Category: General

“The Changing Face of Gaming” article series that I’ve been writing for Aeropause has been featured on Slashdot.

Neat!

Tone visited recently and I made some popcorn in the microwave without using those microwave popcorn bags. He was moderately surprised, so I figured that I would write up a brief how-to here (in case anyone else may be interested). Plus, if you use plain popcorn kernels instead of those microwave popcorn bags, you’ll save money and you won’t create as much waste!

To make popcorn in the microwave, you will need:

• 1/4 cup of popcorn kernels
• 2 tablespoons or oil
• 1 tablespoon of butter or magarine
• Salt to taste

Place the oil, butter/margarine, and salt into a large microwave-safe container. Cover with a see-through (glass or plastic) lid. Cook on high for approximately 4 minutes until the kernels stop popping regularly (more than a few seconds between pops). It’s fairly easy to overcook the popcorn the first time so err on the side of caution, and make a note of the time taken so that you can estimate a better time when you next try. (I’ve found that 3 minutes 45 seconds is perfect for my 1000w microwave).

And voila!:

A few final remarks: Don’t use “light” margarine as it has a high water content. Also, be careful using plastic microware-safe cookware. The corn kernels get very hot and can sometimes melt the plastic. In my experience, it’s best to use a glass or ceramic bowl.

I was at Yum Cha a couple of weeks ago with a few friends (one of whom is Eurasian). It was very crowded and we had to share a table with a middle-aged lady and (presumeably) her teenage son. We didn’t really say anything to them. I think that’s the etiquette when sharing a table at Yum Cha; you just treat your half as a separate table. After our first order arrived, the lady asked my Eurasian friend:

Do you mind if we settle a bet we have going here?… Are you Eurasian?

I didn’t think much of it at the time, but when I was relaying the story to Heidi she thought that it was very rude of them to ask. Considering it further I imagined that it sounds very offensive if you replace “Eurasian” with any other race:

Are you Aboriginal? Are you white? Are you black? Are you Asian?

Asking country of origin doesn’t sound as bad as asking race. Maybe beacause you assume that they are basing their query on more than your appearance (possibly taking into account your customs or accent). That makes it more cultural than racial.

Are you Canadian? Are you Thai? Are you American?

I guess that I didn’t take offense since they were asking because the teenager was Eurasian and probably looking for some sort of racial solidarity. You don’t see too many Eurasians in Perth and it may sometimes feel like he’s the only one. I think that a lot of Eurasians (living in Australia) may feel a cultural similarity and connection with other Eurasians because they assume that they have probably grown up in a similar cross-cultural family environment. This won’t always be the case. Race is different to culture, and it doesn’t intrinsically connect people in the same way that culture does.

You can’t choose to believe. Beliefs are assertions that you realise you hold. They are not premises you select and opt to support.

Continue reading “You can’t choose to believe”

I saw this commercial at the cinema before watching Talledega Nights. It was great!

Honda seems to have an excellent advertising team with clear direction under their “The Power of Dreams” motto. Remember the single-shot “Isn’t it nice… when things… just work?” advertisement for Honda Accord?

Two more videos after the jump.

Continue reading “Honda’s “Impossible Dream””

Last week I saw D.O.A. Dead or Alive, and this week I’ve watched both Nacho Libre and Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby. People are going to think that I see nothing but “bad” movies.

Here are my (very) quick reviews.

Nacho Libre is very funny at times, but not a classic comedy. In a number of instances, I felt that Jack Black was a bit too… Jack Black. The end of the final fight was great though!

I was a bit concerned that Talladega Nights was going to be a Will Farrell vehicle (like Nacho Libre for Jack Black), but it never really descended into that. It was surprisingly good and very entertaining. Sacha Baron Cohen (Ali G, Borat) plays the villian and he complements Will Farrell well.

Sometime last week I posted about my improving pool (8-ball) skills. As it turns out, such claims were a little premature. At this week’s pool outing Mash beat me so resoundedly that I have to proclaim his superiority here.

So here it goes:

I suck at pool. However, my suckiness had no bearing on the outcome of the games I recently played against Mash, herein referred to as The Master of All Pool Table Games (TMAPTG) as any opponent would have met a similar fate.

Then I lost again (for double or nothing!):

I admit my total inferiority to TMAPTG in every conceivable way. For clarification, this admission is not only limited to the game of pool, but applies to every aspect of life including (but not limited to):

• Mental and physical prowess
• Wit, charm, and appeal to women

In the case of worldwide nuclear war in which only a handful of people could be saved by living in underground bunkers for 100 years before reclaiming the Earth, TMAPTG should be chosen (over me) to play the important role of repopulating the human race.

Man, I hope I do better next week… I can’t think of any further admissions of defeat to make!

Spyk is a (I can’t believe I’m going to use these terms) Web 2.0 mash-up of Google Maps Microsoft Virtual Earth and various real estate listing websites (using at least realestate.com.au and domain.com.au for Australian listings). Man, I wish this was around when I was looking for an apartment to rent in Perth. Seriously, my tips for finding a rental in Perth would have (almost) been reduced to a link to Spyk.

Check out this screengrab of my search for 2 bedroom apartments under $300:

Man $250 for a 2 bedroom, 1 bathroom, 1 carbay in Perth isn’t bad at all! (Maybe I should be looking at moving…)

Note: Don’t bother using the post code search (it only seems to work for US post codes), but you can search for Australian suburbs (“Perth” found “Perth, Western Australia” as an option).

Update: Correction! It’s using Microsoft Virtual Earth (not Google Maps). I think I’ve had Google Maps on the brain. (Thanks Steve!)

Via RealEstate2.0.

My aunt and uncle took Heidi and me to see Gilbert & Sullivan‘s The Mikado at the Regal Theatre last night.

This was the first live performance of the The Mikado that I have seen (I have a vague recollection of seeing it on television) and it was much better than what you would normally expect from a local theatre production. The set and costuming were lavish, and most of the performances by the main characters were spirited and engaging. My uncle has seen four productions of The Mikado and this was his favourite.

The Mikado really struck me as a product of its time, as it seems very reactionary to the political and social environment in which it was written. I could almost imagine these Victoria era gentlemen sitting down to write something that would appeal to theatre-goers: We should make fun of rampant corruption… that Japonisme is so hot right now… it has to be a romp! It’s a little surprising to me that such populist reactionary work is still adapted and performed today.

Like many modern productions of Gilbert & Sullivan’s work, this production updated the political and social commentary to reflect contemporary Australia. This included references to state and federal politics as well as a number of brief caricatures of public figures. The more universal jokes were carried over from the original work, and I particularly liked the few that were fairly self-satirising. Such as when the crowd cheers:

Ko-Ko: Congratulate me gentlemen, I’ve found a volunteer.
The People of Titi Pu: The Japanese equivalent of hear hear hear!

If anyone is keen to see this Gilbert and Sullivan Society WA production of The Mikado, there is an evening performance tonight (Friday 29 September) and matinee and evening performances tomorrow (Saturday 30 September). Tickets are available from BOCS or at the venue. Also, a friend informs me that tickets are 2-for-1 if you buy them on the same day as the performance you want to attend.

I used to play pool (8-ball) quite a bit just after high-school, but went without playing much at all for a number of years after that. I’ve recently got back into it and my game has improved significantly over the last month or so. In fact, it’s improved enough that we’re considering adopting a consistent rule set (we’ve sort of been playing with a dynamic mish-mash of whatever rules people assert).

A quick web search reveals that the World Pool-Billiard Association is promoting a set of rules to unify regional variations. They called it the Blackball ruleset. Here’s a rundown of elements that stood out to me:

• Which group of balls you shoot for is never decided on the break.
• When you have the cue ball in hand, you can shoot from anywhere in the baulk and in any direction.
• You have the option of placing the cue ball in the baulk after any foul.
• You don’t need to bank a ball when you’re snookered.
• After a foul, you can play any ball and pot any ball (except the black) without penalty.
• You have to take your shot within 60 seconds.

These rules really seem to encourage conscientious play because there is a fairly significant benefit to the other player if you foul. Which is good! I hate playing against people who just smack the balls around as hard as they can!