So I know I failed and left the links unattached to a lot of my photo albums for a long long time, but I got off my butt and fixed them. So you can enjoy all the beauty of the world again. Look forward to some new stuff coming up from San Francisco, Chicago, and the famous scenic coastal drive down Hwy 1.

Twilight Movie Banner

My sister and I went to the movies to see Twilight on Thanksgiving evening. I had low expectations because, well, we all know how movies are never anything like the book. I have to admit I was totally wrong! This movie was exactly all that a reader of the book series could hope for. It took what I saw in my mind and put it on the big screen. It is no exaggeration when I say that I haven’t seen a book-turned-movie follow the story so well since Lord of the Rings. My compliments to the director. If you’ve read Twlight by Stephanie Meyer, definately go see this movie.

Until You - Judith McNaught

Yet another romance book. It seems that McNaught’s winning formula is to introduce man to woman, insert a problem that immediately makes it next to impossible for them to be together and start them hating each other. Then in the end, they fall in the most glorious love ever and live happily ever after. It’s simple and possibly over-done, but if you know what to expect, you can enjoy yourself over and over again.

Brisingr - Christoper Paolini

What a surprise when I finished reading the third book in the Inheritance Trilogy to find that it wasn’t the last book. It has gone from a trilogy to a ‘cycle’ which I guess means four books now. I guess I shouldn’t complain since I go through books like they are going out of style…but I wanted the story to be finished!  This series is a great read, not the best ever, or as I like to say “changes my life”, but one worth the time to read anyway. There are lots of things that remind me of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, the terminology, location names, names of the races, etc. But if you just get over that little bit of imitation you’ll enjoy the story.

Twilight Book Series

My friend Marc, knowing how much I like to read, recommended this book series he’d been hearing so much about. I went out and got the first book Twilight and enjoyed the read. It didn’t change my life or anything but it was intriguing enough to make me want to stay in bed and read instead of watch TV. The story got better and better over the length of the 4 books and by the end I was hooked.  The love story was very heart wrenching and the action was very well written. The author did a great job of breaking down the prejudices you would normally have against vampires to make you actually WANT Bella (the main character) to get bit the whole time.

The movie Twilight is coming out on the 21st of Novemeber and I’m worried to see what Hollywood does with the story line. One of the best parts of the books for me was the anguish that Bella and Edward go through because of their love for each other. I don’t see how Hollywood is going to manage portraying that without words.

Some kind of mutant strain of the common cold attacked me Monday in Tampa and I’ve been incapacitated since then. So, I missed out on half my vacation because I was in bed trying not to hack up a lung with every breath. Flying sick is a whole new experience. Upon landing in San Diego, I thought my right eyebrow had split open because I had never had such a sharp pain there before in my life. Its the weirdest sensation and causes one to overreact because unless you get black eyes on a regular basis, most people aren’t used to feeling pain in that part of their body. Slowly I’m recovering, but I’m sorely behind on work and taking care of other things. Isn’t it funny how life goes on even when you aren’t?

While this is not a new thought, I felt that it was important enough to repost here for archiving purposes. I went to Qingdao, China to work for a week and there were only squat toilets in the warehouse where I worked. I acutally had to go to the hotel and google search how to properly use these archaic contraptions.

Blog Entry April 12, 2007

Wow, just when you thought you were all grown up and the new things that you can learn are just a few, life throws you a curve ball. Squatting Toilets. Call me crazy but I just couldn’t image how to use a hole in the ground to pee. I mean I don’t want to get graphic but, gees how do you keep your pants that are down around your ankles dry? So yesterday I held it in all day because I was at a factory working where they only had these neanderthal sqatting toilets. I went in and did a “dry run” (no pun intended) and I just couldn’t see myself successfully releaving my bladder without soaking my pants and shoes. Thank God for the internet. I came back to my hotel room, and peed first of all..then I did some research. I really had to see how to pee properly at these things because I couldn’t spend a whole day holding it in again. So I found this article http://www.worldhum.com/how_to/item/use_a_squat_toilet_20060923/ and I read literally dumbfounded that people can do this. Well one thing this other lady said is that it is very smart for beginners to strip from waist down. Shoes and all. Well, she must have been in a slightly cleaner place than the one I am at cuz I would rather pee on my shoes than touch this floor. So anyway, I went to work today with the newfound desire to conquer these toilets. I mean come on….anyone should be able to figure out how to pee right? So come lunchtime, I went to the bathroom…I took off my pants completely. There was no where to put them so I had to make a turban on my head. No joke. Great mental picture huh? Half naked squatting with a turban on my head.!!! It makes me laugh just remembering it. I really felt like someone was going to jump out and yell, “your’re on candid camera!”. But after a few controled adjustments to the aim and pressure, I was able to releave myself in a civil fashion. Not something I would ever wish on ANYONE, but alas I was not conqured by the squat toilet. I still refuse to even entertain the idea of doing #2 there though. No way someone can balance that good. there is nothing to lean on! You’d be better off with a hole at the base of a tree. At least you have something to lean on.

$500 million later: San Francisco's California Academy of Sciences has solar panels and a living roof. By Tim Griffith

The Cal Academy of Sciences opened this September after their remodel and I absolutely can’t wait to go. Before this year I had barely visited one aquarium and now I’ve seen 4 going on 5 this year alone. But what I’ve always wanted to do and have never done is go to a planetarium. I don’t know why… maybe it was all those years of Star Trek that did it to me, but i’ve always wanted to see what the universe can look like.

So what do Star Trek and Finding Nemo have in common? Why the Cal Academy of Sciences of course! That place is like Disneyland for nerds of all kinds. Planetarium, rain forest, huge saltwater reef tank….it goes on and on.

I met one of the guys that works there, Richard Ross from The Daisy Cuttle Fish Farm at MACNA this year and he seemed like a really great guy. Needless to say I fully intend on shamelessly trading in on any good graces I may have with him to obtain a behind the scenes look when I get there.

Read more here:

http://www.usatoday.com/tech/science/2008-10-16-cal-academy_N.htm