jwbblog: April 2008

Friday, April 25, 2008

Its not just his gnocchi that were dense

Welcome back to Nonsequitur Theatre.

Don't I feel like dork. It seems that I am the last guy on the block to have read Kavalier and Clay. To add further to my humiliation, unlike Raphy and Bram, my copy is not signed. (However, I do have a signed copy of DeLillo's "Underworld". Jealous?) I'll second Bram's comment: "Still one of the best books I've read in the past decade. And with much broader appeal than for just those with an unhealthy comic book habit." Yes indeedy.

Raphy admits in public to having watched Idol the last two weeks--with, it seems, equal parts enjoyment and horror. Relatedly, the Times reports this morning that Carly may have unwittingly offended millions of God-fearing Christians with her song choice, which reminds us, I think, that the controversies of the past were just as tedious as our own.

I noticed, in a comment several posts back, that Susan, Carson, and Ginger have requested some Top Chef blogging. I am happy to comply. I am slightly surprised that young Ginger is allowed to watch. The language on that show is just appalling. She's going to think that it's a normal part of human verbal interaction to have every third word bleeped out.

Anyway, we watched the last two episodes in a row last night and they were pretty entertaining. A few thoughts:

First, though he was, I concede, very annoying, I think I'm going to miss Ryan. I don't think there's a less self-aware person alive on the planet at the moment. I mean, it's 2008 and he's still using the phrase "metrosexual," and without even a hint of irony. (He's on the receiving end of some very funny abuse on Amuse-Biatch, the only interesting Top Chef blog I have found.)

The Jennifer/Zoi drama was kind of boring and I am not upset that Jennifer is gone. (The "I will avenge Zoi" plotline was kind of pathetic.) Plus, Stephanie has been in the top group a bunch of times and they couldn't bounce her. That said, however, I thought the "where's the polish sausage" scandal was a bigger culinary misdemeanor than the "there's more cheese than asparagus on my plate" scandal.

I am amazed that Nikki is still around. She seems to be in a constant state of mystification about what the show is about. (I too have bought pre-made sausages from Whole Foods. Perhaps I should embarrass myself on TV too.) I think her secret is that consistent mediocrity will serve you better, for a while, than excellence with an occasional, spectacular flameout.

It seems pretty clear at the moment that Dale and Richard will be in the top group, along with Stephanie and a contestant to be named later. I suspect Richard will win, unless they start docking him points for being a pompous twit (or for stealing Tintin's hairdo).

In some ways the most interesting thing about the show is all the sexual intrigue. However, I am hesitant to blog about it, lest I violate my main principle of blogging, which is to not write about things that I might be embarrassed about later in life. However, if you wish to read about such things, Amuse-Biatch is very funny.

Have I missed anything? I should note that my favorite part of the Top Chef website is the What is Padma Wearing page. (On the other hand, her blog sucks.) Also, I'm unclear about whether we are supposed to think that Tom is a prick or not.

Posted by jwb at 11:00 AM · 1 Comments

Thursday, April 24, 2008

Comics turned me to a life of crime

So where were we?

Most of you probably know this already, but for those who don't: We're having a baby. We're 14 weeks in and everything looks good. Not much else to report for now, though, in a month or so, we intend to find out the sex. (It has always seemed kind of rude to me to refer to he/she as "it" or "baby" for nine months.) In any case, we are very happy, excited, etc. I'll undoubtedly have more to say about this anon.

In other news:

I've been boycotting Idol since the last time I posted about it, but I'll admit to checking the results on the interwebs. This may come as a shock to you, but I think we need to face some facts: Idol voters are complete idiots. There have been moments every season when this becomes pretty clear, but with less consequence than this season. Michael and Carly should have been in the top four. Can you imagine any of the remaining six actually winning this thing? And being excited about it? Does anyone really think David Archuletta is going to be a pop star?

I was bored on Sunday afternoon and started watching an archaeology/adventure movie with Dr. Carter from ER, but it was pretty horrible. After a few minutes of that, I had a hankering for the real deal and put Raiders in the DVD player. Some of the special effects are a bit archaic (e.g., the face-melting scene), but I would say that it holds up remarkably well. Relatedly, Cinematical lists their 10 most anticipated films of the summer. We don't get to the movies except for special occasions, though I think IJATKOTCS may qualify. (To give you a sense of how rare such occasions are, the last were Casino Royale and those silly hobbit movies.) As to the rest, I think we can wait to see them at home.

Herewith is an interesting review (by Louis Menand in The New Yorker) of David Hajdu's The Ten-Cent Plague, about the congressional investigations into the comic-book industry in the early 1950s. Hajdu's books sounds interesting, though I shall not be reading it. However, I did just finish reading Michael Chabon's Kavalier and Clay. I mention this because Chabon uses the congressional hearings for his own strange and wonderful purposes toward the end of that strange and wonderful book. I should perhaps note that Kavaier and Clay is the best book I've read in a while--and I try to read only good books. If you've been searching for a good book to read, here it is. It will be of particular interest to our readers who have an unhealthy interest in comic books--you know who you are.

Posted by jwb at 11:00 AM · 2 Comments

Tuesday, April 15, 2008

Apart from the sanitation, the aqueduct, and the roads...

Happy Tax Day! I hope yours was less painful than ours. Here are some not-entirely-comforting bits of wisdom from Monty Python:

Also, you can get yer "MILF Island" t-shirts here.

Posted by jwb at 3:23 AM · 1 Comments

Friday, April 11, 2008

A bleg about Endnote

I'm rather late to the game in terms of using software designed for research when it comes to my scholarly work. I'm wondering if anyone out there uses Endnote--or Zotero--and can explain to me in a few sentences what I should do so as well.

Thanks.

Posted by jwb at 11:46 AM · 0 Comments

Idol voters, you are a fickle bunch

Wow! That was a shocker. (Michael got booted off Idol, in case you missed it.) For me, he was the only interesting (or, perhaps I should say, the least mockable) one left. I fear it gets very boring from here on out. Sigh.

P.S. I should note that Ryan Seacrest is one cold-hearted mother-you-know-what. That "last year we didn't send anyone home" business was harsh.

Posted by jwb at 9:08 AM · 0 Comments

Wednesday, April 09, 2008

Nazis. I hate these guys.

Re. the Olympic protests, this was news to me, but apparently the torch relay was invented by the Nazis. I hate those guys.

No matter how you spin it, to be referred to as a "chucklehead" (or some variant) in the first line of a review of your new book is not good. This is apropos of our continuing fascination with how 9/11 caused one of our favorite writers, Martin Amis, to completely lose his marbles. In case you missed it, Michiko Kakutani puts the beatdown on him in yesterday's Times.

Books I will not be reading, part XXV: Speaking of chuckleheads, I will most definitely not be readiing Douglas Feith's "War and Decision". You know, it'll be nice when one of these clowns finally admits what, at this point in history, is pretty obvious to just about everyone--that they hadn't a clue what they were getting themselves and the country into. In the meantime, we get meretricious crap like this. No thanks.

Does anyone out there watch Top Chef? I was pondering blogging about it a little, though I don't want to blog about another show that no one cares about.

Posted by jwb at 5:45 PM · 4 Comments

Idle thoughts

A few idle thoughts about last night's Idol:

Randy must not have had his nap yesterday, because he was kind of a dick.

Unlike Simon, I've listened to the Izzy with the Unpronounceable Last Name version of "Over the Rainbow" many times, and Jason's version was kind of weak.

Our Lady Peace is/was cool and all, but, c'mon, they're no one's favorite band.

I realize that everyone thinks David is going to win it, but I am beginning to hate him.

That is all.

Posted by jwb at 9:43 AM · 0 Comments

Friday, April 04, 2008

Allergies!

In case you haven't been watching John Adams, some highlights:

In comments to the last post (along with a lot other mumbo jumbo), Marty posted a link to an interesting interview with our (though more his than mine) teacher, Laurence Lampert, who's a famous--as these things go--scholar of philosophical bad-boy Friedrich Nietzsche. (Marty: Lampert's Wikipedia page could use some work. Sounds like a job you were made for.)

Speaking of "bad boys," here is an interesting article from the LA Times about the "daunting challenge" various Hollywood nitwits have had turning Ellroy's books into completed movies. I really think they just need to try a little harder.

Posted by jwb at 2:04 PM · 0 Comments

Wednesday, April 02, 2008

Three sheets in the pan

Any McCainiacs out there? (Marty: I'm assuming you don't count, being a foreigner and all.) You'll be pleased to know that Heidi Montag is one of you. You must be very proud.

Regarding John Adams, in lieu of my own commentary, I shall point you to a moderately interesting discussion at The New Republic. I say "moderately interesting" because J.P. Diggins (an actual card-carrying historian) is pretty great and the other two (including one of the producers) are rather dull. I would be remiss in not also mentioning that it was nice to see the fetching Sarah Polley as JA's daughter, Nabby. Sarah, I believe, is Canadian. Nice work, Canada.

This here is a moderately interesting item from BoingBoing about several much-used idioms that, it turns out, come from "technology". How about that!

Posted by jwb at 6:54 AM · 1 Comments

Tuesday, April 01, 2008

Yikes!

In other news, according to Krugman, we have plans to invade Canada.

P.S. Today is April Fool's Day. If you read anything on the interwebs today that seems utterly preposterous, it is probably a joke. Unless, of course, it involves the Bush Administration, in which case it is almost certainly true.

P.S.S. Holy crap! Fafblog--the best blog ever!--seems to be back. However, as we noted in the paragraph just above, it is April. 1. Perhaps we should wait and see before we get too excited.

"Everybody shut up and pay attention to me."