CNN.com - Columnist axed after taking cash to promote Bush plan - Jan 8, 2005

CNN.com - Columnist axed after taking cash to promote Bush plan - Jan 8, 2005

Bwahahaha .. scumbag. Liberal media my ass.

Wired News: India's Odd Couple: Cops and Tech

Wired News: India's Odd Couple: Cops and Tech

This oughtta put the recent EBay arrest into perspective.

God... this is pure Conan material.

5 Head Laser Pointer-FREE SHIPPING!

It looks like a great deal. Laser pointer for $3.99. But look at the description ..

..great fun for hours! Very high quality precision instrument. Capture the attention of your audience during presentations. Amuse your friends at parties Select your mate from across the room.....

I'm sorry, WHHhaaaaa !? I must be unaware of this new dating ritual. Somehow, I doubt that people get the warm, romantic fuzzies on finding a bright red laser dot aimed at their foreheads.

Wonder why they left out: "Impress potential dates by blinding pilots in low flying aircraft !!"

Don't Be a Loner. Get a Hohner!

Don't Be a Loner. Get a Hohner!

See people? Harmonicas *can* get you laid.

Sound recovery ..

Yay. Turns out that Audition performs magic auto-saves and is able to fully recover my tracks in the event of a crash.

Saves me a good couple of hours. :)

Yay.

IKEA fanatics.

So as I'm driving up to San Mateo on 101 today, I can't help but notice the long line of cars backed up at the exit right outside the the Palo Alto IKEA store. Its amazing to watch people brave through torrential rains and godawful road conditions to get great deals on Swedish furniture.

I think I'll save my IKEA trip for a warm, sunny day. Going by the current rate at which Stubby is taking the couch apart, I'm guessing I won't need a new oen until the Spring of '06.

Dope wars.

Ever since one of my colleagues dropped off a couple of catnip laced soft toys as Christmas gifts for Sher Khan and Stubby, the two seem to be engaged in frequent battles over the dope. It was amusing to watch them roll all over the carpet in a drug induced high for the first couple of days, but now I think its starting to get unhealthy.

Perhaps its time to confiscate the catnip. Bad kitties.

New Year. Same old Aki.

The New Year feels no different than the one just gone by. There are still dustballs behind the computer, I have a mountain of mail to be sorted, I haven't touched my harmonicas in weeks and the cats appear to be as restless as ever.

And it won't stop raining.

I think I ushered in the New Year in the best manner possible this time; racing against Rachel on the XBox, munching on pizza and sipping vodka. Hopefully, the rest of the year will be laid back and stress free as well ..

No point making resolutions considering my past history with them. This year, I'll just take things as they come....

.. Ok maybe I'll cut down on the coffee. :P

Fighting Panda. Amused Indian.

I've watched Hero and House of Flying Daggers in the space of a week, and my brain's starting to, very slowly, get accustomed to the Fantasy Kung Fu movie genre. I have vague, blurry memories of Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, thanks to the wonderful first row seats we managed to secure for that movie, and am therefore unable to adequately compare it to either of these two newer movies.

Both Hero and Daggers have a few common themes (which are all quite enjoyable if one keeps an open mind ....):

* Fighters demonstrate the ability to fly at arbitrary times during battles. I'm unsure of why they don't invoke this awesome power *all* of the time. I most certainly would.
* Certain weapons (daggers, twigs etc.) contain super homing devices and cannot be avoided by any means. Say a silent prayer if you see one headed in your direction.
* Incoming swarms of non-homing projectiles (arrows, bamboo spears etc.) can be very easily repelled by flailing ones arms or swinging ones favorite weapon rapidly. I prefer the latter because it doesn't look so silly.
* Swords possess remarkable, rubber-like qualities. At times they can be used to deliver swift spankings. I now have a newfound respect for the humble sword.
* Women are evil and will be the cause of your eventual demise. If they don't stab you themselves, they will get someone else to do it for them. Nothing new here.

I found the action in Hero to be slightly superior to that in Daggers. Unfortunately Jet Li's acting (or lack of it) left much to be desired. Both movies have decent storylines with a healthy dose of twists and surprises, pretty visuals and some good slow motion sequences.

Feel free to fall asleep during the Echo Game sequence in Daggers. Nay. I insist that you take a nap. I have a strong feeling that the director decided to have a laugh at the expense of an unsuspecting audience. We will never know.

Oh and Ziyi Zhang is cute in both movies. But then I already mentioned the pretty visuals.