Apple blossom

US Rubber Company

Primary School Days

The Urban Cyclist

shot using my oldie but goodie Nikon D7000 and my Nikkor AFS 18-70.  The lens is good enough but I always want a more professional looking one.  Just so I think I look better.  I panned to the right in his direction a bit.  This is from a BASIC jpg, USM, and a crop in Instagram without any filter.

Tomb sweeping festival camping

Thirty years ago.

Happy tomb sweeping festival

Thirty years ago.

Spring time weather finally

For some reason I don't like calling t-shirts tees.

Dual Time

Scrambled Egg

The thing with cooking is unless you are a total idiot you can't be too wrong.  At least not all the time.

Occam's Razor

He cannot log in to the system ...

a) He is new, just started yesterday

b) He got too many login's and passwords

c) The instruction is not clear though correct

d) He is an idiot

The correct answer is d

Social Media

Facebook bullshit I don't do (but feel free to do it yourself) ...

Some bullshit human tragedies with some bullshit disturbing pictures ... please Like and Share.

Some bullshit mosaic pictures asking people to Like and press some bullshit number to see some more bullshit stuff.

Fairway Gelato

http://instagr.am/p/W7yb9RiV_T/

I like ice cream better.

At Fairway

http://instagr.am/p/W70N0vCVyo/supermarkets used to carry everyday staples with reasonable and affordable prices.  Now they are organic this and that and food prices just gone off the roof.

Hand wash

It takes forever to finish a load using the dishwasher. Sometimes I just rather do it the old fashioned way--have my wife washed it. Or me rather actually.

I'd Rather Be High

Holy cow deluxe edition or version!

Domestification

Got my discount cards and coupons.

Look mom No Vent

Green kitchen

Compromise compromise compromise.

The Grandmaster

All directors are self-indulgent.  But Wong Kar-wai takes it to a whole new level.  Wong spends ten years researching "The Grandmaster," ten years shooting it on and off, another ten years shooting the Matrix-like trailer and yet another ten years flip flopping between whether to make the English title plural or singular, struggling whether the story is about the only man that matters in the whole universe, the one and only Man,  Yip Man or it is really more about a number of grand masters.  After forty long years and countless broken spareribs from Leung Chiu Wai, Wong finally decides it's just "The Grandmaster," without the ass.

When the flag drops, the bullshit stops.  We hear enough of the back story.  So how is the movie?  Here is what my friend has to say.  I have nothing to say about the actual movie as I have not seen it yet or if ever.

QUOTE

I saw the Grandmasters 一代宗师 today. Kind of underwhelming. Not up to my expectations. I think Wong lost the plot somewhere. Not a great piece of story-telling. Would it be better had the movie been four hours long? I don't know. Anyway, Wong said that wouldn't happen in the next ten years. Was he trying to do to much in one movie? Possibly. The movie is educational in some ways, like introducing us to the various schools of Kung Fu, and there is romance, some fight scenes and hilarious elements as well. In the end, I was kind of lost. Zang is stunning as usual. The snow scene is very beautiful. That part should have been longer. The part of 宋乔慧 should have been longer too. No wonder she is pissed. I think Wong has taken too long to make the movie. Kind of funny because Wong only took 2 months to make the Chungking express, and yet that movie is such a classic. For all I know, this Grandmasters, with all its relative commercial success, won't become a classic despite some outstanding performances from Tony Leung and Zang ziyi.

UNQUOTE

I think I share the sentiment.

CVS Photo develop, print, scan minor disaster

I never learn.  I took a chance with CVS photo processing hoping and wishing that they would just do the work right, somehow on the first time, if not, then the second time.  But of course there was no miracle, not even a minor one.

I left my 160VC film there to develop, print, and scan.  I was able to drop it off at lunch and picked it up after work. The color came out awful but I can't argue with that because it could be anything but their error.

Then after I took the prints home, I found out they were all printed dusty and laterally inverted, i.e. mirror images, including the scans.  By the way, the scans were pretty awful too.  But I would only comment on dust.

The following day I brought back the whole envelop to the shop and the lady at the counter just wanted to examine the negative ... with her bare hands, running her well manicured fingers on the negative, not so much as caressing or holding on the edge but just as if holding on toilet paper or something.  Anyway, I dared not say a word except whining here.  She agreed to have it redone.  But somehow, she never said "sorry" or anything to that extent.

The machine was kind of broken so I had to call to make sure it's available.  And it was available after work.  I went there to pick it up again.  The pictures printed out right meaning they were laterally correct this time.  But they didn't give me the CD-ROM.  So the guy did it on the spot, burned one CD for me.   I couldn't check it on the spot so I went home, and found out the images were all laterally inverted.  Bravo.

They just couldn't do anything right the first time or even the second time.  I should know and it's my fault.  Would I let them do my film photos again, maybe.  Who knows.