ALRIGHT IT'S NOVEMBER

^Bee that is busy.

Okay, so long time no posts. Busy as a bee, universe likes to throw weird things at me. But that is normal. I've had a few days this week that I have just been as sick as a dog. This has made me pretty sad. As no one really likes getting sick.

I made some awesome cookies that I found via Stumbleupon last week from The Picky Palate. I substituted the dried blueberries with frozen ones, rolled oats with regular oats and (disappointingly (if that is, in fact, a word)) butterscotch chipits instead of caramel bits. They turned out delicious and chunky. Damn good, I say! I highly recommend them.

I also made some fairly awesome potato and leek soup that I found in one of Jamie Oliver's cookbooks (and apparently, on the internet, HERE). I froze a bunch of it, storing up for winter I guess. Although it is a little bland, it's quite hardy and extra awesome when you crush up A LOT of soda crackers in the soup. Mm. So delicious. I am hoarding food. Tomorrow I make a huge amount of curry, which I will subsequently divide and freeze into happy little packets.

Via.

In other food news: check out the best hot chocolate in existence from Big City, Little Kitchen. Nutella. WHAT?

More food news: THESE. Minty chocolate goodness. In a cookie.

I like food too too much.

In and around Vancouver? Pretty please check out the Beaty Biodiversity Museum! I went there with my Pops a few weeks ago. Go see a blue whale skeleton! Find out that it's heart is the size of a car! Find out what the skull of a platypus looks like! Check out my flikr slide show of my experience! I even got to do a treasure hunt! Life was swell!

I've got some VIFF reviews coming. REALLY REALLY late reviews. But they exist.

I've been getting my astronomy on lately via the world of books. I finished reading The First Light by Richard Preston last week. It sort of amped up the 6 year old child that lived in my brain and brought back the wonder that comes with stars. The First Light is about the history and construction of the tremendous Hale Telescope. While on this binge, I watched Apollo 13 the other day (while in a neocitran/soup/tylenol daze) and am reading Out of Orbit: The Incredible True Story of Three Astronauts Who Were Hundreds of Miles Above Earth When They Lost Their Ride Home by Chris Jones. The book is tremendous. It has put space in perspective (I think we so often lose perspective of what is outside our atmosphere) once again for me. The amount of work that goes into sending people to space and maintaining them there is astronomical (ha.) and absolutely incredible. The idea of being in space, of surviving in zero gravity and in an environment so few people have touched. Absolutely amazing.

Another thing that has existed for a while, but I just discovered it's awesomeness? Dangerous Days, the Blade Runner documentary. I've been a huge fan of Blade Runner for a long time, but this just blew my mind. One of the last, great science fiction films made without computer effects. That's right. No CGI. All effects are in camera, hand made wonders. The number of highly skilled artists all working manually - with film, with paint, Plexiglas,  wood - it actually blew my mind. Most of the time I was wondering why modern day Hollywood sci fi flicks cost so much when everything is done on computers. Dangerous Days made Blade Runner even more incredible to me. If you haven't seen Blade Runner? See it. Probably see some sort of directors cut that doesn't have a narration. If you haven't seen Dangerous Days? Please, please see it. The amount of craftsmanship that went into the film puts everything that has come out in the last 30 years to shame (well, with some exceptions). It makes me sad that I will never have the opportunity to make such an incredible work without the aid of computers. *sigh*

Check out this excellent film I helped out on (a.k.a. put lasagna's in the oven and gave some people coffee sometimes). It's called MANTIS! (It's full of some gross things, so viewer's discretion!) We made it for the 2010 Bloodshots film festival. We won for Best Cinematography, which was pretty awesome. But no dice for best picture or audience choice! See the rest of the contender's videos at the Bloodshots MySpace page!

Something awesome is happening this Saturday. STAY TUNED.

On a final, political note, I want to say one thing. Now I don't pretend to know a whole ton about politics. I really do not. BUT. A president who does not make your lives infinitely better in two years dumped for a bunch of right wing yahoos. Something does not compute. This does not compute. Ta dah.

Via.