If you live in the Washington, DC area, or plan to be there, towards the beginning of April, you should check the dates of the annual Cherry Blossom Festival. The trees themselves were a gift from Japan to the United States, and they were planted all along what DC people refer to as the "Tidal Basin" - that is, the area of the Potomac River around the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial, in which it is possible to walk the footpath in a circle around the two.
I had never been to the Cherry Blossom Festival until after I moved out of the country. I came back to visit my parents, and a friend took me to the Cherry Blossom Festival. Unfortunately, we went on a rainy day - if at all possible, choose to go on a sunny day, because walking around in chilly rain can dampen appreciation for the sight itself. However, even on a rainy day, these trees - which hang over the walkways in pink canopies - with their pink blossoms are a real sight to see, especially as contrasted with the ornamental white architecture of the city around them. Add the river to that view, and you have a perfect trio.
The more or less circular footpath around the basin during the festival is a real treat for a photographer, especially one whose strength/interest is in photographing natural scenes. However, the festival not only features flowering trees. Stages are placed at various points around the basin, in which there are live performances all day, every day for the week or two that the festival runs, featuring all different kinds of entertainment, and many local artists, which is always a treat.
However, the blossoms are only there for a couple of weeks, so when making your plans, plan carefully.
There's a whole genre of online games out there that I have recently discovered called Tower Defense. I know, they've been around for a while, and for me to "just discover" them now puts me pretty far behind the times, but still, that's how it is. They are some pretty cool games, though.
Their basic premise is simple enough: waves of bad guys want to get from point A to point B, and you have to stop them. There's pretty much an infinite variety of plot devices, from 'defending Area 51' to stopping the revenge of the stickmen, but they're all basically the same game, in one of two variations.
The 'normal' variation has a maze, with an entrance at one end and a target at the other. The player defends the target, and waves of bad guys, 'creeps,' advance through the maze to destroy the target. The player has a bank of money, which can be used to buy defensive towers that kill creeps. The bank is replenished by a bounty on every creep killed. The creeps get stronger with every wave, but they also pay higher bounties. As the game progresses, you can buy upgrades to strengthen your towers against the ever stronger creeps.
In the second variation, there is no maze. You have to build it yourself, by placing your towers. The creeps will take the shortest path to their goal, but they can't go through towers. The trick to winning this type of tower defense is to build a zigzag maze that forces the creeps to stay on the board for a long time, under the guns of the towers.
Some tower defense games are open-ended; that is, they simply continue, with the creeps getting indefinitely stronger, until your defenses are inevitably overwhelmed. The object here is to last as long as possible. Other games are closed; they have a specific number of waves to defeat, in order to win. They'll usually have between 35 and 50 waves of creeps.
Finally, there are several types of creeps: normal creeps, fast creeps, flying creeps, creeps that split in two when you kill them, and boss creeps. Bosses are the dangerous ones. They are a lot stronger than regular creeps, and much harder to kill. They are worth a lot of points, money, or gold (depending on how the game keeps score), so they're worth getting.
And that's the genre. I'll look at some specific games later. In the meantime, here's a link to a collection of Tower Defense games:
There's a whole genre of online games out there that I have recently discovered called Tower Defense. I know, they've been around for a while, and for me to "just discover" them now puts me pretty far behind the times, but still, that's how it is. They are some pretty cool games, though.
Their basic premise is simple enough: waves of bad guys want to get from point A to point B, and you have to stop them. There's pretty much an infinite variety of plot devices, from 'defending Area 51' to stopping the revenge of the stickmen, but they're all basically the same game, in one of two variations.
The 'normal' variation has a maze, with an entrance at one end and a target at the other. The player defends the target, and waves of bad guys, 'creeps,' advance through the maze to destroy the target. The player has a bank of money, which can be used to buy defensive towers that kill creeps. The bank is replenished by a bounty on every creep killed. The creeps get stronger with every wave, but they also pay higher bounties. As the game progresses, you can buy upgrades to strengthen your towers against the ever stronger creeps.
In the second variation, there is no maze. You have to build it yourself, by placing your towers. The creeps will take the shortest path to their goal, but they can't go through towers. The trick to winning this type of tower defense is to build a zigzag maze that forces the creeps to stay on the board for a long time, under the guns of the towers.
Some tower defense games are open-ended; that is, they simply continue, with the creeps getting indefinitely stronger, until your defenses are inevitably overwhelmed. The object here is to last as long as possible. Other games are closed; they have a specific number of waves to defeat, in order to win. They'll usually have between 35 and 50 waves of creeps.
Finally, there are several types of creeps: normal creeps, fast creeps, flying creeps, creeps that split in two when you kill them, and boss creeps. Bosses are the dangerous ones. They are a lot stronger than regular creeps, and much harder to kill. They are worth a lot of points, money, or gold (depending on how the game keeps score), so they're worth getting.
And that's the genre. I'll look at some specific games later. In the meantime, here's a link to a collection of Tower Defense games:
Facebook (www.facebook.com) really is a wonderful thing. At first, I was skeptical; I had tried Myspace at the behest of a friend and hated it, I had my own website, and wasn't sure what good Facebook would do for me. And then I made myself a Facebook profile, back in the days in which you had to have a valid university email address in order to join.
The more time I spend on Facebook, the more I find myself liking it and even actively playing with my profile and searching out old friends and acquaintances. In this is Facebook's magic: that, in this age of busy lives and no time to stop and smell the roses as it were, Facebook allows you to keep up with friends new and old as best you can in your little free time.
I find myself every day adding new books that I have read, adding photos that I have taken, exchanging recommendations with other people, and reconnecting with people that I hadn't seen since elementary school. You can even keep your profile friends-only if you so choose.
So what makes Facebook better than Myspace or Friendster or any of those other tools? Facebook is a much more ordered and organized site, with less glitter and glitz and much more readable. However, if you add too many outside applications, your profile can get rather busy and hard to follow. But it allows you, overall, to express yourself and your interests and passions in almost as many ways as possible, and it lets you share those loves with others, which is always a wonderful and enjoyable pasttime.
Ask your friends; I'm willing to bet that most people have heard of Facebook by now, and perhaps are even using it. Get yourself a profile, run a search - and see what happens.
Most people, upon hearing the phrase "a cappella" think of college groups, with 12 or more members, singing pop songs using nothing but voices. It is true that a cappella has gained insane levels of popularity among college campuses, but there is also a thriving professional a cappella world as well - that is, groups that sing completely a cappella and make a living out of it. There is even an annual competition - called the Harmony Sweepstakes or "Sweeps" as insiders refer to it - the final round of which is held in June in California every year.
If you can sing well, consider trying this out for yourself. There is a thriving amateur a cappella circuit and many of these amateur groups become professional groups as they gain following and popularity.
You see, the joy of a cappella - also called "close harmony singing" - is in the art itself. Though collegiate groups often have 10-12 singers or more, professional groups have come to the conclusion (rightly, I think) that an a cappella group ought have no more than 6 or 7 singers. The smaller numbers help to focus the sound and make more exact the harmonics of each song. Now, the real joy of a cappella is in the art itself, as I said. A cappella is no less than the art of taking a song that many people know and turning all of its vocal parts and instrumental parts into 4-8 vocal lines, depending on the size of the group (some professional groups have more, but the Harmony Sweepstakes does not allow groups of more than 8 to compete).
It is a delicate art - attempting to turn a number of different voices into a cohesive ensemble. The director, as well as the individual singers, need to figure out not only on which vocal part to place each singer, whose voice is most suited to what kinds of leads and so on, but also to such mundane things as how to place each singer on the stage for the optimum blending of voices (yes, it does make a difference). And then there's the challenge of being the sole singer on each vocal part ie. if you screw up, there is no one to cover for you. And that's exciting, too.
However, when you have a rehearsal in which it just works, it's pure magic.
Now that it's autumn, and the year is starting to wind down, the apple trees are in fruit. This is my favorite time of year. The wind smells like cinnamon, the days aren't too hot, and the sunshine is just a little bit sweeter, because we know that winter will take it all away soon.
This is the time of year that I like to go to the cider mill. I'm taking my four year old this time, because she's big enough. I can't wait to show her the waterwheel, and the cider press, and donut bakery. She'll love it. And then we'll buy some fresh cider and donuts, and go sit and watch the ducks in the stream while we eat our snack.
Nope, I don't dote on that kid, not me.
I want her to have this sort of memory. It's the same reason I took her fishing during the summer. I think it's important to have these experiences growing up, even if you don't catch any fish, or run away scared from the ducks. Too much stuff is just prepackaged these days, and I want my kid to know where apple cider comes from.
I also want to spend as much time with mt daughter as possible. She's growing up so fast, and sometimes I am afraid that I'll miss it. But I don't want them to only know me as the guy behind the camera, so I want to build a store of memories with them. I'm not trying to get all maudlin. Actually, it's a happy idea, and I'll pursue it further at the cider mill.
I read in the news recently that Harper Lee is receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom, for her oustanding contribution to American literature. When I saw that, I couldn't help but joke that it's about time she got some recognition for that book....
Seriously, To Kill a Mockingbird is one of those very few books that I can sit down and read, again and again, and never grow bored. Simply put, Mockingbird is probably the single most beautiful book that I have ever read.
It wasn't the Medal of Freedom, though, that got me thinking about the book. Actually, I just read Mockingbird again, last weekend. My wife was working weekend hours, and the kids were with the grandparents, so I finally had time to settle down on the couch with a good book. I must have read the final argument between Atticus and Heck Tate, about how to protect Boo Radley, at least five times....
I must like Pulitzer winners, because the other book I read this past weekend was Herman Wouk's The Caine Mutiny. I think I read the final scene, when Willie Keith decides that he'll marry May Wynn, at least five times....
I'm not sure which is the better book. Lee wrote a beautiful, haunting story that hits you hard in the gut and doesn't let go. Wouk weaves a story as full and complex as real life, and tells it in a no-nonsense style that fits well with the WWII setting of the book; it was a no-nonsense time. Harper Lee never wrote another book, saying she couldn't follow Mockingbird. Wouk is one of the great prolific novelists of the 20th Century.
And when I had the time available, I read them both, back to back.
One of the greatest advantages to the Internet is the ability to access almost everything from the convenience of one's own home, without even having to set foot outside. Fans of games of all kinds have quick and easy access to just about anything that they might want with nothing more than the click of a mouse. Fans of online slots gaming can participate in individual play or in tournament play. This month, especially, slots players can participate in a free slots tournament called the Summer Beach Party Tournament at All Jackpots Casino and All Slots Casino, hosted by Jackpot Factory.
When you first start going to a gym or implementing your own self-designed exercise program, you have one goal: to get in better shape. Exercising is just the means of achieving a goal, and there's nothing fun about it. Kind of like going to the dentist: it's a horrible experience, but it's necessary.
Set yourself a plan: I'm going to go to X Gym, X number of times a week, at X hour. Then bring along your Discman and iPod, choose your favorite cardio machine, and perhaps keep track of CNN on one of the gym's televisions. You know what? Pretty soon it stops being just something that you have to do and becomes something that you enjoy doing. Not only is it a healthy life change, but after awhile, you start to find your private time on your machine with your music and perhaps the day's headlines almost relaxing. I know, I know, you think I'm crazy - but really, try it. I used to do this at 7 AM every day in my last year of college, so I speak from experience.
Though you're in a room of people, the time almost seems like it's your own - kind of like your reading time, or your hour-long bubble bath every evening. After awhile, you'll find that it becomes addictive. Exercise feels good, it does you a great service, it strengthens your muscles and your heart and allows you time to commune with your favorite songs and perhaps even a favorite book. I read all of Thomas Friedman's From Beirut to Jerusalem on treadmills once. Because come on, how much time do you have for leisure activities like reading or listening to music every day? It's just another form of multitasking, albeit a physically and psychologically healthier one.
One of my best friends lives in New York City and every time I fly back to the States, I visit him for a day or two there. Everyone has heard something about New York City, as the place is incredibly famous, but not everyone can say that they've seen many of the attractions of the city. In such a place, there's so much to see, and I will try to include as many as I can remember here in the small space that I have.
The Museum of Natural History - this place is every geek's dream come true. The dinosaur room is not quite as good as the one at the Natural History Museum in Washington, DC (and it certainly doesn't have the CHON movie that I always loved as a child) but the museum itself is killer. Just go to the planetarium to see what I mean.
Jekyll and Hyde's - This place is a funky restaurant in the neighborhood in which the Gay Rights Movement began. Never will you find another place like this, in which the wait staff pick on you, the heads sticking out of the wall ask you trivia questions, and the bathrooms are hidden behind revolving walls.
Magnolia Bakery - This place is a must. The best cupcakes in the world, though the line is often out the door and around the corner. Located on Broadway and 8th Avenue (I think) in Greenwich Village.
Times Square - This almost needs no explanation. The square, Broadway, excitement, noise, traffic, shopping. Enough said.
The Circle Line and the Staten Island Ferry - Want to see NYC from the water? Either of these is the way to go. The Circle Line cruise is, of course, a longer and more extensive trip, but the Staten Island Ferry is well worth it if you are pressed for time.
I'm almost out of space, so I will end this here. However, the next time you are in New York City, try some of these, and you won't be disappointed.
