Camel Knights

Not Dead II: Still Alive

I haven’t tumbld in a while, huh. That’s the beauty of RSS readers, though: set it and forget it.

Videos

What have I been up to lately? A good question, one I often ask myself. Here’s a small sampling in the form of a chain of embedded video.

I’ve been watching a lot of Mr. Show - haven’t quite finished its four-series run yet, but I’m close. It’s really great.

I think I watched this video probably 10, 20 times. Maybe not all in a row. Maybe more than 20 times. Protip: this genius has it set to play in a loop.

I got into a cab with this man. I didn’t mean to. I noticed the Christmas tree lights on the seats first, the live camera second, and then he started singing.

One more Mr. Show video. This one is longer than the last.

I saw Randy Newman, he was very good. Feel free to listen to this song (it’s pretty short) and then read the accompanying Wikipedia article. I think my favorite song on that album is probably God’s Song, though (make sure you read the lyrics). And then after you’ve heard that song, listen to He Gives Us All His Love, from the same album, and tell me what it’s about.

Classical Music

I’ve been listening to a lot more classical music. Even bought a subscription to next year’s season at the Symphony Hall. I still know next to nothing but if you’re interested in a spectacular piece of music try Mahler’s Symphony No. 2, “Resurrection” (movements I, II, III, IV, and V). Or if you’re not interested in the full 90-minute experience, you can settle for the final movement. Still 33 minutes though.

One of my issues was that classical music is different than regular music with respect to composers vs. performers. In other words, not only did I need a guide to particular pieces of music to listen to, but also particular recordings of those pieces. So far the NPR Listener’s Encyclopedia of Classical Music has been very helpful: I look someone up, and there’s a brief blurb along with a list of recommended recordings. Eases my mind. I also bought the NPR Guide to Building a Classical CD Collection but haven’t looked much at it yet. I imagine they’re not too dissimilar.

Another book I’d highly recommend is The Rest Is Noise. The subtitle pretty much sums it up: “Listening to the Twentieth Century”. Although it is primarily about classical music and composers, as opposed to pop music. One of the pieces of critical acclaim rang particularly true:

Alex Ross has written a true rarity—a book about music that makes you want to run and listen to every note he talks about. A masterpiece. —Emanuel Ax

On a side note, here is my current record collection. My apologies for the obnoxious 14-albums-a-time pagination (there are 20 pages); but this was the best Delicious Library could do. Maybe one day I’ll write a better gallery. While I have listened to most of these, there are still some I haven’t heard yet. I do aim to fix that.

Coffee

If you like coffee, you owe it to yourself to buy an Aeropress. I think I still prefer how the French Press tastes, but this is comparable in taste, and much faster and more convenient. It’s also only $25. But don’t take my word for it (actually, do): I recently found out this is also Nathan Myhrvold’s favorite way of making coffee as well.

Here are some things I’ve learned about coffee:

• Buy freshly roasted beans
• Grind the beans immediately before brewing the coffee
• Coffee made by the cup is far better than coffee that’s been sitting for really any amount of time
• I prefer the coarser metal filter the French Press uses (you can see through it) to most paper filters; it lets more of the oils through which gives the coffee a fuller flavor
• French Presses are annoying to clean, which is really where the Aeropress shines - at the end of a cup, you pop the remaining puck of coffee grounds into the trash, and you’re pretty much done

The only thing to be aware of when you buy the Aeropress is that the instructions are a total lie. It does not make an espresso shot, nor should it be used to make something similar. It’s best for a great cup of coffee. This is a good guide, should you find yourself with an Aeropress.

What I Have Been Up To

I was at a bookstore a month ago, and saw a Moleskine display. I’d never kept a diary or journal of any kind so I picked one up, and have resolved to write down a page or more about each day.

At first I mostly wrote down what time I woke up, what time I went to bed, and any other interesting things that happened to me that day. I’ve moved a little away from that, but I end up finding myself trying to write down the day’s events up to two weeks after the fact. This is difficult.

Is there anything to read into the fact that I can’t remember a single thing to write down about some days? This is largely the reason I use Foursquare - to be able to look back on what I’ve done, rather than just losing it. Google Calendar is also helpful here, when I’m trying to reconstruct my days. It would be best to write about them that night, but if I can’t remember what happened 6 days ago, what does that mean?

Dominion

On a whim, I went to the board game store a couple blocks away and bought a game called Dominion. It’s really fun. The basic concept is that everyone starts with the same 10-card deck, and over the course of the game you build and shape your deck until the game ends, and whoever has the most points wins.

The other very interesting piece is that there are 10 “action” cards you can choose from to build your deck (and then later use). However, the game comes with 25 of these action cards, so if you discover a particular combo that works well, you might have to totally readjust your way of thinking.

The game cost like $50, and at the store I asked the guy if they had some sort of board-game club where you would pay around $100 a year, and essentially rent a board game each month. If he can get 12 people to do that, then he could just choose 12 board games and cycle them around the group. And of course, if you liked the game, you could buy it. Win-win times twelve.

He said no.

I think that’s good for now. I’ll leave you with another recommendation - if you haven’t listened to Robyn’s latest album, Body Talk, then you’re missing out. I’d heard a few Robyn songs, and they were pretty good but nothing spectacular. This album is spectacular though. Standout tracks include “Dancing on My Own”, “Indestructible”, “Time Machine” (this might be my favorite), “Call Your Girlfriend”, “None of Dem”, and Snoop Dogg’s appearance on “U Should Know Better”. Ought to please all.