Pseudonyms in History
The recent hubbub about the blogger code of conduct got me thinking about pseudonyms, which the "code" condones. I like pseudonyms. That's one of my favorite things about the blogosphere. Many historical figures have used pseudonyms, and I think it is a long and noble tradition: Silas Dogood (Ben Franklin), Voltaire (François-Marie Arouet), Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens), and Publius (Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, John Jay in the Federalist Papers) to name a few.
Bigfoot
I used to think that Bigfoot was just a monster truck. Now I find out that they call Sasquatch by that name, too. I had no idea.
Actually, I did know that, and I was just trying to find a witty opening for this post. Now that I have your attention, I'm going to talk about my feet. I don't have very large feet, but I have a very hard time finding shoes. The problem is that I have very wide feet (2E). The problem with having wide feet is that unless a manufacturer makes shoes in several widths, you have to make up for the width by buying up a size. So you have to get long shoes that look a little funny.
I've overcome the problem in running shoes by switching to New Balance, which does offer varying widths (and arch support, etc). I now wear my running shoes most of the time. However, since I teach, I've decided that I should wear nicer shoes sometimes so that I can actually look the part.
Tonight we went to the mall so my wife could have her eyes checked out (needed new contacts--paint me jealous), and so we stopped in Sears, which was having a sale. Well, there were several very nice looking pairs of shoes, but none of them fit me (well one did, but it had really thin soles, and I could imagine having painful feet at the end of the day). So here I am, without brown shoes. Several years ago, I actually bought a brown belt to wear with the brown shoes I planned to buy. I still haven't bought them. Needless to say, the belt sits unused in my closet. Of course, now it's too small for me to wear, which is a totally separate problem.
Actually, I did know that, and I was just trying to find a witty opening for this post. Now that I have your attention, I'm going to talk about my feet. I don't have very large feet, but I have a very hard time finding shoes. The problem is that I have very wide feet (2E). The problem with having wide feet is that unless a manufacturer makes shoes in several widths, you have to make up for the width by buying up a size. So you have to get long shoes that look a little funny.
I've overcome the problem in running shoes by switching to New Balance, which does offer varying widths (and arch support, etc). I now wear my running shoes most of the time. However, since I teach, I've decided that I should wear nicer shoes sometimes so that I can actually look the part.
Tonight we went to the mall so my wife could have her eyes checked out (needed new contacts--paint me jealous), and so we stopped in Sears, which was having a sale. Well, there were several very nice looking pairs of shoes, but none of them fit me (well one did, but it had really thin soles, and I could imagine having painful feet at the end of the day). So here I am, without brown shoes. Several years ago, I actually bought a brown belt to wear with the brown shoes I planned to buy. I still haven't bought them. Needless to say, the belt sits unused in my closet. Of course, now it's too small for me to wear, which is a totally separate problem.
Lasik
I found out today that my brother is getting Lasik surgery. I have to admit that I'm very jealous. I wear thick glasses to correct a terrible astigmatism. Even if I wanted to wear contact lenses, they would have to special fit them. The standard Toric lenses they sell don't work for someone like me. Lasik isn't an option either (even if I had the money). They can only reshape your cornea so much.
On the plus side of this equation . . . Never mind. There is no plus side to this.
On the plus side of this equation . . . Never mind. There is no plus side to this.
Subtitles or Dubbed?
Plainbellied's recent post on movie remakes made me think of a related issue: subtitles on foreign films. There are a number of different opinions on this issue. Some people prefer dubbing because it means they don't have to read the bottom of the screen to know what's going on. Others prefer subtitles because they want to hear the cadence of the people speaking. For example, watch "Life is Beautiful" in Italian, then try it in English. Roberto Benigni's delivery really makes the film in a lot of ways, and the dubbed English version is a tragedy.
Personally, I prefer subtitles unless it's an action movie or something where I feel they will be too distracting. I get the feeling I'm missing something when I watch dubbed films. Sometimes, if a film has bad audio, we'll put on the subtitles anyway. That's one great thing about DVDs--you can change the audio or subtitle track to what you want. One fun thing to do is to compare the subtitles with the dubbed dialogue. Often they don't match up. It's pretty funny.
I really like watching kung fu movies. They translate all of the special moves each fighter is known for directly, so you get things like the "Flying crane maneuverable death kick" and the "Buddha palm hurricane fist." I think that's fun.
When I watching Spanish films with my wife, I tend to critique their translations. She gets tired of hearing things like, "That's not quite what he said." I'm naturally a know-it-all.
Personally, I prefer subtitles unless it's an action movie or something where I feel they will be too distracting. I get the feeling I'm missing something when I watch dubbed films. Sometimes, if a film has bad audio, we'll put on the subtitles anyway. That's one great thing about DVDs--you can change the audio or subtitle track to what you want. One fun thing to do is to compare the subtitles with the dubbed dialogue. Often they don't match up. It's pretty funny.
I really like watching kung fu movies. They translate all of the special moves each fighter is known for directly, so you get things like the "Flying crane maneuverable death kick" and the "Buddha palm hurricane fist." I think that's fun.
When I watching Spanish films with my wife, I tend to critique their translations. She gets tired of hearing things like, "That's not quite what he said." I'm naturally a know-it-all.
Salad bowl and cups
I'm posting these images in response to a question from a friend, who wondered what the bowl and cups Plainbellied traded her pig for looked like. Again, my photographs aren't very good, but you can see that the bowl has a motif of birds attacking worms. I've included shots of the inside and the outside of the bowl. We originally had four cups, but I could only find three right now. But you get the idea that they are made with raised designs on the outside. We use them a lot. So now you know.
Well, lookee here!
Plainbellied located a photograph of the pig I mentioned in my previous post. She also gave me permission to put it up. Of course, she pointed out the technical deficiencies of the piece. I just like it. Note the Salvador Dalí lip couch. I think it's very whimsical.
Plainbellied back in action
While we are out west this summer, Plainbellied is going to take a ceramics studio class. I'm very excited for her. While I've been doing my PhD, she's put a lot of things on hold, including ceramics. Over the past five years, she's focused more on 2-D art, when she is really much more comfortable molding clay. I am definitely not an expert, but I've seen some of her work, and I really like it. I've posted a few of her earlier pieces below (stuff I like), along with a description of what I know about them.
These three pieces are part of a series Plainbellied did. She has helped me learn to appreciate abstract art. It doesn't always have to make a statement. Sometimes it's all right for art just to look cool. I think she succeeded here. I should apologize for the picture quality. I took them all myself, and I am not very gifted with a camera. These are in my sister-in-law's New York apartment, so we tell people that they're on display in New York.
This photo probably requires more explanation. Apparently, the art department where Plainbellied studied had experimented with a flexible mold material some years ago. They had molds of baby heads and celery bunches. Plainbellied stuck them together. These are on top of the bookshelf in my home office (hence the dust I should have noticed when I took the picture). While admittedly weird, they look cool when put together like this. It's like a bunch of baby comets or something.
I wish I still had a photo of another piece she made of a reclining pig with pearl necklace. Basically, it was a parody of the reclining nude portraits so many artists seem compelled to paint. Sadly, Plainbellied traded it for a nice set of a salad bowl and cups made by a friend (sad that we don't have her piece, the bowl and cups are very nice).
These three pieces are part of a series Plainbellied did. She has helped me learn to appreciate abstract art. It doesn't always have to make a statement. Sometimes it's all right for art just to look cool. I think she succeeded here. I should apologize for the picture quality. I took them all myself, and I am not very gifted with a camera. These are in my sister-in-law's New York apartment, so we tell people that they're on display in New York.
This photo probably requires more explanation. Apparently, the art department where Plainbellied studied had experimented with a flexible mold material some years ago. They had molds of baby heads and celery bunches. Plainbellied stuck them together. These are on top of the bookshelf in my home office (hence the dust I should have noticed when I took the picture). While admittedly weird, they look cool when put together like this. It's like a bunch of baby comets or something.I wish I still had a photo of another piece she made of a reclining pig with pearl necklace. Basically, it was a parody of the reclining nude portraits so many artists seem compelled to paint. Sadly, Plainbellied traded it for a nice set of a salad bowl and cups made by a friend (sad that we don't have her piece, the bowl and cups are very nice).
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