Kathy's Digital Log

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February 26, 2004

Playing with GarageBand

I recently read Life of Pi and saw Whale Rider. The reviews are posted in their respective books and movies sections.

I just installed GarageBand, a utility that is packaged in Apple's iLife suite. GarageBand is awesome, to say the least. I'm looking forward to playing around with it and writing my own songs. Check it out. I'm also planning on buying the Jam Pack expansion, which allows me to record more instruments, and an adapter for my electric guitar, which will let me transmit the notes from the guitar directly into the GarageBand interface.

Posted by Kathy at 12:56 PM | Permalink

February 25, 2004

Whale Rider

I really like this movie. No wait, I *loved* this movie. It's got everything a movie should have - a fresh perspective, engaging characters, a wonderful storyline, a sense of history. I think I've waited a long time to see a movie like this. I believe the last movie I saw with a similar theme was Mulan.

The premise of the story is this: Paikea (Pai) is a Maori girl whose twin brother died at birth, taking their mother along with him. Pai's brother was supposed to have been *the one* to save the Maori people and bring them to a better way of life, according to Pai's grandfather - Pai's father had not been willing to take that role. What we have here is the perfect setting for a girl who has to fight against all odds - which include chauvinistic viewpoints - to prove that she is the rightful leader of the Maori people. Alas, sexism dies very hard, as we saw with the grandfather who refuses to see that what he's been searching for was right under his nose from the start. We also learn the lesson that great and wise leaders are not made, they're born. Pai's noble and indomitable spirit is quite stirring.

If you haven't seen this movie, go out and rent it right now. Better yet, buy a copy. In today's world of countless bad, trashy movies, we should all be buying movies like Whale Rider to show the movie industry that what we want to see is more quality movies that speak to both our hearts and minds.

Posted by Kathy at 11:04 PM | Permalink

Life of Pi, Yann Martel

Before I start writing about my thoughts concerning this book, I'd like to just mention that I originally thought this book was about math, based on the title. Sort of like a history of pi, the discovery of it, the ancient uses for it, and the scholarly arguments that must have occurred regarding its utility. The feminist in me wanted to read that like many other inventions, a woman was behind it, and was somehow not credited with the work or idea. However, this is not to be, as the closest this book gets to talking about mathematics is when Piscene Molitor Patel introduces himself to his fellow classmates as "Pi - 3.14" to prevent them from calling him "Pissing". This is really a book about animal behavior, Indian culture, and religion.

Now that I have that cleared away, I have to say that I really enjoyed reading about the animal behavior aspect of the book the most. I consider myself to be quite ignorant when it comes to analyzing animal behavior. I chalk that one up to having been raised in the suburbs. Like any other person who enjoys watching animal shows on the Discovery Channel, I am at the same time, puzzled and fascinated about why animals behave as they do. This book does an excellent job of explaining cat behavior, for example. After I finished reading it, I looked at my two kittens, Apollo and Mercury, and determined that Apollo is the omega cat, Mercury is the beta cat, and I'm the Alpha cat (from their perspective, anyway). So, that explains why Apollo is so much more eager to win my favors. It's because he has a vested interest in being my favorite cat. This will help protect him against Mercury, because, presumably, I would be partial to Apollo. Of course, this logic breaks down because 1) Mercury is not threatening to Apollo in any way, just larger than he is, and 2) I'm a human being, not a cat, and both Apollo and Mercury are my kittens, so if they fight, my inclination would be to stop the fight rather than help one of the cats beat the other one up. Plus, Apollo and Mercury don't fight, they play fight. It's the side effect of being well-fed at all times and not having to fend for themselves outside in the wild. I'd say the biggest benefit Apollo gains is being fed more snacks.

Anyhow, I'm digressing. Really, this book talks a lot about animal behavior. I enjoyed reading about the Indian cultural aspects as well. Definitely makes me want to take a trip to India. Most amazing is the fact that this novel is based on a true story. My final verdict is that this story is a worthy read in a casual environment, such as an airport - which is what I did.

Posted by Kathy at 10:51 PM | Permalink

February 15, 2004

Restaurant Reviews Link Added

I added a new feature today: a "Restaurant Reviews" link at the top of this page. I'm looking forward to providing a lot more reviews, but there are three to start with.

Posted by Kathy at 12:59 PM | Permalink

February 14, 2004

Lightfoot Restaurant, Leesburg, Virginia

We went to Lightfoot Restaurant for lunch. I had read good reviews about Lightfoot, and was eager to give it a try. The reviews I saw mentioned the head chef's proficiency with adding creative twists to traditional American cuisine, which sounded great to me. The restaurant was also lauded as being one of the "most romantic restaurants" by the NoVA Living Polls. Certainly, the interior decor, which was converted from what used to be a bank, had a turn-of-the-century sense of grandeur . Unfortunately, beyond this point, the restaurant failed to meet our expectations.

I have certain criteria that I expect to see in restaurants that aspire to be "upscale, and romantic". We were seated at the small table almost right behind the reception desk. That would have been acceptable, given that there's a panel which separates the table from the desk. However, the area was distinctly drafty, since it was close to the front entrance, and I was stuck trying to decide whether to shed my coat or not. Also, the tables were placed too close to each other, which immediately killed any sense of romanticism that the front entrance may have cultivated. These flaws alone probably would not have hurt the restaurant's rating, except that the service and cuisine left much to be desired.

To be fair, the quality of the food started out pretty well. The pre-entree bread basket contained several types of bread, all of which were probably freshly baked. There was a sundried-tomato herb bread, a pumpernickel raisin bread, a sweet Hawaiian-type of bread, and a jalapeno cheese bread. Every single one of these breads were excellent. We both ordered the Lightfoot spicy creamy tomato soup with roasted garlic and sweet basil, and enjoyed that quite a bit. For the entree, I ordered the sauteed lobster and fresh tomato over angel hair pasta. If I ever go back to this restaurant, I will certainly not order this dish again. The pasta was overcooked, which made it gummy and sticky. There were almost no tomatoes in the dish, despite the title of the entree. I love tomatoes, and was sorely disappointed in the lack thereof. The worst part was the sauce. I felt like I was eating a very heavy alfredo. Needless to say, I didn't even come close to finishing my entree. The best I could do was pick out the lobster pieces and eat them. Todd ordered the special, which was some type of pan-seared breaded rockfish with greens and rice. The rockfish was sitting on a huge pool of cream sauce, though. What is up with the sauce usage at this restaurant? Todd said that he felt kind of sick after eating the entree. My opinion is, if you are a good chef, you do not need to use a lot of sauce to "mask" the food. The fresh flavor of the food should be able to stand on its own. After ignoring us for most of the meal, the waiter finally showed up and asked how things were going. I noticed that he frequently took the liberty of chatting with the older blond and redhead at the table one foot away from us, as well as the older brunette at the table two feet behind us. I guess we're too young to be his type. Or perhaps, since we didn't order wine with our meals, he didn't feel like we would leave much of a tip. I have a sweet tooth, and usually enjoy ordering a good dessert after my meals. I really didn't want to press my luck with this establishment, though.

Posted by Kathy at 10:35 PM | Permalink

February 13, 2004

Presenting Morph at NotACon

I found out that I will be presenting at NotACon in April. This is really cool, and I'm psyched about this fun opportunity. The best thing is, I won't be talking for six hours like I did for a class I taught on firewalls, source code auditing, and network trickery back in December 2003. Whew. I could barely talk after six hours of lecturing in a lab area with loud machines. Of course, drinking hot tea helps.

Posted by Kathy at 01:03 PM | Permalink

February 10, 2004

Mechanical Rubik's Cube Solver and Chinese Rings Puzzle

I had fun playing with Rubik's cube when I was a kid. I recently saw a cool website where a guy builds a contraption out of Legos that can solve a 3 x 3 Rubik's cube puzzle. Check it out. I thought it was way cool. You know, one of those projects I wish I had time to do, and that I'm kicking myself for not thinking of it.

Speaking of puzzles, I had a favorite puzzle when I was a kid. It was the Chinese rings puzzle. Well, I found a site that sells it, and am considering buying it. I had no idea that this puzzle is the oldest known puzzle, dating back 2000 years. Neat.

Posted by Kathy at 01:10 PM | Permalink

February 09, 2004

The Triplets of Belleville

The Triplets of Belleville was quite delightful to watch. The premise of the story is that a young boy who lives with his grandmother wants to be a cyclist and compete in the equivalent of the Tour de France. His spunky grandma helps her grandson make that dream a reality by literally being his drill sargent. The boy has a dog as well. The dog is completely obsessed with trains. The boy grows up to compete in the big cycling competition, and ends up being kidnapped for a sinister French mafia gambling scheme. Needless to say, Grandma comes to the rescue, along with the dog. The namesakes of the movie, The Triplets of Belleville, play a large role in this rescue mission. One of the more interesting features of this film is the way some of the characters are actually animals that kind of look like humans. The story is captivating, and the songs are catchy, so anyone who has the time should definitely check it out.

A special feature that was screened before The Triplets of Belleville was Destino. Destino was a collaborative project between Salvatore Dali and Walt Disney in 1946. In a nutshell, Destino is a love story told in a very surreal environment. I recognized Salvatore Dali's influence right away. This feature is only about ten minutes long, but is was like being in a dream.

Posted by Kathy at 11:06 PM | Permalink

Get-Together with Friends, Teaism, and Movie

I met up with my friends Jen and Peter from LA on Saturday in downtown DC. We went to Teaism for dinner, and then, in an act of spontaneity, decided to go to a screening of The Triplets of Belleville at the E Street Landmark Theatre. I thought this film would be worth seeing for the following reason - there is very little in the way of dialogue. It's not that I have anything against more verbose films, it's just that a lack of dialogue is like a breath of fresh air.

The Triplets of Belleville was quite delightful to watch. The premise of the story is that a young boy who lives with his grandmother wants to be a cyclist and compete in the equivalent of the Tour de France. His spunky grandma helps her grandson make that dream a reality by literally being his drill sargent. The boy has a dog as well. The dog is completely obsessed with trains. The boy grows up to compete in the big cycling competition, and ends up being kidnapped for a sinister French mafia gambling scheme. Needless to say, Grandma comes to the rescue, along with the dog. The namesakes of the movie, The Triplets of Belleville, play a large role in this rescue mission. One of the more interesting features of this film is the way some of the characters are actually animals that kind of look like humans. The story is captivating, and the songs are catchy, so anyone who has the time should definitely check it out.

A special feature that was screened before The Triplets of Belleville was Destino. Destino was a collaborative project between Salvatore Dali and Walt Disney in 1946. In a nutshell, Destino is a love story told in a very surreal environment. I recognized Salvatore Dali's influence right away. This feature is only about ten minutes long, but is was like being in a dream.

Posted by Kathy at 01:05 PM | Permalink