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November 29, 2004
Prince of Persia
It's coming! It's coming! The sequel to Prince of Persia: Sands of Time (above) is going to be released on Dec. 2 and I'll be buying it with the gift card to Circuit City that Don gave me for my birthday. The new game is called Prince of Persia: Warrior Within.
Prince of Persia originally came out back in the '80s or so, but I'd never heard of it until we got a PS2 system, but it was the best game I had ever played. It kept me hooked with the endless puzzles and kept Don busy fighting all the monsterous creatures in the game. It was the ONLY game I'd ever seen get a 5 out of 5 review rating on Tech TV's X-Play. Not to mention the graphics completely rule over all.
Prince of Persia: Warrior Within is supposed to be darker, bloodier, and more terrifying. The Prince is supposed to have even more incredible moves than before, including the ability to use 2 swords at once and cut off the heads of his enemies. The puzzles and fights will be more difficult as well. When we get it, I'm sure I'll become a recluse from the outside world as I did for the first one, trying to win the game. So consider yourself forewarned.
Posted by Amy at 04:21 PM | Comments (2)
November 26, 2004
Happy Thanksgiving!
We had a lovely Thanksgiving dinner at Aunt Nancy & Uncle John's house. Almost everyone was there, including Jessica and Brian with my cute little nephew, Derek, who was the most popular person in the house. The turkey was deliciously tender and the stuffing was mighty tasty. And the conversation was engaging, including the inside scoop we got from Jim about the "malice at the Palace". Even cousin Mike and Judy made it over with the kids from Virginia. And it was so wonderful to see them and everyone else!
Posted by Amy at 03:15 PM | Comments (2)
November 24, 2004
It's My Birthday!
Having a birthday so close to Thanksgiving (and sometimes on Thanksgiving) really used to suck. Birthday parties were always a bust because everyone was busy visiting their families for the holiday.
This year, Don got me a cool new iPod, I had a massage this afternoon, then Don will take me out tonight for dinner to have the most fiendishly good lamb chops and creme brulee for dessert.
Then on December 16, he's also taking me to see one of our favorite singers, Leann Rimes. She does a mean rendition of Led Zepplin's song "Rock and Roll". She's performing with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, so I expect it'll be a festive holiday concert.
I do believe this is the best birthday I've ever had!
Posted by Amy at 04:30 PM | Comments (3)
November 22, 2004
What A Weekend! What A Week!
What a heck of a weekend we had! Friday night, we discovered a great new Mexican restaurant called Los Tres Amigos and it was the night of the ugly Palace disturbance; Satuday, we went to yet another dojo wedding (the fifth this year); and Sunday, Don officially received his black belt in Aikido.
Not to mention my birthday is Wednesday and Thanksgiving is Thursday. Tomorrow, Mom and Dad are taking me to my favorite Chinese restaurant in West Bloomfield (Shangri-La), then Wednesday, Don and I are having massages and then he's going to take me out for dinner at the Chop House for my favorite lamb chops. YUMMY!!
Posted by Amy at 04:12 PM | Comments (0)
November 21, 2004
Black Eye For Indiana Pacers
(AP Photo)
Indiana Pacers' Ron Artest (above) should be ashamed of himself. He should get jailtime and he should apologize to the nation, to the NBA and to its fans.
After watching all the media coverage of the incident between the Pacers and the Pistons, it seems to me that although the media acknowledges that it was caused mainly by Ron Artest, the way they've been talking makes it sound as if they blame Detroit for being the instigators. Artest was the one who arrogantly fouled Ben Wallace--a foul that was uncalled for and unnecessary as the Pacers were winning the game; Artest was the one who charged the stands; Artest was the one who decked a few fans, and not even the one that threw the drink at him.
After hearing things like, "This is a black eye for Detroit", I can't help but be incredibly annoyed. The national media can't wait to put us down because it happened in here. They make it sound as if the entire city is to blame when it was only a handful of people. They make it sound as if we were the instigators. And while I don't condone what our fans did (throwing food and drink on Artest as he was leaving the court), I do think Artest and his teammates deserved everything they got, including Artest's suspension from the remaining season. They brought it on themselves. If anything, this is a black eye for Indiana and the Pacers.
Yes, there were fans who acted inappropriately and yes, Ben Wallace shouldn't have retaliated. But that doesn't give Artest justification for what he did. And for what he did, I strongly feel he should be ejected from the NBA, especially considering his ill-behavior previous to Friday's incident, and especially if this is what Artest needs to do to win games.
Posted by Amy at 11:47 PM | Comments (4)
November 19, 2004
Dan, Dan, The Photographer Man
(Dan Laursen photo)
I just had to feature one of Dan Laursen's works of art...and I do mean art! He seems to have a natural and extraordinary talent for capturing children in photography. If you check out his photo gallery, you'll see several pictures of Paige & Josie Caldwell. In them, he's captured perfectly the innocence, wonder, and beauty of being a child. I think his black and white photos are particularly poetic and this photo happens to be one of my favorites.
Dan's done a fabulous job, so let's all give him a round of applause!
Posted by Amy at 04:30 PM | Comments (0)
November 18, 2004
Sicker Than A Dog
Poor Don. It seems he's gone and caught a sniffle, hence his very unhappy face here in this picture. Not sure where or from whom he caught it, but it seems that's the reason he's started snoring again. I suppose I should have known. Usually, the only time Don snores is if he's sick (or getting sick) or extremely tired.
The last few nights have been somewhat unpleasant for me to be sleeping. Although Don has been taking his allergy pill (see the October 22 log entry), he had a relapse. The other night, I started up in bed being disturbed by the sound of a freight train, squirmed on the couch for a while before I finally ended up in the guest bedroom.
I guess Don's immune system can't withstand a germ-an attack and I'll just have to wait till he get's better to get a decent night's sleep again. *SIGH*
Posted by Amy at 12:00 AM | Comments (3)
November 17, 2004
The Art of the Japanese Sword
This is something I hope to someday begin learning. It's called Iaido (pronounced ee-yi-doe). I have always had a real fascination with the Katana (Japanese sword) and the beauty and art of weilding it.
Sensei Nick Suino (pictured at right) teaches at the Institute of Traditional Asian Martial Arts dojo in E. Lansing about once a month. He is one of the most premier swordsmen in North America and a former student of Sensei Karl Scott, my sensei at the Asian Martial Arts Studio in Ann Arbor. I'm really lucky to be in the presence of SO many people that are so talented in the martial arts that also are able to instruct me.
Don has already started taking lessons from him and I would like to as well very soon. Right now, I'm working on getting myself back up to speed after my 3 month absence from karate, in preparation for the upcoming test in a couple months. Sensei Suino has already told me that he wants me to join his class. All I need to do is get permission from Mr. Scott and I'm all set.
Posted by Amy at 12:39 PM | Comments (0)
November 15, 2004
The Last Samurai
The Last Samurai is perhaps the most masterfully made movie I have ever seen. It's an epic tale of an American man who starts out as an alcoholic war veteran of the late 1800's and grows to become a noble samurai warrior, helping to fight for the survival of the old traditions of the Japanese people.
I was never a huge fan of Tom Cruise. I always thought he did an adequate job in most of his movies, but he never struck me as an actor of high drama. But then I saw this movie and I came into a new-found respect for his talent as an actor. It pains me deeply that he didn't even get a nomination for best actor, let alone an award for it. His co-star, Ken Watanabe, performed most impressively as well.
Even the music is amazing with its emotionally sweeping melodies and stirring drums. It is written by the same man who does the music for Gladiator and is as beautiful to watch as it is to hear.
The Last Samurai also does a fantastic job of portraying many of the nuances of Asian culture. For instance, Tom Cruise's character, Nathan Algren, is wounded in a battle against the Samurai, then captured and nursed back to health. He's allowed to wander the Japanese village under guard and observes and is impressed by two young boys practicing their swordfighting with boken (wooden swords). When encouraged to try his hand against one of the boys, he is admonished by a superior Samurai and commanded to put the boken down. He repeatedly refuses and is thus, beaten with each refusal. It was clear that Algren's defiance means his opponent loses face, yet simultaneously portrays his indomitable spirit which becomes more apparent throughout the movie and it is this spirit that brings him to lead the Samurai rebellion against the Emperor's army which is dead set on adopting the more modern Western ways of railroads, firearms and trade.
I HIGHLY recommend you watch this movie, if you haven't already seen it. And if you have seen it, watch it again. You'll pick up more and more every time you do.
Also, The Last Samurai official web site contains a lot of information not just on the movie, but also historical information about Japan, the Samurai, and the Japanese culture. There's a lot to learn here! Please check it out.
Posted by Amy at 02:33 PM | Comments (1)
November 10, 2004
More Fuzzy Friends
This is Meow Meow. That's not her real name, of course, but she didn't have a collar. She appeared at our doorstep one day and was a very sweet and obviously domesticated kitty. We thought she was a lost stray, so we took her in. At the time, our other 3 cats were at my apartment while we were remodeling our house, so she enjoyed being the queen of the house.
We later found a "lost kitty" flier in our mailbox with her picture and it became apparent that she belonged to someone else and had learned to survive the outdoors. So, very sadly, we let her go home.
Fortunately for us, she returns to visit about every couple weeks. We feed her and give her lots of attention. We tried once to integrate her with our other cats, but she did not like them, but she still enjoys visiting us and it's as if we own 4 cats instead of 3.
Posted by Amy at 04:29 PM | Comments (0)
November 09, 2004
Hiy-yah!
Woo hoo! I think I've finally gotten over my knee injury and now I'm back to the dojo doing karate again.
It was a very mysterious injury. One day, my knee just started inexplicably hurting and I was unable to do any kind of impact exercise on it. In fact, sometimes it even hurt to walk normally on it. Looking back, it might have been an over-strain that didn't manifest pain until a couple days after it happened.
I'd had Dr. Jay, my orthopedist work on it several times, doing all sorts of manipulation, but it never really healed for weeks and weeks. Then, he did some lab work and found out that I was deficient in some things you and I have never heard of, but which meant that because of these deficiencies, my ligaments were weak, prone to injury and less likely to heal unless the imbalances were corrected.
So now, I've been taking the supplements he gave me along with glucosamine and vitamin B and I think I'm very nearly close to 100% healed. I went to karate class yesterday, took it kind of easy, soaked in a hot bath afterwards (just as a precaution) and I have no pain. Let's hope my knee stays well, but we'll have to see after a week's worth of classes.
Incidentally, the cartoon you see is an original work of art done by my very talented and very good friend/karate buddy, Kate Barranco. Can you tell who the characters are? Ha ha!
Posted by Amy at 11:50 AM | Comments (2)
November 08, 2004
Meet Bob
This is Bob. Bob is my squirrel friend. Bob lives in a nice oak tree nearby. The other day, Bob thought he'd stop to say hello as I was going to my appointment with Dr. Jay. We had a great conversation, talking about all sorts of subjects like the weather changing, how lovely the trees are at this time of year, the art of collecting nuts, etc. Bob asked me about my love of animals and I told him all about my 3 pet cats, which made him a little nervous until I reassured him that they would never harm him since they're indoor cats. We had a grand time talking until I had to go inside for my appointment. If you see Bob around, don't forget to stop and say hello to him. He's a very friendly fellow.
Posted by Amy at 11:32 AM | Comments (1)
November 05, 2004
Dreams Come In All Sizes
Ok, so you've seen my ultimate dream car. Now, here's a more realistic dream car. I can tell you that though I love my Subaru WRX with it's 227-horsepower turbo-charged engine, I would gladly trade it in for another BMW 3-Series like the one Don drives--a luxurious 325xi, the base model BMW with all-wheel-drive (AWD) and looks just like the one in this picture.
There really is something inexplicable and intangible about the BMW driving experience. When it comes to BMWs (especially with the AWD), you couldn't find a more stable automobile. I thought the Subarus, which are famous for their AWD capability, handle pretty darned good in the snow, but the BMW AWD absolutely blows away the Subaru AWD! It handles like you'd never believe.
As I watched the making of the BMW films, the stunt drivers said that even with the dynamic stability control turned off, they still couldn't get the cars to do the 180/360 spins they wanted until they specifically modified them to do so.
Today, Don mentioned he'd love to get an M3, the uber-sporty and fast (333-horsepower) version of the car you see here. I told him quite seriously that I would happily trade in my WRX for him to get an M3 if he was willing to give me the 325xi. I suspect the M3 is something of a dream car for him, but I'd be more than happy getting matching 325xi's.
Posted by Amy at 02:18 PM | Comments (0)
November 04, 2004
Dare to Dream
This is the ULTIMATE dream car for me, folks! This is the BMW Z4 Roadster. It may look expensive, it even sounds expensive. I mean, it is a BMW after all. But it's actually something of an affordable toy, starting at only $35,000.
The sleek lines and sensuous curves are bring out the beauty of this car. It comes with a fully-automatic soft-top, black leather interior, a solid yet resonant 3.0-liter, 225-horsepower engine, six-speed manual transmission and goes from 0 to 60 in 5.9 seconds. Woo! Incredibly sporty and an absolute dream to drive.
This is the car that was featured in the incredible BMW Z4 movie shorts, found only on-line or on DVD. If you have the bandwidth, I HIGHLY suggest you go to BMWFilms.com to watch.
These movies are made by only the best producers and directors in Hollywood including Ridley Scott (Gladiator, Blade Runner) and Ang Lee (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon). Clive Owen (King Arthur) stars as a driver hired to transport all sorts of people such as James Brown, Madonna, and a special eight-year-old Tibetan monk. It's the action of a full-length feature film compressed into a scant 10 minutes. The stories are incredibly engaging and the driving stunts are jam-packed with adrenaline. Truly cinematic must-see material. Watch and you'll understand why I love the Z4 so!
One day...oh yes, it will be mine!
Posted by Amy at 03:55 PM | Comments (0)
November 02, 2004
The 2004 Presidential Election
Whew! Thank goodness the voting is over!
Don and I went to where we thought we were supposed to vote. I almost thought we weren't going to be able to park because it was so clustered, but we did and luckily before we waited any length of time in line, Don saw a sign saying that our precinct got moved to the A2 airport. So we went to the airport and there was plenty of parking.
We waited in line for about an hour which wouldn't have been so bad were it not for the EXTREMELY annoying lady behind us. She was there with her 3-year-old son and she would NOT stop talking! She kept talking to her son, Ryan, saying things like, "Let's count the number of people in front of us again," and mostly, "If you're a good boy, Ryan, you can put my ballot into the ballot box," then proceeding to give a very lengthy lecture explaining to him how to do so. The woman did not stop talking for 2 seconds!
And if that weren't enough, her son kept bumping into me. And if THAT weren't enough, when we FINALLY did get to the booth to cast our vote, we were told that we had to hand our ballot to this lady at the table so she could remove the numbered stub and then put it in the ballot box. Well, I took a bit longer than this annoying lady so she was in front of me to turn in her ballot. She proceeded to chat with the lady at the table and explain to her son that since he was a good boy, he could have an "I voted" sticker and a piece of candy, holding us up even longer, meanwhile Don is still waiting for me because of this lady. And she either didn't know or didn't care!
By this time, I was so IRRITATED with her, I was about to either yell at her or just outright smack her upside the head! I mean, I would have been able to tolerate her non-stop chatter had it not been for her holding us up as we tried to turn in our ballots. And I thought she would have stopped talking for the 20 seconds it took her to cast her vote, but even then, she didn't stop chattering to her son! I couldn't believe it!
I can tell you with a great degree of certainty that if she had shown up at the Taco Bell we went to immediately afterwards, I would have told Don to get it to go because I could not stand to be in the same room with her for another second!
Now we go to an excruciating wait to find out who becomes our next president. UGH!
Posted by Amy at 09:51 PM | Comments (0)