Just Let Me Go Home

On my way home from Atomic Ballroom.  As I get on the freeway, four Highway Patrol cruisers jump on ahead of me.  And they shut down the freeway ahead of me to arrest someone in a car.  Helicopter spotlight.  Hands up, backing away from the car.  The works.  Wow.

And now more cruisers pull up.  Cars edge up to block my view.  I'm happy to give way.

And now on my way.

Surreal. 

Blogging Thanksgiving Part 5

Note to self: one benefit to home ownership is the ability to have or upgrade to a decent kitchen.

I'm tired of burners my pans sit crookedly on and a shallow sink I can't wash pots in.

I'm going to use this as my main excuse for not cooking from now on.

Random Cartoon Marketing Related Question

Was Popeye sponsored by Big Spinach?

Steampunk Star Wars

I don't care that I already told everyone I think would be even vaguely interested in this about it. Steampunk Star Wars art! It's pretty damn cool, and I'm not even that into steampunk. Or Star Wars. Or art.

Eric's Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Idea: steampunk star wars

Awesome!

Read the Ingredients

Vaseline Lip Therapy - Advanced Formula

Active ingredients: White Petrolatum
Other ingredients: Flavor

So I'm basically buying petroleum jelly in a squeezable form factor? Wow, that sucks.

Very Subtle Advertising

Brazil vs. Argentina in advertisement form.

See the Ads

I'm speechless. Can you run ads like this in the US? Junior high John is snickering. Grown-up John is eye-rolling. Who's winning the battle for the soul of John? Well, I always love a good erectile dysfunction joke...

The Power (and Peril) of Praising Your Kids

I want to emphasize that this post isn't a boast. I hope that I don't have the ego and ego-dependence that I did as a child or even as a young-adult. That being said, I was always one of the smartest kids in the room, regardless of what room that was.

And it was a mixed bag. I don't think I was exposed to failure early enough. I don't think I was exposed to concepts that were too advanced for me. I grew very dependent on my ability to teach myself topics by reading and solo research (which isn't always a bad thing, but can be when I get tunnel-visioned on solving a problem or gaining a skill on my own instead of through instruction). In reading this article, I'm trying to remember whether I suffered (or suffer) from this particular weakness of not wanting to even try something I'm not naturally good at.

The Power (and Peril) of Praising Your Kids -- New York Magazine

I don't remember this ever really being a problem as a kid. I was pretty good at most things, though I worked the hardest at things that I found the most interesting. Most other things I tended to skate by on. Of course, that all came crashing down in college. Caltech was an extended academic beat-down. I wasn't good enough to get by on pure talent (very few are) and was too used to doing so. I didn't have the time management skills or the work ethic to turn it around.

I'm not sure if it's still a problem. I can't say that I'm that good at writing poetry and I don't really try it, but mostly because I'm not much interested in poetry. I can't say that swing-dance is a good counter-example, as I seem to be picking it up quicker than some others in the class I'm taking. I'm back at the math pipe, though I wasn't much good at it the first time around. Well, relative to my Caltech contemporaries, I wasn't much good at it.

I wonder if this might be the same problem I see in some pretty girls I've met over the years. Sometimes I get the feeling that pretty girls get told they're pretty too often. And that results in them thinking that it's the most important thing about them, instead of just something they were lucky enough to be born with. Being a smart kid is similar.

Interesting idea. But is the solution to not praise kids for what they are? Only praise them for achievements? For effort?

It's interesting that the study managed to link being praised for being smart with behavior which makes kids value looking smart, while being praised for effort is linked with challenge-seeking behavior. Interesting that kids praised for effort dealt with failure situations with relish while kids praised for smarts were miserable.

A very telling quote:

In follow-up interviews, Dweck discovered that those who think that innate intelligence is the key to success begin to discount the importance of effort. I am smart, the kids’ reasoning goes; I don’t need to put out effort. Expending effort becomes stigmatized—it’s public proof that you can’t cut it on your natural gifts.

That really cuts deep. I wonder if I ever felt like that. I don't remember feeling like that. But I do remember not putting out the effort.

An interesting bit on how just teaching the concept to students helped:

The only difference between the control group and the test group were two lessons, a total of 50 minutes spent teaching not math but a single idea: that the brain is a muscle. Giving it a harder workout makes you smarter. That alone improved their math scores.

Also interesting that the article author realizes with his own kids that he's the one who's a junkie about giving general praise instead of effort or process-based praise.

So do you tend to shy away from things you're not naturally good at? Can you remember being praised for specific, effort-based achievement instead of general "smartness?" If you have kids, can you see the application? Can you tell me your reaction to the article?

It's Showtime for Ira Glass

It's Showtime for Ira Glass, 'This American Life'

NPR is really pimping the new Showtime version of "This American Life." Ira Glass on "Fresh Air" with Terry Gross.

The collision of my two favorite shows on NPR. I kind of expected the universe to end.

Recontextualization

RyanH and I have had long conversations about the importance of re-contextualization of culture. It's probably most prevalent in people's minds as a part of hip-hop culture because of musical sampling. However, reference, borrowing, and influence has been an important part of culture for longer than most people acknowledge. Don't think so? What year was West Side Story made? Care to think about it's influences?

Now, I'm thinking about the downstream influences, especially the different sendups of the Jets - Sharks rumble, from ESPN commercials to the Simpsons, to every time I want to break tension between two groups by snapping my fingers.

This Harpers article is amazingly thorough coverage of the subject, and not just in the 20th and 21st centuries. Definitely worth some time to read through (and definitely a time investment; just read the opening bit on Nabakov and see how far in you get).

The Ecstasy of Influence (Harpers.org)

This American Life Teaser Trailer

Sure, This American Life might be the best thing on radio right now. But how good could a television version be?

This good:



3/22/2007 on Showtime? I think my friend Tivo might be recording it.

Other Brained

Just finished reading the latest installment of Hacking My Child's Brain by Mark Woodman. The series covers the treatments for Woodman's son, Caleb, who has Sensory Processing Disorder. Fascinating stuff.

Reminded me of Elizabeth Moon's The Speed of Dark, which was written from the point of view of an autistic savant.

Photos Just Because

While returning to the car on Sunday after my sister's Second City class performance, I noticed this abandoned-looking building which the ironic signage.



If only it had been the school of beauty and architecture. *sigh*

Next, a shot of the pool deck from my patio. No, I don't have a hot tub, but I have quick access to one.

Fresh Air

Woo Hoo!

Fresh Air is now being podcast!

It's 45 minute blocks instead of each segment separated, but I can live with that. This, along with This American Life, is my favorite show on NPR. Yes, FAVORITE!

Woo Hoo!

Just Gotta Cut Loose!

John Remy issued a Wednesday challenge to do something outside of one's comfort zone, and I've decided to accept an invitation to go dancing as a result. Well, that's not quite fair, as I tend to accept invitations to do things I think might be fun but which are outside my comfort zone without John Remy around to challenge me to do it. Off the top of my head, cycling was one of those, though I think I originally intended to go mountain biking with my Tidrick buddies. I recently agreed to go on a blind date. Attending Quaker meeting was definitely intimidating the first time, as was volunteering to teach First Day School (Quaker jargon for Sunday School). Well, JR was involved in at least one of those, but I stick my tongue out at anyone who points that out.

Recently, I got to do some serious practice in anticipation of the night-of-dancing. For those dance-phobic readers out there, let me assure you that I was incredibly intimidated, but had a blast. We went over frame, basic footwork, some simple turns, and a discussion of how practice will help me develop muscle memory. Managed to locate this video lesson on youtube, which covers almost everything we did in 2 hours in 2 minutes. Plus some stuff we didn't. I noticed that on this video, the instructors are moving their feet a lot more than I was during practice. Meaning, they're picking their feet up higher and are more exaggerated in their stepping. No idea whether that's a stylistic thing or just something that happens as one gets more advanced. This might be the discovery of something really fun.

Chatted briefly with AP about swing dancing last night. He confirmed that the women outnumber men at swing clubs, and that men outnumber women at salsa clubs. -1 Salsa, +1 Swing. I did my time at Caltech, thank you very much.

Now I need to go practice that footwork.

[EDIT]
I just wanted to add that there adults in the small town in which "Footloose" occurred were on to something. Dancing involves sharing personal space, touching, stroking, holding, and a semi-embrace. There's definitely an air of romantic tension which surrounds the entire activity. I can see why parents would fear their kids taking part in it!

How NOT to Deflect Attention

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Favorite Movies

Well, inspired by Miko on Mind on Fire, as well as Journeygal, here are my favorite movies (bold movies are my favorites which no one has ever heard of):

American Beauty
American History X
Apocalypse Now
Big Lebowski, The
Blade Runner
Bob Roberts
Buena Vista Social Club
Capote
Casino
Chasing Amy
City of God
Control Room
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Croupier
Dazed and Confused
Donnie Darko
Eat Drink, Man Woman
Enron: The Smartest Guys In the Room
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Fight Club
Fog of War
Fresh
Garden State
Gladiator
Good Will Hunting
Hero
Hoop Dreams
Keeping the Faith
Kill Bill
L.A. Confidential
L.A. Story
Lost in Translation
Magnolia
Mallrats
Matrix, The
Memento
Miller's Crossing
Notting Hill
Office Space
Open Your Eyes
Requiem for a Dream
Reservoir Dogs
Royal Tenenbaums, The
Run Lola Run
Rushmore
Seven Samurai
Shaun of the Dead
Sideways
Silence of the Lambs
Tao of Steve, The
Taxi Driver
There's Something About Mary
Trainspotting
Way of the Gun, The



Recent Movies I enjoyed but haven't assessed the staying power of:
An Inconvenient Truth (very thought-provoking)
Borat (can't get that taste out of my mustache)
Children of Men (I suspect it will stay on the faves list)
Casino Royale (one of of the best if not -the- best Bond film I've seen)
The Departed (another probable fave)
Inside Man
Thank You For Smoking (another probable fave)
V for Vendetta (another probable fave)

Recent Movies I Haven't Seen But Urgently Want To:
Letters from Iwo Jima
Little Miss Sunshine
The Queen

Guilty Pleasures

Violent Acres

Wacky, provocative, fictionalized account of someone's life. I'm sure there's a psychological term which describes how people feel free to be more shocking, provocative, antagonistic, and fantastic with the distancing effect of the internet. I don't know what it is, but it's got to exist. Violent Acres should make someone a fascinating case study. Worth reading the following pieces, but don't fall into the trap of being provoked. Put on your best air of detachment, prepared to be amused, then read-away:

• The two parter of You Can Learn a Lot From a Rich Girl and Drastic Measures
• How To Fight
• If You Don't Have the Balls to be Hated, Then You Don't Deserve to be Loved (anyone you know talk like that as a kid?)
• How to Be a Girl Bully (did the author forget the "How To Fight" post?
• Love, Shame and the Human Pecking Order (did the author forget about "How to Be a Girl Bully?")

Is this a guilty pleasure for me? Definitely. I thoroughly enjoy the earnest communication, though I think the author would be better served by being honest with the fantasy sequences ("I wish I could go back and say..."). Underlines for me the need to be honest in my own writing.

A Little Bit of Knowledge

One of my favorite radio shows (and now podcast!!!) is "This American Life" from WBEZ Chicago. One of my favorite episodes (though there are many great ones) is #293 (which you can get to and listen to via the 2005 archive), titled "A Little Bit of Knowledge."

Act One. Small Thoughts in Big Brains. This American Life producer Alex Blumberg investigates a little-studied phenomenon: Children who get a mistaken idea in their heads about how something works or what something means, and then don't figure out until well into adulthood that they were wrong. Includes the tale of a girl who received a tissue box for Christmas, alledgedly painted by trained monkeys. (13 minutes)

Hilarious stories about the mistakes we make. I think that there's a unique opportunity with mass adoption of the Internet to explore a variety of mistaken information: misheard phrases.

I used to spend quite a bit of time in an online community which discussed a sports team. Every once and a while, someone would use the word "untracked," without having anyone comment on it. I was completely baffled as to what these people meant, then realized from context that they mean "on-track." But the mis-use was always hilarious. "I know we have a lot of injuries, but the coaching staff has to get us untracked."

Today, I saw a new one: "jump sh*t." What?! The author meant jump "ship." "Before you jump sh*t, you should figure out whether the grass is really greener on the other side."

Yes, the author mixed metaphors while making a mistake on one of the metaphors, but I'm not criticizing that. I just love collecting this kind of clearly long-standing mistake about what the original phrase was.

Review: Children of Men (no spoilers)

Saw a really mind-blowing film last night called "Children of Men," starring Clive Owen. A mix of dystopia, immigration attitudes, Abu Ghraib, totalitarianism, urban warfare, and of course, the value of children to society. The view of the future is incredibly immersive; The cinematography is mindblowing. There are a couple scenes in the movie featuring intense action which appear to be done in a single continuous shot /take, one of which seemed to last for ten minutes. I'm guessing that last shot was stitched together somehow, but I didn't spot it.

Go see it.

New Year, New Blog

After reading Mind on Fire, and pilgrimgirl, I've felt motivated to write ... something. Maybe this was rekindled by Ryan egging me on to write 5 minutes of stand-up comedy as well. I've always read that new bloggers have to mention the adage that the best way to improve one's writing is to actually write, so there's my mandatory mention.

I spent New Year's Eve with some new friends at "First Night Fullerton." Jaw-dropping hot-air balloon on Harbor, amazing midnight fireworks show, and a couple hours of serious wandering around. Really fun. Sis reminded me later that she was at The Olde Ship. Whoops.

Resolutions? In the past, it's seemed like a resolution was something that I was supposed to do in the past and wouldn't really do in the future. Over the last few years I've made so many positive changes in my life that the future seems suddenly filled with potential. I'm not sure that I've felt this positive for more than a decade. So the idea of a resolution doesn't quite jive with the way I've always emotionally reacted to them in the past ("yeah, I'm probably not going to actually follow through with that").

That being said, I'd like to:

• continue to live healthy
• live my life with more thought about spirituality
  
• compete in a sprint triathlon
• complete a "Century" ride (100 miles)
• take more pictures each week
• update this blog with consistency
• increase my social circle
• contribute positively to the communities I belong to
  
• take a vacation that requires an overnight stay
• take positive steps towards finishing my degree
• write 5 minutes of stand-up comedy
  

Plans for tomorrow:

• Weekly weigh-in
• Workout with trainer in the morning
  
• Try jogging on the treadmill