Edjumacation
Last night M. and I attended one of this year's City Arts and Lectures series, a talk with population geneticist Spencer Wells. Having heard the series on KQED so often, it was a little strange to be experiencing all of the sounds in person. The talk was interesting; because of my background in languages and linguistics, I was particularly interested in Wells' discussion of the relationship between linguistic and genetic isolation in populations. And, since it was on a weeknight, the other nice thing was that it was over by 9 and close to BART, so it was the sort of thing I can see myself doing after work without dying the next day. I'm going to keep an eye on their upcoming schedule.
Before the lecture, we ate dinner at Kingfish near the Caltrain station. I went to a birthday party there last month and their catered appetizers were pretty good, but I wasn't that impressed with last night's meal. I had the halibut with andouille and yukon gold hash and roast tomato sauce. Unfortunately, the fish was coated with some kind of seasoning paste on one side that had blackened during cooking--not in a good way--and was generally too spicy and overpowering instead of working with the flavor of the fish. The hash was more like a pile of diced potatoes, sausage, and bell peppers and was terribly undersalted; the sauce was too salty. On the other hand, the fried calimari and green beans we shared as a starter were good. I should know better than to even try to eat the allegedly Cajun-inspired food people try to serve in this town. I'm still bitter about that stuff they call "gumbo" at Chenery Park.
* * * * *
I really liked this episode. The MoTW was entertaining, and shows that they can do mystery stories that don't involve people close to Veronica being in weekly peril, which is something they really need to avoid relying on too heavily. I like Jane, and am also enjoying the fact that the writers are allowing the main characters to have ongoing relationships with non-regular actors, because that expands the world of Neptune and makes it more real.
I don't think it was an accident that this episode gave us Aaron Echolls, sliming his way through life, willing to use anything that gives him an advantage, out for himself, and Logan coming to a point where he's going to have to make some really important decisions about whether he wants to operate the same way. I wonder if Logan's mother was Aaron's Hannah, the only person who saw the good in him, and who he betrayed anyway. Logan's at the precipice and looking down, and it looks as if he might be going to Veronica for help, which is incredibly interesting because while they're not exactly keeping each other up to date on what they're doing, their secret lives are open to each other in some ways--neither of them can surprise the other the way they surprise others--and because Veronica has had her own moments of using people, though in no way even close to this heinously. The scene where Logan and Dick were watching the expose was a pretty clear indication of how few true friends Logan really has at this point; whatever Duncan's flaws, he was actually a friend. And contrast Aaron's behavior to that of Hannah's father, who is obviously taking considerable risk in offering to recant his testimony in order to protect his daughter.
I'm not sure what Cassidy's scheme is, but it looks like he's setting Kendall up to take the fall if/when things go south for the real estate trust. The teacher's lecture on what happens to property values inside and outside an area that incorporates probably has either already figured into Cassidy's plans or is going to. (Side note: I had no idea that that was why Palo Alto is so nice and East Palo Alto is such a crime-ridden mess.) And I'm a little annoyed that neither Keith nor Veronica seemed to remember that it was Woody's hangar, because that makes it more likely that it's an upcoming "twist." But poor Keith's hero worship has been on a rollercoaster ride; he was so convinced at the beginning of the episode that Terrence had had something to do with the bus crash, and when he found information indicating it couldn't be Terrence, he was so reserved, so unwilling to believe this was the end of it and he could safely believe in Terrence's innocence again, just following the clues where they led. It feels like the season is really picking up here, so we're hopefully in for a strong run up to the finale.
* * * * *
Just for sweet_ali, a link to someone who is blogging her rereading of The Babysitters Club (via Bookslut).
* * * * *
On the topic of Snakes on a Plane, I think this guy is, unfortunately, right:
"If you’re on an airplane and you have a snake problem I don’t get why you would use Samuel Jackson when you could use climate control. Snakes can’t stay very active below 65 fahrenheit or so. Turn the AC to slightly-uncomfortably-cold, wait ten minutes and then send out Samuel Jackson with some tongs to pick them up and put them in a bag."
But really, it's important that so many people are putting so much thought into the problem of snakes on a plane. It makes us stronger. Or something.
Before the lecture, we ate dinner at Kingfish near the Caltrain station. I went to a birthday party there last month and their catered appetizers were pretty good, but I wasn't that impressed with last night's meal. I had the halibut with andouille and yukon gold hash and roast tomato sauce. Unfortunately, the fish was coated with some kind of seasoning paste on one side that had blackened during cooking--not in a good way--and was generally too spicy and overpowering instead of working with the flavor of the fish. The hash was more like a pile of diced potatoes, sausage, and bell peppers and was terribly undersalted; the sauce was too salty. On the other hand, the fried calimari and green beans we shared as a starter were good. I should know better than to even try to eat the allegedly Cajun-inspired food people try to serve in this town. I'm still bitter about that stuff they call "gumbo" at Chenery Park.
* * * * *
I really liked this episode. The MoTW was entertaining, and shows that they can do mystery stories that don't involve people close to Veronica being in weekly peril, which is something they really need to avoid relying on too heavily. I like Jane, and am also enjoying the fact that the writers are allowing the main characters to have ongoing relationships with non-regular actors, because that expands the world of Neptune and makes it more real.
I don't think it was an accident that this episode gave us Aaron Echolls, sliming his way through life, willing to use anything that gives him an advantage, out for himself, and Logan coming to a point where he's going to have to make some really important decisions about whether he wants to operate the same way. I wonder if Logan's mother was Aaron's Hannah, the only person who saw the good in him, and who he betrayed anyway. Logan's at the precipice and looking down, and it looks as if he might be going to Veronica for help, which is incredibly interesting because while they're not exactly keeping each other up to date on what they're doing, their secret lives are open to each other in some ways--neither of them can surprise the other the way they surprise others--and because Veronica has had her own moments of using people, though in no way even close to this heinously. The scene where Logan and Dick were watching the expose was a pretty clear indication of how few true friends Logan really has at this point; whatever Duncan's flaws, he was actually a friend. And contrast Aaron's behavior to that of Hannah's father, who is obviously taking considerable risk in offering to recant his testimony in order to protect his daughter.
I'm not sure what Cassidy's scheme is, but it looks like he's setting Kendall up to take the fall if/when things go south for the real estate trust. The teacher's lecture on what happens to property values inside and outside an area that incorporates probably has either already figured into Cassidy's plans or is going to. (Side note: I had no idea that that was why Palo Alto is so nice and East Palo Alto is such a crime-ridden mess.) And I'm a little annoyed that neither Keith nor Veronica seemed to remember that it was Woody's hangar, because that makes it more likely that it's an upcoming "twist." But poor Keith's hero worship has been on a rollercoaster ride; he was so convinced at the beginning of the episode that Terrence had had something to do with the bus crash, and when he found information indicating it couldn't be Terrence, he was so reserved, so unwilling to believe this was the end of it and he could safely believe in Terrence's innocence again, just following the clues where they led. It feels like the season is really picking up here, so we're hopefully in for a strong run up to the finale.
* * * * *
Just for sweet_ali, a link to someone who is blogging her rereading of The Babysitters Club (via Bookslut).
* * * * *
On the topic of Snakes on a Plane, I think this guy is, unfortunately, right:
"If you’re on an airplane and you have a snake problem I don’t get why you would use Samuel Jackson when you could use climate control. Snakes can’t stay very active below 65 fahrenheit or so. Turn the AC to slightly-uncomfortably-cold, wait ten minutes and then send out Samuel Jackson with some tongs to pick them up and put them in a bag."
But really, it's important that so many people are putting so much thought into the problem of snakes on a plane. It makes us stronger. Or something.