When I was a kid there used to be these comic books impregnated with ink that you could brush with a damp paintbrush and the page would magically spring into color. Do they still make those?
3 more sleeps until we leave for Disney World. The girls are struggling to clean up their acts so that they might be included in the trip.
Restaurants we’ve been to lately:
Dirty Martin’s Kum-Bak Place. Still excellent after all these years. The back room now has three, count ’em, three window air conditioners, so it’s frigid in there, yet still smells funky. Their sirloin sandwich is to die for. Cheese tots are a must. The kids (after complaining about the temperature and the smell) asked when we’re going back. Go.
Evita’s Botanitas. Before even bringing menus, the waitress brought us water, chips with 6 different kinds of salsas, and little cups of (complimentary) queso for the girls. The kids inhaled their food. I got the mole enchiladas and do believe it’s the best mole I’ve ever had. Previously I got gorditas there and they were similarly rad. Hub was happy with his al pastor. Go.
Taqueria Arandas. Delish Jalisco-style food. Hub digs the al pastor. Kids dig the enchiladas. I always seem to end up with the carne asada (they cook it with nopalitos, yum). Excellent horchata. Cheap. Good. Go.
Dot’s Place. (Note: Dot’s place is on Windermere, not Orchid. They burned down and moved a couple of years ago.) Simply put: you must go. They serve cafeteria-style soul food. $7.50 gets you a meat and two sides, and they’re enormous portions. $.30 for a roll or a piece of heavenly cornbread. The beef tips are excellent. The sweet potatoes might make you cry. The kids got the lasagna and loved it (child plate is $5). They’re open for dinner on Thursday and Friday from 5:30-8:30; else they’re just open for lunch. Go.
Cuervo crossed the bridge this morning. He would have been ten years old next month. He was a good dog.
Cuervo’s crashing. He went from a relatively stable 26% to 13% this week. Tonight’s the night to say goodbye. I’m heartbroken. Haven’t told the kids yet because they have a friend over to play.
This is hard.
One thing that’s wonderful about the internet is the fact that you can meet up online with dozens or thousands of people who also share in your esoteric interests, when you might have thought you were the only person in the world who felt that way.
That’s also the thing that’s awful about the internet.
For every wholesome fan group out there, there seems to be a depraved lunatic forum. Yet, who defines what’s wholesome and what’s depraved? What about the case in Germany a couple of years ago where two men met up via the internet with the sole express purpose of one man killing and eating the other? It was consensual. Does that make it okay?
Then again, even the seemingly wholesome websites can cause unhealthy fascination with their readers. I, for one, have spent an inordinate amount of time reading the disboards.com forums, busy planning for our trip to the House of Mouse. And eavesdropping at the Chronicles of Higher Education forum, where the professors let their hair down and rant about their students.
Each site has its own little sphere of culture. It may not be apparent at first – sometimes it must be grown into – but after the site has taken root and grown, it develops a personality that’s sometimes the best, and sometimes the worst, of its participants. Much like in real life.
How to describe the Harry Potter phenomenon? The air is full of excitement right now, between the Harry Potter fans anxiously awaiting the release of the final book in the series and those who don’t understand the culture. It’s confusing who so many people expend so much energy insulting the people who love the book. Parties are going on all over town on Friday night – release night – and already the radio stations and internet are abuzz with how “stupid” those Harry Potter fans are, and how they need to “get a life.” What’s it to them? How is it harming them? Those people who aren’t fans aren’t forced to read the books or go to the release parties if they don’t want to, so why do they spend time thinking of ways to pick on the fans?
It’s like this with many subcultures. People roll their eyes at people attending fan conventions, or standing in line for the iPhone, or dressing up as Chewbacca to go see the Star Wars movie. Yet I can find no good reason why they seem to be so offended by the concept. The kids are having fun. The grownups are having fun. So what if it’s a children’s series? There’s no reason to lose the magic just because you’re over the age of 18.
In most of life, but especially on the internet, there’s a disparity between those who have been in a community for a while and the newbies. The more established members, fairly or not, tend to look down on those who are still learning the ropes. It’s easy to forget what it was like to be new and confused and to pass the learning curve off as stupidity. And no matter how careful one is about not falling into the trap of being a smug oldbie, it’s entirely too easy to do.
I’m not sure why communities tend to gang up on others like that. I haven’t really seen an online culture where it didn’t happen. Reactions can vary anywhere from “new people are universally stupid” to “you have a low post count, so I’m going to discount what you say.” Maybe it’s a little extension of hazing, that trial by fire which welcomes people into the community. Those who are scared off by hostility don’t belong, anyway? Maybe it’s just a human tendency towards one-upmanship, to feel superior over someone else even though it’s a petty thing. Definitely something to be aware of when designing communities, though.
1408. Great movie. One of the best Stephen King adaptations; probably the best horror adaptation since Kubrick’s Shining. It was a real tour de force for Cusack; although the director should have reined him in at a couple of points, I think that Cusack might be up for some acting awards for his performance. At one point hub had full body goosebumps. At another, I was a weepy mess. Highly recommended.
Although one quibble: what the hell is a movie in 2007 doing when it prominently displays a telephone number (1-LOW-FEE-1408) and then doesn’t have anything at that real-world number? I don’t care much about the context of the number in the story – having it function for viewers to call in would have been cheap and a great experience-extender. Are you listening to me, Stephen King? I’ll extend your experience! Call me! Resume’s linked on the right sidebar…