VariationBlog

Some Words for The Class of '09

noreply@blogger.com (variationblog) — Fri, 22 May 2009 21:11:00 +0000

I generally thank finals for stealing me away from variationblogging. After polishing off my last final (not well, mind you) last week, I packed up my stuff and hauled everything over to Moorpark to kick the summer off. But not before going to Pomona's commencement on May 17. The ceremony was common graduation fare, minus the alma mater, of course, but I was taken by the eloquence of some of the guest speakers.

In Claremont to claim her honorary doctorate, Mary Schmich PO '75 read playfully through her spam-worthy Wear Sunscreen speech (the same one that was hijacked by Baz Luhrman and quickly became fodder for forward-happy employees the world over). Simple and elegant.

Also receiving an honorary degree, Chicano playwright Luis Valdez drew a standing ovation with his call for social activism over complaisance (and vocal support for workers' rights on campus).

THE commencement speaker was Bob Herbert, author and columnist for The New York Times. As can be expected from a newsman, Herbert's message was tempered and practical. It's a tough world the class of 2009 enters into, but it's not an impossible one. The America our generation inherits is bleaker than the those of Herbert's, but there's potential for rebirth.

Ever a sucker for graduation speeches, I took some time this week to take a survey of exercises from around the country. Here are the five I've been most impressed with:

1) Ellen Degeneres at Tulane University. How can you not like a speech that name-checks Lady Ga-Ga while advocating equal rights?

2) Michelle Obama at UC-Merced. Striking "the balance between politics and sanity," the First Lady calls on graduates to organize and give back.

3)Ben Bernanke at Boston College Law School. "Things have a way of working out," he says. I want to believe that.

4) Barack Obama at ASU. "There's always more to do. Always more to learn. And always more to achieve."

5) Eric Schmidt at UPenn. Google CEO on the newfangled world 2009 graduates inherit and what it all means.

Adventureland

noreply@blogger.com (variationblog) — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 20:35:00 +0000

It's the story of a recent Oberlin graduate returning home an overqualified intellect not really qualified for anything. The story of a meandering 20-something forced to forego Ivy League ambitions to take on a menial job at Adventureland, a decaying backwater amusement park where future takes pause to take in the shitty glory of it all.

Sitting in on a Monday night showing of Adventureland, Greg Mottola's newest ode to youth, I was struck by the realization that James's story may not be so different from my own. Our liberal arts degrees in hand, Pomona students enter the world with an appreciation for the life of the mind, but little knowledge of life itself. James, an Oberlin alum, trades the halls of the elite Ohio liberal arts college for life back home in Pittsburgh, his medieval ruminations displaced by crooked carnival games and giant ass pandas. He was supposed to travel through Europe, supposed to study journalism at Columbia, supposed to find love. Instead, he lives at home doing minimum wage work to kill time while he waits for the life he thought he'd have to start. Just as you'd expect, it never arrives. But James moves on anyway.

Just as he did in Superbad, Mottola is able in this film to find comedy in reality with situational humor derived more from the audience's understanding of the character than from any simple gaff. The acting is nuanced with a clear understanding of vulnerabilities and insecurities that all of the characters, and all people really, face as they come to terms with life as it is and not as it should be. And the soundtrack manages to flow seamlessly from saccharine 80's pop ("Rock Me Amadaeus" plays no less than 5 times) to The Velvet Underground. It's a transformative film in the vein of Superbad that deals with real issues and the real people dealing with them. A must see.

Spring Break '09

noreply@blogger.com (variationblog) — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 09:35:00 +0000

For Spring Break, I visited my friend Sasha at NYU for the week. I promise you my obsession with "How I Met Your Mother" and "The Office" (the New York episodes anyway) did not influence my decision, although it couldn't have hurt. Here's an itemized break-down of what I did back east:

Saturday, March 14:
Arrive at LGA
Takoyaki at Otafuku in the East Village
High-tops & Red Mango in SoHo
Delivery from Sirtaj
Incriminating Facebook videos
3 AM Karaoke in K-town

Sunday, March 15:
Pomona reunion in SoHo
Getting lost on the B train to Brooklyn
NYU reunion in Brighton Beach
Russian/Uzbek food and music videos
Evening walk to Coney Island
P. Diddy Cheesecake & McDonald's bonding in Brooklyn
Packing for DC

Washington, DC
Monday, March 16
6 AM bus from NYC to DC Chinatown
Checking into hotel in Maryland
Return to DC for walk around National Mall, Lincoln Memorial, White House
Early dinner at Chipotle-McDonalds in Chinatown

Tuesday, March 17: Bojangles & purchasing supplies
Arlington National Cemetery
Capitol Building & Supreme Court
Thai food in Chinatown
Hotel party

New York City
Wednesday, March 18: Final visit to 7-11
Pandas at the DC Zoo
Recovering from the 4-hour drive back to NYC
Obligatory Times Square photo-op
The search for the chicken & rice truck on Broadway
Party back at the apartment

Thursday, March 19: Chinese food galore in Flushing (duck buns, pork buns, lamb skewers, noodles, shave ice, egg custard)
Obligatory Central Park & Upper East Side visit
Bulgogi at Woorijip in Koreatown

Friday, March 20: Chinese food & ice cream in the snow
The hellish trip back to California:
-Getting lost on the 1 Train in Harlem
-Backtracking to 47th to get to Queens
-Shady and expensive taxi ride to La Guardia
-Finding out flight was delayed, getting moved to a flight from JFK
-Shuttle bus from LGA to JFK
-6 hour delay in the terminal

1000 Books Everyone Must Read (Before They Die)

noreply@blogger.com (variationblog) — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 09:12:00 +0000

From Chocolate Geek's Flickr/Creative Commons
With the launch of the Kindle 2 earlier this week, my Twitter stream has been full of calls for book suggestions and their appropriate responses. Although I do not really have the time for leisure reading during the semester, I've long been interested in finding a complete list of books that I need to read before I die, a full list that might show me exactly how to live. From @mrskutcher's twitter, a list of a 1,000 novels that everyone must read before they croak from the UK's The Guardian. (Note: Because of the list's British-ness, some suggestions will obviously be a bit quirky to US sensibilities, and I'm sure some American classics have been omitted.)

Welcome to Hawaii

noreply@blogger.com (variationblog) — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 20:38:00 +0000

Here's a great clip from the Rock's appearance last night on Saturday Night Live. Not saying it's 100% accurate, but it definitely hits close to home.

Ita-cho Japanese Restaurant Review

noreply@blogger.com (variationblog) — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 07:13:00 +0000

(Photo Courtesy Ita-cho Restaurant on Yelp)
Having thoroughly enjoyed our culinary foray into LA's Korean BBQ scene,
a friend and I decided that it was time to tackle Japanese cuisine, with some Yelp help of course. In search of decent sushi and authentic Japanese cooking, we set our sights on a small joint in West Hollywood called Ita-cho Japanese Restaurant.

The restaurant's decor was simple and elegant, though not as swanky as other places that I've driven past. It sorta reminded me of those mom-and-pop places back in Hawaii, with an added bit of Hollywood interior design know-how.

Despite knowing Japanese food pretty well, the menu took us both a little while to decipher. Attempting to capitalize on the Asian fusion movement, a number of the dishes, though based on Japanese staples, have been accented with exotic ingredients and preparations. We settled on a plate of the Wagyu Beef with Ponzu sauce [read: thinly-sliced steak with lemon-infused soy sauce] and Tako Karaage [battered and deep fried octopus legs]. We also had to order rice separate, which I did not appreciate at all.

When the food came, we were underwhelmed. The dishes, unbeknownst to us, were meant to serve as Japanese tapas, and were not enough to serve the two of us. In any case, the dishes were quite good. The Wagyu Beef was cooked medium-rare so that it remained buttery and tender, and was perfectly complemented by the subtle tang of the ponzu dipping sauce. The tako, though battered a tad too liberally, was tasty and not too greasy.

If I'm being perfectly honest, the restaurant was a bit of a disappointment. The food was better than average, but came in portions too tiny to enjoy and at too high a price. The atmosphere was nice, but the service was sub-par. A hit and miss, but great to be out and about sampling Japanese in LA.

Kanye Tells Stories

noreply@blogger.com (variationblog) — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 19:59:00 +0000

Pardon the influx of Kanye West stuff today, but there's no denying that he's got some very interesting projects on his plate. (Via Hypebeast) He recently appeared on VH1 Storytellers with an interesting set that really pushed the boundaries of his performance art. On the futuristic, minimalist set, Kanye laid bare some of the emotion that went into 808's & Heartbreaks while giving us some new interpretations of the classics. Aside from the off the cuff comments on Chris Brown and that shag, a great series of performances and some soul searching from today's hardest working man in the biz.

VH1 TV Shows | Music Videos | Celebrity Photos | News & Gossip

Flashing Lights

VH1 TV Shows | Music Videos | Celebrity Photos | News & Gossip

Say You Will

How We Got Into This Mess.

noreply@blogger.com (variationblog) — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 19:47:00 +0000

The Crisis of Credit Visualized from Jonathan Jarvis on Vimeo.

(via Philthy Blog) So much of the disagreement over the economic stimulus package relies on misinformation. Here's a brief and really engaging synopsis of how the world economy was flushed down the drain. May it provide clarity for a solution.

Louis Vuitton x Kanye West

noreply@blogger.com (variationblog) — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 19:02:00 +0000

(Via Hypebeast) More leaks of Kanye West's new sneaker-design project with Louis Vuitton have been leaked ahead of their June 2009 debut in stores. Some are just new colorways of old models (like the pink soles above), but there are also a few totally new designs. Kanye has said that he is considering taking a break from music to hone his design skills, and this may be his cup of tea after all. Something to fall back on...

Who's Tweeting?

noreply@blogger.com (variationblog) — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 07:41:00 +0000

I'm going to try to keep you all updated on who I'm following on Twitter from time to time. Celebrities, prolific tweeters, downright interesting folk.

New finds this week:

Ashton Kutcher (aplusk) - Actually tweets a lot about important social issues when he's not, you know, bragging about being married to Demi Moore.

Demi Moore (mrskutcher) - Like her husband, tweets about social action and is really really into her dogs.

Kim Fassler (kimfassler) - A blogger for The Honolulu Advertiser, she provides some great insight from a twenty-something-from-Hawaii-living-away-from-home perspective

Rainn Wilson (rainnwilson) - As an Office fan, how could I not? But seriously, Rainn offers some great commentary on family life and being a Baha'i.

David Gregory (davidgregory) - As the host of Meet the Press, you might expect Mr. Gregory to have some intern do his tweeting (here's looking at you Anderson Cooper). But this guy actually tweets. From the White House to Whitehall. Good stuff.

Any more suggestions? Pass them along!

Late Night w/ Jimmy Fallon

noreply@blogger.com (variationblog) — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 06:44:00 +0000

Jimmy Fallon made his premiere last night replacing Conan as the host of Late Night. I feel like the start of any series is always a bit awkward as everyone attempts to find their footing. The freshness of it all aside, Fallon (who I was a big fan of back on Weekend Update) did a decent job. I did notice that his delivery is more akin to Leno's than O'Brien's, save the paying-people-to-lick-things tendencies.

Favorite line of the night: Jay isn't leaving.

The Fact of the Matter

noreply@blogger.com (variationblog) — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 05:22:00 +0000

I publish this begrudgingly, believing that the issues that I am pressed to discuss here are not worth my dignifying them with a response. When attacked on baseless grounds on multiple occasions, however, I believe that it is necessary that I take a firm stance to ensure that the truth--not just what has been twisted, filtered and spit out--is aired. And because this blog is meant to be a platform for my personal, not professional, musings, I will keep this short.

In his "Is Travis Kaya Up to His Old Habits of Plagiarizing the CI?," Charles Johnson of The Claremont Conservative and The Claremont Independent recently leveled some pretty hefty accusations against me regarding an article I authored for The Student Life newspaper. Published Feb. 27, the article discusses Claremont McKenna's withdrawal from the QuestBridge scholarship program, which was covered by the CI on Feb. 14. Johnson, who wrote the CI piece, says that I plagiarized the article, which is categorically false and reveals, ironically, a lack of investigation on the part of the blogger himself.

Firstly, all quotes and figures in the article were the product of my own reporting. I was in personal contact with CMC Dean of Admissions Richard Vos. All quotes from Dean Vos come from my correspondence with Dean Vos.

Secondly, The Student Life explicitly credits The Claremont Independent for the reporting that it did in its Feb. 14 piece, saying that the issue was first brought to light in that publication. It is true that my editors at The Student Life assigned me the story after learning about it in the CI, and it was duly noted. It was relevant news that TSL believed warranted coverage in its pages, albeit from a larger Pomona and 5C perspective.

Thirdly, it is obvious when comparing the CI and TSL pieces that there are a number of departure points between Johnson's reporting and my own. TSL attempted to tackle the issue from a perspective outside of the confines of CMC where Johnson centered his analysis. I include commentary from Pomona College administrators and students, where the CI piece does not. I include pertinent budget information gleaned from Trevor Hunnicutt's reporting on CMC finances, where the CI piece does not. Just as the CI provides information that TSL did not include because it did not seem immediately relevant to our readership.

Please, Mr. Johnson, descend from your high horse to take a closer look at my work before you make hasty and possibly damaging judgments. Plagiarism is not something that I take lightly, and I do not appreciate baseless accusations of plagiarism being leveled against me on such a public platform. Perhaps next time you should do a bit more investigating of your own, Charles.

Grapevine Fires

noreply@blogger.com (variationblog) — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 19:07:00 +0000

(via Kanye's Blog) Here's Death Cab's newest video for 'Grapevine Fires'

350.org

noreply@blogger.com (variationblog) — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 05:22:00 +0000

(via takepart) I'm a sucker for cool animated shorts, especially if they're trying to get an important point across. The video above is promoting a new international climate change pact that will work to reduce atmostpheric CO2 to 350 parts per million. It attempts to quantify the uphill battle against climate change so that we can measure our progress. Read up on it at 350.org.

5 Songs for Shitty Days

noreply@blogger.com (variationblog) — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 10:01:00 +0000

Now I don't like to use this blog as a platform for my whining (that's what xanga was for), but as far as days go, today scrapes dangerously close to the bottom. I sometimes believe that optimism is one of my strong points--don't tell me otherwise, I'll be saddened--but it's hard to keep your head up on a day when all this goes down:

1) Woke up 15 minutes late and had to rush to prep for my commute
2) Realized 30 minutes into the drive that I had forgotten my laptop and made the decision to turn back for it
3) Was burdened the entire day with stomach pains from that lingering virus
4) Took 1 hr 30 min to drive from Beverly Hills to downtown
5) Fought downtown traffic to arrive an hour after Panda Express had closed
6) Found that the Honor Fraser Gallery was closed after planning to see the KAWS exhibition for weeks
7) Arrived at Starbucks needing to use wi-fi just after it closed; Sat outside hoping to get a free signal, but couldn't connect
8) Driving aimlessly around looking for a Coffee Bean only to find one without any parking in a 2 mile radius
9) Having to steal wi-fi from some random apartment I was parked outside of
10) Looking for the Kogi BBQ truck on twitter only to find out it had closed just minutes prior

I tell you this not so that you take pity on me. Trust me, I've given enough of that to myself today. I tell you this because I'm laughing at it. Yeah it sucked and yeah I would like do-overs on basically everything, but to tell you the truth, I don't know if I would gain any more if the day had gone perfectly. Change my perspective and I see a pretty not-bad day at work topped off with a tour of the city with a friend that will not be seeing the city for a while. As for all the stuff I missed, that'll be there for tomorrow's adventure.

In case you might need them, 5 songs for shitty days like this one...
1) Modest Mouse - Float On (The View also works here)

2) Emiliana Torrini - Today Has Been Okay

3) The Shirelles - Mama Said

4) The Weepies - Can't Let Go

5) Phantom Planet - Lonely Day

Charles the Hamilton

noreply@blogger.com (variationblog) — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 08:08:00 +0000

(Photo courtesy Marco P.S.'s flickr)

Earlier this week, I posted videos of Complex Magazine's Leaders of the New Cool, including one up-and-comer named Charles Hamilton. He's an irreverent rapper with geeky tendencies that I really like. He moves flawlessly from samples of classic Sonic the Hedgehog to Modest Mouse, and it all makes sense in the Hamiltonian logic of things. If Kanye and Common drafted the blueprints for the new face of hip-hop, Charles Hamilton is laying down the foundation.

Download his mixtape Sonic the Hamilton here. [Standout track: Fans Are Cool]

Twitter on Nightline

noreply@blogger.com (variationblog) — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 07:31:00 +0000

I've been on Twitter since last summer when some of my coworkers at BroadSpire mentioned that they'd been doing it from their iPhones. Being abroad for a bit, I had neglected to update my account, and having my texting capabilities limited didn't help either. (I'm oh so sorry.)

Since starting my work at takepart.com, I have been on twitter quite a lot and have become slightly obsessed. I've even attempted to start the twitter-fever with my colleagues at KSPC. We run a social-political talk radio program that I think is very relevant to the twitter world, so why not try to amass a following and get feedback along the way. When pitching the idea to my fellow staff members who didn't understand the twitter phenomenon, I was met with some perplexed looks. And my attempts to explain exactly what twitter is were feeble at best.

In the clip above (found via twitter, of course), it seems that even its founders struggle with that problem...

Do you hear what I hear?

noreply@blogger.com (variationblog) — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 05:42:00 +0000

Created by Train Horns

So this is probably just a bunch of internet nonsense, but I find it pretty cool. The embedded audio test above plays a high pitched noise that can generally only be heard by people under 25 years of age. Can you hear it?

Doctor Manhattan

noreply@blogger.com (variationblog) — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 00:29:00 +0000

Here's a cool short of the technology that went into the filming/animating of Doctor Manhattan of The Watchmen in all his CGI-glory.

Must Try Kimchi Quesadillas

noreply@blogger.com (variationblog) — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 09:02:00 +0000

Last week, I mentioned my sudden urge for Korean BBQ after overhearing a couple of coworkers discussing Korean food they picked up from a truck outside of the office in Beverly Hills. Today, I see that the impetus for my own Korean food craving has actually made it to The New York Times . Here's something I've gotta try...

The mobile restaurant is called Kogi Korean BBQ-To-Go. The Los Angeles-based lunch truck is really stretching the limits of California fusion cuisine by mixing traditional Korean flavors with Mexican stand-bys. Their menu includes everything from spicy pork tacos to kimchi quesadillas. It may sound strange, but judging from the omg-this-is-so-good histrionics I heard from my coworkers, it's definitely worth the try.

Kogi is also one of the most high tech lunch wagon operations out there apparently. They notify die-hard fans of their location as they move from spot to spot via their twitter account, and maintain a blog chronicling the development of the company. Korean-Mexican fusion via twitter? What a brave new world this is...

KAWS exhibit opens in LA

noreply@blogger.com (variationblog) — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 05:45:00 +0000

From the line of fanboys I saw snaking around the corner of the Honor Fraser gallery Friday, KAWS's west coast gallery premiere was a resounding success. I was planning on making it to the opening to see the artist among his work, but the line was way too long even two hours after the doors had opened. Perhaps next week...

Read what The Los Angeles Times had to say about 'The Long Way Home' here.

Leaders of the New Cool

noreply@blogger.com (variationblog) — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 01:23:00 +0000

Last fall, Complex Magazine profiled 5 of the freshest acts on the hip hop scene in an impressive feature entitled "Leaders of the New Cool." We're talking the absolute best in music, style and attitude. In the blowing up hopster movement (think hipster meets hip hop), these are the new heavyweights:

1) The Cool Kids

2) Charles Hamilton (expect more on him later)

3) Wale

4) The Knux

5) B.O.B.

Battle of the Box

noreply@blogger.com (variationblog) — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 00:35:00 +0000

As an owner of a 2008 Scion xB, I'm quite fascinated by cars that push the limit on design. The new Nissan Cube may be the heir apparent to the xB design aesthetic. Although I concede that the new Cube may make the xB look pedestrian, I'm wondering how it holds up under the closer scrutiny. So, I've decided to compare the specs and let you decide which car rules in the battle of the box.

First up, the Scion xB (via Popular Mechanics):
+MSRP: $16,600
+158 horsepower
+MPG: 22 City; 28 Hwy
+2.4 liter engine
+Seats 5

Now, the Nissan Cube (via Nissan News):
+MSRP: $13,300
+122 horsepower
+MPG: 30 Hwy
+1.8 liter engine
+Seats 5

Korean BBQ @ Beul Dae Po

noreply@blogger.com (variationblog) — Sat, 21 Feb 2009 19:01:00 +0000

(Photo courtesy Cathy K. on Yelp)

I met up with a friend last night after work, and after hearing some of my co-workers discussing the Korean BBQ they got from the truck outside our office on Thursday, I had a hankering for some of that greasy stuff. So, I turned to Yelp (a very cool resource I started using this summer when looking for places to get pizza downtown).

The place we chose was Beul Dae Po in Koreatown.

Walking into the place was bit intimidating. The decor in the restaurant I think is supposed to be reminiscent of your run-of-the-mill BBQ stand in Korea. The walls were done in corrugated metal roofing, smoke pretty much filled the entire hall and at each of the tables metal piping fueled gas grills. All the signs were in Korean. The television was set to Korean TV. Everyone around us was chatting in Korean. (Mind you, neither I nor my friend know a word of the language). We were greeted upon entry by a Korean woman who immediately addressed us in Korean; I'm presuming she asked us how many people were dining. I put two fingers up and she sat us.

We ended up ordering (mostly by pointing at the menu in a sorta confused way) one plate of beef brisket and another of pork ribs. And it must've been our lucky day...we got a free plate of marinated pig intestines--apparently a house specialty. Took a little bit for them to get the food to our table, but once it did it was fantastic. We grilled our own food at the table, badly charring some of the beef slices and under-cooking others. With the three dipping sauces (one sweet, one salty and one like spicy gyoza sauce), the meat was great. The intestines, I must say, were a bit difficult to deal with at first because of the thick, gritty goop on the inside, but I guess they grew on me.

And although I still smell like Korean restaurant, I am already thinking about going back. Next time, I think I'll take one of those phrasebooks with me just in case.

Yankee Gal

noreply@blogger.com (variationblog) — Sat, 21 Feb 2009 18:54:00 +0000

Yankee Gal from Yankee Team on Vimeo.
Awesome animation clip. I would tell you more, but I don't speak French. Here's what Fubiz had to say about it:

Voici un court métrage d’animation 3D, réalisé en 2008, par quatre personnes de l’école Supinfocom. Il met en scène les dernières pensées d’un pilote juste avant le crash de son avion. A la clé : animation 2D/3D et effets spéciaux à découvrir dans la suite.