I found out today that it is legal to own chickens in the City of Austin. There is a rooster across the street that wakes us up every morning, especially now that sunrise is so early. I may have to talk to my neighbor about it soon.
02
Jul 04
Marlon Brando
Marlon Brando is dead. I found out today. Another legend of the silver screen gone. Who will be tomorrow’s James Dean or Marlon Brando? My favorite Marlon Brando role is still Don Vito Corleone in “The Godfather”, but I also enjoyed him in “On the Waterfront” and “The Wild One”. One thing I always appreciated was his quietness.
02
Jul 04
Here, there, and Dolce Vita
Yesterday the Voss twins,Oliver and Chris, from Blizzard called me up at work since they were in Austin to visit friends and family. After they came by to pick me up we ran over to Dave and Buster’s to sit around and catch up. It was good to see them both and to hear that they were doing well and enjoying Irvine.
After they dropped me off back at my car I called up Sab to see if he wanted to grab something to eat. We went over to Hyde Park Bar and Grill and had dinner. Over at the next table I spotted the woman who had administered my allergy test several months ago, pricking my back with plastic spines dipped in pollen and mold. She was with her girlfriend, I assume, or someone she felt comfortable enough kissing. I don’t know if she remembered me, but I think she recognized me in some way because we kept looking at each other.
After dinner, Sab and I went next door to Dolce Vita where we sat outside talking. I had my back to Duval Road and I heard some guy on a bike stop by the couple at the table next to us and ask the girl, “Do you have a license for that?” I assumed they knew each other but then it became apparent that the young man on the bike did not know either of the people and was just being creepy and trying to bother the woman with his unwanted attention. After being asked to leave repeatedly, he just kept trying to talk to her and tell her he really liked what she was wearing and that he didn’t want to hurt her. We kept telling him he should leave and while it was creepy I don’t think anyone was scared because the guy was pretty short and actually ridiculously not scary-looking.
I went in to tell the people behind the counter they might want to call the police to come get rid of this guy, and when I came back Sab was walking toward the man as he backed away with his bicycle in front of him. Sab kept telling him firmly, “You need to leave right now. Just go.” Then the guy said something like, “Hey, I’m about to get beat up by a fag.” To which Sab replied, “Yeah, isn’t that sad?” Then Sab laughed and the guy said, “You don’t laugh like a fag. You laugh like Santa Claus.” which made Sab laugh louder. The woman behind the counter came out with the phone and told him to beat it and then the woman’s european boyfriend who had been telling him to go away finally got up and chased him down the street with one of the plastic patio chairs. The guy came back once more and was chased away again and that time he stayed away, especially since the woman from behind the counter had called the police. Some of the people there were wondering if maybe he was the Hyde Park groper. All in all, it was the highlight of the evening, especially since no one got hurt.
01
Jul 04
For extra credit:
Can you identify the following Spiderman villain? Leave your answer in the comments.
01
Jul 04
Spiderman 2: Quickie Review
Spiderman 2 was very enjoyable although I amped myself up so much before I saw it that I couldn’t help but come away the tiniest bit hungry for something more. The best part was Alfred Molina as Doctor Octopus. He was a lot more likeable, and therefore more tragic, than Dafoe as the Green Goblin. Being in the same theatre with the rest of your coworkers was weird in that you realize when you have to sneak out in the middle of the movie because you have to go to the bathroom really, really bad due to drinking the large Cherry Coke everyone knows exactly who you are. It’s like being a celebrity without all the good parts.
01
Jul 04
Chapi Chapo
Ah, there is an eBay auction for a Francois De Roubaix Chapi Chapo 7″ record featuring two tracks from the animated short, “Chapi Chapo”. It is bid up to $70 at this moment with five hours left to go.
Luckily for you, I have an entire page dedicated to Chapi Chapo where you can download these two tracks (“Chapi chapo Theme” and “Cubes Multicolores”) in their entirety in mp3. The music of Francois de Roubaix is enchanting, especially in his use of the organs and analog synthesizers. It’s a must listen!
If you view the movies associated with it, be sure to take note of the wonderful French cursive script titles, which really remind me of The Little Prince. I would love to make animated features like these. Stop-motion animation can create a sense of magic unlike any other type animation since you can animate objects within the world, so that they appear to interact with the world in a way that cell animation is hard-pressed to compete with. Remember “Teeny Little Super Guy” messing around in the cupboard while everyone was out?
30
Jun 04
Duethosting.com
Just a reminder that if you sign up for any of the hosting plans at www.duethosting.com you get a month free with the creation of a new account. The prices range from as low as $6.99 a month up to $12.99 for a more spacious professional level hosting plan. Unlike other places the discounts and free months are available right away, and we are offering free setup. As anyone who has looked for webhosting knows, setup is one of those hidden fees they don’t normally tell you about and it usually ranges from $25.00 – $35.00 in my experience. Check it out and let me know if you have any questions. At Duethosting we also have flexible means of payment and accept money orders, credit cards, and even paypal.
29
Jun 04
Spiderman 2
The whole company is getting taken to see Spiderman 2 tomorrow. After that we’re having a company dinner at the Stephen F. Austin Hotel downtown. Apparently, the big boss man from the Korean parent company is going to be in town. I’m looking forward to seeing it. At RottenTomatoes.com the reviews are at 100%. That means it should be really good.