80 songs, 6.1 hours, 490.6 MB
Posted by: j_john
It's official, I am the proud owner of an iPod shuffle. Although initially skeptical when I first saw the announcement at MacWorld, I am now quite taken by its simple, minimalist design. Concerns like the lack of a face are pretty easy to look past once I realized how great it felt slipping it into my front pocket as I walked down Glisan--I don't spend much time looking at my regular iPod screen anyway, and now I have one that won't weigh me down when I'm on the go. I'm still awaiting the armband accessory so I can try it out at the gym (the main reason for my purchase), but for now I am quite pleased.
Check out the difference in size--so small!
Strangely enough, I've actually found myself using its intended "shuffle" feature--something I figured I would rarely do. I suppose once I'm ready to head to the gym I'll want to play my custom playlists in order, but for now I am enjoying the variety of my collection. Since I only went with the 512 MB model I've been able to fit less than 100 songs on it, yet I can't ever think of an occasion where I would need to play more than half of them during one session.
Of course I also love the packaging--shades of green=awesome!
Cinema Scope vs. The Portland Mercury
Posted by: j_john
How Soccer Explains The World
Posted by: j_john
Book Report time:
I recently finished (okay, a few weeks ago) my first book of 2005--the entertaining and engaging "How Soccer Explains The World" by Franklin Foer.
Drawn to the book by its intriguing title, I was impressed by the variety and quality of the writing, although it did seem like Mr. Foer made a few too many broad generalizations when describing the history of the sport as it pertained to specific nations. Also, I wasn't completely convinced that the title of the book was justified. Sure, there were some great soccer-related stories from around the world, but nothing that ever made me think there was an overall theory on globalization. However, I found the chapter "How Soccer Explains the Jewish Question" to be particularly insightful, especially this quote from Mark Lilla, a University of Chicago political theorist:
"Once upon a time, the Jews were mocked for not having a nation-state. Now they are criticized for having one. Many Western European intellectuals, including those whose toleration and even affection for Jews cannot be questioned, find [Israel] incomprehensible. The reason is not anti-Semitism nor even anti-Zionism in the usual sense. It is that Israel is, and is proud to be, a nation-state--the nation-state of the Jews. And that is profoundly embarrassing to post-national Europe."
I've always advocated that my love of the sport has made me more curious about the various cultures that all unite over a shared interest in the beautiful game. Now I was able to take it one step further and delve into the world behind the matches on the pitch. Foer writes about the usual hooligan culture, but also about the history of racism and xenophobia that surrounds certain clubs like Glasgow Celtic and Rangers, London's Tottenham Hotspurs and Ajax of Amsterdam.
I also found myself enlightened by the concluding chapter, "How Soccer Explains The American Culture Wars" where Foer gathers commonly held beliefs about American skepticism toward soccer. He claims that there is an aversion to accepting soccer because of its European labeling. To accept soccer would be to give in fully to the concept of globalization, and America is certainly skeptical of globalization's implications. As Foer states, "globalization increasingly provides the subtext for the American cultural spirit." However, there was no doubt that soccer experienced a huge boom in popularity in the 1970s, and he credits our parents' progressive thinking as a main factor.
"Soccer's appeal lay in its opposition to the other popular sports. For children of the sixties, there was something abhorent about enrolling kids in American football, a game where violence wasn't just incidental but inherent...soccer represented something very different. It was a tabula rasa, a sport onto which a generation of parents could project their values. Quickly, soccer came to represent the fundamental tenets of yuppie parenting, the spirit of Sesame Street and Dr. Benjamin Spock."
Well, that's enough from me, anyone want to borrow my copy?
T-Wolves in Turmoil
Posted by: j_john
I posted about the T-Wolves coaching change over on True Fan. It's weird to think of someone else on the bench with KG and company, but I've been a McHale supporter since my childhood days following the Celtics when I lived in New England. (Now the guy lives down the road from my parents in North Oaks, MN.)
I've been through much more depressing times with my team, I can handle a season of discontent.
On The Road Again
Posted by: j_john
Two weeks and $550 dollars later I am no longer confined to the world of tri-met--the Jetta is back. It was actually kind of nice riding the MAX around, as it gave me plenty of time to catch up on some issues of The New Yorker and this great new book that Marisa got me: The Tipping Point.
I had a pretty decent service experience with the folks at the Hawthorne Auto Clinic. Apparently they are rated real high on environmental concern lists, but then again, they're on Hawthorne so what would you expect?
For its first ride after a long break I treated my car to a wash and a Target run. At Target I exchanged some DS videogames for Resident Evil 4--which I am excited about getting into after seeing Cabel jump and scream a lot at all those disgruntled European villagers.
Today I also added some content and spiced up my latest group blog:
Cinema Scope.
I leave you with yet another photo of Elmer, this time she climbed up on her cave!
