable lives). And I'll sit there and listen and ask questions to further the conversation. It's not a show or a formality; I genuinely care and am interested. But sometimes I wish I was mean enough to say out loud what I was thinking in my head: "Hey, the world doesn't revolve around you. This isn't the biggest problem in the world, and nothing good can possibly come from complaining about it. Get over yourself and realize that other people, events, and things exist, and that conversations can focus on something other than you." Instead, I'll write it on my website. #psychology | |
| Scooter (2) | Mar 16, 2007 |
I don't trust anyone with the name Scooter. And seriously, how can I? Scooter can only refer to one of the following 3 things:
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| Parrot encounter | Mar 14, 2007 |
While in Hawaii, Wendy and I were walking down the street in the little town of Kona, and we stopped at the entrance to a store because a beautiful red parrot was perched on a female shopper's shoulder. Her husband was taking her picture, so I stopped and took a picture too (of the winged bird, not the other bird [attempt at British humor ... moving on]).  As I was taking the picture, the bird bit the woman's earring off and held it in its mouth (notice her ear without the earring). We alerted the store owner, but he said the bird would eventually spit it out. I watched as the bird destroyed the little piece of metal like it was as soft as a marshmallow. Concerned for the safety of the bird (again, the winged one), I held out my hand in hopes that the mangled earring would plop out of the bird's mouth. Instead, the parrot decided to climb up my arm and onto my shoulder. It turns out that I'm already used to animals climbing on my shoulder, seeing that my cat Dilbert climbs on me all the time. He's about 10 or 11 pounds, so this 2- or 3-pound parrot felt like nothing at all. Plus, it didn't dig it's gigantic claws into me like Dilbert does. I gave Wendy my camera and she was about to take my picture. The camera was set on video mode, so she took a 3 second video at first. When she changed it to camera mode, that's when she took the following picture. Everything was all fun and games as I had a tropical bird perched on my shoulders and it was sniffing around my head and neck presumably looking for things to lightly gnaw on.  And that's when it clamped down on my ear. And twisted. And clamped down harder. In a good amount of pain, I carefully reached my hand up to my ear to coax the parrot into releasing its death grip. Instead, it clamped down on my finger. But fingers and hands can handle pain pretty well, so I simply moved my hand back down to my side. So the parrot clamped back down on my ear. I reached my hand up to my head and covered up both ears as the parrot looked for more things on my head to chew on. It settled on the little plastic button on the top of my hat. If you have a hat, go get it and try to pull the button off. It's impossible. This parrot tore it off like it wasn't even attached. And then it chewed the hell out of it. Thankfully, the guy who had originally been taking a picture of his wife jumped in and persuaded the parrot to get back on its perch (Wendy was off to the side, laughing at me). I took a few steps back to distance myself from the evil bird and realized that my hat's button was a total loss. This normally wouldn't be a big deal, but I had just bought the hat 10 minutes earlier because I got bad sunburn on my head the day before. So it made the parrot attack that much worse. So that's the story of my parrot encounter. In case the picture isn't clear, that wasn't my original pose. I had been smiling like a child because a parrot was perched on my shoulder. I was still in mid-smile as the parrot bit my ear and Wendy took the picture. Ah, Hawaii, home to wild pigs, roaming chickens, and angry parrots. #nature |
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| Digital driver | Mar 14, 2007 |
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One of my co-workers referred to another co-worker as a "digital driver". I'd never heard the term, so I asked him what it meant. He said it meant the guy drove with either a foot on the gas or a foot on the break. There was no coasting or in-between. He was always either speeding up or slowing down. I've driven behind people like that. It makes me wish my car had a rocket launcher. [For the non-geek, "digital" refers to machines and devices that use binary code (0's and 1's) to operate. There's no in-between and no other options. It's either a 0 or a 1.] #travel |
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| Old cell phones (3) | Mar 13, 2007 |
| I'm surprised whenever I see people with really old cell phones, like the ones that look like little rectangular boxes and have single-color displays. If the person is my grandma or it's a prepaid phone, I can understand. But the people I see with these old phones are using them regularly and in public. I understand the idea of being cheap, but I also know for a fact that you can get a brand new cell phone for free every time you sign up for a service contract. Since I've never heard of a contract lasting longer than two years, and those old box phones haven't been around for about 3 or 4 years, that means you'd have to actually put in quite a bit of effort to not get a new phone. You'd have to be holding out for the past several years. I find that amazing. #technology | |
| Going back to work | Mar 13, 2007 |
| Usually when I take some time off work or go away for the weekend, I'm a little anxious to get back and resume my normal life. It's not that I'm anxious during my entire time off; it's usually just the last day or so. I know my break is about to end, so I just want to get back into things. Last week's vacation in a tropical paradise was different. I was dreading going back to work on Monday. It could be because it was a pretty long break. It could be because I've been a little busy at work lately and my grad class is slightly stressful. It could be because it was a magical tropical paradise filled with sun, mountains, oceans, and food. Whatever the reason, I wasn't looking forward to resuming my normal life. And it made me think of another time when I had the same feeling. During college, I think my brain never really shut down, so breaks were more like hiccups. The time I'm thinking of was when I was around 10 or 11, and it was right at the end of a Christmas break. It had been a particularly good Christmas break for whatever reason, so I was devastated to think that it was over and I'd have to go back to the hellish prison so simply referred to as "school". I cried about it and my sister tried to assure me that everything would be ok. I guess everything was ok because otherwise I'd still be in 5th grade. That's what I felt like on Sunday night and Monday morning. #psychology | |
| Hawaii cruise recap | Mar 13, 2007 |
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Here's a brief recap of our trip to Hawaii last week. Previous mentions are here and here. Day 1 - Flight to Honolulu (layover in Los Angeles) - Bought camera at Best Buy because I forgot mine (doh!) Day 2 - Docked in Hilo on the big island - Guided Kilauea volcano hike in Volcanoes National Park, through Thurston Lava Tube, Kilauea Iki Caldera, stopped at Jaggar museum for Kilauea Caldera overlook - Sailed past lava flowing from Mount Kilauea into the sea at night off the southern coast of the big island Day 3 - Docked in Kahului on Maui - Free shuttle to/from Hilo Hattie (store); swimming at Oneloa Beach - Free shuttle to mall, walked back to the ship Day 4 - Docked in Kahului on Maui - Guided snorkeling at Molokini Crater (part of the top of an old underwater volcano) and "Turtle Town" (home to 200-lb sea turtles) Day 5 - Docked in Kona on the big island - Walked around town - Got bitten by a parrot - Laid out on a little beach, snorkeled - Wendy swam part of the Ironman Triathlon Day 6 - Docked in Nawiliwili on Kauai - Guided kayaking on Huleia River, hiking to Jungle Falls - Laid out on Kalapaki Beach, snorkeled Day 7 - Docked in Nawiliwili on Kauai - Guided helicopter tour canceled because of a fatal accident the day before (whew!) - Guided plane ride instead Day 8 - Flight home (layover in San Francisco) Pictures: [gallery /img/2007/03/hi01.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi01-150x150.jpg:::Mauna Kea from Hilo, Hawaii:::/img/2007/03/hi02.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi02-150x150.jpg:::Island in Hilo Bay:::/img/2007/03/hi03.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi03-150x150.jpg:::Kilauea Iki Caldera in Volcanoes National Park:::/img/2007/03/hi04.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi04-150x150.jpg:::Steam vent in Kilauea Iki Caldera:::/img/2007/03/hi05.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi05-150x150.jpg:::Part of hike to Kilauea Iki Caldera:::/img/2007/03/hi06.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi06-150x150.jpg:::Thurston Lava Tube in Volcanoes National Park:::/img/2007/03/hi07.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi07-150x150.jpg:::Volcanic rock:::/img/2007/03/hi08.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi08-150x150.jpg:::Lunch break in the caldera:::/img/2007/03/hi09.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi09-150x150.jpg:::Ferns are the first thing to grow in the 50-year-old cooled lava bed:::/img/2007/03/hi10.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi10-150x150.jpg:::Mound formed by eruption in 1959:::/img/2007/03/hi11.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi11-150x150.jpg:::Wendy in front of the 400-ft mound:::/img/2007/03/hi12.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi12-150x150.jpg:::It's hard to take nighttime pictures of molten lava (taken from the comfort of the moving ship, 1-2 miles away):::/img/2007/03/hi13.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi13-150x150.jpg:::Sunrise over Maui:::/img/2007/03/hi14.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi14-150x150.jpg:::Moon setting over Maui:::/img/2007/03/hi15.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi15-150x150.jpg:::Our ship, the Pride of America:::/img/2007/03/hi16.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi16-150x150.jpg:::View of Kahalawai from a beach:::/img/2007/03/hi17.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi17-150x150.jpg:::Closeup of some gigantic windmills on Kahalawai:::/img/2007/03/hi18.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi18-150x150.jpg:::No comment:::/img/2007/03/hi19.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi19-150x150.jpg:::Princess Wendy on the stairs of our castle (the ship):::/img/2007/03/hi20.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi20-150x150.jpg:::Humpback whales are really hard to take pictures of:::/img/2007/03/hi21.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi21-150x150.jpg:::Molokini Crater, snorkel spot number 1:::/img/2007/03/hi22.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi22-150x150.jpg:::Turtle Town, snorkel spot number 2, home to 200-lb sea turtles:::/img/2007/03/hi23.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi23-150x150.jpg:::Sunset over Maui:::/img/2007/03/hi24.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi24-150x150.jpg:::Sunrise over Kona, Hawaii:::/img/2007/03/hi25.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi25-150x150.jpg:::Wendy swam part of the Ironman in the water just to the right:::/img/2007/03/hi26.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi26-150x150.jpg:::No comment:::/img/2007/03/hi27.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi27-150x150.jpg:::Look at the friendly parrot:::/img/2007/03/hi28.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi28-150x150.jpg:::Bad parrot!:::/img/2007/03/hi29.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi29-150x150.jpg:::The "beach" in Kona:::/img/2007/03/hi30.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi30-150x150.jpg:::Ahuena Heiau - King Kamehameha I's political seat:::/img/2007/03/hi31.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi31-150x150.jpg:::Kauai:::/img/2007/03/hi32.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi32-150x150.jpg:::A Nene, the state bird:::/img/2007/03/hi33.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi33-150x150.jpg:::Kalapaki Beach in Kauai:::/img/2007/03/hi34.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi34-150x150.jpg:::Caves on mountainside:::/img/2007/03/hi35.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi35-150x150.jpg:::Kayaking on Huleia River:::/img/2007/03/hi36.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi36-150x150.jpg:::Wendy climbed Jungle Falls:::/img/2007/03/hi37.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi37-150x150.jpg:::De plane!:::/img/2007/03/hi38.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi38-150x150.jpg:::Aerial view of Kauai coastline:::/img/2007/03/hi39.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi39-150x150.jpg:::Aerial view of Kauai coffee fields:::/img/2007/03/hi40.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi40-150x150.jpg:::Aerial view of Wailua Falls:::/img/2007/03/hi41.jpg:::/img/2007/03/hi41-150x150.jpg:::Weniki (her Hawaiian name) graduates from hula lessons:::] #travel |
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| Cruises | Mar 12, 2007 |
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After the recent Hawaii cruise and last year's Caribbean cruise, I have a few thoughts on cruises. 1. A cruise is a great way to see a group of islands or some other group of destinations all in close proximity to each other that would otherwise be expensive to travel between. Since we didn't know which Island in Hawaii would be good to visit, we thought about visiting several. But the little puddle-jumper plain rides, taxi fares, hotels, and meals all add up pretty quick. A cruise lets you see several different places without worrying about how you'll travel. 2. The ship is like a really nice floating hotel, and they treat you like royalty. But the standard rooms are painfully small. The good thing is that you probably won't spend much time in your room, because you'll be in the pool or the hot tub, eating at one of the restaurants, or walking around your destination if the boat is docked. The food is literally amazing, and there's pretty much an endless supply of it. Norwegian Cruise Lines has an awesome system where you eat whenever and wherever you want and you don't have to sit with other people (other cruise lines have assigned eating times and assigned seats/tables). The food is really good even at the buffets. It was painful to come home and have to cook and clean myself. 3. I'm not sure the cost is totally justified. I think it would be hypothetically cheaper to stay in a hotel, rent a car, pay for each of your meals, and pay for each activity. But that adds a lot more complication and inconvenience. So I guess part of the cost of a cruise is for ease and convenience. I'm usually not willing to pay for that, but I make exceptions. 4. There's a heck of a lot of tipping. Norwegian has this system where they semi-secretly charge you another $10/day so you don't have to tip at the end (other cruise lines have an extensive guide on who you should tip [waiters, cleaning people] and how much). But everything gets put on your final bill, so it's sort of easier than carrying around cash. But every time you get driven somewhere or get a tour or get your bag carried, it's nice to tip (we often didn't tip ... oh well). If we tipped everyone we were supposed to, we would've spent around $40-50, which while it isn't that much, it's still in addition to the loads of money that were already spent on the cruise and activities in the first place. I'm absolutely sure no one survives on tips alone, so I "shouldn't feel obligated" to tip unless I received service that was "above and beyond what I expected". Does anyone actually believe that? I'd like to. 5. I think the shore excursions are only worth it if they provide some sort of unique experience. I can parasail and ride a jet ski anywhere. I can also snorkel anywhere, but if I can be taken to a really cool place and/or see some really unique marine life, I'll pay for it. Most of the excursions in Hawaii seemed like they were worth it because Hawaii is such an interesting place. The excursions in the Caribbean seemed more like activities done to spend some time. That's not really what I'm after. Also, some excursions can easily be done for less money and with less restrictions. Some excursions are bus tours of towns and things like that. You can easily walk around a small town, and that's usually free. Some excursions can also be done without going through the cruise company. Norwegian was obviously making a profit off these things, so going directly to the activity offerer would almost definitely be cheaper. But then it adds another level of complication, which gets back to number 3. 6. Taking advantage of free things is the best feeling in the world. The ship has a bunch of activities (comedians, musicians, shows) and other things (hula lessons, scrapbook workshops, necklace-making tutorials [these are largely geared towards women]) that are included in the price of the cruise. So it costs nothing (extra) to do them. But the ship also has free shuttles and ferry rides. We took a free shuttle to a shopping place and walked to a nearby beach because there were no beaches near the ship. Cha-ching! 7. For the Caribbean cruise, we had an outside cabin, but for the Hawaii cruise, we had an inside cabin. Depending on which direction you're pointed when you're sleeping, the ship will either move you side to side or head to toe. I'm not sure which is better. 8. The difference between a room with a porthole and a room with no window is extremely minimal. It's not like you sit in your little tiny closet of a room and stare out the little tiny porthole of a window. A major step up is to get a room with a balcony. Since most of my time was spent somewhere outside anyway, having a balcony would've been awesome. But it sort of depends what side your room is on with respect to what there is to see. The sunrise might be on the other side of the ship, in which case you're screwed. Or you might be facing land when you dock, at which point you'll notice how incredibly ugly shipyards are. I'm not sure a balcony is worth the increased price, but it might be. Once again, hardly any time is spent in the room. #travel |
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| Sunburn | Mar 12, 2007 |
| I'm pale-skinned, and I like the sun. Sunburn is a part of my life. The worst sunburn I ever got was sometime around the age of 10 or 12 when I played outside all day and got sunburn on my arms so bad it turned to blisters. The worst area of the body to get sunburn is any place that bends or regularly touches other things, such as the tops of feet, behind the knees, and the entire back. Getting sunburn on the head is unusually painful because it feels like the sun actually touched your brain. I'd have to say the worst part about sunburn is that you don't know you have it until it's too late. And there's really no indication that it's happening. Some people think they can see my skin getting red, but that's not how it works. Sunburn shows up several hours later. I can be in the hot sun for hours and feel like my skin is melting off, but if I'm wearing sunscreen, I get no color at all. Thank God for sunscreen. My life would be quite different without it. Either I'd be a recluse or I'd constantly be in extreme pain. #health | |
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