Archive for the 'Culture' Category

Page 31 of 37

Happy New Year!

Published on January 1, 2010 in Art, Culture, Site and Travel by risu. Closed

New Year 2010 fireworksHope last year went well for everyone out there, and that this year goes even better!

I’ve been working on the 2010 SNM wallpaper image, but I don’t have it finished yet.  Hopefully I can get it done before I fly up to Vancouver next week, but I still have some snowboard repairs, waxing, packing and some household plumbing tasks to perform, so keep your fingers crossed!  It’s quite wonderful, and distinct from last year’s one.

In the meantime, ride safe, and I’ll see you out there in the snow and on the trails!

Mmm, Calamansi

Published on December 24, 2009 in Culture, Food and Review by taro. Closed

P1010397Went by 7-11 in search of some refreshing fruit drink. I saw this and remembered a couple weeks back all the talk of citrus and this fruit mentioned. I had to buy it. I can report it is quite yummy and refreshing. Fragrant. Not quite like yuzu, it’s a different hybrid, supposedly mandarin and kumquat, but still a very nice aroma. Wonder where fresh fruit can be found, I’m sure whereever you go for your Philippino shopping.

3.5 out of 4 vitamin C’d monkeys, I’m sure a fresh squeezed version would be great, but this still brings back “Sweet Memories Of Cebu”!

Goodness My Gracious!

Published on December 19, 2009 in Culture and rant by risu. Closed

This cracks me up!  This reply to one of Root’s AE86 or FX16 threads was so funny that I had to let y’all see it:

Intimately, the post is really the sweetest on this worthy topic. I concur with your conclusions and will thirstily look forward to your upcoming updates. Saying thanks will not just be enough, for the fantasti c clarity in your writing. I will directly grab your rss feed to stay abreast of any updates. Fabulous work and much success in your business enterprise!

Everybody, please don’t panic!

Ghost from the Past

Published on December 16, 2009 in bike, Culture and SUAR by risu. Closed

Weird.  Alexi from the old MTB XC racing days dropped by McBike on Tuesday.  I knew he moved back to the Bay Area years back, but he’s been intermittently returning to the islands.  This time, he returned with his >2-year-old daughter.

(0)

XMAS FTP

Published on December 10, 2009 in Culture, rant and SUAR by risu. Closed

I dislike the holiday season, not only because it is a thinly veiled attempt to force Judeo-Christian monotheism down non-believers’ throats through habituation by disguising it as a commercial holiday, but also because of the horrid seasonal music. Jack Frost, stay the F away from my nose, you pervert! …and WTF is a “Jingle Horse” anyway?

(0)

Micronesian Explosion

Published on December 7, 2009 in Culture and SUAR by risu. Closed

Not quite a haiku:
Ala Moana Center ground floor
the Odyssey taxi door opens
an explosion of Micronesian children

(0)

2009 Awamori Festival

Published on December 3, 2009 in Culture, Food and rant by risu. Closed

I won a ticket to tonight’s Awamori Festival fundraiser from the JCCH.  I was anticipating a learning experience about Awamori, but I learned more beforehand from Wikipedia, since all they had was “Z” and various fruity cocktails made from it.  I even brought a notebook and pen so I could write stuff down and write a really informative post!  I got three drinky tickets with my entrance ticket, so the first thing I had was a shot shaken with ice.  Whatever “Z” was wasn’t top shelf, and the shot was seriously on the short side.  At least the Asian sister who poured my second shot on the rocks gave the yellow brother a long pour.  Mitch came late, so they didn’t give him any drinly tickets, so I gave him my third, although he used it for a soda.  The food was pedestrain buffet fare, and none of it of a Ryukyu bent.  WTF?!  At least there was a good Okinawan dance performance, and I got to hang out with Mitch, Melissa, and a bunch of really nice people.  The skies were dark and ominous on the way ofer to ATM after work, and sure as shingles, the sky opened up with wind whipped rain and lightning as soon as the event was underway.  Everyone had to crowd under whatever shelter they could find at the open-air venue.  I ran into Derrick from the JCCH whose friends were performing.  Sorry – I’d write more, but I’m really tired (Fabio, you didn’t miss much).

Here are some pictures

Simply Discrete?

Published on December 2, 2009 in car, Culture, rant and SUAR by risu. Closed

Saw an old Lexus LS 400 today with the “VIP” tuning thing going on.  There was a diecut on the rear windscreen that said, “Simply Discrete – Keepin’ it Simple, Yet Discrete”.  Huh?  WTF?  That doesn’t make any sense whatsoever!

(0)

Fear of an Asian Planet

Published on October 31, 2009 in anime, Culture, rant and SUAR by risu. Closed

I saw the later half of the “Scooby Doo: The Mystery Begins” movie today, and the only understanding I can gather about all the complaints that they cast an “Asian” as Velma is that this is racism. The actress, Hayley Kiyoko Alcroft is half-Asian, so therefore is also “half white”. So what’s the problem? She’s no more Asian than she is white – why is she being labeled as “only Asian”? It’s like a famous American mixed-ethnicity politician being labeled as “America’s first Black President” or another mixed-ethnicity professional athlete being identified for only his father’s race. Do these complainers only see what they consider an “impurity”, and not the remaining white side? That’s seriously Third Reich thinking. Alcroft performs the role well, regardless of her ethnicity. The show’s producers were not trying to “Asianify” the character: They cast the actress that fit the role the best. Period. A syndicated reviewer mentioned the whole “Asian” thing and went on to say that she also didn’t have freckles like the original cartoon character, almost intimating that being Asian was mutually exclusive to having freckles, and therefore made her another level inappropriate. Sorry, dude – Asians get freckles too.

(0)

Blitzkrieg mit dem Fleischgewehr

Published on October 20, 2009 in Culture and Review by risu. Closed

liebe_ist_fur_alle_daHow can you possibly go wrong with a line like that?

Rammstein’s latest album Liebe Ist Fur Alle Da got its USDM release today. Hooray! I grabbed the special 2-disc edition on sale for under $15 USD including tax at the blue and yellow place. The single-disc standard release is going for around $10 plus tax. I do not think the North American market will get the limited edition box set for some reason… I got almost all the way through the first disc while driving around this evening, and this is one of the first albums in a long time that had me grinning maniacally while cranking up the volume. This album is a return to the more hard-driving sound of Mutter era, but isn’t relying on formula – it combines some of their past influences from the electronic eighties into their overpowering industrial metal sound.

Go grab it while it’s on sale!

Highly recommended

Four out of four fleischgewehr grabbing schimpanzen