A Third Toy Story [Pixar]

I remember when Toy Story came out on VHS. I watched it relentlessly for an entire summer. I had never seen digital animation as detailed before and it simply blew my mind.

Since then, I've becoming a loyal pixar fan; hungrily consuming each masterpiece. Well, it looks like June 18, 2010 will mark a third and most awesome Toy Story 3. Enjoy the preview.

What are you planning to do when you retire? [Retirement Activities]

Forgive me if this is common knowledge, but why is it that when people reach a certain status here in the bay area, they open up a winery?

Evidence?
Bam
Boom
Zing
Kapow

I wonder what I would do if I made it big. Open a winery? Ha.

Maybe open up a cheese shop, or a whiskey distillery. What would you do?

Driving Range Connections [Golf]

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What do you do when you're picking up someone at the airport and at the last minute, their flight gets delayed?

Well make sure to pack an club or two and drop by the Burlingame Golf Center. It's a lot better than cruising the airport or baking in the cellphone lot. Burlingame golf center is only 5 minutes away from the airport and worth checking out.

Be careful when looking for the place. The turn into the parking lot is right next to the 101 on ramp. I almost made an unnecessary loop the first time I went. On the flip side, it's great, because its insanely easy to get back onto the freeway for your airport pickup!

I dropped by the other day on a lark; I think I'll be going "early" from now on when I have to pick up somebody at the airport!

Burlingame Golf Center
250 Anza Blvd
Burlingame, CA 94010
(650) 548-2447

Slicing and Dicing [Van Gough]

German art historians posit that Vincent Van Gogh did not slice off his ear, but that Paul Gauguin accidentally sliced it up in a lively discussion about the very nature of art.

The story commonly told about Van Gogh's ear centers around Vincent's love for Rachel. When he gave it to Rachel, he told her to "keep this object carefully."

However, by analyzing the police reports of the event, some art historians now believe that Van Gogh was covering up for Gauguin.

The authors have re-examined contemporary police reports and surviving, second-hand accounts of witness statements, including contradictory declarations by Gauguin. They admit that final proof is lacking, and that the police investigation into a drunken brawl between two artists was half-hearted at best. Nonetheless, they say that all the evidence points to the fact that Gauguin accidentally sliced off his friend's ear.

The two men were arguing in the street, the authors believe, partly about their competing interest in Rachel but also about the correct way to paint. Van Gogh argued for painting from the life; Gauguin from the imagination. The French painter was threatening to leave for good, wrecking Van Gogh's dream of founding a utopian artists' colony in Arles. Gauguin, a keen amateur fencer, walked into the street with his luggage and his sword, the authors believe. Van Gogh pursued him. Gauguin brandished the sword in his friend's face to keep him at bay and accidentally cut off part of his ear. Van Gogh then staggered to Rachel's house and handed her the severed part.

After examining the evidence, [the authors] say that Gauguin contradicted himself several times and claimed to have seen events he could not have seen. Other witnesses suggest that Van Gogh provoked Gauguin and Gauguin attacked Van Gogh.

If true, I'm supremely impressed that Van Gough would take his secret to the grave. You can read Hans Kaufmann and Rita Wildegans' 392-page book (in German).

Source: The Independent

Tuning the News [Autotune the News]

You've probably already seen this, but just in case, I had to share it:

Biggie Smalls [IMAX FAIL]

There are a couple trends in this year's summer blockbuster movies. It's going to be in 3D and it's going in IMAX. Most of us think of IMAX in its traditional 60x80 foot screens. However, in a move that will invariably cause some blowback, IMAX is allowing its name on 25x58 feet screens. It's no small difference:



With 72 of the 138 "IMAX" screens are in the smaller size, there is going to be a good number of angry moviewatchers. Talk about brand dilution.

Actor/Writer Aziz Ansari, of Parks and Recreation, recently posted an angry, profanity-laden post about the bait and switch.

What is surprising is that the response from the CEO:

“The overwhelming majority of comments on that guy’s blog this morning, more than 90% of them, are vehemently disagreeing with him. And consumers are confirming this with their continued purchases of tickets.”

Read Aziz's response here.

The World Leaders' Facebook Group [Humor]

Sage Stossel, executive editor of The Atlantic Online, put together a facebook page for world leaders.

Legal Content for a Typically Illegal Channel [Legal Torrents]

BitTorrent, is a popular P2P protocol used to share a large amount of data. It's a great way to download and share data quickly and efficiently. Its primary usage is to share/download illegal content. With a judge recently found Piratebay, a huge index of BT content, guilty of copyright infringement,* and countries cracking down and making arrests,

This is very unfortunate because it's such a great channel. LegalTorrents, is one of the few places trying to turn the tide. Their content is open-license (Creative Commons) and the control over the torrents are held by the site. Check it out and see what legal content is available for your consumptive pleasure!

* Note, there's been some recent controversy over the case (namely the judge is a member ofthe Swedish Copyright Association and the Swedish Association for Industrial Legal Protection).

A Peephole into the White House [Voyeurism]

The White House now has an official White House flickr stream. If you can't enough of Barack, Bo, Michelle, and the rest of the White House party, check out the stream.

I'm curious, does the White House have to pay the $24.95 for a flickr pro account? Or can they buy a bulk 4 year subscription fee?

OLED [Technology]

You may have already seen Nokia's concept nano phone. Turns out that we may see something like that sooner than we think.

Check out the Youtube video of Sony's full-color OLED:


Source: JMG-galleries

May Beats [2009 Playlist]

Well, I can't believe how fast its been, but I've just completed three months in California. Something about the sun or maybe the food, but my tastes but at my April 2009 list, I've realized that I'm become more mainstream. My eclectic tastes from the margin seem to becoming the main.

I rather be open and host then try to built "indie" cred. That is why I've included guilty pleasures like Lady Gaga (please don't gag, I am trying to be completely honest here).

So, with that disclaimer, I present you with my April list:

1. MGMT - Kids Oracular: It's thick, its uplifting, its fun. I can't help but continue to bring MGMT back to my list.
   
2. Lady Gaga - Just Dance (Trevor Simpson Radio Edit): I don't know why I like this song. But its uplifting and full of energy.
   
3. A.R. Rahman - Paper Airplanes (DFA Remix): From the slumdog millionaire soundtrack. I started listening to MIA after her kick-ass performance at the grammys.
4. *The Ting Tings - That's Not My Name (LA Riots Remix): More mindless club-type remixes. It has a tinge of Yelle and some Darude blended together.
5. Company of Thieves - Pressure: Taking it down a couple notches, company of thieves is a Chi-town band. A little indie, a little alt rock makes a great song.
   
6. Death Cab For Cutie - A Diamond and A Tether: We all know death cab for cutie... and I love 'em. 'Nuff said.
   
7. *Elke - Blue Dream Lover (Christopher Robin Walkthrough): Thanks to the Internets, I'm discovering a ton of Australian bands. Electrorash has a couple of their remixes of their EP.
   
8. INXS - Never Tear Us Apart: Can I call this a classic? I find this song most impactful when during my bart ride home with the sun setting as I zip through Oakland. Yeah, sometimes we all want to live a pop song life.
   
9. Janelle Monáe - You Are My Everything: I found a copy of an unreleased version floating around the Internet. Very simple background, which accentuates her beautiful voice.
   
10. Jeniferever - The Sound of Beating Wings: Nothing like a little atmospheric post-rock ambiance to round out the top ten list.
    

* Click for download

In This Downturn, Google Hires Goats [Environment]

Over the weekend, I went up to Sonoma for winetasting. On the way back, I learned that Google hires goats on a monthly basis to trim the lawn.

The LA Times flushes it out LA Unleashed today:

When fields at the company's Mountain View headquarters needed brush and weeds cleared to reduce the fire hazard, it was decided that a herd of goats would be rented rather than using gasoline-powered mowers.

California Grazing provided approximately 200 goats, which spent about a week on the job. Not only did the animals clear the area, but they also fertilized it as well.

"It costs us about the same as mowing, and goats are a lot cuter to watch than lawn mowers," Google director of real estate and workplace services Dan Hoffman wrote in a posting on the company's official blog.

Read more here.