This summer, I started playing Ultimate regularly for the first time. I had tried my hand at Ultimate back in 2000 and 2001, but never made the effort to play regularly. I played three days a week over this summer. It is a great sport, with a lot of emphasis on running, throwing and catching, and overall athleticism. The best part is the spirit of the game, where there is no referee and players themselves make calls, even at the highest level of competition.
There have been several welcome additions to my vocabulary - the forehand, the backhand, the hammer, the blade, and several others (of course, these are some of the different types of throws one can employ to send the disc flying towards a teammate - and are some throws I have learned over the summer). Plus, all the running and catching has been a ton of fun. The season is close to getting over (as it starts to get cold here in Ann Arbor), and I am looking forward to going back to some indoor sports.
September 14, 2004
August 25, 2004
Weekend movie marathon
This past weekend I saw 3 films, very different from each other.
Everybody Says I'm Fine | imdb
This is one of the recent (though made almost two years ago) Indian English films that I wanted to see. I first got wind of the film when I listened to the soundtrack composed by Ustad Zakir Hussain. The soundtrack is a very interesting, and entertaining mix of Blues, Qawwali, and Indian film music (and has Carlos Santana playing on the title song). The film itself is a mix of a variety of influences - most importantly, the fact that its set in moden day Mumbai means its a very cosmopolitan film. Thus, the set of characters - Bombay socialites, college kids, young romantics, a struggling actor and a powerful businessman. The small idea - a hairdresser who can read his client's thoughts as he cuts their hair - is unusual and leaves a lot of scope for creative interpretations.
I thought that the film on the whole was pretty good. The cast was fabulous, especially Rehan Engineer and Koel Purie in their so-called lead roles. The build-up of the story was gradual, building up to a climax; it was more subtle, a bit too understated rather than powerful. All the characters were decidedly one-dimensional - except for Koel's - possibly explaining why Xen couldn't read her mind.
This was a good start to what turned out to be a fabulous movie-watching weekend.
Old Boy | review
An awesome, twisted, funny, cruel, one-of-a-kind movie. This Korean movie won the Grand Prix at the Cannes Film Festival 2004. Its a fabulous film, period. The soundtrack, which uses Beethoven, techno and compositions in the western classical style is absolutely amazing - and perfectly suited for the film. The film can be very emotionally disturbing, and has been known to cause sleepless nights.
The Dreamers | imdb
Everybody Says I'm Fine | imdb
This is one of the recent (though made almost two years ago) Indian English films that I wanted to see. I first got wind of the film when I listened to the soundtrack composed by Ustad Zakir Hussain. The soundtrack is a very interesting, and entertaining mix of Blues, Qawwali, and Indian film music (and has Carlos Santana playing on the title song). The film itself is a mix of a variety of influences - most importantly, the fact that its set in moden day Mumbai means its a very cosmopolitan film. Thus, the set of characters - Bombay socialites, college kids, young romantics, a struggling actor and a powerful businessman. The small idea - a hairdresser who can read his client's thoughts as he cuts their hair - is unusual and leaves a lot of scope for creative interpretations.
I thought that the film on the whole was pretty good. The cast was fabulous, especially Rehan Engineer and Koel Purie in their so-called lead roles. The build-up of the story was gradual, building up to a climax; it was more subtle, a bit too understated rather than powerful. All the characters were decidedly one-dimensional - except for Koel's - possibly explaining why Xen couldn't read her mind.
This was a good start to what turned out to be a fabulous movie-watching weekend.
Old Boy | review
An awesome, twisted, funny, cruel, one-of-a-kind movie. This Korean movie won the Grand Prix at the Cannes Film Festival 2004. Its a fabulous film, period. The soundtrack, which uses Beethoven, techno and compositions in the western classical style is absolutely amazing - and perfectly suited for the film. The film can be very emotionally disturbing, and has been known to cause sleepless nights.
The Dreamers | imdb
August 09, 2004
Andre beats Andy!
It was a great match, and I was there!
Agassi was precise and used his minimalistic style (short backswing, quick hands, close to the baseline play) to great effect. Roddick was powerful, and accurate in general, but on court I could see that he didn't have Agassi's variety. Agassi seemed to know just where every serve and every shot from Roddick was going to land. He played the angles very well, and kept Roddick off balance. Of course, almost the entire crowd was cheering for the old man, and that must've helped!
Will post some pictures soon!
Agassi was precise and used his minimalistic style (short backswing, quick hands, close to the baseline play) to great effect. Roddick was powerful, and accurate in general, but on court I could see that he didn't have Agassi's variety. Agassi seemed to know just where every serve and every shot from Roddick was going to land. He played the angles very well, and kept Roddick off balance. Of course, almost the entire crowd was cheering for the old man, and that must've helped!
Will post some pictures soon!
August 05, 2004
July 22, 2004
July 09, 2004
Copenhagen (DVD)
A few weeks back, I wrote a post about the play "Copenhagen" by Michael Frayn. Yesterday, I got my hands on the DVD.
This is a BBC/ PBS production of the play, shot as a movie. I felt that filmmakers did a great job preserving the original dialogue while simultaneously using cinema techniques to enhance the impact of the play. The acting was fabulous.
Most importantly, the movie conveyed to me what the text of the play could not. The acting, pacing of the narrative, movement of characters and camera, and the locations used really elevated the play beyond its text.
I now want to see a stage production!
This is a BBC/ PBS production of the play, shot as a movie. I felt that filmmakers did a great job preserving the original dialogue while simultaneously using cinema techniques to enhance the impact of the play. The acting was fabulous.
Most importantly, the movie conveyed to me what the text of the play could not. The acting, pacing of the narrative, movement of characters and camera, and the locations used really elevated the play beyond its text.
I now want to see a stage production!
June 29, 2004
The Moon and Sixpence
A truly remarkable book. The novel, based on the painter Paul Gauguin's life, is fascinating in the portrayal of the central character Charles Strickland, all the other characters, and especially the various places Strickland lives in - London, Paris, Marseilles, and Tahiti. W. Somerset Maugham questions conventional definitions, understanding and interpretation of art while portraying the great passion of creation that drives the artist. I really liked the book - its completely different from my usual selections.
Online version: Many formats or try the Project Gutenberg version
In Search of Schrodinger's Cat
Looking for a book to read after Copenhagen, I became acutely aware of how much of Copenhagen I didn't really understand because of a lack of background on the fundamentals, and history of quantum physics. And then picked up this book that had been lying unread on my bookshelf for a few months at least.
It is a nicely written, non-mathematical introduction to the strange world of the quantum. John Gribbin starts from the very basic laws classical physics, and slowly builds up the tale of the quantum. He makes it an intriguing story by giving some historical background on each new idea introduced. We meet several distinguished physicists such as de Broglie, Planck, Einstein, Bohr, Heisenberg, Dirac, Schrodinger (and "may be" his cat!), Feynman and Wheeler. Gribbin introduces them as bright young scientists riding a tidal wave of change in the fundamental ideas. He briefly mentions their struggles with the philosophical, and practical implications of their discoveries (the philosophical ideas of "choice", "determinism" etc. and the practical implications such as nuclear and hydrogen bombs).
The pace of the book is comfortable for someone not familiar with the topics. It is a notoriously difficult subject to explain, especially since there are really no parallels to the quantum in our everyday experiences. Gribbin's book is really good, considering the limitations of explaining such a topic without going into the mathematics, and without the aid of simple visual representations.
I am now itching to read what seems to be a followup book - Schrodinger's Kittens and the Search for Reality.
It is a nicely written, non-mathematical introduction to the strange world of the quantum. John Gribbin starts from the very basic laws classical physics, and slowly builds up the tale of the quantum. He makes it an intriguing story by giving some historical background on each new idea introduced. We meet several distinguished physicists such as de Broglie, Planck, Einstein, Bohr, Heisenberg, Dirac, Schrodinger (and "may be" his cat!), Feynman and Wheeler. Gribbin introduces them as bright young scientists riding a tidal wave of change in the fundamental ideas. He briefly mentions their struggles with the philosophical, and practical implications of their discoveries (the philosophical ideas of "choice", "determinism" etc. and the practical implications such as nuclear and hydrogen bombs).
The pace of the book is comfortable for someone not familiar with the topics. It is a notoriously difficult subject to explain, especially since there are really no parallels to the quantum in our everyday experiences. Gribbin's book is really good, considering the limitations of explaining such a topic without going into the mathematics, and without the aid of simple visual representations.
I am now itching to read what seems to be a followup book - Schrodinger's Kittens and the Search for Reality.
June 24, 2004
The Adventures of Dennis
As a kid, I read this book in Marathi, and later in English. Absolutely amazing to find it online! Especially all the wonderful illustrations!
See A little page of Russian Resources for more!
Now only if I could find all the other wonderful books from Mir Publishers, Moscow. Especially the science books! Ya Perelman's books on Physics and Mathematics.. and the wonderful stories of the discovery of each element in the Chemistry texts!
This is another reason why Free Culture is so important. Amidst the massive changes around the globe, little treasures like these books are easy to lose. Relaxing copyright control, and allowing digital archives might help save these.
See A little page of Russian Resources for more!
Now only if I could find all the other wonderful books from Mir Publishers, Moscow. Especially the science books! Ya Perelman's books on Physics and Mathematics.. and the wonderful stories of the discovery of each element in the Chemistry texts!
This is another reason why Free Culture is so important. Amidst the massive changes around the globe, little treasures like these books are easy to lose. Relaxing copyright control, and allowing digital archives might help save these.
June 23, 2004
मायबोली मराठी
बरहाच्या कृपेने आता इंटरनेटवर मराठीतून लिहिण्याची चांगली सोय उपलब्ध झाली आहे! त्यामुळे आता मराठीतून काहीतरी लिहीनच!
(For clueless, english-only readers of my blog - this entry is my first attempt at blogging in Maraathi, my mothertongue. Going forward, I expect to write several Marathi posts)
(For clueless, english-only readers of my blog - this entry is my first attempt at blogging in Maraathi, my mothertongue. Going forward, I expect to write several Marathi posts)
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