Musings From New York

Springfield Speculations

So there's a closet gay in Springfield ... and I thought I'd add my own two cents worth as to whom that may be ...

Smithers is the most obvious choice. Too obvious, I tell you! Such obviousness is an insult to our intelligence! Besides, would he really be classified as a "closet" gay? At the risk of being non-PC, I would say no.

Selma & Patty - unlikely. They both express frequent interest in men who come into the DMV.

Given that the last time the Simpsons team introduced a major change was to kill off Maude Flanders and then use the consequences to fuel several episodes, I'd say we're in for some real shockers. My guesses are:

1. Barney - I can't remember if Barney's ever expressed an interest in women. Maybe, maybe not. Still, given Homer's close association with Barney, I can see this new character development giving viewers some mileage.

2. Krusty the Clown - Now I know what you're going to say: Krusty has shown a lot of interest in women. But think of the controversy this would cause! "Wholesome" childrens' entertainer being attacked by conservative right-wingers and childrens' welfare organizations. Tie-in with innappropriate TV stuff (a la Janet). I think it's powerful stuff.

3. Mr. Burns - Hasn't been with a woman since being rejected in one of the previous seasons. Why not, I say? A taunt towards right-wing, conservative Republicans!

4. Groundskeeper Willie - Same as Krusty: someone working with children - anxiety about exposure to "indecency".

Well, the episode won't air until January '05. I guess we'll only know the truth then. Unless someone breaks into Fox Studios and leaks the script.

Apple Sucks

Don't get me wrong - I love my iPod and admire some of the features of Macintosh computers ... but their customer care SUCKS.

I bought a $30 iTunes Music Store gift certificate for my brother about 10 days ago. I got the e-mail saying I had been successfully billed but he never received the certificate. There's no phone number on the website, only an e-mail form, whichI duly filled out last Wednesday (ie: a week ago).  I got a confirmation e-mail stating that the issue would be addressed in 24-48 hours. 5 days, or 120 hours later, I have no response and when I called Apple, I was told there was no phone number or customer care agent to talk to. I was instead told to dispute the charge made with my bank!

Imagine that! Apple would rather the consumer took the trouble to correct its problems! For all its touting of user-friendliness, Apple seems to be as cold and heartless as the next company.

I remember Mansi and I taking her old Powerbook to the Apple store in downtown NYC last year. God, was the customer care rep a jerk! We wanted to know how to install a wireless card, and the technician refused to tell us. To do so would've cost us 100 bucks! He said the best he could do was to take it into the back (yes, without us watching) and check if the card was working by installing it. He'd then take it out and return the card and laptop to us. Ultimately, he relented and did it for free, but what the !@#$ is Apple's problem?

You know, some people call Microsoft a cold heartless company, but I tell you - Microsoft is a benevolent dictator compared to Apple's tyrant!

Catching Up On the Movie Front

Seen a few movies since my last post -

Some Like It Hot 8/10
The Great Race 10/10 (I loved this movie as a kid, and I love it now)
Anchorman 6/10 (I missed Will Ferrell's usual craziness a la Old School)
Do Aur Do Paanch 7/10 (good start, boring end)

The DVD's I'm looking forward to are Kill Bill, Vol. 2 (out August 10th, I think) and Star Wars IV-VI (out September 21st, or thereabouts). Already ordered them on Amazon!

I Come, I Go, I Come Again

Well, it's been a while since I posted anything. Just been too un-enthu-ed for some reason. Nothing much happened over the last couple of weeks. Kartik finally left, and so I'm now in a quiet empty apartment, and it's back to keeping the TV on all night ... that's not too bad, I guess!

The big dilemma is what to do for the Labor Day weekend. Do I go to eg: Chicago and meet Kiran & family (and possibly, Sudhir & to-be-family)? Do I go to Pat & Sarah's wedding in Canada? Do I stay in NYC and meet up with folks visiting? Decisions, decisions.

Pictures of Fireworks

My new camera rocks ... the Canon Powershot S60.

I tested it out taking the July 4th fireworks on the East River (near the UN building). I'd found an article online explaining how to photograph fireworks using a digital camera, and thought I'd give it a shot (no pun intended!).

There's this cool feature of the camera where it can take 10 shots in 3 seconds. So all I had to do was point the camera upwards and press the button! I did miss a couple of good ones - I stopped taking photos and decided to watch instead - the smiley face and the valentine hearts. Pity.

Another good photo of the fireworks

Another good photo of the fireworks - they were from the Macy's Float on the river Midtown (near the UN)

One of the better July 4th fireworks

One of the better July 4th Photos

Long Time No Post

So I've had a relaxing couple of weeks away from Blogger. Not really been anywhere, but just been too busy/un-enthued to post. Let's see ... there was a weekend trip to Long Island (Jones Beach, the Hamptons) ... a few movies (see below), Nikhil's visit over the 4th of July weekend ... and then, just lazing at home.

The movies ... too busy to write any long reviews, but in summary:

1. The Terminal (7/10): Above average movie ... kinda disappointed with it, Tom Hanks gave another "Cast Away" performance, Catherine Zeta-Jones was wasted. There was some good humor and pathos in the movie, though. Actually, make that "Catherine Zeta-Jones was miscast". She comes off as an ice-maiden ... no warmth to her personality at all. I guess her character's supposed to be this cool suave thing, but someone cranked the 'fridge's settings to permafrost.

2. Dodgeball (6/10): I don't know why I was expecting better of this movie. I thought "Ben Stiller ... hmm ... Meet the Parents, Zoolander ... films where you cringe and laugh at the same time". Well, not this time around. Most of the humor involves bodily functions, body parts, or getting hit in them. The whole movie is a PhD exercise on people's reactions upon being hit in the crotch. OK-ish jokes, but the movie's definitely not on par with the above-mentioned Ben Stiller movies.

3. Spider-man 2 (8.5/10): Can someone tell me why there's a f-ing hyphen in Spider-man? He's not a half spider-half man ... if he is, then he belongs in the X-Men! Anyway. Excellent movie. Good action, good character development. Cribs: the first 45 minutes are painfully slow. There's no action, and it's all about how much of a loser Peter Parker is. The editors could've dropped 10-15 minutes of the movie over here. Vidya described it as a chick-flick. I wouldn't go that far ... but you get the idea! The other crib is that the villain for Spider-man 3 (SPOILER ALERT!!) is the Hobgoblin. More of the stupid Goblin mask. Oh, Doc Ock rocked as a villain. Totally rocked.

Anyway, gotta go!