| In which the author waxes wroth concerning marketing of audio-visual adaptations |
[Jan. 15th, 2008|06:54 pm] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  irritated | ] |
I just saw something which irritated me enough that I had to vent about it somewhere.
I was at the video store and saw DVDs of the TV adaptation of Terry Pratchett's novel, Hogfather. So far, so good.
But the DVD case has a tagline "In the tradition of Lemony Snickets and Harry Potter!"
In the tradition? In the tradition?
Hogfather is the 20th book in the Discworld series. It was published in 1996.
The first Harry Potter book was published in 1997.
The first Lemony Snickett book in the "Series of Unfortunate Events" was published in 1999.
Now, I realise that Harry Potter and Lemony Snickett made it to the cinemas, which Pratchett still hasn't done, and a few years before this TV adaptation came out.
But seriously: give the guy some damn respect. It wouldn't be fair to say that Harry Potter and Lemony Snickett are in Pratchett's tradition; after all they're children's books. But it sure as heck isn't fair to make Hogfather out to be some derivative work riding in Rowling & Snicket's coat tails!
Argh. |
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| Of times past & the tinted lenses of history |
[Oct. 9th, 2006|03:04 am] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  thoughtful | ] |
I visited a fascinating town called New Norcia. (Note: the section on the Abbey's history at the end of the Wikipedia article is... well... outrageously one-sided, apologetic and racist. I might try and do something about that later... but the photos are still good.)
This town is the only purely monastic town in Australia. It's composed of a monastery, a church, a number of schools, and at one time included a convent and a number of cottages intended to house Aborigines who had converted to Christianity & the European lifestyle. The convent is still standing, and now houses a museum and art gallery, but the cottages are long gone.
The local Benedictine monks own the whole place, including the local hotel & its attached liquor licence. (Apparently, the monks sometimes refer to it as "their house of sin"). The hotel was apparently built as a component of the monk's compliance with the Rule of St Benedict, which includes a heavy emphasis on hospitality... but I'm sure that they are well aware of the value of the income it generates as well.
Nowadays, the place is intriguing but also slightly sad. Most of the buildings are no longer used for their original purposes; of the four schools built at the site, none now operate as full-time educational institutes. The closest they get is hosting conferences and music camps. The population of 70 monks at the monastery's height has declined to a population of around 9 to 11 (sources conflict) with an average age of 65. The eldest is 96. While the monks have over recent years done a fantastic job of restoration of the fine buildings and conservation of the artwork, the town reminds me of a butterfly being "preserved" - flapping its wings for the last few times before being pinned to a board and put under glass. With the way the Catholic Church is going in the West, it's hard to imagine a resurgence in the monkly population any time soon. |
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| In which we discuss the twin joys of non-surgery and household appliances |
[Sep. 29th, 2006|05:01 pm] |
Well I had a follow up appointment with the orthopaedic doctor. He made scary noises about surgery (to prevent loss of joint movement & development of arthritis in later life), but decided to send me off for a CAT scan of my elbow before deciding. In the end, it seems that no surgery is necessary. Ah, no surgery - my favourite kind of surgery!
I got a short appointment with a physio who gave me some exercises to do. They hurt, but I suppose they're necessary and therefore worthwhile.
In other news, I bought a vacuum cleaner. It was expensive (a Miele) but nevertheless good value, I think - I got it for 10% off RRP and also a free extended warranty. I am also considering buying a Miele combination washing machine/tumbledryer that is currently available for about $900 off. However it is $900 off a very expensive appliance and I have some doubts about whether combination units of that type are a good idea. It is a lot cheaper than a Miele washing machine and a Miele dryer.... but it is definitely more expensive than Miele washing machine + no-dryer, and might even be more expensive than Miele WM + other brand dryer. Hmm. Not sure what to do. |
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| (no subject) |
[Sep. 25th, 2006|09:30 am] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| | inconvenienced | ] |
Coulda been a better weekend.
On Saturday, a pedestrian stepped out at very close range while I was riding down hill, causing me to fall off my bicycle and land rather heavily on my arms. I have fractured a bone in my left elbow and sprained my right thumb.
So, no viola playing for a few weeks...
Anyway, it's more inconvenient than painful. |
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| (no subject) |
[Sep. 11th, 2006|01:05 pm] |
So. I'm going to be in Melbourne for Thursday through to Sunday.
My evenings are pretty heavily scheduled already. Got any ideas? |
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| In which we announce the end of the Nova FM Hegemony |
[Jun. 19th, 2006|12:05 pm] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | Balcatta | ] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| | victorious | ] |
| [ | Current Music |
| | Philip Glass Symphonies, mmm | ] |
Well, I went out and bought some Sennheiser ear-bud type headphones, so Nova FM need no longer mar my workday!
Incidentally, I thought up a new slogan for them:
"Nova FM: Excessive consumption may have a laxative effect!"
Because I don't know about you, but I know what it gives me... :) |
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| In which we attend a Harmonious Musical Event |
[Jun. 16th, 2006|12:48 pm] |
Went to a rehearsal of the West Australian Symphony Orchestra + some random choir, courtesy of my generous hosts & some free tickets from Alcoa. They did a run through of Rachmaninoff's "Bells", which was very nice apart from having classical operatic soloists in parts (still haven't acquired a taste for that). I love orchestral music; I love massed choirs (usually); still not a fan of classical solo singing. Too much vibrato, and the demands for volume/projection of sound mean a rather unnatural sound IMO; I prefer a more naturalistic singing voice (when I listen to singing at all, which is rare).
After the interval they did some detailed rehearsal of various parts. It appears that the orchestra is being conducted by the Swedish Chef in disguise as a middle-aged man, as far as I could make out from the conductor's instructions. I think I would have found this part of the rehearsal much more interesting if I could understand what the conductor was saying; then I could have treated it as a sort of master class. In practice, about the only things I could make out were references to bar numbers. Oh, and he said "viola" once. The rest was pretty much "bork bork bork" :D
On the way to the rehearsal, the bus was 10 minutes late (or so), turning a gentle 20 minute stroll into a hectic 10 minute run/jog that left me coughing a bit for the first half of the rehearsal - very embarrasing & annoying. My lungs & throat do not respond well to such "vigorous" treatment, which is a major reason why I rarely do it. I don't mind running so much, but I hate the aftereffects. I think me & cycling will get on much better...
But despite everything is was still a good evening. I hadn't heard Bells before and a lot of it's really good. And, of course, it has lots of bells in it, which adds something quite special to the sound. |
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| In which Our Hero comments on a curious phenomenon in the elyctromagnetick æther |
[Jun. 14th, 2006|10:08 am] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | Balcatta | ] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  curious | ] |
| [ | Current Music |
| | | ] |
I was setting up a set of powered speakers on my desk at work yesterday.
I plugged them in to the power supply and turned them on. At this station, the signal jack was still disconnected.
And the speakers started playing Radio National, loud and clear.
When I put them down, the radio stops. But, whenever my hand is near the volume control, I pick up Radio National again, thanks to the miracle of capacitative coupling turning my body into a radio aerial. When I move my hand away, the speakers play whatever signal I'm putting down the wire (ie music from the computer).
This is probably due to the fact that the office is just down the hill from the ABC transmission mast. It's still quite wacky, though. Note to self: ensure that any headphones I buy for my mp3 player don't do the same thing! |
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| In which Our Hero observes first-hand the effects of 22kV power on organic lifeforms |
[Jun. 13th, 2006|03:36 pm] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | Balcatta | ] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| | contemplative | ] |
A crow made a very poor choice of roosting spot around 2:00pm this afternoon. When it took off, it (briefly) completed a circuit between two phases of a 22,000 volt power line just outside the office. There was a loud zap, a flash, and all the desktop computers in the office were switched off (and, mercifully, the radio).
It was kind of scary looking at the crow's wing where it had made the circuit. The tines of the feathers were entirely burnt off, leaving only the feathers' spines, curled and twisted.
Certainly strengthened my resolve to be vewy, vewy careful if ever doing work near HV power gear. |
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| In which Our Hero discusses the local amateur orchestral music scene |
[Jun. 12th, 2006|09:04 pm] |
So, I've more-or-less joined a local amateur orchestra called the Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra (generally known as Metso).
Bucking the trend of amateur orchestras everywhere, at the last rehearsal we had eight (8) violas, and four (4) double basses! Incredible. EMS orchestra eat your heart out! On the other hand, we only had 3 cellists. Mysterious indeed.
Actually the sound of the group is excellent. I imagine it's partly the excellent acoustic of the rehearsal hall, which is a dedicated auditorium of modern design rather than a Civil Engineering Design workroom (or gym, or Wilson Hall, etc) and partly I think the group is just a bit more skilled and dedicated than the EMS orchestra. The large & very competent string section makes a difference, and the brass & woodwind section sounds very good too.
We're playing Dvorak's New World Symphony & Czech Suite, the Blue Danube (on orange paper in my case, heh), and a viola solo piece by Weber of which I forget the name. My perception of the orchestra may be somewhat coloured by the fact that I've played the New World Symphony at least two times before, perhaps 3 or 4, and I can now actually play most of it quite well! In fact, I think the last rehearsal may well be the best I've ever played it, and there's still three weeks of rehearsal before the concert. This familiarity means that I can spend more time listening to the music, which remains fantastic, of course, and it's always more fun when you can play straight through the fast bits without fumbling rather than scrambling madly to keep up. It might also be that the music is slightly easier than the last few "big pieces" the EMS orchestra has attempted recently... (Mahler, I'm looking at you!)
My desk partner in the violas is a dear old lady. I think she said she was 88 - been playing for over 45 years. Recently had her driver's licence renewed for another year too... by a "very nice German gentleman", apparently! |
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| In which Our Hero broadens his culinary horizons |
[Jun. 8th, 2006|11:27 am] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | Balcatta | ] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  mellow | ] |
| [ | Current Music |
| | No change. I suspect I'm becoming acclimatised. | ] |
On Tuesday night, I was very generously invited to a Croatian Food Festival in Fremantle. It was a buffet-type arrangement.
Naturally, being a buffet full of things I've never tried before, I ate far far too much. I regret nothing!
I particularly like the pan-fried calamari tubes (mmm, squiddy - tentacles were delicious, too) and some of the other fish dishes. I lost courage and didn't try the tripe dish (although it did look attractive), but since I ended up rather over-full anyway, adding a serve of tripe would have mde the situation worse! If I had to pick a single adjective for the entire spread, it would be "buttery". There was also further evidence that European ("Continental") style vanilla slices are infinitely superior to the Australian snot block variety.
I also tried oysters, which haven't been a notable feature of my diet hitherto. One of my hosts described them as "like fresh cold salty seawater". I would agree with this assessment, but unlike my host I don't agree that it's a particularly enjoyable experience!
On the way back from the feast, we spotted a tall ship in the Fremantle port. Specifically, the Cuauhtémoc. (Isn't Wikipedia amazing? Incidentally, I note that the photo in that article is rather ugly without 3-d glasses. Since we're planning to visit on Saturday and take copious photography, I must remember to upload a decent conventional photo to Wikipedia.)
Anyway, we had a quick look at the ship, without boarding, and a brief chat to the junior officer guarding the end of the gang-plank. She's a good looking ship, steel-hulled 3 masted barque. It has a couple of small artillery pieces mounted about amidships on swivel mounts; apparently they are in firing condition, although I doubt that the Cuauhtémoc is going to be involved in high-seas naval battles any time soon! Still, what's a naval training exercise without at least some very loud explosions? |
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| In which Our Hero points out some synchronicity |
[Jun. 2nd, 2006|03:32 pm] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | Balcatta | ] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  cheerful | ] |
| [ | Current Music |
| | *Exactly* the same as last time, dammit | ] |
I discovered the other day that of the two other people in my immediate workgroup, one is a (slightly lapsed) roleplayer who still reads Order of the Stick, and another is doing a Theology course part-time and intends to become a church counsellor when he completes the course.
So... I've moved across a continent and got a job with a group of people more than slightly similar to some of my Melbournian friends. Surprising!
In other news, I have finished part 1 of the SCX tutorial, which means I know something about configuring Mimics. Next: Graphs! I think I need to speed up a bit. Much time today has been devoted to the Rental Search. However, I think I have run out of time; I may have to accept the somewhat-expensive-but-still-quite-nice apartment and hope to change again in 6 months... |
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| (no subject) |
[May. 31st, 2006|05:20 pm] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | Balcatta - mmm, suburbia! | ] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| | amused | ] |
| [ | Current Music |
| | Crappy commercial radio. It's driving me mad, MAD I SAY! | ] |
Suffice to say: I am working for The Alliance now.
Down, browncoats, down. References to the ever-mysterious Whedon aside (just who is he, anyway?), I'm not working for a nefarious interplanetary autocracy. In fact, I'm working for a group called "the Alliance"; it's a joint venture of sorts between Serck Controls Global Solutions and the West Australian Water Corporation. Some of you may already be aware I have moved to Perth; for the rest of you, please be informed that I have moved to Perth. ;)
We provide the control computers that prevent the city from being flooded with sewage, amongst other things. It's quite a complex and intriguing system, with redundant control computers, automatic fail-over, etc. Although the subject matter is... unglamorous (ahem)... I have this warm and fuzzy feeling that comes from dealing with a control system that reminds me somewhat of the main base computer from Evangelion. Sadly, however, the servers are not called Caspar, Balthazar and Melchior.
Perth is turning out very nicely, except that the entire city inexplicably shuts at 6:00pm. It's like living in Dark City; Perth must be the only major city in Australia where people have recently voted, in a referendum, in favour of incredible inconvenience. Local trading laws mean that most supermarkets shut at 6:00pm; sometimes they engage it what is laughably called "late trading" meaning they shut at 7:00 or 8:00pm. As mentioned earlier, these draconian rules were recently confirmed by referendum. How am I supposed to buy groceries when I spend most "opening" hours at work and the rest commuting? That's a question to which much cogitation is currently engaged.
I'm still looking for long term accomodation - the pressure is building fast, because the company only offered to pay my hotel bills till next Tuesday! I have found some nice places that I can afford (or, at least, *one* nice place I can afford) but I intend to continue assessing the market for a little while before I settle on somewhere in particular.
No doubt I will eventually post more here. This, however, will have to do for now. |
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| In which Our Hero presents the results of his earlier missive to Mr. Elderhurst |
[Nov. 2nd, 2005|10:49 pm] |
The ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) sapphire_wyvern posting frequency record lies in shatters this day.
Those who are following the Mary Cook Lounge saga, and have read my submission to what increasingly appears to be a 'student' body quite uninterested in actual student opinions may find it instructive to see Mr. Elderhurst's response. I'm sorry Your Honour, I'll stop leading the witness(es) now...
JasonElderhurst@union.unimelb.edu.au to me Nov 1 (1 day ago)
Thankyou [sic] for your comments.
Please note that the basement Cyber Pit student lounge is now open, and would be suitable for your purposes. The space will continue to be made available to students until a tenant is obtained.
MUSUL is one of several tenants of Frank Tate, and the building is managed by University of Melbourne. The importance the building has been recognised, and the University is currently exploring some exciting options for it's future.
Kind regards
While I'm pleased to see some attention being paid to the poor old Frank Tate building, Mr. Elderhurst has clearly entirely missed major points of my message - or, of course, it's possible he simply doesn't care. Goody! The "Cyber-pit" is available! And will remain so until a new tenant is found, which is the same as forever, right? And of course, being underground, it has amazingly rich and enjoyable natural light!
Here's an idea: why not sub-divide the Cyber Pit into meeting rooms? Then a space that nobody likes can be used for pointless tiny rooms, instead of a treasured place that's been practically home to 4 or 5 clubs!
Hmm. Anyone want to strain the sarcasm out of that and send what's left back to Mr. Elderhurst? |
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| In which Our Hero displays his first userpic |
[Nov. 2nd, 2005|10:20 pm] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  geeky | ] |
Observe. It lies to the left of these very words. (edit: or possibly above, or to the right, or in even stranger, nay, horrific directions!).
Ahem. Sorry. No more bad Lovecraft impressions, I promise.
It is a mere rendering of pixels, representing not myself but a plasticky avatar thereof... yet it bears an eerie resemblance to The Truth.
I must render thanks to the creator of this icon, my sister river_frog. (Warning: LiveJournal may contain traces of frog.) |
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| In which Our Hero presents a most disturbing revelation |
[Oct. 24th, 2005|08:45 am] |
Hi everyone.
The Mary Cook Lounge is now officially "Threatened by the Student Union". ;)
The posters have gone up in the Mary Cooke Lounge advertising proposed redevelopment. Specifically, they want to create two small bookable rooms called Mary Cook A & B next to the windows, with the space on the interior side of the building as a student seating area - essentially destroying the Lounge.
One must query why the posters were only just put up when the "date of last modification" on the proposal is October 5th. Could it be that the people behind this proposal wanted to advertise it at the last possible moment, while people are distracted by exams or studying in swot vac, and hold their meetings out of the public view to avoid the vocal opposition that has greeted such moves in the past? They are calling for public *written* submissions only. Presumably they wish to avoid the very large crowd of objectors who turned up last time they had a meeting to discuss taking away the best remaining unbookable student space in the building (cozy, comfortable, and plenty of natural light). Cynicism aside, I suppose it's *possible* that this is just a different bunch of people who don't realise what strong feelings there are about the Mary Cook Lounge.... but the coincidences do seem strong.
Help defend our space... email your objections to jason.elderhurst@union.unimelb.edu.au before submissions close on the 4th November.
Oh, and if anyone can tell me how to post this to the infinite_images community, that would be quite handy. |
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| In which Our Hero comments on the joys of LiveJournal. |
[Mar. 21st, 2005|08:50 pm] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  disappointed | ] |
I was going to post something about What I Did On My Weekend, but then I read some other LiveJournal posts.
I find that I now have no will to proceed.
Hooray for LiveJournal; I had no idea that such a limitless source of apathy existed. |
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