New Year, New MT

JANUARY 2, 2009

After an embarrassingly long period of time, I updated Capn Design to MT 4.23 tonight. It was tempting to jump straight to the latest Motion beta, but I decided one major change was enough for now. Of course, I did get Action Streams set up so I can start collecting data. This is step one and two in my plan for world domination.

Writing this notice reminds me that I never told you, dear readers, that I've been an employee of Six Apart since last April. I was with Apperceptive from November 2006 until 6A acquired us a year and a half later and we became Six Apart Services. I could wax poetic about how awesome it's been and how the 2002 version of me would be incredibly giddy, but this is a news post; I wouldn't want to sully it with any kind of emotion.

So what am I going to be up to this year? Last year was predefined by my wedding, but this year's completely open and I'm excited by that. I'm looking forward to tackling lots of small projects, with this site being one of them.

Posted in Site News, My Life at 12:58 am.
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Frozen Food

DECEMBER 15, 2008

The British Frozen Food Federation built ice walls embedded with food in London's South Bank. The rest of the photos are equally arresting. This comes via Eat Me Daily, one of my favorite new food blogs. It takes a different, more cultural approach.

Posted in Tidbits at 12:28 am.
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What a Great Day

NOVEMBER 4, 2008

Illustration by Patrick Moberg

Yes, I am in paradise, but I'm also pretty pumped about my man Obama.

What's surprised me is how pumped everyone in Thailand is about this election. Every time I hopped in a cab and they asked in broken English where I'm from, the first response to "New York City" is always "Barack Obama!" Oftentimes, they'd go on and talk to me about who has more foreign policy experience or if America can really elect a Black President. Sure, the US elections affect everyone, but it's amazing how knowledgeable my cab drivers have been.

Anyway, with this election seeming pretty much wrapped up, I'm going to go hang on the beach.

Posted in Culture\Politics\Law, My Life at 10:32 pm.
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I Done Got Hitched

OCTOBER 31, 2008

Well, we did it. After five years of dating, Jori and I tied the knot last weekend. Everything was amazing and it's definitely the most fun I've ever had at a wedding. It's crazy to think that after a year of planning we'll finally get to come up for some air.

We couldn't have had more fun, but the weekend was slightly bittersweet. My Uncle Mike and Ted, who I'm very close with and oftentimes consider friends first, almost didn't make it. They weren't sick or out of town on business, but had an existential dilemma. While they fully supported my union with Jori, they didn't have the same support for our marriage. After celebrating thirty-two years together, they still can't be married in our state and in most states in the US. I'm elated they decided to join us, but I would prefer to have gone to their wedding. Hopefully, if enough Californians vote no on Prop 8, we'll be one step closer.

Now we're off to celebrate the next step in our lives with a trip to Thailand. We'll be in Bangkok, Ko Lanta (close-ish to Phuket) and Chiang Mai over the next two weeks. Posting here will be even more non-existant than usual, but I might try to squeeze in a post or two if inspiration strikes.

See ya'll on the other side.

Update: Anil showed me up! His post on marriage is way more thoughtful than mine. I guess that's what three years of marriage gets you. Happy anniversary Anil and Alaina!

Posted in My Life at 7:07 am.
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A Poem for the Young Voter

OCTOBER 28, 2008

I voted this morning (I'll be out of town). Listen to Jay Smooth and make sure you vote a week from today.

Posted in Culture\Politics\Law at 12:15 pm.
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My Contribution to the Zombie McCain Ouvre

OCTOBER 17, 2008

Man, I love this meme. Buzzfeed has some links but the evolution one on America Blog is possibly the best.

Thanks to Mike for the idea.

Posted in Tidbits at 7:52 pm.
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The Softest, Cuddliest Kitten

SEPTEMBER 8, 2008

Man, this is the best Metropolitan Diary story in a while.

Dear Diary:

After picking up my wife's dry cleaning, I boarded a crowded but not crammed N train at 57th Street to join the evening rush hour. To keep my wife's sweaters above the fray, I held them aloft in the same hand I used to grip the train's center pole.

We left the station and the car was quiet until a large, dreadlocked man in the seat nearest to me said to his similarly styled friend in a lilting Jamaican accent, "You, my friend, are soft and cuddly as a kitten."

To which the man replied, "No, it is you who are soft and cuddly as a kitten."

This being New York, no one stared or turned their heads even as this repartee repeated itself. Back and forth they went, each kindly demurring to the other. "No, no, you are the softest and cuddliest kitten I know."

Looking for a place to train my eye, I stared at the dry cleaning I was holding aloft, and saw that the plastic bag covering my wife's sweaters bore a picture of a small cat playing with a ball of yarn, beneath which read the words, "Prepared just for you, soft and cuddly as a kitten."

I turned to the two men, who were smiling back at me.

"Ha, ha, we got you, man!" They clapped their hands and then, along with most of the folks in our car, burst into laughter.

Posted in Tidbits at 12:51 am.
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The Baby

AUGUST 29, 2008

Ben posted a LOL New Yorker comic and I put a link to one in the comments. That wasn't enough though. Happy weekend.

Posted in Tidbits at 12:28 pm.
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A Fantastic Reason to Vote for Obama

AUGUST 29, 2008

Dude loves tacos. (via zulkey)

Posted in Culture\Politics\Law at 12:14 am.
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Portraits of Divers in Motion

AUGUST 26, 2008

My favorite coverage of the Olympics has been via Vincent Laforet's blog at Newsweek. He's caught some amazing photos and documented the process.

The photos above are from a series of portraits of divers in motion, which I found incredibly striking and odd. It's very funny to see together. Laforet also spent time explaining how he got these bird's eye shots. Talking about the swimming competitions, he explains, "Once you are approved, you gear up an hour before the race and have to follow the following rules: one camera, one lens, one card. Nothing else."

Since he has so many fantastic shots, I'll end with one more photo. This tilt-shift shot makes everything seem more like a video game or toy set.

All photos are by Vincent Laforet for NEWSWEEK

Posted in Sports at 11:28 am.
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