Geek in Heels - Page 212

Apr 3, 2008 • In Thursday Geek-isms

Hump Day Hook-Ups

(I’m always reading and learning the most interesting things on the web but I can never keep track of them all! So I’ve decided to add this new feature to my blog: every Wednesday, I will highlight the top 10 interesting things I’ve read in the past week. Let me know how you like it.)

Welcome to the first installment of Hump Day Hook-Ups! Here’s what’s been keeping the geek laughing, rolling her eyes, or très excitée this week:

Knicks assent to several demands to get Walsh, ESPN. I’ve had a renewed hope for my boys ever since the rumors about Walsh surfaced…and today, they finally made it official! 😀

April Fools’ Alert #3: Legend of Zelda movie by IGN, Joystiq. There were some very good April Fools’ Day pranks/jokes this year (including one pulled on a certain someone by many of his friends on Facebook…hehe, ask me about it!) but this has to be my favorite. I really wish they were coming out with this movie!

Friday Fun: Watch Star Wars in Text via Telnet, Lifehacker. Don’t you love it when some other obsessed geek takes the time and dedication to create something so creative yet obvious, à la “D’oh! Why didn’t I think of that?”

Metareview — Ninja Gaidan: Dragon Sword, Joystiq. The new Ninja Gaidan’s been getting some sweet reviews. Me must purchase! (As soon as I get some time to start gaming seriously again, that is.)

Life-Size Star Wars Droids Can Speak, Drain Wallets, Gizmodo. R2-D2’s my favorite Star Wars character…need I say more?

Your First Taste of Bruno, Perez Hilton. Are you a Borat fan? Sasha Baron Cohen is at it again, but this time as Bruno, a gay Austrian. Perez brings you some hilarious footage that was taken by a passerby.

Brilliant 404 Pages, Neatorama. There’s good web design, then there’s good AND clever web design. I love how these websites have taken something seemingly as trivial as a 404 page and turned them into pure brilliance.

BlackBerry 9000 First Impressions, Boy Genius Report. BGR gives a short but precise report on the new, highly anticipated Crackberry model.

Adobe launches Photoshop for the web, LifeClever. This has to be the biggest design-related news of the past week. While the online version isn’t as comprehensive as the original (no layers!), the flash-based version of the app is FREE, and from reviews, not too shabby.

Mario Kart launch trailers are comprehensive, Nintendo Wii Fanboy. Can’t wait till it comes out!

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Apr 2, 2008 • In Geek, Tutorials

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Google Reader, Part 1

(I felt compelled to write this two-part series because I still have daily run-ins with people who have never heard of Google Reader. How? Why? The concept boggles my mind, because G-Reader is my favorite Google App and I can’t imagine why any regular web user would NOT use it…)

Do you have a lot of websites/blogs you visit daily? Do you bookmark each site and diligently click over to check for updates?

Well, that’s all fine and dandy, but if you have a lot of sites on your bookmark list, visiting each individual site could take hours. There is an easier way to do this, and it’s called RSS (Really Simple Syndication).

If you are familiar with RSS, feel free to skip this portion. If you’re not, you’re a moron. Just kidding. 😉

Here’s a really simple way of looking at RSS (thanks, J!):

(image from http://cravingideas.blogs.com/backinskinnyjeans/2006/09/how_to_explain_.html)

Take a look at the website above. They do a great job of explaining RSS in a clear and simple manner.

Still stumped? Watch RSS in Plain English:

(This video was created by Common Craft, a website dedicated to explaining complex ideas and concepts in simple and easy ways. Go check it out – they have so many great articles and videos!)

So what does RSS have to do with Google Reader?

Google Reader is a FREE application for reading RSS feeds. One of the most important things that sets G-Reader apart from other RSS readers is that it is web-based, meaning that I can check my feeds from any computer (or my mobile phone) and G-Reader will update itself accordingly. This is a big contrast and improvement from desktop RSS readers, which only update the feed based on what I checked from that particular computer.

Next up…the many useful features of Google Reader and how they can help you save time, share ideas, and learn more!

On a side note, my friend’s been writing an interesting series on his blog about the book The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell and the three types of people who make it possible for a social epidemic to take place.

My friend is convinced that I’m a Maven, and used me as an example in today’s post.

What do you think? Am I a Maven? Do you think you are (or know of others) who are Connectors, Mavens, or Salesmen?

Baby Geek

I’m at that age where a lot of people in my social circle are getting knocked up or trying to get preggers. Naturally this freaks me out because I still consider myself a kid. I may have a job and a mortgage to pay but I still have the tendency to regress back to my five-year-old self much more than necessary. Although I hate to admit it, I’m secretly terrified that I would make a horrible mother. Many people have told me that I would be a great mother because of my innate desire to always be taking care of others. However, this is human life we’re talking about here. A mother has the potential to seriously f*ck up a child’s well-being. While I may not turn out to be a great mother, there’s one thing I do know for sure: my babies will be geeks, just like their mommy. And I intend to start training them from the time they’re out of the womb. How, you ask? Well my friends, you’re in for a geeky ride…

1. Nintendo Baby Blanket In 2006, Rich and Ruth Ng (those lucky bastards!) received this handmade blanket from their friend Claire Pearson. You can see more pictures here. How sickeningly adorable is this?!? I plan on downloading the pattern and making this for my future spawn as soon as I find out I’m pregnant (years down the road, of course).

2. Star Wars AT-AT Stroller Last year, an über-cool dad modded his kid’s stroller to resemble an AT-AT (see more pictures and read the interview at the Star Wars Blog). Almost immediately I was filled with disdain for my parents for not being nearly as geeky as this dad.

3. Nerdy ABC Flash Cards A is for Atom. B is for Binary Code. C is for Cellular Membrane…’enuff said. If I had these when I was learning English, I would’ve caught on a lot faster. You can purchase these cards at Etsy.

4. C-Jump: The Computer Programming Board Game According to C-Jump’s website, this boardgame “helps children learn basics of programming languages, such as C, C++ and Java.” Screw Candyland! My kids are playing C-Jump instead!

5. Geeky Apparel Lola of North Beach is a great online store that sells great babygeekwear. The items they carry include:

Goo Goo Ga Ga onesie. Perfect for any future Googler.

iPood onesie. This one makes me giggle. 🙂

“My Dad’s a Geek” onesie. How come they don’t have a “My Mom’s a Geek” one? Hmmmph…

6. Knicks Apparel You don’t think I would let my kids grow up not loving the Knicks, do you? 😉 My Houston jersey has been worn and washed so many times that all the lettering is peeling and practically unrecognizable…but all the abuse has left it soft and super-comfy. I plan on swaddling my kids in this jersey. And I definitely want to purchase additional baby wear:

(I wouldn’t get the Marbury one, of course…but this was the only one they had at the NBA Online Store.)

Too. Cute. For. Words!!!

7. Hopkins Apparel Although I’m not THAT into lacrosse, I have to throw this one in. Go Blue Jays!

Kudos to Spike TV

A few weeks ago, I walked out of my office building and nearly screamed in delight to see this:

(My camera phone took pretty lousy pictures that day so I was reluctant to post them. Fortunately, I was able to find these photos at TheForce.Net. Although these weren’t taken by me, this is the actual view when you walk out of my office building.)

“Gold bikinis never go out of style”…how effing brilliant!!!

A couple of days later, I found this just one block away:

(photo from Gothamist)

Yes, that tappity-tap-tap is the sound of the geek in heels, jumping up and down in excitement. I want to take a bus from this bus stop just so I can live out the experience in its full glory.

Wait, it gets better.

A few days later, I saw ANOTHER ad on the train. I burst out laughing, forcing quite a few morning commuters to look up in surprise.

I did a bit more searching and found two more ads in this series:

(all three images from SlashFilm)

I have always been a sucker for good advertising and this is no exception. So Spike TV is airing all six Star Wars episodes. Big deal, right?

However, you have to realize that the product they are trying to sell is one of the best-known film franchises in history.

How do you sell something when the majority of your target audience has already purchased the product (or in this case, seen the movies)?

How do you kill that which has no life? (Sorry, stupid South Park analogy.)

It is precisely for this reason that I have to give Spike TV and its advertising group major props for this series of ads. They have taken a popular and revered product and re-packaged it with a fresh and comical twist. They have managed to target both Star Wars fanatics and potential new arrivals alike: the fanboys are reminded of the little things that made them fall in love with the franchise in the first place, while the newbies are drawn in with hints of sex, camaraderie, pride, and humor.

Bravo, Spike TV. Well done. 🙂

You can visit the Spike TV Star Wars homepage here.

National Portfolio Day

A few days ago, LifeClever posted an articled called Portfolio Day might make you cry, but it’s worth it. I suddenly had a flashback…

As mentioned in my “About” page, I once was a very serious artist who was hell-bent on attending a good art program at one of the nation’s top art schools (RISD, Cooper Union, UCLA, Art Institute of Chicago, and MICA were my top choices). During the summer between my junior and senior years in high school, I was a regular fixture at my art studio, attending portfolio class every weekday from 12pm-3pm. I would often stay overtime to finish up and discuss my work and options with my beloved instructor.

Most art programs require 10-20 pieces demonstrating a student’s technical and creative abilities. I’m not sure about others, but my pieces often took 20+ hours from inception to completion, and I had 17 pieces in my portfolio…you do the math. I still remember the moment when my art teacher handed me the slides of my completed work and I nearly cried from joy.

I was ready to start applying to the said schools. But first, I had to go woo the top dogs at a National Portfolio Day:

National Portfolio Day is an event specifically for visual artists and designers. It is an opportunity for those who wish to pursue an education in the visual and related arts to meet with representatives from colleges accredited by the National Association of Schools of Art and Design. Representatives will be available to review your artwork, discuss their programs and answer questions about professional careers in art. High school students, parents, teachers, guidance counselors and college transfer students are encouraged to attend.

Unlike the AIGA Portfolio Day mentioned by LifeClever, National Portfolio Day is sponsored by the NPDA and is targeted for high school students and college transfer students.

National portfolio day @CCA by kenichi.tanaka at Flickr

All high school students interested in attending an art school are HIGHLY encouraged to attend a National Portfolio Day.

I talked to some older friends who gave me tips:

Get there early!
Scope out the list of schools attending beforehand and choose 3-5. You will most likely only have time to attend 3, since the lines for the more popular schools can get VERY long.
Bring food, drinks, and a friend or two who can keep you entertained and hold your place in line when you have to pee.
Never, EVER leave your portfolio unattended.

I was not able to attend the portfolio day held in NY due to scheduling reasons, so my parents and I woke up at 5am one Sunday morning to drive down to Philadelphia.

Unfortunately, Cooper Union and UCLA were not attending this particular portfolio day. So I narrowed my list down to RISD, Art Institute of Chicago, MICA, and Carnegie Mellon. My friends were correct – the lines were ridiculous! I think my parents and I waited 2-3 hours for each school.

I remember being a big miffed that RISD had only sent one associate professor and some students. Being the top art school in the nation, they were a bit snobby and frankly, treated me as if I were just a number.

I also remember how the rep for Carnegie Mellon was very patient and extremely nice…and even made me blush a few times by the comments he made on some of my pieces.

My overall impression of National Portfolio Day was a bit overwhelming. I had never quite realized how popular and competitive the art world is…and I was discouraged by the blasé response I’d gotten from some of my top choice schools.

However, the experience was not without benefits because few weeks later, I received a letter from Carnegie Mellon. I had made such a great impression on Portfolio Day that if I could provide an official transcript confirming a GPA of 3.0 or higher, I would be admitted with no questions. No essay on my application or anything like that! They even offered a very handsome scholarship. 🙂

In the end, I was accepted to some of the top art programs in the country…but I decided to go another direction. This decision will be the topic of a future post.

Minding My Girls

At a recent girls night out, a few of my friends started gabbing about bras and how we all must get fitted for one. Eh? Didn’t we all go through this during puberty?

My friends then went on to explain that most women are wearing the wrong bra size and only a fitting by a professional can provide the, ahem, full support that you need.

“Listen to Oprah!” they preached. (Sadly, I don’t watch Oprah…but my friends are die-hard fans.)

According to them, Oprah had done a bra intervention where she revealed that as much as 85% of American women are wearing the wrong bra size.

My friends went on to explain that personalized fittings at shops such as Intimacy and Town Shop had been lifesavers. “Upscale departments stores will also suffice,” they continued.

I had written about my disdain for bra-shopping. However, I was intrigued and decided to stop by Saks after work one day.

Almost immediately I was approached by a tall blonde woman with an indistinguishable European accent. To be frank, it was a bit intimidating and I wanted to dip my toe in the water before plunging straight into the mysterious world of bras.

However, I proceeded to turn into a blubbery mess. It was that damn European accent, I swear.

I grabbed a random bra within my reach and stuttered, “Um, I’d like to try on this bra…”

“Yezz, yezz. Goode choyz. Wot eez your size?”

When I told her, she blantantly took a good look at my chest and frowned.

“No! Wee go to dressing roome…now!”

She marched me into the dressing room and ordered me to strip. One part of me wanted to crawl to a corner, curl into a fetal position and sob uncontrollably for the way she made me feel. Another part told me that this woman wasn’t to be messed with and I should follow her orders (luckily, this part won).

I timidly stripped and stood there topless while she surveyed my boobs. She whipped out a measuring tape and started to measure what felt like every inch of my womanhood.

“I woz correcte. Yoo were wearing wrong bra size.”

She then flew out of the room, leaving me in my still topless, utterly confused state, and returned just moments later with a pile of bras in her arms.

And you know what? They did fit a lot better, and my boobs LOOKED a great deal better in them.

“And deez won…DEEZ won will make some man salivate…no?”

She had strapped me into some tight lacy number that pushed my boobs up to my chins. No. So her judgment wasn’t 100% accurate.

I only purchased one thing from Saks that day because…well, being Saks, the majority of bras were pretty expensive (I even saw one marked for $375! For a BRA!!!). And I’m not too keen on wearing undergarments that are worth more than my entire outfit combined.

However, I now know my true bra size and I am very happy about that.

…I kinda miss my dominatrix salesperson.

Murder at the Met

A couple of weekends ago, 14 friends and I gathered to try our hand at Murder at the Met scavenger hunt, hosted by Watson Adventures.

For those who are not familiar with Watson Adventures, they stage scavenger hunts in cities across the U.S. Some of the NYC hunts include The Gangsters’ New York, The Ghosts of Greenwich Village, and The Wax Attacks (held at Madame Tussauds). Most of the hunts are targeted for adults (meaning the questions can be tricky/complex…not adult-themed, you sicko) but they hold family-friendly hunts as well.

I just HAD to try the Murder at the Met because, well, the Met is probably my favorite place in the city. One of my most memorable experiences was a summer internship at the Met, and although I’m a bit rusty now, I used to know the entire 5-blocks-sized building like the back of my hand.

We arrived to find that our Watson Adventures rep had already divided us into teams of four (and one group of three). Here’s my fabulous team before we set off:

(All the pictures came out pretty badly because there is no flash photography allowed in the museum.)

Each team was given a yellow sheet of paper with a list of twenty-something questions. The yellow sheets were identical, but each team was instructed to start at different numbers. We were then given the background story:

A murdered curator has left behind a cryptic trail of clues connected with secrets in works of art. As your team gathers answers about the art, you begin to piece together a sordid tale about greed, lust, pride, revenge and treachery, all revolving around the museum’s planned multi-million dollar purchase of a Rembrandt. The murder victim knew too much—and now it’s your turn to learn what he knew and discover what drove one of four suspects to commit murder. To find out, you’ll have to crack a secret code left in the victim’s appointment calendar. Can you figure out who dunnit?

After additional instructions to meet at the Temple of Dendur in exactly two and a half hours, with warnings of “we’ll be watching you!” and “no cell phones allowed!”, we set off.

The rep had explained that The Murder at the Met was their most challenging hunt, and that was one of the reasons it had attracted me in the first place. I admit it – some of the questions were difficult, and running through the museum while dodging tourists and tour groups was tiring.

However, I knew my team would do well from the start. How could we not, with me on the team? 😉

We finished spectacularly with an hour to spare. Immediately my teammates demanded alcohol (okay, I wanted a drink too). I led them to the Petrie Court Cafe and Wine Bar, but it was closed for a private function. The travesty!

We then heaved and puffed our way up to the Balcony Bar, which has two entrances, very far from each other. After waiting on line for what seemed like an eternity at one entrance, the maitre’d informed us that there were no seats available on that side – would we like to try the other?

!!!

We practically ran to the other entrance, joking that trying to get a drink was the real scavenger hunt. After waiting on line behind some R-tards who couldn’t decide where they wanted to sit, the maitre’d finally approached us and we screamed, “Just sit us near the bar!”

Our hard-earned sangrias and mojitos:

Another team pic:

Feeling refreshed and our alcoholic urges somewhat fulfilled, we sauntered to the Temple of Dendur, where one by one, all the teams converged.

Needless to say, my team won, with a perfect score. 😀

One last shot of the entire group:

Everyone agreed that the scavenger hunt was fun and very entertaining…we all want to do more hunts! I highly recommend Watson Adventures, and I’ll certainly be doing more hunts in the future.

Book Review: The Case for Christ

(I have been posting more book reviews lately for a good reason: I will be moving soon and am currently going through my mountains of books in an effort to divide them into “keep” and “donate” piles. Obviously, there are certain titles that hold dear places in my heart, and I cannot help but re-read them and share them with you.)

In light of Easter, I decided to write about a popular piece of Christian literature: Lee Strobel’s The Case for Christ: A Journalist’s Personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus.

I first discovered the field of Christian apologetics, which, according to this Wikipedia article, is “the field of study concerned with the systematic defense of Christianity,” in my early teenage years and it has always been a topic which interested me. So much so, in fact, that I even considered entering seminary to delve even deeper into the world of proving the merits and facts behind Christianity through history, science, and philosophy.

While there are tons of literature out there in the world of Christian apologetics, The Case for Christ is one of the most popular, mainstream books on the topic and it’s a book I have read over and over again.

The basis for the book is simple. Lee Strobel, a former journalist for the Chicago Tribune, interviews a dozen experts to determine if there’s credible evidence of Christ’s existence and divinity.

Each of the fourteen chapters attempts to answer a different question. Some examples of the questions include:

Do the Biographies of Jesus Stand Up to Scrutiny?

Is the Jesus of History the Same As the Jesus of Faith?

Was Jesus Crazy When He Claimed to Be the Son of God?

Did Jesus – and Jesus Alone – Match the Identity of the Messiah?

Was Jesus’ Death a Sham and His Resurrection a Hoax?

Are There Any Supporting Facts That Point to the Resurrection?

I have to admit that I love this stuff. My insides boil with excitement and my fingers cannot turn the pages fast enough as I read all the evidence presented in this book.

For example, did you know that no other document from antiquity can compare to the New Testament in terms of the sheer number of existing documents? There are more than 5,000 New Testament manuscripts are in existence today…compare that to the runner-up, which is The Iliad, at 650.

My only problem with this book is that all the experts interviewed for this book, while experts and leaders in their respective fields, seem pre-disposed to offer supporting evidence for Christ. Though a former investigative journalist with a Master of Studies in Law degree from Yale Law School, Strobel fails to produce any critics of Christian apologetics. How about a debate between both sides of the argument?

All in all, Stobel manages to take some thick, sometimes tedious information and presents it in an entertaining and fast-paced manner. This is a great book for someone like myself who is a practicing Christian and would like to find additional sources of confirmation. Or if you’re still on the fence and having some doubts. However, I’m not sure that this book would convince someone who does not believe, especially in this day and age when information is so readily available at your fingertips.

Strobel has written a counterpart this this book, called The Case for Faith: A Journalist Investigates the Toughest Objections to Christianity. I have this book as well and although it is a good read, it just isn’t as compelling as The Case for Christ. The reason is obvious: it is a lot more difficult to prove faith than the existence and attributes of a person.

Book Review: Marley and Me

My sister read this book when it first released and upon finishing it, she exclaimed that I had to read it. “You know that the dog is going to die and you prepare and brace yourself for the inevitable…and then you end up crying at the end anyway.”

(image from Harper Collins)

I was intrigued, but I didn’t bite. Don’t get me wrong – I love dogs. I love animals and I’ve spoiled all the pets I’ve had over the years. However, the thought of reading about falling in love with a dog only to lose him (which I’ve been through twice) made me queasy and uncomfortable.

Months passed, and I continued to see the book everywhere. On subways. On the train ride home. In book store displays. I even read that the book was being adapted into a movie starring Owen Wilson and Jennifer Aniston.

So, per my usual fashion, I googled the book and found the website devoted to Marley http://www.marleyandme.com/. As I went through the photos and the user-submitted stories and testimonials, my heart melted. Here’s an excerpt from the “About the Book” section of the website:

The heartwarming and unforgettable story of a family in the making and the wondrously neurotic dog who taught them what really matters in life.

John and Jenny were just beginning their life together. They were young and in love, with a perfect little house and not a care in the world. Then they brought home Marley, a wiggly yellow furball of a puppy. Life would never be the same.

The next time I was at Borders (which is pretty often considering there’s one downstairs from my office and I lov books) I picked up a copy and began reading on my long commute home.

I was smitten.

I won’t write any more about the plot or the specifics of the book, because John Grogan does such a wonderful job of communicating every sweet detail of his family’s life with Marley…I just wouldn’t be able to compare.

I finished the book a few days later on the train home. At this point I started crying like a little bitch and I couldn’t stop. I apologize to the poor commuters who were within earshot of the sobbing little Asian girl that night.

Anyone who has half a heart would love this book. Anyone who has had a pet, especially a dog, needs to read this book.

My Imaginary TV Boyfriend

Being an engaged woman doesn’t mean I can’t have my celebrity crushes. Today I’d like to introduce my other imaginary boyfriend…

Meet Jim Halpert:

(image courtesy of DunderMifflinInfinity.com)

Allow me to clarify. My attraction is not with John Krasinski, but with the lovably dorky character he plays on NBC’s The Office.

John Krasinski isn’t particularly good-looking, nor does he fall under the category of the guys I usually fall for (the clean-cut dudes with a streak of a bad side). If I ever run into someone who looks exactly like him I would think he’s cute in a goofy way but leave it at that.

So then, what is it about Jim Halpert that keeps millions of women strapped in front of the TV, drooling, every Thursday night?

For me, it’s the combination of his wit and humor (and the numerous pranks he plays on Dwight), compassion, and loyalty. He’s the type of guy who was too shy and geeky to talk to girls in high school but eventually comes to his own with his brains and killer personality.

And his love and devotion for Pam! Unlike many others, I do not think the most romantic moment between them was when Jim confessed his love to the then-engaged Pam. I think the best moment was when he angrily chastised her for not taking the chance to follow her dreams of being a designer. To me, only real love can do that: show another person that they’re making the wrong choice, even if it’s the opposite of what that person wanted to hear.

Last week, while driving down West Side Highway my friends and I saw a billboard advertising the upcoming movie Leatherheads. “There goes my imaginary TV boyfriend,” I sighed.

“Him? My friend made out with him in college!”

I almost crashed the car.

“What college did he attend?” I managed to stumble.

“Brown.”

!!! Brown was actually my first choice for some time! Imagine that – I could’ve gone to school with the future Jim Halpert.

Hump Day Hook-Ups

Google Reader, Part 1

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Baby Geek

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Kudos to Spike TV

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National Portfolio Day

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Minding My Girls

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Murder at the Met

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Book Review: The Case for Christ

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Book Review: Marley and Me

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My Imaginary TV Boyfriend

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