If You Like Looking At Pictures...

Okay, here's another kinda lengthy post. Do scroll down though because I finally got my film developed. Andy told me that the eclipse photos wouldn't come out and he was absolutely right, so you'll have to go to some planetarium's website or hopefully you were able to catch a glimpse of it live. In lieu of the eclipse, though, Ice Climber offers photos of the Halloween party I went to last night. As you can tell by the Mexican flag and liquor bottles on the wall, this party was at a frat house. This also means that Cara (need to think of a nickname for her) and I must have been the oldest people there. I felt like a TA among undergrads except I'm not a TA.


WhatUpThen went dressed as a sweaty motherfucker.

Tinkerbell kickin' it

And now here are a few for friends of mine or anyone else interested in the area where I live. Maybe I'll make this a regular thing since I'm going around Seattle so much. I'll make a concerted effort to capture the essence of this place with my $60 Walgreens camera. Sooo...once class is over:

After class, WhatUpThen starts at the Med Center...


Walks through campus...


Portage Bay is just one block from my apartment!


Ahh...so happy to be home!

I Love the U.S.

As fucked up as the United States is, at least people are allowed to challenge the establishment with creative ideas like these.

Totally Clips

This is my post-eclipse post, but I still haven't taken my film to the drugstore to be developed. There's only $9 in the bank account so, unfortunately, minor things like getting prints must be put on hold. It looks like I'll have to ask Mom for one more bailout. If this paragraph were a person's first introduction to me that person would have no idea that I'm 24 years old.

Moving along...check this out for your reading pleasure. It's an MSN conversation I had with a friend of mine who wishes to remain nameless. I promised not to reveal any other identifying details so I'll just say he's my age and he's trying to hit on a new female employee at the large company they both work for. I gave him some advice on how he should approach her. The whole thing is slightly funny and slightly sad but totally (clips) entertaining and, personally, I think I have a gift.


Ravi says: i think i am getting infatuated wiht the yale girl
WhatUpThen says: Yeah, no shit.
WhatUpThen says: Dude.
Ravi says: dude
WhatUpThen says: You're just now realizing this?
Ravi says: i was only mildly infatuated before
WhatUpThen says: Whatever dude. Why do you think I offered to build you up in front of her?
Ravi says: im not sure how to go about it
WhatUpThen says: How'd you go about it last time?
Ravi says: i dont know
Ravi says: never been interested in a coworker
WhatUpThen says: That means you're straight
Ravi says: ?
Ravi says: hahaha
Ravi says: i get it
WhatUpThen says: You should invite her do to something
WhatUpThen says: not a movie
WhatUpThen says: something where you can talk
Ravi says: yeah
Ravi says: but what?
WhatUpThen says: Pretend it's someone else in the office
WhatUpThen says: Pretend you were approaching someone else and think of what you would say.
WhatUpThen says: If you wanted to get the person to join you for a weekend activity
Ravi says: one of the problems is that most of my weekend activities are outdoorsy type things (hikes, skiing, etc). and she is not into those
WhatUpThen says: What would you say to a different person?
Ravi says: "hey do you want to come ___ing with us this weekend? it will be fun!"
WhatUpThen says: Okay, let's start with that.
WhatUpThen says: First, change "hey" to her name
Ravi says: "Kate, do you want to come ___ing with us this weekend? it will be fun!"
WhatUpThen says: Okay, gimme a minute
WhatUpThen says: You need to make this longer. More than one sentence.
WhatUpThen says: Why don't you start by asking her about her time in Seattle?
WhatUpThen says: "Have you gotten a chance to do a lot since you've been here?"
WhatUpThen says: Then let her go on about what she has or hasn't done
WhatUpThen says: Let her talk. People like to talk about themselves.
WhatUpThen says: When she's done, then make your pitch
Ravi says: ive already asked her that before
WhatUpThen says: Okay, we'll fix that, too.
Ravi says: she has not seen much of seattle. she went furniture shopping the other weekend. she still does not have a dining table
WhatUpThen says: okay, hang on. Back to the pitch.
WhatUpThen says: After she's talked about herself (we'll look at that) invite her...
WhatUpThen says: Let's see...
WhatUpThen says: Okay, need an activity. How about Green Lake?
Ravi says: what to do there?
WhatUpThen says: Does this involve me? Am I going?
Ravi says: probably
WhatUpThen says: How about the Farmers' Market?
WhatUpThen says: In the U-District?
Ravi says: what the hell does one do at a farmers market?
WhatUpThen says: I'm trying to think of something you and I would already be doing where you could just invite someone else
WhatUpThen says: We could have already been planning to shop at the Farmers' Market and she can come along
WhatUpThen says: Then afterward we can eat
Ravi says: that sounds gay!
WhatUpThen says: Only to you.
Ravi says: hahah
Ravi says: "i'm going to the farmers market. its FAB-u-lous!"
WhatUpThen says: Does she go to U-District a lot?
Ravi says: no
Ravi says: she doesnt go to seattle
WhatUpThen says: Okay, good. Then here's her big chance.
WhatUpThen says: You know she doesn't go to Seattle? That's good.
WhatUpThen says: So, after she's finished talking you say:
WhatUpThen says: "You know, I know you probably don't get over to Seattle much. I'll be over in the U-District on Saturday, though, and I want to invite you along"
WhatUpThen says: She says: "Oh, what are you going to do over there?"
WhatUpThen says: You say: "Well, my friend WhatUpThen (you can say from Stanford if she is pretentious) lives on campus. We're going to the Farmers' Market then just chill out a little."
WhatUpThen says: She'll say: "Oh, that sounds cool/interesting/great/fun"
WhatUpThen says: You say: 1)"Yeah, I like to go sometimes because I try to eat organic" - pretentious
WhatUpThen says: 2) "I don't know. My friend is into that stuff and he's kinda dragging me along" - cool
WhatUpThen says: 3) "Well, I haven't eaten any vegetables in 2 weeks, so I figure I'd better buy some!" - funny
WhatUpThen says: You have 3 options there
WhatUpThen says: Then she say yes or no and you figure out the logistics
Ravi says: 4) "im vegetarian but dont eat vegatables. i think the farmers market is gay but my crazy friend said its a good way to get you to hang out with me. i should let him know it worked"
WhatUpThen says: Incidentally, if you choose Option 2...
WhatUpThen says: You can then say you want to bring her along so you don't get bored
WhatUpThen says: Okay, there was something else...
WhatUpThen says: Oh, how are you gonna get her to talk about herself?
Ravi says: i ask questions
WhatUpThen says: So you're saying you can't ask her about living in Seattle?
Ravi says: not really. ive asked her about it
Ravi says: before
WhatUpThen says: Okay, let me think...
Ravi says: i also asked her what movies she say recently. Wimbledon was the answer
WhatUpThen says: When's the last time you talked to her?
Ravi says: saturday
Ravi says: at the movie
WhatUpThen says: Wimbledon??
WhatUpThen says: And you want to go out with her???
Ravi says: hahaha
Ravi says: she has a yale degree dude
Ravi says: that is such a turn on
WhatUpThen says: no comment
WhatUpThen says: anyway...umm
WhatUpThen says: Saturday? You haven't seen her since then?
WhatUpThen says: I mean, do you see her at work?
WhatUpThen says: You're gonna be coming out of the blue asking this
WhatUpThen says: Does she know who you are?
Ravi says: yeah she sits in the room next to mine
Ravi says: im the manager for her feature team
Ravi says: of course she knows me
WhatUpThen says: I'm not being snarky. Just checking
WhatUpThen says: I think you can start the same conversation again
WhatUpThen says: Maybe say something like: "How are you doing, Kate? --> Has the city been treating you well?"
WhatUpThen says: Something like that
WhatUpThen says: Open-ended
WhatUpThen says: And then hit it
Ravi says: seems too open ended
WhatUpThen says: How do you mean?
Ravi says: people dont go around to each other saying "hows life treating you"
WhatUpThen says: Huh?? I hear people say that all the time
Ravi says: "how are you doing Kate? Did you have any comments on the RTO document I sent you for review?" ... "no? okay cool. by the way, ..."
Ravi says: might be better
WhatUpThen says: Okay, that's good except...
WhatUpThen says: if she's commenting on the RTO document (whatever the hell THAT is) she's not talking about herself
WhatUpThen says: So...
Ravi says: oh, wait, are you talking about asking her out or after ive asked her out?
WhatUpThen says: After "by the way" you say "how's life/the city/ treating you?"
WhatUpThen says: and she goes on and then you ask her to go out
WhatUpThen says: I think that's good. How does it sound to you?
Ravi says: "hows life treating you?" "okay" "um, want to go to the city" - like that?
WhatUpThen says: If she responds with a one-word answer you have to ask her to elaborate
Ravi says: shes not the type to just go off on an open ended question
WhatUpThen says: Don't stand in the doorway. If she thinks you're just passing by she won't hold you up
WhatUpThen says: Sit down in a chair in her office
WhatUpThen says: Or step inside her office and lean on the wall
Ravi says: good idea
Ravi says: why dont you have a gf?
WhatUpThen says: Don't lean inside the doorway. Go in the office to show that you're in no hurry
WhatUpThen says: You don't have to stay for 10 minutes...but you'll certainly stay for 2 or 3
WhatUpThen says: Like I said, sit if you can
WhatUpThen says: If she continues with one-word answers after that, then I don't know what to tell you
Ravi says: i might need to hold off on this until next week though
WhatUpThen says: But if it seems like you don't want a detailed response you won't get one
WhatUpThen says: Why not me? Because it’s a process I barely understand.
WhatUpThen says: Why wait?
Ravi says: im not feeling that well. mild fever
WhatUpThen says: Maybe she'll ask you about it
WhatUpThen says: You can say you're gonna buy tea at the Farmers' Market!
Ravi says: "hey i'm sick! wanna come hang out with me?"
WhatUpThen says: If you ask and she said yes, would you go?
Ravi says: if its not raining
WhatUpThen says: don't say that, Ravi.
WhatUpThen says: I mean, why go through all this effort and then let that stop you?
WhatUpThen says: anyway, don't put it off
WhatUpThen says: The activity is a good one because:
WhatUpThen says: 1. Farmers' market is a good place for her to latch on
WhatUpThen says: 2. She gets to see the U-District
WhatUpThen says: 3. She gets to meet one of your friends
WhatUpThen says: 4. She gets to see the University
WhatUpThen says: After the Farmers' Market there are a whole lot of ways the day can go. It's versatile.
WhatUpThen says: So there you go.
Ravi says: its a good idea
Ravi says: we'll see if i execute on it

Bottom line: if you thought you were insecure about this sort of thing, don't worry. "Ravi" and I have got it covered for you! Okay, stop laughing and go do something constructive.

A Note To Premium Subscribers

You may have noticed a few problems with the archiving on my site. The links to recent posts are broken right now as I try to make Ice Climber a bit snappier. I can't, in good faith, work on these things during the week but I hope to get the problems resolved on Friday or Saturday.

I screwed up the HTML template because I tried some experimentation. I want Ice Climber to retain its minimalist feel, but there are certainly some clever features I've seen on other blogs (there are other blogs?!) that I could stand to appropriate...read: steal. So, keep your eyes peeled for improvements to be finished and tell your friends! If you're a repeat visitor to this page then there must be something you like about it, and sharing is a good thing. Until then...adios!

Sunday Philosophy

A little philosophy in between assignments...

Recently in my Education As A Moral Endeavor class we discussed the concepts of self-respect and self-confidence. Essentially, those are two attributes that can affect how people will respond in a situation that tests one's morals.

Well, this morning I was in the shower examining my reasons to be self-confident and another analogy came to mind. Whether you are interviewing for a job or trying to get that person to notice you or writing or whatever, you display your self-confidence. It could simply be your self-confidence at that moment in time; not a complete portrayal of the certainty with which you run your life. But it's out there for everyone to see. It's kinda like when I was telemarketing newspapers this summer. I wasn't a good salesperson because I knew people didn't want the motherfucker. I mean, really, people didn't want that shit. I had no confidence in the product I was selling and that was evident in my pitch. When the product is onesself, having that confidence and respect for the product will lead to you being a much better salesperson.

Make That Move Right Now

I'm revisiting an old post, here. I was listening to Make That Move by Shalamar and I thought about the quote by Jean-Jacques Rosseau I had posted before summer began. Both are kinda talking about grabbing life by the horns and taking advantage of opportunities when they arise. And, of course, that's good advice for everybody. Well...maybe not for my ex-girlfriend; I'd tell her that sometimes it's good to stand pat, too. But listen to what Big John, Howard Hewitt and Jody Watley have to say and adjust your goals accordingly.

"How rapid is our journey on this earth! The first quarter of life has been lived before one knows the use of it. The last quarter is lived when one has ceased to enjoy it. At first we do not know how to live; soon we can no longer live; and in the interval which separates these two useless extremities, three-quarters of the time remaining to us is consumed by sleep, work, pain, constraint, and efforts of all kinds. Life is short, not so much because it lasts a short time as because we have almost none of that short time for savoring it. The moment of death may well be distant from that of birth, but life is always too short when this space is poorly filled. We are, so to speak, born twice: once to exist and once to live." -- Jean Jacques Rosseau

The Streak is Over

This morning, I read the SFGate website to get a little news from the Bay Area and they had some strange photos. You can see here it's some cops on the BART but not just normal unis. These guys were outfitted in SWAT gear and had some pretty large guns...like a little too large for a holster. The article said the cops were doing "high-profile" patrolling in order to deter terrorists. That's all well and good, except I think the terrorist paranoia is a bit excessive. Guns freak me out, regardless of who is carrying them. And if the cops are gonna be doing shit like this, with a "nonlethal" weapon, then I sure-as-hell don't want them walking around with an AR-15.

It looks like the streak of going out on Saturdays will be snapped this weekend. There's a pretty good chunk of work to be done this weekend, plus job applications, research and good ol' laundry. My streak of touring around Seattle will be snapped this week, also. On Friday, I was supposed to go downtown to explore and get a feel, but I did something academic instead. I went to a lecture on multicultural education. It was great. The speaker explained how "public" is a dirty word in the U.S. and that we are retracting our support for public schools in our efforts to find the best education for our children. We can't abandon public schools, though, because an effective, well-functioning school is an investment that provides many returns for society. There was more, too. It doesn't sound as exciting as an afternoon in downtown Seattle (or maybe it does!) but it's good to enrich yourself every once in a while, you know?


"No, really, I paid my fare!!"

Audio Practice

The first audio post just showed me that I need a speech therapist. I'm trying to be clearer from now on.

Can You Hear Me Now?

Okay, today I have spent an inordinate amount of time on Ice Climber. This sort of thing can happen on Wednesdays when I spend only 50 minutes in class. This website got its first pictures, which I'm very happy about. But this next thing...ohh yeah! This is...this is it. This is huge. This is gonna be an amazing development for Ice Climber. Yes, you can see what it is...it's audio! I've said many times that just reading or chatting eliminates so much of the emotion behind words. They are sapped of their power when written on screen. The ones that are powerful when written are really fucking powerful...like, say, Martin Luther King's letter from Birmingham Jail or something. Obviously I've read that recently. Since the writing on this site isn't MLK-caliber here's something to really spice it up. Plus, I've been told I have a nice voice so maybe that will help.

Missed Opportunities

One reader has suggested Ice Climber try to get comments by asking questions. So here's a fun one and I'll even start off! Have you ever looked back and realized you missed a golden opportunity to do something? Of course you have!!

In all earnestness, when my girlfriend broke up with me I missed a golden opportunity to say: "Is this about my time in prison?"

Well, it wouldn't have been funny to me or her, but I think the casual observer would have been rolling around laughing on the floor.

Sugary Spice

Alright, I'll admit I'm trying to spice this motherfucker up a little bit. Plus, the last post about Bush, baseball and my project topic had such a negative energy. I'm not a negative energy guy as you can tell by my photo to the right. Damn, I need a new photo. And below is another one to brighten your day!


How can this not make you smile?

Pessimism

I'm having some serious difficulty with my thesis topic. I'm in the department of Curriculum & Instruction and I want to discuss international schooling but my focus is science education. It's difficult to narrow the topic down to science teaching because I want to talk about the ownership of such schools, the educational benefit from multicultural exposure that so many students never receive, and resource issues. But that stuff can't be more than an introduction to the real topic which has to be something like an examination of abstract chemistry. Multicultural exposure (like everything else) is more fun than abstract chemistry. I'm beginning to think maybe I made the wrong choice in programs. Not the School of Education, mind you...I really enjoy this program and I'm getting a lot out of it. But the focus on science education isn't really my passion. Science is so, so important and science performance in school is an indicator of future economic success (if that matters to you and I know it matters a little bit), but to develop as masterwork as I'm supposed to do this year, I think a bit more interest is necessary.

Okay, Changing Lanes like Ben Affleck and Samuel L. Jackson, I want to make a few predictions. First, baseball is shit. But I must say that this Yankees/Red Sox series is pretty fucking captivating and I will be watching Game 7 to see who wins. There really is a parallel to Bush and Kerry. Bush is certainly the favorite in the presidential race and I think most people never really doubted that he would lose this election, but now it seems there is a sliver of chance he'll lose. If Red Sox/Kerry wins, it's not like the most likeable team/greatest citizen ever to triumph/lead, but it will be truly a moment to savor because the trend of Yankee dominance/Bush administration lunacy will finally be sealed...for one year/four years, anyway. Also, as far as sports in general, you have to root for Boston to come back from 0-3 down. I mean this happens so rarely, if ever. I even think they'll win the World Series afterward despite being so beaten up. Which reminds me of a chance for self-promotion: I'll let you know that I predicted the Eighth Wonder of the World. That is, I predicted the 1999 8th-seeded Knicks to advance to the Finals, which had never been done before by a team seeded so low. It was scientific...The Knicks faced the #1 seeded Heat in the first round and they had a bitter rivalry. But the Heat wouldn't have been able to concentrate because of the bad blood. Miami (I hate that word) would have beaten anyone except the Knicks. After Miami, the Knicks would face either the Hawks or the Pistons (this was a time when the Pistons weren't as good as today and the Hawks weren't completely horrible) both of whom were afterthoughts. Then there came the Pacers who have been strong for a long time but, well...I don't have a good reason but I chose the Knicks. Sooo...what's the point? Boston wins because great stuff ought to happen. Bush wins because great stuff doesn't happen in forums that actually matter.

Ohh, why so pessimistic? Cheer up!

Weekend Update

Welcome to Ice Climber's Weekend Edition -- Just in time for Monday.

Weekend started off great as I got on the scale in the locker room and found that I weigh 190.0 with my clothes and shoes. That's great news, people! To those of you who exclaim: "Holy shit, this fool weighs a hundred and ninety pounds?!" I say to you I'm not a little guy. When I lie to people I'm 6 feet tall and otherwise I'm 5'11". Plus I can see things other people can't, as if that has anything to do with it. But seriously, I didn't weigh 190 lbs. all last year so I'm happy about it. I will try to drop some more but I'm gonna go out and buy a celebration cookie for myself. And by "cookie"...I mean birthday cake. And by "go out and buy"...I mean already did. I should try out for the role of one of those women in the Lean Cuisine commercials.

Master P and I went to our college's Seattle Young Alumni Pub Night in Belltown. I've got to admit it was pretty enjoyable. Going to a bar and meeting people but it's a snap because you have pre-determined characteristics in common. It's like mingling set on Easy Mode for beginners. I'm definitely going next time...gimme one more practice session before I ramp up the difficulty to meeting people who aren't familiar with my freshman dorm.

Last, I did make it out to Ballard this morning (Sunday). If I had to give scores I would say Wallingford 1, Ballard 0. I mean, where's the zoo? And there were a bunch of little kids in the cafe I visited! I mean, I know McDonald's serves breakfast, couldn't your family have gone there? Plus, the movie theater in Ballard was showing Shark Tale and Ladder 49. It's just really difficult for towns to recover from those sorts of missteps. Perhaps Ballard will fare better against Downtown when I go visit this Friday. Details later this week.

Listening and Reading

The following sentence will probably make rock fans cringe and shudder or nod in delight. I discovered Radiohead's Creep just today. I looked it up on CDnow.com and found it was released back in 1993. But hey, I was 12 years old for most of '93 so cut me a little slack, eh? Better 11 years late than never. Oh...incidentally, it's a damn good song.

I was able to get the Creep mp3 because my computer whiz cousin in Central America introduced me to BearShare (you know, a Gnutella/Napster kinda thing). Let me say now that I feel it's wrong to download music. That said, I picked up about 30 songs this morning. I'm sure you know how it is...gotta get all those songs you think about every once in a blue moon but for some reason never acquired a recording of. Beck, Tyrese, Jeff Buckley, Cake, Cypress Hill, Fatboy Slim. But my favorite so far is some DJ's creation: a track called Rick Astley vs. Michael Jackson. Who even thought of that? Whose brilliant, artistic, creative mind imagined splicing parts of Smooth Criminal and Together Forever? I'm serious, you all...people deserve awards for things like this.

In other news, I've just finished reading Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix...all 870 pages of it. I think that puts to rest the notion that Harry Potter is strictly for children. Like all the HP books it was pretty entertaining. And what's more, it has awakened the reader in me once again (just in time for school, no less). Today I found myself in the library waiting in line at the copy center and reading the display on contemporary political books. Maureen Dowd's Bushworld and Barbara Ehrenreich's Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By In America seem as if they'll be illuminating reads. I think I'll try Ehrenreich first. Seriously, isn't that what Harry Potter was meant to do? Get people back into reading? If you've read my profile you know that I believe Reading is FUN-damental, so I thank you, J.K. Rowling, for reminding me of that.

Don't Dismiss

Alright readers, I'm in an emotional mood this week so I'm gonna drop some emotion on ya:

Just this morning I saw some of the photos from Ryan & Gina's wedding; I had missed it during my trip to Costa Rica. This makes the second friends' wedding I've missed in 6 months...there may be a pattern developing. Of course it looked very festive and all of the attendees were elegant and handsome, etc. But the fun thing was seeing some of those people I hadn't seen in a loooong time. Ryan and I have been classmates from the 4th grade and he dug down into the archive to find some of the guests. My archive, I'm talking about, not his own.

Well, I felt bad about missing the wedding and I would have made it were it not for something important, but after seeing the photos WhatUpThen felt a twinge of sentiment! You know when people drift away and you form ideas about them? That's not just me, right? But seriously, nothing vicious happened between Ryan and Brian and Chris and I, so why shun them? It's unlikely that Kwame has suddenly become pompous and uninteresting, so why not keep him in my thoughts? It's unlikely that Naomi has affixed a Bush/Cheney '04 bumper sticker to her car, and wouldn't she appreciate receiving a letter in the mail? The same goes for Cap'n M out in New York, Sophia right down the street, and Evan living the life I dream about in S.F. Don't let me ever dismiss you without a good reason. Like Phil Collins said, you'll be in my heart. And don't let me print Phil Collins lyrics on this page ever again.

So, yeah Ryan, don't take it personally. I remember you, man. And I'm gonna get your wedding gift, too. Which home furnishing store do you not have a gift card from already??

Neighborhood Treasures

In a continuing effort to become more acquainted with the city, I set out walking today to the neighborhood of Ballard (Does your neighborhood have a website??) I never actually made it, though, because on the way there I passed through the Wallingford neighborhood and was dazzled by all it had to offer! No, seriously! Now I know that there is another movie house within walking distance. It is currently showing Zach Braff and The Motorcycle Diaries, the latter of which my sister says I absolutely must see. ¿Es la película en español? Maybe I'll get the chance to put my Spanish 102 skills to the test.

Wallingford also features the Taco Del Mar closest to my apartment. Discovering this led to me eating pork enchiladas for the second consecutive week. Maybe this isn't good information for me to have. The whole area seems really nice, though. Plenty of cafes, bars, shops, etc...but it doesn't seem like a commercial district. It gives you that feeling of being alone walking through a tree-lined neighborhood enjoying oneself, while at once giving you that "Ooh, where do I go next?!" feeling you get when there are a lot of stores around. Do I sound like a 16-year old girl??

But best of all, I learned that Wallingford has a zoo (I am amazed that the URL for this place is zoo.org. What an acquisition!) And I imagine that most of you are like me and have not been to a zoo in forever, so I had to go. Lots of kids, lots of exhibits and all of the various zoo environments set up for the animals; it was a throwback to my elementary school days. Lots of couples in there, too, it seemed...I wonder which one of them made that suggestion. Anyway, this weekend wasn't the greatest...renewed frustration over my hard-luck summer, but you know, any weekend where you see an elephant and a Great Argus can't be all bad.

Double-Oh-Info

It's bittersweet when someone comes up with a good idea too late. On Plastic.com right now there is a topic about who will play James Bond next. Real important, this discussion is. Well, one clever poster mentioned how good Denzel would have been in the role were he a little younger. Now think about this for a second...we're talking about someone who can convincingly play suave, cultured, defiant and intelligent. Not to mention the ladies' man aspect; Denzel is WAAAAAY more of a catch than Pierce Brosnan. My only doubts are whether he could do the silly little puns that totally bring down the movies and also whether he could play British. Then again, he was in Much Ado About Nothing (along with a million other actors in working Shakespeare-In-The-Parks across the globe). I can't remember what the accent was like in that rendition but at least there's a precedent, you know? Oh, and he played a white guy in MAAN, also, so there's precedent for that, too. The point of this discussion is perhaps moot because I think he's a little too old now to be running around like 007, but it would have been a great idea. We need to think outside of the box, people. Plus, I'm sick of Jude Law.

Es Importante Para Aprender Español

"Es importante para aprender español" es probablemente el frase yo hablé más durante los seis semanas pasados.

"Para mí, el merienda es el mismo de nacimiento."

Huh, you ask?? I'm back in Spanish class for the first time in ten years. I've gotta form sentences with words I know.

"¿Dónde Esta Mí País, Amigo?" - Michael Moore was all over LibroMax in Costa Rica.

Es todo. Hasta mañana. Buenas noches.

Preaching From Atop The Peak

Did you readers know that I'm in the School of Education at UW? Well, my latest professor seems like she'll have an enjoyable class. Among other things, she is with me all the way on the impersonal nature of computers. She thinks that email and instant messenging are destroying human social interaction and I agree with her fully. You know this, right? Emails are typically used for short, quick messages and IMing is without inflection, tone and proper pacing. And, of course, both are without visuals and tangibles.

At least letters are intended to have some meat to them. Letters ought to be at least 3 or 4 pages long, don't you think? But who even sends letters anymore? Who takes the time to frame the situation, explain the events and craft a response all on paper? We certainly don't do it by email.

So use the phone, everyone. If you're a 16-year old high school student then ignore that message and write a letter. But many of us, myself included, should try to recapture those elements of interaction that have given us the slip while our eyes have been fixed on our screens.

IC gettin' out

I realize I am not alone in wanting to jump-start my social life. Seattle is still a new place to me, I haven't yet grasped every cultural nuance and I don't feel like calling any of the people I met last year. Ever. Okay, maybe, depending on how antsy I get all holed up in this room. Right now you're asking yourself: "How can a person with a name like WhatUpThen be concerned about his social life??" It's a mystery to me as well, but friends, the world is a strange place.

Ice Climber did catch the bus out to Green Lake on Saturday morning in an effort to branch out. Lovely place. Lots o' kids, runners and dogs. It's clearly a popular spot for jogging but I didn't even dress for exercise; I went there to get my Harry Potter on. A quick spin around the lake to scout out the ideal bench for reading and people-watching, and there I was. A great experience sitting in the park...you feel connected and isolated at once, both in a good way. And what does Petunia Dursley know about magic? I mean, that is a mesmerizing plot twist!!

Did the club thing too. Larry's. Cheap drinks are nice, but next weekend we'll try somewhere else.

Trees Be Damned

Right to the point this time. More about distributing flyers. Standing in Sproul Plaza as thousands of people float, mill about and whiz by you...well, it's nothing really. Holding a knapsack full of electric blue papers that scream "Increase Your Reading Speed" is the kind of thing that makes one yearn to be a floater, a miller or a whizzer. Well, maybe not a whizzer but you get the idea. The objective is to intercept these people and get the flyer in their hand. That's it. If the person looks at the flyer then it's a success. That is how a lot of advertising works, of course. If you're like me and you don't really want to kick the Verizon Wireless guy's ass but you just want to slap him so that his glasses go askew and say to him: "Dude. Just stop," then the advertising campaign has succeeded. Is this a good way to get people to attend a speed-reading course? Well, I guess that's why flyering is the cheapest form of advertising.

The best way to had out flyers to people who do not want them is to mill about (Eureka! I have acheived my dream!!) in something of a stupor, never making eye contact with anyone because they will try to drift away from you otherwise. This leads to a chase will can cause you to lose the prime position staked out. Position, you ask? Of course! You're not the only dealer out there, rookie! There's the women's rugby team and the Asian sorority (Is there another kind at Cal?) and the guy off in the corner handing out the Bush '04 stickers without saying anything. You get the idea. If you walk by the dude, just take the flyer and throw it away or something. Relieve the flyer man's burden by grabbing a sheet of paper. I'll save telemarketnig for another time.