Anthony Adams is a defensive tackle in the NFL, first with the San Francisco 49ers and then with the Chicago Bears.
He posted a hilarious retirement video that is worth watching. Hope someone snaps this guy up as a commentator.
Monday, March 25, 2013
Thursday, March 14, 2013
Hogwarts Out of Legos
Harry Potter superfan Alice Finch built a 170-square-foot replica of Hogwarts Castle out of 400,000 pieces of Legos. As she stated in the interview with The Brothers Brick, the central staircase alone needed 10,000 bricks. Alice spent twelve months over an 18-month period building, and the end result is mind-boggling. It is designed to be architecturally correct and completely playable, and it breaks into sections that pack into 40 large flat boxes or shelves.
At the 2012 BrickCon, Alice's Hogwarts took home both the People's Choice and the Best in Show awards, which is apparently a rare combination.
Check out the entire Flickr album with 79 pictures. The level of details is just amazing. My favorites are Dumbledore's office, complete with a cabinet of memories and a pensieve, and the Great Hall feast welcoming Beauxbaton students just like in Goblet of Fire.
At the 2012 BrickCon, Alice's Hogwarts took home both the People's Choice and the Best in Show awards, which is apparently a rare combination.
Check out the entire Flickr album with 79 pictures. The level of details is just amazing. My favorites are Dumbledore's office, complete with a cabinet of memories and a pensieve, and the Great Hall feast welcoming Beauxbaton students just like in Goblet of Fire.
Wednesday, March 13, 2013
American Idol Top 10
Tonight is the performance show for American Idol's Season 12 Top 10. The theme is Music of American Idols, and as Ryan helpfully explained, the contestants got to choose from songs sang by the winners during their American Idol runs, or songs they have released in their post-show careers.
I thought the performances really showed the divide between the girls and the boys. Even the worst girl, Janelle Arthur, was better than all of the boys.
Curtis Finch Jr. - Fantasia's "I Believe". I thought Curtis's lower register was wobbly and his red paisley jacket was awful. The performance was typical Curtis, and I don't mean that in a good way.
Janelle Arthur - Montgomery Gentry's "Gone". Props to Janelle for picking an uptempo song, and I thought this was her best performance since Hollywood Week.
Devin Velez - Carrie Underwood's "Temporary Home". This one was just boring, and like Randy, Mariah, and Keith, I expected more out of Devin. Hopefully this won't get him sent home this week, because he is my favorite boy contestant.
Angie Miller - Celine Dion's "I Surrender". Angie did a great job, but I didn't feel that it was as good as the way the judges praised it. I definitely heard some strain in the higher notes.
Paul Jolley - Lonestar's "Amazed". His best performance so far, but still bland. He did look and sound less desperate to be liked, which is a good thing.
Candice Glover - Shirley Bassey's "I (Who Have Nothing)". Perfection. I think it was even better than Jordin's version.
Lazaro Arbos - Kelly Clarkson's "Breakaway." Oh, Lazaro. This was the worst performance tonight, but he might have enough fans to pull him through. He really needs better song selection.
Kree Harrison - Roy Orbison's "Crying." Kree put her own spin on the song, and she sounded fabulous as usual.
Burnell Taylor - Ruben Studdard's "Flying Without Wings." It was just OK for me. Burnell was lucky he performed second to last, because if this was earlier in the show, he may be going home tomorrow.
Amber Holcomb - Kelly Clarkson's "A Moment Like This." Amber closed the show with another strong performance, although not as good as Candice or Kree. She sounded a little rushed in parts, but that may be just nerves.
Predictions for Bottom Three: Lazaro, Devin, Curtis
Prediction for Elimination: Devin
I thought the performances really showed the divide between the girls and the boys. Even the worst girl, Janelle Arthur, was better than all of the boys.
Curtis Finch Jr. - Fantasia's "I Believe". I thought Curtis's lower register was wobbly and his red paisley jacket was awful. The performance was typical Curtis, and I don't mean that in a good way.
Janelle Arthur - Montgomery Gentry's "Gone". Props to Janelle for picking an uptempo song, and I thought this was her best performance since Hollywood Week.
Devin Velez - Carrie Underwood's "Temporary Home". This one was just boring, and like Randy, Mariah, and Keith, I expected more out of Devin. Hopefully this won't get him sent home this week, because he is my favorite boy contestant.
Angie Miller - Celine Dion's "I Surrender". Angie did a great job, but I didn't feel that it was as good as the way the judges praised it. I definitely heard some strain in the higher notes.
Paul Jolley - Lonestar's "Amazed". His best performance so far, but still bland. He did look and sound less desperate to be liked, which is a good thing.
Candice Glover - Shirley Bassey's "I (Who Have Nothing)". Perfection. I think it was even better than Jordin's version.
Lazaro Arbos - Kelly Clarkson's "Breakaway." Oh, Lazaro. This was the worst performance tonight, but he might have enough fans to pull him through. He really needs better song selection.
Kree Harrison - Roy Orbison's "Crying." Kree put her own spin on the song, and she sounded fabulous as usual.
Burnell Taylor - Ruben Studdard's "Flying Without Wings." It was just OK for me. Burnell was lucky he performed second to last, because if this was earlier in the show, he may be going home tomorrow.
Amber Holcomb - Kelly Clarkson's "A Moment Like This." Amber closed the show with another strong performance, although not as good as Candice or Kree. She sounded a little rushed in parts, but that may be just nerves.
Predictions for Bottom Three: Lazaro, Devin, Curtis
Prediction for Elimination: Devin
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Jim Henson Memorial
One of the genuises of Jim Henson was how he made the Muppets and other puppets seem so real. Many people have spoken about how they forget that these characters were not real, and talked to them like normal people.
Jim Henson went to University of Maryland at College Park, and there is a Jim Henson Memorial Statue in front of the student union on campus that was a gift from the class of 1998. The statue depics Henson and Kermit sitting on a bench together talking animatedly, and Kermit touching Henson's hand fondly. The statue is surrounded by the Henson Memorial Garden, designed by landscape architect Philip Cho as a gift from the classes of 1994 and 1999.
The cool story about the statue is how the sculptor, Jay Hall Carpenter, won the commission. When the commission was announced, Jim's widow Jane Henson stated, "His grasp of Jim’s work and spirit makes him the ideal artist to create this statue of Jim Henson and Kermit the Frog."
Carpenter explained that he differed from the traditional pose of Kermit sitting on Henson's shoulders. He stated, "My idea was a little different. Jim always presented Kermit as a separate entity so I wanted to do that as well. The way I see it, they're talking about their next big project, and, so they're in this animated discussion, and in the middle of it, Kermit reaches over and touches Jim, as a little gesture of solidarity."
Carpeted hoped the statue "will capture the personality of both Jim Henson and his created partner Kermit. Their whimsy and humor will be conveyed through the depiction of their light-hearted interaction."
I think he succeeded, and it's a great tribute to a great man.
Jim Henson went to University of Maryland at College Park, and there is a Jim Henson Memorial Statue in front of the student union on campus that was a gift from the class of 1998. The statue depics Henson and Kermit sitting on a bench together talking animatedly, and Kermit touching Henson's hand fondly. The statue is surrounded by the Henson Memorial Garden, designed by landscape architect Philip Cho as a gift from the classes of 1994 and 1999.
The cool story about the statue is how the sculptor, Jay Hall Carpenter, won the commission. When the commission was announced, Jim's widow Jane Henson stated, "His grasp of Jim’s work and spirit makes him the ideal artist to create this statue of Jim Henson and Kermit the Frog."
Carpenter explained that he differed from the traditional pose of Kermit sitting on Henson's shoulders. He stated, "My idea was a little different. Jim always presented Kermit as a separate entity so I wanted to do that as well. The way I see it, they're talking about their next big project, and, so they're in this animated discussion, and in the middle of it, Kermit reaches over and touches Jim, as a little gesture of solidarity."
Carpeted hoped the statue "will capture the personality of both Jim Henson and his created partner Kermit. Their whimsy and humor will be conveyed through the depiction of their light-hearted interaction."
I think he succeeded, and it's a great tribute to a great man.
Friday, March 8, 2013
Catching Fire - Katniss's Dress
New posters were released of the second movie in the Hunger Games trilogy - Catching Fire, featuring portraits of the different characters. The costumes are pretty eye-catching, especially Katniss's and Peeta's wedding outfits. Katniss's wedding dress, which many thought was designed by Sarah Burton at Alexander McQueen, was actually designed by 28-year-old Tex Tex Saverio, an Indonesian designer who had previously dressed Lady Gaga in the May 2011 issue of Harper's Bazaar and Kim Kardashian in the March 2013 issue of Elle.
Catching Fire's costume designer, Trish Summerville, told the Hollywood Reporter that she and Saverio worked together over Skype to design the dress, which was based in this amazing creation from Saverio's fashion line. The bodice of the dress has an organza corset under a metal cage covered with Swarovski crystals, with metal pieces rising up that represent fire and flame. The skirt is made from organza and chiffon. There are laser-cut feathers on the shoulders and waist that hint at Katniss's eventual transformation into the Mockingjay.
Wall Street Journal's Scene Asia blog did an article on Saverio after the Lady Gaga picture where he talked about being humbled by the comparison to Alexander McQueen, and how he created his clothes to fit the more conservative society in Asia while still delivering flare and drama. He lives in North Jakarta with his ethnic Chinese parents, with his design studio adjacent to them home and his studio on the ground floor.
Looking forward to seeing more from this very talented designer.
Wall Street Journal's Scene Asia blog did an article on Saverio after the Lady Gaga picture where he talked about being humbled by the comparison to Alexander McQueen, and how he created his clothes to fit the more conservative society in Asia while still delivering flare and drama. He lives in North Jakarta with his ethnic Chinese parents, with his design studio adjacent to them home and his studio on the ground floor.
Looking forward to seeing more from this very talented designer.
Wednesday, March 6, 2013
Sports Illustrated and Game of Thrones
Sports Illustrated uses Game of Thrones as the theme of its latest Power Issue, which features an illustration of Roger Goodell sitting on the Iron Throne as the cover. SI named Roger Goodell the most powerful person in sports this year. SI also did a sports map based on the Game of Thrones landscape, including Selig's Landing (King's Landing), Stern's End (Storm's End), Vale of Anschutz (Vale of Arryn), and the NHL as wildlings to the North in the Land of Always Hockey (the Land of Always Winter). The last part will be controversial to Mr. Y.
SI also did a podcast with Game of Thrones author George R. R. Martin. My favorite part of the excerpt was Martin comparing the two teams I hate, the Dallas Cowboys and the New England Patriots, to the evil Lannisters, and the revelation that Martin called Patriots coach Bill Belichick "Evil Little Bill" on his blog, as well as Martin speculating that Belichick might be worse than a Lannister - perhaps a Grejoy.
SI also did a podcast with Game of Thrones author George R. R. Martin. My favorite part of the excerpt was Martin comparing the two teams I hate, the Dallas Cowboys and the New England Patriots, to the evil Lannisters, and the revelation that Martin called Patriots coach Bill Belichick "Evil Little Bill" on his blog, as well as Martin speculating that Belichick might be worse than a Lannister - perhaps a Grejoy.
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
Hawaii Five-O, Train, and the 2013 Pro Bowl
Hawaii Five-O's latest episode, "Paʻani" ("The Game") was shot during the actual Pro Bowl occurring in Honolulu, Hawaii, and guest-starred Arian Foster, the star running back from the Houston Texans. In addition, Pat Monahan from the band Train showed up to play the CEO of a technology company who had one of its employees killed during a team building military-style exercise.
It turned out that Train was the halftime performer at the Pro Bowl, and they also shot a video for their new single, Mermaid, that incorporated the Pro Bowl and featured cameos from Hawaii Five-O and the NFL.
It turned out that Train was the halftime performer at the Pro Bowl, and they also shot a video for their new single, Mermaid, that incorporated the Pro Bowl and featured cameos from Hawaii Five-O and the NFL.
American Idol - Top 20
Now that American Idol has chosen its top 20, it's time for the viewers to vote. Here are my favorites, in no particular order:
Girls
1) Kree Harrison. She didn't get much air time during the auditions, but really made up for it with great singing during Hollywood and Vegas weeks. I like the low-key vibe that she gives out, plus she is primed for one of those major TV makeovers.
2) Candice Glover. I thought it was a shame that she didn't make it last year, but she came back even better this year. One of the strongest voices this year, but she has to start picking more daring songs instead of the typical Aretha/Whitney/Mariah R&B ouvre.
3) Angie Miller. It's amazing how well she sings considering that she is partially deaf, and I liked the original song she sang in Hollywood. She needs help in the clothes department, though.
4) Breanna Steer. She hasn't had a lot of air time, but her version of Jazmine Sullivan's "Bust Your Windows" during Vegas week was great and a nice change from all the ballads.
Guys
A lot of the guys that I like have been eliminated already, and I do suspect that the producers are really attempting to stack the deck in the girls' favor. The judges have eliminated guys who have great voices, but who the producers fear will cruise on their looks and charms for weeks, like Johnny Keyser and Jimmy Smith. Nevertheless, I did like two of the top 10:
1) Devin Velez. He has guts and a great voice, without the attitude (*cough*Curtis Finch, Jr.*cough*). Let's hope he doesn't fall into the Karen Rodriguez trap and only becomes memorable for singing in both English and Spanish.
2) Nick Boddington. His Vegas cover of James Morrison's "Say Something Now" was surprisingly weak, but he has shown enough flashes of brilliance that I hope he sticks around and gets stronger.
Girls
1) Kree Harrison. She didn't get much air time during the auditions, but really made up for it with great singing during Hollywood and Vegas weeks. I like the low-key vibe that she gives out, plus she is primed for one of those major TV makeovers.
2) Candice Glover. I thought it was a shame that she didn't make it last year, but she came back even better this year. One of the strongest voices this year, but she has to start picking more daring songs instead of the typical Aretha/Whitney/Mariah R&B ouvre.
3) Angie Miller. It's amazing how well she sings considering that she is partially deaf, and I liked the original song she sang in Hollywood. She needs help in the clothes department, though.
4) Breanna Steer. She hasn't had a lot of air time, but her version of Jazmine Sullivan's "Bust Your Windows" during Vegas week was great and a nice change from all the ballads.
Guys
A lot of the guys that I like have been eliminated already, and I do suspect that the producers are really attempting to stack the deck in the girls' favor. The judges have eliminated guys who have great voices, but who the producers fear will cruise on their looks and charms for weeks, like Johnny Keyser and Jimmy Smith. Nevertheless, I did like two of the top 10:
1) Devin Velez. He has guts and a great voice, without the attitude (*cough*Curtis Finch, Jr.*cough*). Let's hope he doesn't fall into the Karen Rodriguez trap and only becomes memorable for singing in both English and Spanish.
2) Nick Boddington. His Vegas cover of James Morrison's "Say Something Now" was surprisingly weak, but he has shown enough flashes of brilliance that I hope he sticks around and gets stronger.
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