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Nick

I wish I was a tetrachromat…

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It’s just not fair. While all men and most women see colors because of three color receptors in our eyes, some very special ladies have a fourth color receptor. A tetrachromat can see the world in more shades than I’ll ever experience. I think this is something that should be an add-on for any interested human. I would certainly have tetrachromatism installed in my eyes immediately. Think of the design possibilities! And how much easier choosing things would be! Oh, if only… (Read the article.)

Dusty had a birthday and at some point he may blog about it?

I spent yesterday evening having all manner of fun while celebrating Tessa’s 25th birthday. I met what felt like all of the coaching staff at WAC and, with Sarah in tow as well, we all loaded into the biggest car I’ve ever been in: Kyle’s Jeep Commander. It’s massive. Trust me. Dinner and much beer was had at The Granary in Galena which is like 20 miles from ye olde Chestertown-e. There is photographic evidence on Facebook, should you care to see.

Things to do yet this week:

  • Reserve Neverwhere, Blankets & Psycho Kitty at the library
  • Take Klaus for repair in Annapolis
  • Find things to do with Alex while he visits from Colorado
  • Try not to get bashed in the head while Nancy puts up trellis posts with her new sledgehammer
  • Go to Baltimore and find some more summer work clothes

New Nokia phone…

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All of you probably realize that I have a bit of a Nokia phone fetish. What you may not realize is that I’m currently testing a new Nokia for work! Hooray for fun jobs!

The phone that’s in my hot little mitts right now is the Nokia 5700 Xpress Music. This is a wonderful Series 60 3rd Edition smartphone that doubles as a music player and 2.0 Megapixel still and video camera. Now, I know most mobile phones offer those features, but the 5700 is different. Instead of just dedicating software to the three specific functions, Nokia decided to use industrial design to impart the device with three distinct arrangements. By rotating the bottom half of the phone, I can instantly “call up” the camera, music player and, well, phone. It’s really rather enjoyable and makes for a much less muddled smartphone experience.

Plus, since the 5700 uses it’s own Texas Instruments music chip, you can use the phone with no bogging-down of performance while the music player operates in the background…or even the camera, for that matter. It eats through MPEG-4 video with no problems, even clips converted from much higher data rate QuickTime files, too. And by “eats through,” I mean it creates and plays back these videos.

I’ve upgraded my AT&T account to unlimited data and I’m glad I did so because this little monster has devoured 55 MB of digital “stuff” in two days time. I’ve been accumulating podcasts from Moscow to Mexico City, video clips from the British Rocketboom, indie music tracks, etc, etc, etc. With stereo speakers (that are actually REALLY good) and a 2.2,” 16 million colour display, the phone proves to be a multipurpose entertainment device that I actually want to use.

And, if we only lived in Europe, the 5700 offers a final surprise functionality. Rotate the camera towards yourself and you are placed in video call mode. Seeing as we use the wrong flavour of UMTS in the States (where we use it at all) this is rather useless. However, it does make for a nice position to prop the phone up for media viewing.

I couldn’t be happier with the way the Nokia 5700 Xpress Music functions, looks and performs. This is a really solid phone and not a bad deal at $350 unlocked. I may even pick up my own when Nancy or Brian decide that I’ve had enough fun with the new work gadget. 😛

P.S. All of the cat madness that follows was captured with the 5700. Thought you should know…

And the winners are…

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The other red glasses were both too purple (read: magenta) and far too red. The green glasses were a nasty sort of teal and swamp green. These were the perfect color and the shape worked well. So, now I wait for a week…

Thanks for your votes and comments!

This just in…

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…Dusty would like all birthday gifts redirected to me. I have no idea why he has decided this, but he said it was his one true birthday wish and who am I to deny him? Perhaps this is why it was so difficult for him to come up with a list? Because he knew he would somehow have to give it all away without being awkward about it?!? Well, I’ll bear the burden for you, friend. No worries.

Perhaps you like dogs?

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Lindsie took some really great photos at the 2007 “Mutt Strutt” here in Chestertown this weekend. (Go ahead, Linds, admit it. You are a great photog afterall!) There are like a zillion pictures, including one of my partner in crime, Nancy with our new HD camera. I’ve posted to Flickr and you can get there from here.

All told, this was a great weekend. I’m so glad Lindsie is only an hour and a half from me now…we’ll have many more of these visits in the future, I’m sure. It was really great to introduce a long-time friend to so many of the people I talk about, especially Kate. (And Ms. Bella, by association.) We didn’t do much of anything, but the company and conversation – and champagne – made for an excellent time.

Long weekends make me happy…

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…probably because I stay in bed for 9+ hours when they roll around. Splendid, delcious sleep. 🙂

What’s been happening here, you ask? Well, I’m currently procrastinating when I should be calling Kate so she can come over and turn a few cups of my flour into her grandmother’s pancakes. You have no idea how thrilled I am for this since I worked up a major appetite while being a topless ho(er) at Nancy’s vineyard. I guess I was only really in the field for like an hour and a half today, but when coupled with my chores earlier, I was completely wiped out when it was time to head back to Chestertown proper.

Yesterday was the Chestertown Tea Party (Flickr photos) which was fun, I suppose. It was a lot of people in a very hot space. Kate and I made the best of walking around, realized we were melting and then tried again after a brief stop at my apartment for liquids and shade. On our second go round we ended up at “Tessa’s” porch (really, Mike’s, though he wasn’t there.) I am proud to say that I successfully opened the red wine with a Swiss army knife (after Heather offered up some assistance) and then set to work drinking it like a professional. Things get hazier here…

Other things of interest: hiking in Tuckahoe park (Flickr, again) on Thursday with Shane and Shannon. It was oh-so-much fun, but also a great opportunity to become tick-encrusted. My house seems to be free of them now, but I’m still freaked out everytime I “find” a forgotten mole. Stupid pests. Friday night was the most delightful of barbecues at Shannon’s…in her landlord’s war memorial, no less. Delectable vegan/vegitarian dishes and – you guessed it – more wine. And champagne! I’m glad Shannon shared that particular graduation gift with us.

I’m ready for more sleeping in tomorrow and then a day full of nothing. Perhaps it will actually rain here?

Review: Volver

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I’m really beginning to love Pedro Almodóvar. I was a bit shakey after watching A Bad Education but he’s completely redeemed himself with Volver. I think it’s that he captured – again – the complicated female world of All About My Mother which won him my affections to begin with. But on to the review…

Volver is nuts. “Loco,” if you will. The story twists and turns and falls into and out of itself in so many breathtaking ways. It’s one of those films where you know from the very beginning that there is no way you are going to be able to call the punchline anytime before the 3/4 mark. (I did, by the way, which was enough of an accomplishment to be brag-worthy.)

Basically, the entire premise of Volver is the notion that a departed loved one can come back to us. In this case, it’s Raimunda’s (Penélope Cruz) mother. What would you make right about your past if you had the chance to approach the task with the wisdom of time and loss? It wasn’t this simple, of course. There was the incestual relationship that produced Raimunda’s daughter, Paula. And the murder of Paula’s stepfather, Paco. Let’s not forget the seemingly crazy dying wish of Raimunda’s childhood friend, Augustina, to learn more about a family tragedy that only the dead could remember. And the list goes on.

The whole film takes place in between Madrid and Raimunda’s childhood village. It glitters with ornate Spanish tiles. It shocks the eyes with vibrant dresses and stark white stucco. And it positively glows with the radiant personalities of Almodóvar’s characters. As flawed as they all are, you want to be embraced into their world…and into their families. I mean, who hasn’t buried the husband their daughter has killed in a freezer stolen from the restaurant they’ve illegally taken over? It’s a universal story.

100% recommended. You should add it to your Netflix Queue (if you are so inclined) or pick up a copy from the local video store. I’d even venture to say it’s good enough to own. 4 stars, dear readers, 4 stars.

4 stars

Thank you, Versailles…

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…for giving the world such a spectacular fountain! Something seemed so alien about this photo from Flickr so I just went all out. Bioluminescent insects: check. Ancient map of Europe: check. Crazy colour scheme: check and check. I call it “The Frog Prince.” Enjoy at 1440 x 900 by visiting my portfolio.

The Frog Prince