I'm surprised more people aren't talking about Pranav Mistry's SixthSense technology... unless I am really living under a rock.

Like I said, every so often my mom sends me stuff that is pretty darn interesting/cool and this is one of them. No idea where she heard it from, but I was captivated for Pranav Mistry's entire 13 minute video demonstration of his cool new product that looks like it's going to revolutionize our very lives.

It's a "wearable gestural interface" that involves "a pocket projector, a mirror and a camera" and allow a user to interact with physical objects and data associated with them in ways never seen before. Like recognizing your boarding pass and letting you know your flight will be 20 minutes delayed. Looking at a map of the US in your newspaper and seeing weather forecasts superimposed on every part of the country. Snapping a picture just by making the "I'm going to Disneyland!" gesture.

I'm pretty intrigued, though it'd be even better if Mistry found a way for people to use the product without looking like big dorks with tiny projectors hanging from their necks.  Check out the full demo below:

http://www.ted.com/talks/pranav_mistry_the_thrilling_potential_of_sixthsense_...

via economictimes.indiatimes.com

Mighty strange weather we've been having in the Bay Area this week.

It's been storming around for days, like a fitful colicky child.  Here's the view from our Foster City window, when the late afternoon sun broke through the rainclouds for a mere five minutes today, resulting in the grandest rainbow I've seen in a while, a giant full arc stretching from somewhere in Berkeley to somewhere in Mountain View, with a shadow of a twin rainbow next to it.  Nearly every person on the seventh floor got up from their desks to marvel at it.

Then, THE HAIL.  On the ground.  In California!  I haven't felt that delicious crunch of ice under my feet, on the sidewalk, for a full six years probably, when I left the East Coast.

Want to cry like a baby? Watch Tae Guk Gi: The Brotherhood of War

via 1.bp.blogspot.com

Hot damn. I mean I knew what I was getting into - no-holds-barred war drama. By Koreans, possibly the ruling class when it comes to melodramatic excess. Which means I was expecting the heartfelt set-up where you see all the characters in their relatively contented and peaceable civilian life (typical of a lot of war movies I guess, even American ones). And I braced myself for the dramatic, slow-motion coming-together and tearing-apart of families, loyalties, loves.

I wasn't quite expecting this level of carnage - (spoiler alert) - especially that one scene where a guy has had his guts ripped open and sewn back together again, only to be infested later with maggots.

And I certainly wasn't expecting big, fat, hot tears rolling down my cheeks when the inevitable end comes. The movie was released in 2004, about two South-Korean brothers sent off to fight "commies" in the Korean War, and all the older one wants to do is protect his kid brother. You can guess pretty much the whole plot form there. Yes, I'd say it was a good movie. Not particularly enjoyable, but good.

Oy, someone get me a handkerchief.

Can someone please refer me to a movie in which Gena Rowlands was ever good?

Because I've seen a handful of her later films - The Notebook, Playing By Heart, Paris Je T'aime, and in every one of them I'm flabbergasted by how bad of an actress she is.  Totally dull and uninteresting, unlike the effervescent Meryl Streep.

Maybe if I saw one of her earlier films, I'd be a bit more convinced.

Gena Rowlands then:

And Gena Rowlands now:

Sunday dinner for four: Italian wedding soup

For the second weekend in a row, the four of us made meatballs.  Last week it was pork meatball banh mi, from this month's Bon Appetit, which in our hunger we totally forgot to document.  This week I made an Italian wedding soup adapted from both Giada de Laurentiis and Ina Garten's recipes.  I am not positive, but I'm pretty sure my version married the best of both worlds, pardon the pun.  I really liked how flavorful the meatballs were after browning in the oven - much better than they would have been just cooking in the soup directly.


The ingredients go something like this:

For the meatballs:
  • 1-1.25 lbs. ground meat (I used a mixture of 1/2 lb. ground pork, 1/2 lb raw hot Italian pork sausage, and about a 1/4 lb. chicken sausage, all casings removed).
  • 1/2 large onion
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1/3 c. Italian flat-leaf parsley
  • 2/3 c. white bread crumbs
  • 1/2 c. grated parmesan (for best results, get a block of aged parmesan and process it yourself)
  • 1 large egg
  • 1/2 tsp salt and pepper to taste
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Process onion, garlic, and parsley until minced.  Hand mix ground meat with grated parmesan cheese.  Add onion mixture, bread crumbs, egg, salt and pepper.  Combine well but don't overmix.  Line baking sheet with parchment paper and roll meatballs, about 1-1.5 in. in diameter (they don't have to be perfect).  Bake for 30 min. or until meatballs are nicely browned and cooked through.

For the soup:
  • 1/2 large onion, chopped
  • 3/4 c. celery (about 2-3 stalks), chopped
  • 2 T olive oil
  • 10 c. low sodium chicken stock (preferably homemade)
  • 1 c. pressed barley (Ina Garten called for pasta but we thought this was healthier)
  • 3/4 - 1 lb. leafy vegetables (we used escarole and baby spinach)
  • 1-2 eggs, beaten
Cook onions and celery in olive oil over medium-low heat until translucent (do not brown), about 5-10 min.  Add chicken stock and bring to a boil.  Add barley and cook until ready (about 15-20 min depending on how "done" you like it).  Add veggies and cook until just barely wilted, about 1-2 mins.  Add beaten eggs into soup, the way you would make egg-drop soup.  Finally, add cooked meatballs and stir until flavors are blended.  Serve immediately.

Hearty, delicious, and perfect for cold weather!  And, it was surprisingly easy to make.  We also had a caprese salad (burrata, heirloom tomatoes, olive oil, balsamic, prosciutto) on the side and ollalieberry pie for dessert.

You know you want it: OMG tee for ten bucks at dELiAs*cOm

via store.delias.com

My inner pre-teen is giggling uncontrollably right now. I first blogged about this T-shirt on Wearability, along with a bunch of other hilarious, clever, and refreshingly optimistic tees from the same site.  And now, it's alllll miiiiiiiine!  Just a tiny bit ironic since I can't send or receive texts on my phone.

I also got my eyes on the one that goes "It is what it is," but it hasn't gone on sale yet =)

Thank you DJ Earworm for quite possibly the best remix/mashup I've ever heard: United State of Pop, 2009

Somehow 20+ mediocre songs (with apologies to Misses Gaga and Swift, who are perfect in every which way) come together to make one wondrously joyous anthem.  Just heard it on the radio for the first time and I just wanted it to go on, and on, and on.

Apparently the DJ also created mixes for 2008 and 2007 (not sure if they are quite as good).