Abroad

June 29, 2015

Hello internet friends!

Yesterday I realized I need a man-purse.
I was about to leave for a family gathering, wanted to swing by one of the few magazine stores with an international press section to get the new Monocle and I was also worried that the ageing battery of my iPhone would not make it through the day,[1] so I wanted to bring my battery pack.
But the smallest bag I have to carry things is my computer backpack, which is pretty small these days – a MacBook doesn’t need that much space – but it is still too big for that purpose.
Anyway.

I am one of those (snobby?) people who prefer to watch movies and series in their original language – yes, even if I don’t understand it. That’s why they invented subtitles. And while I still miss out on subtleties this way, I at least get the tone of the voices the way they were meant to be.
The Verge has a great article showing how hard it is to translate and dub a TV series for a German audience, using Seinfeld as an example.

More naps!

  1. I was right about that one. Crossing country-lines, being in a rural area with spotty reception equals crazy energy consumption of the phone.  ↩

Books

June 22, 2015

Hello internet friends!

This is a very pretty photo of a Boeing 777.

Why the sudden Boeing? I just finished reading Skyfaring – the book I mentioned two weeks ago. And now I am looking at aircraft pictures, because nerd.
It’s a good book, though.

Another book that made its rounds on the internet – or at least the part of the internet where I hang around – is Aziz Ansari’s Modern Romance. I am pretty sure it’s also a good book, there is just one little thing: The Problem with Aziz Ansari Writing a Book About Something He’s Never Done.

That’s all I have for today. Stay safe.

We’re in the hands of engineers.

June 15, 2015

Hello internet friends!

I am sure by now you have read Paul Ford’s “What Is Code”?
If not, you should – it is very well written and covers basically everything about code and software development in 2015 in a way that everybody understands.
Well, probably not everybody but I am sure all of you will have no problems with it.

I didn’t watch Jurassic World, yet – and I am not sure if I really want to. Especially given how much Jurassic Park means to me.
Now you might wonder – what makes Jurassic Park such a damn good movie?

While we’re being nostalgic for the 90s, here is some trivia regarding the title song of Friends.
(Have fun trying to get song unstuck from your brain now.)

I’m switching my diet to sauerkraut and kimchi now – I’ll be smelly but at least I won’t care? I’m sure that’s how it works.

Have a good week!

Ho-Ho-Ho

June 9, 2015

Hello internet friends!

What a nice, beautiful Monday it is!
Oh, wait. Never mind.

It’s very Snowfall-y, but nonetheless a very compelling read on the beauty of flying: In Flight – en route from London to Tokyo, a pilot’s-eye view of life in the sky.
It’s taken from a book that I have moved very high on my “to read” list.

(Snowfall-y? Well.)

It’s summer and that means it’s a good time for rum-based drinks. While enjoying one of those, it might be interesting to learn a bit about the geopolitics of rum.

And once you’re nicely drunk, you might be in the mood for some pretty weird and often weirdly pretty television. So why not give Sense8 a try? Many critics seemed to be on the meh side of things but I found one who pretty much agrees with me.
And as we all know, that’s the most important quality in a review, right?

Have a good week!

Reading Material

June 1, 2015

Hello internet friends!

It’s not even 11am when I write this and I could already do with a weekend.
Good god.

Imagine yourself in the back of a car. Now imagine yourself reading or playing around on your phone. Does this make you feel slightly queasy? Maybe you’re one of those people who have certain stomach issues in these situations.
Now imagine driverless cars.

Did you hear? Eating chocolate is the way to weight loss.
At least according to my watch, this must be true.

Lego puts a lot of work into hiding dongs.

If you find the time to do it, take a nap. It’s really nice.