Do you know what it means, when you see an egg with an ‘X’ on it? I bet you do. I do. But why? Why do I know? Did someone tell me? If they did, it was a very long time ago. If they didn’t, I must have just figured it out. But what I’m…
Month: April 2019
Bad Mug
Some people would look at a mug, and figure it’s the same as every other mug. People have favourite mugs, but that’s just because of hte picture, right? Or maybe it has some sentamental significance — it was a gift, or a prize or something. Maybe you think that mug technology has been perfected, and…
Judging Sequels: Norm Macdonald, Anna Kournikova, and The Matrix Trilogy
I remember, on more than one occassion, jumping to the defense of The Matrix: Reloaded. Shitty title, yes, but people were talking about what a terrible movie it was — but it wasn’t terrible. I liked to say that it was the Anna Kornikova of movies — Anna Kournikova was a great tennis player she…
BAD MOVIES: Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
Aside from bad acting, a stupid plot, bad dialogue, and bad pacing, the movie went on 40min longer than it should have. It ended. And then it kept going. For 40 more minutes! It didn’t help that the best part of the movie was Wonder Woman, who isn’t featured in the title and only really…
Rubber Band Handle Grip
On Christmas I was given a lovely bottle of blueberry syrup. My brother flew it from my parents’ place (I rarely check a bag, and as of this writing, the stupid ‘no-liquids-through-airport-security’ rule is still in effect), and eventually, after a several days, I was able to reunite with the victual. But when I was…
Birthday Candle Origins
It seems a strange tradition, to bake a cake and light it on fire to celebrate one’s day of birth. But there it is — it’s a widespread occurrence, and one can’t help but wonder how far back it goes or how it came about. Maybe it originated in a busy farm culture, where the…
Bad Table
When considering something you’re going to use, it is usually worth it to spend the extra money to get something of good quality. It’s worth paying a little extra to have that really nice chair, or the comfortable pants, or a warm coat. But while price can be a reasonable surrogate for quality, it is…
Living in the Matrix…
20 years after The Matrix opened, how many humans choose to live in the Matrix, after all?
BOOKHUNT: Better Book Design
I’m on the 3rd book of Steven Erikson’s Malazan Book of the Fallen Series. The first two books, Gardens of the Moon and Deadhouse Gates were rich reading experiences. But the books are long, and a lot happens in them. They are the kind of books where you can figure out what else happened or…
Visual Riddles: Spain – The Tree of Shoes
I had been walking for quite some time. By this point, I’d been walking, through Spain, for about a little over a month. By this point, I was used to walking all day without seeing anyone else. And while I was used to seeing signs of people, I didn’t really see too much of other…
BOOKS: If on a winter’s night a traveler, by Italo Calvino
Tedious, pretentious, and unejoyable, I still somehow found this novel satisfying
The Salad Bowl and the Drying Rack
If you look for pictures of “salad bowl on a drying rack,” there is a good chance you will find pictures of salad bowls, and pictures of drying racks, but you are not likely to find any pictures of salad bowls ON a drying rack. WHY? Because you shouldn’t do it. Not really. Because people…