New house! September 30, 2009
Posted by Vincent in Mississippi.2 comments
All good things come to an end. My house in Biloxi has taken great care of me and my roommates, but now we need to move. Never fear, though, we’re not going far — in fact, we’re literally moving across the street. And, yes, we now have a pink flamingo for a mailbox.
With Alan moving to Korea in two weeks, the new house will be made up of myself, Doug, Will (newly returned from Boston), and Sam (moving from Bay St. Louis). It’s spacious and has a nice back deck and I think we’ll fit in well.
New living room.
The new house comes complete with matching pink bathrooms upstairs & downstairs. Lovely.
Team Frenchy French September 25, 2009
Posted by Vincent in Mississippi, Random.add a comment
Since my previous venture into sports-related speculation earned me a handsome $6 profit (I later lost $5 on Albert Pujols in the Home Run Derby, bringing my all-time net earnings to $1), I had no qualms about dropping a Hamilton-Jackson double whammy on this year’s fantasy football league. Now, before my 2-0 record has a chance to be blemished, is the opportune time to share my 2009 team.
If you’re a sports fan, you’ll read this and think, “Hm, you should have known LaDainian Tomlinson was a risky first-round pick considering his age.” If you’re not a sports fan, you’ll find that this Penny Arcade comic captures your emotions quite well at this moment.
Bad Movie of the Week: Gymkata September 23, 2009
Posted by Vincent in Bad Movies.Tags: gymnastics, kurt thomas
1 comment so far
My friend Will is back in Biloxi! And that means the return of the Bad Movie of the Week.
What happens when you combine “The Skill of Gymnastics. The Kill of Karate”? Enter Kurt Thomas, a U.S. gymnast who won gold medals at the 1978 and 1979 World Gymnastics Championships and — naturally — decided to apply this skill to fight ninjas on film in:
Gymkata (1985)
Plot: Kurt Thomas digs deep into his acting skills to play Jonathan Cabot, a boyish champion U.S. gymnast. The U.S. “Special Intelligence Agency” wants to put a missile defense system in the central Asian kingdom of “Parmistan” and, naturally, contacts Cabot for help. Each year, Parmistan holds “The Game”, an athletic competition which any foreigner entering the country must play. The winner of the Game is spared his life and granted one wish, which the U.S. government is counting on to gain permission to build their missile defense system.
Read on for the final rating:
UVA vs. Southern Miss September 21, 2009
Posted by Vincent in Explorations, Mississippi, Photography.Tags: college football, football, uva
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Virginia college football doesn’t often come to Mississippi, but this Saturday the Cavaliers traveled to the University of Southern Mississippi to play the Southern Miss Golden Eagles. Along with non-UVa-fans Doug, Anne, and Jesse, I went up to Hattiesburg for the game. We met some Biloxi friends right by the stadium for a tailgate before the game. After leading 27-10 at halftime Virginia managed to choke and lose it 34-37. But I had a good time cheering for my team (along with tens, nay twenties of other Cavalier fans) and enjoying the experience of college football game day.
Dear Mississippi drivers September 10, 2009
Posted by Vincent in Mississippi.Tags: biking, cycling
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You know the quote: “As a driver I hate pedestrians, and as a pedestrian I hate drivers, but no matter what the mode of transportation, I always hate cyclists.” Well, as a regular bicyclist, I naturally hate both drivers and pedestrians. But surely we can all get along?
Dear Mississippi drivers: if you can learn a few simple things, we will both be much happier!
- When passing bicycles, particularly on a narrow road, you may need to wait until you can pass safely. Speeding by while leaning out the window and screaming “GET OFF THE ROAD, FAG!” is not an acceptable alternative.
- When you make a right turn, you may be crossing the path of a bicyclist traveling along the shoulder to your right. You have two options in this situation: you can wait for the bike to pass; or, if you have enough space, you can turn in advance of the bike. Most Mississippi drivers, however, would prefer to speed by and cut the bicyclist off with a hard right turn, or else slow down as they pass , then hesitate at the turn so it’s not clear whether it’s safe to pass them or not. Stop doing this.
- When approaching a stop sign, it should be clear that you plan to stop. Eye contact helps. Don’t casually roll several feet into the intersection without looking.
- When you get to a 4-way stop first, you have the right of way. Don’t wave me ahead when I’m in the middle of stopping. You think you’re being nice, but you’re being confusing. Follow the rules of the road.
- Your turn signals are there for a reason. Use them.
Mississippi bicyclists could learn a few things as well, certainly:
- Bicycles travel in the right lane, in the same direction as traffic. I am tired of playing chicken with oncoming bicyclists.
- Stoplights are not suggestions. The other direction has a green light, and one day you are going to get killed.
- If you must bike while intoxicated, at least stop carrying open containers of alcohol.
Let’s work together to share the road! Mississippi is 24th in the Bicycle Friendly State ranking, up all the way from 47th in 2008; let’s keep climbing.
2 Years of Southern Live Oak September 9, 2009
Posted by Vincent in Random.2 comments
Southern Live Oak began life as “Design.Build.Learn.Repeat” with this post on August 23, 2007. Since then, visitors to the blog have arrived for a variety of reasons. Many seem to have found this post while searching for pictures of judo. On June 3, the death of David Carradine brought a surge in visitors to my review of Death Race 2000. This September, my post Deconstructing the Dome was featured on the front page of WordPress, making this Sunday the blog’s busiest day ever, with 723 views. This blog is small but growing, with 245 posts, 24,258 rejected spam comments, and one (1) gym expulsion.
Top 5 Posts
- Bad Movie of the Week: Death Race 2000 (3,613 views)
- Judo (2,954 views)
- Deconstructing the Dome (1,163 views)
- Boston & Structures for Inclusion, Part 2 (904 views)
- Bad Movie of the Week: Mortal Kombat: Annihilation (618 views)
Top 5 Referrers
- WordPress (1,096 views)
- Facebook (578 views)
- Up Your Architecture (281 views)
- Alphainventions (181 views)
- Halperin & Christ (34 views)
Top 5 Search Engine Terms
- ‘judo’ (2,648 views)
- ‘death race’ (1,608 views)
- ‘death race 2000′ (696 views)
- ‘david carradine death photo’ (372 views)
- ‘planet fitness’ (298 views)
Top 5 Outside Links
- Wikipedia: Judo (357 clicks)
- Filmsquish: Death Race 2000 (117 clicks)
- Swingchick (59 clicks)
- Ruthless Reviews: Death Race 2000 (58 clicks)
- NY Times: Mountaintop Coal Mining (52 clicks)
Total views: 34,111
Labor Day weekend September 8, 2009
Posted by Vincent in Construction, Design/Build, Explorations.Tags: new orleans, ultimate
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As it should be, Labor Day weekend was full of sun and adventure (and even a little bit of labor).
As part of our ongoing effort to meet new ultimate players around the coast, Doug, Jesse, Jon, the other Doug and I went to New Orleans on Sunday to play some pick-up ultimate frisbee. Meeting up with a local group, we played for several good hours on the lawn in front of Audubon Zoo. One of my goals is to spend more time in New Orleans, and a frisbee game every few weeks is a great reason to go over.
Staying over in the city, I joined my friends Seth and Emilie on Monday afternoon to help out at their house, which they are renovating and have just finished re-roofing. A historic “camelback” shotgun house on Louisiana Avenue, it’s surprisingly spacious and will be divided into two units; the primary apartment in the front and a rental unit in the two-story portion in the rear. A complete renovation is a huge undertaking for two people, but it will be an amazing house once it is finished. Seth and I spent the afternoon pulling up floorboards and adding new floor joists in the upstairs bedroom to create a second-story cantilevered porch. After a productive afternoon, we were joined by a bunch of their friends to celebrate Labor Day and the completion of the roof.
