Pomaceous Tree Fruit

I resisted, I did. Stridently, energetically, loudly...probably knowing in my deep subconscious that once I succumbed I'd be an addict that can't, like Alice, stop falling down the rabbit hole. Even now I couldn't name this article after the source of the problem, the biblical fruit of temptation disguising themselves as a silicon valley staple.

For a long time they have built high functioning software and hardware. This has never been questioned or argued. The issue for me has been, and still is, that the kit is coupled very tightly with proprietary elements: file types (MP3); stores (iTunes); corporations (AT&T); etc. This has always been the stumbling block for me as I love open source and the freedom to mix and match at will getting the best of everything and upgrading at will. This you do not get with Apple (yes, there, I said it). But this last 12 months I have felt more and more that perhaps I was missing out on the Apple experience, that creative collective they have become that works, as Steve Jobs says, at the 'intersection of technology and liberal arts'.

Do I have a need to be on the inside, on the edge, have the best, see the other side, not be left behind? Yes, possibly a little of all of those things plus, no doubt, other thoughts that have not struck me yet. I look at Apple now and wonder if they have changed the game so much so that, even with my head in the sand, I can not ignore the need to look and see. (I am not sure how you look and see with your head in the sand but you get the gist.)

Before I admit anything I need to add that the other stumbling block for me was always price which has usually been far above that of more standard equipment that will do much the same job. Apple has always tended to be more media friendly, arguably more intuitive and high performing but the margins of benefit to cost did not always merit the switch. This too can now be questioned as the Mac, iPhone, iPod Touch and now the iPad each host capabilities that used to be spread across disparate devices. So there  is an obvious cost benefit of buying one device that serves a lot of purposes and does them all well. However, it must be noted that this is also a risk too, if the device goes wrong you obviously lose access to all functions as it is fixed/replaced. This such a skin deep exploration of todays investment return though. As the greatest benefit is perhaps the aspect of having one device that works the same way to do everything whilst also being so portable and tactile is possibly the greatest leap forward. It enables what used to be awkward activities (downloading, formatting, playing music/movies, configuring software, etc) to be simplified so as a novice you don't have to spend a lot of time learning what to do.

You can purchase a device that meets most needs with more coming. An object that will let you play music or movies, read books, surf the net, do your email, navigate via GPS plus other, yet to be explored, functions. This whilst also being an astonishingly striking piece of hardware. What's not to like and that's the problem...to continue to resist seems to be doing so for the sake of stubbornness. So I should be open minded at the very least.

And now for my admission (part 1), the change in my mindset was at least partly prompted by my wife. Six or eight months ago she wanted a laptop and decided to get a Macbook. She loves it and I mean loves it. She has her trials with it and as a woman who has worked a PC for years and has run training courses her statement that it is not as intuitive as you'd be led to believe is worth a  listening to. BUT, that is a very minor qualm in what has otherwise been a huge love affair with a piece of tech hardware. And for my wife to love a piece of hardware like she does is a revelation.

I experienced this transformation second hand having watched and then occasionally experienced by loading a piece of software, music, picture or video. I found it to be a lovely blend of form and function with the most striking feature being the instant-on experience. For whatever karmic reason, I had an Apple placed in my life to challenge my mindset.

And no doubt about it, I was smitten but I had no need, finance or justification to move to Apple plus I still had my conscience to wrangle with.

But....having a Macbook in the house made me want to some Apple pie for myself and so to admission part 2: I bought an iPod touch. A refurbished version as I wanted to get a little more for my money and test build quality. If the experiment turned south then no big loss. The other side of the scale, I get a device that I can play music/movies (plane bliss), be an e-reader (books in my pocket), games (Do I really have time to waste! No, but have I always managed to waste time...do I need to answer that question.) and much more.

I think you can see where this is going, after taking a little effort to get iTunes up and running, updating the iPod software, figuring out synching, transforming all my music to MP3, exploring the app store I was up and running. The Touch is amazing for what it is. Six years or so ago my MP3 player had a 64k card in it and had an inch square black and white screen. Today I have a 16GB equivalent with a colour screen that plays TV and movies if I wish. It's a surreal leap in technology. The really interesting thing to me is that it's some of the less obvious aspects that make the most impact: the instant-on (obviously), the one button to rule them all, the finger swipe, the auto-rotation, the wireless net capability and - being a book lover - the e-reader functionality. You can always have a book, or several, in your pocket.

The experiment goes on but I can't really see how I can stem the tide, even if the tide is now made of snApple.

Apple has changed, and is likely to continue to change and challenge, the market and its norms. If I step over the Apple threshold I am hoping it also helps me turn my own personal world into a newer brighter place too. I just have to see if I can control the pace at which I slide down the rabbit hole.

I'm TIOT and I'm a PC with Apple tendencies.

The Chocolate Festival at Fairchild Gardens

We went to the Fairchild Gardens Chocolate festival over the weekend and fun stuff it was too. The festival as usual had a lot going on around the chocolate theme - Gourment chocolate, raw chocolate, cacao products, cacao plants, chocolate dipped fruit, etc. - but also had lots of other artisanal food stuff, bread, crepes, coffee, herbs, spices, teas and on and on. Really great to sate your sweet tooth or if you wanted to try something new or a bit different.

We got there early and walked in under overcast skies and enjoying a cooling breeze. Both of these factors seemed to have kept the morning crowd numbers down which allowed us to roam easily round the various stalls, displays and the gardens themselves. As the morning wore on the crowds filled out, the cloud cover dissipated and the breeze dropped so it got hot and a little bustling in terms of the locals. It was at this point that we withdrew but not without purchasing a few odds and ends to taste and having admired a wide array of handiwork, some edible and some not.

A chocolate creation

...and some of the artwork the chocolate creation is based on.



Some spices for those who like things spicy



More art from the Japanese artist (pumpkins above) who is on display at Fairchild and who sees polka dots everywhere she looks, literally affecting her vision so it it imposes itself on her art too.

Mr Potato head's lips that seem to have gone AWOL

If you are ever down this way Fairchild is worth checking out to see if they have an event on or they have some interesting art on display. 


Till another moment of inspiration strikes me, fair thee well.   

Procrastination

I think I'll write this tomorrow...

Here's something to keep you amused until then > here

Duuude (The Imaginarium of Dr Parnassus)

Wow, it's been said before and it will be said again, Terry Gilliam has a wild imagination. Or great insight on acid flashbacks...or possibly a little of both.

I saw 'The Imaginarium of Dr Parnassus' today arriving in my seat not quite sure what to expect, always the case with a TG film. It did not disappoint as it's a many layered story both on screen and off. I say this as the movie is also notable in that it stands as the end piece to Heath Ledger's career and from that perspective it is a wonderful exclamation mark. The movie serves him well in many ways not least that several notable players stepped in to help finish the film after his untimely death. Johnny Depp, Jude Law and Colin Farrell pitch in and have been blended in to the film in such a way that it adds to the story rather than detracts.

All that said, the movie serves all its players and creators well in terms of story and visual depth. The film hosts dark and light in both the cinematography and the tale itself as characters strike deals with the devil to enhance their lives and then try to escape the consequences as the bills become due. The unwinding of the movie reel cajoles us to see what happens to the main protagonists and the innocents that are pulled in to their orbit.

The visual majesty is provided on several levels. It starts with the contrast between the world of a vagabond's circus show in down at heel London to the imagined worlds beyond the show's mirror. At this point TG steps through his own personal looking glass and ramps up the optical fireworks with his presentation of an array of worlds and questions that the various players imaginations create for themselves. And therein lies the essence of the film, great visuals encompassing a variety of moral dilemmas all played out around a deal with the devil.

It would bear a second watching for the astonishing visual scenes both sides of the mirror and some of the subtler aspects of both the action and the dialogue. If you wish to see it, it is definitely a movie you should try see at the cinema to do justice to the world's from the directors imagination.

As a footnote it is also possible to see some of the Monty Python stylings here and there but they are no distraction and for the audience that knows TG they will enjoy that and for those that don't they won't see it.

Slyest line of the movie for me..."Don't believe everything you read. Especially The Mirror."

The Busman's Prayer

Ran across this today and loved the wordplay ... an homage to London bus drivers I surmise.

Our Farnham, who art in Hendon
Harrow be Thy name.
Thy Kingston come; thy Wimbledon,
In Erith as it is in Hendon.
Give us this day our daily Brent
And forgive us our Westminster
As we forgive those who Westminster against us.
And lead us not into Thames Ditton
But deliver us from Yeovil.
For Thine is the Kingston, the Purley and the Crawley,
For Esher and Esher.
Crouch End.

Reference Wikipedia: The Bus Driver's Prayer, also known as the Busman's Lord's Prayer, was a parody of the Lord's Prayer that takes the bus driver around Greater London (while avoiding further destinations). The words are apocryphal and have been around since 1970 at least. The wordplay, making extensive use of puns on English place names, is typical of English humour.

New line of Tonka toys?

or an invitation by a guy named Tonka?

It's been a cinematic weekend

It's been chilly in Florida. Hard to believe but it's actually been freezing here in the south with snow in mid Florida...very weird. So needless to say we haven't been spending a lot of time outdoors, though Meliss did have to keep nipping out to cover her plants with a variety of things to stop them getting frostbite.

With the indoor approach to the weekend we went to the movies both days to stay warm and catch up on films that came out while we were away.

Yesterday we saw Avatar 3D. Really visually spectacular and a must see at the movies if you can. It's not a movie that will come across anywhere near as well on DVD/Blu-Ray...unless you have you're own home cinema with stadium seating of course. The 3D is interesting but not hugely obtrusive, though that may have been because we were sat in a corner of the cinema. The main feature over and above the 3D is the imagination of the folks who have created the fictional planet of Pandora. Because of that it's one of those movies you can watch over, not for the dialogue or story but for the details in the background. The story is nothing exceptional but plays well enough with the world and characters that it places on the screen. So if you're put off by the hype or sci-fi you should still go check it out and see for yourself.

The weekend's second movie was Holmes with Robert Downey jnr. A new interpretation of Conan Doyle's classic characters with another great set of visuals. This time the screen was filled by Victorian London with all it's dark, grimy corners and varied villainy. The movie has more action than the typical Holmes cerebral affair but balances the layers of humour, puzzle and action well enough to keep you focussed. Robert Downey slips into his role with the ease that he put on his costume and enjoys a tongue in cheek love fest with Jude Law as Watson. All in all a tale well told.

Avatar 4* - loses one for somewhat formulaic characterisation & dialogue
Holmes 4* - loses one for slightly slow pacing

Trip pics part 2: Paris

Notre Dame


New Years Eve













Photoshop of me & Notre Dame










On top of the Arc de Triomph


Grapes











From the river









The Arc









Chocolate decoration - really it is

Pics of the trip - part 1: Germany

Gluhwein


Christkindlemarket lights













Cool ornament


Penguin ornmanents - whats not to like











Antique roundabout









More market ambiance









Snow falls, kids sledge









Amazing market stalls









Cute Happy, if cold, couple












Christmas Scene










Strange Sculpture













German town / architecture










Arty name/couple shot!









Amazing window decoration

From Frohe Weinachten to Bonne Année

Happy New Year (belatedly)

I am just catching up after travelling back and so only now managing to write up a few notes on the last days of our trip.

New Years eve was a fun run around day.

We had previously failed to ascend the Eiffel Tower (huge queues), the towers at Notre Dame (closed) and the Arc de Triomph (more huge queues). So we set out to conquer at least one of these mountain slopes.

Notre Dame escaped us with another sensational queue but I had managed to procure tickets to the AdT by purchasing them at FNAC digitale (France's "Virgin Megastore" would be the only way to relate to it for us Anglos) meaning we were able to circumvent queues there.

A quick Metro trip, a 284 step climb up (phew) the venerable memorial and we were gazing out at misty (low cloudy) Paris from the Arc's wind scoured peak. Really enthralling to look across the city as Paris has deliberately kept high rise buildings from being built in it's center so the views are extensive.

Following that we needed a bite and a rest before the evenings festivities. We headed down and strolled the Champs Elysees french bread (or bread as it is called in France!) in hand, then mouth, as we headed to the hotel for a nap.

Paris is busy on NY's eve. A lot of people in town to see the lights, celebrate, eat, meet, make friends and let off fireworks. So we had a reservation at Le Florimond restaurant although it was for the early seating at 7:00pm. We'd have preferred the later seating though on reflection it would not have let us be on the streets with the peeps at the witching hour.
We had a lovely meal, five courses of beautiful cuisine. A little upmarket and delicate compared to our usual rustic tastes but an experience and experiment we wanted to make. If you're going to try something different food wise then France is a good place to try it. The staff were lovely, Patrick, Laurent and Benedict, not to mention chef Pascal. The flavours were magnifique and the ambience and scale (maybe 10 or 12 tables in the place) wonderful too.

At the end we rushed out as the 9:30 diners started to filter in and we were loose one the streets with a million other folks. Walking and laughing and trying to keep warm then stopping for coffee and champagne before heading to the Parc Du Champs Du Mars to stand and watch the light shower on the Eiffel Tower.

It was frigid but fascinating to watch the crowd bloom and mushroom as midnight approached. The lights changed colours, glowed and pulsed while we watched champagne bottles being popped, glasses filled and then, as midnight struck, toasts made. The Tower sparkled with a glittering effect and we welcomed in the new decade with my classic quote of "Do you want to go now" (M was freezing) before she reminded me we should kiss the new year in... who says I am not a romantic eh!

We thought there would be fireworks and perhaps there were on the Champs Elysees but the only ones we saw were as folks let some off in the park, causing a bit of involuntary 'dancing' from the unwary. The Metro was crazed near Ecole Militaire so we speed walked a mile or so before ducking beneath the surface.We arrived back at our hotel, chill but replete in both belly and spirit having seen in the new year properly... our norm being to be barely awake or even sleeping already!

New years day was our anniversary and almost everything was shut. So we wandered the streets enjoying the contrast to the night before as very few people were out and about. It was cold and grey which doesn't lessen the beauty of the city and we walked the old cobbled streets, the windblown bridges and sheltered in the occasional opportunist store. A lovely set of memories, as was the whole trip.

So with that our journey from Nuremberg's Christkindlmarket, via "Frohe Weihnachten" on the Danube/Rhine to"Bonne Année" ends (for now) on our dixième anniversaire de mariage in Paris.  Andwith that I'll end the travel blog and return to more normal matters though I will post a few pics when I can.

Till the next time, may your queues be short and your tickets cheap. Au 'voir mes amis.

Fallen Angel !

Saddest Christmas decoration ever. Seen in Wertheim, Germany a tree with no ornaments and the Angel having apparently pitched off the top...did she fall or was she pushed?

United Car of Benetton?

I couldn't work out if this was deliberate and the guy was trying to get a kickback (picture taken in Wurzburg, Germany)

Breaking News...Gobsmacked in Paris

Happy New Year folks. Just a quickie as I am preparing to fly tomorrow so have to pack, sleep and stuff.

However, I had to make a brief announcement. Today we received our bags (fanfare)...hooray! How cool is that, having landed on December 19th. However, and sorry for the sour note... Really, REALLY Air France! Ten hours before I fly home you deliver the bags that this morning you did not know where they were. So much so that you were happy with my request that if you should find the bags that you'd keep them and put them straight on plane tomorrow. But Nooooooo! You couldn't even get that right so now I have to schlep the bags to the airport tomorrow... unopened since they left my house 15 days ago!

OK, enough. I am thankful the bags are here though it is as yet unclear if they are whole and unscathed as they are in the hotel baggage room (I was too tired to mess with them). Lets hope we and they make it home safely tomorrow.

More on our fun New Year when time allows. Till the next time, it's Au Revoir from me and Bonne Voyage from Paris.