...to my site:
www.mandyratliff.com
See you there...
Saturday, January 1, 2011
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Shanghai World Expo
I've been reading the book Devil in the White City by Erik Larson which chronicles the building of the 1893 World's Fair in Chicago. As well as a serial killer who worked down the street from it. It's a fascinating read. So imagine my "Huh." when I happened upon a show on PBS about this year's World Expo in Shanghai, China. (Side note: not sure why it's no longer a "fair" and now an "expo". Wikipedia, what do you think?
Wikipedia says the official organizing body, the International Exhibitions Bureau, starting using the term "expo" in the 1960s. Sounded more highfalutin, I suppose.)
I'll be honest: I missed the beginning of Shanghai World Expo. Don't know the name of the woman who hosted. But I came in while she was visiting France's Pavilion. Its theme is the five senses. You can watch French chefs prepare French food. You can stand under "scent cones" and smell France. And they even concocted a perfume (or "parfum" to be French) especially for the Expo.
Finland's pavilion looks like a giant toilet, I'm not going to lie. It's supposed to be modeled after some rocks with holes in them, I believe. But the cool thing is the surface "scales" are recycled paper and plastic. But yes, it still reminded me of a toilet. So juvenile...
Next up was an incredibly attractive German architect explaining their pavilion called "Balance City". Inside of this beautiful man's building is a giant LED covered orb that responds to sound and swings back and forth. I wonder what kind of light show I would get from the orb if I ever met that architect.
The Danes brought the actual Little Mermaid statue!
The Dutch didn't build one structure but instead created what they call "Happy Street". I will refrain from any marijuana or Red Light District joke because I'm sure they have been made already.
China's pavilion is the largest, of course. It contains 30 sub-pavilions, representing China's provinces and some cities. This expo's Eiffel Tower is a humongous, upside down red pyramid that's two football fields wide at the base. It will be a permanent structure in Shanghai. Most of the Expo's buildings will be torn down but weirdly enough, the Finnish commode may become a restaurant somewhere.
And leave it to Japan to have a robot playing the violin.
So what did I learn from Shanghai World Expo? There's a Shanghai World Expo. Also, the Shanghai pavilion has a 360 degree movie where the audience is on a moving hydraulic platform. It's nine minutes long but the wait is a few hours. And the vertigo must be incredible! Finally, according to Toyota and the Japanese pavilion, we will all be commuting in futuristic wheelchairs. While robots play violins.
Wikipedia says the official organizing body, the International Exhibitions Bureau, starting using the term "expo" in the 1960s. Sounded more highfalutin, I suppose.)
I'll be honest: I missed the beginning of Shanghai World Expo. Don't know the name of the woman who hosted. But I came in while she was visiting France's Pavilion. Its theme is the five senses. You can watch French chefs prepare French food. You can stand under "scent cones" and smell France. And they even concocted a perfume (or "parfum" to be French) especially for the Expo.
Finland's pavilion looks like a giant toilet, I'm not going to lie. It's supposed to be modeled after some rocks with holes in them, I believe. But the cool thing is the surface "scales" are recycled paper and plastic. But yes, it still reminded me of a toilet. So juvenile...
Next up was an incredibly attractive German architect explaining their pavilion called "Balance City". Inside of this beautiful man's building is a giant LED covered orb that responds to sound and swings back and forth. I wonder what kind of light show I would get from the orb if I ever met that architect.
The Danes brought the actual Little Mermaid statue!
The Dutch didn't build one structure but instead created what they call "Happy Street". I will refrain from any marijuana or Red Light District joke because I'm sure they have been made already.
China's pavilion is the largest, of course. It contains 30 sub-pavilions, representing China's provinces and some cities. This expo's Eiffel Tower is a humongous, upside down red pyramid that's two football fields wide at the base. It will be a permanent structure in Shanghai. Most of the Expo's buildings will be torn down but weirdly enough, the Finnish commode may become a restaurant somewhere.
And leave it to Japan to have a robot playing the violin.
So what did I learn from Shanghai World Expo? There's a Shanghai World Expo. Also, the Shanghai pavilion has a 360 degree movie where the audience is on a moving hydraulic platform. It's nine minutes long but the wait is a few hours. And the vertigo must be incredible! Finally, according to Toyota and the Japanese pavilion, we will all be commuting in futuristic wheelchairs. While robots play violins.
Monday, August 30, 2010
History Detectives
Tonight's mysteries were an animation cel inked by a lady communist, papers detailing the freeing of a New Orleans slave, and a dagger that possibly may have been Mussolini's (Spoiler: it's not!).
I shall back up. History Detectives is the love child of Antiques Roadshow and CSI. It features five "detectives", each of whom are either professor/authors or appraisers/something else. And people contact them because their grandparent or great uncle or someone had something that may be something. And the Detectives investigate! They come back to the owner and say, "Listen to this cool story..." or they say, "Your grandfather probably embellished his Mussolini dagger tale."
History Detectives also has little filler "Fun facts!" segments. Tonight had a spot about checking signatures for authenticity. So if you're interested in forging, here are things to be careful about:
- Check archives for sample penmanship to compare with your document.
- Take special note of t's, i's and loops.
- Look at spacing and slanting.
- See if the pen came up off the paper mid-signature. This indicates hesitancy and may be a fake.
- Also, use a microscope and infra-red light because everyone has those handy.
Now here is my very own "Fun Facts!" segment: the History Detectives website has games! I just did a sample case and I am a five-star history detective. You can also answer questions to see which History Detective you are most like. I am most like Elyse the appraiser/art historian.
So what did I learn from tonight's History Detectives? Forgery takes practice. Slaves in New Orleans had Sundays off and many freelanced to earn extra money ("Extra money" here means "money"). And I learned that it delights me to no end that the theme is Elvis Costello's "Watching the Detectives".
Have that song in your head? You're welcome.
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
WETA!
Well, along with moving to a new apartment, work and doing silly things that have kept me from the TV, I am now on a business trip. For five days, I wander around the convention section of the Gaylord National with a 4"x6" badge around my neck which keeps getting into my free conference food at meal times. The Gaylord National is in the DC area in the newly named National Harbor in Maryland. Fancy digs.
Last night at the conference was a free night i.e. mercifully unplanned, non-networking evening. My colleague scored tickets to see Chess at Signature Theatre in Arlington, VA. (Fun Theatre Nerd Fact: there's also a Signature Theatre [Company] in New York!) So car rented, GPS engaged, "One Night in Bangkok" already in a loop in my head. When we arrived at a gas station (since Hertz thought an eighth of a tank was a great way to send tourists off into the night), I spotted across the street...WETA! WETA is the Washington area PBS station. It's home to the PBS News Hour as well as Washington Week...which makes a lot of sense. And it's been "the production partner of filmmaker Ken Burns for more than twenty years"! According to Wikipedia!
I almost had my picture taken in front of the Gwen Ifill poster but my friend insisted on the Ken Burns one:
And this one got some looks...mainly because friend was on his back on the sidewalk taking the photo:
What did I learn? Friends are enablers. And you can't escape PBS!
Photo credit: Skypp Cabanas using my point-and-shoot.
Last night at the conference was a free night i.e. mercifully unplanned, non-networking evening. My colleague scored tickets to see Chess at Signature Theatre in Arlington, VA. (Fun Theatre Nerd Fact: there's also a Signature Theatre [Company] in New York!) So car rented, GPS engaged, "One Night in Bangkok" already in a loop in my head. When we arrived at a gas station (since Hertz thought an eighth of a tank was a great way to send tourists off into the night), I spotted across the street...WETA! WETA is the Washington area PBS station. It's home to the PBS News Hour as well as Washington Week...which makes a lot of sense. And it's been "the production partner of filmmaker Ken Burns for more than twenty years"! According to Wikipedia!
I almost had my picture taken in front of the Gwen Ifill poster but my friend insisted on the Ken Burns one:
And this one got some looks...mainly because friend was on his back on the sidewalk taking the photo:
What did I learn? Friends are enablers. And you can't escape PBS!
Photo credit: Skypp Cabanas using my point-and-shoot.
Thursday, July 29, 2010
"Favorites"
That's what was listed in my online TV listings. So yeah, I turned over.
A John Denver special.
I really don't have much of an opinion on John Denver. My mom had one of his albums. And I remember that he once hosted The Muppet Show. That's all I got.
So what did I learn from the two minutes that I watched this "Favorite"? Sunshine always makes him high. And that sunshine was at one point on his shoulders.
A John Denver special.
I really don't have much of an opinion on John Denver. My mom had one of his albums. And I remember that he once hosted The Muppet Show. That's all I got.
So what did I learn from the two minutes that I watched this "Favorite"? Sunshine always makes him high. And that sunshine was at one point on his shoulders.
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
The Botany of Desire
KOCE reran The Botany of Desire last night. I didn't rewatch it but I have notes. Notes that I was going to type up when it originally aired but then was distracted by a capella dudes known as Straight, No Chaser. So let's see how much I can decipher and write up into coherent sentences...
The Botany of Desire is based on a book by Michael Pollan. Take a quick peek at his Wikipedia page and at the top, you are greeted with this italicized comment:
This article is about the author and food activist. For the Monty Python actor with a similar name, see Michael Palin.
So really: all you need to know. Most of his books are about food and not Bicycle Repairman. However, to throw you a curve, The Botany of Desire is about plants and how they evolved with humans. The four plants represent four human desires: Apple=Sweet, Tulip=Beauty, Cannabis=Intoxication, and Potato=Control.
I will know begin an extended "What did I learn...?" segment by trying to figure out my handwriting in my notebook. So enjoy some random facts!
Apples: Johnny Appleseed brought Hard Cider to the West. Trees may not be the same as the trees that gave the seeds. Apples came from Kazakhstan. Fruit of Knowledge from The Bible most likely a pomegranate and not an apple. "The problem is that it's boring. Sweetness. If that's all you get." Someone likes their women spicy!
Tulips: A garden in the Netherlands has around 2,300 varieties. Angiosperm means plants that produce flowers (I verified this on Dictionary.com). Wild tulips came up through Central Asia. 1634-1637 was known as "Tulip Mania" in the Netherlands (Disclosure: I can't remember if that was my term or Michael Pollan's). There are places known as "Plant Brothels" where new varieties of tulips are made. I definitely can't take credit for "Plant Brothels".
Cannabis: The only known people who don't have intoxicants are the Inuits because nothing grows in the snow (I find that hard to believe. I'm sure there's some blubber wine or something that they're hiding from us). The female of the cannabis species produces the psychoactive resin. They keep them away from males so that they produce more resin. Yes, growers are keeping their lady plants hot and bothered for our psychoactive pleasure.
Potatoes: Originated in the Andes Mountains. In the wild, potatoes are poisonous if they turn green. The potato helped move people north because it did well in crappy weather and soil. The Irish planted only one kind of potato and then a ship from South America brought a fungus that killed that one variety. Potato Famine! This gives Pollan more ammunition in his anti-monoculture stance. Grow lots of varieties he says. McDonald's not helping with this: they only use Russet Burbank potatoes. Those Monocultural Monsters...
Final The Botany of Desire quotes from Michael Pollan: "Get away from monoculture." "Nature resists our control." "I'm Michael J. Fox's brother-in-law."
OK, he didn't say that last one but according to Wikipedia he's Tracy Pollan's brother. And not, in any way, related to Michael Palin.
Photo courtesy of Amazon.com
The Botany of Desire is based on a book by Michael Pollan. Take a quick peek at his Wikipedia page and at the top, you are greeted with this italicized comment:
This article is about the author and food activist. For the Monty Python actor with a similar name, see Michael Palin.
So really: all you need to know. Most of his books are about food and not Bicycle Repairman. However, to throw you a curve, The Botany of Desire is about plants and how they evolved with humans. The four plants represent four human desires: Apple=Sweet, Tulip=Beauty, Cannabis=Intoxication, and Potato=Control.
I will know begin an extended "What did I learn...?" segment by trying to figure out my handwriting in my notebook. So enjoy some random facts!
Apples: Johnny Appleseed brought Hard Cider to the West. Trees may not be the same as the trees that gave the seeds. Apples came from Kazakhstan. Fruit of Knowledge from The Bible most likely a pomegranate and not an apple. "The problem is that it's boring. Sweetness. If that's all you get." Someone likes their women spicy!
Tulips: A garden in the Netherlands has around 2,300 varieties. Angiosperm means plants that produce flowers (I verified this on Dictionary.com). Wild tulips came up through Central Asia. 1634-1637 was known as "Tulip Mania" in the Netherlands (Disclosure: I can't remember if that was my term or Michael Pollan's). There are places known as "Plant Brothels" where new varieties of tulips are made. I definitely can't take credit for "Plant Brothels".
Cannabis: The only known people who don't have intoxicants are the Inuits because nothing grows in the snow (I find that hard to believe. I'm sure there's some blubber wine or something that they're hiding from us). The female of the cannabis species produces the psychoactive resin. They keep them away from males so that they produce more resin. Yes, growers are keeping their lady plants hot and bothered for our psychoactive pleasure.
Potatoes: Originated in the Andes Mountains. In the wild, potatoes are poisonous if they turn green. The potato helped move people north because it did well in crappy weather and soil. The Irish planted only one kind of potato and then a ship from South America brought a fungus that killed that one variety. Potato Famine! This gives Pollan more ammunition in his anti-monoculture stance. Grow lots of varieties he says. McDonald's not helping with this: they only use Russet Burbank potatoes. Those Monocultural Monsters...
Final The Botany of Desire quotes from Michael Pollan: "Get away from monoculture." "Nature resists our control." "I'm Michael J. Fox's brother-in-law."
OK, he didn't say that last one but according to Wikipedia he's Tracy Pollan's brother. And not, in any way, related to Michael Palin.
Photo courtesy of Amazon.com
Sunday, July 4, 2010
French In Action
It's Sunday morning--I'm sorry, I meant Dimanche matin--and French In Action is on. Turns out I've come across it before but it was always when Le Vieux Professeur was rattling off rapid-fire French to the camera. Now I took French in high school and college (I actually "lettered" in French I and II in high school. And they gave me an actual letter patch like you would sew on a varsity jacket. To which I thought, "Oh. That's what that means." For French II, I got a pin...to pin on the letter, I assume. I wasn't sporty so the whole "letter jacket" concept was all Greek to me. And I spoke French. Ha! Comedy is the universal language...) Anyway, back to Le Vieux Professeur. I could only pick out a few words here and there as I admired his hair (I kept thinking of Bugs Bunny as "Leopold!" the conductor). I then immediately felt that I was a poser to own that letter and pin so I switched the channel. Today, however, I sat and watched.
French In Action is described on the KLCS website as:
"A 52-part telecourse introduces the French language and culture to viewers by way of a romantic comedy, filmed in France."
A romantic comedy! That explains a lot...or not really. Today's episode was Mireille and Robert on a date. And Le Vieux Professeur--that is how he is listed in the credits--was explaining the difference between "entendre" and "attendre". He cupped his hand to his ear for "entendre" (to hear) and sat back and crossed his arms for "attendre" (to wait). Even though I already knew those verbs, I thought, "Hey, I'll be able to follow along." It goes back to Mireille and Robert speaking with the waiter. And during that exchange, it cuts to some little girl and her mother sitting on a sofa. And then it goes back to the date. And then back to Leopold putting a cap on a pen. He then puts on a smaller cap that doesn't fit onto the pen. I don't know what the hell is going on. And to make matters worse, a few seconds later, it cuts to a guy in makeup and a bowler cap laughing at someone with the words "se moquer" underneath. "To make fun of" is what it says. Like, "Ha ha, Mandy, French In Action is mocking you."
Well, two can play that game: Hey, Mireille, I know this is 1987 but France had bras back then. Do you "entend" me?
French In Action is described on the KLCS website as:
"A 52-part telecourse introduces the French language and culture to viewers by way of a romantic comedy, filmed in France."
A romantic comedy! That explains a lot...or not really. Today's episode was Mireille and Robert on a date. And Le Vieux Professeur--that is how he is listed in the credits--was explaining the difference between "entendre" and "attendre". He cupped his hand to his ear for "entendre" (to hear) and sat back and crossed his arms for "attendre" (to wait). Even though I already knew those verbs, I thought, "Hey, I'll be able to follow along." It goes back to Mireille and Robert speaking with the waiter. And during that exchange, it cuts to some little girl and her mother sitting on a sofa. And then it goes back to the date. And then back to Leopold putting a cap on a pen. He then puts on a smaller cap that doesn't fit onto the pen. I don't know what the hell is going on. And to make matters worse, a few seconds later, it cuts to a guy in makeup and a bowler cap laughing at someone with the words "se moquer" underneath. "To make fun of" is what it says. Like, "Ha ha, Mandy, French In Action is mocking you."
Well, two can play that game: Hey, Mireille, I know this is 1987 but France had bras back then. Do you "entend" me?
What did I learn from French In Action? Robert quit university. Mireille teased him about it. Mireille teases her bangs. Some little girl wants to eat lots of "bonbons" but what does that have to do with Mireille and Robert? I have aucune idée.
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