Last week was the end of an increasingly busy time at work, culminating in a very hectic Thursday, when I gave exams in all my classes. However, once I was already giving the exams, I could basically imagine it was already the weekend and could mentally relax ( Read more... )

I was talking tonight with Olenna, a Ukrainian mathematician, and Martin, a German mathematician, both of whom are staying in the guesthouse this week. Because of our ages and origins, we got onto the topic of Central and Eastern Europe right before and after the fall of Communism. In the midst of this, Olenna mentions that there was this series of ( Read more... )

Christian was just at Best Video, our local video rental (the last one in CT), and he came across this comic. We are local celebrities!

"At AmishGazebos.com, we know that some of the best memories in life are created in gazebos..."

• "Mrs. Robinson, you're trying to seduce me. In this gazebo."
  
• "I'm going to make him an offer he can't refuse. In this gazebo."
  
• "Toto, I've got a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore. We're in this gazebo."
  
• "Fasten your seat belts. It's going to be a ( Read more... )

In my effort to resume movie reviews, here are three films from the second half of March 2012 that we watched during my Spring Break.

Contact [1997]. Earth receives an extraterrestrial signal.( One of the best movies about science )

It's been a long time since I did a movie review and I've certainly got a lot of half-written reviews on the back burner that I'm going to be getting to this summer. But as long as I have it written, here's a review of a movie we saw in theaters just last night.

Star Trek Into Darkness [2013]. Kirk, Spock, and the rest of the Starship Enterprise ( Read more... )

If you've ever seen the movie Diva, you'll find this parody funny. Even if you haven't, it'll be a modestly humorous spoof of the pretentious cinema du look.

Click to view

Christian and I headed into NYC today to meet up with my college roommate Brent, who was in town on vacation with his new girlfriend Sook. We had a tasty lunch at a sushi restaurant near Grand Central that Christian and I had once tried before and enjoyed. Once again, we were the only ones in there for more than half our meal, which is weird since ( Read more... )

The Bourne Supremacy [2004]. Jason Bourne tries, for a second time, to find out his origins.( Still good on the second viewing )

The last movies from February.

The Matrix [1999]. A hacker named Neo (Keanu Reeves) finds out he's been living in a dream world.( A cultural touchstone )