brookiki

Nothing major happened today. I had a music lesson and I found out that if I do the violin piece, I also have to do a piano piece. That means I'm going to have to track down a good Southeast Asian, Australian, or Polynesian piece for the piano (yes, she divided up the world in a very weird way :-)). I need to start checking on that.

That said, I'm really excited about getting the sheet music for Butterfly Lovers Concerto and seeing what adaptations I'll need to make. It's a gorgeous piece and, depending on how hard it is, I'd like to make it my target piece for the 101 in 1001 Project.

I also finally got around to calling about a tennis clinic at a club I found on the internet. I didn't get to sign up today, because I'm still unsure where I should be. I took lessons as a child and played in high school, but it's been a while. I'm going to call tomorrow and hope someone knows more.

I also did some shopping today. Nothing major, but I did find a really pretty silk blouse 50% off. I broke the "don't buy clothes with the intention of losing weight" rule. It more or less fit, but was a little snug through the chest. (That could have been the bra, though.) I bought it anyway, because I figure that if I get a little more active and lose even a few pounds, the problem will be solved.

And I really liked that blouse.

Also, I'm making some progress to organizing my CD collection. My goal is to get all my CDs on my computer, then put the CD in the proper (non-broken) jewel case with the liner notes. After that, I'll back everything up to an external hard drive. Given that I tend to put CDs in the wrong case all the time, it's going to be a bit of a chore. I ripped several CDs last night and put the CDs away. I'm going to do it in small steps because I want to make sure I get the songs I like in rotation my iPod.

So, that's my day. Except some zombie killing in a few minutes. :-)

I just finished reading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. And I even got new icons to celebrate!

I actually read this one straight through, since I hadn't even gone for a speed time on an HP book before. I started at about 11 PM and I finished at around 5:10AM...so it took me a little under 6 hours and 15 minutes.

( Now, as to what I thought about it. Cut for spoilers.Collapse )

Also, I've now finished one of my 101 goals!

As I mentioned earlier, one of my 101 goals was to watch all the movies on the AFI Top 100 List. I'm combining both the original and tenth anniversary so that I can avoid certain movies I really don't want to see (Silence of the Lambs, for instance) and movies that aren't readily available.

Tonight, Dad and I decided to try out the Netflix on XBox Live. He hadn't seen All the President's Men, so that's what we watched. It was rated #77 on the tenth anniversary list.

When I rated it on Netflix, I gave it three stars. It just didn't jump out at me. Frankly, I thought it was a little boring. Maybe I just didn't understand the inherent greatness of the movie. Oh, well...

One I will give the movie credit for is the fact that they actually told the story. I hate when the writers try to make a movie based on actual events more interesting by adding a side plot (usually a romantic interest) to make the movie more interesting. They didn't do that here and I'm impressed by that.

But that's it. Overall, I'm glad I watched it, but it's not one I'd rewatch. So far, the list is off to an inauspicious start.

As you know, I've been doing the 101 Projects in 1001 Days challenge. I'm also working on how to say it/type it correctly the first time and not flip the numbers.

The challenge itself is a great idea. I'm way behind on it, but I do like how it's at least made me make plans for doing things I've always talked about doing yet somehow never done.

My problem? The comm itself.

First, it's spammy as hell. It's a huge comm and there are over two thousand members. Right now, mission101_2009 has 5 of the last 20 entries on my FList. The only reason it's less is fanfictrants and that it's a slow day. Sometimes, it makes up more than half of the latest updates.

Second, a good number of posters do not get the concept of LJ cuts or overall good manners. Today, I found this post, featuring a Tasmanian devil with a facial cancer that was not under an LJ cut. And while it didn't gross me out, it was gross. Between the long blocks of text and the potentially offensive things with no cut, it's getting really annoying. On the flip side, there are the people who post the entire thing under a cut without any descriptive text, so I can't see if it's worth clicking on the link or not.

And yes, I realize there's the option of not watching the comm or taking it off my default list, but then what's the point in being in the comm?

The picture really has me steamed, because very few things make me more frustrated than when someone graphically describes their "worthy cause" to guilt everyone into supporting it, because how can you see/hear about it and not do something?

I thought I'd see how my 101 list is coming and the answer is not well. In my defense, I was pretty sick the first part of January and with classes...well, it's just not working too great. I need to sit down and work on an action plan for the next few months.

( My progress.Collapse )

I'm not as far along as I'd like to be, but I still think that my list is achievable.

If you're interested, you can find my list for the 101 Things in 1001 Days here. I'm starting a blog to cover the minutiae of it, so I'll only post occasional updates here.

It's a really great project and I'm really looking forward to doing it. I like it because it made me sit down and think about what I really wanted to do and I now have a vague plan for getting it done. Right now, I'm breaking everything down into lists of goals and trying to get some sort of timeline for it.

There are several DS games on the list. I think that Nintendo has marketed the DS better than the Wii. I know the Wii is a great console and that it has some fun games (and I'm still tempted to get one), but I've noticed that their market seems to be all over the place. It's great that they're marketing to casual gamers, but they also seem to go for the tween market more than other games (Aly and AJ guitars anyone?). I think that things like that can make Wii seem more lightweight than other consoles, even though it's clearly not.

The DS, on the other hand, impresses me because it's almost more than a video game system. It's become a great learning tool. In addition to Brain Age, I've also picked up several coach games (My Word Coach, My Japanese Coach, and My Chinese Coach). I've only played the first two, but I like them. My Word Coach is a great way of improving your vocabulary (I've already learned two words I didn't know) and My Japanese Coach seems like a great way of getting a basic overview of Japanese, as well as a good review system. (I'm working on hiragana now, which is a huge weak point for me). It also features the key for any language learning experience: repetition. I've only played it once, but I'm impressed so far. (And I have a year of good Japanese instruction under my belt.)

And, yes, I realize that Wii is innovative in that it's actually physical and could hypothetically help with childhood obesity. The problem is that, unlike the My Japanese Coach game, the Wii just takes an activity that could be done outside and in a social setting (like baseball) and makes it a video game. If a child is in a place where he's unable to go outside and play, then it's better than sitting on the couch. However, if a child is choosing to play Wii Baseball rather than playing actual baseball, we've got a problem.

Don't get me wrong, I'm impressed with Wii. Being able to physically swing a sword or cast a spell by drawing a symbol in the air is great. It's much better than moving the stick in a pattern or pressing a button. However, I don't get the "Wow, who knew a video game system could do that?!?!" feeling that I get from the DS. (Of course, my recent Phoenix Wright love may have some bearing on that. I finished episode three of the first game today.)

Of course, this opinion is based strictly on seeing the games available for Wii, rather than actual experience with the console. It's entirely possible that if I actually had a Wii, I'd be equally impressed with it.

Rather than doing New Year's Resolutions, I've decided to join mission101_2009. I'm supposed to make a list of 101 things I want to do by September 30, 2011.

( The List.Collapse )

So, that's all. It'll be a snap, right? ;-)