George Plimpton’s Video Falconry
December 10th, 2011
You know George Plimpton, right? Founder of The Paris Review, deputy ambassador to the UN, noted sportswriter, all-around polymath. He was a pretty cool cat.
Anyway, one of John Hodgman’s offhand quips has come to life in the form of George Plimpton’s Video Falconry, an self-explanatory imitation ColecoVision game rendered in Flash.
Yelping with Cormac
November 7th, 2011
This lovely blog features Yelp reviews in the spirit of Cormac McCarthy.
He pulled another cold french fry from the greasestained Happy Meal box. He ate it slowly. The sun rising behind him over the limestone bluffs. The barren valley and the road winding through it still in morning’s blue shadow. He wiped his hand on his jacket and checked the breech of the big Weatherby. Bullet as long as man’s finger sitting there. He lay down on the blanket, the rifle’s barrel resting on the saddlebag, and glassed downcountry with the telescopic sight. The dusty road was empty. He waited.
The Decemberists Play Eschaton
August 22nd, 2011
The Decemberists have made a music video of “Calamity Song” based on a key scene in my Favorite Book Ever, David Foster Wallace’s Infinite Jest. Not too bad, though we don’t get to see Otis P. Lord’s head go through the monitor. Also Colin Meloy’s a bit old to be Pemulis, but whatevs.
books, music, video | No Comments »
Shady Characters
July 31st, 2011
This morning I awoke suddenly aware that I hadn’t yet linked to Shady Characters, a lovely blog that records the history of some of the more interesting typographical glyphs: ¶, ‽, #, &
Goddammit
June 7th, 2011
My (still pretty new) apartment is mostly awesome, with one notable flaw. The pictured outlet (above) is the only source of 220v for the air conditioner. The air conditioner’s bent power cable was apparently designed to occlude the lower, regular outlet, which is the only one controlled by the light switch. The sadistic electricians who wired this building have effectively forced me to choose between having either sub-triple-digit temperatures or convenient, wall-switch-controlled light.
I chose the AC. If I want to be able to see at night, I have to walk all the way across the room and actually turn on a lamp, like a Neanderthal.
…
On the other hand, there’s a colony of prairie dogs living like a mile down the bike path. So, big picture, everything’s actually awesome.
art+design, bitching, ill-conceived plans, moaning, personal | No Comments »
Abandoned Yugoslav Monuments
May 23rd, 2011
A few decades ago, the Yugoslav government commissioned a series of huge sculpture/monuments to be built at a few historic locations. They’ve since been abandoned, so the Balkans are now scattered with what look like the relics of an ancient and completely alien civilization.
Also, on a personal note, I’m spending the summer in Boulder, CO, interning with the lovely people at Foraker Labs! So, you know, FYI. You should probably visit — Boulder is just incredibly awesome and I have a remarkably comfortable floor moderately comfortable futon.
AlgoRythmics
April 13th, 2011
The video above depicts an insertion sort implemented through Romanian folk dance.
See also: bubble sort, selection sort, and Shell sort.
Apropos Nothing
March 25th, 2011
Happy almost-weekend, everyone. In recognition of this event, I give you Stoic Sulu.