I'd do a review and stuff except that James Lileks has said it all better than I ever could. Except that I thought Simon Pegg was awesomesauce, but I likes me some Simon Pegg, so...

( Excerpts from the review - SPOILERY )

[23:34] samantha bong: the irony is that, not only am i more interested in your country's politics than in my own country's, but i'm also more interested in your country's politics than you are.
[23:35] maelfactor: What are politics? Plastic bugs?
[23:35] samantha bong: :P

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I have to say I *love* the party atmosphere. Watching the coverage pre-ceremony and the ceremony itself feels kind of like watching The West Wing, almost. Partly because TWW did such a good job of approximating the clothes, uniforms, fashion of those in political arenas, but also because this feels very idealistic and celebratory, in the same way TWW was, fictionally. Also, Yo-yo Ma.

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There's something oddly satisfying about seeing Cheney having to be wheeled around all day, so very undignified in the public eye. I wouldn't gloat if it were something actually serious, but apparently he just strained a muscle while moving boxes. I probably also wouldn't gloat if he were less odious.

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Why is it that Obama looks almost like he's being walked to the gallows as he walks down the corridor to the ceremony?

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[00:48] samantha bong: i like that they put black and asian people behind him.
[00:49] samantha bong: the *only* black and asian people on that platform.
[00:49] thecomicaztec: heh. we're inclusive now, don't you know.
[00:51] samantha bong: um, wow.
[00:51] samantha bong: having a pastor at a political ceremony would be a TOTAL no-no in singapore.
[00:51] samantha bong: as in, having him speak as a major part of the ceremony.
[00:52] thecomicaztec: when i said "inclusive" i didn't mean religions :D

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Aretha Franklin, all things considered, was a good and really classy choice. Also, why do all my "chills down the spine" moments always happen in relation to music?

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I LOVE how Yo-yo Ma looks like he's having an absolute BLAST performing up there. What I wouldn't give to feel that way about my livelihood.

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Final thought: it's interesting that a candidate who ran on hope and idealism has centered his inaugural speech around pragmatism and responsibility. I have great hopes for Obama's presidency, but have to admit to some trepidation.

For the all of three people on my friends list who will be interested in seeing this, check out my WoW UI. I don't think there's a single part of the default UI that remains >.>

Also, as you can see from this screenshot, we cleared 10-man Naxx just before Christmas :)

Click to see a larger image:

Ochazuke made with genmaicha, salted salmon, and furikake. Kabocha simmered in dashi with some mirin and soy. Quick, tasty, healthy.

Also, it's funny that cooking dinner and taking a photo of it is a sign of mental health, for me.

April 2008 is shaping up to be a doozy.

- *Getting married.* Holy fucking hell. Predictably enough, I'm a
little freaked out about getting married.
- *Where will we be living?* Who knows?? I don't know which continent,
country, city, borough, or apartment we'll be in.
- *New awesome music. *Both Gnarls Barkley and Portishead (!!!!) have
new albums coming out in April. Confidential to Portishead: it's about
freaking time! You took a vacation for how long? Next thing you know,
Melanie Rawn will actually finish what she started.

That's it for now, but we'll see what continues to develop.

So I finally had a few hours to tweak and process photos from Ali and Scott's wedding! You can go directly to the Flickr set.

Enjoy!

I love you all.

And I'm sitting here on the floor of my mother's guest bedroom waiting for Yuletide to start! i <3 fandom.

This is but the first one of many. I'm still processing all the photos I took that night!

Hello my lovelies! I've discovered the joys of posting to LJ through email.

Adan and I will be headed back to NY soon, with a nice little three day stopover in London on the company dime! Does anyone want anything from Hong Kong or London? I'm taking requests :)

Also, y'all had better make time to hang out with us while we're in New York! We'll be in town from Nov 3rd through Ali and Scott's wedding.

Never cook risotto with a cab sauv, even if it's the only wine you have on hand. Especially corn risotto - it looked like moldy grape jam. Tasted fine, but really unappetizing!!

So! And we come to this.

I don't have a lot of time to write everything down, and I figure you don't have a lot of time to read everything anyway, so that works out well. Let's just give you the Cliff's Notes, roughly chronological.

( In which I give you random tidbits from our last month )

Giving away stuff begins! We most notably are giving away:

Two computer towers. One is 7 years old, one is 6 years old, so you can guess they're not top of the line or anything. One of them has a CD burner, the other just a CD drive.

Two printers. One's a Canon bubblejet, one's a Lexmark.

One really old computer monitor, color, 15".

A tall CD shelf, Ikea Billy. Tall and narrow, fits about 150 CDs.

You're all also welcome to come to our last Thursday gathering this week, where we will be giving away miscellaneous household goods, crafty supplies, toys, blank CDs and DVDs, lots of food, and other stuff.

Anything not claimed will most probably be going out onto the street on Friday, as we have not the time to make alternative arrangements.

So! As you may have heard, Adan and I are moving to Hong Kong for six months. We're trying to figure out what we're doing with all our stuff, since we're subletting our apartment to a friend while we're gone. Having researched packing, moving, and storage costs, we've come to realize that it would be more cost effective to sell or give away our big items, and replace them when we return, than it would be to have them moved into storage. (Hooray for Ikea furniture - so cheap, it's almost disposable).

We're going to try to sell a number of items on craigslist, but, as is my wont, I'm posting them here first, in case any of youse folks want them.

( Stuff with pics! )

So I think I can say that SDCC was a success!

( Full Con Report - Pretty Long! )

In short, we had SO MUCH FUN, we're TOTALLY GOING BACK, and EVERYONE SHOULD GO WITH US.

And lastly, my photos from SDCC '07. A word of warning - BSG heavy. But no spoilers.

1. I passed my driving test, Yay!! Now Sam is unleashed on the NYC driving world. On August 12th, I will be taking the Motorcycle basic rider's course, which will give me a motorcycle license. And then in September, I will be getting a cherry red Vespa LX 150. Whee!!!

2. My mom's in town for the weekend, and it's her birthday tomorrow! We spent all Friday night talking and catching up, all day Saturday shopping at Queens Center Mall and in Herald Square (squee, H&M, Victoria's Secret, Gap, Old Navy, and Macy's). Tomorrow we will be headed to the big Bastille Day street fair on 60th Street, and then to Rosa Mexicano for a birthday dinner.

3. For once (ONCE!) I find myself in agreement with what's currently fashion-trendy. Lots of lovely brightly colored floral prints, kimono-style tops and dresses, and exciting black and white prints! Really lovely.

4. After shopping for clothes for an entire day, I feel newly inspired to lose weight. Although who knows how long this will last? Part of the problem is that I honestly do love the way I look, happy and curvy and bouncy. And since Adan finds me lovely, the only downsides are a) health, and b) buying fashionable clothing. One of these should be more important to me than the other, and yet...

5. That is all. Good night!

If I were you, I'd avoid being on the streets in Astoria in about an hour. I'll be taking my road test right about then...

Wish me luck!

Originally published at infraredherring.com. Please leave any comments there.

On a balmy Tuesday afternoon, I spent my lunch break watching Sam and Ilan from Top Chef season 2 duke it out in a quickfire challenge in Union Square.

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