spasticrobot

2008 Resolutions

As always I'm posting these up in a public forum in order to motivate myself towards success.

Happy New Year to all!

Get Healthy Again. I need to get back into healthy routines again, I feel like my personal de-prioritization of fitness & nutrition are catching up with me in profound ways, both physical and mental. So here’s what I’m committed to: 3 rides per week 10 miles or greater, join NOAC and go twice a week, switch to a 5 healthy meals per day diet, drink only water, skim milk or coffee (limit two cups per day), and  I will monitor my progress in a public forum.   

Fix my Life / Work Balance. I need to learn to increase the amount of downtime I get and to improve the quality of that downtime by being able to relax more and not worry about work so much. I intend to achieve this through workflow optimization and getting work completed so that it isn’t hanging over me “off the clock” as much.

Save More. Tighten up the budget and slash needless spending. As Reverend Run says, become the "Money Chopper".

Grow the Business. I’d like to grow Annunciation modestly and improve our efficiency and effectiveness. Maybe add some new workers to our ever growing pool of brilliant contractors as well.

Best of 2007: Television

Either as a sign that I'm getting old, or that the medium is getting more interesting, the past few years have found me watching more and more television. For the first time ever I feel the need to compile the best television of the past year.

1. LOST
   LOST continues to blow me away with its original and multi-layered narratives, hidden clues, micro-realistic character development, and literary subtext. Season 3 started slow but had one of the best endings yet. I'll miss Charlie and Mr. Eko but I'm so excited to see what happens next. Season 4 starts January 31st.
2. The Wire
   I finally started watching this show in 2006, when Season 4 was airing. I spent the rest of 2007 catching up and watched seasons 1-3. The Wire is possibly the best show ever created and is certainly the best written, most heart wrenching and brutally realistic. Every official in every American city should have to watch the entirety of this show until they get their "system" corrected.
3. The Sopranos
   I wrote about the it earlier this year and it still has people talking. Best ending in television history? I think so.
4. 30 Rock
   A show that can sneak in a bit titled "Werewolf Bar Mitzvah" and make it work has to be the funniest on television. I love Jacky D, Liz Lemon, Tracy Jordan and the rest of the gang.
5. Friday Night Lights
   Friday Night Lights is a total guilty pleasure that delivers every time. Also, whoever thought of shooting this show about West Texas football using cinema verite techniques accompanied by indie pop nuggets is a genius.
6. The War
   Ken Burns sprawling documentary of WWII abroad and at home was incredible and moving. It made me reconsider my thoughts on the subject again. One of my favorite moments was the mini-segment on Carlson's Raiders and the application of commando tactics they learned from the Red Army in China against the Nipponese forces (which is also where the Marine term Gung Ho comes from). Thoroughly interesting stuff!
7. Veronica Mars
   Ah, weren't Keith and Veronica Mars the best father-daughter tandem ever? Why this neo-noir show about a genius teenage gumshoe was ever canceled will always remain a mystery to me. It's nice that Kristen Bell is still hanging around as the narrator of Gossip Girl and Elle on Heroes but I really miss her as Veronica.
8. Heroes
   Great show but weak ass ending this season.
9. Big Love
   Big Love really came to fruition this year. The best parts were the struggles between Roman Grant, Bill Hendrickson and the weird as hell Green brothers.
10. Top Chef
    I can't stop watching. It's brilliant in every way.

Best of 2007: Music

Albums

1. Wincing the Night Away - The Shins
2. Cross - Justice
3. The Darjeeling Limited Soundtrack
4. Graduation - Kanye West
5. Pocket Symphony - Air
6. 23 - Blonde Redhead
7. In Rainbows - Radiohead
8. Please Clap Your Hands EP - The Bird and the Bee
9. In Our Nature - Jose Gonzalez
10. Smokey Rolls Down Thunder Canyon - Devendra Banhart

Songs

• M.I.A.:Paper Planes
• Justice: D.A.N.C.E.
• Kanye West:Can't Tell Me Nothing
• Panda Bear:In Nautica
• Animal Collective:Fireworks
• Black Lips:Katrina (big ups Ian B.)
• LCD Soundsystem:All My Friends
• Tegan and Sara:Back in Your Head
• The Shins:Turn On Me
• Rotary Downs:Sing Like the Sun
• Peter Bjorn and John:Young Folks

Best of 2007: Cinema

Here is my list of the best films released in this very strong year of cinema:

1. There Will Be Blood
   PT Anderson's sweeping epic is in my opinion the greatest achievement in the past two decades of American cinema. Daniel Day Lewis is elemental in his gripping portrayal of Daniel Plainview, the personification of greed and power itself.
   
   
2. No Country For Old Men
   The Coen Brothers fully redeemed themselves with this intense, quiet thriller. Beautiful cinematography and masterful direction fill this film at every turn. Remarkable performances by Javier Bardem, Josh Brolin, Tommy Lee Jones, Kelly McDonald and Woody Harrelson make it one of the most compelling films of the year.
   
   
3. I’m Not There
   It seems like this was a hit or miss film for most people. I loved it. Sure, the Billy the Kid parts were a little hokey but using 6 different actors to play different personaes related to the central subject really worked for me. Also, Cate Blanchett killed it as the reeling, nihilistic, drug addled Dylan. This brave and uniquely Deleuzian film deserves all the praise it can garner.
   
   
4. Eastern Promises
   Cronenberg's most beautifully shot film features Viggo Mortensen in his best role ever. If you aren't scared shitless of the Russian mob after seeing this film you are lying.
   
   
5. Ratatouille
   This warm tale is a celebration of food, passion, and life. The scene with the critic eating Remy's ratatouille for the first time is the best visual description of the complexity of taste ever made.
   
   
6. Zodiac
   David Fincher's sprawling thriller really got into my head. Robert Downey Jr. is superb in this.
   
   
7. Juno
   There are lots of things I didn't like about this film, but the parts I did like were strong enough to make me get over it. Funny, touching, and sweet with just enough reality, delivered mostly by the amazing Ellen Page, to make it seem plausible.
   
   
8. Knocked Up & Superbad
   A tie for 7th for two of the funniest movies of the year.
   
   
9. Into the Wild
   Sean Penn and Emile Hirsch both deserve awards for this film. It's too bad that it came out in such a strong year for movies.
   
   
10. The Darjeeling Limited
    This was a very good variation on the common Wes Anderson motif. But enough already, give us something new to sink our teeth into. How about an intense drama, or a horror film, or a mystery, or anything besides a screwball tragicomedy about disconnected quirky characters set in X (a Texas suburb, a private school, a New York mansion, a boat, a train in India)?

And here are some notable films that I think will impact this list that I haven't yet seen:
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
Syndromes and a Century
Persepolis

2007 Resolutions: How I Did

I did a decent job with my resolutions for 2007:

1. Grow my business. This is my most proud accomplishment of 2007. Things went really well for Annunciation this year. I brought on a brilliant partner, Peter Rigney, who helped me grow the business from a small at-home consultancy into a full fledged enterprise. We brought on several great clients together and things are looking even better for 2008!

2. Return to Health. I utterly failed at this. I'm eating less healthily, still smoking, and exercising less often than I was at this time last year. This will be my primary focus  in 2008. My physical and mental well being requires it.

3. Work Smarter. I succeeded at this for the most part. I've implemented some excellent practices into my workflow, but there's always room for improvement.

4. A New Car. Shanna and I succeeded in this goal. We bought a new Hyundai Sonata, which we absolutely love.

 

Hopefully I can nail all of my forthcoming 2008 resolutions.

1. Grow my business. This is my most proud accomplishment of 2007. Things went really well for Annunciation this year. I brought on a brilliant partner, Peter Rigney, who helped me grow the business from a small at-home consultancy into a full fledged enterprise. We brought on several great clients together and things are looking even better for 2008!

2. Return to Health. I utterly failed at this. I'm eating less healthily, still smoking, and exercising less often than I was at this time last year. This will be my primary focus  in 2008. My physical and mental well being requires it.

3. Work Smarter. I succeeded at this for the most part. I've implemented some excellent practices into my workflow, but there's always room for improvement.

4. A New Car. Shanna and I succeeded in this goal. We bought a new Hyundai Sonata, which we absolutely love.

 

Hopefully I can nail all of my forthcoming 2008 resolutions.

Xmas Time List

Lovely lazy days off
Nintendo Wii
Sweeney Todd
Lillette with good old friends
Makers and Water
Saints vs Eagles :(
Gifts given are always more gratifying than gifts received
Burberry London
Family Time
Goat Cheese Piquillo Peppers
Smoked Salmon Canapes
Fine Cheeses
Frito Pie!
Gift Certificates
1080 Recipes
Personalized Stationary
Juno
5 Happiness

Fresh Perspective on the Public Housing Crisis

The NYTimes is running an excellent article in the Art & Design section today about the Federal push to demolish the housing projects in New Orleans. It raises some interesting new issues and has made me reevaluate my stance on the whole thing.

Where is the plan for these phantom new housing developments? Is the funding for them already in place? Why can't HUD see the psychic tension this is creating here? Why can't  a moratorium on demolition be put in place until new plans are approved, funded, and construction has begun? What's the rush? Cui bono?

This seems like just another massive bungle by the Bush administration that thinly disguises their disregard and contempt for our city and our people.

Blake and I are having an interesting conversation about moving beyond our Post-K period and moving toward a new standard of progressive movement in the city. It's time to figure something new out, in business, in politics, in education, in housing, in healthcare. This city must change if it is to survive and become something greater than what it has been in the past.

Free Rice

Learn vocabulary and give rice to people who need it at the same time. Who knew that two topics so completely unrelated could work in such wonderful harmony.

Persepolis

Wow, this looks very promising.

Side note: Why do so many of the best films come out at the end of the year? Is it the rush to qualify for the Oscars?

Interesting Happenings

Here are two things you should do next week if you are in New Orleans:

Douglas Easterly Lecture

My good friend & mentor Doug Easterly is in town for a lecture at Tulane. He's also going to be speaking at next week's NOMMUG meeting.

From their site:
Douglas Easterly is the author of the recently released book Best Practice: The Pros on Flash. Doug will be giving an overview of this book, covering some of the more interesting projects contained therein.

Best Practice: The Pros on Flash is a forward-thinking book designed to motivate as well as instruct. It showcases leading artists and designers, using their creativity and experience as a launching pad for introducing Flash topics and techniques. This book is well suited for all levels - from newbies to professionals - looking for a fresh perspective on this industry-standard program.

DesCours
New Orleans, new, free, eight-day architecture and visual arts event

This looks really promising. One question though, where's the PR for this event? I hadn't heard a thing about it until last week.

Download the full program here