January 2007 Archives (15 posts)
Organic Peanut Butter
I have the flu today and decided to take the day off (something I never do).
For lunch, I decided to make a PB & J sandwich. Instead of the usual jar of Kraft or Skippy peanut butter there was a jar of President’s Choice Organic Peanut Butter.
I opened this new jar of organic peanut butter and ruined my day. Peanut oil spilled onto the kitchen counter, my bathrobe, the floor and the garbage can. Why is there so much oil in this jar of peanut butter?!
I screamed at my wife (who wasn’t there) for purchasing this organic crap that you have to ‘stir before using’ and ‘refrigerate after opening’. Then I threw the jar of into the garbage and asked my wife (who wasn’t there) why she bought this sludge. In seven years she has never purchased organic peanut butter. Why now?
Why would anyone purchase organic peanut butter? It probably costs more than the regular stuff, you have to stir it up before using it, and then you have to refrigerate it which means it’s going to be hard as rock the next time you go to use it.
Did I mention that you have to open the jar as if it contained nitroglycerin? Bloody organic peanut butter. I’m going back to bed.
Posted in Personal at 2:58 PM | Comments (14)
Which Version of Vista?
I’m looking at a flyer for Best Buy. The second page has an ad for 8 versions of Microsoft Windows Vista:
- Windows Vista Home Basic
- Windows Vista Home Basic Upgrade
- Windows Vista Home Premium
- Windows Vista Home Premium Upgrade
- Windows Vista Business
- Windows Vista Business Upgrade
- Windows Vista Ultimate
- Windows Vista Ultimate Upgrade
The following page has an ad for no fewer than 5 versions of Office 2007. Does anyone find this ridiculous? Baffling?
Unfortunately the saying “simple sells” doesn’t apply to Microsoft. Millions of minions will shuffle over to Best Buy and spend an hour trying to figure out which version of Vista to purchase.
This cartoon sums up my feelings on the stupidity of Microsoft’s marketing department.
If you have a Macintosh you have one choice when it comes to purchasing an operating system from Apple — Mac OS X Tiger. Simple.
That’s not even the funny part. The funny part is that Windows Vista Home Basic costs about the same as the ultimate version of, er, I mean the only version of Mac OS X Tiger.
Posted in OS X Software at 11:43 PM | Comments (3)
VisualHub for Mac OS X
Now and again I come across a really great piece of software for Mac OS X. VisualHub has become one of my favourite tools for dealing with video on the Mac.
For $23.32 USD you can easily convert DivX video into a DVD. If I miss an episode of 24 or House I do the following:
- head over to btjunkie and do a search for the latest show episode
- download the show using Xtorrent
- try to catch up on client work while the show downloads (losing battle)
- check the downloaded show in VLC
- open the file up in VisualHub and click on the DVD tab
- catch up on client work while the video is being converted
- burn my show to disc
I could save a lot of time and just burn the .AVI file to DVD and watch the show on my Philips DivX player. The problem is that this DVD player isn’t hooked up to my home theatre with HD projector. I could also get a PVR but this is more fun.
I’ve also used VisualHub to convert video from YouTube (.FLV format) to DV format which can then be used in Final Cut Pro. I couldn’t produce Livebait.tv without VisualHub.
One of the things that makes this program so amazing is the simplicity behind it. Take a look at the user interface.
Reminds me of SuperDuper — another great piece of software that I use for backups.
I’m just discovering that VisualHub does a better job at creating iPod video than Quicktime Pro. You have more control over the compression settings allowing you to reduce the size of the video files.
Okay. Enough geeky rambling. If you need to convert video to different formats then look no further than VisualHub.
Posted in OS X Software and Television at 5:05 PM | Comments (0)
More Bullfrog
After the Bullfrog Power video episode was posted on Livebait.tv we had a lot of feedback. A few people sent us emails to say that they were making the switch to Bullfrog Power. One of them was a reader of this site — Time Barnes.
Bullfrog Power also posted a button link to Livebait.tv on their homepage which is pretty exciting for the three of us that produce Livebait.tv.
Up next on we have an interview from NYC where Ian and Rose talk to the creators of the The Burg — an original show filmed in Brooklyn and only broadcast on the web.
Posted in Web at 10:53 PM | Comments (0)
Art School Confidential (2006)
Art School Confidnetial is clever and funny in the way it pokes fun at the whole art school experience. I loved the characters who desperately want to become recognized artists, showing their work in fancy galleries.
The main character played by Max Minghella (yes his dad is famous director Anthony) wants to be the next Picasso so he paints everything as Picasso would. His roomate played by Ethan Suplee is making an awful slasher film. The script is terrible — one cliché after another. Finally, during a script reading, an actress stops and asks Suplee’s character,
Why do you want to regurgitate this Hollywood crap for the gazillionth time? Don’t you have anything original to say?
I love this line because a good artist needs to find their own voice. Think different. Develop their own style. Be original. And even if a great artist can do all of things there’s no guarantee of success.
John Malkovich, Jim Broadbent, Angelica Huston and Steve Buscemi round out the cast in this dark comedy. Jim Broadbent is great in his role of a washed, alcoholic artist on the edge.
I haven’t really said what the film is about. If you want a synopsis then read the back of the DVD. If you want to be pleasantly surprised then just rent this disc and enjoy the demented vision of Daniel Clowes and Terry Zwigoff.
Posted in DVD Reviews at 12:22 AM | Comments (0)
Bandidas (2006)
Bandidas is no Blood Diamond, Babel, or Bobby, but if you’re looking for a Friday night rental that will make you laugh, then this film should keep everyone happy. It certainly helps that it stars two of the most beautiful actresses in Hollywood.
The Bandidas (Hayek and Cruz) become a pair of bank robbers to combat the man in black (Yoakam). He’s out of control, ripping off the Mexican people and shooting anyone who gets in his way.
Steve Zahn, in his toughest role yet, plays the love interest to the two Bandidas. Imagine having to sit naked, take after take while Salma Hayek and Penélope Cruz fight over who gets to kiss you next. What an awful job!
I have watched plenty of western comedies and Bandidas is full of the usual clichés but for some reason it works for me. It could be the script by Luc Besson, the ‘bullet-time’ gun fight or the babes with guns and knives. I don’t know. Give it a spin and let me know what you think.
Posted in DVD Reviews at 1:24 AM | Comments (0)
Bullfrog Power on Livebait.tv
Last Wednesday our Livebait.tv team spoke with the President of Bullfrog Power. If you want to know more about green power then watch our interview on Livebait.tv.
After you watch the interview, consider signing up for Bullfrog Power or a green electricity retailer in your area. It costs a little more than regular hydro but it helps to reduce the air pollution generated by coal burning power plants.
Now before my friend on the wet coast calls me a hypocrite, (for driving a Mustang instead of a hybrid vehicle) I haven’t signed up for Bullfrog Power, yet. I intend to sign up and will blog about when it happens.
Posted in Web at 9:07 AM | Comments (9)
WOW!
Wow! Apple has done it again. An iPhone with a built-in iPod, web browser, sexy touch sensitive interface and more. I wonder if they’ll sell a brown version?
Jobs blew them audience away with the new iPhone and the Apple TV. I can’t wait to get my hands on either one of these devices.
Take a look at some of iPhone demos at Apple.
Posted in Apple at 2:43 PM | Comments (1)
Late but in earnest
On January 2, 2001 my mother passed away and I started working on a video that would celebrate her life. I scanned in a bunch of photos, animated them in Adobe After Effects and exported the final project using the first version of iMovie.
I think this is the first video I ever worked on and it was shown at my mother’s funeral. It’s not my best work by a long shot but it’s a true labour of love. It’s hard to believe that 6 years have passed by already.
You need to upgrade your Flash Player to at
least version 8 to view this video content.
Quicktime Video (480x260, 26 MB)
Posted in Mom at 4:52 PM | Comments (4)
Musings from a 7-year-old
My father is 67 years old. My 7-year-old son Daniel mentioned this to me recently. Since then I’ve discovered that Daniel has an interesting opinion of senior citizens.
A couple of days ago my father was driving Daniel to our house when he turned off the highway at the wrong exit. Realizing his mistake, my father said to Daniel, “your grandfather is stupid—I took the wrong exit.”
Without missing a beat Daniel replied, “granddad, you’re not stupid, you’re just old.”
Posted in Observations at 12:09 PM | Comments (0)
Indiana County Parks and Trails
Indiana County Parks and Trails in west-central Pennsylvania is featuring one of my photos on their homepage—yellow leaf in the snow.
Posted in Photography at 10:33 AM | Comments (1)
Top 10 Films of 2006
In alphabetical order, here are my favourite films from the past year:
An Inconvenient Truth
Babel
The Bridge
Casino Royale
Jesus Camp
Little Miss Sunshine
Mon meilleur ami
Pan’s Labyrinth
The Queen
United 93
Posted in Movies at 1:58 AM | Comments (3)
Babel (2006)
I’m on a roll. In the last week I’ve seen five great films and Babel (2006) is no exception. Director Alejandro González Iñárritu (21 Grams) uses the biblical story of Babel (loosely) as the main theme in his latest film—miscommunication through language. Aside from miscommunication and noise, it’s difficult to explain what Babel is about.
After watching this film, my understanding of it was cloudy. It’s a complex film with many layers. I felt that the ideas and themes were more implicit than explicit. It’s not as black and white a film as say, Crash (2004).
It’s the type of film you want to discuss after viewing. You want to dissect it. Pull it apart. Try to understand it more. It sticks with you long after you’ve left the theatre and that is one of the things that makes a great film, for me.
Babel follows 4 broken families in Morroco, Tokyo, San Diego and Mexico, all affected by a single gun shot. Foreign languages, noise, confusion, fear, and healing are some of the other common threads that connect each family.
Inarritu uses multiple story lines and some clever shifts in time to reveal the narrative but its up to the audience to connect the dots and fill in all of the blanks. Some people will hate this film because they have to think but I think it’s worth the effort.
On another note, if you enjoyed the film Caché (2005) then you’ll be delighted to know that there is an interesting scene with a chicken. I’ll leave it at that.
Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett were excellent in this film but what was with the fake wrinkles on Brad? Was that really necessary? I found it distracting at times and slightly amusing at others. I guess the producers thought he didn’t look old enough or maybe they thought he was too young to have a wife like Cate Blanchett. 
Films are rated from 1 to 4 stars.
Posted in Movie Reviews at 12:28 AM | Comments (1)
The Queen (2006)
On New Year’s Eve I went to see The Queen (2006) with ‘the lovely’—it’s become a tradition for us to see a film on the last day of the year. I received a bit of ribbing for seeing this but it’s an excellent film. I’m also happy that I didn’t get suckered into seeing ‘that film with Beoncé’.
Helen Mirren is quite believable as Queen Elizabeth II and James Cromwell is a wonderful, crusty, Prince Philip. The entire cast is very good and I can’t think of a single performance that was lacking, except for maybe Wolfgang Pissors as a German reporter.
Kidding aside, this film will probably renew your interest in the monarchy if you’re a Canadian. We’re reminded of her at least once if we look at the loose change in our pockets but it’s easy to forget that she’s a human being sometimes.
The Queen examines the fallout from Elizabeth’s silence after the death of Lady Diana and how Tony Blair struggles to advise her. I found the film’s version of this historic period to be fascinating. The way in which archival news footage is meshed with the film is quite seamless.
The Queen is easily one of the best films of the year. I can’t speak for Americans but if you’re Canadian, and you have some knowledge of Queen Elizabeth, chances are that this film will strike an emotional chord with you. ½
Films are rated from 1 to 4 stars.
Posted in Movie Reviews at 9:33 PM | Comments (3)
Little Miss Sunshine (2006)
A couple of nights ago I watched one of the year’s best indie films, Little Miss Sunshine (2006). Most critics loved the film and it has done quite well on video. I went to HMV to purchase a copy and they were sold out!
Little Miss Sunshine a hilariously sad film about a family of losers. Without giving too much away, the entire family is forced to go on a road trip from Albuquerque to Redondo Beach for a beauty pageant. Along the way they become much closer as a family without the assistance of sappy dialogue and swelling sound of violins in the soundtrack.
The characters are brilliant. My favourite is the heroin snorting grandfather played by Alan Arkin. Hilarious. Greg Kinnear plays the father—a motivational speaker that tries desperately not to be a failure. Paul Dano plays the son who has taken a vow of silence and writes everything down on a pad of paper. Trust me. The characters in this film are brilliant and the way they are forced together is genius.
I felt the ending was a little weak and too abrupt. I wanted a little more. Expected a little more. Maybe that’s the sign of a great film.
Films are rated from 1 to 4 stars.
Posted in DVD Reviews at 3:58 PM | Comments (1)
